If memory serves, Apple had a licensing deal with Intel over the lightning port on the iPhones. I can't recall the expiration of the deal, but that's why the laptops already have USB-C and the phones/tablets don't.
It really depends on the project, but in my case, I could talk about technology, but not the specific problem we were trying to solve. I have the unclassified cover names listed on my resume as well.
I don't have any experience with the Wyrd, but I have a MacPro connected to a Bifrost DAC and Asgard 2 amplifier running to a pair of Sennheiser 650 headphones (work/live in a noisy environment). Completely satisfied.
Did you upgrade straight to the Bifrost/Asgard or did you have something like the Vali/Modi before or? I currently have those, but I'm looking at upgrades some time in the future.
I can't speak for cnkeller, but I first got a Modi and Magni. The Modi was good enough, but the Magni wasn't. The problems with the Magni were that it wasn't grounded and its volume pot sucked. The lack of grounding made it very susceptible to interference and crappy volume pot made fine adjustments in volume impossible. I replaced it with an Asgard 2 and have been satisfied ever since.
I suspect that the newer cheap amps such as the Vali and Magni 2 have fixed these issues.
It's pretty sad IMO when anyone selling a >$100 amp cheaps out on the volume pot, since it's a really obvious thing to upgrade, and Alps Blue Velvet pots are used in almost every hobbyist design. I would further question where else they tried to save money. This is a big part of why I like open-design amps / hobbyist / community-designed amps / kits.
Good question. I went to the Bifront/Asgard setup directly without prior Schiit experience (though I did have Sennheiser experience). My previous setup was constructed for a different environment, e.g, speakers and a Denon with a built in DAC/amp.
I can absolutely tell the details in certain albums using the new setup. Hearing the difference between FLAC/ALE and something encoded at 320bps or higher is really dependent on the material though.
When you state HIPPA compliance, are you saying that you've addressed NIST 800-66 with a 3rd party certification? As I'm sure you know, the word "compliance" is sort of funny and subject to interpretation.
Great question! We audit customers against an adapted version of HHS's pilot audit protocol for covered entities[0], tailored for cloud-based software business associates. HHS is starting the permanent audit program and we expect them to publish an audit protocol specifically for business associates this fall.
NIST Special Publications are great resources, and we use them where appropriate, but as I'm sure you know, they're not specific enough to just audit against a single publication and call it a day.
For example, NIST SP 800-66 Revision 1[1]:
1. Only covers the Security Rule
2. Consists of mostly pointers to the other, substantive NIST SPs, and
3. Isn't as detailed as the audit protocol from HHS, which is the entity that will ultimately judge your compliance
Again, all of that said, we love NIST(!) and use their methodologies and guidance (including SP 800-66 Rev 1) extensively.
I've been working 100% remotely for a large US firm (tens of thousands of global employees) for a few years now. Prior to that I worked for the same firm in office. My current role is physically in a separate state from the others, so it's not possible to do a few days in the office and a few days at home (I think that is the best of both worlds).
I have a home office with a door on a separate floor from where most of the family is. Even though I wear headphones, being able to close the door indicates "dad is focused" as opposed to just having the door open which means interruptions are okay. Occasionally I'll work remote from being remote and hit the local coffee shop. I find that a simple change of scenery helps me focus/
We use both google hangouts and hipchat text/video for meetings as well as email and other solutions. We also conference call a lot on mobiles. We don't do daily status (I've never offered and no one asked). People sync up as needed. The only thing I miss is being able to stand in front of a whiteboard and draw things for group feedback, but I've adjusted.
I work my own schedule which is loosely based on the standard business day. I'm consider myself "in the office" from around 630am to about 5pm, but I take breaks during the day to eat, play with the dogs, go the the gym or run errands. As with most places, it's more about what you deliver than working a strict eight hour day. I'm more of an architect than developer so I'm not pair programming or working directly with someone every second. Asynchronous communications have been fine.
There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that I'm out of sight and out of mind. I miss hallway chats, impromptu meetings, etc. I consider it a fair trade off for the lifestyle. I'm not sure it's hurt my career, but it probably hasn't helped it.
We use corporate computers with VPN's as needed for patching, internal access, etc.
