IBM Releases X-Force 2008 Trend Statistics

IBM released its X-Force 2008 trend statistics . There’s lots of good information there, and I suggest anyone with an interest in security read the entire document. Realistically, it’s 85 pages and I know you haven’t got a lot of time, but remember I told you to read it later when you’re surfing I-Am-Bored.

Hedgie Photography Opens Up

After some prodding and pushing from friends, I settled on the middle ground. I’ve brought Hedgie Photography online. It’s a nice gallery where you can look at some of the best photographic works Andy and I have put together. While there’s no online ordering system, feel free to contact me if you’re interested in purchasing prints.

And given Andy’s contention that she wants to post shots that may not be professional quality, I’ve also launched Hedgie Photo Blog, where Andy and I can post photos that we like. The blog will get far more photos than the gallery, which is intended for the “best of the best.”

Enjoy the new photos! I fell in a river yesterday, with my camera, so it may be a while before I take any new photos. In the meantime, look through the gallery, and send me any comments. Be aware that signing up for e-mail updates when you register a username on this blog will sign you up for Photo Blog updates, too. RSS and Atom feeds are still separate.

What is Art?

A co-worker recently saw some of my photographs, and remarked that I ought to start selling my photographs. She suggested printing and framing them, and selling them at a local farmers’ market. Honestly, the idea of spending hours sitting in a booth, trying to sell photographs at thin margins, just isn’t too appealing to me. I do agree that many of my photographs are professional quality, and with better equipment and more time invested I think I could produce some really nice works.

I looked around, and noticed there were basically four methods photographers use to make money:

Bypassing Vista's Memory Protection

There’s an incredible amount of FUD concerning this talk presented at the 2008 BlackHat conference. Given the radical claims that are being tossed about, I’ll try to explain what this means for non-hackers. The following is a simplification and overlooks some technical points, but I’ll link the the original paper with lots of technical information — plus link to some code that can be used to demonstrate these attacks.

SSL (in)Security

Firefox 3 has added some nice features and improved one of the best browsers around. Personally, I’m still an Opera fan, but I’ll readily admit it’s as much personal preference as anything else. But Mozilla really screwed up with the new SSL security warnings. Not only is it directly affecting me and my servers, but it’s also driving home the point that Firefox is a browser for mainstream non-geeks, where transparency takes a backseat to user handholding.

Recovery Continues

The doctor said take it easy for three weeks, so I did. From my point of view, I’m still taking it easy — easier than I was before the surgery. But the pacemaker really isn’t slowing me down the way it was right after the surgery, and I took my son for a nice hike out Snow Lake. We got fogged in, as you can see from the photo.

Yesterday I also did a little light skiing over at Ptarmigan Ridge, picked solely because it was easy and would provide minimum stress on my wound. It feels good to be skiing again, even if it’s light skiing. Hopefully in another week I’ll be fully recovered.