Category: Technology

No! It’s not what you’re thinking. Pigs!

It’s the time of the month when I cycle all the batteries in my devices.

I run the phone, pad, computer, watch, and finally the Goal Zero down to nothing then recharge ‘em. 

Right now my Watch, Computer, Pad and headphones are recharging from the Goal Zero so I’m almost at the end of the cycle.

It’s funny though because one of the things I worry about while I’m doing this… What happens if the house power goes out?

Silly, I know. It’s happened before, once. In that case I broke out all the big solar panels and was able to keep things running. 

It’s funny when I think about it, the time of year most likely to lose power here, is Winter. Rarely is the power outage attributed snow or a severe storm. Almost always it’s because a skier’s snowboard was better prepared than the vehicle that was taking them to the slopes.

They lose control on the icy road, take out a power pole and plunge the whole town into darkness. The last time it happened, we were without power for 36 hours. The power company simply couldn’t get the appropriate equipment up the hill to make the repairs.

That alone should tell you the obvious. The skier from “Down Below” shouldn’t have been on the road in the first place because the storm was such a big deal the roads were being closed all the way down to the freeway. 

To top it off, the skier tried to sue the town for poorly maintained roads. He was laughed right out of the courtroom for two reasons. 1) He had bald tires, no chains  and 2) His friends testified that he’d been in a hurry to get to the slopes before the road closed.

Judge says… “You’re out of here! Please take your lovely parting gift from the clerk and I don’t want to see you, or your attorney in my court again.“

It is nice to have CHP & Sheriff’s officers as neighbors. You get all the best gossip.

Nonetheless I guess it’s about being vulnerable. During this time If the power goes out I might find myself with dead equipment, at least until I’m able to get enough sun on the panels to power back up. 

Call it routine maintenance. As with any routine maintenance, you run the risk of causing bigger troubles. It’s a sunny day, so going solar wouldn’t be that big a deal. The plus side is that it’s about 35F outside so I wouldn’t have to worry about the battery packs overheating during charging.

I may break out the panels just to have the whole cycle “Green” it would give me something to do.

Oh yeah, gotta check the charge on the HAM radio too.

No, I’m not a “Prepper” but I do like being somewhat prepared.

Okay, off to handle some other things around the house. I’ll also continue the job search. 

I’ve gotten into the habit of blogging when I need a break from the frustration.

Have a great weekend

I know, You’re thinking to yourself, “what the hell could this guy have to say?”

I get it, you’re inundated with PSA type crap all day long.

What pronoun to use, don’t appropriate another culture for your halloween costume (No matter how funny it might be), don’t speak ill of any culture (unless it’s white folks), don’t speak ill of any gender (unless it’s cis male), you know…

The usual.

Well this post is not about any of that. So read on my intrepid friends.

Here’s something to think about.

If your personal devices are connected to a computer network at your place of business, any data sent from those devices is subject to monitoring. Now here’s the kicker…

Even if you aren’t looking at porn on your devices, but you’ve got your email running receiving that hot porn email list, or one of those nifty dating applications like Tender that might have naked photos, updating in the background, technically you’re downloading or attempting to download inappropriate material on the corporate network.

Yep! I know, shitty isn’t it? Guess what? The IT folks can see that data as it’s flowing over their systems. They can even localize it to your device or area of the corporate campus.

So if you’re on naked photo mailing lists, or Nudists international, or Filthy Gangbangs R Us, or whatever, even if you’re not looking at the site, your phone, or your tablet is. It’s guilt by association. Technically text messages could fall into the same category.

In other words, you could be fired because your device, sitting in your pocket, backpack, briefcase, or purse, was accessing naughty material. Your only defense is to say, “No I wasn’t” and the IT folks may have records, time and date stamped to the contrary. In other words, you’re screwed.

“Oh Guru of technology how might we prevent this?”, you ask.

Simplest way;

Don’t have those apps on your phone or tablet.

Another simple way;

NEVER connect to your corporate network with personal devices. This will force your devices to use their cellular connection. Make sure you have an unlimited plan though.

A more complex method;

Always use a VPN when you’re away from home. There are some who suggest using a VPN at all times. I don’t. My VPN comes on automatically when I’m out of the house and using an external WiFi or hardline network connection.

VPNs are cheap and effective. They’re relatively easy to use and work pretty well. If you’re involved in illegal activities they’re not going to protect you from prosecution, so keep it legal okay?

I use Vypr from Golden Frog. Before you ask, I pay a yearly subscription and don’t really notice a delay (or the expense) as long as the connection I’m using is reasonably fast.

The down side to VPNs is that sometimes corporations, and public WiFi access locations will stop VPN traffic. The say it’s for the protection of their employees or clients, that’s bullshit.

They’re blocking the VPN traffic because they’re protecting themselves. Seems that there are some laws or the illusion of laws that suggest a corporation allowing “Illegal” traffic over their networks can be held accountable.

The question is, “what is illegal?” and since they can’t monitor an encrypted connection, companies often block VPNs. This is especially true on employee accessible networks.

Unless you’re familiar with what’s going on you could end up wasting a lot of time troubleshooting a non-existent problem. (I say that from experience). Since the VPN comes up automatically it’s easy to forget it’s there when you hit a Starbucks or whatever.

So it’s possible that with a VPN you’re not going to get connected to the internet while you’re at work. In which case if you’ve just gotta see that filthy picture, turn off WiFi and download it over the cell connection. I’d recommend waiting until your lunch hour or you’re off work but hey, I’m not living your life and you get to choose how your day or career goes.

The point is, keep all your personal shit… Personal!