Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[Specmaster]

Ahh yes the wanton disrespect of RFC email addresses across the internet buggers that up. I do a Cerebus and I’ve got an email alias for each account I create. It’s all in keepass so I don’t give a crap . I use the last 8 characters from a GUID for each one. Not automated as it wasn’t worth it.

Still trying to not buy an IC-7300. Come on people you are enablers. Do your jobs!

I like the IC-7300 a nice SDR with a brilliant display and is fully customisable, go on you know you want it don't you so what are you waiting for..... 

There you go, I sorted it for you 

[Specmaster]

(Attachment Link)

Wow, are they Philips handheld DMMs in the background?

[Specmaster]

I have washed it with windows cleaning fluid 
the both bulbs are interesting

I think that those bulbs might be part of a feedback circuit, I remember reading about bulbs being used for purpose somewhere.

[Mr. Scram]

I have washed it with windows cleaning fluid 
the both bulbs are interesting

Any special procedure?

[Mr. Scram]

The flip side to that scheme is that it's relatively easy to guess what the 'add part' is and so if a malicious party has obtained a legitimate 'base part' it's trivial for them to automate trying alternative 'add parts' on the most lucrative targets to find a valid combination by brute force. The random user part is impractical to brute force (the scheme I use has ~ 44 bits of entropy) but requires you to have access to a mail server where you can add as many user parts as you like to an email domain without (significant) additional costs to oneself.

Although all the above is true, I don't regard it as a significant weakness in your scheme. I tend myself to regard the random email address as 'security by obscurity' and really use it for the purposes of 'traitor tracing'. It's having a unique, random password per site that gives me some comfort. As you say, broken implementations that don't follow RFC822 et seq are the pain point for your scheme, and they are, from experience, so common that it's a serious drawback.

I've abused the catch all functionality before to generate as many unique addresses as is needed without having actual mailboxes or even aliases attached to them. It saves a bit of work and you can use cheaper hosting schemes if you don't run a mailserver yourself.

[tggzzz]

The flip side to that scheme is that it's relatively easy to guess what the 'add part' is and so if a malicious party has obtained a legitimate 'base part' it's trivial for them to automate trying alternative 'add parts' on the most lucrative targets to find a valid combination by brute force. The random user part is impractical to brute force (the scheme I use has ~ 44 bits of entropy) but requires you to have access to a mail server where you can add as many user parts as you like to an email domain without (significant) additional costs to oneself.

Although all the above is true, I don't regard it as a significant weakness in your scheme. I tend myself to regard the random email address as 'security by obscurity' and really use it for the purposes of 'traitor tracing'. It's having a unique, random password per site that gives me some comfort. As you say, broken implementations that don't follow RFC822 et seq are the pain point for your scheme, and they are, from experience, so common that it's a serious drawback.

I've abused the catch all functionality before to generate as many unique addresses as is needed without having actual mailboxes or even aliases attached to them. It saves a bit of work and you can use cheaper hosting schemes if you don't run a mailserver yourself.

What catch all functionality? Can you expand a bit, please, since you hint at something which might be easy and general purpose.

[bd139]

Probably any unmatched local-parts go to one mail box. You can do it with virtual_alias_maps in postfix. I don't like that because you can't nuke individual aliases when you've had enough of receiving crap from them

I no longer run any mail servers. Horrible horrible job with the big players thinking you're shit, DKIM, DMARC configs etc. Using Fastmail. Not sure if it does that. I haven't checked.

[bd139]

Ahh yes the wanton disrespect of RFC email addresses across the internet buggers that up. I do a Cerebus and I’ve got an email alias for each account I create. It’s all in keepass so I don’t give a crap . I use the last 8 characters from a GUID for each one. Not automated as it wasn’t worth it.

Still trying to not buy an IC-7300. Come on people you are enablers. Do your jobs!

I like the IC-7300 a nice SDR with a brilliant display and is fully customisable, go on you know you want it don't you so what are you waiting for..... 

