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<title type="text">Terence Eden’s Blog</title>
<subtitle type="text">Regular nonsense about tech and its effects 🙃</subtitle>
<updated>2025-06-25T19:59:11Z</updated>
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<title type="html"><![CDATA[Book Review: The Martian Contingency by Mary Robinette Kowal ★★★★☆]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-the-martian-contingency-by-mary-robinette-kowal/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61166</id>
<updated>2025-06-24T11:46:55Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-26T11:34:19Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Book Review"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Mary Robinette Kowal"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[The Lady Astronaut books are an absolute triumph - it's just a shame that they've been somewhat overshadowed by the TV series "For All Mankind". They both follow a similar trajectory - what if women were an integral part of the early space race and helped us to colonise off-world? The books, thankfully, don't pad out as much as the rival show - this latest novel is tightly focussed and takes us …]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-the-martian-contingency-by-mary-robinette-kowal/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/jpg_rgb_0650h-5-416x636-1.jpg" alt="Book cover featuring Astronauts on Mars." width="200" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61167"> The Lady Astronaut books are an absolute triumph - it's just a shame that they've been somewhat overshadowed by the TV series "For All Mankind". They both follow a similar trajectory - what if women were an integral part of the early space race and helped us to colonise off-world? The books, thankfully, don't pad out as much as the rival show - this latest novel is tightly focussed and takes us to the Mars base where <em>shenanigans</em> are afoot.</p>
<p>For a sci-fi nerd like me, it is total catnip. A heady mix of brain-tangling "what ifs" and the geeky joy of "<a href="https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CompetencePorn">competency porn</a>". The language is gorgeous with some beautiful turns of phrase, and the pacing does an excellent job of ratcheting up the tension.</p>
<p>My only criticism is that Elma is <em>such</em> an ineffective character. She seems to forget that she's one of the most senior people on the mission and has the right - nay! the duty! - to get answers. Her lack of confidence isn't a quirky character flaw; it is a profoundly irritating co-star.</p>
<p>I love the world building, the jokey asides, and the sense of purpose all the characters have. The moral dilemmas and Politics are well articulated and don't feel tacked on. It's worth picking up the whole series.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Theatre Review: Just For One Day ★★★★⯪]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/theatre-review-just-for-one-day/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61592</id>
<updated>2025-06-25T08:30:23Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-25T11:34:07Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Theatre Review"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Leave your cynicism at the door. Jukebox musicals usually stick to a single-artist (Mamma Mia, & Juliet, Tommy). As a result, they all start to sound a bit samey after a few numbers. Shows like Return To The Forbidden planet shoe-horn in songs from a dozen artists without much regard to plot, tone, or pacing. Just For One Day goes down a different route. Rather than just recreate the famous…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/theatre-review-just-for-one-day/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/JFOD.webp" alt="A crowd of singers." width="400" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61593"> Leave your cynicism at the door.</p>
<p>Jukebox musicals usually stick to a single-artist (Mamma Mia, & Juliet, Tommy). As a result, they all start to sound a bit samey after a few numbers. Shows like Return To The Forbidden planet shoe-horn in songs from a dozen artists without much regard to plot, tone, or pacing.</p>
<p>Just For One Day goes down a different route. Rather than just recreate the famous Live Aid concert with a procession of soundalikes, it attempts to tell the story <em>behind</em> the concert. In doing so, it chops dozens of songs into thousands of pieces and lets the snippets segue seamlessly into the prose. It entwines the songs into each other beautifully. A supremely talented cast backed with a superb live band - it is guaranteed to have you screaming and cheering.</p>
<p>The central plot device is a <em>little</em> silly - a mother who went to the concert is chiding her teenage daughter about political activism. It is a bit mawkish and gets the show off to a stage-schooly start. Similarly, the daughter's righteous indignation fuels her interrogation of Saint Geldof which, again, becomes a bit preachy.</p>
<p>But that's the nature of Live Aid. It <em>is</em> preachy. And for all the arguments about whether it was the <strong>right</strong> thing to do - at least it did <strong>something</strong>. The show doesn't gloss over some the problems - and problem personalities - behind the production. Nor does it shy away from the reality of the limits of the help provided. Albeit backed by joyous music.</p>
<p>I felt that it pulls its punches a little bit. Rather than showing any footage from the Ethiopian famine, it <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/bob-geldof-belfast-icc-ethiopia-barack-obama-b2423253.html">recycles a speech Geldof gave a few years ago</a>.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, it is a powerful and moving spectacle.</p>
<p>Oh, and there's a rap battle between Bob Geldof and Mrs Thatcher.</p>
<p>Tickets start at £20. The music is so loud, and the staging so expressive, that you'll get a decent view from the cheap seats.</p>
<p>Far better than the average jukebox musical.</p>
<h2 id="pre-show-and-post-show"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/theatre-review-just-for-one-day/#pre-show-and-post-show" class="heading-link">Pre-show and Post-show</a></h2>
<p>As regular readers of <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/tag/theatre-review/">my theatre reviews</a> know, I'm obsessed with how theatres treat their patrons.</p>
<p>Bag searches were conducted quickly, and they were happy to let me bring in a small plastic bottle of water. The Shaftesbury has spacious corridors and bars. There are plenty of toilets which - in a shocking departure from West End tradition - are well maintained.</p>
<p>There's a little bit of set dressing inside the theatre to allow the audience to take selfies with famous backdrops. That's cute - but it might have been nice if they'd added a few more, or even put up original posters, press clippings, etc.</p>
<p>As we exited the theatre we were handed a commemorative ticket! What a swell idea! I thought it contained a QR code to donate to <a href="https://www.bandaidtrust.co.uk/">the Band Aid Charitable Trust</a> or find out more about their projects. Instead it's a coupon for £20 off your next visit. That feels like a bit of a missed opportunity.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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<title type="html"><![CDATA[Reading NFC Passport Chips in Linux]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61546</id>
<updated>2025-06-24T12:12:53Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-24T11:34:49Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="CyberSecurity"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="hacking"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="linux"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="nfc"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="rfid"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[For boring and totally not nefarious reasons, I want to read all the data contained in my passport's NFC chip using Linux. After a long and annoying search, I settled on roeften's pypassport. I can now read all the passport information, including biometrics. Table of ContentsBackgroundRecreating the MRZPython code to generate an MRZCan you read a cancelled passport?Cryptography and other…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>For boring and totally not nefarious reasons, I want to read all the data contained in my passport's NFC chip using Linux. After a long and annoying search, I settled on <a href="https://github.com/roeften/pypassport">roeften's pypassport</a>.</p>
<p>I can now read all the passport information, including biometrics.</p>
<p></p><nav id="toc"><menu id="toc-start"><li id="toc-title"><h2 id="table-of-contents"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#table-of-contents" class="heading-link">Table of Contents</a></h2><menu><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#background">Background</a><menu><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#recreating-the-mrz">Recreating the MRZ</a><menu><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#python-code-to-generate-an-mrz">Python code to generate an MRZ</a></li></menu></li></menu></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#can-you-read-a-cancelled-passport">Can you read a cancelled passport?</a></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#cryptography-and-other-security">Cryptography and other security</a></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#can-you-brute-force-a-passport">Can you brute-force a passport?</a><menu><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#is-it-worth-brute-forcing-a-password">Is it worth brute-forcing a password?</a></li></menu></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#installing">Installing</a></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#getting-structured-data">Getting structured data</a><menu><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#saving-the-image">Saving the image</a></li></menu></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#what-didnt-work">What didn't work</a><menu><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#mrtdreader">mrtdreader</a></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#jean-francois-houzards-and-olivier-rogers-pypassport">Jean-Francois Houzard's and Olivier Roger's pyPassport</a></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#beaujeans-pypassport">beaujean's pyPassport</a></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#d-logic">d-Logic</a></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#android-reader">Android reader</a></li></menu></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#is-it-worth-it">Is it worth it?</a></li></menu></li></menu></nav><p></p>
<h2 id="background"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#background" class="heading-link">Background</a></h2>
<p>The NFC chip in a passport is protected by a password. The password is printed on the inside of the physical passport. As well as needing to be physically close to the passport for NFC to work<sup id="fnref:long"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:long" class="footnote-ref" title="There are some commercially available long range readers - up to 15cm! I've no doubt some clever engineer has made a some high-powered radio device which can read things from a mile away using a…" role="doc-noteref">0</a></sup>, you also need to be able to see the password. The password is printed in the "Machine Readable Zone" (MRZ) - which is why some border guards will swipe your passport through a reader before scanning the chip; they need the password and don't want to type it in.</p>
<p>I had a small problem though. I'm using my old passport<sup id="fnref:old"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:old" class="footnote-ref" title="I'm not dumb enough to do this stuff on a live passport!" role="doc-noteref">1</a></sup> which <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cancellation-of-passports/cancelling-british-passports-accessible#cancelling-epassport-version-2">has been cancelled</a>. Cancelling isn't just about revoking the document. It is also physically altered:</p>
<blockquote><p>Cut off the bottom left hand corner of the personal details page, making sure you cut the MRZ on the corner opposite the photo.</p></blockquote>
<p>So a chunk of the MRZ is missing! Oh no! Whatever can we do!?</p>
<h3 id="recreating-the-mrz"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#recreating-the-mrz" class="heading-link">Recreating the MRZ</a></h3>
<p>The password is made up of three pieces of data:</p>
<ol>
<li>Passport Number (Letters and Numbers)</li>
<li>Date of Birth (YYMMDD)</li>
<li>Expiry Date (YYMMDD)</li>
</ol>
<p>Each piece <em>also</em> has a checksum. This calculation is defined in Appendix A to <a href="https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/9303_p3_cons_en.pdf">Part 3 of Document 9303</a>.</p>
<p>Oh, and there's a checksum for the entire string. It's this final checksum which is cut off when the passport cover is snipped.</p>
<p>The final password is: <code>Number Number-checksum DOB DOB-checksum Expiry Expiry-checkum checksum-of-previous-digits</code></p>
<h4 id="python-code-to-generate-an-mrz"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#python-code-to-generate-an-mrz" class="heading-link">Python code to generate an MRZ</a></h4>
<p>If you know the passport number, date of birth, and expiry date, you can generate your own Machine Readable Zone - this acts as the password for the NFC chip.</p>
<pre><code class="language-python">def calculateChecksum( value ):
weighting = [7,3,1]
characterWeight = {
'0': 0, '1': 1, '2': 2, '3': 3, '4': 4, '5': 5, '6': 6, '7': 7,
'8': 8, '9': 9, '<': 0, 'A':10, 'B':11, 'C':12, 'D':13, 'E':14,
'F':15, 'G':16, 'H':17, 'I':18, 'J':19, 'K':20, 'L':21, 'M':22,
'N':23, 'O':24, 'P':25, 'Q':26, 'R':27, 'S':28, 'T':29, 'U':30,
'V':31, 'W':32, 'X':33, 'Y':34, 'Z':35
}
counter = 0
result = 0
for x in value:
result += characterWeight[str(x)] * weighting[counter%3]
counter += 1
return str(result%10)
def calculateMRZ( passportNumber, DOB, expiry ):
"""
DOB and expiry are formatted as YYMMDD
"""
passportCheck = calculateChecksum( passportNumber )
DOBCheck = calculateChecksum( DOB )
expiryCheck = calculateChecksum( expiry )
mrzNumber = passportNumber + passportCheck + DOB + DOBCheck + expiry + expiryCheck
mrzCheck = calculateChecksum( mrzNumber ).zfill(2)
mrz = passportNumber + passportCheck + "XXX" + DOB + DOBCheck + "X" + expiry + expiryCheck + "<<<<<<<<<<<<<<" + mrzCheck
return mrz
print( calculateMRZ("123456789", "841213", "220229") )
</code></pre>
<h2 id="can-you-read-a-cancelled-passport"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#can-you-read-a-cancelled-passport" class="heading-link">Can you read a cancelled passport?</a></h2>
<p>I would have thought that cutting the cover of the passport would destroy the antenna inside it. But, going back to <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cancellation-of-passports/cancelling-british-passports-accessible#cancelling-epassport-version-2">the UK guidance</a>:</p>
<blockquote><p>You must not cut the back cover on the ePassport</p></blockquote>
<p>Ah! That's where the NFC chip is. I presume this is so that cancelled passports can still be verified for authenticity.</p>
<h2 id="cryptography-and-other-security"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#cryptography-and-other-security" class="heading-link">Cryptography and other security</a></h2>
<p>The security is, thankfully, all fairly standard Public Key Cryptography - <a href="https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/9303_p11_cons_en.pdf">9303 part 11</a> explains it in <em>excruciating</em> levels of detail.</p>
<p>One thing I found curious - because the chip has no timer, it cannot know how often it is being read. You could bombard it with thousands of password attempts and not get locked out. Indeed, the specification says:</p>
<blockquote><p>the success probability of the attacker is given by the time the attacker has access to the IC, the duration of a single attempt to guess the password, and the entropy of the passport.</p></blockquote>
<h2 id="can-you-brute-force-a-passport"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#can-you-brute-force-a-passport" class="heading-link">Can you brute-force a passport?</a></h2>
<p>Wellllll… maybeeeee…?</p>
<p>Passports are generally valid for only 10 years. So that's 36,525 possible expiry dates.</p>
<p>Passport holders are generally under 100 years old. So that's 3,652,500 possible dates of birth.</p>
<p>That's already 133,407,562,500 attempts - and we haven't even got on to the 1E24 possible passport numbers!</p>
<p>In my experiments, sending an incorrect but valid MRZ results in the chip returning "Security status not satisfied (0x6982)" in a very short space of time. Usually less than a second.</p>
<p>But sending that incorrect attempt seemed to introduce a delay in the next response - by a few seconds. Sending the correct MRZ seemed to reset this and let the chip be read instantly.</p>
<p>So, if you knew the target's passport number and birthday, brute forcing the expiry date would take a couple of days. Not instant, but not impossible.</p>
<p>Most <a href="https://www.nxp.com/docs/en/data-sheet/NTAG213_215_216.pdf">commercial NFC chips support 100,000 writes</a> with no limit for the number of reads. Some also have a 24 bit read counter which increments after every read attempt. After 16 million reads, the counter doesn't increment. It <em>could</em> be possible for a chip to self-destruct after a specific number of reads - but I've no evidence that passport chips do that.</p>
<h3 id="is-it-worth-brute-forcing-a-password"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#is-it-worth-brute-forcing-a-password" class="heading-link">Is it <em>worth</em> brute-forcing a password?</a></h3>
<p>If you were to brute-force the MRZ, you would discover the passport-holder's date of birth. You would also get:</p>
<ul>
<li>A digital copy of their photo,</li>
<li>Their full name,</li>
<li>Their sex<sup id="fnref:sex"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:sex" class="footnote-ref" title="Sex is complicated. But ICAO allow for "F for female, M for male, or X for unspecified"." role="doc-noteref">2</a></sup>,</li>
<li>The country which issued their passport, and</li>
<li>Their nationality.</li>
</ul>
<p>All of that is something which you can see from looking at the passport. So there's little value in attempting to read it electronically.</p>
<h2 id="installing"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#installing" class="heading-link">Installing</a></h2>
<p>As mentioned, I'm using <a href="https://github.com/roeften/pypassport">https://github.com/roeften/pypassport</a></p>
<p>The only library I needed to install was <a href="https://pypi.org/project/pyasn1/">pyasn1</a> using <code>pip3 install pyasn1</code> - your setup may vary.</p>
<p>Download PyPassport. In the same directory, you can create a test Python file to see if the passport can be read. Here's what it needs to contain:</p>
<pre><code class="language-python">from pypassport import epassport, reader
# Replace this MRZ with the one from your passport
MRZ = "1234567897XXX8412139X2202299<<<<<<<<<<<<<<04"
def trace(name, msg):
if name == "EPassport":
print(name + ": " + msg)
r = reader.ReaderManager().waitForCard()
ep = epassport.EPassport(r, MRZ)
ep.register(trace)
ep.readPassport()
</code></pre>
<p>Plug in your NFC reader, place your passport on it, run the above code. If it works, it will spit out a lot of debug information, including all the data it can find on the passport.</p>
<h2 id="getting-structured-data"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#getting-structured-data" class="heading-link">Getting structured data</a></h2>
<p>The structure of the passport data is a little convoluted. <a href="https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/9303_p10_cons_en.pdf">The specification</a> puts data into different "Data Groups" - each with its own ID.</p>
<p>By running:</p>
<pre><code class="language-python">ep.keys()
</code></pre>
<p>You can see which Data Groups are available. In my case, <code>['60', '61', '75', '77']</code></p>
<ul>
<li><code>60</code> is the common area which contains some metadata. Nothing interesting there.</li>
<li><code>61</code> is DG1 - the full MRZ. This contains the holder's name, sex, nationality, etc.</li>
<li><code>77</code> is the Document Security Object - this was empty for me.</li>
<li><code>75</code> is DG2 to DG4 Biometric Templates - this contains the image and other metadata.</li>
</ul>
<p>Dumping the biometrics - <code>print( ep["75"] )</code> - gives these interesting pieces of metadata:</p>
<pre><code class="language-_">'83': '20190311201345',
'meta': { 'Expression': 'Unspecified',
'EyeColour' : 'Unspecified',
'FaceImageBlockLength': 19286,
'FaceImageType': 'Basic',
'FeatureMask': '000000',
'FeaturePoint': {0: {'FeaturePointCode': 'C1',
'FeatureType': '01',
'HorizontalPosition': 249,
'Reserved': '0000',
'VerticalPosition': 216},
1: {'FeaturePointCode': 'C2',
'FeatureType': '01',
'HorizontalPosition': 141,
'Reserved': '0000',
'VerticalPosition': 214}},
'Features': {},
'Gender': 'Unspecified',
'HairColour': 'Unspecified',
'ImageColourSpace': 'RGB24',
'ImageDataType': 'JPEG',
'ImageDeviceType': 0,
'ImageHeight': 481,
'ImageQuality': 'Unspecified',
'ImageSourceType': 'Static Scan',
'ImageWidth': 385,
'LengthOfRecord': 19300,
'NumberOfFacialImages': 1,
'NumberOfFeaturePoint': 2,
'PoseAngle': '0600B5',
'PoseAngleUncertainty': '000000',
'VersionNumber': b'010'
}
</code></pre>
<p>If I understand <a href="https://www.icao.int/security/mrtd/siteassets/pages/technical-reports/tr%20-%20rf%20and%20protocol%20testing%20part%204%20v2.10.pdf">the testing document</a> - the "Feature Points" are the middle of the eyes. Interesting to see that gender (not sex!) and hair colour are also able to be recorded. The "PoseAngle" represents the <a href="https://www.icao.int/Security/FAL/TRIP/Documents/TR%20-%20Portrait%20Quality%20v1.0.pdf">pitch, yaw, and roll</a> of the face.</p>
<h3 id="saving-the-image"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#saving-the-image" class="heading-link">Saving the image</a></h3>
<p>Passport images are saved either with JPEG or with <a href="https://www.icao.int/Security/FAL/TRIP/Documents/TR%20-%20Portrait%20Quality%20v1.0.pdf">JPEG2000 encoding</a>. Given the extremely limited memory available photos are small and highly compressed. Mine was a mere 19KB.</p>
<p>To save the image, grab the bytes and plonk them onto disk:</p>
<pre><code class="language-python">photo = ep["75"]["A1"]["5F2E"]
with open( "photo.jpg", "wb" ) as f:
f.write( photo )
</code></pre>
<p>As expected, the "FeaturePoints" co-ordinates corresponded roughly to the centre of my eyes. Nifty!</p>
<h2 id="what-didnt-work"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#what-didnt-work" class="heading-link">What didn't work</a></h2>
<p>I tried a few different tools. Listed here so you don't make the same mistakes as me!</p>
<h3 id="mrtdreader"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#mrtdreader" class="heading-link">mrtdreader</a></h3>
<p>The venerable <a href="https://github.com/rubund/mrtdreader">mrtdreader</a>. My NFC device beeped, then mrtdreader said "No NFC device found."</p>
<p>I think this is because <a href="https://github.com/nfc-tools/libnfc/issues/719">NFC Tools haven't been updated in ages</a>.</p>
<h3 id="jean-francois-houzards-and-olivier-rogers-pypassport"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#jean-francois-houzards-and-olivier-rogers-pypassport" class="heading-link">Jean-Francois Houzard's and Olivier Roger's pyPassport</a></h3>
<p>I looked at <a href="https://code.google.com/archive/p/pypassport/">pyPassport</a> but it is only available for Python 2.</p>
<h3 id="beaujeans-pypassport"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#beaujeans-pypassport" class="heading-link">beaujean's pyPassport</a></h3>
<p>This <a href="https://github.com/beaujeant/pypassport">pypassport</a> only checks if a passport is resistant to specific security vulnerabilities.</p>
<h3 id="d-logic"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#d-logic" class="heading-link">d-Logic</a></h3>
<p><a href="https://www.d-logic.com/nfc-rfid-reader-sdk/software/epassport-reading/">Digital Logic's ePassport software</a> only works with their hardware readers.</p>
<h3 id="android-reader"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#android-reader" class="heading-link">Android reader</a></h3>
<p><a href="https://github.com/tananaev/passport-reader">tananaev's passport-reader</a> - works perfectly on Android. So I knew my passport chip was readable - but the app won't run on Linux.</p>
<h2 id="is-it-worth-it"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#is-it-worth-it" class="heading-link">Is it worth it?</a></h2>
<p>Yeah, I reckon so! Realistically, you aren't going to be able to crack the MRZ to read someone's passport. But if you need to gather personal information<sup id="fnref:gdpr"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:gdpr" class="footnote-ref" title="Under the auspices of GDPR, of course!" role="doc-noteref">3</a></sup>, it's perfectly possible to do so quickly from a passport.</p>
<p>The MRZ is a <em>Machine Readable</em> Zone - so it is fairly simple to OCR the text and then pass that to your NFC reader.</p>
<p>And even if the MRZ is gone, you can reconstruct it from the data printed on the passport.</p>
<p>Of course, this won't be able to detect fraudulent passports. It doesn't check against a database to see if it has been revoked<sup id="fnref:interpol"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:interpol" class="footnote-ref" title="Nor does it check if the holder is on some Interpol list." role="doc-noteref">4</a></sup>. I don't think it will detect any cryptographic anomalies.</p>
<p>But if you just want to see what's on your travel documents, it works perfectly.</p>
<div class="footnotes" role="doc-endnotes">
<hr>
<ol start="0">
<li id="fn:long" role="doc-endnote">
<p>There are some <a href="https://www.shopnfc.com/en/nfc-readers-writers/300-nfc-xl-reader-long-range-hf-reader.html">commercially available long range readers</a> - up to 15cm! I've no doubt some clever engineer has made a some high-powered radio device which can read things from a mile away using a <a href="https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-make-a-wifi-antenna-out-of-a-pringles-can-nb/">Pringle's tube</a>. Of note, the <a href="https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/9303_p11_cons_en.pdf">ICAO guidance</a> says:</p>
<blockquote><p>the unencrypted communication between a contactless IC and a reader can be eavesdropped within a distance of several metres.</p></blockquote>
<p><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:long" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:old" role="doc-endnote">
<p>I'm not dumb enough to do this stuff on a <em>live</em> passport! <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:old" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:sex" role="doc-endnote">
<p>Sex is complicated<sup id="fnref:giggle"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:giggle" class="footnote-ref" title="Stop giggling at the back!" role="doc-noteref">5</a></sup>. But ICAO allow for "<a href="https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/9303_p4_cons_en.pdf">F for female, M for male, or X for unspecified</a>". <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:sex" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:gdpr" role="doc-endnote">
<p>Under the auspices of GDPR, of course! <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:gdpr" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:interpol" role="doc-endnote">
<p>Nor does it check if the holder is on some Interpol list. <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:interpol" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:giggle" role="doc-endnote">
<p>Stop giggling at the back! <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:giggle" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[An annoying SVG animation bug in Chrome]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61537</id>
<updated>2025-06-23T09:03:34Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-23T11:34:12Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="bug"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="chrome"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="chromium"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="svg"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Writing web standards is hard. You have to write a formal specification which is useful for machines, humans, and web developers. I recently stumbled across what I think is a little bug which might be caused by a misreading of the SVG Animation specification. Here you should see two overlapping circles gradually appear: If you're on Chrome, you…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>Writing web standards is hard<sup id="fnref:experience"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fn:experience" class="footnote-ref" title="I do have some experience in this matter." role="doc-noteref">0</a></sup>. You have to write a formal specification which is useful for machines, humans, and web developers<sup id="fnref:webdev"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fn:webdev" class="footnote-ref" title="Back in 2006, Catharine A. MacKinnon provokatively asked "Are Women Human?". Her argument (which I shall badly summarise) is that if women were human, then they'd be protected by universal human…" role="doc-noteref">1</a></sup>.</p>
<p>I recently stumbled across what I think is a little bug which <em>might</em> be caused by a misreading of <a href="https://svgwg.org/specs/animations/#KeyTimesAttribute">the SVG Animation specification</a>. Here you should see two overlapping circles gradually appear:</p>
<svg width="170" height="170" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg">
<path fill="#2c4169" d="M170 0H0v170h170z"></path>
<circle r="45" cx="50" cy="50" fill="#e4da2e" opacity="0">
<animate attributeName="opacity" begin="0s" dur="30s" values="0; 1;" keyTimes="0; 1" fill="freeze"></animate>
</circle>
<circle r="45" cx="80" cy="80" fill="red" opacity="0">
<animate attributeName="opacity" begin="0s" dur="30s" values="0; 1;" keyTimes="0; 1;" fill="freeze"></animate>
</circle>
</svg>
<p>If you're on Chrome, you might only see one circle animate. Why? Bloody semicolons! The bane of every programmer's existence<sup id="fnref:eng"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fn:eng" class="footnote-ref" title="I imagine English literature students also find them confusing; everyone does." role="doc-noteref">2</a></sup>.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://svgwg.org/specs/animations/#KeyTimesAttribute">specification for SVG Animation</a> has this text for human readers:</p>
<blockquote><p><strong>keyTimes</strong></p>
<p>A semicolon-separated list of time values used to control the pacing of the animation. Each time in the list corresponds to a value in the ‘values’ attribute list, and defines when the value is used in the animation function.</p>
<p>[…]</p>
<p>If the last semicolon separator is followed by either just white space or no more characters, ignore both the separator and the trailing white space.</p></blockquote>
<p>To me, that isn't ambiguous. The text <code>keyTimes="0; 1;"</code> has a final semicolon with nothing after it. Therefore it should be ignored. Instead, Chrome throws an hissyfit and says <code>Error: <animate> attribute keyTimes: Invalid value, "0; 1;".</code></p>
<p>But maybe the humans who wrote the description were sloppy. There's also a machine-readable formal specification. It defines the acceptable sequence as being:</p>
<p><code><number> [; <number>]* ;?</code></p>
<p>This isn't quite Backus–Naur form<sup id="fnref:bnf"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fn:bnf" class="footnote-ref" title="Also the bane of programmers everywhere!" role="doc-noteref">3</a></sup>, but rather <a href="https://www.w3.org/TR/css-values/#value-defs">CSS Values</a>.</p>
<ul>
<li>The <code><number></code> is a <a href="https://www.w3.org/TR/css-values/#component-types">component</a>.</li>
<li>The <code>[</code> and <code>]</code> are <a href="https://www.w3.org/TR/css-values/#component-combinators">grouping combinators</a>.</li>
<li>The <code>*</code> and <code>?</code> are <a href="https://www.w3.org/TR/css-values/#component-multipliers">component multipliers</a>
<ul>
<li><code>*</code> "indicates that the preceding type, word, or group occurs zero or more times."</li>
<li><code>?</code> "indicates that the preceding type, word, or group is optional (occurs zero or one times)."</li>
</ul></li>
<li>The <code>;</code> is just a semicolon<sup id="fnref:cig"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fn:cig" class="footnote-ref" title="Just like how sometimes a cigar is just a cigar." role="doc-noteref">4</a></sup>.</li>
</ul>
<p>Reading the definition tells us that a valid value will be a number, followed by zero-or-more groups of "semicolon and another number" with an optional final semicolon.</p>
<p>So, based on my reading, I think Chrome is wrong to throw an error here. Both Firefox and Safari work with a trailing semicolon.</p>
<p>Accordingly, I've <a href="https://issues.chromium.org/issues/427020732">raised a bug with the Chromium team</a>. If you think I have erred in this matter, please let me know.</p>
<div class="footnotes" role="doc-endnotes">
<hr>
<ol start="0">
<li id="fn:experience" role="doc-endnote">
<p>I do have <a href="https://www.w3.org/TR/2018/WD-html53-20180426/">some experience in this matter</a>. <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fnref:experience" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:webdev" role="doc-endnote">
<p>Back in 2006, Catharine A. MacKinnon provokatively asked "<a href="https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctvjnrvck">Are Women Human?</a>". Her argument (which I shall badly summarise) is that if women <em>were</em> human, then they'd be protected by universal human rights. Given the state of the world then (and now) it is hard to argue that women receive as great a level of attention as the <a href="https://www.the-tls.com/politics-society/rights-equality/default-male">default male</a>. I don't intend to trivialise MacKinnon's work - but I do find it interesting that developers are often treated separately from other humans. <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fnref:webdev" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:eng" role="doc-endnote">
<p>I imagine English literature students also find them confusing; everyone does. <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fnref:eng" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:bnf" role="doc-endnote">
<p>Also the bane of programmers everywhere! <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fnref:bnf" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:cig" role="doc-endnote">
<p>Just like how <a href="https://quoteinvestigator.com/2011/08/12/just-a-cigar/">sometimes a cigar is just a cigar</a>. <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fnref:cig" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Theatre Review: Operation Mincemeat ★★★★☆]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/theatre-review-operation-mincemeat/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61507</id>
<updated>2025-06-22T09:14:43Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-22T11:34:01Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Theatre Review"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Everyone I know told me to go and see this show. I resisted as long as possible but managed to score cheap last-minute tickets via a friend. I wish I hadn't waited so long! If you're unaware of the book (or the film. Or the novelisation of the film. Or the Twitter thread. Or the inaccurate tumblr retelling.) the story involves a dastardly British plan to use a corpse to fool the Nazi menace…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/theatre-review-operation-mincemeat/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Operation_Mincemeat-1-400-400-100-nocrop.jpeg" alt="Logo for Operation Mincemeat - a black scribble on a yellow background." width="200" height="200" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61508"> Everyone I know told me to go and see this show. I resisted as long as possible but managed to score cheap last-minute tickets via a friend. I wish I hadn't waited so long!</p>
<p>If you're unaware of the book (or the film. Or the novelisation of the film. Or the Twitter thread. Or the inaccurate tumblr retelling.) the story involves a dastardly British plan to use a corpse to fool the Nazi menace into diverting their troops.</p>
<p>So, naturally, this is a glitzy West End Musical. And, as befitting a story with a hundred different characters, there are five cast members playing everyone. Obviously, it is <em>very</em> silly.</p>
<p>I can't lie - I found the start of the first act a bit underwhelming. It feels derivative of every other musical I've seen; like a British "Hamilton" without the budget. But as it wore on, something magical happened. The songs become interesting, the choreography leaps alive, and the cast started playing off the audience’s energy.</p>
<p>The second act has the strongest opening I've seen in a good long while. It builds to a terrific conclusion - with just the right amount of joy and melancholy.</p>
<p>Naturally, the cast are superb. It's exhausting watching them quick-change and shimmy across the stage. They are a beautifully formed ensemble. I usually don't like seeing shows multiple times, but given the frequent cast changes I find myself curious about how the various permutations work.</p>
<p>It is an excellent and kinetic work of theatre. It revels in its daftness and knows exactly when to tug your heartstrings.</p>
<h2 id="pre-show"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/theatre-review-operation-mincemeat/#pre-show" class="heading-link">Pre-Show</a></h2>
<p>Regular readers know how much I love discussing the pre-show elements. Mincemeat isn't as bad as most, but still treats the paying audience with the contempt London venues are known for.</p>
<p>The theatre is cramped, with a packed bar, and inadequate toilet facilities. The corridors are decorated with photos of current cast members, which is nice. There's also a pre-show trivia quiz which, while fun, is only half-a-dozen questions - essentially a thinly veiled attempt to get you onto a mailing list.</p>
