Author: alohawild

A Note: For the readers, HOPE_16 is the good guys. For instance, the hack and ATM class highlights the sloth of banks, which, rather than addressing vulnerabilities that hackers can easily exploit, should focus on improving testing and delivering enhanced protection. The hope, thus the name, is that the banks will listen, fix, and improve. Remember those ATM fees? They are there to partially cover the banks for not fixing the issues. Corporate sloth. It is all our money, and they should do better.

I woke before my alarm and started at 5. It was easier than I expected, as I slept well and managed to get a few extra hours too. Rising, I started in on my usual checking of my accounts and emails. I made a cup of coffee in the room, missing Deborah, whom I would make a cup for first. I texted her and heard back soon after she started her day while I worked on the blog. Then, I showered and did all that. I headed down to the lobby, which was busy with the Fairfield Inn’s complimentary breakfast.

I wrote in the morning, trying to finish as quickly as possible, as I had to arrive at St John’s University by 9:45 for the first speaker at 10. I did get a bagel with cream cheese, banana, and a decent apple to take with me for later. I ate it around dinner time, as I did not get dinner until about 7 at night (missing a lecture from a lawyer I wanted to see while I waited). I published the blog, returned to my room, and then headed out.

I was offered a ride in a Lyft, but I had to mail a postcard, so I declined. I waited ten minutes instead for the Q30 bus and was soon early at the campus. Excellent! I walked into the campus, talking to another attendee, and soon did my first lecture.

The first lecture was also the worst as their demo and presentation were ineffective. They finally got things going, and while the presentation was embarrassingly bad, the idea of SD Cards as jewelry intrigued me. Also, the concept of splitting data between the cards and needing, say, 3 out of 5, to reassemble the data sounded like a brilliant protection with a possible extra physical secret to protect it all. No sharing it. You could wear your data and protect it. Hmmm. I was already thinking of a new SciFi story about a rich uncle passing away and leaving you some SD Cards, and you having to find the secret and the extra cards to get access to his BitCoins.

The following lecture was about the harsh truth of body autonomy, given by the senior technologist, Daly Barnett of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, which fights many legal battles and is on the front line for abortion and trans rights. I learned that the abortion pills, though strongly controlled, are not as controlled by locals as some of the transition drugs are. Wow, justice with compassion seemed so far away after listening to Daly.

Next, I grabbed a prepackaged sandwich and more coffee, paid $15, and quickly ate them. I found the presentation by the Free Software Foundation (GNU, to some of us). I learned that the idea was published by Richard Stallman and got started back in 1983 (while I was in college). The presenter, Craig Topman, sought a solution to help the world and alleviate some of the madness. He found that working for the Foundation allowed him to make a meaningful difference. He made a strong case for us to join, listing volunteer positions that need to be filled immediately. There was some interest. I resisted (everyone wants me).

A bright high school kid gave the best history of the actual means to break the old Enigma machines. He covered how the Polish mathematicians solved it first. He then demonstrated how the updates to the machines necessitated additional assistance and how Alan Turing utilized both manual and electric machines (nearly computers, but specially built for a single task) to crack the code, building upon the partial solutions derived from the manual work. I did not know that Ian Fleming was the Intelligence Officer for the Enigma decoding effort. It was an excellent talk.

For the Enigma talk, I was able to answer a question because I had met one of the folks who worked with Alan Turing, and he had answered the same questions for me back in the 1980s. I repeated Dr. Peter Hilton’s answer that the Germans generally did not guess that their codes were broken, except Rommel, who gave many deceptive reports that understated his capabilities.

Lastly, I caught a lecture on how to build a police scanner system that logs all traffic calls and lets you listen to them in near-real time. It can track the frequency trunking done by the P25 system. It involves multiple radios and a Linux system to receive traffic files.

I headed out and soon found myself on the Q30 bus, but I got off at a stop a block from my usual one by accident (I couldn’t see that well in the dark). I reached my room without any issues, washed up, and then headed out to the dive bar, Emerald Pub, next door. There I got a beer, and then talked to some lawyers (whose lecture I missed).