Background: I had a personal issue that required me to sell my house in silicon valley and move closer to my parents on the east coast. Rather than let me go, the company offered to pay for my relocation and let me work from home (I work at a pretty traditional company, not a tech giant so I was surprised). About six months after, I moved teams within the company, so my new team was okay with me coming on board while remote. Since then, I've moved teams (and physical locations) again, and the new team was also fine. Most folks are either at customer sites or in the various corporate offices, but there are plenty of folks who seem to do what I do and just work remote. It's a bit more common than I would have thought honestly for a "corporate culture".
I've not been asked to relocate, I've not taken any salary reductions, or had any "negative" behavior as a result. It's the main reason I've rewarded their loyalty to me with my loyalty to them. If someone needs me, they either call me or email me. Pretty simple. If I need to get on a plane (a few times) for a meeting, I just do it. But between conference calls, screen sharing via webex, etc it's pretty manageable.
Part of the reason I believe it works is because I don't let being remote be an issue. I pick up my phone when it rings, I check email constantly, I'm available via multiple chat systems, and I get things done. It absolutely helps that at some point, when crossing time zones and countries, everyone is somewhat remote. You can't have a 90K person company in the same place.
I do not do all of the "recommended things" that they say when working remote. I don't get dressed and "go to work". I get up, grab a protein shake, sit in front of my computer in my sleepwear like I would if it was a weekend. I don't have a dedicated work room, I work in the same place I play video games and work on personal projects. What it comes down to is that while others are commuting, I'm answering email. While other people are going out to lunch, I'm working on architectures with a bowl of beef and veggies. While they're taking snow days, I'm working uninterrupted. I'm not sure if I'm more productive (though I suppose we could all find ways to be more productive), but I'm certainly as productive.
Some random thoughts:
I shop for seven days worth of food because I cook all my meals every day. I eat much better.
My ISP (Charter) is rock solid and high speed. In a pinch my mobile would be my email backup.
I do not ask for any reimbursement for costs and I don't write anything off tax wise.
Jobs will come and go, but for the first few years of my sons life I was here every single day watching him grow up. I'll never be able to get that back if I missed it.
Wherever possible, I shift the burden of being remote to me. I never say "well, I'm remote and don't own a fax machine". I just make it happen. I often start controversial conversations with "well, do you need me to fly in?"
As a final thought, I get a lot of recruiters (don't we all though) contacting me. Strangely enough, it's usually the startups that seem to have a problem working remote. The first thing I tell people is that I'm while I have no problems flying in for meetings (either my cost or theirs), I'm content staying as a remote employee for now. In the future, we can discuss relocation. 95 times out of 100, regardless of the fit or role, it's a deal breaker in the first five minutes. Just find that interesting and it's a great way to pre-screen potential employers.
"I'm not sure if I'm more productive (though I suppose we could all find ways to be more productive), but I'm certainly as productive."
This is one of the reasons I am desperate to get a remote job. The chance to work on code uninterrupted. I enjoy coding, but the longer I stay in my current job, the less of it I seem to do.
While I understand that many people enjoy writing code and do so for fun, there are a large number of fantastic engineers that don't (myself included). Just as I wouldn't give someone preference for a robust profile, I'm not going to penalize someone for lack thereof. There is only so much time in the day and if they can do ten hours worth of work in eight hours and choose to spend their off time with their family, friends, or hobbies, good for them. Knowing how to decompress and enjoy both work and life is just as valuable to me as crafting solutions to engineering problems.
If you are working with the same technology stack we work and are not finding bugs or implementing new features you are not playing in the same league.
We don't contribute to FOSS because we are hobbyists or good Samaritans, we do it because we need the features or fixes. We do it because in the long term it is cheaper and more efficient than maintaining a fork or developing a closed source component.
Many software developers don't work with FOSS technology at work. I work in embedded systems and much of the library code I work with has been provided by manufacturers of the devices I'm using. I do find bugs in it and report fixes to the library developer, but they often have strange licensing and don't use github (or even public version control) so this work doesn't end up visibly attributed to me in public.
This doesn't mean that the people working in non-web industries "are not playing in the same league" with respect to skill, it just means that they don't have a huge public representation of the work they do.
