A-Z of computing: U is for ubiquitous USB

Posted on by April 30, 2013

USB: U is for Ubiquitous

That’s right. Not URL or Ubuntu. I’m expecting it not to be long now before I connect my kettle or fridge to a USB hub, as various other technologies that used to come with their own prong-to-3-pin-plug cable now come with USB connectivity instead. This is fantastically convenient, especially with universal standards applied to phone chargers. My phone charges from my laptop via USB, or via a cable attached to a USB hub, or via a USB plug that fits into the otherwise redundant cigarette lighter in my car. It’s becoming industry standard too, replacing a plethora of connectors with one simple, elegant device.

Universal Serial Bus

U. S. B.: Universal Serial Bus. Developed in 1995 and an instant success, it was designed to improve connectivity to plug and play devices, allowing easy connection of mice, keyboards, printers, webcams etc to computers, vastly simplifying a complex situation. Run out of USB ports to plug these into, and just bung in a USB hub, instantly supplying you with many more ports. What’s more you can ‘hot swap’, meaning you don’t need to reboot the computer for it to recognise the new device.

Powerful stuff

It’s not just connectivity to be had. Small amounts of power can be delivered via USB. This popular for charging low power devices such as lights and phone chargers.

USB sticks were a runaway success, and have come a long way from the boring black plastic and shiny chrome oblong to weird and wonderful shapes including plastic sushi, Mini cars, dead fingers and impaled Lego men. Never a dull moment. For more about the history of this indispensable little device, including Plugfest, read up on Wikipedia. My favourite line has to be:

It’s difficult to plug in a USB connector the wrong way.

Really, there’s no arguing with that.

Security and SMEs: the weak link in the chain?

Posted on by May 22, 2013

Security and hacking attacks on SMEs

Are you insecure? Not in a cowering-in-the-corner way, rather wide open to hacking attacks, either to get at your data, or to use you to get to the companies you supply. A report today tells us that small businesses are so easy to hack, they’re the weak link in the supply chain and provide access to much bigger companies. With ever more fractured supply chains, this sort of security vulnerability needs to be removed.

Security vulnerabilities

Why does this vulnerability exist? Why do hackers bother? Same question really. A security vulnerability starts to exist only when somebody with nefarious intent wishes to exploit a feature of an online set-up. At this point it’s worth mentioning that a well-run and properly-maintained cloud server is a hell of a lot more secure than your server tucked under Marjorie’s desk in the office, unless Marjorie is also a fiendish online security brain who has ensured the server is secured to the highest standard.

Essentially, evil hackers exploit weaknesses to gain access to data, which they use to make money (there are also good hackers, but another day). Windows servers are the most easily hacked of all as they are inherently less secure, and the vulnerabilities and hacks are well known and long-exploited. It’s the low-hanging fruit. A Linux server has more security built in to its infrastructure and approach, and because of this hackers tend not to make their lives difficult by trying to break into them. It’s the old deterrent method at work.

Securing your security

The BBC article (Viewpoint: Small firms prove to be weak link to hackers) is worth reading. If you recognise your company and know there are security issues to be addressed, please get in touch and we can run a security audit on your systems to identify weaknesses and where to tighten up. You have to bear in mind your responsibilities to the people whose data you hold, and the consequences of any breach of that responsibility. And on the upside, if you can prove to a potential customer that you take security seriously to the point of being checked out, and can prove that you’ve covered every area of concern, you’ll be a more attractive supplier. And sleep better at night…

A-Z of computing: T is for Tesla and Turing

Posted on by April 26, 2013

Tesla and Turing: T is for Technique

Tesla and Turing: born in different countries in different centuries, each making a contribution to modern life that is hard to overestimate. Although working quite separately from each other, Tesla and Turing did overlap. Both spent time in America, Tesla living there for the rest of his life, Turing studying at Princeton til 1938. Turing visited America again in 1942, to study bombe construction and cryptanalysis with the US navy (apparently he was unimpressed with American bombe construction!).  Tesla died in 1943, late enough to witness the impact of Turing’s work.

Alan Turing

To quote Jim Donahue,

Turing is so fundamental to so much of computer science that it is hard to do anything with computers that isn’t some way influenced by his work

2012 is Alan Turing’s centenary year and has seen a great deal of noise about recognition in the form of gracing a new bank note, an exhibition at the Science Museum (which we visited and found fascinating) and of course that Monopoly set.

This recognition is entirely Turing’s due. His contribution to modern computing cannot be overestimated. He was clearly a brilliant man who in his relatively short life made an inestimable difference first to his country and then to the world.

Nikola Tesla

And Tesla? Nikola Tesla was another misunderstood genius, one whose childhood dream was to come to America to harness the power of Niagara Falls. Tesla has numerous inventions to his credit, among them fluorescent lighting and alternating current.

Tesla’s creations were repeatedly overshadowed by his contemporaries, most famously Edison and Marconi. After one court case involving Marconi, Tesla reportedly said,

Marconi is a good fellow. Let him continue. He is using seventeen of my patents.

According to the Tesla Society,

Tesla’s concept of wireless electricity was used to power ocean liners, destroy warships, run industry and transportation and send communications instantaneously all over the globe.  To stimulate the public’s imagination, Tesla suggested that this wireless power could even be used for interplanetary communication.

This sort of belief contributed to the dismantling of Tesla’s reputation. He went from being “one of the most celebrated personalities in the American Press” and appearing on the cover of Time magazine, to dying “destitute, having lost both his fortune and scientific reputation”. To quote Badass, “Tesla was also completely insane”, apparently falling love with a pigeon. None the less, he received a state funeral and, like Turing, his legacy powers the world we know today.

The Oatmeal’s take on Tesla