It has been interesting to follow the recent spate of attacks on the systems of large companies including Apple and Facebook. The latest theory is that employees of the companies visited a site that used a zero-day Java exploit to gain access to computers. The site itself was apparently not aware of the malicious code being hosted there. At least some of this malicious activity seems to be connected to the Chinese military which has not surprisingly denied any involvement. All of this has hap...

It has been interesting to follow the recent spate of attacks on the systems of large companies including Apple and Facebook. The latest theory is that employees of the companies visited a site that used a zero-day Java exploit to gain access to computers. The site itself was apparently not aware of the malicious code being hosted there. At least some of this malicious activity seems to be connected to the Chinese military which has not surprisingly denied any involvement. All of this has hap...

The IPv6 standard was first published in 1998 which is now 15 years ago. For a while it looked like adoption would drag on forever resulting in some anguished discussions. But by about 2011 IPv6 started to develop real momentum on private networks with Google achieving 95% IPv6 on their internal network at the end of 2011. Another major milestone was World IPv6 Launch Day, which took place last June. A study that was just presented a couple of weeks ago at the NANOG conference shows (PDF) tha...

The IPv6 standard was first published in 1998 which is now 15 years ago. For a while it looked like adoption would drag on forever resulting in some anguished discussions. But by about 2011 IPv6 started to develop real momentum on private networks with Google achieving 95% IPv6 on their internal network at the end of 2011. Another major milestone was World IPv6 Launch Day, which took place last June. A study that was just presented a couple of weeks ago at the NANOG conference shows (PDF) tha...

On Tuesday, the US Supreme Court rejected the ACLU’s challenge to warrantless wiretapping. That leaves the EFF’s lawsuit as the last one still standing. The argument made by the majority of justices for dismissing the ACLU challenge was that the defendant had no standing because there was no provable harm. There are many things that are disconcerting about this argument. For starters, it is entirely unclear how someone would know that specific harm has occurred to them and is the result of wa...

On Tuesday, the US Supreme Court rejected the ACLU’s challenge to warrantless wiretapping. That leaves the EFF’s lawsuit as the last one still standing. The argument made by the majority of justices for dismissing the ACLU challenge was that the defendant had no standing because there was no provable harm. There are many things that are disconcerting about this argument. For starters, it is entirely unclear how someone would know that specific harm has occurred to them and is the result of wa...

Last week on Tech Tuesday I ran the third reader survey to determine what to write about next. I offered up three possible topic areas that I had mentioned previously: lower level programming, theory of computer science and neural networks/machine learning. Because I thought that this seemed like a bit of a short list I also added “Technology in Startups.” And here are the results: For starters, adding the other category (for write-ins) really didn’t do anything as only 2 people bothered. Als...

Last week on Tech Tuesday I ran the third reader survey to determine what to write about next. I offered up three possible topic areas that I had mentioned previously: lower level programming, theory of computer science and neural networks/machine learning. Because I thought that this seemed like a bit of a short list I also added “Technology in Startups.” And here are the results: For starters, adding the other category (for write-ins) really didn’t do anything as only 2 people bothered. Als...

I started writing this review last night with the Oscars still going on, having seen Zero Dark Thirty the night before (I will have some separate comments on other Oscar choices). I went to see it despite having some trepidation about doing so. On the one hand, I had enjoyed Hurt Locker a lot. On the other, I have resented the zealous pursuit of folks who illegally downloaded Hurt Locker (which still is *not* available for streaming on Vudu) and much more importantly was concerned about Zero ...

I started writing this review last night with the Oscars still going on, having seen Zero Dark Thirty the night before (I will have some separate comments on other Oscar choices). I went to see it despite having some trepidation about doing so. On the one hand, I had enjoyed Hurt Locker a lot. On the other, I have resented the zealous pursuit of folks who illegally downloaded Hurt Locker (which still is *not* available for streaming on Vudu) and much more importantly was concerned about Zero ...

Very short post today as I ran out of time in the morning. There was a meteor strike in Russia that apparently injured over 1,000 people. This is a powerful reminder that we should be spending way more on scanning the skies for objects that might hit us and also looking for signs of intelligent life elsewhere. I have written before that black swan risks are an area where more philanthropists should be more active as governments will almost certainly underfund.

Very short post today as I ran out of time in the morning. There was a meteor strike in Russia that apparently injured over 1,000 people. This is a powerful reminder that we should be spending way more on scanning the skies for objects that might hit us and also looking for signs of intelligent life elsewhere. I have written before that black swan risks are an area where more philanthropists should be more active as governments will almost certainly underfund.

So far Tech Tuesday has covered basic computing technology (9 installments), an overview of web technology (11 installments) and an introduction to programming (a whooping 29 installments). So once again it’s time to survey readers to see what folks would like to see covered next. Here are my ideas but you can also add your own in the survey below: Neural Networks and Machine Learning: This is a subject I am still learning a lot about, so the sequence would follow my own progress. I have post...

So far Tech Tuesday has covered basic computing technology (9 installments), an overview of web technology (11 installments) and an introduction to programming (a whooping 29 installments). So once again it’s time to survey readers to see what folks would like to see covered next. Here are my ideas but you can also add your own in the survey below: Neural Networks and Machine Learning: This is a subject I am still learning a lot about, so the sequence would follow my own progress. I have post...

At our wedding, Susan’s mother – a professor emeritus of English literature – read Dr. Seuss’s Green Eggs and Ham. While some guests may have wondered about the significance, most knew that I had been rather persistent in my pursuit. Tenacity has served me well in other aspects of life too. It was in 1999 that I decided I wanted to be an investor in startups. From there it took me seven years and two major setbacks before joining Union Square Ventures. Tenacity is a quality that I think is es...

At our wedding, Susan’s mother – a professor emeritus of English literature – read Dr. Seuss’s Green Eggs and Ham. While some guests may have wondered about the significance, most knew that I had been rather persistent in my pursuit. Tenacity has served me well in other aspects of life too. It was in 1999 that I decided I wanted to be an investor in startups. From there it took me seven years and two major setbacks before joining Union Square Ventures. Tenacity is a quality that I think is es...

I am finally getting around to writing about the third paper in my MIT PhD thesis. The first paper was an empirical analysis of the impact of information technology on firm size. The second paper provided a model for how improvements in information technology can result in hybrid organizations. The third paper is both the most ambitious and also the most theoretical – it attempts to provide a general framework for analyzing communication in organizations. In rereading it I found a fair number...

I am finally getting around to writing about the third paper in my MIT PhD thesis. The first paper was an empirical analysis of the impact of information technology on firm size. The second paper provided a model for how improvements in information technology can result in hybrid organizations. The third paper is both the most ambitious and also the most theoretical – it attempts to provide a general framework for analyzing communication in organizations. In rereading it I found a fair number...

Despite my sarcastic tweet from last night, I am actually intrigued by Google Glass (and I even believe that Google Plus will matter as Google is all in). First, as Fred pointed out yesterday, Google’s machine learning capabilities are a key enabler for making Glass useful. You need voice commands to change Glass is doing or displaying and Google’s speech recognition is exceptionally good. Second, only a technology such as Glass will make augmented reality a viable experience. Holding up a ph...

Despite my sarcastic tweet from last night, I am actually intrigued by Google Glass (and I even believe that Google Plus will matter as Google is all in). First, as Fred pointed out yesterday, Google’s machine learning capabilities are a key enabler for making Glass useful. You need voice commands to change Glass is doing or displaying and Google’s speech recognition is exceptionally good. Second, only a technology such as Glass will make augmented reality a viable experience. Holding up a ph...