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Patch reliability is unclear, but widespread attacks make patching prudent. Go ahead and patch, but watch out for potential problems. |
COVID-19 By Susan Bradley We all have good years and bad, but 2020 has been rough on everyone. The pandemic has damaged world economies, caused untold[See the full post at: Technology in a pandemic]
JUST A REMINDER: I’ll be watching this thread closely. I don’t want it to descend into political arguments. The focus here is on technology in the time of a pandemic. If your post is deleted it’s because I, personally, felt it was off-topic.
Technology has already rewired our brains, and that extends to learning. This is an area where tech still needs quantum advancements — and we need them soon, not several years from now. It will require a major investment on the federal, state, and local levels.
Your point is well taken but even if we had the perfect set of solutions in hand today, it would take much longer than “soon” to actually get them distributed to schools around the country. The lengths to which the government is going to get a vaccine into people’s arms are easy by comparison. It’s not only bankrolling several parallel research efforts, but it’s also going to buy hundreds of millions of doses some of them (not just one as I understand it) before they have actually proven effective and efficacious.
By comparison, the very nature of technological solutions to “extend” learning will take longer because pharma started out with a pretty good idea of how to go about creating a vaccine and the testing period is, by comparison, much shorter.
It’s possible to accelerate vaccine development by running parallel efforts, shortening trial periods and, frankly, accepting more risk that one (or more) of the selected vaccines does not work as well as expected or causes more side effects.
Learning technology starts much further away from solutions, starting with there being little idea of what might actually produce the desired outcome. Indeed, there may well be contention as to what the desired outcome is. Necessarily, testing the solutions will take longer because learning takes time and determining whether the lessons learned are actually internalized past the next quiz or test.
In short, even in the most ideal environment, any real success in this area is several years out. This doesn’t mean we should not get started – we should – this is a long term project, not one that will be finished “by the end the year”.
The sub title to the picture in that article is, well, open to interpretation.
Both MSFT and Google realise this pandemic is not going to go away in a hurry, shame some people in power think otherwise. (aka ostrich syndrome)
I have been self-isolating, because I am not exactly young anymore and the pandemic is not giving up, or even getting to be less of a problem with the summer heat, as many, scientists included, thought it might, earlier on in the spring, because that is what happens with the flu coronavirus.
So I have continued to do my job from home and using email and videoconferencing a lot more than before this health problem started. I certainly appreciate the technology that enables one to do things this way.
In particular, I have been using the online service Instacart, same as Susan, for my grocery shopping, and it does work very well: young people are employed by Instacart to shop for me and then they deliver the groceries to me at my place (so they get a job and I get to replenish my pantry) and I tip them at 15% of the price of the purchases. Once every ten days, that price plus tip and a couple of smaller service charges comes close to $200.
A word of warning: I had been thinking that the prices were considerably higher than what I remembered for the same items when I was buying in person, and later have found, last time I shopped with them, that the amount charged for some things bought this way were a substantial percent higher than when I used to buy in person at the supermarket where Instacart gets them for me now (my local Giant’s). I did find out this, because, for whatever reason, I received, along with the groceries, one of those paper-strip receipts one gets from the check out cash register listing the supermarket charges. The prices of those items I had bought listed in that strip were, as I said, less than the prices shown online and, consequently, the corresponding charges in the bill I actually got to pay. I wonder if this is common practice in online shopping sites.
I don’t really mind too much, because the alternative is doing one’s shopping in person, and this is a time when, if possible, I prefer to avoid doing that. Paying more is not a big issue for me, in this case. And the service is good.
Ex-Windows user (Win. 98, XP, 7); since mid-2017 using also macOS. Presently on Monterey 12.15 & sometimes running also Linux (Mint).
MacBook Pro circa mid-2015, 15" display, with 16GB 1600 GHz DDR3 RAM, 1 TB SSD, a Haswell architecture Intel CPU with 4 Cores and 8 Threads model i7-4870HQ @ 2.50GHz.
Intel Iris Pro GPU with Built-in Bus, VRAM 1.5 GB, Display 2880 x 1800 Retina, 24-Bit color.
macOS Monterey; browsers: Waterfox "Current", Vivaldi and (now and then) Chrome; security apps. Intego AV
In my area they aren’t a great deal higher. At least not on the things I buy. As you say, it’s worth it for not having to shop. I also look at it that I’m making sure someone can earn extra money (or main money these days) during this time.
Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher
I have been using the online service Instacart
Instacart has a 10 to 30 something % markup and that was what i have been charged. Plus delivery charges plus tip. That is a BIG chunk of cash (credit ) for many. BIG!! I did the upgraded experience for IIRC ~$10 per month. Decided it was not worth it. I have gone shopping with my P100 respirator and a face shield until now. We are a bit better in NY and I sweat so much in this weather I can’t see smoo. So I am using my N95 w/o shield. I am thinking promptness (using the scanner tool in S&S ) reduces the entailed risk.
🍻
Just because you don't know where you are going doesn't mean any road will get you there.Working from home is great… until you can’t.
Customer calls with an issue with his access point and needing a webcam setup for online meetings. Trip onsite is in order. Hear he has a sinus infection but getting better.
I decided at last minute to do a hit and run. No troubleshooting, just replace access point with per-configured model, slap the cam in and also install a UPS for him. He’s out of the office so figure that’s good… until he shows up unannounced, coughing and hacking just as I’m finishing up.
Yep, he tested positive this weekend, Covid and pneumonia. I’m now on day 6 of self-imposed quarantine. Fortunately I was in and out and cleaned up good afterwards. Happy I learned long ago to follow gut instincts. Just hope it was enough this time.
Never Say Never
Keep working systems functioning:
I have to carry an Android smart phone (for 2 factor authentication, reachability, work-related apps). It’s a high-end rugged, work-oriented model (Cat S61) but unfortunately the software has never been as solid as the hardware (some would say it is not bad, relatively speaking, but I’m very demanding). What am I talking about? Notifications are inconsistent, battery management gets out of sync with reality, some Apps put up persistent errors that can’t be eliminated, it needs rebooting every so often… I won’t go into more detail, but even though I don’t require that much of mine, I just want it to work. An Android phone is simply less than professional. As though it was programmed by kids with short attention spans.
You might say I should get an iPhone (because, I dunno, I’m old and grumpy?). Apple is no better! I have several Apple devices in the household and they give plenty of trouble. Their hype of “it just works” is just SO much BS where the rubber meets the road. Reboot and suddenly things work again.
By contrast, Windows on my desktop computers has for me, once initial (non-trivial) configuration has been done, been a fully professional, reliable system that I only ever have to set up once, never have to reboot (except for all these stupid Windows Updates), and it really does just work. I walk in here, and just use the system. For me, after the time of Vista there’s been a critical mass in Windows that just runs solidly, doesn’t lose data or give up when needed, and it’s always been possible to find a suite of good, professional applications that just don’t crash out or do stupid things.
Note that I didn’t say Apps. Applications.
Therein lies the difference, I think. An “App” is a toy, a hint at what could be, something not quite enough engineering has been put into – while an “Application” is serious, something that’s had quality engineering. Perhaps I’m overgeneralizing a bit to make a point, but the culture is different. The expectations really are different.
By extension, a battery powered device that runs “Apps” is a toy. A real computer that runs “Applications” is something to get work done with. IMO this distinction is an elephant in the room nobody wants to acknowledge. Those who make “Apps” and have banked their future on “Apps” don’t want you to dwell on this. Why? “Apps” are easy and cheap to make. And worth every penny.
It’s too bad that Microsoft did not choose to carry forward into mobile devices the discipline in computing that made its desktop Windows OS the stable platform it is that could really be built on. I’d have liked to have a phone and tablet I could rely on for serious work as much as my desktop Windows workstations. There is no technical reason it cannot be. Only a lack of discipline.
-Noel
P.S., I think it’s likely I’d have a similar opinion of Apps vs. Applications if I had built my career on high-end desktop Apple Mac Pros instead of PC workstations. The chief engineer at my little company has always been a high-end Mac fan and we have similar opinions and experiences, except he’s even older and grumpier than I am. 😉
Sorry, it was caught in the filter (not intentionally deleted by anyone). I have restored it.
Did a little googling on Fresno school bus Wi-Fi. Apparently they added that to their buses in 2016:
https://www.fresnounified.org/news/stories/Pages/20160819-FresnoUnifiedOffersWiFi.aspx#.XyGUOyhKh3g
I’m guessing they’re using Cradlepoint or similar 4G hotspots (which Google kindly showed me as an advertisement in the same search).
The article Susan cited, and others, are about a short pilot program to park the buses and letting kids work outside nearby. This article equivocates:
https://gvwire.com/2020/05/15/fusd-plans-to-roll-out-buses-as-wi-fi-hot-spots/
…saying programs in other cities hadn’t been used much, and that in Fresno, “The district focused first on getting mobile hot spots into the hands of students who lacked Internet access, Henry said.” Which actually makes a lot of sense–giving/loaning 4G hotspots for use when needed vs. letting kids sit outside a bus for 3 hours a day.
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