<p>The cost of the programme is exorbitant - an advert filled brochure with the same information as can be found on the website.</p>
<p>On the plus side, the stall seats are spacious and there's a bar to one side (if you can afford it).</p>
<p>A single "cheap" ticket usually costs about 3-months of Netflix. Full price tickets are a monocle-popping 7-months of Netflix! At that price I'd expect a free souvenir programme and a complimentary ice-cream. And possibly a foot-massage.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://operationmincemeat.com/tickets/">ticket lottery</a> reduces prices to a shade under 2-months of Netflix.</p>
<p>There's nothing like seeing live theatre performed by a hyper-talented cast. Theatres need to understand that home entertainment is ubiquitous, cheap, <strong>and comfortable</strong>. If I can't pause your show to go for a wee, you'd better make sure you have enough loos for everyone at the interval.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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<thr:total>0</thr:total>
</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Book Review: Venomous Lumpsucker by Ned Beauman ★★★★★]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-venomous-lumpsucker-by-ned-beauman/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61183</id>
<updated>2025-06-13T09:16:16Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-21T11:34:56Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Book Review"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="satire"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Sci Fi"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[No book has the right to be this good. It's the sort of howling sci-fi satire that Ben Elton used to excel at - a novel set five minutes in the future with a eye firmly on today's problems. The plot is delightful - what if carbon credits extinction credits were the new capitalist plaything? What second, third, and forth order effects would that have on the world? The worldbuilding is sublime -…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-venomous-lumpsucker-by-ned-beauman/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/hbg-title-venomous-lumpsucker-4-1.webp" alt="Book cover with fish." width="200" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61184"> No book has the right to be this good. It's the sort of howling sci-fi satire that Ben Elton used to excel at - a novel set five minutes in the future with a eye firmly on today's problems.</p>
<p>The plot is delightful - what if <del>carbon credits</del> extinction credits were the new capitalist plaything? What second, third, and forth order effects would that have on the world? The worldbuilding is sublime - with an prescient look at the evolution of DRM, Smart Contracts, AI assistants, and targetted assassinations.</p>
<p>The characters are perfectly fleshed out and gradually reveal their motivations and insecurities:</p>
<blockquote><p>one big thing about the socially normal was that they loved their social norms. Whereas Resaint couldn’t stand the politics, the niceties, the meetings where she had to spangle her expression and tone of voice with false enthusiasm just so people didn’t think she was a bitch.</p></blockquote>
<p>There is a <em>slight</em> tendency towards Socratic dialogue as a means of exposition. The satire itself isn't exactly subtle - but when it has this many twists and turns I can forgive it for laying it on a bit thick.</p>
<p>The ending(s) genuinely shocked me.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Convert Shotwell Photo Metadata to Digikam Metadata]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/convert-shotwell-photo-metadata-to-digikam-metadata/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61338</id>
<updated>2025-06-13T09:16:21Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-20T11:34:37Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="cli"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="HowTo"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="linux"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Mostly notes to myself. Shotwell stores most of its information in a database. Which I lost. Because I'm an idiot. But a bunch of metadata is also stored in the image's EXIF metadata! Most importantly is the "Original File Name" which should become the "Description" in DigiKam. Unfortunately, there's no way to copy those values automatically on import. So here's a one-liner which will read…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/convert-shotwell-photo-metadata-to-digikam-metadata/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>Mostly notes to myself.</p>
<p>Shotwell stores most of its information in a database. Which I lost. Because I'm an idiot.</p>
<p>But a bunch of metadata is <em>also</em> stored in the image's EXIF metadata!</p>
<p>Most importantly is the "Original File Name" which should become the "Description" in DigiKam. Unfortunately, there's no way to copy those values automatically on import.</p>
<p>So here's a one-liner which will read the "Original File Name" and store it in the "Title" EXIF - ready for DigiKam to parse!</p>
<pre><code class="language-bash">exiftool "-XMP-dc:Title<XMP-getty:OriginalFileName" whatever.jpg
</code></pre>
<p>If you want to make sure any existing Title isn't overwritten, use:</p>
<pre><code class="language-bash">exiftool "-XMP-dc:Title<${XMP-getty:OriginalFileName}" -if "not defined $XMP-dc:Title" whatever.jpg
</code></pre>
<p>Finally, to do it recursively, across all files:</p>
<pre><code class="language-bash">exiftool -r "-XMP-dc:Title<${XMP-getty:OriginalFileName}" -if "not defined $XMP-dc:Title" /path/to/images
</code></pre>
</body></html>]]></content>
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<thr:total>0</thr:total>
</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Book Review: If Only They Didn't Speak English - Notes From Trump's America by Jon Sopel ★★⯪☆☆]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-if-only-they-didnt-speak-english-notes-from-trumps-america-by-jon-sopel/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61202</id>
<updated>2025-06-19T13:22:45Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-19T11:34:55Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Book Review"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="politics"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[I expected so much more from this book. It starts with a central thesis - the UK over-indexes on America because we speak the same language, but there is an enormous gulf in attitudes between the two nations. We rarely hear on the news what's happening in France, Germany, or Ireland even though they're much closer geographically, politically, and culturally. That sounds like a pretty good book! …]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-if-only-they-didnt-speak-english-notes-from-trumps-america-by-jon-sopel/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/cover.jpg" alt="Book Cover." width="200" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61203"> I expected so much more from this book. It starts with a central thesis - the UK over-indexes on America because we speak the same language, but there is an enormous gulf in attitudes between the two nations. We rarely hear on the news what's happening in France, Germany, or Ireland even though they're much closer geographically, politically, and culturally.</p>
<p>That sounds like a pretty good book!</p>
<p>Instead, we get "what I learned on my holiday to the USA by Jon Sopel aged 57 and ¾".</p>
<p>We learn, for example, that America likes guns. There's a <em>bit</em> of an analysis of why and how lobbying shapes it, but it is fairly surface-level stuff. There's a little bit of a comparison with the UK's attitudes, but not much. Similarly, they're much more religious, racist, and have a convoluted relationship with the truth. Their constitution, elections, and media landscape are also different. It feels like pop-facts rather than anything deeper.</p>
<p>There are some brilliant insider anecdotes which, thankfully, don't stray into fawning name-dropping. For example, this little nugget about the Hillary Clinton victory rally that never was:</p>
<blockquote><p>Throughout the evening two men were posted to each corner of our broadcast ‘riser’ and they sat at machines with large conical funnels pointing upwards. These were the machines that would launch into the air millions of shards of shiny paper to recreate the effect of a glass ceiling shattering.</p></blockquote>
<p>He also makes some grimly accurate prophesies:</p>
<blockquote><p>And are you really going to start a trade war with China – and everyone else for that matter, with all the consequences that might bring for the global economy?</p></blockquote>
<p>Towards the end, when discussing how Trump came to dominate, he says:</p>
<blockquote><p>Books much weightier than this will be written about the abject failure of the conventional media to comprehend fully the parameters of this new world</p></blockquote>
<p>I think I was expecting this to be a bit weightier and to set out some way forward.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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<thr:total>1</thr:total>
</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Why do people have such dramatically different experiences using AI?]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/why-do-people-have-such-dramatically-different-experiences-using-ai/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61410</id>
<updated>2025-06-18T13:33:24Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-18T11:34:09Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="AI"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="LLM"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[For some people, it seems, AI is an amazing machine which - while fallible - represents an incredible leap forward in productivity. For other people, it seems, AI is wrong more often than right and - although occasionally useful - requires constant supervision. Who is right? I recently pointed out a few common problems with LLMs. I was discussing this with someone relatively senior who works…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/why-do-people-have-such-dramatically-different-experiences-using-ai/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>For some people, it seems, AI is an amazing machine which - while fallible - represents an incredible leap forward in productivity.</p>
<p>For other people, it seems, AI is wrong more often than right and - although occasionally useful - requires constant supervision.</p>
<p>Who is right?</p>
<p>I recently pointed out <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/large-language-models-and-pareidolia/">a few common problems with LLMs</a>. I was discussing this with someone relatively senior who works on Google's Gemini. I explained that <em>every</em> time I get a Google AI overview it is wrong. Sometimes obviously wrong, sometimes subtly wrong. I asked if that was really the experience of AI Google wanted to promote? My friend replied (lightly edited for clarity):</p>
<blockquote><p>I find AI Overview to be helpful for my searches and my work. I use it all the time to look up technical terms and hardware specs.</p></blockquote>
<p>I, somewhat impolitely, called bullshit and sent a couple of screenshots of recent cases where Google was just laughably wrong. He replied:</p>
<blockquote><p>Interesting. We are seeing the opposite.</p></blockquote>
<p>Why is that?</p>
<p>I'll happily concede that LLMs are reasonable at outputting stuff which <em>looks</em> plausible and - in many cases - that's all that's necessary. If I can't remember which command line switch to use, AI is easier than crappy documentation. Similarly, if I don't know how to program a specific function, most AIs are surprisingly decent at providing me with something which <em>mostly</em> works.</p>
<p>But the more I know about something, the less competent the AI seems to be.</p>
<p>Let me give you a good example.</p>
<p>At my friend's prompting, I asked Gemini to OCR an old newspaper clipping. It is a decent resolution scan of English text printed in columns. The sort of thing a million AI projects have been trained on. Here's a sample:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Children.webp" alt="Scan of some text." width="437" height="174" class="size-full wp-image-61413">
<p>So what did Gemini make of it when asked to extract the text from it?</p>
<blockquote>Children at Witham's Chip-<br>
ping Hill Infants School are en-<br>
gaged in trying out all sorts of<br>
imaginations ready for October<br>
31... "And god knows what<br>
strange spirits will be abroad."<br></blockquote>
<p>That reads pretty well. It is <em>utterly</em> wrong, but it is convincing. This isn't a one-off either. Later in the clipping was this:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Witch.webp" alt="Scan of some text." width="425" height="229" class="size-full wp-image-61412">
<p>I'm sure a child of 6 could read that aloud without making any mistakes. Is Gemini as smart as a 6-year-old?</p>
<blockquote>All the children say halloween<br>
is fun. So it is for 6-year-old<br>
Joanne Kirby admits she will be<br>
staying up to watch on October<br>
31, just in case. She has made a<br>
paper "witch," to "tell stories<br>
about witches," she said.<br></blockquote>
<p>Again, superficially right, but not accurate in the slightest.</p>
<p>There were half a dozen mistakes in a 300 word article. That, frankly, is shit. I could have copy-typed it and made fewer mistakes. I probably spent more time correcting the output than I saved by using AI.</p>
<p>Boring old Tesseract - a mainstay of OCR - did far better. Yes, it might occasionally mistake a speck of dust for a comma or confuse two similar characters - but it has never invented new sentences!</p>
<p>Like a fool, I asked Gemini what was going on:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/GeminiShit.webp" alt="Me: That's a really bad job. You've invented lots of words which aren't there. Try again. Gemini: I understand you weren't satisfied with the previous transcription. Unfortunately, I can't directly perform OCR on images. However, there are many apps available that can do this. You can search online for 'OCR apps' to find one that suits your needs." width="1024" height="375" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61411">
<p><a href="https://g.co/gemini/share/af5e6ed3d1ea">Here's a link to the conversation if you don't believe me</a>.</p>
<p>This isn't just a problem with Gemini - ChatGPT also invented brand-new sentences when scanning the text.</p>
<blockquote><p>All the children say Halloween is fun, rather than frightening. Six-year-old Joanne Kirby admits she will be “a scary little witch” on the night, but she does like ghost stories.</p></blockquote>
<p>So what's going on?</p>
<blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:a3m54c4suf2odoycgsx4fv6v/app.bsky.feed.post/3lrstc3b2l227" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreidpyzj4sdakngcubvh4hzusyw5ub54zqhr6wc3evio4eghvlnvw5q"><p lang="en">A question one has to ask of any source, including LLMs but also newspapers, influencers, podcasts, books, etc., is "how would I know if they were wrong?"This is not a prompt to doubt everything – down that path is denialism – but about reflecting on how much you rely on even "trusted" sources.</p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:a3m54c4suf2odoycgsx4fv6v?ref_src=embed">Adrian Hon (@adrianhon.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:a3m54c4suf2odoycgsx4fv6v/post/3lrstc3b2l227?ref_src=embed">2025-06-17T15:39:06.772Z</a></blockquote>
<script async="" src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<p>With OCR, it is simple. I can read the ground-truth and see how it compares to the generated output. I don't have to trust; I can verify.</p>
<p>I suppose I mostly use AI for things with which I have a passing familiarity. I can quickly see when it is wrong. I've never used it for, say, tax advice or instructions to dismantle a nuclear bomb. I'd have zero idea if the information it spat back was in any way accurate.</p>
<p>Is that the difference? If you don't understand what you're asking for then you can't judge whether you're being mugged off.</p>
<p>Or is there something more fundamentally different between users which results in this disparity of experience?</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/A-t-shirt-which-says-Dunning-and-Kruger-and-Gell-and-Mann.jpeg" alt="A t-shirt which says Dunning and Kruger and Gell and Mann." width="540" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-35422">
</body></html>]]></content>
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<thr:total>39</thr:total>
</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Book Review: Beyond Measure - The Hidden History of Measurement by James Vincent ★★★★⯪]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-beyond-measure-the-hidden-history-of-measurement-by-james-vincent/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61180</id>
<updated>2025-06-06T10:13:46Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-17T11:34:39Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Book Review"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="history"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[This is a charming travelogue through the confusing and contradictory world of measurement. It has a similar thesis to Seeing Like A State by James C. Scott and is infinitely easier to read than Inventing Temperature by Hasok Chang Emanuele Lugli has noted, units of measurement are, for the powerful, ‘sly tools of subjugation’. Each time they’re deployed, they turn the world ‘into a place that …]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-beyond-measure-the-hidden-history-of-measurement-by-james-vincent/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Beyond-Measure-447x690-1.jpg" alt="Book cover." width="200" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61181"> This is a charming travelogue through the confusing and contradictory world of measurement. It has a similar thesis to <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2021/11/book-review-seeing-like-a-state-james-c-scott/">Seeing Like A State by James C. Scott</a> and is infinitely easier to read than <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2023/05/book-review-inventing-temperature-hasok-chang/">Inventing Temperature by Hasok Chang</a></p>
<blockquote><p>Emanuele Lugli has noted, units of measurement are, for the powerful, ‘sly tools of subjugation’. Each time they’re deployed, they turn the world ‘into a place that continues to make sense as long as the power that legitimises the measurements rests in place’.</p></blockquote>
<p>One thing that struck me was how often we squash measurements down into something human and usable.</p>
<blockquote><p>As Kula notes, many historical studies of medieval metrology refer to the ‘primitivism’ and ‘crudity’ of elastic units, but in reality they are well fitted to the needs of the people who used them, embodying the relationship of humans to the land and capturing the necessities of their work.</p></blockquote>
<p>Americans (wrongly) claim that Fahrenheit feels more natural. It doesn't; they're just used to it. But it does show that we have a bias for familiarity which stops the adoption of new forms and scales.</p>
<p>It dives into the human, social, and religious requirements for measurement. I particularly liked this little aside:</p>
<blockquote><p>It’s perhaps due to this symbolic potency that the Bible mentions measurement more often than it does charity.</p></blockquote>
<p>It is also a good compliment to <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-a-history-of-the-world-in-47-borders-the-stories-behind-the-lines-on-our-maps-by-jonn-elledge/">A History of the World in 47 Borders</a> - it shows how measurement lead to conquest, colonialism, and social upheaval.</p>
<p>Rather delightfully, the author goes a little gonzo and reports first-hand from various measurement sites. This isn't a dusty retelling of some encyclopædia article, it is a living exploration of the ritual around measurement. At times it appears that science and religion have an equal fervour for ceremony and obedience.</p>
<p>There is particular ire for the cultish weirdos of the Quantified Self movement, and it loops back to how measurement is a way for the uneasy to impose a sense of order on the world.</p>
<p>I found it a little too credulous about <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2020/02/weeknotes-reading-week/#the-age-of-surveillance-capitalism-shoshana-zuboff">Zuboff's work on surveillance</a>, but that's a minor criticism.</p>
<p>An excellent book for anyone interested in both the philosophy and practicality of measurement.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Your Password Algorithm Sucks]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61259</id>
<updated>2025-06-25T19:59:11Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-16T11:34:07Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="CyberSecurity"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="passwords"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="security"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[There are two sorts of people in the world; those who know they are stupid and those who think they are clever. Stupid people use a password manager. They know they can't remember a hundred different passwords and so outsource the thinking to something reasonably secure. I'm a stupid person and am very happy to have BitWarden generate and save fiendishly complex unique passwords which are then…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>There are two sorts of people in the world; those who know they are stupid and those who think they are clever.</p>
<p>Stupid people use a password manager. They know they can't remember a hundred different passwords and so outsource the thinking to something reasonably secure. I'm a stupid person and am very happy to have BitWarden generate and save fiendishly complex unique passwords which are then protected by the app's MFA. Lovely!</p>
<p>But people who think they are clever decide to bypass that and use their own super-secret algorithm.</p>
<p>Every clever person's algorithm boils down to the same thing:</p>
<ol>
<li>Have a single strong main password.</li>
<li>Add to it some information related to the service.</li>
</ol>
<p>For example <code>P@ssw0rd!_facebook</code> and <code>P@ssw0rd!_linkedin</code>. On the surface, that's quite an attractive proposition. You remember one thing and you don't need to trust a password manager.</p>
<p>People who are <em>extra</em> clever use the same algorithm but wrap it in a command-line function which XORs both pieces of data, creates a SHA-512 hash, takes every prime numbered bit, converts to ASCII, and uses <em>that</em> to generate a password. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ls5BFzuxGw4">Smart!</a></p>
<p>Either way, these algorithms <strong>suck!</strong> Let me explain why.</p>
<h2 id="password-leaking"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#password-leaking" class="heading-link">Password Leaking</a></h2>
<p>One day, LinkedIn decides to <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/blog/member/trust-and-safety/protecting-our-members">LeakedOut its users' passwords</a>. Anyone who can see <code>P@ssw0rd!_linkedin</code> can make a pretty good guess at your password for Facebook, banking, dating, and shopping etc. This means you now need to change <em>every</em> password that you have.</p>
<p>Even if you have used some amazing cryptographic powerhouse of an algorithm, there's still a chance you'll accidentally leak it or get so paranoid that you decide to invalidate it. Now you need to change your password on hundreds of sites.</p>
<h2 id="password-rotation"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#password-rotation" class="heading-link">Password Rotation</a></h2>
<p>We all know that it is <a href="https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/collection/passwords/updating-your-approach">a bad idea to ask your users to regularly change their passwords</a> - yet sites often persist in doing so.</p>
<p>How does your algorithm cope with this?</p>
<p>Do you have to remember that it is <code>P@ssw0rd!_facebook_1</code> and <code>P@ssw0rd!_linkedin_23</code>?</p>
<p>Perhaps you'll write down all the suffixes and find a way to store them securely - like, say, a password manager?</p>
<h2 id="password-requirements"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#password-requirements" class="heading-link">Password Requirements</a></h2>
<p>One site says "Your password <em>must</em> contain a special character and a number" another says "You can use any special character <em>except</em> % or ?" another refuses to let your password contain two consecutive identical characters, or it <em>must</em> start with a number, or it cannot be longer than 12 characters. Yes, I know password rules like this aren't sensible - but they <em>are</em> common.</p>
<p>How does your algorithm cope with that?</p>
<p>If you manually have to tweak a couple of dozen passwords generated by your algorithm, you are going to tie yourself in knots remembering the arcane requirements for each one.</p>
<h2 id="be-stupid-use-a-password-manager"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#be-stupid-use-a-password-manager" class="heading-link">Be Stupid - Use A Password Manager</a></h2>
<p>Humans are stupid<sup id="fnref:not"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#fn:not" class="footnote-ref" title="Not you, of course. You're mummy's extra-special boy who never makes mistakes." role="doc-noteref">0</a></sup>. Humans get tired, forgetful, or sick. Our delicious meaty brains are not optimised to remember long strings of complex information or hundreds of rarely used combinations. Knowing that you know not is a super-power. It allows you to offload things that you don't understand to something more competent.</p>
<p>Pick a password manager. Secure it with a reasonably strong password and multi-factor authentication. Let it do the hard work of remembering.</p>
<div class="footnotes" role="doc-endnotes">
<hr>
<ol start="0">
<li id="fn:not" role="doc-endnote">
<p>Not you, of course. You're mummy's extra-special boy who never makes mistakes. <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#fnref:not" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
</body></html>]]></content>
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<thr:total>18</thr:total>
</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Book Review: What We Talk About When We Talk About Books - The History and Future of Reading by Leah Price ★★★★★]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-what-we-talk-about-when-we-talk-about-books-the-history-and-future-of-reading-by-leah-price/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61169</id>
<updated>2025-06-05T20:36:34Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-15T11:34:55Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Book Review"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Is reading a morally good pastime? Do eBooks rot the brain in the same way that pulp paperbacks do? Should people of feeble character be allowed unfettered access to books? Show me how you want to read, and I’ll show you who you want to be. Leah Price has produced a pithy and astonishing look at what books were and whether they will survive. It is, perhaps, a little overwrought and o…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-what-we-talk-about-when-we-talk-about-books-the-history-and-future-of-reading-by-leah-price/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/97804650426851.webp" alt="Book cover featuring twisted book pages." width="200" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61170"> Is reading a morally good pastime? Do eBooks rot the brain in the same way that pulp paperbacks do? Should people of feeble character be allowed unfettered access to books?</p>
<blockquote><p>Show me how you want to read, and I’ll show you who you want to be.</p></blockquote>
<p>Leah Price has produced a pithy and astonishing look at what books were and whether they will survive. It is, perhaps, a little overwrought and overwritten - but I revelled in the its joyous use of language.</p>
<blockquote><p>Perhaps print is to digital as Madonna is to whore: we worship one but use the other.</p></blockquote>
<p>It put forwards some provocative arguments and isn't afraid to show the counterpoint in its footnotes.</p>
<blockquote><p>Same text, different books: the very same sequence of words means something different—does something different—depending on whether it’s made for a desk or a pocket, a classroom or a church. Comparing these two editions of the same text makes visible how much of our reaction to a book is shaped by factors other than the words it contains. Its look and feel and smell instruct us wordlessly in how and why to read it—alone or in company, in search of learning or of salvation.</p></blockquote>
<p>How does DRM affect this, I wonder? If books are locked down then they cannot be analysed. Conversely, when every reader can choose their own font and hyphenation strategy, do we lose some collective experience?</p>
<p>Similarly, eReaders don't display their cover to fellow passengers on public transport. A boon for the privacy conscious, but means we lose the social signal that simply <em>everyone</em> is reading this new book.</p>
<p>Is reading for everyone?</p>
<blockquote><p>Once a sign of economic power, reading has become the province of those whose time lacks value.</p></blockquote>
<p>Harsh! The whole book is a powerful argument that books are a powerful argument. No matter what form the words are delivered in, some paranoid Moms will always want to see books from library shelves untimely ripp'd. There are, of course, an equal and opposite set of mothers who protest against cuts to literacy funding.</p>
<p>I sometimes wonder if any modern techbro CEOs have ever picked up a history book. Back in 1913, Thomas Edison was asked about the education powers of his new invention - the motion picture:</p>
<blockquote><p>“Books,” declared the inventor with decision, “will soon be obsolete in the public schools. Scholars will be instructed through the eye. It is possible to teach every branch of human knowledge with the motion picture. Our school system will be completely changed inside of ten years.</p></blockquote>
<p>Books outlasted his prediction. They outlasted him. They will morph, adapt, scatter, and devour until they outlast us all.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Meeting my Fedifriends AFK]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/meeting-my-fedifriends-afk/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61215</id>
<updated>2025-06-14T10:28:26Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-14T11:34:11Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="fediverse"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[There's a lovely moment in the documentary about The Pirate Bay where Peter Sunde is being interviewed in a District Court: Prosecutor 1: When was the first time you met IRL? brokep: We don't use the expression IRL. We say AFK. But that's another issue. Prosecutor 2: Got to know each other IRL? What is that? Prosecutor 1: In Real Life. brokep: We don't like that expression. We say AFK - Away …]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/meeting-my-fedifriends-afk/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>There's a lovely moment in <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2608732/">the documentary about The Pirate Bay</a> where Peter Sunde is being interviewed in a District Court:</p>
<blockquote><p>Prosecutor 1: When was the first time you met IRL?</p>
<p>brokep: We don't use the expression IRL. We say AFK. But that's another issue.</p>
<p>Prosecutor 2: Got to know each other IRL? What is that?</p>
<p>Prosecutor 1: In Real Life.</p>
<p>brokep: We don't like that expression. We say AFK - Away From Keyboard. <strong>We think that the Internet is for real.</strong></p></blockquote>
<p>Isn't that great? Why do some people insist that online relationships are somehow less real than physical relationships?</p>
<p>As part of our recent <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/5025-km-21-journeys-and-10-countries-in-30-days-an-interrailing-adventure/">grand Interrail journey</a>, I wanted to see how many people from social networks I could meet AFK. In the glory days of Twitter, I'm sure I'd've found a friend in every one-horse town. But the fractured nature of networking made it a bit of challenge.</p>
<p>Just before arriving in a new country, I sent out messages saying "Hey, I'm arriving in XYZ tomorrow. Anyone want to meet for a beer?" And, to my surprise and delight, many people did!</p>
<p>In half of the countries we went to, we met new friends. Sometimes for a quick drink, sometimes for dinner, and sometimes for a little exploring of a city. We even got invited to a local geek meet-up. It was <em>lovely</em>. We got tips on how to use the public transport system, which restaurants were tourist traps, and introduced to new beers.</p>
<p>It is nice to put faces to names. It's fun to meet a random friend and chat nonsense with them. And it is reassuring to know that there are people around the world who'll take a risk and meet a weary traveller.</p>
<p>Now, there are some obvious caveats to this story. We only met in well populated areas. I'm a tall bloke with a loud voice. Some light background stalking made sure the people we met weren't <em>too</em> crazy. We didn't get drunk. If you do this - I suggest taking all the normal precautions when meeting strangers. But, in the end, everything was fine.</p>
<p>Sometimes you want to go where at least one person knows your name.</p>
<p>Cheers!</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/crop.webp" alt="Me with a big mug of beer." width="1280" height="1280" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61222">
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Book Review: A History of the World in 47 Borders - The Stories Behind the Lines on Our Maps by Jonn Elledge ★★★★⯪]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-a-history-of-the-world-in-47-borders-the-stories-behind-the-lines-on-our-maps-by-jonn-elledge/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61161</id>
<updated>2025-06-13T08:08:36Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-13T11:34:02Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Book Review"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="history"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Jonn Elledge has a witty and friendly tone. It skirts just the right line between trivia nerd and your favourite history teacher. He cheerfully points out the absurdities in history and swiftly pivots into the injustices of "Cartographic Colonialism". There are delightfully diverting asides and then we're brought right back into the horrors of a straight line. The problem with history is that…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-a-history-of-the-world-in-47-borders-the-stories-behind-the-lines-on-our-maps-by-jonn-elledge/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/hbg-title-a-history-of-the-world-in-47-borders-.webp" alt="Book cover with a map on it." width="200" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61162"> Jonn Elledge has a witty and friendly tone. It skirts just the right line between trivia nerd and your favourite history teacher. He cheerfully points out the absurdities in history and swiftly pivots into the injustices of "Cartographic Colonialism". There are delightfully diverting asides and then we're brought right back into the horrors of a straight line.</p>
<p>The problem with history is that is is all a <em>bit</em> samey. Someone unities an country using violence and cunning thus setting up an empire that will last a thousand years - only for his heirs to immediately fall into civil war on his death. There's only so many times you can read about the bloody Habsburgs fucking over yet another country before it gets tiresome.</p>
<p>The borders of the world have little to do with geography and all to do with the mundanity of indifferent administrators carving up the world to fit into neat little boxes, regardless of the wishes of the boxes' inhabitants.</p>
<p>My only quibbles are that it could really do with a more illustrations. Sometimes only a picture of a map will do.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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<thr:total>2</thr:total>
</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[The Mobile Phones of Doctor Who - Midnight]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/the-mobile-phones-of-doctor-who-midnight/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=60905</id>
<updated>2025-06-11T09:48:57Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-12T11:34:00Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Doctor Who Phones"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[A disturbing lack of phones in the latest series of Doctor Who - and no news yet on the next series. So let's revisit an older episode I'd previously overlooked. "Midnight" is a Series 4 episode which has a terrifying sequel in this year's "The Well". Donna briefly has a chat with The Doctor on what a appears to be a landline phone with the wire removed. Obviously that's not a mobile phone. …]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/the-mobile-phones-of-doctor-who-midnight/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>A disturbing lack of phones in <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/mobile-phones-of-doctor-who-season-15/">the latest series of Doctor Who</a> - and no news yet on the next series. So let's revisit an older episode I'd previously overlooked.</p>
<p>"Midnight" is a <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2018/09/the-mobile-phones-of-doctor-who-series-4/">Series 4</a> episode which has a terrifying sequel in this year's "The Well".</p>
<p>Donna briefly has a chat with The Doctor on what a appears to be a landline phone with the wire removed.</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Donna-phone.webp" alt="Donna chatting on a phone." width="960" height="540" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-60911">
<p>Obviously that's not a mobile phone.</p>
<p>But what's The Doctor speaking to her on?