Savy, along with a friend and her husband, was out smoking by the unfinished new phone tower. I chatted with them and they were friendly. I shared my phone number, and we will try to connect today at the closing ceremonies, and then they may join me for a trip into NYC on Monday and a museum or two.

I returned to my room and stayed up until after 11, chatting, texting, and doing some work on my laptop (none of which was hacker-related).

In general, I noticed the positive and friendly “you do you” vibe at HOPE_16. In many ways, Hope_16 is the after-party for Defcon in Las Vegas. About half of the folks I have met at HOPE_16 were in Las Vegas a few weeks ago. I was told that Defcon is a hacker school and that this is the fun, learn crazy crafts, and meet fun people conference. There are some learning options (there is a lecture on how to hack ATMs on Sunday — I will likely do a class on bookbinding instead), but it is more of a party and celebration. It is definitely not corporate.

I liked it.

Thanks for reading.

I woke at 6, and while I had slept well, 14,000 steps that day, it seemed way too f**king early when my alarm woke me. The skies, resembling Oregon in the fall, were gray, but the sunlight was bright. It would be another hot and humid day in Queens and Fresh Meadows. Deborah was awake, and we talked by phone and text much of the morning. We enjoy starting and ending our days together.

As is my habit, I started the blog in my room, 302, at the Fairfield Inn with coffee made in the room. I used to bring Deborah coffee when we were together, and I think of her when I make coffee in the room machine (she always gets the first one). I later showered, dressed, and went to the lobby for a better breakfast. While not a treat, it is better than most industrial breakfasts I have had free at other hotels. I wrote the blog through most of the early morning, and noticed many folks heading to Hope_16, which made me realize I should switch to a more sinister T-shirt. I had the Kickstarter Night Stalker one with me, and I changed to that after breakfast and getting myself ready for my first exposure to a Hacker’s conference.

I dropped off the postcard for Mom Wild at the mailbox (surprised to see one), and waited a short moment for the Q30 bus ($2.90). I boarded the bus and took the short trip in a nearly empty bus, and soon I was off the bus and walking into St. John’s University. The place was filled with NY’s Finest. There was a police academy for kids, and the police were often in their dress blues. Quite a startling moment for folks headed to a Hope_16!

With something like, “Surely, this can’t be right,” going through my mind, I returned to the area where I was registered. It was a kind of polite chaos of a mix of a rock concert, but for introverts and computer geeks. I did not bring my laptop, and my iPhone was set to no WiFi or Bluetooth, as I had been warned. I would do my note-taking on a pad, totally analog!

My notes indicate that my initial impression was that the attendees were quiet (though the noise level increased throughout the day as people became more comfortable) and predominantly male (though I would later decrease my estimate to be 80% male, as more attendees appeared and clearly identified as female). Dark T-shirts were the de rigueur. Many folks were reconnecting from what I witnessed, and young, especially those projecting female, were the usual, with only a few people with gray hair and even fewer folks in their 60s.

Opening comments included the observation that “you can’t possibly pull this off.” And that it always works anyway. “Do the impossible anyway,” was the advice. But to do this in the “most positive way.” “It is hard,” they told us. Volunteers are needed, and thanks for the help. “We evolve” was shared as the reason it was still working, and that “goodwill makes it work.” And the last comment I recorded was that they “shone light where it is needed.”

Kody Kinzie was my first speaker, and I would take multiple workshops from him and paid a few hundred bucks for those workshops and the interesting devices for hacking and running a Meshtastic network (and how to break one). Kody runs the Hack.gay website and is a security researcher on the open-source side of things. He is also good with small devices, and I enjoyed building my own hardware in his class (just a few through-hole stuff, but still fun).

Kody demonstrated how to utilize his devices, specifically older Chinese-made hardware capable of modifying packet headers, to both scan and attack. Parts are about $3-10, making it almost throw-away stuff. I was happy I did not have a laptop with me, though I could not run the things myself, and my iOS stuff likely would not work anyway. Hmmm. I needed a throw-away image and a basic laptop next time. Double Hmmm.

Next, I listened to a talk about security for small to medium-sized businesses and learned that these are the usual targets of criminal computer attacks. I was told that, on average, an attack costs $200K and that 60% of the victim companies shut down within six months of an attack. Sobering. I also learned that Amazon shares its security training for its employees for free.

