Famous three laws !

Clarke’s Three Laws (from the book "Profiles of the Future" by Arthur C. Clarke) [1]

1. “When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong.”
2. “The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to venture a little way past them into the impossible.”
3. “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”

Asimov's Laws of Robotics [2]

1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
2. A robot must obey orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

References
[1] NYT Article
[2] Wikipedia Article

EyeOS ! Is it anything more than EyeCandy?

EyeOS Professional Services has released this Browser based OS called EyeOS. Check the Demo at : http://demo.eyeos.org/


From the site :

eyeOS was thought as a new definition of Operating System, where everything inside it can be accessed from everywhere in a Network. All need to do is to login into your eyeOS server with a normal Internet Browser, and access your personal or corporate desktop, with your applications, documents and files... just like you left it last time.

eyeOS comes with a preloaded suite of applications, some for private use, like the file manager, a word processor, a music player, calendar, notepad or contacts manager. There are also some groupware applications, such as a group manager, a file sharing application, a group board and many more.

I am finding it difficult to comprehend why anyone would want to use this. Wasnt RemoteDesktop over VPN good enough?

This kind of technology opens a can of security worms. First of all, this is browser based and anyone can login from anywhere. So if a users account is compromised because he was logging into his company eyeOS server from a cybercafe, the companies data is at threat. Secondly, why would anyone want to leave word and excel and use applications provided by them? Or for that matter, why would anyone using Google Docs want to use this technology? I find it difficult to find the true value proposition in this product.

The idea is nevertheless neat.

Google Scanner from cDc

The Cult of the Dead Cow (cDc) has released Goolag: a google scanner for searching website vulnerabilities and other juicy information using Google. The scanner is based on google hacking techniques developed by Johnny Long. The tool comes with its own dork database and helps in scanning fast.

As defined by JohnnyLong in his hacking database: googledorks are Inept or foolish people as revealed by Google.

Technically, dorks are search patterns that reveal sites with potential vulnerabilities. Check the hacking database for the extensive list of dorks. These search patterns are not specific to google but just that its more effective with google because of its vast index.

An example dork from the hacking database is "intitle:admin intitle:login" which gives Admin Login pages. Now, the existance of this page does not necessarily mean a server is vulnerable, but it sure is handy to let Google do the discovering for you, no? Let's face it, if you're trying to hack into a web server, this is one of the more obvious places to poke.

Microsoft opens up its Treasure Chest

Microsoft has finally opened up their "treasure" chest. Microsoft has started a protocols program under which they are releasing loads and loads of Microsoft documentation.

From their website

"The Microsoft Protocol Programs foster innovation and interoperability by offering partners access to Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Microsoft SQL Server 2008, the 2007 Microsoft Office release, Microsoft Exchange Server 2007, and Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 protocols for use on any platform. These programs enable and encourage a vibrant development community and support it with customer service. The result will be smarter, interoperable products that can be released in coordination with Microsoft product releases."

All the documents are available in PDF format.

The following document gives a roadmap for ploughing through the documents. [MS-DOCO]: Windows Protocols Documentation Roadmap

Height of obsessiveness !

Check this link on autoblog

"The matchstick master built a full scale Mercedes-McLaren F1 car in his kitchen using 956,000 matchsticks and 1686 tubes of glue."

Don't forget to check out the photos gallery.