JSUtilities.js – Nifty little JavaScript Utilities

Here’s an interesting little JavaScript utilities file:

  • array.push (if unsupported)
  • array.shift (if unsupported)
  • function.apply (if unsupported)
  • inArray() [Port from PHP] Hunts for a value in the specified array
  • isArray() [Port from PHP] verifies if something is an array
  • ksort() [Port from PHP] sorts an array by key names
  • addClass() appends the specified class to the object
  • removeClass() removes the specified class to the object
  • lastChildContainingText() finds the last block-level text-containing element within an object

http://old.easy-designs.net/code/jsUtilities/working/jsUtilities.js

How one clumsy ship cut off the web for 75 million people

Internet Sea Cable DiagramHow one clumsy ship cut off the web for 75 million people | Technology | The Guardian

Wow.

A flotilla of ships may have been dispatched to reinstate the broken submarine cable that has left the Middle East and India struggling to communicate with the rest of the world, but it took just one vessel to inflict the damage that brought down the internet for millions.

…

“People just don’t realise that all these things go through undersea cables – that this is the main way these economies are all linked,” said Alan Mauldin, the research director of TeleGeography. “Even when you’re using wireless internet, it’s only really wireless back to your base station: the rest is done over real, physical connections.”

…

One expert suggested that this week’s accident should be a “wake-up call” to convince governments that keeping such connections secure should be a higher priority. Officials must spend more time and energy making sure that critical communications such as mobile phones and the net are adequately protected – whether from disaster or a terrorist strike, said Mustafa Alani, head of security and terrorism at the Gulf Research Centre in Dubai.

“This shows how easy it would be to attack,” he said. “When it comes to great technology, it’s not about building it, it’s how to protect it.”

Interesting story indicating 35% accuracy hacking CAPTCHA

Slashdot | Yahoo CAPTCHA Hacked

Hell Yeah! reminds us of a 2-week-old development that somehow escaped notice here. A team of Russian hackers has found a way to decipher a Yahoo CAPTCHA, thought to be one of the most difficult, with 35% accuracy. The Russian group’s notice, posted by one “John Wane,” is dated January 16. This site hosts a rapidshare link to what looks to be demonstration software for Windows, and quotes the Russian researchers:

“It’s not necessary to achieve high degree of accuracy when designing automated recognition software. The accuracy of 15% is enough when attacker is able to run 100,000 tries per day, taking into the consideration the price of not automated recognition