I skipped a Python class as it required a laptop, and instead did some lectures.

I listened to a rambling but interesting presentation on a person’s experience with their aphantasia, the inability to visualize while thinking. He suggested that AI has this same problem, and he, Dr. Brown, showed how chatbots tried to help him build his presentation. Dr. Brown was clear that he saw no intelligence, imagination, or clear reasoning being demonstrated, just a kind of pattern application. He implied that AI has aphantasia and worse.

Davis DeWin, a YouTuber, covers how he built a robot for a movie, including how to make it cute and sort of lovable for a kids’ movie. The movie did not want CGI but real machines. The machine used parts I know well, and the body was all 3D printed. DeWin says he learned a lot, including the challenges of 3D printing something that needs to be used as a robot, and he suggested, “Try to build things that don’t make sense.” This will yield 1) Increased options, 2) Allows for unconventional questions, 3) and “Build it for you.” He also suggests that getting help for what he did not know how to do was important to his success.

I met the designer, Clyde, of GameTank, which is an old 6502-based game console (that is the chip from the original Apple machines) with plug-in game cartridges. It was fascinating for me, and Clyde was happy to talk to someone who understood what he had done. I often daydream about building a 6502 machine when I see the chip set for sale. Clyde did it, and his colleague has a Rust port to build 8-bit games for it. I am really tempted to buy a pre-built model ($250, using SMD) and pick up some games ($30 or so each), then start coding for it. Do I need another thing to do? I will try to resist, but it is a daydream brought to life by Clyde!

Lunch was my leftover sandwich from last night. It was excellent cold. I found that in the evening, the conference had a food truck, and I had chicken fingers with a waffle and syrup. Not exactly low sugar for me, but pasta (!) was the other option. I brought an apple (the kind from a tree) from the hotel, but it was bruised to an uncomfortable level, and I did not finish it.

From the 2600 store, I got the conference T-shirt (black, no surprise there, with terminal green print), a mouse pad with their government-like seal, and a copy of the magazine with my story.

I was sleepy before the food, and there was no coffee (yikes!).

I found the Q30 bus and was soon in my room and chatting with Deborah. I was thinking of going to the pub next door or writing, but I just put my head down and soon I was asleep.

I did meet the pizza guy from Two Brothers in the elevator; he was delivering a meal. He did not remember me, but I again thanked him for the excellent pizza.

I woke up at 10:30, put on my PJs, and slept until 5ish with the sunrise.

Thanks for reading.

I rose early at 6, showered and all that, and then headed down to the lobby for breakfast. There, I found a slightly better-than-industrial complementary breakfast. The place was busy; I ate and then wrote until about 10ish and closed the breakfast. I published the blog, read my email, and updated my transactions in Quicken. I paid some of my bills and checked to see if they had cleared.

Boring, I know. Today was a work-like day, starting with registration at 4:30, followed by dinner with Cat at Junior’s in Manhattan’s theater district. I returned to my room (which would not be made up until after 4), wrote a card to Mom Wild, and worked on some church paperwork. I was in my room until near noon.

I took my Strand Bookstore red bag, put my laptop and other items I might use at the convention, and headed out. I mailed the card (one for Deborah, too, and Dondrea and Z got one written a bit later). Despite the modern email-everything world we live in, a physical card is still something special when sent by snail mail.

I wandered to Fresh Meadows on the other side of the highway, using the underpass, and soon was looking at local joints for lunch. I decided that pizza was low risk. I asked the clerk what was good, and he was at a loss. The cook showed me two plain pizzas, and I decided they were good as-is, with just cheese. I tried a slice with a can of Diet Pepsi for less than $10. Two Brothers Pizza (since 1963) was an old-school NY pizza place where the cook and customers would discuss their annual ticket sales, likely for baseball. I learned that the cook had been doing this since 1982, and we talked about dough and how he has to change his plans based on temperature and humidity. He showed me that he was keeping dough in small containers to keep it cool today.

