I've noticed a lot of the sites I hang out on are getting more an more vitriolic, there are lots of theories about why this is and I'd like to add the Internet Reaction Threshold to the mix.

Say someone posts a controversial video to YouTube. I like one by …

I know things like the Jargon File exist, but I'm having fun writing this.

There is a gif from Malcolm in the Middle that's been floating around the internet for years that explains Yak Shaving better than I ever could.

It's basically when you need a series of often trivial …

If you have spent much time hanging out on technical email lists or forums you might have come across the term "bikesheding" essentially it means to spend time talking about the little details which everyone has an opinion on and to some degree ignoring the important things.

It comes from …

This is basically a boy who cried wolf story.

I was recently on a road trip through Newfoundland in Canada, and as we were driving along. I was driving and I saw a sign that said construction ahead. Followed by a sign warning that the speed limit would soon change …

A little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing.

This will come as no surprise to professional cryptographers but it's a mistake that I see armature cryptographers make over and over again.

When you do crypto 101 you learn that one-time pad provides "Perfect Secrecy" and that it's provably secure …