FlashFloppy is indeed excellent (same author as GreaseWeazle).
While archived, his version could be different than the archived ones. Or could contain modifications done by him. Or could be the only surviving pristine copy never written to by the user (raw flux dump can typically identify this).
If in doubt, always `gw read whatever.scp` (using this extension automatically yields a raw flux image)
3.5" Floppies are either DD or HD. (there's more but let's keep it simple and practical)
A DD drive reads and writes DD floppies better than an HD one, but does not read/write HD floppies at all.
There's a hole in the floppy for write protection (hole covered = write enabled), and there's another hole on the opposite side to signal the floppy is HD. If it's missing, it is DD.
To recover a floppy, a USB drive is about the worst option, as they only expose a decoded floppy, and not the raw data, besides other annoyances.
You'll want a period correct HD FDD, or DD if your floppy is DD and your HD drive is having trouble with it, alongside GreaseWeazle[0].
As for that old 486, you'll want to open the case ASAP and remove the motherboard's CMOS battery, before it destroys the whole thing.
Capacitors aren't anywhere near a concern; most likely they're still fine, and will typically not destroy anything.
Only good until the device starts using a neighbor's LG TV as access point, without telling you, for the sole purpose of upgrading itself and sending this "telemetry".
An Apple airtag probably doesn't but it is apparently possible to send some data at a very low rate (the article in [1] says a few bits per hour) over the find my network [2]
Mesh network typically means… a network. Unidirectional, best-effort, randomized IDs are not a network.
And of course you can block the tracking yourself, even though nobody is actually tracking because Apple can’t tell who owns what ID. Just turn off find my on your device.
They definitely meet the definition for a network. there is no requirement for determinism, bi-directional communication, etc. at least in the definitions I see for the word.
and turning it off on your device doesn’t actually block the info being communicated, merely the association where you can see it. and hopefully on their backend, but there is no technical requirement for it.
the whole point is everyone’s iphones forward airtag info for every airtag.
Fair point on the forwarding being non-disable-able. But I don’t see any privacy issue there. The forwarder provides observed obfuscated ID and location, which seems less fraught than even the signal strength metadata returned to cell towers.
I had misinterpreted “you can’t block the tracking” to mean of your own phone, rather than of devices that other people want tracked.
Yeah and my worry is, TVs like this can use sidewalk to connect to when they are not provided with internet access by the user (either but plugging into ethernet or connecting WiFi). Leaving the TV with an always-available exfiltration channel for it's espionage of the user's viewing habits.
This is a really bad thing for those of us who until now have just not connected our 'smart' shit to the internet.
Where I live in the EU they don't do sidewalk otherwise I'd have to look at ways to fight it (disassociate connections or DDoS the devices providing sidewalk routing)
They'll present them like that. Not my idea, but from [0].
0. https://www.novelupdates.com/series/accel-world/
reply