Software evolution in pictures.
Tuesday, May 31, 2005
I'm currently writing a tool to take screenshots and upload them to Flickr.
The core functionality is done, but I need some more attractive icons and buttons.
You can see the tool's progress in
its own Flickr account. I think it's quite cool
1 to watch the tool record its own development.
[1] For values of "cool" that include a large dose of geekery
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Since we're talking about ID cards
Tuesday, May 31, 2005
Former Lib Dem MP and all round knowledgeable person Richard Allen chimes in:
There are a number of red herrings in the Government’s case for ID cards (Guardian p4 26th May).
The biggest of these is the card itself. The most important element of the proposed Bill is not the issuing of an ID card but the national identity database. Identity cards are only an optional and expensive extra to this database. So when the Government ‘concedes’ that it will not be compulsory to carry the card, this is meaningless as it is common practice for us all to carry our irises and fingers from which the Police will be able to extract the information they need to check against the database with portable scanners. As live scanning technology becomes cheaper, it is quite possible that the cards will be quietly dropped in favour of direct checking of biometrics against the database in a range of situations.
Which makes it all even more worrying, since ID theft can't even be countered by cancelling a card. Great!
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Could you cancel my fingerprints while I cut up my eyeballs please?
Monday, May 30, 2005
The
UK and
US are getting biometric ID cards.
Regardless of your opinion of national ID schemes, it seems to me that a biometric based system is just asking for unnecessary extra trouble.
A quick Google suggests that it's already possible to
fake a fingerprint scan with relative ease which isn't a good start.
Let's give the Government the benefit of the doubt and assume that:
- They can improve scanners such that the existing fingerprint hole can be plugged.
- Retina scanners are not currently foolable. 1
Given the length of time these systems would have to be in place to be cost effective (ha!), it's almost inconceivable that the scanning technology will not be outstripped by some deception technology during its lifetime.
Now we're reliant on people taking the scans to be vigilant to spoofing methods again, and
we know for a fact that that won't happen.
So what do I do in this future world of perfect global identification when someone has my identity? I won't be canceling my existing ID and cutting it up because it is, well, me.
2I'd really rather like this question answering.
[1] Googling for fake retinal scans didn't find similar pages, but that's not to say they don't exist.
[2] Of course with biometric ID, other people have an interest in cutting you up, but that's another story.
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The May-lenium Bug
Thursday, May 26, 2005
I haven't used
FeedThing for ages, I've been using Bloglines so I don't have read/unread issues reading at home and work.
The Usability Manager in my company does use it however to keep up to date with internal RSS feeds.
It all stopped working a few weeks ago and I've discovered that it contains a schoolboy error that renders it incapable of working
at all in the month of May.
She's christened it the May-lennium bug.
Everyone hates a smartarse.
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Why I am no longer a Vodaphone customer
Monday, May 23, 2005
I just sent this letter to Vodaphone customer services.
Dear Sir,
Having been on one of your pay monthly contracts for over a year I was due to renew my contract and get a new phone.
Now I understand that there's a certain amount of haggling to be done to get the best deal. I find it unpleasant, but it's a fact of life.
I had a specific phone requirement, so I looked around for the best deal I could find. Having found what I wanted, I called your upgrades department and explained what I wanted, and what it would cost me elsewhere. They told me that there was nothing they could do about it, that they only had the deals available to them.
That seemed fair enough, so I went out and got myself a new phone and contract. When I called to cancel my old contract however, I was surprised to be offered a tariff that undercut my new deal. I explained that I had already signed a new contract, and it was suggested to me that I should go back and cancel this contract.
I find this astonishing. The need to haggle is bad enough. It seems to me that if you are genuinely interested in keeping customers, you should simply be offering them the best deal possible up front. A next best to this would be a genuine offer to match other deals when I am up for renewal.
What is outrageous, though is that you are prepared to call my bluff that I won't bother to cancel before you'll offer me a tariff which is clearly available to those who are willing to play this ridiculous game.
I'd be very interested to know your policy on price matching the offers of competing providers. Is my experience standard Vodaphone practice or has something gone wrong?
Yours faithfully
Gareth Simpson
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Broken Nice Titles
Thursday, May 19, 2005
My Nice Titles Greasemonkey script broke with the combination of GM 0.3.3 and Firefox 1.0.4.
All is well now though and you can
get the latest version.
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