With enough lunch in me, the pizza was more filling than I expected. I continued walking and walked the circle that is set in the middle of the Fresh Meadows apartments. I found a Starbucks, got an iced coffee, and it was hot and humid. There were no seats remaining inside (the AC was fantastic), and I went outside and got a table with some shade. I looked at the local real estate with prices 30% higher than Beaverton, and some just insane for mansions and whole apartment buildings.

I worked more on my novel and found myself in tears as one of the characters ended its story. I have not written a story like this, and there is some emotion attached to it. I hope it is good. I also have some rewrites to make that story work better.

It was hot, and my laptop was getting warm. I headed back to the hotel, unloaded my bag, and just grabbed my printed ticket for the 2600 Hope_16 conference. I walked back to the bus stop and soon took a short bus trip to St. John’s University.

I had tried this on Wednesday and was comfortable with the trip and walk. I did miss the Q Kosher shop and a pickle shop (!?) on my last visit. Soon I saw a truck unloading, and as often happens at gaming conventions, I noticed that things were behind. I helped unload a bit. Because of my balance issue from the brain surgery removing my balance in my left ear, I try to avoid walking and not seeing the horizon, so carrying and moving are no longer something I do much. I helped out a bit, holding doors open and pushing some things.

I met a few folks like me waiting for badges. Lindsey and Anton got me my badge, and soon I was talking to many first-time convention attendees. I would not tap phones, but instead wrote out my information. I am going analog and have a hand-written plan for the first two days of the conference.

It was nice to hang out for a while, but soon it was time to head to Manhattan again. I found the correct bus, waited only ten minutes, and got a seat. The bus was full, but not packed, by the time we reached the E Train. I was headed to the western part of the island, and that meant I needed a different train. I learned from Cat that the F Train is good too, and it’s only a few blocks away. I took the wrong way out of the subway and ended up a block from F.

I walked around the area. I was an hour early. I found a few places had changed names and saw that Chess, a favorite musical that deals with the Cold War, represented as the game of chess, is being brought back in October. I will have to make a quick visit for that with Deborah. More to come on that.

Cat and I had a lovely dinner with too much food. We both had the pastrami Reuben sandwich and shared a cheesecake covered in strawberries. Sort of a mix of pie and cheesecake–a caloric disaster. Our waiter was terrific and helped us pick these items.

Cat and I caught up; it has been more than a year since we last met. I shared pictures from Iceland and Deborah and me at various waterfalls and sites in Reykjavik. Cat will visit the West Coast this Friday. Next, she is off to Oregon with her sister and brother-in-law to see the Smiths. We might connect there.

It was great to connect, and we rode the F Train back until Cat’s stop. I then continued on to East, where I even connected with my bus late and found my way back to Queens and Fresh Meadows. I walked back to the hotel and all was fine. I was soon asleep. I woke up, feeling jet-lagged, which suggested it was too early to sleep. I looked at my retirement plans for a while, but I was sleepy again after midnight, and I eventually fell asleep before 1. The morning and my alarm seemed too early when it went off on Friday morning.

While I was on the train and bus, I did connect to the Zoom Theology Pub in Oregon, and my friend in Oregon got to see me bounce around in NY. I spoke a few times during the meeting and continued for a while after arriving at my hotel room.

Thanks for reading.

(The photos are higher resolution than I usually use)

Wednesday had me in bed early after a thunderstorm finished out in the area, including a severe storm warning. I had walked over 14,000 steps, including many stairs that fill the subway system of NYC. I took a shower only after the storms were done. Being grounded in a shower in a building is not a good plan in a thunderstorm, and it is no fun if the power goes out. I had nodded off during the storm and spent some time chatting with Deborah.

I was not expecting to sleep, and was out until 1ish, woke up, rolled over, and welcomed the sunrise on Thursday morning (when I am writing this). And now that the ending is done, let me return to my day (in the soundtrack in my mind, there should be some dramatic music, Frank singing, followed by something borrowed from a Gotham animation).

I was awake with some broken sleep from the usual hotel noises waking me with sunrise. I was up and texting Deborah, who rises early, around 6. I showered, dressed, and all that, and went downstairs to have the complimentary breakfast, which is better than the usual industrial breakfast. There, I wrote the previous day’s blog and finished some work for the church. I find it easier, when traveling, to work in noisy and busy places. The energy helps you accomplish your goals.

