Mifare classic smartcards are incredibly cheap (usd0.60 in quantities of one from futurelec) but the datasheets are hilarious. The datasheet for the Mifare S70 proudly proclaims that

The security layer supports the field-proven CRYPTO1 stream cipher for secure data exchange of the mifare® classic family.

Well it's certainly proven, but not quite in the way their marketing department would like.

This evening I'm heading off to the youth event that precedes Presbyterian General Assembly 2008, a week of basically one big meeting, with 400 people. Making important decisions etc. So I won't be on email much (although I have been lent an eee901 by the ever-helpful canllaith which may help in that area). It looks like it'll be an interesting, and hopefully positive experience; I'm from an age group that isn't especially well represented at Assembly, and have very little experience of national church politics.

So if you need to get hold of me during this time, you hopefully know my cellphone number.

So National Billboard 2008 has had just over 10,000 ad impressions (21,500 pageviews; ads were off when it launched). Two clickthoughs, and one was me (which didn't seem to pay, google must be clever). USD0.07 total earnings. I've turned the ads off, at this point all they are doing is annoying people.

But I'm curious as to why the CTR was so low, and how representative this is of other sites; if you get one click per ten thousand impressions, the online ad business must be in pretty bad shape. That or my experience is an extreme outlier.

Unlike certain other people I've never been especially good at the whole response to text thing. But I still seem to read some good books and maybe someone will see these and find something that they too like.

The Star Fraction — Ken MacLeod

Future dystopia full of politics and technology and weapons. I think Ken is quite keen on his politics. Very good, but I read this a couple of months ago (it was, in fact, aeroplane reading on my June trip to the US) and as such I can't remember enough to provide a suitably pithy description. But it's a good read.

Pattern Recognition — William Gibson

Gibson that isn't cyberpunk, or SF, although undoubtably your local bookstore will still put it there anyway. Set in the present, it's about marketing, jetlag and the search for the elusive "footage" that keeps on appearing on the internet. This was a re-read, so it must be good. Purchased in a bookstore in Seattle that also sold anti-bush T-shirts, a couple of days before their 2004 presidential election.

Dandelion Wine — Ray Bradbury

The fantastic things that happen to a young boy in the summer of 1926. The blurb on the back made it sound like this was going to be not especially good SF. Thankfully this wasn't the case at all. It's a sentimental look at the events of a childhood summer, perfectly capturing how simple things can become magical to a child. Not the sort of thing I'd usually read, but good.

The Execution Channel — Ken MacLeod

Borders in Palo Alto had this out the front, with a big lurid cover, so I bought it to make up for them having sold out of Spook Country. It was my flight-back-home book. And it's good. SF and hackers and terrorism and spies and post nine eleven and a Cory Doctorow quote on the back calling it a "blogothriller" which is absolutely not a reason to run away screaming from it and a very poor description of the book.

Update time!

So I survived Atlanta, although I didn't see much. I learnt my lesson about hotel restaurants (just ... don't. No matter how easy it is.) and hotel laundry (you take the bags from your wardrobe to the front desk). Went to a Cajun place on Monday, which was great. Went to ... \ref{hotelfood} for most of the rest of the week. They stuffed up my reservation, of course.

On Friday flew to SF. On Saturday, wandered around a bit and then Craig came (car in tow) and showed me a bit around Silicon Valley, Gilroy outlet shops and Santa Cruz. Sunday was walk across SF (via Chinatown, pictures forthcoming) and hire a bike. We (Craig and I) cycled over the bridge and back, and went through Golden Gate park which was quite nice (and contained a giant purple head). Then we met Jennifer (of MCS fame) for dinner on Fisherman's wharf.

And then my hotel took 30 minutes to find the bags I'd left with them.

Craig dropped me off in San Mateo, where my hotel decided that their credit card machine didn't like my card, so I had to pay cash. Rang the bank who gave a complicated explanation, but it Just Worked in the morning. Gah.

Since then ... Mall Food (surprisingly good Mexican) on Monday. Dinner in Palo Alto (+ sightseeing) with Craig and varying SAP people on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Tomorrow is Thursday. I have a demo at 11am, so I've set several alarms, and will probably wake earlier than them. The Best Western I'm staying in definitely loses in the "curtains blocking sunlight" category.

Maybe now I should get some sleep :-)

As annoying as the TSA's war-against-liquids can be, at least they let you plan your stay in one of their wonderful queues.

Actually the wait in Denver airport didn't seem so bad. The queue was long, but it was moving much faster than any TSA queue I'd ever been in before.

It was shiny, and bright, and white or wooden, with green t-shirted Apple Operatives waiting to answer your questions (they had not yet received the new bluetooth keyboards, damn).

But when you went to actually buy something, they use ... handheld Symbol barcode scanner devices with the word PocketPC written in noticeable letters above the screen! Fake Steve would not be amused.

Which is not quite where I intended to spend the night. Damn airlines, etc. But there is free WiFi. And a thunderstorm.

For those of you who haven't already heard, I'll be out of the country for the next couple of weeks. Again. This time it's a business trip to the US; I'll have a week in Atlanta and a week in San Francisco.

Was driving up the Rimutaka Hill road. It was a bit damp. Passed a campervan, then turned right around a corner and back wheels went into a skid. Tried to turn left, but ended up in the fence. Uninjured, but very surprised. Three police cars attended the scene; with the aid of a tow truck the car was put back on the road, at which point it appeared to work. Bought a hot chocolate at the top of the hill and then went home.

(yes, yes, I'm alright, if I wasn't I wouldn't be blogging about it quite so soon)