arclightNov 28, 2024

I picked up a nice four probe wireless thermometer today. The big advantage is a long-range base station with an actual display and controls that work without a phone app. I tried to connect their phone app to the actual device and it wanted me to set up an online account.

No.

Let me make this real fucking clear: THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO GOOD REASON THE INTERNAL TRMPERATURE OF THE TURKEY IN MY OVEN NEEDS TO BE SHARED WITH A SERVER OUTSIDE MY HOUSE. NONE FUCKING WHATSOEVER.

"What harm is there if...?"

Wrong answer. This information is not relevant to anyone but me. Not every moment of my life, not every data point around me needs to go beyond my property line. This telemetry does not need to exist and it's taken for granted that it should by people who do not act in my interest.

Show threadarclightNov 28, 2024

It's not paranoia, it's just basic autonomy and privacy. No, seriously, nobody besides this household's residents need to know the temperature of food in this house. This shouldn't be a controversial stance, much like nobody besides the phone owner has any need to know the geographical coordinates of their phone. Heresy!

If your hardware device doesn't work without an app or the cloud, it's junk, full stop. Full. Fucking. Stop.

Show threadarclightDec 2, 2024
I recently wrote the phrase "meat thermometer attack surface" and it reinforced to me that I have no regrets leaving system administration to return to nuclear safety analysis. There's something comforting working on problems that don't have as their root cause "Someone upstream is a greedy little remora."
Show threadarclight
Since at least the 1970s we've been breeding a class of managers and financial operatives that can only be described as walking failure modes. MBAs with a focus in SPOF. Computers just increased the speed and scope of their damage.
Dec 2, 2024 at 2:51pmWeb
Show threadeLearningTechieDec 2, 2024
@arclight 👏👏
Show threadTom StreeterDec 2, 2024

@arclight I don't know if you are familiar with Leo Bogart. He's often called the father of audience research. One of my most treasured memories is standing about 10 feet from him as he ate a hotdog. But anyway, he wrote a line (that he repeated in more than one place) that has pretty much been a foundational plank of my world view:

"The worst thing that ever happened to audience research was giving an MBA a microcomputer."

Show threadclacke: exhausted pixie dream boy 🇸🇪🇭🇰💙💛Dec 3, 2024
MBAs with a focus in SPOF.

@arclight a.k.a. #ChokepointCapitalism