Category: Random

Quick link to google map locations

November 23rd, 2011 · · Random, Uncategorized No comments - Tags: , , , , ,

I came up against an interesting challenge today. How do you create a hyperlink that takes you to a google map page centered on your desired location?

Poking around in Google maps was proving to be frustrating as it has a preference to focus on ‘places’ that it knows about.

The simplest solution was to create a url in the form

maps.google.com/?q=[your location here]

You just replace [your location here] with your search or location string. For example:

This allows you to very quickly create individual links for many locations on a page based purely on the address they supplied.

Extremely useful if you want to link to maps of many businesses or organisations in a long list. Quick and easy!

Frustrating password policies

January 12th, 2011 · · Random, Uncategorized No comments

Complex password policies are stupid.

This is just my view on things, and I suspect I’m not the only one that thinks this way, but I should be free to choose whatever strength password I want. I am constantly frustrated by sites that force me to have a password of a given complexity. The example I came across this afternoon that fired me up enough to blog about it was the Australian Government’s GovDex (https://www.govdex.gov.au).

Your pasword on their site:

  • Must not be the same as your current password
  • Minimum length of 7 characters
  • Contain at least one uppercase character
  • Contain at least one numeric character

Now I would be ok if they made this as a suggestion. I may have also been OK with this is only one of them were required. But they are all required, and that makes it really annoying for me to pick a password. Shouldn’t I be the one to decide how secure I want my account to be? If I choose a simple password, surely that’s my perogative based on my interpretation of how importantly I need to protect my account?

Stepping back from the personal hardship here, doesn’t a restrictive list of criteria like this actually make a hackers job easier?

By taking these three required criteria:

  • Minimum length of 7 characters
  • Contain at least one uppercase character
  • Contain at least one numeric character

My password bot now has a set of rules that will make it more efficient at finding a valid password by brute force. I can skip all alphanumeric combinations 6 characters or less and I can set rules to always include at least one uppercase and one numeric character.

I may be completely wrong about the hacking thing though – I’m definitely not a hacker and have never made a bot more complex than an auto-reply for IRC.

However, on the real-side of password seurity, because I have to think up such an obscure password, I’m probably not going to remember it which means I’ll just end up either writing it down somewhere, or my preferred option – just resetting my password every time I need to access a site. ;)

Regardless of how I end up managing these sites, one thing would make them better – let me decide on my password policy. It’s my stuff, my information and my reputation on the line if someone hacks my account. Let me choose my own destiny.

Solar Energy Rebate – for who?

November 24th, 2008 · · Random No comments - Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

I’ve just bought my very first house. It’s all very exctining and like with any new toy, I’ve been out shopping for accessories. What better accessories for a house than some green or energy efficient additions.

So I went out looking at the Federal Government initiatives for solar panels. Now I know solar panels aren’t the greatest when it comes to their carbon footprint. I believe the quote goes something like “they’ll never create enough energy to replace the energy that went in to manufacturing them in the first place” but at the same time, they are helping and heck I think it’d be kinda cool.

So off I went searching for details on these rebates and the first thing that jammed in to my eye is the key eligibility criteria: you must earn less than $100,000 in your household.

OK – huh?

In Australia we currently have an insane housing market with a standard home costing $300,000 – 400,000. In order to get a home loan, you either need to have a pretty well paying job, or a couple of them, or have your nana drop dead and leave you a small fortune.

So you’ve saved and worked hard and you’ve finally bought your house. All your money is being poured in to the mortgage and you might have enough left over to eat, maybe even buy yourself some new pants.

Then the next question I have to ask is if you have managed to earn less than $100,000 a year, buy yourself a house and still manage to live, how are you going to able to afford to buy any solar panels? I mean, it’s only a rebate – you’ve still got to foot the bill yourself to start with.

What this has led me to though, is a money making scheme. Mobile homes. Caravans. Tents and shantys. These guys are all probably earning less than $100,000 a year, and using very little power. If you were to wander the alleys of your local caravan park and loan people the money to buy their own solar panels, even letting them keep the rebate for themselves, then signing them up to a contract whereby all revenue from the panels gets paid to you. They get free power and because so much excess power would be fed back in to the grid, you could make a fortune!

If anyone goes out and tried this idea, send me 5%. If you work in government on the solar panel rebate – please get them to reconsider the amount for the means test.