Re: Perl aids in protecting rights to access government information

Hmmm... The computers at my library are browser-centric. Users are locked into an Internet Explorer session.

It's a big world, so I'm sure not all libraries are configured as mine. However, if they were, how would these two run their own Perl script in such an environment?

Maybe those were special/dedicated computers? Certainly it seems the data access was restricted to patrons of selected libraries.

Comment on Re: Perl aids in protecting rights to access government information

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Re^2: Perl aids in protecting rights to access government information by Your Mother (Archbishop) on Apr 10, 2009 at 17:49 UTC
I don't know the specifics of how they did it, and this style of hacking is outside my skill set, but if a computer has any data port (e.g., USB) open and the box wasn't set-up by a systems/security expert which I doubt 1% of public computers are, you're plugging in what amounts to another computer and unplugging the target is an easy way to get it to reboot with a little "help." This is why you'll sometimes see servers / desktops locked with their ports covered or even filled in with glue. It's also why iPods (120Gb in your shirt pocket) and such are banned at some workplaces. There will be terabyte thumbdrives before you know it. Related: Portable.	[reply]

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Re^2: Perl aids in protecting rights to access government information
by Your Mother (Archbishop) on Apr 10, 2009 at 17:49 UTC

I don't know the specifics of how they did it, and this style of hacking is outside my skill set, but if a computer has any data port (e.g., USB) open and the box wasn't set-up by a systems/security expert which I doubt 1% of public computers are, you're plugging in what amounts to another computer and unplugging the target is an easy way to get it to reboot with a little "help." This is why you'll sometimes see servers / desktops locked with their ports covered or even filled in with glue. It's also why iPods (120Gb in your shirt pocket) and such are banned at some workplaces. There will be terabyte thumbdrives before you know it.

Related: Portable.

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