Y2K24
Usually when I write about absurd technological fuckups, I'm exaggerating; the point is to show what happens when you push current tech policy and practice to its furthest extent. And then something just as dumb as a thing I sarcastically made up hits the news.
Case in point: Crowdstrike.
One bad patch managed to paralyze digital infrastructure worldwide because:
- weak antitrust allowed Microsoft to virtually monopolize computing and Crowdstrike to virtually monopolize enterprise cybersecurity,
- boneheaded corporate policy resulted in a simultaneous poorly-tested update on Friday afternoon (right before everyone's IT guy should be leaving for the weekend), and
- multiple industries' dependence on remote servers and cloud computing made it difficult, if not impossible, to physically access the affected machines.
This feels like something I wrote. A friend of mine is convinced I have reality-distorting powers, and I'm sure this will do nothing to assuage those fears.
Smashwords Summer/Winter Sale
We're into the last week of the Summer/Winter Sale over at Smashwords! A lot of my books are on sale for $0.99 USD each, and my novelette "Jay Moriarty Violates the Official Secrets Act" is currently free to download.
You can find my books on Smashwords here, and sale prices are valid through to July 31.
New on Ko-fi: "Jay Moriarty Has Seen You Naked," Chapter 2
Chapter 2 of "Jay Moriarty Has Seen You Naked" is now up for all supporters on Ko-fi. If you're not a fan of serialized works, you can also get the entire novella as an ebook.
Recommendation: Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries
Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries is a show about a nosy bitch in the 1920s solving murders and wearing fabulous outfits, and is therefore scientifically engineered to be one of my favorite things in the world. Even if they do run out of plausible ways for the main characters to discover a dead body by about halfway through the second season. It's also notable for featuring one of the few heterosexual couples in fiction that I find interesting.
(Seriously, the chemistry is insane.)
This Week's Links
A collection of over 45 000 first-hand accounts of experiences with various drugs. A good writing resource if you can't go out and try certain substances yourself, for whatever reason.
The company sent letters on pink stationery to some 50,000 young Spanish women, urging them "to have a little affair." ... One Madrid police station received complaints from three women, one of whom stayed home for three days thinking a psychopath was after her, El Pais said.
For those who may not know, Mythbusters aired on the Discovery channel from 2003 to 2016 and was dedicated to testing and debunking urban legends and popular misconceptions. Usually by blowing stuff up. Full episodes are now being uploaded on YouTube, which are worth a (re)watch.
Oh, it turns out Crowdstrike's CEO used to be CTO at McAfee. That explains a few things.
-K