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Doctor-Payphone.webp" alt="The Doctor talking on a payphone." width="960" height="540" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-60910"></p>
<p>A payphone? Look a little closer:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Doctor-Payphone-close-up.webp" alt="The Doctor talking on a payphone. Close up showing rotary dial." width="960" height="540" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-60909">
<p>A <em>rotary dial</em> payphone!</p>
<p>This is the the <a href="https://payphone.illtyd.co.uk/cointelephone725">Coin Telephone 725A</a>. Isn't it gorgeous?</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Yellow-payphone.webp" alt="A yellow payphone with rotary dial." width="512" height="544" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-60906">
<p>But is it a <em>mobile</em> phone? Yes. Yes it is. The <a href="http://www.samhallas.co.uk/repository/sales/dle_530.pdf">Post Office Telecommunications Bulletin DLE 530</a> describes this as "<em>portable</em> with plug and socket termination".</p>
<p>How portable? Easy to lug over a bar.</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/payphone-in-pub.webp" alt="A barman carrying a payphone over a bar." width="699" height="755" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-60908">
<p>And light enough for a dainty lady to carry.</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/portable-with-plug-and-socket-termination.webp" alt="A woman carrying a payphone." width="512" height="714" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-60907">
<p>So, there you go, a <em>sort of</em> mobile phone hidden away on the Planet Midnight!</p>
<p>You can <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/tag/doctor-who-phones/">read dozens of these very silly blog posts in the archives</a>.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Large Language Models and Pareidolia]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/large-language-models-and-pareidolia/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61327</id>
<updated>2025-06-11T12:02:29Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-11T11:34:29Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="AI"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="LLM"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Have you ever looked up at the sky and seen a face staring back at you from the clouds? Of course you have; you're human. Our delicious meaty brains are hardwired to recognise certain shapes - and faces are a useful shape to recognise. A few false positives are a worthwhile trade-off for such a powerful feature. Mistakenly seeing faces where there are none is a phenomenon called pareidolia. If…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/large-language-models-and-pareidolia/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>Have you ever looked up at the sky and seen a face staring back at you from the clouds? Of course you have; you're human. Our delicious meaty brains are hardwired to recognise certain shapes - and <a href="https://babyschool.yale.edu/does-my-baby-recognize-me/">faces are a useful shape to recognise</a>. A few false positives are a worthwhile trade-off for such a powerful feature.</p>
<p>Mistakenly seeing faces where there are none is a phenomenon called <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareidolia">pareidolia</a>. If you've ever used facial recognition on a computer, you'll know that <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2014/06/pareidolia-and-computer-vision/">machines also suffer from it</a>.</p>
<p>I was using an AI tool to scan all my photos. I wanted it to recognise all the human faces so that I could tag my photos with my friends' names. One of the photos it presented for tagging was this:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/lovelace-and-babbage.webp" alt="A photograph containing a painting of Ada Lovelace and a bust of Charles Babbage." width="512" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61329">
<p>Are those faces? Undoubtedly yes! Is this a mistake that a human would have made? Absolutely not!</p>
<p>But the above is a mistake generated by Machine Learning, not by Our-Lord-And-Saviour Large Language Models. Surely a language model doesn't suffer from this?</p>
<p>Because <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/01/google-has-no-faith-in-its-ability-to-launch-new-products/">Google has no faith in its ability to launch new products</a>, it has forcibly shoved AI into all of its services. There's no way to turn it off. You <em>will</em> use Gemini and you <em>will</em> like it.</p>
<p>At the time of writing, here's what happens if you ask Google "How many i's in teamwork?"</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/teamwork.webp" alt="Google replying "The word teamwork contains the letter i one time"." width="1008" height="737" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61330">
<p>It's easy to see how Google's LLM has gotten this so catastrophically wrong. There are dozens of articles where some business guru ineffectually tries to argue that <a href="https://www.cam.ac.uk/research/features/fact-there-is-an-i-in-team">there <em>is</em> an "I" in team actually</a>. So the statistical model inside the LLM gives weight to that.</p>
<p>Similarly, there are lots of silly articles proclaiming that <a href="https://careerpunk.com/team-player/">the I in team is in the A-hole</a>. But LLMs do not understand satire:</p>
<blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:k7xouwluizlonrdxeo5obppi/app.bsky.feed.post/3lr7odyhz7c2d" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreiaproxts5p2uzp4fhycdu3qcotcvqkz4l6ynbmlmt7ls4tbf47ap4"><p lang="en">Google and Meta search both report that Cape Breton Island has its own time zone 12 minutes ahead of mainland Nova Scotia time because they are both drawing that information from a Beaverton article I wrote in 2024</p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:k7xouwluizlonrdxeo5obppi?ref_src=embed">Janel Comeau <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/1f341.png" alt="🍁" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" /> (@verybadllama.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:k7xouwluizlonrdxeo5obppi/post/3lr7odyhz7c2d?ref_src=embed">2025-06-10T00:50:07.217Z</a></blockquote>
<script async="" src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<p>LLMs are hardwired to regurgitate text which statistically matches what they've seen before. Their makers believe that a few false-positives are an acceptable error rate for such a useful feature. The LLM form of pareidolia is to recognise text as being syntactically and linguistically correct, even though the contents are rubbish. This is an inherent feature of LLMs. No amount of manually tweaking their parameters or prompts can fix this.</p>
<p>At the moment, Artificial Intelligence - whether Machine Learning or Large Language Models - only works well on a narrowly defined set of tasks and with humans checking the output.</p>
<p>Imagine you've just hired an intern. They've graduated top of their class from the best university and, apparently, excel at what they do. Because you're the boss and they're the intern, you ask them to make you a mug of tea. White, no sugar.</p>
<p>They return with the teabag still in the mug. OK, not everyone knows the intricacies of how to serve tea.</p>
<p>The tea tastes funny. You ask them if they sniffed the milk. "Milk? I used Tipp-Ex to make it white!"</p>
<p>At which point, after throwing up, you throw them out.</p>
<p>Most people encountering Gemini's repeated and unacceptable failures will decide, perhaps rightly, that AI isn't even close to good enough yet.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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<thr:total>4</thr:total>
</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Book Review: The Secret World of Denisovans: The Epic Story of the Ancient Cousins to Sapiens and Neanderthals by Silvana Condemi ★★★☆☆]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-the-secret-world-of-denisovans-the-epic-story-of-the-ancient-cousins-to-sapiens-and-neanderthals-by-silvana-condemi/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61151</id>
<updated>2025-06-08T19:21:43Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-10T11:34:50Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Book Review"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="NetGalley"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[This is a decidedly odd book. Was there a "secret" hominid that the world overlooked? While the Neanderthals get all the limelight, perhaps there was another lost species of human lurking in the background. The science seems settled - yes there was - so this book tells us how scientists reached that conclusion. Except, it isn't really clear who this book is aimed at. Part of it is very casually…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-the-secret-world-of-denisovans-the-epic-story-of-the-ancient-cousins-to-sapiens-and-neanderthals-by-silvana-condemi/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/9798893030709.jpg" alt="Book cover with hominid skulls." width="267" height="400" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61152">This is a decidedly odd book. Was there a "secret" hominid that the world overlooked? While the Neanderthals get all the limelight, perhaps there was another lost species of human lurking in the background. The science seems settled - yes there was - so this book tells us how scientists reached that conclusion.</p>
<p>Except, it isn't really clear who this book is aimed at. Part of it is very casually written - a hint of pop science and a healthy dollop of the personal lives of the scientists. The other part is a rather dense and unforgiving science book which is slightly beyond casual readers like me.</p>
<p>I was suddenly bombarded with sentences about the "tiny epiphysis (tip) of the distal phalanx" and how "the famous Denisova 3, was found in a stratigraphic position" and that "Exogenous DNA comes from the numerous necrophagous organisms that attack the remains after death."</p>
<p>There's very little ramp-up to the science and it suffers from the "<a href="https://xkcd.com/2501/">Average Familiarity Fallacy</a>" that non-experts have a working understand of the intricacies of a complex field.</p>
<p>It <em>is</em> interesting, and parts of it are downright fascinating:</p>
<blockquote><p>The team of researchers found that the site’s hunter-gatherers cooked giant carp of up to 6.5 feet (2 m) long, which they caught in a nearby lake. Several burnt flint microartifacts suggest they made fires. In the same layers as the burnt flints, the researchers collected around 40,000 pharyngeal teeth, carp teeth that are found at the bottom of their mouths. These teeth are all that remain of the carp, as heat softens the cartilaginous bones of fish and eradicates the possibility of their preservation. The discovery of these teeth suggests the fish were cooked at a controlled temperature rather than being grilled.</p>
<p>Even if we don’t know how the occupants of GBY made their fires, we do know that they stewed fish. Using X-ray diffraction, researchers established that the thermal expansion of the nanocrystals that make up the tooth enamel suggests their exposure to low to moderate heat: specifically, lower than 932°F (500°C), whereas a wood fire produces temperatures of between 1,472°F and 1,832°F (800°C and 1,000°C). It’s likely that prehistoric people cooked carp <i lang="fr">en papillote</i>, probably by burying them near their fires after wrapping them in giant water lily leaves collected from the nearby lake.</p></blockquote>
<p>I mean! Wow! That's some brilliant detective work.</p>
<p>Sadly, there is quite a lot of dusty old bones to wade through before you hit the good stuff. In the end, I found myself confused as to how different Neanderthals and Denisovans actually were.</p>
<p>The (pre-release) copy of the eBook commits the error of relegating all the images to the back. Several paragraphs are crying out for immediately viewable illustrations to help make sense of the text.</p>
<p>If you have a reasonable familiarity with palaeontology you'll probably enjoy this greatly - but it is a little too taxing for those of us with less evolved brains.</p>
<p>Many thanks to <a href="https://www.netgalley.com/">NetGalley</a> for the review copy.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Gadget Review: Treedix USB Cable Tester ★★★★☆]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61234</id>
<updated>2025-06-10T12:28:43Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-09T11:34:01Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="gadget"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="hardware"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="review"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="USB"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="usb-c"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Cables aren't just copper wire and plastic sheath any more. Modern USB-C cables contain little microchips called eMarkers which allow them to transfer data and power at terrifying speeds. But, sadly, there's no way you can look at a USB-C cable and see whether it supports the baffling array of features available. Enter the catchily-named Treedix TRX5-0816-AC. It will test just about any sort of …]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>Cables aren't just copper wire and plastic sheath any more. Modern USB-C cables contain <a href="https://hackaday.com/2023/01/04/all-about-usb-c-resistors-and-emarkers/">little microchips called eMarkers</a> which allow them to transfer data and power at terrifying speeds. But, sadly, there's no way you can look at a USB-C cable and see whether it supports the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB-C#Cable_types">baffling array of features</a> available.</p>
<p>Enter the catchily-named <a href="https://treedix.com/products/treedix-usb-cable-tester-usb-c-cable-tester-usb-tester-for-data-transmission-and-power-transmission-cable-testing-resistor-testing-type-c-emarker-for-usb-a-micro-b-micro-b-3-0-type-c-lighting-mini-b">Treedix TRX5-0816-AC</a>.</p>
<p>It will test just about <em>any</em> sort of USB cable and tell you what it does - and doesn't - support. It will also show you which pins are connected, how fast it can transmit data, and what the eMarker shows. Nice!</p>
<p>Let's put it through its paces.</p>
<h2 id="inputs-and-outputs"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#inputs-and-outputs" class="heading-link">Inputs and outputs</a></h2>
<p>On one side are your output ports - you have a choice of USB-C or USB-A 3.0.
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Input-ports.webp" alt="A USB-A and C port." width="1024" height="576" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61249"></p>
<p>At the bottom you have this range of ports to choose from:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/ports.webp" alt="Lightning, mini USB, USB-C, micro superspeed, mico ports." width="1024" height="301" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61250">
<p>So you can go A-C, C-micro, C-lightning etc.</p>
<p>Finally, on the other side you have a button, a switch, and input power:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Power-and-buttons.webp" alt="Power and buttons." width="1024" height="576" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61251">
<p>The power switch toggles between the internal AAA battery (included) and a 5V supply from a USB-C cable (not included). Pressing the white button moves between the different diagnostic screens.</p>
<h2 id="power-only"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#power-only" class="heading-link">Power Only</a></h2>
<p>I tried with a short USB-C power-only cable designed for charging low-power devices. I plugged in the USB-A end and the USB-C end.</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/A-to-C-power-only.webp" alt="A to C power only." width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61238">
<p>It correctly identified that it couldn't do data transmission.</p>
<p>With a power-only USB-C cable, it had much the same display. Pressing the button on the side of the Treedix told me what it knew about the eMarker.</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/No-emarker-chip-detected.webp" alt="No emarker chip detected." width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61239">
<p>Perfect!</p>
<h2 id="passive-usb-c"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#passive-usb-c" class="heading-link">Passive USB-C</a></h2>
<p>What about a data and power USB-C cable? This is the <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2023/08/chubbycable-usb-c-review/">ChubbyCable I reviewed a few years ago.</a></p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Passive-USB-C-cable.webp" alt="Passive USB-C cable." width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61240">
<p>USB 3.2 Gen2 and power of up to 100W. It has also correctly guessed the likely length of the cable by measuring the latency.</p>
<p>Interestingly, when looking at the basic functions, it says it can only do USB 2.0 speeds and correctly identifies that it doesn't do PowerDelivery 3.1 (which goes up to 240W).</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/USB-C-data-transmission.webp" alt="USB-C data transmission." width="2676" height="2007" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61241">
<p>Finally, which pins are connected?</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/USB-C-connected-pins.webp" alt="USB-C connected pins." width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61242">
<p>That looks about right!</p>
<h2 id="thunderbolt-4-or-3"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#thunderbolt-4-or-3" class="heading-link">ThunderBolt 4 or 3?</a></h2>
<p>Let's compare two high-performance cables. The one I usually have plugged into my <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2024/06/review-framework-16-laptop/">Framework Laptop</a> and <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2023/08/gadget-review-mokin-usb-c-docking-station-linux-information/">USB-C hub</a></p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/TBT4.webp" alt="ThunderBolt 4." width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61243">
<p>Thunderbolt 4 capable of 100W of Power and 40 Gbps of data. As expected, no PD3.1:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/No-PD-3.1.webp" alt="Screen showing results." width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61244">
<p>Let's test a different high-quality cable I bought recently. The labelling claims 20Gbps and 240W of power. We can see that it does have PD3.1:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/PD3.1.webp" alt="PD3.1" width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61245">
<p>But! Looking at the eMarker, it reports that is only a ThunderBolt 3 device capable of 10Gbps!</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/10Gbps.webp" alt="10Gbps USB 3.2 Gen2." width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61247">
<p>I asked the cable manufacturer if that's a problem with the cable or the eMarker or the diagnostic machine. They said:</p>
<blockquote><p>eMarker tester can only show single channel transmission rate 10Gbps, devices supporting dual channel can show 20Gbps. our products have 18 months warranty, if there is any problem, please feel free to contact me, I will provide you with satisfactory after-sales service.</p></blockquote>
<p>I contacted Treedix to see if they could shed light on this. They replied quickly:</p>
<blockquote><p>Yes, we sincerely apologize - this tester currently does not support dual-channel detection at this time.</p></blockquote>
<p>Which is a bit annoying.</p>
<p>Of course, my laptop only supports 10Gbps, so it is a bit moot!</p>
<h2 id="firmware"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#firmware" class="heading-link">Firmware</a></h2>
<p><ins datetime="2025-06-10T12:25:20+00:00">Update!</ins></p>
<p>I emailed Treedix about possible firmware updates - they said:</p>
<blockquote><p>Our devices with firmware version V2.3 and above can be updated. Currently the latest version is V2.3. you can see your version number. The way to view it is the boot page will show the version number. In addition, our test boards cannot be updated to test dual channels at this time. Because this is the information written inside the EMARKER, we can only read the information inside. We are currently working on the data inside the information we read to see if we can read the number of channels.</p></blockquote>
<p>Mine shows a firmware of 2.3.04 - which does appear to be the latest. If a new firmware appears, I'll update this post again.</p>
<h2 id="weird-cables"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#weird-cables" class="heading-link">Weird Cables</a></h2>
<p>As well as your standard USB-C, it will also do the <em>ugliest</em> plug known the mankind - the USB Micro-B SuperSpeed.</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Micro-B-SS-pins.webp" alt="Micro B pins connected." width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61248">
<p>It'll also do Lightning cables - as long as they also have a USB-A or C end.</p>
<h2 id="downsides"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#downsides" class="heading-link">Downsides</a></h2>
<p>Other than having to replace all your duff cables, there are a few annoying little niggles.</p>
<ul>
<li>The battery compartment is <em>really</em> stiff. I had to unscrew the back of the device to get it open.</li>
<li>The power switch feels a little flimsy.</li>
<li>The function button is a little small and fiddly.</li>
<li>Screen brightness can't be changed (but it is pretty bright).</li>
<li>No USB-B (the chunky one often used for printers).</li>
<li>Lack of dual-channel detection.</li>
<li><del datetime="2025-06-10T12:25:20+00:00">No firmware updates.</del></li>
</ul>
<p>Those are all minor complaints.</p>
<p>The biggest complaint is that USB-C terminology is <em>hard</em>. Which is better, 40Gbps but only 100W or 10Gbps but 240W? How does ThunderBolt relate to USB? What is EPR and why does it matter? Where does DP Alt Mode fit in?!</p>
<h2 id="verdict"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#verdict" class="heading-link">Verdict</a></h2>
<p>It powers up and detects all features instantly. It goes to sleep after a few minutes of not being used. It will even show you the electrical resistance of the cable if you think that's useful.</p>
<p>Total cost? <a href="https://amzn.to/44eJ7YL">£40 at the moment from Amazon</a>. I reckon that's a bargain. It is an indispensable piece of kit - especially if you have a big box of ancient USB cables. This will allow you to quickly and easily see which ones are broken, which are mislabelled, and which deserve pride of place in your collection.</p>
<p>If you're running a hackspace, this is a no-brainer. If you've ever wasted time trying to diagnose a USB problem, this should be your first port of call.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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<thr:total>7</thr:total>
</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Open Data Man - how open is too open?]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/open-data-man-how-open-is-too-open/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=55363</id>
<updated>2025-05-31T20:46:08Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-08T11:34:41Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="ODcamp"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Open Data"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Open Data is dear to my heart. It is the idea that raw data should be public published, free of restrictions, and in a form that is most usable for others. When people talk about Open Data, they usually mean "Data that has been paid for by tax-payers" - often data created or collected by Government agencies. But it also extends to the data used by researchers, scientists, economists and any…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/open-data-man-how-open-is-too-open/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>Open Data is dear to my heart. It is the idea that raw data should be public published, free of restrictions, and in a form that is most usable for others.</p>
<p>When people talk about Open Data, they usually mean "Data that has been paid for by tax-payers" - often data created or collected by Government agencies. But it also extends to the data used by researchers, scientists, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2013/04/16/is-the-best-evidence-for-austerity-based-on-an-excel-spreadsheet-error/">economists</a> and any other organisation which wants us to take them seriously. Some private companies also release Open Data - knowing that a level playing-field is good for ecosystem health.</p>
<p>What about individuals? Is it sensible, desirable, or useful for us to release our <em>personal</em> data as Open Data?</p>
<p>Last year, at <a href="https://www.odcamp.uk/">Open Data Camp</a> I ran a session about what data I release and what the implications are for my personal safety, security, and mental well-being.</p>
<p>First, for the hard-of-thinking, I am not suggesting you do anything you don't want. I'm also in no position to compel you to do anything. If you don't like my ideas, close the tab and write something better.</p>
<p>Right, still here? OK.</p>
<p>We all leave little trails of data with every online interaction. Yes, I know you use a VPN, and TOR, and Incognito mode - but those are all still part of a digital footprint. Here I'm mostly concerned with the <em>intentional</em> release of data.</p>
<p>Most of the data we intentionally release is highly curated. You post about your new job on LinkedIn - but you don't mention the 50 rejections leading up to it. Your online restaurant reviews make it sound like you only go to fancy joints with cool lighting and ethical menus - you don't post about the shameful 3am kebab from that dodgy van.</p>
<p>If you're using FourSquare or similar services, you're deliberately releasing a log of where you've been and at what time you were there. Even if you post a photo of a gig the day after it happened, it's trivial to locate you at that moment.</p>
<p>Some people are very open with their intimate medical data. I'm not. I haven't released a <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2024/06/3d-printing-my-teeth/">3D model of my teeth</a> - perhaps out of fear someone will use it to bite other people. Similarly, I haven't released my MRI scans just in case someone clones my brain.</p>
<p>So what about raw data?</p>
<p>I release <a href="https://gitlab.com/edent/solar-data/-/blob/main/README.md">my home's Solar Generation Statistics</a> as raw & open data. They're useful enough to be <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/citations/#a-year-of-solar-panels-open-data-2014">cited in several academic papers</a>.</p>
<p>I release my energy consumption (at 30 minute granularity) to <a href="https://www.livinglab.energy/home">The Living Lab</a> so they can build up a model of how normal people use electricity and gas. I trust them not to abuse it, but I'm cognisant they can see when I'm away or when I'm cooking. Do I want <em>you</em> to know that as well?</p>
<p>The discussion we held was wide ranging. Some people want the world to know about them and their problems, others value their privacy. It's an individual choice. It is a discussion you should have with those around you - especially if they're leaking your data.</p>
<p>I am indebted to the wonderful <a href="https://drawnalism.com/">Drawnalism</a> rendering me in the style of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitruvian_Man">da Vinci's Vitruvian Man</a>.</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Open-Data-Man.webp" alt="Caricature of Terence as the Vitruvian Man spewing open data." width="3840" height="2160" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-55364">
<p>You can <a href="https://www.odcamp.uk/open-data-man/">read the full write-up of the session</a> on the Open Data Camp blog.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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<thr:total>2</thr:total>
</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Book Review: Intimacy by Ita O'Brien ★★★☆☆]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-intimacy-by-ita-obrien/"/>
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=59389</id>
<updated>2025-05-03T16:03:59Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-07T11:34:52Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Book Review"/>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="sex"/>
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[This is a complicated book to review. There are several distinct strands to it, although they intermingle freely creating a confusing and disjointed thesis. Ita O'Brien, it is fair to say, invented the role of "Intimacy Co-ordinator" on film and TV sets. You wouldn't expect an director to just shout "fight" at a pair of actors and expect them to know how to safely perform a complex action…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-intimacy-by-ita-obrien/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/9781529954036.jpg" alt="Book cover." width="200" height="320" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-59391">This is a complicated book to review. There are several distinct strands to it, although they intermingle freely creating a confusing and disjointed thesis.</p>
<p>Ita O'Brien, it is fair to say, invented the role of "Intimacy Co-ordinator" on film and TV sets. You wouldn't expect an director to just shout "fight" at a pair of actors and expect them to know how to <em>safely</em> perform a complex action scene, would you? Fights need to be choreographed, the crew need to behave in a way that minimises the risk of harm to others, actors have to feel safe. Why should sex scenes be any different?</p>
<p>This is the strongest part of the book. It explains <em>why</em> Intimacy Co-ordination is necessary and how it is used to improve a show. At times it veers a <em>little</em> into a sale-pitch for her work, but it is balanced with just the right amount of celebrity name-dropping and impassioned reasoning to keep it interesting.</p>
<p>There are some brilliantly crafted exercises which are used to help actors feel comfortable working with each other. Working professionals need to be able to express clear boundaries to each other. Communication is key, but it relies on being able to be honest with each other. As O'Brien puts it:</p>
<blockquote><p>being able to state your ‘no’, means that your ‘yes’ can be trusted.</p></blockquote>
<p>The author takes great pains to tell us that she's <em>not</em> a sex therapist, yet a large part of the book is taken up with how non-actors can improve their intimacy with their lovers. Some of our modern hang-ups, she asserts, are directly a result of unrealistic expectations hammered home by the entertainment industry:</p>
<blockquote><p>A couple meet and then it cuts to a sex scene, as if their physical relationship is separate from every other aspect of their lives. We’ve become accustomed to seeing portrayals of sex that are robotic, athletic, gratuitous. It’s rare to see the kind of relationships we’ve all experienced in real life: an expression of connection that is clumsy, awkward, funny and – hopefully – ultimately satisfying.</p></blockquote>
<p>Again, this is all important and interesting stuff. But then things go a bit off the rails.</p>
<p>Lots of the exercises she presents for non-actors are simply about stretching and general body-work. Her background in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/19443927.2011.651536">Movement Studies</a> dominates the page. I understand that being in touch with your physicality is a necessary part of exploring your sexual boundaries, but it feels like it overly focuses on one aspect of self-comfort.</p>
<p>Anyone who has worked with actors know that they're a weird and superstitious bunch. Visualisation techniques often ask you to imagine you're a tree, or that a bright light is shining out of you, or that you have extra-sensory perception. If you're not an actor, being thrown in to some of these routines can feel alienating and jarring. You thought you were here to get intimate? No! Pretend you have energy lines flowing through you!</p>
<p>Sadly, it all goes a bit "woo". There's nonsense about chakras, homeopathy, "how overtones have the power to affect consciousness and the cellular level", and pseudoscientific claptrap about walking barefoot so the "electrons transfer to your body, neutralising the positively charged free radicals".</p>
<p>I felt that it undermined the seriousness of her work. And it <em>is</em> serious. People working in the entertainment industry need to be protected from harm. People in relationships need to find ways to be free and intimate with each other.</p>
<p>There's a lot of great stuff in here, but you'll need to assert your boundaries and skip past the bits which aren't appropriate for you.</p>
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<title type="text">Terence Eden’s Blog</title>
<subtitle type="text">Regular nonsense about tech and its effects 🙃</subtitle>
<updated>2025-06-25T19:59:11Z</updated>
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<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Book Review: The Martian Contingency by Mary Robinette Kowal ★★★★☆]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-the-martian-contingency-by-mary-robinette-kowal/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61166</id>
<updated>2025-06-24T11:46:55Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-26T11:34:19Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Book Review" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Mary Robinette Kowal" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[The Lady Astronaut books are an absolute triumph - it's just a shame that they've been somewhat overshadowed by the TV series "For All Mankind". They both follow a similar trajectory - what if women were an integral part of the early space race and helped us to colonise off-world? The books, thankfully, don't pad out as much as the rival show - this latest novel is tightly focussed and takes us …]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-the-martian-contingency-by-mary-robinette-kowal/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/jpg_rgb_0650h-5-416x636-1.jpg" alt="Book cover featuring Astronauts on Mars." width="200" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61167"> The Lady Astronaut books are an absolute triumph - it's just a shame that they've been somewhat overshadowed by the TV series "For All Mankind". They both follow a similar trajectory - what if women were an integral part of the early space race and helped us to colonise off-world? The books, thankfully, don't pad out as much as the rival show - this latest novel is tightly focussed and takes us to the Mars base where <em>shenanigans</em> are afoot.</p>
<p>For a sci-fi nerd like me, it is total catnip. A heady mix of brain-tangling "what ifs" and the geeky joy of "<a href="https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CompetencePorn">competency porn</a>". The language is gorgeous with some beautiful turns of phrase, and the pacing does an excellent job of ratcheting up the tension.</p>
<p>My only criticism is that Elma is <em>such</em> an ineffective character. She seems to forget that she's one of the most senior people on the mission and has the right - nay! the duty! - to get answers. Her lack of confidence isn't a quirky character flaw; it is a profoundly irritating co-star.</p>
<p>I love the world building, the jokey asides, and the sense of purpose all the characters have. The moral dilemmas and Politics are well articulated and don't feel tacked on. It's worth picking up the whole series.</p>
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<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Theatre Review: Just For One Day ★★★★⯪]]></title>
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<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61592</id>
<updated>2025-06-25T08:30:23Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-25T11:34:07Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Theatre Review" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Leave your cynicism at the door. Jukebox musicals usually stick to a single-artist (Mamma Mia, & Juliet, Tommy). As a result, they all start to sound a bit samey after a few numbers. Shows like Return To The Forbidden planet shoe-horn in songs from a dozen artists without much regard to plot, tone, or pacing. Just For One Day goes down a different route. Rather than just recreate the famous…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/theatre-review-just-for-one-day/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/JFOD.webp" alt="A crowd of singers." width="400" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61593"> Leave your cynicism at the door.</p>
<p>Jukebox musicals usually stick to a single-artist (Mamma Mia, & Juliet, Tommy). As a result, they all start to sound a bit samey after a few numbers. Shows like Return To The Forbidden planet shoe-horn in songs from a dozen artists without much regard to plot, tone, or pacing.</p>
<p>Just For One Day goes down a different route. Rather than just recreate the famous Live Aid concert with a procession of soundalikes, it attempts to tell the story <em>behind</em> the concert. In doing so, it chops dozens of songs into thousands of pieces and lets the snippets segue seamlessly into the prose. It entwines the songs into each other beautifully. A supremely talented cast backed with a superb live band - it is guaranteed to have you screaming and cheering.</p>
<p>The central plot device is a <em>little</em> silly - a mother who went to the concert is chiding her teenage daughter about political activism. It is a bit mawkish and gets the show off to a stage-schooly start. Similarly, the daughter's righteous indignation fuels her interrogation of Saint Geldof which, again, becomes a bit preachy.</p>
<p>But that's the nature of Live Aid. It <em>is</em> preachy. And for all the arguments about whether it was the <strong>right</strong> thing to do - at least it did <strong>something</strong>. The show doesn't gloss over some the problems - and problem personalities - behind the production. Nor does it shy away from the reality of the limits of the help provided. Albeit backed by joyous music.</p>
<p>I felt that it pulls its punches a little bit. Rather than showing any footage from the Ethiopian famine, it <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/bob-geldof-belfast-icc-ethiopia-barack-obama-b2423253.html">recycles a speech Geldof gave a few years ago</a>.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, it is a powerful and moving spectacle.</p>
<p>Oh, and there's a rap battle between Bob Geldof and Mrs Thatcher.</p>
<p>Tickets start at £20. The music is so loud, and the staging so expressive, that you'll get a decent view from the cheap seats.</p>
<p>Far better than the average jukebox musical.</p>
<h2 id="pre-show-and-post-show"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/theatre-review-just-for-one-day/#pre-show-and-post-show" class="heading-link">Pre-show and Post-show</a></h2>
<p>As regular readers of <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/tag/theatre-review/">my theatre reviews</a> know, I'm obsessed with how theatres treat their patrons.</p>
<p>Bag searches were conducted quickly, and they were happy to let me bring in a small plastic bottle of water. The Shaftesbury has spacious corridors and bars. There are plenty of toilets which - in a shocking departure from West End tradition - are well maintained.</p>
<p>There's a little bit of set dressing inside the theatre to allow the audience to take selfies with famous backdrops. That's cute - but it might have been nice if they'd added a few more, or even put up original posters, press clippings, etc.</p>
<p>As we exited the theatre we were handed a commemorative ticket! What a swell idea! I thought it contained a QR code to donate to <a href="https://www.bandaidtrust.co.uk/">the Band Aid Charitable Trust</a> or find out more about their projects. Instead it's a coupon for £20 off your next visit. That feels like a bit of a missed opportunity.</p>
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<title type="html"><![CDATA[Reading NFC Passport Chips in Linux]]></title>
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<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61546</id>
<updated>2025-06-24T12:12:53Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-24T11:34:49Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="CyberSecurity" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="hacking" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="linux" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="nfc" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="rfid" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[For boring and totally not nefarious reasons, I want to read all the data contained in my passport's NFC chip using Linux. After a long and annoying search, I settled on roeften's pypassport. I can now read all the passport information, including biometrics. Table of ContentsBackgroundRecreating the MRZPython code to generate an MRZCan you read a cancelled passport?Cryptography and other…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>For boring and totally not nefarious reasons, I want to read all the data contained in my passport's NFC chip using Linux. After a long and annoying search, I settled on <a href="https://github.com/roeften/pypassport">roeften's pypassport</a>.</p>
