Author Archives: jcs

Some Prerequisite Reading

Posted on 2021-09-05 by jcs

As I said in my last post, I’m planning to write a bit about some of the technical aspects of Apple’s CSAM scanning project. Happily, Apple listened to the avalanche of criticism and put their plans on hold. I hope … Continue reading →

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Apple and Backdoors

Posted on 2021-09-04 by jcs

In the ongoing Apple CSAM saga, Irreal has mostly been concerned with Apple’s betrayal of their promise to protect their users’ privacy but there’s also the issue the long term security consequences of Apple’s decision. We’ll take a look at … Continue reading →

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Yet Another Win For Open Access

Posted on 2021-09-03 by jcs

For those of you, like me, interested in open access, there’s more good news. There’s good evidence that the scales are finally tipping to the side of open access. If things continue, we could soon see open access considered the … Continue reading →

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Melpa Reaches a Milestone

Posted on 2021-09-02 by jcs

As regular readers know, I’m a big fan of Melpa and its proprietor Steve Purcell. It’s an extraordinary resource run strictly as a public service. The site is not monetized and yet Purcell devotes huge amounts of time to running … Continue reading →

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Go

Posted on 2021-09-01 by jcs

A funny thing about human beings is that once they’re out of their young adult years they tend to like things the way they’ve always been. In the tech world, that often takes the form of preferring the text editor … Continue reading →

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Who Needs a Smart Phone?

Posted on 2021-08-31 by jcs

As long as I’m obsessing about smart phones and the choice between Android and iPhone, we might as well consider the New Luddite option: no cell phones. Over at diaspora*, Doc Edward Morbius has a post that argues that smart … Continue reading →

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Gain-Of-Function Research

Posted on 2021-08-30 by jcs

It’s been over a year and we still don’t know the origins of COVID-19. Barring the leaking or release of Chinese records, we likely never will. Consensus has converged on one thing, though. Just about everybody now admits—despite earlier, strenuous, … Continue reading →

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The Index

Posted on 2021-08-29 by jcs

What do you think about book indices? Do you think about book indices? If you’re like most people, the first question doesn’t make much sense and the answer to the second is something like “Hardly ever.” The book index is … Continue reading →

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Why Are People Apple Users?

Posted on 2021-08-28 by jcs

This whole contretemps with Apple has me pondering my computing future. I’m not ready to man the lifeboats yet but it does seem prudent to check them for seaworthiness. My ruminations got me to wondering why Apple has such a … Continue reading →

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Vim vs. Emacs (and a Little Bit of ED)

Posted on 2021-08-27 by jcs

If you’ve been around Irreal for a while, you know that I don’t usually partake in the Editor Wars except in a humorous way, mostly in Red Meat Friday posts such as this one. Over at Kindness City there’s a … Continue reading →

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