Hi Doug, I saw your response to a person on Yahoo answers, It was probably a couple of years ago. I’m trying toget my hands on a Sap tool to practice on it on my own. You mentioned you were doing the same at that time. Do you still have it? Thanks
Sorry, I don’t recall this. I did have a client a while back who was interested in SAP but I don’t believe I ever followed through.
If you could provide a link to the question, it might help refresh my memory.
I don’t believe I’ve ever said I use pirated software, and I’d be surprised to see anything in which I offered to share pirated software. It’s possible I noted that stealing software was an option, but I have to believe that if I said that, I also said that doing so was legally and morally wrong. Again, a link to the question you’re referencing would clear things up for me.
For the record, I have often said — and stand by the statement — that it’s everyone’s right to make personal copies of software he has legally purchased, even if a EULA forbids personal copies; but I don’t believe it’s OK to distribute copy-restricted software in violation of license terms.
Book Review: The Art of Deception: Controlling the Human Element of Security
The problem with “The Art of Deception” is its age and the limited scope of the exploits Kevin Mitnick discusses.
Almost every (usually fictional) exploit that Mitnick describes involves exploiting large organizations — places where there are clear heirarchies, overlapping departmental responsibilities and integrated networks.
Also, a significant amount of what he discusses involves phone phreaking; given that was how he cut his teeth in the social engineering game, it’s not surprising.
But when you read an example that involves dialing in to a Nortel DMS-100, you know you’re reading dated material. Sure, some companies still use 30-year-old telephone switches, and PBX is still a highly exploitable technology. But an update to 21st century tech is sorely wanted here.
Generally speaking, every example Mitnick provides for a successful social engineering attack comes down to three basic steps:
- Get a name and title on someone in a large company.
- Call a low-level employee on the telephone, masquerading as that person, and ask for some information that lines up the target.
- Call the target, repeat the information given by the low-level employee, get the target to compromise the system.
Sure, this can work — if you target large enough an operation. But what about small companies? Or individuals? Or non-corporate espionage? They go largely unaddressed.
Continue reading: Book Review: The Art of Deception: Controlling the Human Element of Security »
binding a data from database to dropdownlist based on selected item of another dropdown list
I blogged about doing this with PHP / MySQL / jQuery at http://dougv.us/64 , http://dougv.us/4s and http://dougv.us/4r . If you’re looking for an ASP.NET Web Forms version, I’ll add this to my "to blog" list. Can’t say as to when I’ll get around to it, but probably not immediately, sorry.
Looking To Trade Web Design For Programming Time
This Web site is in sore need of a redesign — something cleaner, way prettier, brandable and unique — and it’s painfully obvious to me I’m not the guy to get that done.
So to all the ad agencies, creative houses, Web designers and graphic artists out there: I’m looking to trade my time and materials for your time and materials.
If you’ve got the skills to apply a brand to this site that kicks much ass, I’ve got the skills to hack your CMS, ride herd on your troublesome Web server, write you a WordPress plugin, fix your stove-up online store, clean up your messy database, build you an ASP.NET / PHP site, do some Microsoft Office VBA, apply some jQuery or API code, and much more.
This site runs off WordPress and I’m pretty neurotic about making sure it’s the latest version. I have zero brand identity at the moment in terms of aesthetics, so you’ll have near total creative freedom. And since I’m in the business, you can be sure I’m not going to be one of those pains in the ass who expects the moon and stars for nothing, or who constantly asks for tweaks, needless gizmos or ridiculous “features.”
The only hard requirements on my end:
- The design must use WordPress coding standards and follow best practices (e.g., no hard-coding of menus / widgets on template pages; style hooks for unique divs / sections; no deprecated WordPress functions; page, index, archive, comment and other templates put in unique files; etc.)
- It must be XHTML 1 Transitional and CSS 2 compliant. I’d prefer if it was HTML 5 and CSS 3 compliant, but I’m not going to be pushy about that.
- No Flash or other animations.
Interested? Shoot me an email at dougvanderweide@gmail.com describing what you think would work here and what you’d like me to do in return.
Review: Free: The Future of a Radical Price
Free: The Future of a Radical Price by Chris Anderson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Reading Free: The Future of a Radical Price reminded me, in many ways, of The Grand Design.
To understand the universe on the quantum level, you have to embrace understandings and facts that seem ludicrous at human scales. That is, that we have free will; that things cannot be in the same place at the same time; that time progresses at one speed and forward only, are all convenient and explicit truths for our day-to-day existence. But at the subatomic level, that’s not how things work; not at all.
Anderson’s arguments about Free — that is, gratis and libre — are presented in the same sense, if not quite as well or explicitly.
Free does a fine job of explaining the mechanics of how things can be free on the Web: namely, per-unit / per-user costs are so low, they might as well be considered nothing.
He also does a good job of explaining the obvious money-making models applied successfully so far: advertising, freemium (basic service is free; premium service costs money) and non-monetary / indirect recompense, such as an increase in reputation / marketing of ancillary products, such as concerts and merchandise for musicians or speaking engagements and consultations for professionals.
Continue reading: Review: Free: The Future of a Radical Price »
