Wireless web cameras, closed-circuit TV cameras and baby crib monitors broadcasting video streams not just to where you think, but as far as the radio signal can go. Using off-the-shelf equipment these video streams can be picked up by anyone, as they are usually not encrypted. Makes you think, no?
Wired has an interesting article on the subject.
Ever thought spam would come to good use?
At Spamusement you can find “poorly-drawn cartoons inspired by actual spam subject lines”. Good stuff.
Sometimes it’s desirable to be able to limit bandwidth on a connection, be it on a specific port or maybe for the entire link.
If you are using FreeBSD you can use ipfw and dummynet to enable rate limiting on your link.
You need to have IPFIREWALL and DUMMYNET enabled in the kernel. If they are not already you need to recompile your kernel.
First you need to setup a pipe:
ipfw pipe 1 config bw 512Kbit
This creates a pipe, with throughput limited to 512 Kbps.
Let’s say you want to put a limit on your outgoing http traffic (port 80) . You would add this rule to your firewall, pushing the TCP packets through the pipe you just created.
ipfw add 10 pipe 1 tcp from me 80 to any
You can list pipes with the command ipfw pipe show.
References:
ipfw manpage
dummynet manpage
BusinessWeek online has an article on triple play:
The merging of voice, data, and video represents “a new dynamic,” says S&P’s Ken Leon, who likes Motorola and Scientific Atlanta
The shares of communications-equipment makers have been stuck in low gear for the last few years, hampered mostly by customers’ reduced spending and consolidation of telecom- and cable-services providers. The move by these operators to offer voice, data, and video — a so-called triple play — as well as the ability to have those services move across fixed and mobile networks, could finally translate into better times for equipment suppliers. “We believe the industry is coming into a new dynamic,” predicts Ken Leon, who follows the group for Standard & Poor’s Equity Research.
More at BusinessWeek online …
More on Triple play.
You may think that an online log of your whereabouts updated in realtime and displayed in a public place as a three dimensional visualisation would be infringing on your privacy. Or you might just think it’s cool.
At MIT, Massachusetts Institue of Technology, it’s happening right now. WiFi users locations are tracked, whether they use a laptop, pda or even wifi enabled phone. they The system can pinpoint a user with an accuracy level down to classroom, even in multi-story buildings. The user is displayed as a dot on a map and, if the user opted to reveal their information, even individual students are shown. The campus has over 2800 wireless access points.
Read more about MIT’s new WiFi mapping.
