Phishing is the most common way bad guys steal your passwords and hook viruses to your machine. This is routinely done via email, but this practice is becoming more popular in SMS messages in a practice Forbes has called Smishing. Today, I received one such message and thought I’d go deeper and get to the heart of this malicious phenomenon.
The Gutenberg editor. WordPress has decided that its current editor won’t do, and that it was time to update the “Classic” text editor into something more utilitarian called “Gutenberg”. I thought “Ok, I’ll try it”. Then, immediately it did not work. And, I think many out there are facing the exact same thing. This is all feeling like WordPress is trying to empty Lake Ontario with a bucket. It’s a futile gesture, but maybe it’s the gesture that counts? It’s like the world is craving no more sequels to movies, but when you give them something original, they don’t show up. WordPress, you’ve got a fight ahead of you.
Today, the tectonic rumblings of what Donald Trump might have done to whom probably drowned out a interesting news from a celebrity. He’s Pete Davidson, a funny guy who’s known for his SNL performances and currently being engaged to Ariana Grande. He quit the internet, and left a great message while signing off (emphasis mine):
“No nothing happened. No there’s nothing cryptic about anything. I just don’t wanna be on Instagram anymore. Or on any social media platform. The internet is an evil place and it doesn’t make me feel good,” the comedian said. “Why should I spend any time on negative energy when my real life is f***ing lit. The fact that I even have to say this proves my point. I love you all and I’m sure I’ll be back at some point. :) your neighborhood goon, Pete.”
This was probably something you didn’t know or track in the cacophony of celebrity news, but Davidson has signalled something that few have done. He’s at the beginning of the end of public figures on the Internet, and frankly, the Internet is an evil place.
Early June of this year, I ordered five more drives for a client’s Dell PowerEdge VRTX server enclosure, This in addition to the currently installed seven 2TB drives that were humming along just fine. My only request from Dell is that these drives be the biggest we can get, and that they be compatible with the running VRTX enclosure. Simple, right? So we ordered the $8,000 in hard drives, and waited. The drives themselves would kick off a strange saga of failure and support that I can’t recall since working on another blade system, one made by IBM.
I found this passage from a recode podcast interview Mark Zuckerberg took part in (see below):
In business, I’ve heard it said that we must “Grow or die” (by who, I wonder?). This is one of the more pervasive business myths I see so many in those that run IT consulting companies supporting the SME space. They think that for the business to succeed, it needs to expand the revenue base and hire on a bunch of employees. Yes, this is one path, but there are many other well-worn paths to success in this business. Growth is important and achievable even if your a single person shop. How? By having a growth mindset.
Over the last few months, I’ve noticed the costs of AWS rising steadily.
I really hit an inflection point: High cost of AWS hosting, dwindling or nonexistent ad revenue, slower and slower WordPress, and less blogging period. I’m not deserting this blog by any means, I guess I’m just being pragmatic about it
The (pervasive) and conventional wisdom seems to be that all MSP’s and IT solution companies need ticketing systems. All incoming service calls absolutely need to be routed through a ticketing system and not via phone calls or other means. If you seek out advice online in this regard, you’re pummelled with all the stern advice about ticketing systems and the various free (and not so free) options.
Recent news about Google marking web pages that are not HTTPS as “Not Secure” had me returning a subject that has held my interest for some time. I have commented on the idea (I’m pro HTTPs), and have even switched my site to support it. Given that, you clearly know where I stand, but I also feel my view on this could be changed given a reasonable argument.
This year has been a great year to read books. Whether is was picking up Sapiens in Ireland this summer, or relaxing on a beach in Portugal reading another, I was not without a book in hand for many days this year. I thought I’d share the books I’ve read and feel are worth your time. These aren’t ranked in any particular order, as think they’re all worthy of your attention.
Kevin Costain