Daily Archives: July 27, 2005

Is Your Printer Spying on You?

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Electronic Frontier Foundation:

Imagine that every time you printed a document, it automatically included a secret code that could be used to identify the printer — and potentially, the person who used it. Sounds like something from an episode of “Alias,” right?

Unfortunately, the scenario isn’t fictional. In an effort to identify counterfeiters, the US government has succeeded in persuading some color laser printer manufacturers to encode each page with identifying information. That means that without your knowledge or consent, an act you assume is private could become public. A communication tool you’re using in everyday life could become a tool for government surveillance. And what’s worse, there are no laws to prevent abuse.

Virgin’s Free Daily

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Zachary M. Seward:

Richard Branson’s ever-expanding Virgin Group is considering a foray into the newspaper business with a free daily publication in New York City, according to an individual familiar with the company’s plans.
The newspaper, which would focus on show business and entertainment, is still in the preliminary stages of planning at Virgin, the source said. It would be sponsored by the company’s entertainment division, which includes the Virgin Megastores.
Free newspapers have flourished, though not always profited, in major metropolitan areas over the past decade. New York is already home to two such papers, am New York and Metro, though both feature general interest news.

I think we’ll see more of this. The daily paper will be free (ad supported), then some will go weekly only.

Calatrava’s Chicago Skyscraper to be Tallest in U.S.

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A proposal to build a new 115-story building by 2009 could give Chicago claim to having the first and second tallest skyscrapers in the country.
The 2,000-foot tower, proposed by Chicago developer Christopher Carley and designed by noted architect Santiago Calatrava, would go up along the city’s lakefront near Navy Pier, northeast of the Loop.
The 110-floor Sears Tower is currently the nation’s tallest building. Carley’s building, minus its spire, would be 1,458 feet high — taller than the Sears Tower by eight feet.

(more)

Madison’s Spending Challenge

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Phil Brinkman summarizes the implications of the recently signed State budget on the City of Madison:

Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk said the limit on counties is “very comparable” to one she has insisted Dane County abide by in its budget. She predicted it wouldn’t affect county operations.
But Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz said the budget will force hard choices in Madison, which will be limited to increasing its levy to no more than 4 percent next year, below the 5.7 percent average of the last 15 years (emphasis added).
The city faces $9.5 million in increased costs to continue existing services next year, Cieslewicz said, but will be limited under the cap to collecting about $6 million more in property taxes.
Although the city is growing, police, fire, streets and other agencies would have to cut their budgets 2.1 percent from what it would cost to maintain the same level of services, Cieslewicz spokesman George Twigg said. The city could also raise fees and fines, as it has done before, or dip more deeply than usual into its “rainy day fund” to help cover the gap.

Madison’s 5.7% average levy increase over the past 15 years is not sustainable, given the State’s generally slow economy. City leaders need to start thinking different, rather than continuing with a “same service” approach.

The Personal 40 MBA

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Josh Kaufman:

My goal was to reduce the PMBA list to no more than 40 titles. Here are my editing criteria:

  • Valuable Content – each book has to contain a lot of useful, practical information on how business works, how you can add value, and must explain why the material in the book is important to know. As a whole, the list must cover as much ground as possible, while providing a mix of both complimentary and conflicting viewpoints.
  • Acceptable Time Commitment – no 1,000 page books here, although there are a few (good) textbooks in the mix for the more technical topics (accounting, finance, real estate). You should be able to get the key points of each book in a few hours, or by reading the chapter introductions and summaries of the textbooks.
  • Reference Value – is the book going to be one you pick back up when you need information? How does the book re-read? Is this a book that is worth keeping for many years?

Watching Us Through The Sorting Door

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Mark Baard:

A former CIA intelligence analyst and researchers from SAP plan to study how RFID tags might be used to profile and track individuals and consumer goods.
“I believe that tags will be readily used for surveillance, given the interests of various parties able to deploy readers,” said Ross Stapleton-Gray, former CIA analyst and manager of the study, called the Sorting Door Project.

What is RFID?