<p>I can now read all the passport information, including biometrics.</p>
<p></p><nav id="toc"><menu id="toc-start"><li id="toc-title"><h2 id="table-of-contents"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#table-of-contents" class="heading-link">Table of Contents</a></h2><menu><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#background">Background</a><menu><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#recreating-the-mrz">Recreating the MRZ</a><menu><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#python-code-to-generate-an-mrz">Python code to generate an MRZ</a></li></menu></li></menu></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#can-you-read-a-cancelled-passport">Can you read a cancelled passport?</a></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#cryptography-and-other-security">Cryptography and other security</a></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#can-you-brute-force-a-passport">Can you brute-force a passport?</a><menu><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#is-it-worth-brute-forcing-a-password">Is it worth brute-forcing a password?</a></li></menu></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#installing">Installing</a></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#getting-structured-data">Getting structured data</a><menu><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#saving-the-image">Saving the image</a></li></menu></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#what-didnt-work">What didn't work</a><menu><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#mrtdreader">mrtdreader</a></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#jean-francois-houzards-and-olivier-rogers-pypassport">Jean-Francois Houzard's and Olivier Roger's pyPassport</a></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#beaujeans-pypassport">beaujean's pyPassport</a></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#d-logic">d-Logic</a></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#android-reader">Android reader</a></li></menu></li><li><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#is-it-worth-it">Is it worth it?</a></li></menu></li></menu></nav><p></p>
<h2 id="background"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#background" class="heading-link">Background</a></h2>
<p>The NFC chip in a passport is protected by a password. The password is printed on the inside of the physical passport. As well as needing to be physically close to the passport for NFC to work<sup id="fnref:long"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:long" class="footnote-ref" title="There are some commercially available long range readers - up to 15cm! I've no doubt some clever engineer has made a some high-powered radio device which can read things from a mile away using a…" role="doc-noteref">0</a></sup>, you also need to be able to see the password. The password is printed in the "Machine Readable Zone" (MRZ) - which is why some border guards will swipe your passport through a reader before scanning the chip; they need the password and don't want to type it in.</p>
<p>I had a small problem though. I'm using my old passport<sup id="fnref:old"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:old" class="footnote-ref" title="I'm not dumb enough to do this stuff on a live passport!" role="doc-noteref">1</a></sup> which <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cancellation-of-passports/cancelling-british-passports-accessible#cancelling-epassport-version-2">has been cancelled</a>. Cancelling isn't just about revoking the document. It is also physically altered:</p>
<blockquote><p>Cut off the bottom left hand corner of the personal details page, making sure you cut the MRZ on the corner opposite the photo.</p></blockquote>
<p>So a chunk of the MRZ is missing! Oh no! Whatever can we do!?</p>
<h3 id="recreating-the-mrz"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#recreating-the-mrz" class="heading-link">Recreating the MRZ</a></h3>
<p>The password is made up of three pieces of data:</p>
<ol>
<li>Passport Number (Letters and Numbers)</li>
<li>Date of Birth (YYMMDD)</li>
<li>Expiry Date (YYMMDD)</li>
</ol>
<p>Each piece <em>also</em> has a checksum. This calculation is defined in Appendix A to <a href="https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/9303_p3_cons_en.pdf">Part 3 of Document 9303</a>.</p>
<p>Oh, and there's a checksum for the entire string. It's this final checksum which is cut off when the passport cover is snipped.</p>
<p>The final password is: <code>Number Number-checksum DOB DOB-checksum Expiry Expiry-checkum checksum-of-previous-digits</code></p>
<h4 id="python-code-to-generate-an-mrz"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#python-code-to-generate-an-mrz" class="heading-link">Python code to generate an MRZ</a></h4>
<p>If you know the passport number, date of birth, and expiry date, you can generate your own Machine Readable Zone - this acts as the password for the NFC chip.</p>
<pre><code class="language-python">def calculateChecksum( value ):
weighting = [7,3,1]
characterWeight = {
'0': 0, '1': 1, '2': 2, '3': 3, '4': 4, '5': 5, '6': 6, '7': 7,
'8': 8, '9': 9, '<': 0, 'A':10, 'B':11, 'C':12, 'D':13, 'E':14,
'F':15, 'G':16, 'H':17, 'I':18, 'J':19, 'K':20, 'L':21, 'M':22,
'N':23, 'O':24, 'P':25, 'Q':26, 'R':27, 'S':28, 'T':29, 'U':30,
'V':31, 'W':32, 'X':33, 'Y':34, 'Z':35
}
counter = 0
result = 0
for x in value:
result += characterWeight[str(x)] * weighting[counter%3]
counter += 1
return str(result%10)
def calculateMRZ( passportNumber, DOB, expiry ):
"""
DOB and expiry are formatted as YYMMDD
"""
passportCheck = calculateChecksum( passportNumber )
DOBCheck = calculateChecksum( DOB )
expiryCheck = calculateChecksum( expiry )
mrzNumber = passportNumber + passportCheck + DOB + DOBCheck + expiry + expiryCheck
mrzCheck = calculateChecksum( mrzNumber ).zfill(2)
mrz = passportNumber + passportCheck + "XXX" + DOB + DOBCheck + "X" + expiry + expiryCheck + "<<<<<<<<<<<<<<" + mrzCheck
return mrz
print( calculateMRZ("123456789", "841213", "220229") )
</code></pre>
<h2 id="can-you-read-a-cancelled-passport"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#can-you-read-a-cancelled-passport" class="heading-link">Can you read a cancelled passport?</a></h2>
<p>I would have thought that cutting the cover of the passport would destroy the antenna inside it. But, going back to <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cancellation-of-passports/cancelling-british-passports-accessible#cancelling-epassport-version-2">the UK guidance</a>:</p>
<blockquote><p>You must not cut the back cover on the ePassport</p></blockquote>
<p>Ah! That's where the NFC chip is. I presume this is so that cancelled passports can still be verified for authenticity.</p>
<h2 id="cryptography-and-other-security"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#cryptography-and-other-security" class="heading-link">Cryptography and other security</a></h2>
<p>The security is, thankfully, all fairly standard Public Key Cryptography - <a href="https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/9303_p11_cons_en.pdf">9303 part 11</a> explains it in <em>excruciating</em> levels of detail.</p>
<p>One thing I found curious - because the chip has no timer, it cannot know how often it is being read. You could bombard it with thousands of password attempts and not get locked out. Indeed, the specification says:</p>
<blockquote><p>the success probability of the attacker is given by the time the attacker has access to the IC, the duration of a single attempt to guess the password, and the entropy of the passport.</p></blockquote>
<h2 id="can-you-brute-force-a-passport"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#can-you-brute-force-a-passport" class="heading-link">Can you brute-force a passport?</a></h2>
<p>Wellllll… maybeeeee…?</p>
<p>Passports are generally valid for only 10 years. So that's 36,525 possible expiry dates.</p>
<p>Passport holders are generally under 100 years old. So that's 3,652,500 possible dates of birth.</p>
<p>That's already 133,407,562,500 attempts - and we haven't even got on to the 1E24 possible passport numbers!</p>
<p>In my experiments, sending an incorrect but valid MRZ results in the chip returning "Security status not satisfied (0x6982)" in a very short space of time. Usually less than a second.</p>
<p>But sending that incorrect attempt seemed to introduce a delay in the next response - by a few seconds. Sending the correct MRZ seemed to reset this and let the chip be read instantly.</p>
<p>So, if you knew the target's passport number and birthday, brute forcing the expiry date would take a couple of days. Not instant, but not impossible.</p>
<p>Most <a href="https://www.nxp.com/docs/en/data-sheet/NTAG213_215_216.pdf">commercial NFC chips support 100,000 writes</a> with no limit for the number of reads. Some also have a 24 bit read counter which increments after every read attempt. After 16 million reads, the counter doesn't increment. It <em>could</em> be possible for a chip to self-destruct after a specific number of reads - but I've no evidence that passport chips do that.</p>
<h3 id="is-it-worth-brute-forcing-a-password"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#is-it-worth-brute-forcing-a-password" class="heading-link">Is it <em>worth</em> brute-forcing a password?</a></h3>
<p>If you were to brute-force the MRZ, you would discover the passport-holder's date of birth. You would also get:</p>
<ul>
<li>A digital copy of their photo,</li>
<li>Their full name,</li>
<li>Their sex<sup id="fnref:sex"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:sex" class="footnote-ref" title="Sex is complicated. But ICAO allow for "F for female, M for male, or X for unspecified"." role="doc-noteref">2</a></sup>,</li>
<li>The country which issued their passport, and</li>
<li>Their nationality.</li>
</ul>
<p>All of that is something which you can see from looking at the passport. So there's little value in attempting to read it electronically.</p>
<h2 id="installing"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#installing" class="heading-link">Installing</a></h2>
<p>As mentioned, I'm using <a href="https://github.com/roeften/pypassport">https://github.com/roeften/pypassport</a></p>
<p>The only library I needed to install was <a href="https://pypi.org/project/pyasn1/">pyasn1</a> using <code>pip3 install pyasn1</code> - your setup may vary.</p>
<p>Download PyPassport. In the same directory, you can create a test Python file to see if the passport can be read. Here's what it needs to contain:</p>
<pre><code class="language-python">from pypassport import epassport, reader
# Replace this MRZ with the one from your passport
MRZ = "1234567897XXX8412139X2202299<<<<<<<<<<<<<<04"
def trace(name, msg):
if name == "EPassport":
print(name + ": " + msg)
r = reader.ReaderManager().waitForCard()
ep = epassport.EPassport(r, MRZ)
ep.register(trace)
ep.readPassport()
</code></pre>
<p>Plug in your NFC reader, place your passport on it, run the above code. If it works, it will spit out a lot of debug information, including all the data it can find on the passport.</p>
<h2 id="getting-structured-data"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#getting-structured-data" class="heading-link">Getting structured data</a></h2>
<p>The structure of the passport data is a little convoluted. <a href="https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/9303_p10_cons_en.pdf">The specification</a> puts data into different "Data Groups" - each with its own ID.</p>
<p>By running:</p>
<pre><code class="language-python">ep.keys()
</code></pre>
<p>You can see which Data Groups are available. In my case, <code>['60', '61', '75', '77']</code></p>
<ul>
<li><code>60</code> is the common area which contains some metadata. Nothing interesting there.</li>
<li><code>61</code> is DG1 - the full MRZ. This contains the holder's name, sex, nationality, etc.</li>
<li><code>77</code> is the Document Security Object - this was empty for me.</li>
<li><code>75</code> is DG2 to DG4 Biometric Templates - this contains the image and other metadata.</li>
</ul>
<p>Dumping the biometrics - <code>print( ep["75"] )</code> - gives these interesting pieces of metadata:</p>
<pre><code class="language-_">'83': '20190311201345',
'meta': { 'Expression': 'Unspecified',
'EyeColour' : 'Unspecified',
'FaceImageBlockLength': 19286,
'FaceImageType': 'Basic',
'FeatureMask': '000000',
'FeaturePoint': {0: {'FeaturePointCode': 'C1',
'FeatureType': '01',
'HorizontalPosition': 249,
'Reserved': '0000',
'VerticalPosition': 216},
1: {'FeaturePointCode': 'C2',
'FeatureType': '01',
'HorizontalPosition': 141,
'Reserved': '0000',
'VerticalPosition': 214}},
'Features': {},
'Gender': 'Unspecified',
'HairColour': 'Unspecified',
'ImageColourSpace': 'RGB24',
'ImageDataType': 'JPEG',
'ImageDeviceType': 0,
'ImageHeight': 481,
'ImageQuality': 'Unspecified',
'ImageSourceType': 'Static Scan',
'ImageWidth': 385,
'LengthOfRecord': 19300,
'NumberOfFacialImages': 1,
'NumberOfFeaturePoint': 2,
'PoseAngle': '0600B5',
'PoseAngleUncertainty': '000000',
'VersionNumber': b'010'
}
</code></pre>
<p>If I understand <a href="https://www.icao.int/security/mrtd/siteassets/pages/technical-reports/tr%20-%20rf%20and%20protocol%20testing%20part%204%20v2.10.pdf">the testing document</a> - the "Feature Points" are the middle of the eyes. Interesting to see that gender (not sex!) and hair colour are also able to be recorded. The "PoseAngle" represents the <a href="https://www.icao.int/Security/FAL/TRIP/Documents/TR%20-%20Portrait%20Quality%20v1.0.pdf">pitch, yaw, and roll</a> of the face.</p>
<h3 id="saving-the-image"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#saving-the-image" class="heading-link">Saving the image</a></h3>
<p>Passport images are saved either with JPEG or with <a href="https://www.icao.int/Security/FAL/TRIP/Documents/TR%20-%20Portrait%20Quality%20v1.0.pdf">JPEG2000 encoding</a>. Given the extremely limited memory available photos are small and highly compressed. Mine was a mere 19KB.</p>
<p>To save the image, grab the bytes and plonk them onto disk:</p>
<pre><code class="language-python">photo = ep["75"]["A1"]["5F2E"]
with open( "photo.jpg", "wb" ) as f:
f.write( photo )
</code></pre>
<p>As expected, the "FeaturePoints" co-ordinates corresponded roughly to the centre of my eyes. Nifty!</p>
<h2 id="what-didnt-work"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#what-didnt-work" class="heading-link">What didn't work</a></h2>
<p>I tried a few different tools. Listed here so you don't make the same mistakes as me!</p>
<h3 id="mrtdreader"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#mrtdreader" class="heading-link">mrtdreader</a></h3>
<p>The venerable <a href="https://github.com/rubund/mrtdreader">mrtdreader</a>. My NFC device beeped, then mrtdreader said "No NFC device found."</p>
<p>I think this is because <a href="https://github.com/nfc-tools/libnfc/issues/719">NFC Tools haven't been updated in ages</a>.</p>
<h3 id="jean-francois-houzards-and-olivier-rogers-pypassport"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#jean-francois-houzards-and-olivier-rogers-pypassport" class="heading-link">Jean-Francois Houzard's and Olivier Roger's pyPassport</a></h3>
<p>I looked at <a href="https://code.google.com/archive/p/pypassport/">pyPassport</a> but it is only available for Python 2.</p>
<h3 id="beaujeans-pypassport"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#beaujeans-pypassport" class="heading-link">beaujean's pyPassport</a></h3>
<p>This <a href="https://github.com/beaujeant/pypassport">pypassport</a> only checks if a passport is resistant to specific security vulnerabilities.</p>
<h3 id="d-logic"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#d-logic" class="heading-link">d-Logic</a></h3>
<p><a href="https://www.d-logic.com/nfc-rfid-reader-sdk/software/epassport-reading/">Digital Logic's ePassport software</a> only works with their hardware readers.</p>
<h3 id="android-reader"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#android-reader" class="heading-link">Android reader</a></h3>
<p><a href="https://github.com/tananaev/passport-reader">tananaev's passport-reader</a> - works perfectly on Android. So I knew my passport chip was readable - but the app won't run on Linux.</p>
<h2 id="is-it-worth-it"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#is-it-worth-it" class="heading-link">Is it worth it?</a></h2>
<p>Yeah, I reckon so! Realistically, you aren't going to be able to crack the MRZ to read someone's passport. But if you need to gather personal information<sup id="fnref:gdpr"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:gdpr" class="footnote-ref" title="Under the auspices of GDPR, of course!" role="doc-noteref">3</a></sup>, it's perfectly possible to do so quickly from a passport.</p>
<p>The MRZ is a <em>Machine Readable</em> Zone - so it is fairly simple to OCR the text and then pass that to your NFC reader.</p>
<p>And even if the MRZ is gone, you can reconstruct it from the data printed on the passport.</p>
<p>Of course, this won't be able to detect fraudulent passports. It doesn't check against a database to see if it has been revoked<sup id="fnref:interpol"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:interpol" class="footnote-ref" title="Nor does it check if the holder is on some Interpol list." role="doc-noteref">4</a></sup>. I don't think it will detect any cryptographic anomalies.</p>
<p>But if you just want to see what's on your travel documents, it works perfectly.</p>
<div class="footnotes" role="doc-endnotes">
<hr>
<ol start="0">
<li id="fn:long" role="doc-endnote">
<p>There are some <a href="https://www.shopnfc.com/en/nfc-readers-writers/300-nfc-xl-reader-long-range-hf-reader.html">commercially available long range readers</a> - up to 15cm! I've no doubt some clever engineer has made a some high-powered radio device which can read things from a mile away using a <a href="https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-make-a-wifi-antenna-out-of-a-pringles-can-nb/">Pringle's tube</a>. Of note, the <a href="https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/9303_p11_cons_en.pdf">ICAO guidance</a> says:</p>
<blockquote><p>the unencrypted communication between a contactless IC and a reader can be eavesdropped within a distance of several metres.</p></blockquote>
<p><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:long" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:old" role="doc-endnote">
<p>I'm not dumb enough to do this stuff on a <em>live</em> passport! <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:old" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:sex" role="doc-endnote">
<p>Sex is complicated<sup id="fnref:giggle"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:giggle" class="footnote-ref" title="Stop giggling at the back!" role="doc-noteref">5</a></sup>. But ICAO allow for "<a href="https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/9303_p4_cons_en.pdf">F for female, M for male, or X for unspecified</a>". <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:sex" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:gdpr" role="doc-endnote">
<p>Under the auspices of GDPR, of course! <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:gdpr" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:interpol" role="doc-endnote">
<p>Nor does it check if the holder is on some Interpol list. <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:interpol" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:giggle" role="doc-endnote">
<p>Stop giggling at the back! <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:giggle" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[An annoying SVG animation bug in Chrome]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61537</id>
<updated>2025-06-23T09:03:34Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-23T11:34:12Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="bug" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="chrome" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="chromium" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="svg" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Writing web standards is hard. You have to write a formal specification which is useful for machines, humans, and web developers. I recently stumbled across what I think is a little bug which might be caused by a misreading of the SVG Animation specification. Here you should see two overlapping circles gradually appear: If you're on Chrome, you…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>Writing web standards is hard<sup id="fnref:experience"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fn:experience" class="footnote-ref" title="I do have some experience in this matter." role="doc-noteref">0</a></sup>. You have to write a formal specification which is useful for machines, humans, and web developers<sup id="fnref:webdev"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fn:webdev" class="footnote-ref" title="Back in 2006, Catharine A. MacKinnon provokatively asked "Are Women Human?". Her argument (which I shall badly summarise) is that if women were human, then they'd be protected by universal human…" role="doc-noteref">1</a></sup>.</p>
<p>I recently stumbled across what I think is a little bug which <em>might</em> be caused by a misreading of <a href="https://svgwg.org/specs/animations/#KeyTimesAttribute">the SVG Animation specification</a>. Here you should see two overlapping circles gradually appear:</p>
<svg width="170" height="170" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg">
<path fill="#2c4169" d="M170 0H0v170h170z"></path>
<circle r="45" cx="50" cy="50" fill="#e4da2e" opacity="0">
<animate attributeName="opacity" begin="0s" dur="30s" values="0; 1;" keyTimes="0; 1" fill="freeze"></animate>
</circle>
<circle r="45" cx="80" cy="80" fill="red" opacity="0">
<animate attributeName="opacity" begin="0s" dur="30s" values="0; 1;" keyTimes="0; 1;" fill="freeze"></animate>
</circle>
</svg>
<p>If you're on Chrome, you might only see one circle animate. Why? Bloody semicolons! The bane of every programmer's existence<sup id="fnref:eng"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fn:eng" class="footnote-ref" title="I imagine English literature students also find them confusing; everyone does." role="doc-noteref">2</a></sup>.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://svgwg.org/specs/animations/#KeyTimesAttribute">specification for SVG Animation</a> has this text for human readers:</p>
<blockquote><p><strong>keyTimes</strong></p>
<p>A semicolon-separated list of time values used to control the pacing of the animation. Each time in the list corresponds to a value in the ‘values’ attribute list, and defines when the value is used in the animation function.</p>
<p>[…]</p>
<p>If the last semicolon separator is followed by either just white space or no more characters, ignore both the separator and the trailing white space.</p></blockquote>
<p>To me, that isn't ambiguous. The text <code>keyTimes="0; 1;"</code> has a final semicolon with nothing after it. Therefore it should be ignored. Instead, Chrome throws an hissyfit and says <code>Error: <animate> attribute keyTimes: Invalid value, "0; 1;".</code></p>
<p>But maybe the humans who wrote the description were sloppy. There's also a machine-readable formal specification. It defines the acceptable sequence as being:</p>
<p><code><number> [; <number>]* ;?</code></p>
<p>This isn't quite Backus–Naur form<sup id="fnref:bnf"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fn:bnf" class="footnote-ref" title="Also the bane of programmers everywhere!" role="doc-noteref">3</a></sup>, but rather <a href="https://www.w3.org/TR/css-values/#value-defs">CSS Values</a>.</p>
<ul>
<li>The <code><number></code> is a <a href="https://www.w3.org/TR/css-values/#component-types">component</a>.</li>
<li>The <code>[</code> and <code>]</code> are <a href="https://www.w3.org/TR/css-values/#component-combinators">grouping combinators</a>.</li>
<li>The <code>*</code> and <code>?</code> are <a href="https://www.w3.org/TR/css-values/#component-multipliers">component multipliers</a>
<ul>
<li><code>*</code> "indicates that the preceding type, word, or group occurs zero or more times."</li>
<li><code>?</code> "indicates that the preceding type, word, or group is optional (occurs zero or one times)."</li>
</ul></li>
<li>The <code>;</code> is just a semicolon<sup id="fnref:cig"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fn:cig" class="footnote-ref" title="Just like how sometimes a cigar is just a cigar." role="doc-noteref">4</a></sup>.</li>
</ul>
<p>Reading the definition tells us that a valid value will be a number, followed by zero-or-more groups of "semicolon and another number" with an optional final semicolon.</p>
<p>So, based on my reading, I think Chrome is wrong to throw an error here. Both Firefox and Safari work with a trailing semicolon.</p>
<p>Accordingly, I've <a href="https://issues.chromium.org/issues/427020732">raised a bug with the Chromium team</a>. If you think I have erred in this matter, please let me know.</p>
<div class="footnotes" role="doc-endnotes">
<hr>
<ol start="0">
<li id="fn:experience" role="doc-endnote">
<p>I do have <a href="https://www.w3.org/TR/2018/WD-html53-20180426/">some experience in this matter</a>. <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fnref:experience" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:webdev" role="doc-endnote">
<p>Back in 2006, Catharine A. MacKinnon provokatively asked "<a href="https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctvjnrvck">Are Women Human?</a>". Her argument (which I shall badly summarise) is that if women <em>were</em> human, then they'd be protected by universal human rights. Given the state of the world then (and now) it is hard to argue that women receive as great a level of attention as the <a href="https://www.the-tls.com/politics-society/rights-equality/default-male">default male</a>. I don't intend to trivialise MacKinnon's work - but I do find it interesting that developers are often treated separately from other humans. <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fnref:webdev" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:eng" role="doc-endnote">
<p>I imagine English literature students also find them confusing; everyone does. <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fnref:eng" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:bnf" role="doc-endnote">
<p>Also the bane of programmers everywhere! <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fnref:bnf" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
<li id="fn:cig" role="doc-endnote">
<p>Just like how <a href="https://quoteinvestigator.com/2011/08/12/just-a-cigar/">sometimes a cigar is just a cigar</a>. <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fnref:cig" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Theatre Review: Operation Mincemeat ★★★★☆]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/theatre-review-operation-mincemeat/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61507</id>
<updated>2025-06-22T09:14:43Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-22T11:34:01Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Theatre Review" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Everyone I know told me to go and see this show. I resisted as long as possible but managed to score cheap last-minute tickets via a friend. I wish I hadn't waited so long! If you're unaware of the book (or the film. Or the novelisation of the film. Or the Twitter thread. Or the inaccurate tumblr retelling.) the story involves a dastardly British plan to use a corpse to fool the Nazi menace…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/theatre-review-operation-mincemeat/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Operation_Mincemeat-1-400-400-100-nocrop.jpeg" alt="Logo for Operation Mincemeat - a black scribble on a yellow background." width="200" height="200" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61508"> Everyone I know told me to go and see this show. I resisted as long as possible but managed to score cheap last-minute tickets via a friend. I wish I hadn't waited so long!</p>
<p>If you're unaware of the book (or the film. Or the novelisation of the film. Or the Twitter thread. Or the inaccurate tumblr retelling.) the story involves a dastardly British plan to use a corpse to fool the Nazi menace into diverting their troops.</p>
<p>So, naturally, this is a glitzy West End Musical. And, as befitting a story with a hundred different characters, there are five cast members playing everyone. Obviously, it is <em>very</em> silly.</p>
<p>I can't lie - I found the start of the first act a bit underwhelming. It feels derivative of every other musical I've seen; like a British "Hamilton" without the budget. But as it wore on, something magical happened. The songs become interesting, the choreography leaps alive, and the cast started playing off the audience’s energy.</p>
<p>The second act has the strongest opening I've seen in a good long while. It builds to a terrific conclusion - with just the right amount of joy and melancholy.</p>
<p>Naturally, the cast are superb. It's exhausting watching them quick-change and shimmy across the stage. They are a beautifully formed ensemble. I usually don't like seeing shows multiple times, but given the frequent cast changes I find myself curious about how the various permutations work.</p>
<p>It is an excellent and kinetic work of theatre. It revels in its daftness and knows exactly when to tug your heartstrings.</p>
<h2 id="pre-show"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/theatre-review-operation-mincemeat/#pre-show" class="heading-link">Pre-Show</a></h2>
<p>Regular readers know how much I love discussing the pre-show elements. Mincemeat isn't as bad as most, but still treats the paying audience with the contempt London venues are known for.</p>
<p>The theatre is cramped, with a packed bar, and inadequate toilet facilities. The corridors are decorated with photos of current cast members, which is nice. There's also a pre-show trivia quiz which, while fun, is only half-a-dozen questions - essentially a thinly veiled attempt to get you onto a mailing list.</p>
<p>The cost of the programme is exorbitant - an advert filled brochure with the same information as can be found on the website.</p>
<p>On the plus side, the stall seats are spacious and there's a bar to one side (if you can afford it).</p>
<p>A single "cheap" ticket usually costs about 3-months of Netflix. Full price tickets are a monocle-popping 7-months of Netflix! At that price I'd expect a free souvenir programme and a complimentary ice-cream. And possibly a foot-massage.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://operationmincemeat.com/tickets/">ticket lottery</a> reduces prices to a shade under 2-months of Netflix.</p>
<p>There's nothing like seeing live theatre performed by a hyper-talented cast. Theatres need to understand that home entertainment is ubiquitous, cheap, <strong>and comfortable</strong>. If I can't pause your show to go for a wee, you'd better make sure you have enough loos for everyone at the interval.</p>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Book Review: Venomous Lumpsucker by Ned Beauman ★★★★★]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-venomous-lumpsucker-by-ned-beauman/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61183</id>
<updated>2025-06-13T09:16:16Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-21T11:34:56Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Book Review" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="satire" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Sci Fi" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[No book has the right to be this good. It's the sort of howling sci-fi satire that Ben Elton used to excel at - a novel set five minutes in the future with a eye firmly on today's problems. The plot is delightful - what if carbon credits extinction credits were the new capitalist plaything? What second, third, and forth order effects would that have on the world? The worldbuilding is sublime -…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-venomous-lumpsucker-by-ned-beauman/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/hbg-title-venomous-lumpsucker-4-1.webp" alt="Book cover with fish." width="200" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61184"> No book has the right to be this good. It's the sort of howling sci-fi satire that Ben Elton used to excel at - a novel set five minutes in the future with a eye firmly on today's problems.</p>
<p>The plot is delightful - what if <del>carbon credits</del> extinction credits were the new capitalist plaything? What second, third, and forth order effects would that have on the world? The worldbuilding is sublime - with an prescient look at the evolution of DRM, Smart Contracts, AI assistants, and targetted assassinations.</p>
<p>The characters are perfectly fleshed out and gradually reveal their motivations and insecurities:</p>
<blockquote><p>one big thing about the socially normal was that they loved their social norms. Whereas Resaint couldn’t stand the politics, the niceties, the meetings where she had to spangle her expression and tone of voice with false enthusiasm just so people didn’t think she was a bitch.</p></blockquote>
<p>There is a <em>slight</em> tendency towards Socratic dialogue as a means of exposition. The satire itself isn't exactly subtle - but when it has this many twists and turns I can forgive it for laying it on a bit thick.</p>
<p>The ending(s) genuinely shocked me.</p>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Convert Shotwell Photo Metadata to Digikam Metadata]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/convert-shotwell-photo-metadata-to-digikam-metadata/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61338</id>
<updated>2025-06-13T09:16:21Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-20T11:34:37Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="cli" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="HowTo" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="linux" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Mostly notes to myself. Shotwell stores most of its information in a database. Which I lost. Because I'm an idiot. But a bunch of metadata is also stored in the image's EXIF metadata! Most importantly is the "Original File Name" which should become the "Description" in DigiKam. Unfortunately, there's no way to copy those values automatically on import. So here's a one-liner which will read…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/convert-shotwell-photo-metadata-to-digikam-metadata/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>Mostly notes to myself.</p>
<p>Shotwell stores most of its information in a database. Which I lost. Because I'm an idiot.</p>
<p>But a bunch of metadata is <em>also</em> stored in the image's EXIF metadata!</p>
<p>Most importantly is the "Original File Name" which should become the "Description" in DigiKam. Unfortunately, there's no way to copy those values automatically on import.</p>
<p>So here's a one-liner which will read the "Original File Name" and store it in the "Title" EXIF - ready for DigiKam to parse!</p>
<pre><code class="language-bash">exiftool "-XMP-dc:Title<XMP-getty:OriginalFileName" whatever.jpg
</code></pre>
<p>If you want to make sure any existing Title isn't overwritten, use:</p>
<pre><code class="language-bash">exiftool "-XMP-dc:Title<${XMP-getty:OriginalFileName}" -if "not defined $XMP-dc:Title" whatever.jpg
</code></pre>
<p>Finally, to do it recursively, across all files:</p>
<pre><code class="language-bash">exiftool -r "-XMP-dc:Title<${XMP-getty:OriginalFileName}" -if "not defined $XMP-dc:Title" /path/to/images
</code></pre>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Book Review: If Only They Didn't Speak English - Notes From Trump's America by Jon Sopel ★★⯪☆☆]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-if-only-they-didnt-speak-english-notes-from-trumps-america-by-jon-sopel/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61202</id>
<updated>2025-06-19T13:22:45Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-19T11:34:55Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Book Review" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="politics" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[I expected so much more from this book. It starts with a central thesis - the UK over-indexes on America because we speak the same language, but there is an enormous gulf in attitudes between the two nations. We rarely hear on the news what's happening in France, Germany, or Ireland even though they're much closer geographically, politically, and culturally. That sounds like a pretty good book! …]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-if-only-they-didnt-speak-english-notes-from-trumps-america-by-jon-sopel/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/cover.jpg" alt="Book Cover." width="200" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61203"> I expected so much more from this book. It starts with a central thesis - the UK over-indexes on America because we speak the same language, but there is an enormous gulf in attitudes between the two nations. We rarely hear on the news what's happening in France, Germany, or Ireland even though they're much closer geographically, politically, and culturally.</p>
<p>That sounds like a pretty good book!</p>
<p>Instead, we get "what I learned on my holiday to the USA by Jon Sopel aged 57 and ¾".</p>
<p>We learn, for example, that America likes guns. There's a <em>bit</em> of an analysis of why and how lobbying shapes it, but it is fairly surface-level stuff. There's a little bit of a comparison with the UK's attitudes, but not much. Similarly, they're much more religious, racist, and have a convoluted relationship with the truth. Their constitution, elections, and media landscape are also different. It feels like pop-facts rather than anything deeper.</p>
<p>There are some brilliant insider anecdotes which, thankfully, don't stray into fawning name-dropping. For example, this little nugget about the Hillary Clinton victory rally that never was:</p>
<blockquote><p>Throughout the evening two men were posted to each corner of our broadcast ‘riser’ and they sat at machines with large conical funnels pointing upwards. These were the machines that would launch into the air millions of shards of shiny paper to recreate the effect of a glass ceiling shattering.</p></blockquote>
<p>He also makes some grimly accurate prophesies:</p>
<blockquote><p>And are you really going to start a trade war with China – and everyone else for that matter, with all the consequences that might bring for the global economy?</p></blockquote>
<p>Towards the end, when discussing how Trump came to dominate, he says:</p>
<blockquote><p>Books much weightier than this will be written about the abject failure of the conventional media to comprehend fully the parameters of this new world</p></blockquote>
<p>I think I was expecting this to be a bit weightier and to set out some way forward.</p>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Why do people have such dramatically different experiences using AI?]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/why-do-people-have-such-dramatically-different-experiences-using-ai/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61410</id>
<updated>2025-06-18T13:33:24Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-18T11:34:09Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="AI" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="LLM" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[For some people, it seems, AI is an amazing machine which - while fallible - represents an incredible leap forward in productivity. For other people, it seems, AI is wrong more often than right and - although occasionally useful - requires constant supervision. Who is right? I recently pointed out a few common problems with LLMs. I was discussing this with someone relatively senior who works…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/why-do-people-have-such-dramatically-different-experiences-using-ai/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>For some people, it seems, AI is an amazing machine which - while fallible - represents an incredible leap forward in productivity.</p>
<p>For other people, it seems, AI is wrong more often than right and - although occasionally useful - requires constant supervision.</p>
<p>Who is right?</p>
<p>I recently pointed out <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/large-language-models-and-pareidolia/">a few common problems with LLMs</a>. I was discussing this with someone relatively senior who works on Google's Gemini. I explained that <em>every</em> time I get a Google AI overview it is wrong. Sometimes obviously wrong, sometimes subtly wrong. I asked if that was really the experience of AI Google wanted to promote? My friend replied (lightly edited for clarity):</p>
<blockquote><p>I find AI Overview to be helpful for my searches and my work. I use it all the time to look up technical terms and hardware specs.</p></blockquote>
<p>I, somewhat impolitely, called bullshit and sent a couple of screenshots of recent cases where Google was just laughably wrong. He replied:</p>
