Month: November 2014

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Weekly Wrap 234: Scallops and disruption

Scallops and eel, est restaurant: click to embiggenMy week of Monday 24 to Sunday 30 November 2014 was, quite frankly, irritating — for reasons that I won’t detail here. The end result was that I didn’t get to take part in some of the social and semi-social events that I’d planned to. I am grumpy.

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The only edition of the 5at5 email newsletter that I got out the door was Monday. There will be more this week, so why not subscribe so you receive them all?

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Corporate Largesse

The Week Ahead

This is the week where freelancers switch from the always-busy November to the stressful process of solving a specific, annual problem: How can I ensure that there’s enough cashflow to survive Christmas, New Year and through to the end of January, when all the usual sources of income are dry? Wish me luck.

(It’s actually quite depressing to see people starting to add Christmas motifs to their Twitter avatars and otherwise talking about “the festive season” when one’s own time is anything but festive. Sigh.)

With that in mind, Monday is a day of administrivia and planning, and Tuesday will be dedicated to production for The 9pm Edict podcast. I think a pre-Christmas subscriber drive will come out of that. That work will continue on the days after that, along with online briefings at 0830 and 1400 on Wednesday, and at 0600 on Thursday. Somewhere in there I’ll also write a column for ZDNet Australia.

On Friday I’ll be heading in to Sydney for a briefing by BAE Systems, and then the (in)famous Watterson PR Christmas lunch Cisco’s end-of-year lunch at Gastro Park. The weekend thereafter is unplanned.

[Update 2 December: Edited to reflect change to Friday’s commitments.]

[Photo: Scallops and smoked eel — or, more completely, grilled scallops, smoked eel, baby leeks, wakame, shiso, yuzu — all being an entrée at est restaurant, Sydney, photographed on 25 November 2014.]

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Talking Regin spyware on ABC The World Today

ABC logoComment on current affairs programs happens in the most random ways. Last Tuesday I did a quick comment on the newly-revealed Regin spyware from a park bench in Sydney — a quick break while dashing between Wynward railway station and lunch.

Now at the time of doing this piece for ABC Radio’s The World Today, I’d read the report in The Intercept, and a couple of mainstream news stories that had bounced off that, but I hadn’t read either of the white papers from Symantec (PDF) or Kaspersky Lab (PDF).

For an initial comment on mainstream radio that was probably enough of an orientation, but with the benefit of hindsight a few days later, well, I might have put things slightly differently.

The journalist is Liv Casben.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (1.6MB)

The audio is ©2014 Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and it’s served here directly from the ABC website where you’ll also find a transcript.

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Weekly Wrap 233: From privacy around and back to privacy

The Central Points: click to embiggenMy week of Monday 17 to Sunday 23 November 2014 was pleasingly productive, and struck a better balance between work and leisure time than the previous week. This pleases me.

I also suspect that Saturday night’s New Moon heralded the start of a new cycle of something or other, because so far Sunday has felt very different. We shall see.

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There were editions of the 5at5 email newsletter on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday. Why not subscribe so you receive them all?

Media Appearances

Corporate Largesse

  • On Monday, I covered the iappANZ conference, so there was food and drink on offer, and so I consumed same. I also had too many drinks with certain ISOC-AU people afterwards.

The Week Ahead

On Monday, I’ll be writing a column for ZDNet Australia, and planning some technical work that’ll unfold in December.

On Tuesday, I’m heading in to Sydney for a lunchtime briefing by AVG Technologies. On the train, I’ll be working on a feature article for ZDNet Australia that’s due at the end of the month. I’ll complete that feature on Wednesday.

On Thursday, I’m writing another column for ZDNet Australia, and heading to Sydney for the annual internet industry boat party on Sydney Harbour, followed by further drinks in the evening. I’ll be staying in Sydney overnight.

On Friday, I’m writing a piece for Crikey, and starting work on another episode of The 9pm Edict podcast. That podcast will be finished on the weekend — although what else that weekend may hold is still to be determined.

[Photo: The Central Points, being part of a set of railway track points — what Americans would call “railroad switches” — photographed on 17 November 2014.]

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Sold: Zoom H6 Handy Recorder, as-new condition

I have a Zoom H6 Handy Recorder in as-new condition that’s surplus to requirements. It can be yours for just $360, including shipping anywhere within Australia. [Update: No, it’s been sold.]

Zoom H6 Handy Recorder: click to embiggen

The H6 is essentially a six-channel recording studio in a handy portable form. Check the product page and the full technical specifications for the wonder.

You get everything that’s in the picture:

  • Zoom H6 Handy Recorder
  • X/Y mic capsule
  • Mid-Side mic capsule
  • SD memory card
  • Windscreen
  • USB cable
  • 4 x AA batteries
  • Steinberg Cubase LE software
  • Protective case

This near-new unit has been used for just two location recordings. So the box has been opened, and slightly torn in one spot, but everything is in excellent condition.

The recommended retail price for a new Zoom H6 is $679, but I paid $504 for this one, and I’ve seen street prices as low as $379. This unit also comes with a two-year extended warranty, valid to 1 July 2016, priced at $79.

This Zoom H6 Handy Recorder can be yours for just $360. Email stil@stilgherrian.com or phone +61 407 623 600.

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Talking exposed webcams on 1395 FIVEaa

FIVEaa logoAustralian news outlets ran stories today about a Russian website that shows live video cameras that haven’t been properly protected, and I ended up talking about it with Will Goodings on Adelaide radio 1395 FIVEaa.

I disagreed with the Fairfax story, which called the Russian site “Online IP net surveillance cameras of the world” the result of “hacking”. For me, hacking implies some sort of technical trick. But I did point out that unprotected devices on the internet are not new. The Shodan search engine shows all manner of exposed devices.

The audio includes a subsequent guest on the program, Con Kosmidis from Alpha Security Systems, who amplified some of my points, and a small rant from Mr Goodings.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (8.7MB)

The audio is ©2014 dmgRadio Australia.

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Talking Netflix for Australia on ABC 891 Adelaide

ABC logoToday the US-based video streaming service announced that will launch in Australia in March 2015. I spoke about the implications earlier this evening on ABC 891 Adelaide.

While Netflix already has 200,000-odd customers in Australia, using various methods to get around the geoblocking. Will they move across when the Australian service, given that the selection won’t be the same? Will Australia’s broadband cope?

The presenter is Michael Smyth.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (5.2MB)

The audio is ©2014 Australian Broadcasting Corporation.