Author Archives: dontai
Microsoft Releases OS Update for Win XP, 7 Systems CVE-2019-0708
Today Microsoft released fixes for a critical Remote Code Execution vulnerability, CVE-2019-0708, in Remote Desktop Services – formerly known as Terminal Services – that affects some older versions of Windows. The Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) itself is not vulnerable. This vulnerability is pre-authentication and requires no user interaction. In other words, the vulnerability is ‘wormable’, meaning that any future malware that exploits this vulnerability could propagate from vulnerable computer to vulnerable computer in a similar way as the WannaCry malware spread across the globe in 2017. source
Toronto Police Vulnerable Sector Screening Application: Males will fail
RCMP vulnerabile sector screening application for males will almost always result in requiring to submit fingerprints to the RCMP.
Recently for a volunteer position I was asked to provide a Vulnerable Sector Screening (VSS) application, or Vulnerable Sector Police Reference Checks (VSPRC), done by the Toronto Police. A long 8 weeks later a letter arrived stating that the RCMP requires my fingerprints due to a match of my gender and date of birth to the RCMP pardoned sex offenders registry.
Quoting Wordsworth: English to Chinese to English
To me the meanest flower that blows can give thoughts that do often lie too deep for tears
在我看来，最卑微的华朵 都是思想，深藏 在眼泪达不到的地方
zai wokanlai, zui beiwei de huaduo doushisixiang, shencang zaiyanlei dabudao de difang华兹华斯 hua zi huasi Wordsworth
From what I see, the most humble blooms are thought, deep and hidden far beyond tears
Kdenlive: Multi-threading not quite working
My version of Kdenlive does not do multi-threading, even though I have 8 cores. This seems ok when you are editing video, but a problem when rendering to an MP4. What happens is that for long videos that use a single processor it overheats, forcing my computer to reboot. While a past kdenlive version allowed me to multi-thread rendering, after an upgrade this was disabled.
My kdenlive is Version 15.12.3, Using: KDE Frameworks 5.18.0, Qt 5.5.1 (built against 5.5.1), The xcb windowing system
kdenlive environment options screen, Version 15.12.3. Multi-threading does not work
Freedom/Wind Mobile Texting Error Message, but can Talk
Little Weed had a problem with his Google Pixel and Freedom Mobile. While he could call people he could not text, and received an error message “Can’t send message with freedom, error 8”.
We went to the Wind store and this is what the guy did. It did take a couple of seconds to kick in:
settings > network and internet > mobile network -> advanced > access point names > … (top right corner) > reset to default
Sim card was fine. I’m glad the guy knew his stuff.
Niksen, the Practice of doing Nothing
“The way I think about boredom is coming to a moment with no plan other than just to be,” she said.
Sandi Mann, a psychologist at the University of Central Lancashire in Britain, added that niksen can be “when we’re not doing the things we should be doing. Because perhaps we don’t want to, we’re not motivated. Instead, we’re not doing very much.”
Delonghi Convection Oven EO1270: Not Repairable
Delonghi Convection Oven EO1270 is stainless steel and looks really nice. Too bad it is not repairable. Photo by Don Tai
This Delonghi Convection Oven, EO1270, made in China under the name “德龙“， came to me in near pristine condition. It looked like it was used only a couple of times. Yet when I plugged it in it would not work. I decided to take it apart and see if I could repair it. It was pretty evident that this oven was not designed to be repaired. In the end I found a flaky on-off switch, which could have been replaced, but to get to the electronics I’d have to drill out a couple of rivets. This repair would not have been worthwhile.