<blockquote><p>Interesting. We are seeing the opposite.</p></blockquote>
<p>Why is that?</p>
<p>I'll happily concede that LLMs are reasonable at outputting stuff which <em>looks</em> plausible and - in many cases - that's all that's necessary. If I can't remember which command line switch to use, AI is easier than crappy documentation. Similarly, if I don't know how to program a specific function, most AIs are surprisingly decent at providing me with something which <em>mostly</em> works.</p>
<p>But the more I know about something, the less competent the AI seems to be.</p>
<p>Let me give you a good example.</p>
<p>At my friend's prompting, I asked Gemini to OCR an old newspaper clipping. It is a decent resolution scan of English text printed in columns. The sort of thing a million AI projects have been trained on. Here's a sample:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Children.webp" alt="Scan of some text." width="437" height="174" class="size-full wp-image-61413">
<p>So what did Gemini make of it when asked to extract the text from it?</p>
<blockquote>Children at Witham's Chip-<br>
ping Hill Infants School are en-<br>
gaged in trying out all sorts of<br>
imaginations ready for October<br>
31... "And god knows what<br>
strange spirits will be abroad."<br></blockquote>
<p>That reads pretty well. It is <em>utterly</em> wrong, but it is convincing. This isn't a one-off either. Later in the clipping was this:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Witch.webp" alt="Scan of some text." width="425" height="229" class="size-full wp-image-61412">
<p>I'm sure a child of 6 could read that aloud without making any mistakes. Is Gemini as smart as a 6-year-old?</p>
<blockquote>All the children say halloween<br>
is fun. So it is for 6-year-old<br>
Joanne Kirby admits she will be<br>
staying up to watch on October<br>
31, just in case. She has made a<br>
paper "witch," to "tell stories<br>
about witches," she said.<br></blockquote>
<p>Again, superficially right, but not accurate in the slightest.</p>
<p>There were half a dozen mistakes in a 300 word article. That, frankly, is shit. I could have copy-typed it and made fewer mistakes. I probably spent more time correcting the output than I saved by using AI.</p>
<p>Boring old Tesseract - a mainstay of OCR - did far better. Yes, it might occasionally mistake a speck of dust for a comma or confuse two similar characters - but it has never invented new sentences!</p>
<p>Like a fool, I asked Gemini what was going on:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/GeminiShit.webp" alt="Me: That's a really bad job. You've invented lots of words which aren't there. Try again. Gemini: I understand you weren't satisfied with the previous transcription. Unfortunately, I can't directly perform OCR on images. However, there are many apps available that can do this. You can search online for 'OCR apps' to find one that suits your needs." width="1024" height="375" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61411">
<p><a href="https://g.co/gemini/share/af5e6ed3d1ea">Here's a link to the conversation if you don't believe me</a>.</p>
<p>This isn't just a problem with Gemini - ChatGPT also invented brand-new sentences when scanning the text.</p>
<blockquote><p>All the children say Halloween is fun, rather than frightening. Six-year-old Joanne Kirby admits she will be “a scary little witch” on the night, but she does like ghost stories.</p></blockquote>
<p>So what's going on?</p>
<blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:a3m54c4suf2odoycgsx4fv6v/app.bsky.feed.post/3lrstc3b2l227" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreidpyzj4sdakngcubvh4hzusyw5ub54zqhr6wc3evio4eghvlnvw5q"><p lang="en">A question one has to ask of any source, including LLMs but also newspapers, influencers, podcasts, books, etc., is "how would I know if they were wrong?"This is not a prompt to doubt everything – down that path is denialism – but about reflecting on how much you rely on even "trusted" sources.</p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:a3m54c4suf2odoycgsx4fv6v?ref_src=embed">Adrian Hon (@adrianhon.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:a3m54c4suf2odoycgsx4fv6v/post/3lrstc3b2l227?ref_src=embed">2025-06-17T15:39:06.772Z</a></blockquote>
<script async="" src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<p>With OCR, it is simple. I can read the ground-truth and see how it compares to the generated output. I don't have to trust; I can verify.</p>
<p>I suppose I mostly use AI for things with which I have a passing familiarity. I can quickly see when it is wrong. I've never used it for, say, tax advice or instructions to dismantle a nuclear bomb. I'd have zero idea if the information it spat back was in any way accurate.</p>
<p>Is that the difference? If you don't understand what you're asking for then you can't judge whether you're being mugged off.</p>
<p>Or is there something more fundamentally different between users which results in this disparity of experience?</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/A-t-shirt-which-says-Dunning-and-Kruger-and-Gell-and-Mann.jpeg" alt="A t-shirt which says Dunning and Kruger and Gell and Mann." width="540" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-35422">
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Book Review: Beyond Measure - The Hidden History of Measurement by James Vincent ★★★★⯪]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-beyond-measure-the-hidden-history-of-measurement-by-james-vincent/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61180</id>
<updated>2025-06-06T10:13:46Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-17T11:34:39Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Book Review" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="history" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[This is a charming travelogue through the confusing and contradictory world of measurement. It has a similar thesis to Seeing Like A State by James C. Scott and is infinitely easier to read than Inventing Temperature by Hasok Chang Emanuele Lugli has noted, units of measurement are, for the powerful, ‘sly tools of subjugation’. Each time they’re deployed, they turn the world ‘into a place that …]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-beyond-measure-the-hidden-history-of-measurement-by-james-vincent/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Beyond-Measure-447x690-1.jpg" alt="Book cover." width="200" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61181"> This is a charming travelogue through the confusing and contradictory world of measurement. It has a similar thesis to <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2021/11/book-review-seeing-like-a-state-james-c-scott/">Seeing Like A State by James C. Scott</a> and is infinitely easier to read than <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2023/05/book-review-inventing-temperature-hasok-chang/">Inventing Temperature by Hasok Chang</a></p>
<blockquote><p>Emanuele Lugli has noted, units of measurement are, for the powerful, ‘sly tools of subjugation’. Each time they’re deployed, they turn the world ‘into a place that continues to make sense as long as the power that legitimises the measurements rests in place’.</p></blockquote>
<p>One thing that struck me was how often we squash measurements down into something human and usable.</p>
<blockquote><p>As Kula notes, many historical studies of medieval metrology refer to the ‘primitivism’ and ‘crudity’ of elastic units, but in reality they are well fitted to the needs of the people who used them, embodying the relationship of humans to the land and capturing the necessities of their work.</p></blockquote>
<p>Americans (wrongly) claim that Fahrenheit feels more natural. It doesn't; they're just used to it. But it does show that we have a bias for familiarity which stops the adoption of new forms and scales.</p>
<p>It dives into the human, social, and religious requirements for measurement. I particularly liked this little aside:</p>
<blockquote><p>It’s perhaps due to this symbolic potency that the Bible mentions measurement more often than it does charity.</p></blockquote>
<p>It is also a good compliment to <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-a-history-of-the-world-in-47-borders-the-stories-behind-the-lines-on-our-maps-by-jonn-elledge/">A History of the World in 47 Borders</a> - it shows how measurement lead to conquest, colonialism, and social upheaval.</p>
<p>Rather delightfully, the author goes a little gonzo and reports first-hand from various measurement sites. This isn't a dusty retelling of some encyclopædia article, it is a living exploration of the ritual around measurement. At times it appears that science and religion have an equal fervour for ceremony and obedience.</p>
<p>There is particular ire for the cultish weirdos of the Quantified Self movement, and it loops back to how measurement is a way for the uneasy to impose a sense of order on the world.</p>
<p>I found it a little too credulous about <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2020/02/weeknotes-reading-week/#the-age-of-surveillance-capitalism-shoshana-zuboff">Zuboff's work on surveillance</a>, but that's a minor criticism.</p>
<p>An excellent book for anyone interested in both the philosophy and practicality of measurement.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Your Password Algorithm Sucks]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61259</id>
<updated>2025-06-25T19:59:11Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-16T11:34:07Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="CyberSecurity" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="passwords" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="security" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[There are two sorts of people in the world; those who know they are stupid and those who think they are clever. Stupid people use a password manager. They know they can't remember a hundred different passwords and so outsource the thinking to something reasonably secure. I'm a stupid person and am very happy to have BitWarden generate and save fiendishly complex unique passwords which are then…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>There are two sorts of people in the world; those who know they are stupid and those who think they are clever.</p>
<p>Stupid people use a password manager. They know they can't remember a hundred different passwords and so outsource the thinking to something reasonably secure. I'm a stupid person and am very happy to have BitWarden generate and save fiendishly complex unique passwords which are then protected by the app's MFA. Lovely!</p>
<p>But people who think they are clever decide to bypass that and use their own super-secret algorithm.</p>
<p>Every clever person's algorithm boils down to the same thing:</p>
<ol>
<li>Have a single strong main password.</li>
<li>Add to it some information related to the service.</li>
</ol>
<p>For example <code>P@ssw0rd!_facebook</code> and <code>P@ssw0rd!_linkedin</code>. On the surface, that's quite an attractive proposition. You remember one thing and you don't need to trust a password manager.</p>
<p>People who are <em>extra</em> clever use the same algorithm but wrap it in a command-line function which XORs both pieces of data, creates a SHA-512 hash, takes every prime numbered bit, converts to ASCII, and uses <em>that</em> to generate a password. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ls5BFzuxGw4">Smart!</a></p>
<p>Either way, these algorithms <strong>suck!</strong> Let me explain why.</p>
<h2 id="password-leaking"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#password-leaking" class="heading-link">Password Leaking</a></h2>
<p>One day, LinkedIn decides to <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/blog/member/trust-and-safety/protecting-our-members">LeakedOut its users' passwords</a>. Anyone who can see <code>P@ssw0rd!_linkedin</code> can make a pretty good guess at your password for Facebook, banking, dating, and shopping etc. This means you now need to change <em>every</em> password that you have.</p>
<p>Even if you have used some amazing cryptographic powerhouse of an algorithm, there's still a chance you'll accidentally leak it or get so paranoid that you decide to invalidate it. Now you need to change your password on hundreds of sites.</p>
<h2 id="password-rotation"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#password-rotation" class="heading-link">Password Rotation</a></h2>
<p>We all know that it is <a href="https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/collection/passwords/updating-your-approach">a bad idea to ask your users to regularly change their passwords</a> - yet sites often persist in doing so.</p>
<p>How does your algorithm cope with this?</p>
<p>Do you have to remember that it is <code>P@ssw0rd!_facebook_1</code> and <code>P@ssw0rd!_linkedin_23</code>?</p>
<p>Perhaps you'll write down all the suffixes and find a way to store them securely - like, say, a password manager?</p>
<h2 id="password-requirements"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#password-requirements" class="heading-link">Password Requirements</a></h2>
<p>One site says "Your password <em>must</em> contain a special character and a number" another says "You can use any special character <em>except</em> % or ?" another refuses to let your password contain two consecutive identical characters, or it <em>must</em> start with a number, or it cannot be longer than 12 characters. Yes, I know password rules like this aren't sensible - but they <em>are</em> common.</p>
<p>How does your algorithm cope with that?</p>
<p>If you manually have to tweak a couple of dozen passwords generated by your algorithm, you are going to tie yourself in knots remembering the arcane requirements for each one.</p>
<h2 id="be-stupid-use-a-password-manager"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#be-stupid-use-a-password-manager" class="heading-link">Be Stupid - Use A Password Manager</a></h2>
<p>Humans are stupid<sup id="fnref:not"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#fn:not" class="footnote-ref" title="Not you, of course. You're mummy's extra-special boy who never makes mistakes." role="doc-noteref">0</a></sup>. Humans get tired, forgetful, or sick. Our delicious meaty brains are not optimised to remember long strings of complex information or hundreds of rarely used combinations. Knowing that you know not is a super-power. It allows you to offload things that you don't understand to something more competent.</p>
<p>Pick a password manager. Secure it with a reasonably strong password and multi-factor authentication. Let it do the hard work of remembering.</p>
<div class="footnotes" role="doc-endnotes">
<hr>
<ol start="0">
<li id="fn:not" role="doc-endnote">
<p>Not you, of course. You're mummy's extra-special boy who never makes mistakes. <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#fnref:not" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png" alt="↩" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" />︎</a></p>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
</body></html>]]></content>
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<thr:total>18</thr:total>
</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Book Review: What We Talk About When We Talk About Books - The History and Future of Reading by Leah Price ★★★★★]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-what-we-talk-about-when-we-talk-about-books-the-history-and-future-of-reading-by-leah-price/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61169</id>
<updated>2025-06-05T20:36:34Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-15T11:34:55Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Book Review" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Is reading a morally good pastime? Do eBooks rot the brain in the same way that pulp paperbacks do? Should people of feeble character be allowed unfettered access to books? Show me how you want to read, and I’ll show you who you want to be. Leah Price has produced a pithy and astonishing look at what books were and whether they will survive. It is, perhaps, a little overwrought and o…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-what-we-talk-about-when-we-talk-about-books-the-history-and-future-of-reading-by-leah-price/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/97804650426851.webp" alt="Book cover featuring twisted book pages." width="200" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61170"> Is reading a morally good pastime? Do eBooks rot the brain in the same way that pulp paperbacks do? Should people of feeble character be allowed unfettered access to books?</p>
<blockquote><p>Show me how you want to read, and I’ll show you who you want to be.</p></blockquote>
<p>Leah Price has produced a pithy and astonishing look at what books were and whether they will survive. It is, perhaps, a little overwrought and overwritten - but I revelled in the its joyous use of language.</p>
<blockquote><p>Perhaps print is to digital as Madonna is to whore: we worship one but use the other.</p></blockquote>
<p>It put forwards some provocative arguments and isn't afraid to show the counterpoint in its footnotes.</p>
<blockquote><p>Same text, different books: the very same sequence of words means something different—does something different—depending on whether it’s made for a desk or a pocket, a classroom or a church. Comparing these two editions of the same text makes visible how much of our reaction to a book is shaped by factors other than the words it contains. Its look and feel and smell instruct us wordlessly in how and why to read it—alone or in company, in search of learning or of salvation.</p></blockquote>
<p>How does DRM affect this, I wonder? If books are locked down then they cannot be analysed. Conversely, when every reader can choose their own font and hyphenation strategy, do we lose some collective experience?</p>
<p>Similarly, eReaders don't display their cover to fellow passengers on public transport. A boon for the privacy conscious, but means we lose the social signal that simply <em>everyone</em> is reading this new book.</p>
<p>Is reading for everyone?</p>
<blockquote><p>Once a sign of economic power, reading has become the province of those whose time lacks value.</p></blockquote>
<p>Harsh! The whole book is a powerful argument that books are a powerful argument. No matter what form the words are delivered in, some paranoid Moms will always want to see books from library shelves untimely ripp'd. There are, of course, an equal and opposite set of mothers who protest against cuts to literacy funding.</p>
<p>I sometimes wonder if any modern techbro CEOs have ever picked up a history book. Back in 1913, Thomas Edison was asked about the education powers of his new invention - the motion picture:</p>
<blockquote><p>“Books,” declared the inventor with decision, “will soon be obsolete in the public schools. Scholars will be instructed through the eye. It is possible to teach every branch of human knowledge with the motion picture. Our school system will be completely changed inside of ten years.</p></blockquote>
<p>Books outlasted his prediction. They outlasted him. They will morph, adapt, scatter, and devour until they outlast us all.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Meeting my Fedifriends AFK]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/meeting-my-fedifriends-afk/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61215</id>
<updated>2025-06-14T10:28:26Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-14T11:34:11Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="fediverse" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[There's a lovely moment in the documentary about The Pirate Bay where Peter Sunde is being interviewed in a District Court: Prosecutor 1: When was the first time you met IRL? brokep: We don't use the expression IRL. We say AFK. But that's another issue. Prosecutor 2: Got to know each other IRL? What is that? Prosecutor 1: In Real Life. brokep: We don't like that expression. We say AFK - Away …]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/meeting-my-fedifriends-afk/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>There's a lovely moment in <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2608732/">the documentary about The Pirate Bay</a> where Peter Sunde is being interviewed in a District Court:</p>
<blockquote><p>Prosecutor 1: When was the first time you met IRL?</p>
<p>brokep: We don't use the expression IRL. We say AFK. But that's another issue.</p>
<p>Prosecutor 2: Got to know each other IRL? What is that?</p>
<p>Prosecutor 1: In Real Life.</p>
<p>brokep: We don't like that expression. We say AFK - Away From Keyboard. <strong>We think that the Internet is for real.</strong></p></blockquote>
<p>Isn't that great? Why do some people insist that online relationships are somehow less real than physical relationships?</p>
<p>As part of our recent <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/5025-km-21-journeys-and-10-countries-in-30-days-an-interrailing-adventure/">grand Interrail journey</a>, I wanted to see how many people from social networks I could meet AFK. In the glory days of Twitter, I'm sure I'd've found a friend in every one-horse town. But the fractured nature of networking made it a bit of challenge.</p>
<p>Just before arriving in a new country, I sent out messages saying "Hey, I'm arriving in XYZ tomorrow. Anyone want to meet for a beer?" And, to my surprise and delight, many people did!</p>
<p>In half of the countries we went to, we met new friends. Sometimes for a quick drink, sometimes for dinner, and sometimes for a little exploring of a city. We even got invited to a local geek meet-up. It was <em>lovely</em>. We got tips on how to use the public transport system, which restaurants were tourist traps, and introduced to new beers.</p>
<p>It is nice to put faces to names. It's fun to meet a random friend and chat nonsense with them. And it is reassuring to know that there are people around the world who'll take a risk and meet a weary traveller.</p>
<p>Now, there are some obvious caveats to this story. We only met in well populated areas. I'm a tall bloke with a loud voice. Some light background stalking made sure the people we met weren't <em>too</em> crazy. We didn't get drunk. If you do this - I suggest taking all the normal precautions when meeting strangers. But, in the end, everything was fine.</p>
<p>Sometimes you want to go where at least one person knows your name.</p>
<p>Cheers!</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/crop.webp" alt="Me with a big mug of beer." width="1280" height="1280" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61222">
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Book Review: A History of the World in 47 Borders - The Stories Behind the Lines on Our Maps by Jonn Elledge ★★★★⯪]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-a-history-of-the-world-in-47-borders-the-stories-behind-the-lines-on-our-maps-by-jonn-elledge/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61161</id>
<updated>2025-06-13T08:08:36Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-13T11:34:02Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Book Review" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="history" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Jonn Elledge has a witty and friendly tone. It skirts just the right line between trivia nerd and your favourite history teacher. He cheerfully points out the absurdities in history and swiftly pivots into the injustices of "Cartographic Colonialism". There are delightfully diverting asides and then we're brought right back into the horrors of a straight line. The problem with history is that…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-a-history-of-the-world-in-47-borders-the-stories-behind-the-lines-on-our-maps-by-jonn-elledge/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/hbg-title-a-history-of-the-world-in-47-borders-.webp" alt="Book cover with a map on it." width="200" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61162"> Jonn Elledge has a witty and friendly tone. It skirts just the right line between trivia nerd and your favourite history teacher. He cheerfully points out the absurdities in history and swiftly pivots into the injustices of "Cartographic Colonialism". There are delightfully diverting asides and then we're brought right back into the horrors of a straight line.</p>
<p>The problem with history is that is is all a <em>bit</em> samey. Someone unities an country using violence and cunning thus setting up an empire that will last a thousand years - only for his heirs to immediately fall into civil war on his death. There's only so many times you can read about the bloody Habsburgs fucking over yet another country before it gets tiresome.</p>
<p>The borders of the world have little to do with geography and all to do with the mundanity of indifferent administrators carving up the world to fit into neat little boxes, regardless of the wishes of the boxes' inhabitants.</p>
<p>My only quibbles are that it could really do with a more illustrations. Sometimes only a picture of a map will do.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[The Mobile Phones of Doctor Who - Midnight]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/the-mobile-phones-of-doctor-who-midnight/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=60905</id>
<updated>2025-06-11T09:48:57Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-12T11:34:00Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Doctor Who Phones" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[A disturbing lack of phones in the latest series of Doctor Who - and no news yet on the next series. So let's revisit an older episode I'd previously overlooked. "Midnight" is a Series 4 episode which has a terrifying sequel in this year's "The Well". Donna briefly has a chat with The Doctor on what a appears to be a landline phone with the wire removed. Obviously that's not a mobile phone. …]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/the-mobile-phones-of-doctor-who-midnight/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>A disturbing lack of phones in <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/mobile-phones-of-doctor-who-season-15/">the latest series of Doctor Who</a> - and no news yet on the next series. So let's revisit an older episode I'd previously overlooked.</p>
<p>"Midnight" is a <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2018/09/the-mobile-phones-of-doctor-who-series-4/">Series 4</a> episode which has a terrifying sequel in this year's "The Well".</p>
<p>Donna briefly has a chat with The Doctor on what a appears to be a landline phone with the wire removed.</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Donna-phone.webp" alt="Donna chatting on a phone." width="960" height="540" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-60911">
<p>Obviously that's not a mobile phone.</p>
<p>But what's The Doctor speaking to her on?
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Doctor-Payphone.webp" alt="The Doctor talking on a payphone." width="960" height="540" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-60910"></p>
<p>A payphone? Look a little closer:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Doctor-Payphone-close-up.webp" alt="The Doctor talking on a payphone. Close up showing rotary dial." width="960" height="540" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-60909">
<p>A <em>rotary dial</em> payphone!</p>
<p>This is the the <a href="https://payphone.illtyd.co.uk/cointelephone725">Coin Telephone 725A</a>. Isn't it gorgeous?</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Yellow-payphone.webp" alt="A yellow payphone with rotary dial." width="512" height="544" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-60906">
<p>But is it a <em>mobile</em> phone? Yes. Yes it is. The <a href="http://www.samhallas.co.uk/repository/sales/dle_530.pdf">Post Office Telecommunications Bulletin DLE 530</a> describes this as "<em>portable</em> with plug and socket termination".</p>
<p>How portable? Easy to lug over a bar.</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/payphone-in-pub.webp" alt="A barman carrying a payphone over a bar." width="699" height="755" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-60908">
<p>And light enough for a dainty lady to carry.</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/portable-with-plug-and-socket-termination.webp" alt="A woman carrying a payphone." width="512" height="714" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-60907">
<p>So, there you go, a <em>sort of</em> mobile phone hidden away on the Planet Midnight!</p>
<p>You can <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/tag/doctor-who-phones/">read dozens of these very silly blog posts in the archives</a>.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Large Language Models and Pareidolia]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/large-language-models-and-pareidolia/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61327</id>
<updated>2025-06-11T12:02:29Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-11T11:34:29Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="AI" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="LLM" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Have you ever looked up at the sky and seen a face staring back at you from the clouds? Of course you have; you're human. Our delicious meaty brains are hardwired to recognise certain shapes - and faces are a useful shape to recognise. A few false positives are a worthwhile trade-off for such a powerful feature. Mistakenly seeing faces where there are none is a phenomenon called pareidolia. If…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/large-language-models-and-pareidolia/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>Have you ever looked up at the sky and seen a face staring back at you from the clouds? Of course you have; you're human. Our delicious meaty brains are hardwired to recognise certain shapes - and <a href="https://babyschool.yale.edu/does-my-baby-recognize-me/">faces are a useful shape to recognise</a>. A few false positives are a worthwhile trade-off for such a powerful feature.</p>
<p>Mistakenly seeing faces where there are none is a phenomenon called <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareidolia">pareidolia</a>. If you've ever used facial recognition on a computer, you'll know that <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2014/06/pareidolia-and-computer-vision/">machines also suffer from it</a>.</p>
<p>I was using an AI tool to scan all my photos. I wanted it to recognise all the human faces so that I could tag my photos with my friends' names. One of the photos it presented for tagging was this:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/lovelace-and-babbage.webp" alt="A photograph containing a painting of Ada Lovelace and a bust of Charles Babbage." width="512" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61329">
<p>Are those faces? Undoubtedly yes! Is this a mistake that a human would have made? Absolutely not!</p>
<p>But the above is a mistake generated by Machine Learning, not by Our-Lord-And-Saviour Large Language Models. Surely a language model doesn't suffer from this?</p>
<p>Because <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/01/google-has-no-faith-in-its-ability-to-launch-new-products/">Google has no faith in its ability to launch new products</a>, it has forcibly shoved AI into all of its services. There's no way to turn it off. You <em>will</em> use Gemini and you <em>will</em> like it.</p>
<p>At the time of writing, here's what happens if you ask Google "How many i's in teamwork?"</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/teamwork.webp" alt="Google replying "The word teamwork contains the letter i one time"." width="1008" height="737" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61330">
<p>It's easy to see how Google's LLM has gotten this so catastrophically wrong. There are dozens of articles where some business guru ineffectually tries to argue that <a href="https://www.cam.ac.uk/research/features/fact-there-is-an-i-in-team">there <em>is</em> an "I" in team actually</a>. So the statistical model inside the LLM gives weight to that.</p>
<p>Similarly, there are lots of silly articles proclaiming that <a href="https://careerpunk.com/team-player/">the I in team is in the A-hole</a>. But LLMs do not understand satire:</p>
<blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:k7xouwluizlonrdxeo5obppi/app.bsky.feed.post/3lr7odyhz7c2d" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreiaproxts5p2uzp4fhycdu3qcotcvqkz4l6ynbmlmt7ls4tbf47ap4"><p lang="en">Google and Meta search both report that Cape Breton Island has its own time zone 12 minutes ahead of mainland Nova Scotia time because they are both drawing that information from a Beaverton article I wrote in 2024</p>— <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:k7xouwluizlonrdxeo5obppi?ref_src=embed">Janel Comeau <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/1f341.png" alt="🍁" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" /> (@verybadllama.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:k7xouwluizlonrdxeo5obppi/post/3lr7odyhz7c2d?ref_src=embed">2025-06-10T00:50:07.217Z</a></blockquote>
<script async="" src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<p>LLMs are hardwired to regurgitate text which statistically matches what they've seen before. Their makers believe that a few false-positives are an acceptable error rate for such a useful feature. The LLM form of pareidolia is to recognise text as being syntactically and linguistically correct, even though the contents are rubbish. This is an inherent feature of LLMs. No amount of manually tweaking their parameters or prompts can fix this.</p>
<p>At the moment, Artificial Intelligence - whether Machine Learning or Large Language Models - only works well on a narrowly defined set of tasks and with humans checking the output.</p>
<p>Imagine you've just hired an intern. They've graduated top of their class from the best university and, apparently, excel at what they do. Because you're the boss and they're the intern, you ask them to make you a mug of tea. White, no sugar.</p>
<p>They return with the teabag still in the mug. OK, not everyone knows the intricacies of how to serve tea.</p>
<p>The tea tastes funny. You ask them if they sniffed the milk. "Milk? I used Tipp-Ex to make it white!"</p>
<p>At which point, after throwing up, you throw them out.</p>
<p>Most people encountering Gemini's repeated and unacceptable failures will decide, perhaps rightly, that AI isn't even close to good enough yet.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Book Review: The Secret World of Denisovans: The Epic Story of the Ancient Cousins to Sapiens and Neanderthals by Silvana Condemi ★★★☆☆]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-the-secret-world-of-denisovans-the-epic-story-of-the-ancient-cousins-to-sapiens-and-neanderthals-by-silvana-condemi/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61151</id>
<updated>2025-06-08T19:21:43Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-10T11:34:50Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Book Review" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="NetGalley" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[This is a decidedly odd book. Was there a "secret" hominid that the world overlooked? While the Neanderthals get all the limelight, perhaps there was another lost species of human lurking in the background. The science seems settled - yes there was - so this book tells us how scientists reached that conclusion. Except, it isn't really clear who this book is aimed at. Part of it is very casually…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-the-secret-world-of-denisovans-the-epic-story-of-the-ancient-cousins-to-sapiens-and-neanderthals-by-silvana-condemi/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/9798893030709.jpg" alt="Book cover with hominid skulls." width="267" height="400" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-61152">This is a decidedly odd book. Was there a "secret" hominid that the world overlooked? While the Neanderthals get all the limelight, perhaps there was another lost species of human lurking in the background. The science seems settled - yes there was - so this book tells us how scientists reached that conclusion.</p>
<p>Except, it isn't really clear who this book is aimed at. Part of it is very casually written - a hint of pop science and a healthy dollop of the personal lives of the scientists. The other part is a rather dense and unforgiving science book which is slightly beyond casual readers like me.</p>
<p>I was suddenly bombarded with sentences about the "tiny epiphysis (tip) of the distal phalanx" and how "the famous Denisova 3, was found in a stratigraphic position" and that "Exogenous DNA comes from the numerous necrophagous organisms that attack the remains after death."</p>
<p>There's very little ramp-up to the science and it suffers from the "<a href="https://xkcd.com/2501/">Average Familiarity Fallacy</a>" that non-experts have a working understand of the intricacies of a complex field.</p>
<p>It <em>is</em> interesting, and parts of it are downright fascinating:</p>
<blockquote><p>The team of researchers found that the site’s hunter-gatherers cooked giant carp of up to 6.5 feet (2 m) long, which they caught in a nearby lake. Several burnt flint microartifacts suggest they made fires. In the same layers as the burnt flints, the researchers collected around 40,000 pharyngeal teeth, carp teeth that are found at the bottom of their mouths. These teeth are all that remain of the carp, as heat softens the cartilaginous bones of fish and eradicates the possibility of their preservation. The discovery of these teeth suggests the fish were cooked at a controlled temperature rather than being grilled.</p>
<p>Even if we don’t know how the occupants of GBY made their fires, we do know that they stewed fish. Using X-ray diffraction, researchers established that the thermal expansion of the nanocrystals that make up the tooth enamel suggests their exposure to low to moderate heat: specifically, lower than 932°F (500°C), whereas a wood fire produces temperatures of between 1,472°F and 1,832°F (800°C and 1,000°C). It’s likely that prehistoric people cooked carp <i lang="fr">en papillote</i>, probably by burying them near their fires after wrapping them in giant water lily leaves collected from the nearby lake.</p></blockquote>
<p>I mean! Wow! That's some brilliant detective work.</p>
<p>Sadly, there is quite a lot of dusty old bones to wade through before you hit the good stuff. In the end, I found myself confused as to how different Neanderthals and Denisovans actually were.</p>
<p>The (pre-release) copy of the eBook commits the error of relegating all the images to the back. Several paragraphs are crying out for immediately viewable illustrations to help make sense of the text.</p>
<p>If you have a reasonable familiarity with palaeontology you'll probably enjoy this greatly - but it is a little too taxing for those of us with less evolved brains.</p>
<p>Many thanks to <a href="https://www.netgalley.com/">NetGalley</a> for the review copy.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Gadget Review: Treedix USB Cable Tester ★★★★☆]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61234</id>
<updated>2025-06-10T12:28:43Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-09T11:34:01Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="gadget" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="hardware" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="review" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="USB" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="usb-c" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Cables aren't just copper wire and plastic sheath any more. Modern USB-C cables contain little microchips called eMarkers which allow them to transfer data and power at terrifying speeds. But, sadly, there's no way you can look at a USB-C cable and see whether it supports the baffling array of features available. Enter the catchily-named Treedix TRX5-0816-AC. It will test just about any sort of …]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>Cables aren't just copper wire and plastic sheath any more. Modern USB-C cables contain <a href="https://hackaday.com/2023/01/04/all-about-usb-c-resistors-and-emarkers/">little microchips called eMarkers</a> which allow them to transfer data and power at terrifying speeds. But, sadly, there's no way you can look at a USB-C cable and see whether it supports the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB-C#Cable_types">baffling array of features</a> available.</p>
<p>Enter the catchily-named <a href="https://treedix.com/products/treedix-usb-cable-tester-usb-c-cable-tester-usb-tester-for-data-transmission-and-power-transmission-cable-testing-resistor-testing-type-c-emarker-for-usb-a-micro-b-micro-b-3-0-type-c-lighting-mini-b">Treedix TRX5-0816-AC</a>.</p>
<p>It will test just about <em>any</em> sort of USB cable and tell you what it does - and doesn't - support. It will also show you which pins are connected, how fast it can transmit data, and what the eMarker shows. Nice!</p>
<p>Let's put it through its paces.</p>
<h2 id="inputs-and-outputs"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#inputs-and-outputs" class="heading-link">Inputs and outputs</a></h2>
<p>On one side are your output ports - you have a choice of USB-C or USB-A 3.0.