A card for Mom Wild was left with the front desk to mail. I found an old-school mailbox a few steps from the hotel, which I will use now. I left my laptop (and my phone battery, oops) in the room and headed out. I had changed shirts as my coffee lid leaked, and I ended up washing that shirt in the sink for another day to wear.

Wearing my lighter white hat, I brought it as it was going to be sunny and 80°F/27°C+ (and it is a hackers’ convention), I headed out to find buses and subway trains to connect me to my destinations. I have updated my iPhone to accept payment without needing a click and face scan for the bus and subway fare readers.

I found the bus stop using the map app, boarded the correct one, and almost missed the stop as I was missing part of the name, but my phone said leave the bus now. St. John University reminded me of Central Michigan when I started there (it had grown over the years), and I soon got lost. I had to visit the Hope website using my iPhone to locate their online reworked university map to help me find my way. I located the buildings and halls and was soon surrounded by new students. It was orientation day for new freshmen. I took a picture with the school’s emblem, which was conveniently set out for new students to take selfies. The school store (I wanted to get a notebook) was not open yet.

I then waited fifteen minutes in the hot sun for my bus to the F train. The AC was good on the bus, and I got a seat. Soon, the bus was standing room only. I got the W train, and it stopped on every stop, it seemed. I had to switch to the F and soon was out in Manhattan! I was not far from MoMA and found the line. I spent $30+ for a ticket and soon took the escalators to the top and found Starry Night, which I missed seeing last time (the area was closed). The painting was enjoying selfies with folks five deep to get their chance to get that ‘been-there-done-that’ photo. I got a picture by holding my phone up. Later, I waited and then got to the front row, just looking at it. Trying to learn it. By my head, folks held their phones for that perfect shot. I just stood still and looked as countless phones appeared on the side of my vision.

I walked through the art, stopping at pieces that caught my attention. I remember many of the items from my art history class textbook. It was a pleasure to just walk and look; the place was packed.

But Terrace 5 was open, and I requested a table and was escorted to a balcony-like space over the museum garden. Maradith, my waiter, agreed that the lemonade and their prosciutto ham, mint, and melon lunch was perfect for the 80°F+ with no breeze terrace.

I walked all the floors and saw many things I knew and might have missed some, but still I enjoyed the wandering. There was an excellent display of world-changing designs, including even a simple espresso maker. I found stickers and postcards in the gift store.

I had no plans, but soon walked by Radio City Music Hall and learned that the next tour was in thirty minutes. I walked the area for twenty minutes, enjoying taking pictures and sitting a few times (it was hot). Soon I was in the well AC’d Radio City Music Hall lobby and enjoyed walking the main floors and then the Roxy rooms from the original owner, who used to live there. We met a Rockette; there were only three of us for this tour.

We did not get a stage tour and could not take photos as a show was being set up. Next time. Still, it was a short and enjoyable tour. The couple with me were from the UK and were spending a week in the city.

I found the Q line and took it downtown to the Washington Square area, and soon found The Strand bookstore again. More postcards, a few gifts acquired, and a bag. Next, Max Brenner’s for an early dinner of a burger and a chocolate shake to die for.

I reach Washington Square and pay $10 to play chess with five minutes on my clock. I ran out of time and lost. Still, it was fun, and my opponent did stop with the easy win and only got me in check once. I will have to play more. More chess has been on my mind, but I never get to it. It started to sprinkle, and I was the last game for the night, I suspect. I forgot his name, but he was polite and was happy when I blocked him from an easy win.

Now, after 5, it was time to make my Escape from NY. Back to the subway and Q to F trains and out of NYC. But the bus has a long line, and the sprinkles turn into rain. Ugh. I decide on an Uber, but it takes twenty minutes in the traffic to reach me (there are closed roads), and I watch two buses come and go. Finally, it shows (and I am charged 14 cents for making it wait thirty seconds, hmmm). The trip is quick, but as we reach the area of my hotel, a blacked out SUV flies by, barly missed getting hit as it ignores a traffic light, spins out of control on the recently wetted roads, does a 180, and stops just beside a fire hydrant that I thougth was going to do a Hollywood like scene for us. The SUV driver, momentarily stunned, then drove off. My Uber is undamaged, and the driver calms and gets me safely to my hotel.

