Tag Archive for: Hardware
“Unpatchable” hardware flaw. Nation-state conflict in cyberspace. Threat actor Aoqin Dragon has been operating since 2013.
Dateline
Ukraine at D+106: Cyber ops and escalation. (The CyberWire) An artillery war in the Donbas. Russia warns that Western, especially US, “aggression and encouragement of banditry” in cyberspace risks escalation into full combat, and that Washington can be sure that Moscow will retaliate. Beijing issues a similar warning, with special mention of the risks small countries assume when they accept American cybersecurity aid. Canada is on “high alert” for Russian cyberattacks. And Mr. Putin identifies with Tsar Peter the Great.
Live updates | Ukraine: Russia still attacking eastern city (AP NEWS) The Ukrainian army says Kyiv’s forces continue to frustrate Russian attempts to take the fiercely contested eastern city of Sievierodonetsk. “The occupiers, with the help of motorized rifle units and artillery, conducted assault operations in the city of Sievierodonetsk.
‘Dead Cities’ Become the Flashpoint for the Fierce War in the East (New York Times) President Volodymyr Zelensky has framed the battle in Sievierodonetsk as pivotal to the broader fight for the Donbas. Amid relentless Russian attacks, Ukraine holds on and waits for Western weapons.
Key city’s fate in balance as fighting rages in east Ukraine (AP NEWS) Russian forces pounded an eastern Ukrainian city Thursday and the two sides waged pitched street battles that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said could determine the fate of the critical Donbas region.
UK says Mariupol at risk of cholera outbreak (Reuters) Ukraine’s southern city of Mariupol is at risk of a major cholera outbreak as medical services are likely already near collapse, Britain’s defence ministry said on Friday.
We’re almost out of ammunition and relying on western arms, says Ukraine (the Guardian) Exclusive: Deputy head of military intelligence says it’s an artillery war now and ‘everything depends on what the west gives us’
Live Updates: Ukraine’s Pleas Grow Louder as Soldiers Are Outgunned and Putin Talks of Empire (New York Times) As Ukrainian soldiers try to hold on in the besieged city of Sievierodonetsk, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that his country must not be forced to stay in a “gray zone” and that it needed more weapons…
Computer hardware orchestra The Floppotron reaches v3.0 • The Register
The Floppotron computer hardware orchestra has reached version 3.0. The question is, where do you even find 512 floppy disk drives? Its creator, Paweł Zadrożniak, tells all.
The Floppotron is a marvellous bit of engineering. Its tones frequent many a YouTube video (this writer was rather taken by the rendition of “Take On Me” performed by the device’s second iteration) and as a repurposing of obsolete hardware, it would be hard to come up with a more imaginative approach.
The first version made its debut in 2011 and consisted of a pair of floppy drives. The device’s performance of the Imperial March has clocked up 6.7 million views at time of writing.
Version 2.0 increased the drive count to 64 and added eight hard drives and a pair of flatbed scanners. The latest incarnation ups the ante with 512 floppy drives, 16 hard drives and 4 scanners.
Zadrożniak has documented the construction of the machine (we’re particularly impressed with the “floppy disk drive wall”). But why?
“The project has started with just a random idea in 2011,” he said. “I’m an electronics hobbyist and like to do those small projects for learning purposes or just for pure fun.
“I also like music. I used to play a little piano and when those projects involve any music then it’s getting more fun to me.”
“Fun” is one word for it, although there is undoubtedly considerable skill in getting MIDI from one end to play out via the instruments (for want of better word) made up of whirring and clunking device motors.
“Maybe it’s not a particularly useful device,” conceded Zadrożniak, “but it was a little challenging and super fun to make.”
Also challenging is scrounging all those parts. After all, where would one even go to find that many working drives nowadays?
“I…