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Input-ports.webp" alt="A USB-A and C port." width="1024" height="576" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61249"></p>
<p>At the bottom you have this range of ports to choose from:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/ports.webp" alt="Lightning, mini USB, USB-C, micro superspeed, mico ports." width="1024" height="301" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61250">
<p>So you can go A-C, C-micro, C-lightning etc.</p>
<p>Finally, on the other side you have a button, a switch, and input power:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Power-and-buttons.webp" alt="Power and buttons." width="1024" height="576" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61251">
<p>The power switch toggles between the internal AAA battery (included) and a 5V supply from a USB-C cable (not included). Pressing the white button moves between the different diagnostic screens.</p>
<h2 id="power-only"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#power-only" class="heading-link">Power Only</a></h2>
<p>I tried with a short USB-C power-only cable designed for charging low-power devices. I plugged in the USB-A end and the USB-C end.</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/A-to-C-power-only.webp" alt="A to C power only." width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61238">
<p>It correctly identified that it couldn't do data transmission.</p>
<p>With a power-only USB-C cable, it had much the same display. Pressing the button on the side of the Treedix told me what it knew about the eMarker.</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/No-emarker-chip-detected.webp" alt="No emarker chip detected." width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61239">
<p>Perfect!</p>
<h2 id="passive-usb-c"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#passive-usb-c" class="heading-link">Passive USB-C</a></h2>
<p>What about a data and power USB-C cable? This is the <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2023/08/chubbycable-usb-c-review/">ChubbyCable I reviewed a few years ago.</a></p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Passive-USB-C-cable.webp" alt="Passive USB-C cable." width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61240">
<p>USB 3.2 Gen2 and power of up to 100W. It has also correctly guessed the likely length of the cable by measuring the latency.</p>
<p>Interestingly, when looking at the basic functions, it says it can only do USB 2.0 speeds and correctly identifies that it doesn't do PowerDelivery 3.1 (which goes up to 240W).</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/USB-C-data-transmission.webp" alt="USB-C data transmission." width="2676" height="2007" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61241">
<p>Finally, which pins are connected?</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/USB-C-connected-pins.webp" alt="USB-C connected pins." width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61242">
<p>That looks about right!</p>
<h2 id="thunderbolt-4-or-3"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#thunderbolt-4-or-3" class="heading-link">ThunderBolt 4 or 3?</a></h2>
<p>Let's compare two high-performance cables. The one I usually have plugged into my <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2024/06/review-framework-16-laptop/">Framework Laptop</a> and <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2023/08/gadget-review-mokin-usb-c-docking-station-linux-information/">USB-C hub</a></p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/TBT4.webp" alt="ThunderBolt 4." width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61243">
<p>Thunderbolt 4 capable of 100W of Power and 40 Gbps of data. As expected, no PD3.1:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/No-PD-3.1.webp" alt="Screen showing results." width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61244">
<p>Let's test a different high-quality cable I bought recently. The labelling claims 20Gbps and 240W of power. We can see that it does have PD3.1:</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/PD3.1.webp" alt="PD3.1" width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61245">
<p>But! Looking at the eMarker, it reports that is only a ThunderBolt 3 device capable of 10Gbps!</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/10Gbps.webp" alt="10Gbps USB 3.2 Gen2." width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61247">
<p>I asked the cable manufacturer if that's a problem with the cable or the eMarker or the diagnostic machine. They said:</p>
<blockquote><p>eMarker tester can only show single channel transmission rate 10Gbps, devices supporting dual channel can show 20Gbps. our products have 18 months warranty, if there is any problem, please feel free to contact me, I will provide you with satisfactory after-sales service.</p></blockquote>
<p>I contacted Treedix to see if they could shed light on this. They replied quickly:</p>
<blockquote><p>Yes, we sincerely apologize - this tester currently does not support dual-channel detection at this time.</p></blockquote>
<p>Which is a bit annoying.</p>
<p>Of course, my laptop only supports 10Gbps, so it is a bit moot!</p>
<h2 id="firmware"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#firmware" class="heading-link">Firmware</a></h2>
<p><ins datetime="2025-06-10T12:25:20+00:00">Update!</ins></p>
<p>I emailed Treedix about possible firmware updates - they said:</p>
<blockquote><p>Our devices with firmware version V2.3 and above can be updated. Currently the latest version is V2.3. you can see your version number. The way to view it is the boot page will show the version number. In addition, our test boards cannot be updated to test dual channels at this time. Because this is the information written inside the EMARKER, we can only read the information inside. We are currently working on the data inside the information we read to see if we can read the number of channels.</p></blockquote>
<p>Mine shows a firmware of 2.3.04 - which does appear to be the latest. If a new firmware appears, I'll update this post again.</p>
<h2 id="weird-cables"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#weird-cables" class="heading-link">Weird Cables</a></h2>
<p>As well as your standard USB-C, it will also do the <em>ugliest</em> plug known the mankind - the USB Micro-B SuperSpeed.</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Micro-B-SS-pins.webp" alt="Micro B pins connected." width="1024" height="768" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-61248">
<p>It'll also do Lightning cables - as long as they also have a USB-A or C end.</p>
<h2 id="downsides"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#downsides" class="heading-link">Downsides</a></h2>
<p>Other than having to replace all your duff cables, there are a few annoying little niggles.</p>
<ul>
<li>The battery compartment is <em>really</em> stiff. I had to unscrew the back of the device to get it open.</li>
<li>The power switch feels a little flimsy.</li>
<li>The function button is a little small and fiddly.</li>
<li>Screen brightness can't be changed (but it is pretty bright).</li>
<li>No USB-B (the chunky one often used for printers).</li>
<li>Lack of dual-channel detection.</li>
<li><del datetime="2025-06-10T12:25:20+00:00">No firmware updates.</del></li>
</ul>
<p>Those are all minor complaints.</p>
<p>The biggest complaint is that USB-C terminology is <em>hard</em>. Which is better, 40Gbps but only 100W or 10Gbps but 240W? How does ThunderBolt relate to USB? What is EPR and why does it matter? Where does DP Alt Mode fit in?!</p>
<h2 id="verdict"><a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#verdict" class="heading-link">Verdict</a></h2>
<p>It powers up and detects all features instantly. It goes to sleep after a few minutes of not being used. It will even show you the electrical resistance of the cable if you think that's useful.</p>
<p>Total cost? <a href="https://amzn.to/44eJ7YL">£40 at the moment from Amazon</a>. I reckon that's a bargain. It is an indispensable piece of kit - especially if you have a big box of ancient USB cables. This will allow you to quickly and easily see which ones are broken, which are mislabelled, and which deserve pride of place in your collection.</p>
<p>If you're running a hackspace, this is a no-brainer. If you've ever wasted time trying to diagnose a USB problem, this should be your first port of call.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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</entry>
<entry>
<author>
<name>@edent</name>
</author>
<title type="html"><![CDATA[Open Data Man - how open is too open?]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/open-data-man-how-open-is-too-open/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=55363</id>
<updated>2025-05-31T20:46:08Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-08T11:34:41Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="ODcamp" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Open Data" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[Open Data is dear to my heart. It is the idea that raw data should be public published, free of restrictions, and in a form that is most usable for others. When people talk about Open Data, they usually mean "Data that has been paid for by tax-payers" - often data created or collected by Government agencies. But it also extends to the data used by researchers, scientists, economists and any…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/open-data-man-how-open-is-too-open/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p>Open Data is dear to my heart. It is the idea that raw data should be public published, free of restrictions, and in a form that is most usable for others.</p>
<p>When people talk about Open Data, they usually mean "Data that has been paid for by tax-payers" - often data created or collected by Government agencies. But it also extends to the data used by researchers, scientists, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2013/04/16/is-the-best-evidence-for-austerity-based-on-an-excel-spreadsheet-error/">economists</a> and any other organisation which wants us to take them seriously. Some private companies also release Open Data - knowing that a level playing-field is good for ecosystem health.</p>
<p>What about individuals? Is it sensible, desirable, or useful for us to release our <em>personal</em> data as Open Data?</p>
<p>Last year, at <a href="https://www.odcamp.uk/">Open Data Camp</a> I ran a session about what data I release and what the implications are for my personal safety, security, and mental well-being.</p>
<p>First, for the hard-of-thinking, I am not suggesting you do anything you don't want. I'm also in no position to compel you to do anything. If you don't like my ideas, close the tab and write something better.</p>
<p>Right, still here? OK.</p>
<p>We all leave little trails of data with every online interaction. Yes, I know you use a VPN, and TOR, and Incognito mode - but those are all still part of a digital footprint. Here I'm mostly concerned with the <em>intentional</em> release of data.</p>
<p>Most of the data we intentionally release is highly curated. You post about your new job on LinkedIn - but you don't mention the 50 rejections leading up to it. Your online restaurant reviews make it sound like you only go to fancy joints with cool lighting and ethical menus - you don't post about the shameful 3am kebab from that dodgy van.</p>
<p>If you're using FourSquare or similar services, you're deliberately releasing a log of where you've been and at what time you were there. Even if you post a photo of a gig the day after it happened, it's trivial to locate you at that moment.</p>
<p>Some people are very open with their intimate medical data. I'm not. I haven't released a <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2024/06/3d-printing-my-teeth/">3D model of my teeth</a> - perhaps out of fear someone will use it to bite other people. Similarly, I haven't released my MRI scans just in case someone clones my brain.</p>
<p>So what about raw data?</p>
<p>I release <a href="https://gitlab.com/edent/solar-data/-/blob/main/README.md">my home's Solar Generation Statistics</a> as raw & open data. They're useful enough to be <a href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/citations/#a-year-of-solar-panels-open-data-2014">cited in several academic papers</a>.</p>
<p>I release my energy consumption (at 30 minute granularity) to <a href="https://www.livinglab.energy/home">The Living Lab</a> so they can build up a model of how normal people use electricity and gas. I trust them not to abuse it, but I'm cognisant they can see when I'm away or when I'm cooking. Do I want <em>you</em> to know that as well?</p>
<p>The discussion we held was wide ranging. Some people want the world to know about them and their problems, others value their privacy. It's an individual choice. It is a discussion you should have with those around you - especially if they're leaking your data.</p>
<p>I am indebted to the wonderful <a href="https://drawnalism.com/">Drawnalism</a> rendering me in the style of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitruvian_Man">da Vinci's Vitruvian Man</a>.</p>
<img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Open-Data-Man.webp" alt="Caricature of Terence as the Vitruvian Man spewing open data." width="3840" height="2160" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-55364">
<p>You can <a href="https://www.odcamp.uk/open-data-man/">read the full write-up of the session</a> on the Open Data Camp blog.</p>
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<title type="html"><![CDATA[Book Review: Intimacy by Ita O'Brien ★★★☆☆]]></title>
<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-intimacy-by-ita-obrien/" />
<id>https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=59389</id>
<updated>2025-05-03T16:03:59Z</updated>
<published>2025-06-07T11:34:52Z</published>
<category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="/etc/" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="Book Review" /><category scheme="https://shkspr.mobi/blog" term="sex" />
<summary type="html"><![CDATA[This is a complicated book to review. There are several distinct strands to it, although they intermingle freely creating a confusing and disjointed thesis. Ita O'Brien, it is fair to say, invented the role of "Intimacy Co-ordinator" on film and TV sets. You wouldn't expect an director to just shout "fight" at a pair of actors and expect them to know how to safely perform a complex action…]]></summary>
<content type="html" xml:base="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-intimacy-by-ita-obrien/"><![CDATA[
<html><head></head><body><p><img src="https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/9781529954036.jpg" alt="Book cover." width="200" height="320" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-59391">This is a complicated book to review. There are several distinct strands to it, although they intermingle freely creating a confusing and disjointed thesis.</p>
<p>Ita O'Brien, it is fair to say, invented the role of "Intimacy Co-ordinator" on film and TV sets. You wouldn't expect an director to just shout "fight" at a pair of actors and expect them to know how to <em>safely</em> perform a complex action scene, would you? Fights need to be choreographed, the crew need to behave in a way that minimises the risk of harm to others, actors have to feel safe. Why should sex scenes be any different?</p>
<p>This is the strongest part of the book. It explains <em>why</em> Intimacy Co-ordination is necessary and how it is used to improve a show. At times it veers a <em>little</em> into a sale-pitch for her work, but it is balanced with just the right amount of celebrity name-dropping and impassioned reasoning to keep it interesting.</p>
<p>There are some brilliantly crafted exercises which are used to help actors feel comfortable working with each other. Working professionals need to be able to express clear boundaries to each other. Communication is key, but it relies on being able to be honest with each other. As O'Brien puts it:</p>
<blockquote><p>being able to state your ‘no’, means that your ‘yes’ can be trusted.</p></blockquote>
<p>The author takes great pains to tell us that she's <em>not</em> a sex therapist, yet a large part of the book is taken up with how non-actors can improve their intimacy with their lovers. Some of our modern hang-ups, she asserts, are directly a result of unrealistic expectations hammered home by the entertainment industry:</p>
<blockquote><p>A couple meet and then it cuts to a sex scene, as if their physical relationship is separate from every other aspect of their lives. We’ve become accustomed to seeing portrayals of sex that are robotic, athletic, gratuitous. It’s rare to see the kind of relationships we’ve all experienced in real life: an expression of connection that is clumsy, awkward, funny and – hopefully – ultimately satisfying.</p></blockquote>
<p>Again, this is all important and interesting stuff. But then things go a bit off the rails.</p>
<p>Lots of the exercises she presents for non-actors are simply about stretching and general body-work. Her background in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/19443927.2011.651536">Movement Studies</a> dominates the page. I understand that being in touch with your physicality is a necessary part of exploring your sexual boundaries, but it feels like it overly focuses on one aspect of self-comfort.</p>
<p>Anyone who has worked with actors know that they're a weird and superstitious bunch. Visualisation techniques often ask you to imagine you're a tree, or that a bright light is shining out of you, or that you have extra-sensory perception. If you're not an actor, being thrown in to some of these routines can feel alienating and jarring. You thought you were here to get intimate? No! Pretend you have energy lines flowing through you!</p>
<p>Sadly, it all goes a bit "woo". There's nonsense about chakras, homeopathy, "how overtones have the power to affect consciousness and the cellular level", and pseudoscientific claptrap about walking barefoot so the "electrons transfer to your body, neutralising the positively charged free radicals".</p>
<p>I felt that it undermined the seriousness of her work. And it <em>is</em> serious. People working in the entertainment industry need to be protected from harm. People in relationships need to find ways to be free and intimate with each other.</p>
<p>There's a lot of great stuff in here, but you'll need to assert your boundaries and skip past the bits which aren't appropriate for you.</p>
</body></html>]]></content>
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"title": "Book Review: The Martian Contingency by Mary Robinette Kowal ★★★★☆",
"description": "The Lady Astronaut books are an absolute triumph - it's just a shame that they've been somewhat overshadowed by the TV series \"For All Mankind\". They both follow a similar trajectory - what if women were an integral part of the early space race and helped us to colonise off-world? The books, thankfully, don't pad out as much as the rival show - this latest novel is tightly focussed and takes us …",
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"content": "<html><head></head><body><p><img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/jpg_rgb_0650h-5-416x636-1.jpg\" alt=\"Book cover featuring Astronauts on Mars.\" width=\"200\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-61167\"> The Lady Astronaut books are an absolute triumph - it's just a shame that they've been somewhat overshadowed by the TV series \"For All Mankind\". They both follow a similar trajectory - what if women were an integral part of the early space race and helped us to colonise off-world? The books, thankfully, don't pad out as much as the rival show - this latest novel is tightly focussed and takes us to the Mars base where <em>shenanigans</em> are afoot.</p>\n\n<p>For a sci-fi nerd like me, it is total catnip. A heady mix of brain-tangling \"what ifs\" and the geeky joy of \"<a href=\"https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CompetencePorn\">competency porn</a>\". The language is gorgeous with some beautiful turns of phrase, and the pacing does an excellent job of ratcheting up the tension.</p>\n\n<p>My only criticism is that Elma is <em>such</em> an ineffective character. She seems to forget that she's one of the most senior people on the mission and has the right - nay! the duty! - to get answers. Her lack of confidence isn't a quirky character flaw; it is a profoundly irritating co-star.</p>\n\n<p>I love the world building, the jokey asides, and the sense of purpose all the characters have. The moral dilemmas and Politics are well articulated and don't feel tacked on. It's worth picking up the whole series.</p>\n</body></html>",
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"title": "Theatre Review: Just For One Day ★★★★⯪",
"description": "Leave your cynicism at the door. Jukebox musicals usually stick to a single-artist (Mamma Mia, & Juliet, Tommy). As a result, they all start to sound a bit samey after a few numbers. Shows like Return To The Forbidden planet shoe-horn in songs from a dozen artists without much regard to plot, tone, or pacing. Just For One Day goes down a different route. Rather than just recreate the famous…",
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"published": "2025-06-25T11:34:07.000Z",
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"content": "<html><head></head><body><p><img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/JFOD.webp\" alt=\"A crowd of singers.\" width=\"400\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-61593\"> Leave your cynicism at the door.</p>\n\n<p>Jukebox musicals usually stick to a single-artist (Mamma Mia, & Juliet, Tommy). As a result, they all start to sound a bit samey after a few numbers. Shows like Return To The Forbidden planet shoe-horn in songs from a dozen artists without much regard to plot, tone, or pacing.</p>\n\n<p>Just For One Day goes down a different route. Rather than just recreate the famous Live Aid concert with a procession of soundalikes, it attempts to tell the story <em>behind</em> the concert. In doing so, it chops dozens of songs into thousands of pieces and lets the snippets segue seamlessly into the prose. It entwines the songs into each other beautifully. A supremely talented cast backed with a superb live band - it is guaranteed to have you screaming and cheering.</p>\n\n<p>The central plot device is a <em>little</em> silly - a mother who went to the concert is chiding her teenage daughter about political activism. It is a bit mawkish and gets the show off to a stage-schooly start. Similarly, the daughter's righteous indignation fuels her interrogation of Saint Geldof which, again, becomes a bit preachy.</p>\n\n<p>But that's the nature of Live Aid. It <em>is</em> preachy. And for all the arguments about whether it was the <strong>right</strong> thing to do - at least it did <strong>something</strong>. The show doesn't gloss over some the problems - and problem personalities - behind the production. Nor does it shy away from the reality of the limits of the help provided. Albeit backed by joyous music.</p>\n\n<p>I felt that it pulls its punches a little bit. Rather than showing any footage from the Ethiopian famine, it <a href=\"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/bob-geldof-belfast-icc-ethiopia-barack-obama-b2423253.html\">recycles a speech Geldof gave a few years ago</a>.</p>\n\n<p>Nevertheless, it is a powerful and moving spectacle.</p>\n\n<p>Oh, and there's a rap battle between Bob Geldof and Mrs Thatcher.</p>\n\n<p>Tickets start at £20. The music is so loud, and the staging so expressive, that you'll get a decent view from the cheap seats.</p>\n\n<p>Far better than the average jukebox musical.</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"pre-show-and-post-show\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/theatre-review-just-for-one-day/#pre-show-and-post-show\" class=\"heading-link\">Pre-show and Post-show</a></h2>\n\n<p>As regular readers of <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/tag/theatre-review/\">my theatre reviews</a> know, I'm obsessed with how theatres treat their patrons.</p>\n\n<p>Bag searches were conducted quickly, and they were happy to let me bring in a small plastic bottle of water. The Shaftesbury has spacious corridors and bars. There are plenty of toilets which - in a shocking departure from West End tradition - are well maintained.</p>\n\n<p>There's a little bit of set dressing inside the theatre to allow the audience to take selfies with famous backdrops. That's cute - but it might have been nice if they'd added a few more, or even put up original posters, press clippings, etc.</p>\n\n<p>As we exited the theatre we were handed a commemorative ticket! What a swell idea! I thought it contained a QR code to donate to <a href=\"https://www.bandaidtrust.co.uk/\">the Band Aid Charitable Trust</a> or find out more about their projects. Instead it's a coupon for £20 off your next visit. That feels like a bit of a missed opportunity.</p>\n</body></html>",
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"title": "Reading NFC Passport Chips in Linux",
"description": "For boring and totally not nefarious reasons, I want to read all the data contained in my passport's NFC chip using Linux. After a long and annoying search, I settled on roeften's pypassport. I can now read all the passport information, including biometrics. Table of ContentsBackgroundRecreating the MRZPython code to generate an MRZCan you read a cancelled passport?Cryptography and other…",
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"content": "<html><head></head><body><p>For boring and totally not nefarious reasons, I want to read all the data contained in my passport's NFC chip using Linux. After a long and annoying search, I settled on <a href=\"https://github.com/roeften/pypassport\">roeften's pypassport</a>.</p>\n\n<p>I can now read all the passport information, including biometrics.</p>\n\n<p></p><nav id=\"toc\"><menu id=\"toc-start\"><li id=\"toc-title\"><h2 id=\"table-of-contents\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#table-of-contents\" class=\"heading-link\">Table of Contents</a></h2><menu><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#background\">Background</a><menu><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#recreating-the-mrz\">Recreating the MRZ</a><menu><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#python-code-to-generate-an-mrz\">Python code to generate an MRZ</a></li></menu></li></menu></li><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#can-you-read-a-cancelled-passport\">Can you read a cancelled passport?</a></li><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#cryptography-and-other-security\">Cryptography and other security</a></li><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#can-you-brute-force-a-passport\">Can you brute-force a passport?</a><menu><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#is-it-worth-brute-forcing-a-password\">Is it worth brute-forcing a password?</a></li></menu></li><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#installing\">Installing</a></li><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#getting-structured-data\">Getting structured data</a><menu><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#saving-the-image\">Saving the image</a></li></menu></li><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#what-didnt-work\">What didn't work</a><menu><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#mrtdreader\">mrtdreader</a></li><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#jean-francois-houzards-and-olivier-rogers-pypassport\">Jean-Francois Houzard's and Olivier Roger's pyPassport</a></li><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#beaujeans-pypassport\">beaujean's pyPassport</a></li><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#d-logic\">d-Logic</a></li><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#android-reader\">Android reader</a></li></menu></li><li><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#is-it-worth-it\">Is it worth it?</a></li></menu></li></menu></nav><p></p>\n\n<h2 id=\"background\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#background\" class=\"heading-link\">Background</a></h2>\n\n<p>The NFC chip in a passport is protected by a password. The password is printed on the inside of the physical passport. As well as needing to be physically close to the passport for NFC to work<sup id=\"fnref:long\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:long\" class=\"footnote-ref\" title=\"There are some commercially available long range readers - up to 15cm! I've no doubt some clever engineer has made a some high-powered radio device which can read things from a mile away using a…\" role=\"doc-noteref\">0</a></sup>, you also need to be able to see the password. The password is printed in the \"Machine Readable Zone\" (MRZ) - which is why some border guards will swipe your passport through a reader before scanning the chip; they need the password and don't want to type it in.</p>\n\n<p>I had a small problem though. I'm using my old passport<sup id=\"fnref:old\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:old\" class=\"footnote-ref\" title=\"I'm not dumb enough to do this stuff on a live passport!\" role=\"doc-noteref\">1</a></sup> which <a href=\"https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cancellation-of-passports/cancelling-british-passports-accessible#cancelling-epassport-version-2\">has been cancelled</a>. Cancelling isn't just about revoking the document. It is also physically altered:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>Cut off the bottom left hand corner of the personal details page, making sure you cut the MRZ on the corner opposite the photo.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>So a chunk of the MRZ is missing! Oh no! Whatever can we do!?</p>\n\n<h3 id=\"recreating-the-mrz\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#recreating-the-mrz\" class=\"heading-link\">Recreating the MRZ</a></h3>\n\n<p>The password is made up of three pieces of data:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Passport Number (Letters and Numbers)</li>\n<li>Date of Birth (YYMMDD)</li>\n<li>Expiry Date (YYMMDD)</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>Each piece <em>also</em> has a checksum. This calculation is defined in Appendix A to <a href=\"https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/9303_p3_cons_en.pdf\">Part 3 of Document 9303</a>.</p>\n\n<p>Oh, and there's a checksum for the entire string. It's this final checksum which is cut off when the passport cover is snipped.</p>\n\n<p>The final password is: <code>Number Number-checksum DOB DOB-checksum Expiry Expiry-checkum checksum-of-previous-digits</code></p>\n\n<h4 id=\"python-code-to-generate-an-mrz\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#python-code-to-generate-an-mrz\" class=\"heading-link\">Python code to generate an MRZ</a></h4>\n\n<p>If you know the passport number, date of birth, and expiry date, you can generate your own Machine Readable Zone - this acts as the password for the NFC chip.</p>\n\n<pre><code class=\"language-python\">def calculateChecksum( value ):\n weighting = [7,3,1]\n characterWeight = {\n '0': 0, '1': 1, '2': 2, '3': 3, '4': 4, '5': 5, '6': 6, '7': 7, \n '8': 8, '9': 9, '<': 0, 'A':10, 'B':11, 'C':12, 'D':13, 'E':14, \n 'F':15, 'G':16, 'H':17, 'I':18, 'J':19, 'K':20, 'L':21, 'M':22, \n 'N':23, 'O':24, 'P':25, 'Q':26, 'R':27, 'S':28, 'T':29, 'U':30, \n 'V':31, 'W':32, 'X':33, 'Y':34, 'Z':35\n }\n counter = 0\n result = 0\n for x in value:\n result += characterWeight[str(x)] * weighting[counter%3]\n counter += 1\n return str(result%10)\n\ndef calculateMRZ( passportNumber, DOB, expiry ):\n \"\"\"\n DOB and expiry are formatted as YYMMDD\n \"\"\"\n passportCheck = calculateChecksum( passportNumber )\n DOBCheck = calculateChecksum( DOB )\n expiryCheck = calculateChecksum( expiry )\n mrzNumber = passportNumber + passportCheck + DOB + DOBCheck + expiry + expiryCheck\n mrzCheck = calculateChecksum( mrzNumber ).zfill(2)\n mrz = passportNumber + passportCheck + \"XXX\" + DOB + DOBCheck + \"X\" + expiry + expiryCheck + \"<<<<<<<<<<<<<<\" + mrzCheck\n return mrz\n\nprint( calculateMRZ(\"123456789\", \"841213\", \"220229\") )\n</code></pre>\n\n<h2 id=\"can-you-read-a-cancelled-passport\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#can-you-read-a-cancelled-passport\" class=\"heading-link\">Can you read a cancelled passport?</a></h2>\n\n<p>I would have thought that cutting the cover of the passport would destroy the antenna inside it. But, going back to <a href=\"https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cancellation-of-passports/cancelling-british-passports-accessible#cancelling-epassport-version-2\">the UK guidance</a>:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>You must not cut the back cover on the ePassport</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>Ah! That's where the NFC chip is. I presume this is so that cancelled passports can still be verified for authenticity.</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"cryptography-and-other-security\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#cryptography-and-other-security\" class=\"heading-link\">Cryptography and other security</a></h2>\n\n<p>The security is, thankfully, all fairly standard Public Key Cryptography - <a href=\"https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/9303_p11_cons_en.pdf\">9303 part 11</a> explains it in <em>excruciating</em> levels of detail.</p>\n\n<p>One thing I found curious - because the chip has no timer, it cannot know how often it is being read. You could bombard it with thousands of password attempts and not get locked out. Indeed, the specification says:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>the success probability of the attacker is given by the time the attacker has access to the IC, the duration of a single attempt to guess the password, and the entropy of the passport.</p></blockquote>\n\n<h2 id=\"can-you-brute-force-a-passport\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#can-you-brute-force-a-passport\" class=\"heading-link\">Can you brute-force a passport?</a></h2>\n\n<p>Wellllll… maybeeeee…?</p>\n\n<p>Passports are generally valid for only 10 years. So that's 36,525 possible expiry dates.</p>\n\n<p>Passport holders are generally under 100 years old. So that's 3,652,500 possible dates of birth.</p>\n\n<p>That's already 133,407,562,500 attempts - and we haven't even got on to the 1E24 possible passport numbers!</p>\n\n<p>In my experiments, sending an incorrect but valid MRZ results in the chip returning \"Security status not satisfied (0x6982)\" in a very short space of time. Usually less than a second.</p>\n\n<p>But sending that incorrect attempt seemed to introduce a delay in the next response - by a few seconds. Sending the correct MRZ seemed to reset this and let the chip be read instantly.</p>\n\n<p>So, if you knew the target's passport number and birthday, brute forcing the expiry date would take a couple of days. Not instant, but not impossible.</p>\n\n<p>Most <a href=\"https://www.nxp.com/docs/en/data-sheet/NTAG213_215_216.pdf\">commercial NFC chips support 100,000 writes</a> with no limit for the number of reads. Some also have a 24 bit read counter which increments after every read attempt. After 16 million reads, the counter doesn't increment. It <em>could</em> be possible for a chip to self-destruct after a specific number of reads - but I've no evidence that passport chips do that.</p>\n\n<h3 id=\"is-it-worth-brute-forcing-a-password\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#is-it-worth-brute-forcing-a-password\" class=\"heading-link\">Is it <em>worth</em> brute-forcing a password?</a></h3>\n\n<p>If you were to brute-force the MRZ, you would discover the passport-holder's date of birth. You would also get:</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>A digital copy of their photo,</li>\n<li>Their full name,</li>\n<li>Their sex<sup id=\"fnref:sex\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:sex\" class=\"footnote-ref\" title=\"Sex is complicated. But ICAO allow for \"F for female, M for male, or X for unspecified\".\" role=\"doc-noteref\">2</a></sup>,</li>\n<li>The country which issued their passport, and</li>\n<li>Their nationality.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>All of that is something which you can see from looking at the passport. So there's little value in attempting to read it electronically.</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"installing\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#installing\" class=\"heading-link\">Installing</a></h2>\n\n<p>As mentioned, I'm using <a href=\"https://github.com/roeften/pypassport\">https://github.com/roeften/pypassport</a></p>\n\n<p>The only library I needed to install was <a href=\"https://pypi.org/project/pyasn1/\">pyasn1</a> using <code>pip3 install pyasn1</code> - your setup may vary.</p>\n\n<p>Download PyPassport. In the same directory, you can create a test Python file to see if the passport can be read. Here's what it needs to contain:</p>\n\n<pre><code class=\"language-python\">from pypassport import epassport, reader\n\n# Replace this MRZ with the one from your passport\nMRZ = \"1234567897XXX8412139X2202299<<<<<<<<<<<<<<04\"\n\ndef trace(name, msg):\n if name == \"EPassport\":\n print(name + \": \" + msg)\n\nr = reader.ReaderManager().waitForCard()\n\nep = epassport.EPassport(r, MRZ)\nep.register(trace)\nep.readPassport()\n</code></pre>\n\n<p>Plug in your NFC reader, place your passport on it, run the above code. If it works, it will spit out a lot of debug information, including all the data it can find on the passport.</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"getting-structured-data\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#getting-structured-data\" class=\"heading-link\">Getting structured data</a></h2>\n\n<p>The structure of the passport data is a little convoluted. <a href=\"https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/9303_p10_cons_en.pdf\">The specification</a> puts data into different \"Data Groups\" - each with its own ID.</p>\n\n<p>By running:</p>\n\n<pre><code class=\"language-python\">ep.keys()\n</code></pre>\n\n<p>You can see which Data Groups are available. In my case, <code>['60', '61', '75', '77']</code></p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><code>60</code> is the common area which contains some metadata. Nothing interesting there.</li>\n<li><code>61</code> is DG1 - the full MRZ. This contains the holder's name, sex, nationality, etc.</li>\n<li><code>77</code> is the Document Security Object - this was empty for me.</li>\n<li><code>75</code> is DG2 to DG4 Biometric Templates - this contains the image and other metadata.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Dumping the biometrics - <code>print( ep[\"75\"] )</code> - gives these interesting pieces of metadata:</p>\n\n<pre><code class=\"language-_\">'83': '20190311201345',\n'meta': { 'Expression': 'Unspecified',\n 'EyeColour' : 'Unspecified',\n 'FaceImageBlockLength': 19286,\n 'FaceImageType': 'Basic',\n 'FeatureMask': '000000',\n 'FeaturePoint': {0: {'FeaturePointCode': 'C1',\n 'FeatureType': '01',\n 'HorizontalPosition': 249,\n 'Reserved': '0000',\n 'VerticalPosition': 216},\n 1: {'FeaturePointCode': 'C2',\n 'FeatureType': '01',\n 'HorizontalPosition': 141,\n 'Reserved': '0000',\n 'VerticalPosition': 214}},\n 'Features': {},\n 'Gender': 'Unspecified',\n 'HairColour': 'Unspecified',\n 'ImageColourSpace': 'RGB24',\n 'ImageDataType': 'JPEG',\n 'ImageDeviceType': 0,\n 'ImageHeight': 481,\n 'ImageQuality': 'Unspecified',\n 'ImageSourceType': 'Static Scan',\n 'ImageWidth': 385,\n 'LengthOfRecord': 19300,\n 'NumberOfFacialImages': 1,\n 'NumberOfFeaturePoint': 2,\n 'PoseAngle': '0600B5',\n 'PoseAngleUncertainty': '000000',\n 'VersionNumber': b'010'\n }\n</code></pre>\n\n<p>If I understand <a href=\"https://www.icao.int/security/mrtd/siteassets/pages/technical-reports/tr%20-%20rf%20and%20protocol%20testing%20part%204%20v2.10.pdf\">the testing document</a> - the \"Feature Points\" are the middle of the eyes. Interesting to see that gender (not sex!) and hair colour are also able to be recorded. The \"PoseAngle\" represents the <a href=\"https://www.icao.int/Security/FAL/TRIP/Documents/TR%20-%20Portrait%20Quality%20v1.0.pdf\">pitch, yaw, and roll</a> of the face.</p>\n\n<h3 id=\"saving-the-image\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#saving-the-image\" class=\"heading-link\">Saving the image</a></h3>\n\n<p>Passport images are saved either with JPEG or with <a href=\"https://www.icao.int/Security/FAL/TRIP/Documents/TR%20-%20Portrait%20Quality%20v1.0.pdf\">JPEG2000 encoding</a>. Given the extremely limited memory available photos are small and highly compressed. Mine was a mere 19KB.</p>\n\n<p>To save the image, grab the bytes and plonk them onto disk:</p>\n\n<pre><code class=\"language-python\">photo = ep[\"75\"][\"A1\"][\"5F2E\"]\nwith open( \"photo.jpg\", \"wb\" ) as f:\n f.write( photo )\n</code></pre>\n\n<p>As expected, the \"FeaturePoints\" co-ordinates corresponded roughly to the centre of my eyes. Nifty!</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"what-didnt-work\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#what-didnt-work\" class=\"heading-link\">What didn't work</a></h2>\n\n<p>I tried a few different tools. Listed here so you don't make the same mistakes as me!</p>\n\n<h3 id=\"mrtdreader\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#mrtdreader\" class=\"heading-link\">mrtdreader</a></h3>\n\n<p>The venerable <a href=\"https://github.com/rubund/mrtdreader\">mrtdreader</a>. My NFC device beeped, then mrtdreader said \"No NFC device found.\"</p>\n\n<p>I think this is because <a href=\"https://github.com/nfc-tools/libnfc/issues/719\">NFC Tools haven't been updated in ages</a>.</p>\n\n<h3 id=\"jean-francois-houzards-and-olivier-rogers-pypassport\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#jean-francois-houzards-and-olivier-rogers-pypassport\" class=\"heading-link\">Jean-Francois Houzard's and Olivier Roger's pyPassport</a></h3>\n\n<p>I looked at <a href=\"https://code.google.com/archive/p/pypassport/\">pyPassport</a> but it is only available for Python 2.</p>\n\n<h3 id=\"beaujeans-pypassport\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#beaujeans-pypassport\" class=\"heading-link\">beaujean's pyPassport</a></h3>\n\n<p>This <a href=\"https://github.com/beaujeant/pypassport\">pypassport</a> only checks if a passport is resistant to specific security vulnerabilities.</p>\n\n<h3 id=\"d-logic\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#d-logic\" class=\"heading-link\">d-Logic</a></h3>\n\n<p><a href=\"https://www.d-logic.com/nfc-rfid-reader-sdk/software/epassport-reading/\">Digital Logic's ePassport software</a> only works with their hardware readers.</p>\n\n<h3 id=\"android-reader\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#android-reader\" class=\"heading-link\">Android reader</a></h3>\n\n<p><a href=\"https://github.com/tananaev/passport-reader\">tananaev's passport-reader</a> - works perfectly on Android. So I knew my passport chip was readable - but the app won't run on Linux.</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"is-it-worth-it\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#is-it-worth-it\" class=\"heading-link\">Is it worth it?</a></h2>\n\n<p>Yeah, I reckon so! Realistically, you aren't going to be able to crack the MRZ to read someone's passport. But if you need to gather personal information<sup id=\"fnref:gdpr\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:gdpr\" class=\"footnote-ref\" title=\"Under the auspices of GDPR, of course!\" role=\"doc-noteref\">3</a></sup>, it's perfectly possible to do so quickly from a passport.</p>\n\n<p>The MRZ is a <em>Machine Readable</em> Zone - so it is fairly simple to OCR the text and then pass that to your NFC reader.</p>\n\n<p>And even if the MRZ is gone, you can reconstruct it from the data printed on the passport.</p>\n\n<p>Of course, this won't be able to detect fraudulent passports. It doesn't check against a database to see if it has been revoked<sup id=\"fnref:interpol\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:interpol\" class=\"footnote-ref\" title=\"Nor does it check if the holder is on some Interpol list.\" role=\"doc-noteref\">4</a></sup>. I don't think it will detect any cryptographic anomalies.</p>\n\n<p>But if you just want to see what's on your travel documents, it works perfectly.</p>\n\n<div class=\"footnotes\" role=\"doc-endnotes\">\n<hr>\n<ol start=\"0\">\n\n<li id=\"fn:long\" role=\"doc-endnote\">\n<p>There are some <a href=\"https://www.shopnfc.com/en/nfc-readers-writers/300-nfc-xl-reader-long-range-hf-reader.html\">commercially available long range readers</a> - up to 15cm! I've no doubt some clever engineer has made a some high-powered radio device which can read things from a mile away using a <a href=\"https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-make-a-wifi-antenna-out-of-a-pringles-can-nb/\">Pringle's tube</a>. Of note, the <a href=\"https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/9303_p11_cons_en.pdf\">ICAO guidance</a> says:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>the unencrypted communication between a contactless IC and a reader can be eavesdropped within a distance of several metres.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:long\" class=\"footnote-backref\" role=\"doc-backlink\"><img src=\"https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png\" alt=\"↩\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" />︎</a></p>\n</li>\n\n<li id=\"fn:old\" role=\"doc-endnote\">\n<p>I'm not dumb enough to do this stuff on a <em>live</em> passport! <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:old\" class=\"footnote-backref\" role=\"doc-backlink\"><img src=\"https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png\" alt=\"↩\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" />︎</a></p>\n</li>\n\n<li id=\"fn:sex\" role=\"doc-endnote\">\n<p>Sex is complicated<sup id=\"fnref:giggle\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fn:giggle\" class=\"footnote-ref\" title=\"Stop giggling at the back!\" role=\"doc-noteref\">5</a></sup>. But ICAO allow for \"<a href=\"https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/9303_p4_cons_en.pdf\">F for female, M for male, or X for unspecified</a>\". <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:sex\" class=\"footnote-backref\" role=\"doc-backlink\"><img src=\"https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png\" alt=\"↩\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" />︎</a></p>\n</li>\n\n<li id=\"fn:gdpr\" role=\"doc-endnote\">\n<p>Under the auspices of GDPR, of course! <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:gdpr\" class=\"footnote-backref\" role=\"doc-backlink\"><img src=\"https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png\" alt=\"↩\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" />︎</a></p>\n</li>\n\n<li id=\"fn:interpol\" role=\"doc-endnote\">\n<p>Nor does it check if the holder is on some Interpol list. <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:interpol\" class=\"footnote-backref\" role=\"doc-backlink\"><img src=\"https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png\" alt=\"↩\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" />︎</a></p>\n</li>\n\n<li id=\"fn:giggle\" role=\"doc-endnote\">\n<p>Stop giggling at the back! <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/reading-nfc-passport-chips-in-linux/#fnref:giggle\" class=\"footnote-backref\" role=\"doc-backlink\"><img src=\"https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png\" alt=\"↩\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" />︎</a></p>\n</li>\n\n</ol>\n</div>\n</body></html>",