With that, I reach my room, and the storm starts to darken the sky, and the flashes are followed by immediate bangs of thunder. Deborah, on a call, reminds me how thunderstorms work, as we don’t get them often in Oregon.

And that takes us full circle!

Thanks for reading.

I finally fell asleep in my hotel in NY by 9. But the noise, hotels are full of new sounds, that take a while to accept, woke me, and the time difference made sleep difficult. But I did finally get some sleep, and 6:30 seemed to arrive early and unbidden.

(looking a bit tired)

Dinner was at the local Applebee’s because it was easy to find and didn’t require much energy. I was too tired to try out something new. My waiter, Lilly, was from the area, living with her parents, and seemed too young to be serving me. I had a chicken and cheese offering that I have had better versions of, but it has been years since I last ate at an Applebee’s. But the salsa was wicked and wonderful, and the cheese was sharp and fresh. Maybe it was good, actually, as I think back. The gin and tonic was perfect.

The Fairfield Inn is expensive, as are all hotels in this area, and it seems to have added another $500 to the price I was quoted for the week I am here. Something to check at checkout. Hmmm. The room was not bad, though smaller than my last recent hotel, which charged less. But again, we are an hour from Manhattan.

I arrived at the hotel after walking for five minutes, rolling my bags past bird feed for pigeons, a dive bar (recommended by the hacker community for late drinks), and getting used to large urban areas again. I took the Q30 bus for forty-five minutes with my bags next to me after the friendly driver helped me. I did not have auto-accept on my phone for scanning the equipment here (fixed now). The bus was clean and quiet. The usual don’t-make-eye-contact NY ride.

(Sorry, got my finger in photo; yes, those steps)

To reach the bus, I had to walk around and find the bus station off the Jamaica AirTrain stop. I had to get down from the platform before that. The escalator and elevators were not working, and thus I carried my bags down the stairs. It was a lot of stairs. I just thought, welcome to the NYC area, where stairs are everywhere. I got help with the payment because the phone was not in the correct settings, as I mentioned earlier.

I found the train on my second pass, thinking it was different from the airport train, but it turned out to be the same. To find the train, I first had to find my bags. I got my steps as my arrival gate at JFK was at the extreme end, and the baggage claim was at the other end. Also, it took my plane forty minutes to reach the gate, open the door, and unload to my point, seat 31A, so I could deplane. Thus, I reached the Q30 bus at 5 local time and at the hotel around 6 local time.

I had decided not to take a taxi and instead use public transit. I am early retired and have no income other than my investments. Time to be more frugal! It is also fun, new adventures and things to learn.

Before all of this, I would usually wake up at 4AM at my hotel in PDX, get dressed, and head out. I had done some swimming and showered again before bed. My skin was all itchy, and I had trouble sleeping. It was a hard start when the alarm rang.

On my shuttle was a forest fire-fighting crew from northern Michigan, and apparently, there is an annual meeting here in Oregon for them. I wished them well, thanked them for their help, and hoped they would return for the next meeting. Fire season is starting in Oregon.

(PDX carpet shot, a thing for us)

The plane, an Airbus, was the usual one, and I watched a movie, nodding off a few times. I brought my own noise-reducing plug-in earbuds. I can only hear from one ear, and I put all the movies on CC. To hear all the words I have to turn up the volume too load so I would rather hear/read. I do this at home now too. Part of the cost of being alive.

(The uptown, I think)

I had breakfast at my usual place, Grassa, and they had a JFK sandwich, and an egg with bacon sandwich, which was terrific. Lunch was a cookie and coffee on the plane, which was fine.

(yes, very Portland, there are more cocktail options than food)

One awful moment on the Airbus, two folks took very long in two of the three bathrooms on the plane. I was in a line six deep, and there was another line at the other bathroom. Yikes! I waited ten minutes or more until the line started to move. Finally, everything returned to normal.

And that is what I remember for Tuesday, thanks for reading!