> While I understand that many people enjoy writing code and do so for fun, there are a large number of fantastic engineers that don't (myself included).
Sure, but there aren't many people who hate coding but still do it (in significant amounts) in their free time. so having a github profile is still a positive signal towards being a good coder (assuming, of course, that practice causes improvement).
It would be wasteful for a company to ignore this information.
It's usually not that black and white. It can also be "which of these employees is least likely to make the transition to where we are headed?"
About three months after I was hired at a company they reduced headcount by 25%. Even though I was one of the newest people there (though in terms of experience and salary I was more senior), management came to me and said that my experience and flexibility was going to be key in where they were headed post layoff and I wasn't going to be affected.
Long story short, it really depends. It's not always down to salary. Without getting into a lot of legalese (and every situation varies), when you do a layoff, you're eliminating the position and not looking to rehire, so you're generally not thinking about replacements. You're trying to figure out which staff is going to get you from here to wherever you decided you need to be.
The numbers are getting lower because many people are leaving due to Blizzards repeated failure at basic concepts: trying to balance the game for both PvE and PvP, trying to make the content challenging enough for hardcore players, but accessible and rewarding enough for casual players. The first expansion was pretty good, but I think the number of guilds that finished Sunwell were something like 1-2%. I know a lot of "hardcore raiders" quit after the second expansion (myself included) simply because of the design changes. Even among friends that still play, I don't know anyone really looking forward to the upcoming expansion, it's not that people are sick of WoW in as much as they are sick of what Blizzard is doing with it.
While calling these "basic concepts" is technically correct, I suppose, they're also among some of the most difficult aspects of game design. In a community as large and diverse (in terms of both ability level and time commitment) as WoW's, it's hardly surprising that Blizzard would err on the side of populism.
10.2 million may be a step down from the peak of popularity, but WoW is still wildly profitable and maintains a userbase larger than most of its competitors combined.
Just because I don't agree with their choices, doesn't mean I don't understand them. Even though Sunwell was an unplanned response to Black Temple being "tuned too well", the next expansion not being ready, the top guilds crushing existing dungeons, it doesn't make sense to release content that 5% of your player base ever has a hope of seeing, much less finishing. I mean I get it for sure. From a monetary/subscriber point of view, they absolutely did the right thing, the hardcore crowd for sure was the minority (the vocal minority), but minority nonetheless. I think we're seeing that in the subscriber numbers, 10% of so people got fed up and left, and the remainder are [happily?] plugging along. But playing through the various expansions, you can definitely feel that the top designers, etc have been pulled off onto Project Titan. The game has lost some of it's epic feel (which could also be due to it's age as well).
The way they approached the problems with Sunwell in 3.0 and 3.1 seemed really good. All of the content was easy to finish, but fights like OS3D, firefighter, yogg+1, and algalon were engaging for a long time. After that the hard modes stopped being significantly different from the normal versions of the encounters, which makes them a great deal less exciting. The lack of excitement in high-end raid content should only impact high-end raiders, though, so this probably has very little to do with the people who are leaving the game.
I just started playing 4.3 after leaving in 3.3 and the blatant brokenness of the game amazes me. I expected the human racial to no longer be unreasonably powerful, but 2x PVE trinkets is now an even larger advantage than it was in WotLK. I expected at least some effort at QA for the content patches, but instead we have blood DKs in blood presence being critically hit by bosses, carrying winds letting players fall to their deaths, and Deathwing occasionally deciding he would rather remain impossible to attack until his hard enrage than participate in the last phase of the encounter.
Blizzard has said they want to fix the PvE vs PvP issues at least with respect to gear, so that wearing PvP gear in PvE is bad but not terrible and wearing PvE gear in PvP (even trinkets!) is bad but not terrible. It seems odd that they did not think this was an issue from TBC until now.
I haven't seen this either, then again I have a fairly clean desktop and a highly structured folders. Perhaps a scale issue, I didn't notice where the author made any comments with the number of items Finder was rendering.
It seems that they were reduced to guessing the PIN's and/or brute forcing them, hence the initial comment from RSA about increasing PIN length.
One would have hoped that the LMC admins would have detected a brute force attack against their RSA servers, I guess they were already infested with keyloggers?