"image": null,
"media": [],
"authors": [
{
"name": "@edent",
"email": null,
"url": null
}
],
"categories": [
{
"label": "/etc/",
"term": "/etc/",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog"
},
{
"label": "CyberSecurity",
"term": "CyberSecurity",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog"
},
{
"label": "hacking",
"term": "hacking",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog"
},
{
"label": "linux",
"term": "linux",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog"
},
{
"label": "nfc",
"term": "nfc",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog"
},
{
"label": "rfid",
"term": "rfid",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog"
}
]
},
{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61537",
"title": "An annoying SVG animation bug in Chrome",
"description": "Writing web standards is hard. You have to write a formal specification which is useful for machines, humans, and web developers. I recently stumbled across what I think is a little bug which might be caused by a misreading of the SVG Animation specification. Here you should see two overlapping circles gradually appear: If you're on Chrome, you…",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/",
"published": "2025-06-23T11:34:12.000Z",
"updated": "2025-06-23T09:03:34.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p>Writing web standards is hard<sup id=\"fnref:experience\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fn:experience\" class=\"footnote-ref\" title=\"I do have some experience in this matter.\" role=\"doc-noteref\">0</a></sup>. You have to write a formal specification which is useful for machines, humans, and web developers<sup id=\"fnref:webdev\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fn:webdev\" class=\"footnote-ref\" title=\"Back in 2006, Catharine A. MacKinnon provokatively asked \"Are Women Human?\". Her argument (which I shall badly summarise) is that if women were human, then they'd be protected by universal human…\" role=\"doc-noteref\">1</a></sup>.</p>\n\n<p>I recently stumbled across what I think is a little bug which <em>might</em> be caused by a misreading of <a href=\"https://svgwg.org/specs/animations/#KeyTimesAttribute\">the SVG Animation specification</a>. Here you should see two overlapping circles gradually appear:</p>\n\n<svg width=\"170\" height=\"170\" xmlns=\"http://www.w3.org/2000/svg\">\n <path fill=\"#2c4169\" d=\"M170 0H0v170h170z\"></path>\n <circle r=\"45\" cx=\"50\" cy=\"50\" fill=\"#e4da2e\" opacity=\"0\">\n <animate attributeName=\"opacity\" begin=\"0s\" dur=\"30s\" values=\"0; 1;\" keyTimes=\"0; 1\" fill=\"freeze\"></animate>\n </circle>\n <circle r=\"45\" cx=\"80\" cy=\"80\" fill=\"red\" opacity=\"0\">\n <animate attributeName=\"opacity\" begin=\"0s\" dur=\"30s\" values=\"0; 1;\" keyTimes=\"0; 1;\" fill=\"freeze\"></animate>\n </circle>\n</svg>\n\n<p>If you're on Chrome, you might only see one circle animate. Why? Bloody semicolons! The bane of every programmer's existence<sup id=\"fnref:eng\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fn:eng\" class=\"footnote-ref\" title=\"I imagine English literature students also find them confusing; everyone does.\" role=\"doc-noteref\">2</a></sup>.</p>\n\n<p>The <a href=\"https://svgwg.org/specs/animations/#KeyTimesAttribute\">specification for SVG Animation</a> has this text for human readers:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p><strong>keyTimes</strong></p>\n\n<p>A semicolon-separated list of time values used to control the pacing of the animation. Each time in the list corresponds to a value in the ‘values’ attribute list, and defines when the value is used in the animation function.</p>\n\n<p>[…]</p>\n\n<p>If the last semicolon separator is followed by either just white space or no more characters, ignore both the separator and the trailing white space.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>To me, that isn't ambiguous. The text <code>keyTimes=\"0; 1;\"</code> has a final semicolon with nothing after it. Therefore it should be ignored. Instead, Chrome throws an hissyfit and says <code>Error: <animate> attribute keyTimes: Invalid value, \"0; 1;\".</code></p>\n\n<p>But maybe the humans who wrote the description were sloppy. There's also a machine-readable formal specification. It defines the acceptable sequence as being:</p>\n\n<p><code><number> [; <number>]* ;?</code></p>\n\n<p>This isn't quite Backus–Naur form<sup id=\"fnref:bnf\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fn:bnf\" class=\"footnote-ref\" title=\"Also the bane of programmers everywhere!\" role=\"doc-noteref\">3</a></sup>, but rather <a href=\"https://www.w3.org/TR/css-values/#value-defs\">CSS Values</a>.</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>The <code><number></code> is a <a href=\"https://www.w3.org/TR/css-values/#component-types\">component</a>.</li>\n<li>The <code>[</code> and <code>]</code> are <a href=\"https://www.w3.org/TR/css-values/#component-combinators\">grouping combinators</a>.</li>\n<li>The <code>*</code> and <code>?</code> are <a href=\"https://www.w3.org/TR/css-values/#component-multipliers\">component multipliers</a>\n\n<ul>\n<li><code>*</code> \"indicates that the preceding type, word, or group occurs zero or more times.\"</li>\n<li><code>?</code> \"indicates that the preceding type, word, or group is optional (occurs zero or one times).\"</li>\n</ul></li>\n<li>The <code>;</code> is just a semicolon<sup id=\"fnref:cig\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fn:cig\" class=\"footnote-ref\" title=\"Just like how sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.\" role=\"doc-noteref\">4</a></sup>.</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Reading the definition tells us that a valid value will be a number, followed by zero-or-more groups of \"semicolon and another number\" with an optional final semicolon.</p>\n\n<p>So, based on my reading, I think Chrome is wrong to throw an error here. Both Firefox and Safari work with a trailing semicolon.</p>\n\n<p>Accordingly, I've <a href=\"https://issues.chromium.org/issues/427020732\">raised a bug with the Chromium team</a>. If you think I have erred in this matter, please let me know.</p>\n\n<div class=\"footnotes\" role=\"doc-endnotes\">\n<hr>\n<ol start=\"0\">\n\n<li id=\"fn:experience\" role=\"doc-endnote\">\n<p>I do have <a href=\"https://www.w3.org/TR/2018/WD-html53-20180426/\">some experience in this matter</a>. <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fnref:experience\" class=\"footnote-backref\" role=\"doc-backlink\"><img src=\"https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png\" alt=\"↩\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" />︎</a></p>\n</li>\n\n<li id=\"fn:webdev\" role=\"doc-endnote\">\n<p>Back in 2006, Catharine A. MacKinnon provokatively asked \"<a href=\"https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctvjnrvck\">Are Women Human?</a>\". Her argument (which I shall badly summarise) is that if women <em>were</em> human, then they'd be protected by universal human rights. Given the state of the world then (and now) it is hard to argue that women receive as great a level of attention as the <a href=\"https://www.the-tls.com/politics-society/rights-equality/default-male\">default male</a>. I don't intend to trivialise MacKinnon's work - but I do find it interesting that developers are often treated separately from other humans. <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fnref:webdev\" class=\"footnote-backref\" role=\"doc-backlink\"><img src=\"https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png\" alt=\"↩\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" />︎</a></p>\n</li>\n\n<li id=\"fn:eng\" role=\"doc-endnote\">\n<p>I imagine English literature students also find them confusing; everyone does. <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fnref:eng\" class=\"footnote-backref\" role=\"doc-backlink\"><img src=\"https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png\" alt=\"↩\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" />︎</a></p>\n</li>\n\n<li id=\"fn:bnf\" role=\"doc-endnote\">\n<p>Also the bane of programmers everywhere! <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fnref:bnf\" class=\"footnote-backref\" role=\"doc-backlink\"><img src=\"https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png\" alt=\"↩\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" />︎</a></p>\n</li>\n\n<li id=\"fn:cig\" role=\"doc-endnote\">\n<p>Just like how <a href=\"https://quoteinvestigator.com/2011/08/12/just-a-cigar/\">sometimes a cigar is just a cigar</a>. <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/an-annoying-svg-animation-bug-in-chrome/#fnref:cig\" class=\"footnote-backref\" role=\"doc-backlink\"><img src=\"https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png\" alt=\"↩\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" />︎</a></p>\n</li>\n\n</ol>\n</div>\n</body></html>",
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{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61507",
"title": "Theatre Review: Operation Mincemeat ★★★★☆",
"description": "Everyone I know told me to go and see this show. I resisted as long as possible but managed to score cheap last-minute tickets via a friend. I wish I hadn't waited so long! If you're unaware of the book (or the film. Or the novelisation of the film. Or the Twitter thread. Or the inaccurate tumblr retelling.) the story involves a dastardly British plan to use a corpse to fool the Nazi menace…",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/theatre-review-operation-mincemeat/",
"published": "2025-06-22T11:34:01.000Z",
"updated": "2025-06-22T09:14:43.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p><img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Operation_Mincemeat-1-400-400-100-nocrop.jpeg\" alt=\"Logo for Operation Mincemeat - a black scribble on a yellow background.\" width=\"200\" height=\"200\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-61508\"> Everyone I know told me to go and see this show. I resisted as long as possible but managed to score cheap last-minute tickets via a friend. I wish I hadn't waited so long!</p>\n\n<p>If you're unaware of the book (or the film. Or the novelisation of the film. Or the Twitter thread. Or the inaccurate tumblr retelling.) the story involves a dastardly British plan to use a corpse to fool the Nazi menace into diverting their troops.</p>\n\n<p>So, naturally, this is a glitzy West End Musical. And, as befitting a story with a hundred different characters, there are five cast members playing everyone. Obviously, it is <em>very</em> silly.</p>\n\n<p>I can't lie - I found the start of the first act a bit underwhelming. It feels derivative of every other musical I've seen; like a British \"Hamilton\" without the budget. But as it wore on, something magical happened. The songs become interesting, the choreography leaps alive, and the cast started playing off the audience’s energy.</p>\n\n<p>The second act has the strongest opening I've seen in a good long while. It builds to a terrific conclusion - with just the right amount of joy and melancholy.</p>\n\n<p>Naturally, the cast are superb. It's exhausting watching them quick-change and shimmy across the stage. They are a beautifully formed ensemble. I usually don't like seeing shows multiple times, but given the frequent cast changes I find myself curious about how the various permutations work.</p>\n\n<p>It is an excellent and kinetic work of theatre. It revels in its daftness and knows exactly when to tug your heartstrings.</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"pre-show\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/theatre-review-operation-mincemeat/#pre-show\" class=\"heading-link\">Pre-Show</a></h2>\n\n<p>Regular readers know how much I love discussing the pre-show elements. Mincemeat isn't as bad as most, but still treats the paying audience with the contempt London venues are known for.</p>\n\n<p>The theatre is cramped, with a packed bar, and inadequate toilet facilities. The corridors are decorated with photos of current cast members, which is nice. There's also a pre-show trivia quiz which, while fun, is only half-a-dozen questions - essentially a thinly veiled attempt to get you onto a mailing list.</p>\n\n<p>The cost of the programme is exorbitant - an advert filled brochure with the same information as can be found on the website.</p>\n\n<p>On the plus side, the stall seats are spacious and there's a bar to one side (if you can afford it).</p>\n\n<p>A single \"cheap\" ticket usually costs about 3-months of Netflix. Full price tickets are a monocle-popping 7-months of Netflix! At that price I'd expect a free souvenir programme and a complimentary ice-cream. And possibly a foot-massage.</p>\n\n<p>The <a href=\"https://operationmincemeat.com/tickets/\">ticket lottery</a> reduces prices to a shade under 2-months of Netflix.</p>\n\n<p>There's nothing like seeing live theatre performed by a hyper-talented cast. Theatres need to understand that home entertainment is ubiquitous, cheap, <strong>and comfortable</strong>. If I can't pause your show to go for a wee, you'd better make sure you have enough loos for everyone at the interval.</p>\n</body></html>",
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{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61183",
"title": "Book Review: Venomous Lumpsucker by Ned Beauman ★★★★★",
"description": "No book has the right to be this good. It's the sort of howling sci-fi satire that Ben Elton used to excel at - a novel set five minutes in the future with a eye firmly on today's problems. The plot is delightful - what if carbon credits extinction credits were the new capitalist plaything? What second, third, and forth order effects would that have on the world? The worldbuilding is sublime -…",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-venomous-lumpsucker-by-ned-beauman/",
"published": "2025-06-21T11:34:56.000Z",
"updated": "2025-06-13T09:16:16.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p><img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/hbg-title-venomous-lumpsucker-4-1.webp\" alt=\"Book cover with fish.\" width=\"200\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-61184\"> No book has the right to be this good. It's the sort of howling sci-fi satire that Ben Elton used to excel at - a novel set five minutes in the future with a eye firmly on today's problems.</p>\n\n<p>The plot is delightful - what if <del>carbon credits</del> extinction credits were the new capitalist plaything? What second, third, and forth order effects would that have on the world? The worldbuilding is sublime - with an prescient look at the evolution of DRM, Smart Contracts, AI assistants, and targetted assassinations.</p>\n\n<p>The characters are perfectly fleshed out and gradually reveal their motivations and insecurities:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>one big thing about the socially normal was that they loved their social norms. Whereas Resaint couldn’t stand the politics, the niceties, the meetings where she had to spangle her expression and tone of voice with false enthusiasm just so people didn’t think she was a bitch.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>There is a <em>slight</em> tendency towards Socratic dialogue as a means of exposition. The satire itself isn't exactly subtle - but when it has this many twists and turns I can forgive it for laying it on a bit thick.</p>\n\n<p>The ending(s) genuinely shocked me.</p>\n</body></html>",
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"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog"
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"term": "satire",
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{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61338",
"title": "Convert Shotwell Photo Metadata to Digikam Metadata",
"description": "Mostly notes to myself. Shotwell stores most of its information in a database. Which I lost. Because I'm an idiot. But a bunch of metadata is also stored in the image's EXIF metadata! Most importantly is the \"Original File Name\" which should become the \"Description\" in DigiKam. Unfortunately, there's no way to copy those values automatically on import. So here's a one-liner which will read…",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/convert-shotwell-photo-metadata-to-digikam-metadata/",
"published": "2025-06-20T11:34:37.000Z",
"updated": "2025-06-13T09:16:21.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p>Mostly notes to myself.</p>\n\n<p>Shotwell stores most of its information in a database. Which I lost. Because I'm an idiot.</p>\n\n<p>But a bunch of metadata is <em>also</em> stored in the image's EXIF metadata!</p>\n\n<p>Most importantly is the \"Original File Name\" which should become the \"Description\" in DigiKam. Unfortunately, there's no way to copy those values automatically on import.</p>\n\n<p>So here's a one-liner which will read the \"Original File Name\" and store it in the \"Title\" EXIF - ready for DigiKam to parse!</p>\n\n<pre><code class=\"language-bash\">exiftool \"-XMP-dc:Title<XMP-getty:OriginalFileName\" whatever.jpg\n</code></pre>\n\n<p>If you want to make sure any existing Title isn't overwritten, use:</p>\n\n<pre><code class=\"language-bash\">exiftool \"-XMP-dc:Title<${XMP-getty:OriginalFileName}\" -if \"not defined $XMP-dc:Title\" whatever.jpg\n</code></pre>\n\n<p>Finally, to do it recursively, across all files:</p>\n\n<pre><code class=\"language-bash\">exiftool -r \"-XMP-dc:Title<${XMP-getty:OriginalFileName}\" -if \"not defined $XMP-dc:Title\" /path/to/images\n</code></pre>\n</body></html>",
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{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61202",
"title": "Book Review: If Only They Didn't Speak English - Notes From Trump's America by Jon Sopel ★★⯪☆☆",
"description": "I expected so much more from this book. It starts with a central thesis - the UK over-indexes on America because we speak the same language, but there is an enormous gulf in attitudes between the two nations. We rarely hear on the news what's happening in France, Germany, or Ireland even though they're much closer geographically, politically, and culturally. That sounds like a pretty good book! …",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-if-only-they-didnt-speak-english-notes-from-trumps-america-by-jon-sopel/",
"published": "2025-06-19T11:34:55.000Z",
"updated": "2025-06-19T13:22:45.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p><img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/cover.jpg\" alt=\"Book Cover.\" width=\"200\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-61203\"> I expected so much more from this book. It starts with a central thesis - the UK over-indexes on America because we speak the same language, but there is an enormous gulf in attitudes between the two nations. We rarely hear on the news what's happening in France, Germany, or Ireland even though they're much closer geographically, politically, and culturally.</p>\n\n<p>That sounds like a pretty good book!</p>\n\n<p>Instead, we get \"what I learned on my holiday to the USA by Jon Sopel aged 57 and ¾\".</p>\n\n<p>We learn, for example, that America likes guns. There's a <em>bit</em> of an analysis of why and how lobbying shapes it, but it is fairly surface-level stuff. There's a little bit of a comparison with the UK's attitudes, but not much. Similarly, they're much more religious, racist, and have a convoluted relationship with the truth. Their constitution, elections, and media landscape are also different. It feels like pop-facts rather than anything deeper.</p>\n\n<p>There are some brilliant insider anecdotes which, thankfully, don't stray into fawning name-dropping. For example, this little nugget about the Hillary Clinton victory rally that never was:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>Throughout the evening two men were posted to each corner of our broadcast ‘riser’ and they sat at machines with large conical funnels pointing upwards. These were the machines that would launch into the air millions of shards of shiny paper to recreate the effect of a glass ceiling shattering.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>He also makes some grimly accurate prophesies:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>And are you really going to start a trade war with China – and everyone else for that matter, with all the consequences that might bring for the global economy?</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>Towards the end, when discussing how Trump came to dominate, he says:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>Books much weightier than this will be written about the abject failure of the conventional media to comprehend fully the parameters of this new world</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>I think I was expecting this to be a bit weightier and to set out some way forward.</p>\n</body></html>",
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{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61410",
"title": "Why do people have such dramatically different experiences using AI?",
"description": "For some people, it seems, AI is an amazing machine which - while fallible - represents an incredible leap forward in productivity. For other people, it seems, AI is wrong more often than right and - although occasionally useful - requires constant supervision. Who is right? I recently pointed out a few common problems with LLMs. I was discussing this with someone relatively senior who works…",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/why-do-people-have-such-dramatically-different-experiences-using-ai/",
"published": "2025-06-18T11:34:09.000Z",
"updated": "2025-06-18T13:33:24.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p>For some people, it seems, AI is an amazing machine which - while fallible - represents an incredible leap forward in productivity.</p>\n\n<p>For other people, it seems, AI is wrong more often than right and - although occasionally useful - requires constant supervision.</p>\n\n<p>Who is right?</p>\n\n<p>I recently pointed out <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/large-language-models-and-pareidolia/\">a few common problems with LLMs</a>. I was discussing this with someone relatively senior who works on Google's Gemini. I explained that <em>every</em> time I get a Google AI overview it is wrong. Sometimes obviously wrong, sometimes subtly wrong. I asked if that was really the experience of AI Google wanted to promote? My friend replied (lightly edited for clarity):</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>I find AI Overview to be helpful for my searches and my work. I use it all the time to look up technical terms and hardware specs.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>I, somewhat impolitely, called bullshit and sent a couple of screenshots of recent cases where Google was just laughably wrong. He replied:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>Interesting. We are seeing the opposite.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>Why is that?</p>\n\n<p>I'll happily concede that LLMs are reasonable at outputting stuff which <em>looks</em> plausible and - in many cases - that's all that's necessary. If I can't remember which command line switch to use, AI is easier than crappy documentation. Similarly, if I don't know how to program a specific function, most AIs are surprisingly decent at providing me with something which <em>mostly</em> works.</p>\n\n<p>But the more I know about something, the less competent the AI seems to be.</p>\n\n<p>Let me give you a good example.</p>\n\n<p>At my friend's prompting, I asked Gemini to OCR an old newspaper clipping. It is a decent resolution scan of English text printed in columns. The sort of thing a million AI projects have been trained on. Here's a sample:</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Children.webp\" alt=\"Scan of some text.\" width=\"437\" height=\"174\" class=\"size-full wp-image-61413\">\n\n<p>So what did Gemini make of it when asked to extract the text from it?</p>\n\n<blockquote>Children at Witham's Chip-<br>\nping Hill Infants School are en-<br>\ngaged in trying out all sorts of<br>\nimaginations ready for October<br>\n31... \"And god knows what<br>\nstrange spirits will be abroad.\"<br></blockquote>\n\n<p>That reads pretty well. It is <em>utterly</em> wrong, but it is convincing. This isn't a one-off either. Later in the clipping was this:</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Witch.webp\" alt=\"Scan of some text.\" width=\"425\" height=\"229\" class=\"size-full wp-image-61412\">\n\n<p>I'm sure a child of 6 could read that aloud without making any mistakes. Is Gemini as smart as a 6-year-old?</p>\n\n<blockquote>All the children say halloween<br>\nis fun. So it is for 6-year-old<br>\nJoanne Kirby admits she will be<br>\nstaying up to watch on October<br>\n31, just in case. She has made a<br>\npaper \"witch,\" to \"tell stories<br>\nabout witches,\" she said.<br></blockquote>\n\n<p>Again, superficially right, but not accurate in the slightest.</p>\n\n<p>There were half a dozen mistakes in a 300 word article. That, frankly, is shit. I could have copy-typed it and made fewer mistakes. I probably spent more time correcting the output than I saved by using AI.</p>\n\n<p>Boring old Tesseract - a mainstay of OCR - did far better. Yes, it might occasionally mistake a speck of dust for a comma or confuse two similar characters - but it has never invented new sentences!</p>\n\n<p>Like a fool, I asked Gemini what was going on:</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/GeminiShit.webp\" alt=\"Me: That's a really bad job. You've invented lots of words which aren't there. Try again. Gemini: I understand you weren't satisfied with the previous transcription. Unfortunately, I can't directly perform OCR on images. However, there are many apps available that can do this. You can search online for 'OCR apps' to find one that suits your needs.\" width=\"1024\" height=\"375\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61411\">\n\n<p><a href=\"https://g.co/gemini/share/af5e6ed3d1ea\">Here's a link to the conversation if you don't believe me</a>.</p>\n\n<p>This isn't just a problem with Gemini - ChatGPT also invented brand-new sentences when scanning the text.</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>All the children say Halloween is fun, rather than frightening. Six-year-old Joanne Kirby admits she will be “a scary little witch” on the night, but she does like ghost stories.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>So what's going on?</p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"bluesky-embed\" data-bluesky-uri=\"at://did:plc:a3m54c4suf2odoycgsx4fv6v/app.bsky.feed.post/3lrstc3b2l227\" data-bluesky-cid=\"bafyreidpyzj4sdakngcubvh4hzusyw5ub54zqhr6wc3evio4eghvlnvw5q\"><p lang=\"en\">A question one has to ask of any source, including LLMs but also newspapers, influencers, podcasts, books, etc., is \"how would I know if they were wrong?\"This is not a prompt to doubt everything – down that path is denialism – but about reflecting on how much you rely on even \"trusted\" sources.</p>— <a href=\"https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:a3m54c4suf2odoycgsx4fv6v?ref_src=embed\">Adrian Hon (@adrianhon.bsky.social)</a> <a href=\"https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:a3m54c4suf2odoycgsx4fv6v/post/3lrstc3b2l227?ref_src=embed\">2025-06-17T15:39:06.772Z</a></blockquote>\n\n<script async=\"\" src=\"https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>\n\n<p>With OCR, it is simple. I can read the ground-truth and see how it compares to the generated output. I don't have to trust; I can verify.</p>\n\n<p>I suppose I mostly use AI for things with which I have a passing familiarity. I can quickly see when it is wrong. I've never used it for, say, tax advice or instructions to dismantle a nuclear bomb. I'd have zero idea if the information it spat back was in any way accurate.</p>\n\n<p>Is that the difference? If you don't understand what you're asking for then you can't judge whether you're being mugged off.</p>\n\n<p>Or is there something more fundamentally different between users which results in this disparity of experience?</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/A-t-shirt-which-says-Dunning-and-Kruger-and-Gell-and-Mann.jpeg\" alt=\"A t-shirt which says Dunning and Kruger and Gell and Mann.\" width=\"540\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-35422\">\n</body></html>",
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"label": "AI",
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{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61180",
"title": "Book Review: Beyond Measure - The Hidden History of Measurement by James Vincent ★★★★⯪",
"description": "This is a charming travelogue through the confusing and contradictory world of measurement. It has a similar thesis to Seeing Like A State by James C. Scott and is infinitely easier to read than Inventing Temperature by Hasok Chang Emanuele Lugli has noted, units of measurement are, for the powerful, ‘sly tools of subjugation’. Each time they’re deployed, they turn the world ‘into a place that …",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-beyond-measure-the-hidden-history-of-measurement-by-james-vincent/",
"published": "2025-06-17T11:34:39.000Z",
"updated": "2025-06-06T10:13:46.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p><img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Beyond-Measure-447x690-1.jpg\" alt=\"Book cover.\" width=\"200\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-61181\"> This is a charming travelogue through the confusing and contradictory world of measurement. It has a similar thesis to <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2021/11/book-review-seeing-like-a-state-james-c-scott/\">Seeing Like A State by James C. Scott</a> and is infinitely easier to read than <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2023/05/book-review-inventing-temperature-hasok-chang/\">Inventing Temperature by Hasok Chang</a></p>\n\n<blockquote><p>Emanuele Lugli has noted, units of measurement are, for the powerful, ‘sly tools of subjugation’. Each time they’re deployed, they turn the world ‘into a place that continues to make sense as long as the power that legitimises the measurements rests in place’.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>One thing that struck me was how often we squash measurements down into something human and usable.</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>As Kula notes, many historical studies of medieval metrology refer to the ‘primitivism’ and ‘crudity’ of elastic units, but in reality they are well fitted to the needs of the people who used them, embodying the relationship of humans to the land and capturing the necessities of their work.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>Americans (wrongly) claim that Fahrenheit feels more natural. It doesn't; they're just used to it. But it does show that we have a bias for familiarity which stops the adoption of new forms and scales.</p>\n\n<p>It dives into the human, social, and religious requirements for measurement. I particularly liked this little aside:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>It’s perhaps due to this symbolic potency that the Bible mentions measurement more often than it does charity.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>It is also a good compliment to <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-a-history-of-the-world-in-47-borders-the-stories-behind-the-lines-on-our-maps-by-jonn-elledge/\">A History of the World in 47 Borders</a> - it shows how measurement lead to conquest, colonialism, and social upheaval.</p>\n\n<p>Rather delightfully, the author goes a little gonzo and reports first-hand from various measurement sites. This isn't a dusty retelling of some encyclopædia article, it is a living exploration of the ritual around measurement. At times it appears that science and religion have an equal fervour for ceremony and obedience.</p>\n\n<p>There is particular ire for the cultish weirdos of the Quantified Self movement, and it loops back to how measurement is a way for the uneasy to impose a sense of order on the world.</p>\n\n<p>I found it a little too credulous about <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2020/02/weeknotes-reading-week/#the-age-of-surveillance-capitalism-shoshana-zuboff\">Zuboff's work on surveillance</a>, but that's a minor criticism.</p>\n\n<p>An excellent book for anyone interested in both the philosophy and practicality of measurement.</p>\n</body></html>",
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{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61259",
"title": "Your Password Algorithm Sucks",
"description": "There are two sorts of people in the world; those who know they are stupid and those who think they are clever. Stupid people use a password manager. They know they can't remember a hundred different passwords and so outsource the thinking to something reasonably secure. I'm a stupid person and am very happy to have BitWarden generate and save fiendishly complex unique passwords which are then…",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/",
"published": "2025-06-16T11:34:07.000Z",
"updated": "2025-06-25T19:59:11.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p>There are two sorts of people in the world; those who know they are stupid and those who think they are clever.</p>\n\n<p>Stupid people use a password manager. They know they can't remember a hundred different passwords and so outsource the thinking to something reasonably secure. I'm a stupid person and am very happy to have BitWarden generate and save fiendishly complex unique passwords which are then protected by the app's MFA. Lovely!</p>\n\n<p>But people who think they are clever decide to bypass that and use their own super-secret algorithm.</p>\n\n<p>Every clever person's algorithm boils down to the same thing:</p>\n\n<ol>\n<li>Have a single strong main password.</li>\n<li>Add to it some information related to the service.</li>\n</ol>\n\n<p>For example <code>P@ssw0rd!_facebook</code> and <code>P@ssw0rd!_linkedin</code>. On the surface, that's quite an attractive proposition. You remember one thing and you don't need to trust a password manager.</p>\n\n<p>People who are <em>extra</em> clever use the same algorithm but wrap it in a command-line function which XORs both pieces of data, creates a SHA-512 hash, takes every prime numbered bit, converts to ASCII, and uses <em>that</em> to generate a password. <a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ls5BFzuxGw4\">Smart!</a></p>\n\n<p>Either way, these algorithms <strong>suck!</strong> Let me explain why.</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"password-leaking\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#password-leaking\" class=\"heading-link\">Password Leaking</a></h2>\n\n<p>One day, LinkedIn decides to <a href=\"https://www.linkedin.com/blog/member/trust-and-safety/protecting-our-members\">LeakedOut its users' passwords</a>. Anyone who can see <code>P@ssw0rd!_linkedin</code> can make a pretty good guess at your password for Facebook, banking, dating, and shopping etc. This means you now need to change <em>every</em> password that you have.</p>\n\n<p>Even if you have used some amazing cryptographic powerhouse of an algorithm, there's still a chance you'll accidentally leak it or get so paranoid that you decide to invalidate it. Now you need to change your password on hundreds of sites.</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"password-rotation\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#password-rotation\" class=\"heading-link\">Password Rotation</a></h2>\n\n<p>We all know that it is <a href=\"https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/collection/passwords/updating-your-approach\">a bad idea to ask your users to regularly change their passwords</a> - yet sites often persist in doing so.</p>\n\n<p>How does your algorithm cope with this?</p>\n\n<p>Do you have to remember that it is <code>P@ssw0rd!_facebook_1</code> and <code>P@ssw0rd!_linkedin_23</code>?</p>\n\n<p>Perhaps you'll write down all the suffixes and find a way to store them securely - like, say, a password manager?</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"password-requirements\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#password-requirements\" class=\"heading-link\">Password Requirements</a></h2>\n\n<p>One site says \"Your password <em>must</em> contain a special character and a number\" another says \"You can use any special character <em>except</em> % or ?\" another refuses to let your password contain two consecutive identical characters, or it <em>must</em> start with a number, or it cannot be longer than 12 characters. Yes, I know password rules like this aren't sensible - but they <em>are</em> common.</p>\n\n<p>How does your algorithm cope with that?</p>\n\n<p>If you manually have to tweak a couple of dozen passwords generated by your algorithm, you are going to tie yourself in knots remembering the arcane requirements for each one.</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"be-stupid-use-a-password-manager\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#be-stupid-use-a-password-manager\" class=\"heading-link\">Be Stupid - Use A Password Manager</a></h2>\n\n<p>Humans are stupid<sup id=\"fnref:not\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#fn:not\" class=\"footnote-ref\" title=\"Not you, of course. You're mummy's extra-special boy who never makes mistakes.\" role=\"doc-noteref\">0</a></sup>. Humans get tired, forgetful, or sick. Our delicious meaty brains are not optimised to remember long strings of complex information or hundreds of rarely used combinations. Knowing that you know not is a super-power. It allows you to offload things that you don't understand to something more competent.</p>\n\n<p>Pick a password manager. Secure it with a reasonably strong password and multi-factor authentication. Let it do the hard work of remembering.</p>\n\n<div class=\"footnotes\" role=\"doc-endnotes\">\n<hr>\n<ol start=\"0\">\n\n<li id=\"fn:not\" role=\"doc-endnote\">\n<p>Not you, of course. You're mummy's extra-special boy who never makes mistakes. <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/your-password-algorithm-sucks/#fnref:not\" class=\"footnote-backref\" role=\"doc-backlink\"><img src=\"https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/21a9.png\" alt=\"↩\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" />︎</a></p>\n</li>\n\n</ol>\n</div>\n</body></html>",
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"label": "/etc/",
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"label": "CyberSecurity",
"term": "CyberSecurity",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog"
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{
"label": "passwords",
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{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61169",
"title": "Book Review: What We Talk About When We Talk About Books - The History and Future of Reading by Leah Price ★★★★★",
"description": "Is reading a morally good pastime? Do eBooks rot the brain in the same way that pulp paperbacks do? Should people of feeble character be allowed unfettered access to books? Show me how you want to read, and I’ll show you who you want to be. Leah Price has produced a pithy and astonishing look at what books were and whether they will survive. It is, perhaps, a little overwrought and o…",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-what-we-talk-about-when-we-talk-about-books-the-history-and-future-of-reading-by-leah-price/",
"published": "2025-06-15T11:34:55.000Z",
"updated": "2025-06-05T20:36:34.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p><img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/97804650426851.webp\" alt=\"Book cover featuring twisted book pages.\" width=\"200\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-61170\"> Is reading a morally good pastime? Do eBooks rot the brain in the same way that pulp paperbacks do? Should people of feeble character be allowed unfettered access to books?</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>Show me how you want to read, and I’ll show you who you want to be.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>Leah Price has produced a pithy and astonishing look at what books were and whether they will survive. It is, perhaps, a little overwrought and overwritten - but I revelled in the its joyous use of language.</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>Perhaps print is to digital as Madonna is to whore: we worship one but use the other.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>It put forwards some provocative arguments and isn't afraid to show the counterpoint in its footnotes.</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>Same text, different books: the very same sequence of words means something different—does something different—depending on whether it’s made for a desk or a pocket, a classroom or a church. Comparing these two editions of the same text makes visible how much of our reaction to a book is shaped by factors other than the words it contains. Its look and feel and smell instruct us wordlessly in how and why to read it—alone or in company, in search of learning or of salvation.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>How does DRM affect this, I wonder? If books are locked down then they cannot be analysed. Conversely, when every reader can choose their own font and hyphenation strategy, do we lose some collective experience?</p>\n\n<p>Similarly, eReaders don't display their cover to fellow passengers on public transport. A boon for the privacy conscious, but means we lose the social signal that simply <em>everyone</em> is reading this new book.</p>\n\n<p>Is reading for everyone?</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>Once a sign of economic power, reading has become the province of those whose time lacks value.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>Harsh! The whole book is a powerful argument that books are a powerful argument. No matter what form the words are delivered in, some paranoid Moms will always want to see books from library shelves untimely ripp'd. There are, of course, an equal and opposite set of mothers who protest against cuts to literacy funding.</p>\n\n<p>I sometimes wonder if any modern techbro CEOs have ever picked up a history book. Back in 1913, Thomas Edison was asked about the education powers of his new invention - the motion picture:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>“Books,” declared the inventor with decision, “will soon be obsolete in the public schools. Scholars will be instructed through the eye. It is possible to teach every branch of human knowledge with the motion picture. Our school system will be completely changed inside of ten years.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>Books outlasted his prediction. They outlasted him. They will morph, adapt, scatter, and devour until they outlast us all.</p>\n</body></html>",
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{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61215",
"title": "Meeting my Fedifriends AFK",
"description": "There's a lovely moment in the documentary about The Pirate Bay where Peter Sunde is being interviewed in a District Court: Prosecutor 1: When was the first time you met IRL? brokep: We don't use the expression IRL. We say AFK. But that's another issue. Prosecutor 2: Got to know each other IRL? What is that? Prosecutor 1: In Real Life. brokep: We don't like that expression. We say AFK - Away …",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/meeting-my-fedifriends-afk/",
"published": "2025-06-14T11:34:11.000Z",
"updated": "2025-06-14T10:28:26.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p>There's a lovely moment in <a href=\"https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2608732/\">the documentary about The Pirate Bay</a> where Peter Sunde is being interviewed in a District Court:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>Prosecutor 1: When was the first time you met IRL?</p>\n\n<p>brokep: We don't use the expression IRL. We say AFK. But that's another issue.</p>\n\n<p>Prosecutor 2: Got to know each other IRL? What is that?</p>\n\n<p>Prosecutor 1: In Real Life.</p>\n\n<p>brokep: We don't like that expression. We say AFK - Away From Keyboard. <strong>We think that the Internet is for real.</strong></p></blockquote>\n\n<p>Isn't that great? Why do some people insist that online relationships are somehow less real than physical relationships?</p>\n\n<p>As part of our recent <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/5025-km-21-journeys-and-10-countries-in-30-days-an-interrailing-adventure/\">grand Interrail journey</a>, I wanted to see how many people from social networks I could meet AFK. In the glory days of Twitter, I'm sure I'd've found a friend in every one-horse town. But the fractured nature of networking made it a bit of challenge.</p>\n\n<p>Just before arriving in a new country, I sent out messages saying \"Hey, I'm arriving in XYZ tomorrow. Anyone want to meet for a beer?\" And, to my surprise and delight, many people did!</p>\n\n<p>In half of the countries we went to, we met new friends. Sometimes for a quick drink, sometimes for dinner, and sometimes for a little exploring of a city. We even got invited to a local geek meet-up. It was <em>lovely</em>. We got tips on how to use the public transport system, which restaurants were tourist traps, and introduced to new beers.</p>\n\n<p>It is nice to put faces to names. It's fun to meet a random friend and chat nonsense with them. And it is reassuring to know that there are people around the world who'll take a risk and meet a weary traveller.</p>\n\n<p>Now, there are some obvious caveats to this story. We only met in well populated areas. I'm a tall bloke with a loud voice. Some light background stalking made sure the people we met weren't <em>too</em> crazy. We didn't get drunk. If you do this - I suggest taking all the normal precautions when meeting strangers. But, in the end, everything was fine.</p>\n\n<p>Sometimes you want to go where at least one person knows your name.</p>\n\n<p>Cheers!</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/crop.webp\" alt=\"Me with a big mug of beer.\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1280\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61222\">\n</body></html>",
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{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61161",
"title": "Book Review: A History of the World in 47 Borders - The Stories Behind the Lines on Our Maps by Jonn Elledge ★★★★⯪",
"description": "Jonn Elledge has a witty and friendly tone. It skirts just the right line between trivia nerd and your favourite history teacher. He cheerfully points out the absurdities in history and swiftly pivots into the injustices of \"Cartographic Colonialism\". There are delightfully diverting asides and then we're brought right back into the horrors of a straight line. The problem with history is that…",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-a-history-of-the-world-in-47-borders-the-stories-behind-the-lines-on-our-maps-by-jonn-elledge/",
"published": "2025-06-13T11:34:02.000Z",
"updated": "2025-06-13T08:08:36.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p><img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/hbg-title-a-history-of-the-world-in-47-borders-.webp\" alt=\"Book cover with a map on it.\" width=\"200\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-61162\"> Jonn Elledge has a witty and friendly tone. It skirts just the right line between trivia nerd and your favourite history teacher. He cheerfully points out the absurdities in history and swiftly pivots into the injustices of \"Cartographic Colonialism\". There are delightfully diverting asides and then we're brought right back into the horrors of a straight line.</p>\n\n<p>The problem with history is that is is all a <em>bit</em> samey. Someone unities an country using violence and cunning thus setting up an empire that will last a thousand years - only for his heirs to immediately fall into civil war on his death. There's only so many times you can read about the bloody Habsburgs fucking over yet another country before it gets tiresome.</p>\n\n<p>The borders of the world have little to do with geography and all to do with the mundanity of indifferent administrators carving up the world to fit into neat little boxes, regardless of the wishes of the boxes' inhabitants.</p>\n\n<p>My only quibbles are that it could really do with a more illustrations. Sometimes only a picture of a map will do.</p>\n</body></html>",
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{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=60905",
"title": "The Mobile Phones of Doctor Who - Midnight",
"description": "A disturbing lack of phones in the latest series of Doctor Who - and no news yet on the next series. So let's revisit an older episode I'd previously overlooked. \"Midnight\" is a Series 4 episode which has a terrifying sequel in this year's \"The Well\". Donna briefly has a chat with The Doctor on what a appears to be a landline phone with the wire removed. Obviously that's not a mobile phone. …",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/the-mobile-phones-of-doctor-who-midnight/",
"published": "2025-06-12T11:34:00.000Z",
"updated": "2025-06-11T09:48:57.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p>A disturbing lack of phones in <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/mobile-phones-of-doctor-who-season-15/\">the latest series of Doctor Who</a> - and no news yet on the next series. So let's revisit an older episode I'd previously overlooked.</p>\n\n<p>\"Midnight\" is a <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2018/09/the-mobile-phones-of-doctor-who-series-4/\">Series 4</a> episode which has a terrifying sequel in this year's \"The Well\".</p>\n\n<p>Donna briefly has a chat with The Doctor on what a appears to be a landline phone with the wire removed.</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Donna-phone.webp\" alt=\"Donna chatting on a phone.\" width=\"960\" height=\"540\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-60911\">\n\n<p>Obviously that's not a mobile phone.</p>\n\n<p>But what's The Doctor speaking to her on?\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Doctor-Payphone.webp\" alt=\"The Doctor talking on a payphone.\" width=\"960\" height=\"540\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-60910\"></p>\n\n<p>A payphone? Look a little closer:</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Doctor-Payphone-close-up.webp\" alt=\"The Doctor talking on a payphone. Close up showing rotary dial.\" width=\"960\" height=\"540\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-60909\">\n\n<p>A <em>rotary dial</em> payphone!</p>\n\n<p>This is the the <a href=\"https://payphone.illtyd.co.uk/cointelephone725\">Coin Telephone 725A</a>. Isn't it gorgeous?</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Yellow-payphone.webp\" alt=\"A yellow payphone with rotary dial.\" width=\"512\" height=\"544\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-60906\">\n\n<p>But is it a <em>mobile</em> phone? Yes. Yes it is. The <a href=\"http://www.samhallas.co.uk/repository/sales/dle_530.pdf\">Post Office Telecommunications Bulletin DLE 530</a> describes this as \"<em>portable</em> with plug and socket termination\".</p>\n\n<p>How portable? Easy to lug over a bar.</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/payphone-in-pub.webp\" alt=\"A barman carrying a payphone over a bar.\" width=\"699\" height=\"755\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-60908\">\n\n<p>And light enough for a dainty lady to carry.</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/portable-with-plug-and-socket-termination.webp\" alt=\"A woman carrying a payphone.\" width=\"512\" height=\"714\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-60907\">\n\n<p>So, there you go, a <em>sort of</em> mobile phone hidden away on the Planet Midnight!</p>\n\n<p>You can <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/tag/doctor-who-phones/\">read dozens of these very silly blog posts in the archives</a>.</p>\n</body></html>",
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"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog"
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"label": "Doctor Who Phones",
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{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61327",
"title": "Large Language Models and Pareidolia",
"description": "Have you ever looked up at the sky and seen a face staring back at you from the clouds? Of course you have; you're human. Our delicious meaty brains are hardwired to recognise certain shapes - and faces are a useful shape to recognise. A few false positives are a worthwhile trade-off for such a powerful feature. Mistakenly seeing faces where there are none is a phenomenon called pareidolia. If…",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/large-language-models-and-pareidolia/",
"published": "2025-06-11T11:34:29.000Z",
"updated": "2025-06-11T12:02:29.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p>Have you ever looked up at the sky and seen a face staring back at you from the clouds? Of course you have; you're human. Our delicious meaty brains are hardwired to recognise certain shapes - and <a href=\"https://babyschool.yale.edu/does-my-baby-recognize-me/\">faces are a useful shape to recognise</a>. A few false positives are a worthwhile trade-off for such a powerful feature.</p>\n\n<p>Mistakenly seeing faces where there are none is a phenomenon called <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareidolia\">pareidolia</a>. If you've ever used facial recognition on a computer, you'll know that <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2014/06/pareidolia-and-computer-vision/\">machines also suffer from it</a>.</p>\n\n<p>I was using an AI tool to scan all my photos. I wanted it to recognise all the human faces so that I could tag my photos with my friends' names. One of the photos it presented for tagging was this:</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/lovelace-and-babbage.webp\" alt=\"A photograph containing a painting of Ada Lovelace and a bust of Charles Babbage.\" width=\"512\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61329\">\n\n<p>Are those faces? Undoubtedly yes! Is this a mistake that a human would have made? Absolutely not!</p>\n\n<p>But the above is a mistake generated by Machine Learning, not by Our-Lord-And-Saviour Large Language Models. Surely a language model doesn't suffer from this?</p>\n\n<p>Because <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/01/google-has-no-faith-in-its-ability-to-launch-new-products/\">Google has no faith in its ability to launch new products</a>, it has forcibly shoved AI into all of its services. There's no way to turn it off. You <em>will</em> use Gemini and you <em>will</em> like it.</p>\n\n<p>At the time of writing, here's what happens if you ask Google \"How many i's in teamwork?\"</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/teamwork.webp\" alt=\"Google replying \"The word teamwork contains the letter i one time\".\" width=\"1008\" height=\"737\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61330\">\n\n<p>It's easy to see how Google's LLM has gotten this so catastrophically wrong. There are dozens of articles where some business guru ineffectually tries to argue that <a href=\"https://www.cam.ac.uk/research/features/fact-there-is-an-i-in-team\">there <em>is</em> an \"I\" in team actually</a>. So the statistical model inside the LLM gives weight to that.</p>\n\n<p>Similarly, there are lots of silly articles proclaiming that <a href=\"https://careerpunk.com/team-player/\">the I in team is in the A-hole</a>. But LLMs do not understand satire:</p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"bluesky-embed\" data-bluesky-uri=\"at://did:plc:k7xouwluizlonrdxeo5obppi/app.bsky.feed.post/3lr7odyhz7c2d\" data-bluesky-cid=\"bafyreiaproxts5p2uzp4fhycdu3qcotcvqkz4l6ynbmlmt7ls4tbf47ap4\"><p lang=\"en\">Google and Meta search both report that Cape Breton Island has its own time zone 12 minutes ahead of mainland Nova Scotia time because they are both drawing that information from a Beaverton article I wrote in 2024</p>— <a href=\"https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:k7xouwluizlonrdxeo5obppi?ref_src=embed\">Janel Comeau <img src=\"https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.1.0/72x72/1f341.png\" alt=\"🍁\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" /> (@verybadllama.bsky.social)</a> <a href=\"https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:k7xouwluizlonrdxeo5obppi/post/3lr7odyhz7c2d?ref_src=embed\">2025-06-10T00:50:07.217Z</a></blockquote>\n\n<script async=\"\" src=\"https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>\n\n<p>LLMs are hardwired to regurgitate text which statistically matches what they've seen before. Their makers believe that a few false-positives are an acceptable error rate for such a useful feature. The LLM form of pareidolia is to recognise text as being syntactically and linguistically correct, even though the contents are rubbish. This is an inherent feature of LLMs. No amount of manually tweaking their parameters or prompts can fix this.</p>\n\n<p>At the moment, Artificial Intelligence - whether Machine Learning or Large Language Models - only works well on a narrowly defined set of tasks and with humans checking the output.</p>\n\n<p>Imagine you've just hired an intern. They've graduated top of their class from the best university and, apparently, excel at what they do. Because you're the boss and they're the intern, you ask them to make you a mug of tea. White, no sugar.</p>\n\n<p>They return with the teabag still in the mug. OK, not everyone knows the intricacies of how to serve tea.</p>\n\n<p>The tea tastes funny. You ask them if they sniffed the milk. \"Milk? I used Tipp-Ex to make it white!\"</p>\n\n<p>At which point, after throwing up, you throw them out.</p>\n\n<p>Most people encountering Gemini's repeated and unacceptable failures will decide, perhaps rightly, that AI isn't even close to good enough yet.</p>\n</body></html>",
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{
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"categories": [
{
"label": "/etc/",
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"label": "AI",
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"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog"
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{
"label": "LLM",
"term": "LLM",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog"
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{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61151",
"title": "Book Review: The Secret World of Denisovans: The Epic Story of the Ancient Cousins to Sapiens and Neanderthals by Silvana Condemi ★★★☆☆",
"description": "This is a decidedly odd book. Was there a \"secret\" hominid that the world overlooked? While the Neanderthals get all the limelight, perhaps there was another lost species of human lurking in the background. The science seems settled - yes there was - so this book tells us how scientists reached that conclusion. Except, it isn't really clear who this book is aimed at. Part of it is very casually…",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-the-secret-world-of-denisovans-the-epic-story-of-the-ancient-cousins-to-sapiens-and-neanderthals-by-silvana-condemi/",
"published": "2025-06-10T11:34:50.000Z",
"updated": "2025-06-08T19:21:43.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p><img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/9798893030709.jpg\" alt=\"Book cover with hominid skulls.\" width=\"267\" height=\"400\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-61152\">This is a decidedly odd book. Was there a \"secret\" hominid that the world overlooked? While the Neanderthals get all the limelight, perhaps there was another lost species of human lurking in the background. The science seems settled - yes there was - so this book tells us how scientists reached that conclusion.</p>\n\n<p>Except, it isn't really clear who this book is aimed at. Part of it is very casually written - a hint of pop science and a healthy dollop of the personal lives of the scientists. The other part is a rather dense and unforgiving science book which is slightly beyond casual readers like me.</p>\n\n<p>I was suddenly bombarded with sentences about the \"tiny epiphysis (tip) of the distal phalanx\" and how \"the famous Denisova 3, was found in a stratigraphic position\" and that \"Exogenous DNA comes from the numerous necrophagous organisms that attack the remains after death.\"</p>\n\n<p>There's very little ramp-up to the science and it suffers from the \"<a href=\"https://xkcd.com/2501/\">Average Familiarity Fallacy</a>\" that non-experts have a working understand of the intricacies of a complex field.</p>\n\n<p>It <em>is</em> interesting, and parts of it are downright fascinating:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>The team of researchers found that the site’s hunter-gatherers cooked giant carp of up to 6.5 feet (2 m) long, which they caught in a nearby lake. Several burnt flint microartifacts suggest they made fires. In the same layers as the burnt flints, the researchers collected around 40,000 pharyngeal teeth, carp teeth that are found at the bottom of their mouths. These teeth are all that remain of the carp, as heat softens the cartilaginous bones of fish and eradicates the possibility of their preservation. The discovery of these teeth suggests the fish were cooked at a controlled temperature rather than being grilled.</p>\n\n<p>Even if we don’t know how the occupants of GBY made their fires, we do know that they stewed fish. Using X-ray diffraction, researchers established that the thermal expansion of the nanocrystals that make up the tooth enamel suggests their exposure to low to moderate heat: specifically, lower than 932°F (500°C), whereas a wood fire produces temperatures of between 1,472°F and 1,832°F (800°C and 1,000°C). It’s likely that prehistoric people cooked carp <i lang=\"fr\">en papillote</i>, probably by burying them near their fires after wrapping them in giant water lily leaves collected from the nearby lake.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>I mean! Wow! That's some brilliant detective work.</p>\n\n<p>Sadly, there is quite a lot of dusty old bones to wade through before you hit the good stuff. In the end, I found myself confused as to how different Neanderthals and Denisovans actually were.</p>\n\n<p>The (pre-release) copy of the eBook commits the error of relegating all the images to the back. Several paragraphs are crying out for immediately viewable illustrations to help make sense of the text.</p>\n\n<p>If you have a reasonable familiarity with palaeontology you'll probably enjoy this greatly - but it is a little too taxing for those of us with less evolved brains.</p>\n\n<p>Many thanks to <a href=\"https://www.netgalley.com/\">NetGalley</a> for the review copy.</p>\n</body></html>",
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{
"label": "Book Review",
"term": "Book Review",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog"
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{
"label": "NetGalley",
"term": "NetGalley",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog"
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{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=61234",
"title": "Gadget Review: Treedix USB Cable Tester ★★★★☆",
"description": "Cables aren't just copper wire and plastic sheath any more. Modern USB-C cables contain little microchips called eMarkers which allow them to transfer data and power at terrifying speeds. But, sadly, there's no way you can look at a USB-C cable and see whether it supports the baffling array of features available. Enter the catchily-named Treedix TRX5-0816-AC. It will test just about any sort of …",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/",
"published": "2025-06-09T11:34:01.000Z",
"updated": "2025-06-10T12:28:43.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p>Cables aren't just copper wire and plastic sheath any more. Modern USB-C cables contain <a href=\"https://hackaday.com/2023/01/04/all-about-usb-c-resistors-and-emarkers/\">little microchips called eMarkers</a> which allow them to transfer data and power at terrifying speeds. But, sadly, there's no way you can look at a USB-C cable and see whether it supports the <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB-C#Cable_types\">baffling array of features</a> available.</p>\n\n<p>Enter the catchily-named <a href=\"https://treedix.com/products/treedix-usb-cable-tester-usb-c-cable-tester-usb-tester-for-data-transmission-and-power-transmission-cable-testing-resistor-testing-type-c-emarker-for-usb-a-micro-b-micro-b-3-0-type-c-lighting-mini-b\">Treedix TRX5-0816-AC</a>.</p>\n\n<p>It will test just about <em>any</em> sort of USB cable and tell you what it does - and doesn't - support. It will also show you which pins are connected, how fast it can transmit data, and what the eMarker shows. Nice!</p>\n\n<p>Let's put it through its paces.</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"inputs-and-outputs\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#inputs-and-outputs\" class=\"heading-link\">Inputs and outputs</a></h2>\n\n<p>On one side are your output ports - you have a choice of USB-C or USB-A 3.0.\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Input-ports.webp\" alt=\"A USB-A and C port.\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61249\"></p>\n\n<p>At the bottom you have this range of ports to choose from:</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/ports.webp\" alt=\"Lightning, mini USB, USB-C, micro superspeed, mico ports.\" width=\"1024\" height=\"301\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61250\">\n\n<p>So you can go A-C, C-micro, C-lightning etc.</p>\n\n<p>Finally, on the other side you have a button, a switch, and input power:</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Power-and-buttons.webp\" alt=\"Power and buttons.\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61251\">\n\n<p>The power switch toggles between the internal AAA battery (included) and a 5V supply from a USB-C cable (not included). Pressing the white button moves between the different diagnostic screens.</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"power-only\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#power-only\" class=\"heading-link\">Power Only</a></h2>\n\n<p>I tried with a short USB-C power-only cable designed for charging low-power devices. I plugged in the USB-A end and the USB-C end.</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/A-to-C-power-only.webp\" alt=\"A to C power only.\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61238\">\n\n<p>It correctly identified that it couldn't do data transmission.</p>\n\n<p>With a power-only USB-C cable, it had much the same display. Pressing the button on the side of the Treedix told me what it knew about the eMarker.</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/No-emarker-chip-detected.webp\" alt=\"No emarker chip detected.\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61239\">\n\n<p>Perfect!</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"passive-usb-c\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#passive-usb-c\" class=\"heading-link\">Passive USB-C</a></h2>\n\n<p>What about a data and power USB-C cable? This is the <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2023/08/chubbycable-usb-c-review/\">ChubbyCable I reviewed a few years ago.</a></p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Passive-USB-C-cable.webp\" alt=\"Passive USB-C cable.\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61240\">\n\n<p>USB 3.2 Gen2 and power of up to 100W. It has also correctly guessed the likely length of the cable by measuring the latency.</p>\n\n<p>Interestingly, when looking at the basic functions, it says it can only do USB 2.0 speeds and correctly identifies that it doesn't do PowerDelivery 3.1 (which goes up to 240W).</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/USB-C-data-transmission.webp\" alt=\"USB-C data transmission.\" width=\"2676\" height=\"2007\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61241\">\n\n<p>Finally, which pins are connected?</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/USB-C-connected-pins.webp\" alt=\"USB-C connected pins.\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61242\">\n\n<p>That looks about right!</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"thunderbolt-4-or-3\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#thunderbolt-4-or-3\" class=\"heading-link\">ThunderBolt 4 or 3?</a></h2>\n\n<p>Let's compare two high-performance cables. The one I usually have plugged into my <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2024/06/review-framework-16-laptop/\">Framework Laptop</a> and <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2023/08/gadget-review-mokin-usb-c-docking-station-linux-information/\">USB-C hub</a></p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/TBT4.webp\" alt=\"ThunderBolt 4.\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61243\">\n\n<p>Thunderbolt 4 capable of 100W of Power and 40 Gbps of data. As expected, no PD3.1:</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/No-PD-3.1.webp\" alt=\"Screen showing results.\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61244\">\n\n<p>Let's test a different high-quality cable I bought recently. The labelling claims 20Gbps and 240W of power. We can see that it does have PD3.1:</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/PD3.1.webp\" alt=\"PD3.1\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61245\">\n\n<p>But! Looking at the eMarker, it reports that is only a ThunderBolt 3 device capable of 10Gbps!</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/10Gbps.webp\" alt=\"10Gbps USB 3.2 Gen2.\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61247\">\n\n<p>I asked the cable manufacturer if that's a problem with the cable or the eMarker or the diagnostic machine. They said:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>eMarker tester can only show single channel transmission rate 10Gbps, devices supporting dual channel can show 20Gbps. our products have 18 months warranty, if there is any problem, please feel free to contact me, I will provide you with satisfactory after-sales service.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>I contacted Treedix to see if they could shed light on this. They replied quickly:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>Yes, we sincerely apologize - this tester currently does not support dual-channel detection at this time.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>Which is a bit annoying.</p>\n\n<p>Of course, my laptop only supports 10Gbps, so it is a bit moot!</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"firmware\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#firmware\" class=\"heading-link\">Firmware</a></h2>\n\n<p><ins datetime=\"2025-06-10T12:25:20+00:00\">Update!</ins></p>\n\n<p>I emailed Treedix about possible firmware updates - they said:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>Our devices with firmware version V2.3 and above can be updated. Currently the latest version is V2.3. you can see your version number. The way to view it is the boot page will show the version number. In addition, our test boards cannot be updated to test dual channels at this time. Because this is the information written inside the EMARKER, we can only read the information inside. We are currently working on the data inside the information we read to see if we can read the number of channels.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>Mine shows a firmware of 2.3.04 - which does appear to be the latest. If a new firmware appears, I'll update this post again.</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"weird-cables\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#weird-cables\" class=\"heading-link\">Weird Cables</a></h2>\n\n<p>As well as your standard USB-C, it will also do the <em>ugliest</em> plug known the mankind - the USB Micro-B SuperSpeed.</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Micro-B-SS-pins.webp\" alt=\"Micro B pins connected.\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-61248\">\n\n<p>It'll also do Lightning cables - as long as they also have a USB-A or C end.</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"downsides\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#downsides\" class=\"heading-link\">Downsides</a></h2>\n\n<p>Other than having to replace all your duff cables, there are a few annoying little niggles.</p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>The battery compartment is <em>really</em> stiff. I had to unscrew the back of the device to get it open.</li>\n<li>The power switch feels a little flimsy.</li>\n<li>The function button is a little small and fiddly.</li>\n<li>Screen brightness can't be changed (but it is pretty bright).</li>\n<li>No USB-B (the chunky one often used for printers).</li>\n<li>Lack of dual-channel detection.</li>\n<li><del datetime=\"2025-06-10T12:25:20+00:00\">No firmware updates.</del></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>Those are all minor complaints.</p>\n\n<p>The biggest complaint is that USB-C terminology is <em>hard</em>. Which is better, 40Gbps but only 100W or 10Gbps but 240W? How does ThunderBolt relate to USB? What is EPR and why does it matter? Where does DP Alt Mode fit in?!</p>\n\n<h2 id=\"verdict\"><a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/gadget-review-treedix-usb-cable-tester/#verdict\" class=\"heading-link\">Verdict</a></h2>\n\n<p>It powers up and detects all features instantly. It goes to sleep after a few minutes of not being used. It will even show you the electrical resistance of the cable if you think that's useful.</p>\n\n<p>Total cost? <a href=\"https://amzn.to/44eJ7YL\">£40 at the moment from Amazon</a>. I reckon that's a bargain. It is an indispensable piece of kit - especially if you have a big box of ancient USB cables. This will allow you to quickly and easily see which ones are broken, which are mislabelled, and which deserve pride of place in your collection.</p>\n\n<p>If you're running a hackspace, this is a no-brainer. If you've ever wasted time trying to diagnose a USB problem, this should be your first port of call.</p>\n</body></html>",
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{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=55363",
"title": "Open Data Man - how open is too open?",
"description": "Open Data is dear to my heart. It is the idea that raw data should be public published, free of restrictions, and in a form that is most usable for others. When people talk about Open Data, they usually mean \"Data that has been paid for by tax-payers\" - often data created or collected by Government agencies. But it also extends to the data used by researchers, scientists, economists and any…",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/open-data-man-how-open-is-too-open/",
"published": "2025-06-08T11:34:41.000Z",
"updated": "2025-05-31T20:46:08.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p>Open Data is dear to my heart. It is the idea that raw data should be public published, free of restrictions, and in a form that is most usable for others.</p>\n\n<p>When people talk about Open Data, they usually mean \"Data that has been paid for by tax-payers\" - often data created or collected by Government agencies. But it also extends to the data used by researchers, scientists, <a href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2013/04/16/is-the-best-evidence-for-austerity-based-on-an-excel-spreadsheet-error/\">economists</a> and any other organisation which wants us to take them seriously. Some private companies also release Open Data - knowing that a level playing-field is good for ecosystem health.</p>\n\n<p>What about individuals? Is it sensible, desirable, or useful for us to release our <em>personal</em> data as Open Data?</p>\n\n<p>Last year, at <a href=\"https://www.odcamp.uk/\">Open Data Camp</a> I ran a session about what data I release and what the implications are for my personal safety, security, and mental well-being.</p>\n\n<p>First, for the hard-of-thinking, I am not suggesting you do anything you don't want. I'm also in no position to compel you to do anything. If you don't like my ideas, close the tab and write something better.</p>\n\n<p>Right, still here? OK.</p>\n\n<p>We all leave little trails of data with every online interaction. Yes, I know you use a VPN, and TOR, and Incognito mode - but those are all still part of a digital footprint. Here I'm mostly concerned with the <em>intentional</em> release of data.</p>\n\n<p>Most of the data we intentionally release is highly curated. You post about your new job on LinkedIn - but you don't mention the 50 rejections leading up to it. Your online restaurant reviews make it sound like you only go to fancy joints with cool lighting and ethical menus - you don't post about the shameful 3am kebab from that dodgy van.</p>\n\n<p>If you're using FourSquare or similar services, you're deliberately releasing a log of where you've been and at what time you were there. Even if you post a photo of a gig the day after it happened, it's trivial to locate you at that moment.</p>\n\n<p>Some people are very open with their intimate medical data. I'm not. I haven't released a <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2024/06/3d-printing-my-teeth/\">3D model of my teeth</a> - perhaps out of fear someone will use it to bite other people. Similarly, I haven't released my MRI scans just in case someone clones my brain.</p>\n\n<p>So what about raw data?</p>\n\n<p>I release <a href=\"https://gitlab.com/edent/solar-data/-/blob/main/README.md\">my home's Solar Generation Statistics</a> as raw & open data. They're useful enough to be <a href=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/citations/#a-year-of-solar-panels-open-data-2014\">cited in several academic papers</a>.</p>\n\n<p>I release my energy consumption (at 30 minute granularity) to <a href=\"https://www.livinglab.energy/home\">The Living Lab</a> so they can build up a model of how normal people use electricity and gas. I trust them not to abuse it, but I'm cognisant they can see when I'm away or when I'm cooking. Do I want <em>you</em> to know that as well?</p>\n\n<p>The discussion we held was wide ranging. Some people want the world to know about them and their problems, others value their privacy. It's an individual choice. It is a discussion you should have with those around you - especially if they're leaking your data.</p>\n\n<p>I am indebted to the wonderful <a href=\"https://drawnalism.com/\">Drawnalism</a> rendering me in the style of <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitruvian_Man\">da Vinci's Vitruvian Man</a>.</p>\n\n<img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Open-Data-Man.webp\" alt=\"Caricature of Terence as the Vitruvian Man spewing open data.\" width=\"3840\" height=\"2160\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-55364\">\n\n<p>You can <a href=\"https://www.odcamp.uk/open-data-man/\">read the full write-up of the session</a> on the Open Data Camp blog.</p>\n</body></html>",
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{
"id": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/?p=59389",
"title": "Book Review: Intimacy by Ita O'Brien ★★★☆☆",
"description": "This is a complicated book to review. There are several distinct strands to it, although they intermingle freely creating a confusing and disjointed thesis. Ita O'Brien, it is fair to say, invented the role of \"Intimacy Co-ordinator\" on film and TV sets. You wouldn't expect an director to just shout \"fight\" at a pair of actors and expect them to know how to safely perform a complex action…",
"url": "https://shkspr.mobi/blog/2025/06/book-review-intimacy-by-ita-obrien/",
"published": "2025-06-07T11:34:52.000Z",
"updated": "2025-05-03T16:03:59.000Z",
"content": "<html><head></head><body><p><img src=\"https://shkspr.mobi/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/9781529954036.jpg\" alt=\"Book cover.\" width=\"200\" height=\"320\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-59391\">This is a complicated book to review. There are several distinct strands to it, although they intermingle freely creating a confusing and disjointed thesis.</p>\n\n<p>Ita O'Brien, it is fair to say, invented the role of \"Intimacy Co-ordinator\" on film and TV sets. You wouldn't expect an director to just shout \"fight\" at a pair of actors and expect them to know how to <em>safely</em> perform a complex action scene, would you? Fights need to be choreographed, the crew need to behave in a way that minimises the risk of harm to others, actors have to feel safe. Why should sex scenes be any different?</p>\n\n<p>This is the strongest part of the book. It explains <em>why</em> Intimacy Co-ordination is necessary and how it is used to improve a show. At times it veers a <em>little</em> into a sale-pitch for her work, but it is balanced with just the right amount of celebrity name-dropping and impassioned reasoning to keep it interesting.</p>\n\n<p>There are some brilliantly crafted exercises which are used to help actors feel comfortable working with each other. Working professionals need to be able to express clear boundaries to each other. Communication is key, but it relies on being able to be honest with each other. As O'Brien puts it:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>being able to state your ‘no’, means that your ‘yes’ can be trusted.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>The author takes great pains to tell us that she's <em>not</em> a sex therapist, yet a large part of the book is taken up with how non-actors can improve their intimacy with their lovers. Some of our modern hang-ups, she asserts, are directly a result of unrealistic expectations hammered home by the entertainment industry:</p>\n\n<blockquote><p>A couple meet and then it cuts to a sex scene, as if their physical relationship is separate from every other aspect of their lives. We’ve become accustomed to seeing portrayals of sex that are robotic, athletic, gratuitous. It’s rare to see the kind of relationships we’ve all experienced in real life: an expression of connection that is clumsy, awkward, funny and – hopefully – ultimately satisfying.</p></blockquote>\n\n<p>Again, this is all important and interesting stuff. But then things go a bit off the rails.</p>\n\n<p>Lots of the exercises she presents for non-actors are simply about stretching and general body-work. Her background in <a href=\"https://doi.org/10.1080/19443927.2011.651536\">Movement Studies</a> dominates the page. I understand that being in touch with your physicality is a necessary part of exploring your sexual boundaries, but it feels like it overly focuses on one aspect of self-comfort.</p>\n\n<p>Anyone who has worked with actors know that they're a weird and superstitious bunch. Visualisation techniques often ask you to imagine you're a tree, or that a bright light is shining out of you, or that you have extra-sensory perception. If you're not an actor, being thrown in to some of these routines can feel alienating and jarring. You thought you were here to get intimate? No! Pretend you have energy lines flowing through you!</p>\n\n<p>Sadly, it all goes a bit \"woo\". There's nonsense about chakras, homeopathy, \"how overtones have the power to affect consciousness and the cellular level\", and pseudoscientific claptrap about walking barefoot so the \"electrons transfer to your body, neutralising the positively charged free radicals\".</p>\n\n<p>I felt that it undermined the seriousness of her work. And it <em>is</em> serious. People working in the entertainment industry need to be protected from harm. People in relationships need to find ways to be free and intimate with each other.</p>\n\n<p>There's a lot of great stuff in here, but you'll need to assert your boundaries and skip past the bits which aren't appropriate for you.</p>\n</body></html>",
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