There you go, I sorted it for you 

That's what I like to hear! Taking some deep breaths and a run up. ML&S have some in stock 

[Mr. Scram]

What catch all functionality? Can you expand a bit, please, since you hint at something which might be easy and general purpose.

What bd139 says. You can set an address to receive all mail without a valid mailbox address on that domain. So you can supply a party with a random non-existing address and it will arrive in the catch all mailbox. Most hosting services allow this. You'll still be able to see to which address it was sent so catching a rat is no problem. This method allows you to pull an address out of your nether parts and use it without configuring anything specifically for that address. It works by default.

I guess not being able to block specific parties is a drawback but I guess you could use something like mail rules to mitigate that. Or you could always create a proper mailbox to catch any mail going to the offending address when things go awry after the fact. It's all pros and cons.

[Specmaster]

Ahh yes the wanton disrespect of RFC email addresses across the internet buggers that up. I do a Cerebus and I’ve got an email alias for each account I create. It’s all in keepass so I don’t give a crap . I use the last 8 characters from a GUID for each one. Not automated as it wasn’t worth it.

Still trying to not buy an IC-7300. Come on people you are enablers. Do your jobs!

I like the IC-7300 a nice SDR with a brilliant display and is fully customisable, go on you know you want it don't you so what are you waiting for..... 

There you go, I sorted it for you 

That's what I like to hear! Taking some deep breaths and a run up. ML&S have some in stock 

Its also quite small by the look of it, ideal for your little bench, assuming thats where you'll put it

[bd139]

Yeah it is. Have had to put it off for a couple of days. Just found the sodding fridge has conked out . Literally 2 hours after a week of shopping arrived FFS.

[mnementh]

I have washed it with windows cleaning fluid 
the both bulbs are interesting

I think that those bulbs might be part of a feedback circuit, I remember reading about bulbs being used for purpose somewhere.

ALC as rendered by HP's original 200A oscillator, I'll wager.

mnem
*dwagon on the loose in the Great White North*

[Cerebus]

Yeah it is. Have had to put it off for a couple of days. Just found the sodding fridge has conked out . Literally 2 hours after a week of shopping arrived FFS.

Hmm, you seem to have the knack for domestic appliances dying on your watch. However, I won't taunt you like I did with my menus of roast and baked things when your oven went west. I'll just grab a cold beer, lean back and watch everybody else taunt you...

[Mr. Scram]

Yeah it is. Have had to put it off for a couple of days. Just found the sodding fridge has conked out . Literally 2 hours after a week of shopping arrived FFS.

Could be worse. You could have found out tomorrow.

[Carl_Smith]

So there is a site called https://haveibeenpwned.com/ where you can enter your email adddresses and it will tell you if they have appeared in any data breaches.

But it has another useful feature if you are not of the type to generate unique passwords for every site.  If you choose to trust the site, click the "passwords" link at the top, and enter your passwords, and it will tell you if they have been seen in any of the data breaches.

Why does this matter?  The hackers hoover up all those passwords and put them at the top of the list, ordered by how common they are, when they brute force crack logins with a dictionary attack.  So if you or anyone else has lost your passwords in a data breach your account will be cracked much faster if someone actually makes an attempt.

[bd139]

I have washed it with windows cleaning fluid 
the both bulbs are interesting

I think that those bulbs might be part of a feedback circuit, I remember reading about bulbs being used for purpose somewhere.

ALC as rendered by HP's original 200A oscillator, I'll wager.

mnem
*dwagon on the loose in the Great White North*

That be correct. I build those occasionally using opamps. They're pretty good. It's possible with a not too shoddy opamp to get a remarkably good sine out. Heathkit also featured the same feedback mechanism in the ET-3100 trainer which actually had a better signal generator than some function generators on the market!





Only problem is they take time to settle, age poorly and usually require manual trimming. Thus they are replaced with a JFET as a variable resistor driven from a peak detector on the output now.

I noticed a design in AoE 3e which was quite interesting. They used a crap square oscillator running at 10x the frequency desired and rammed it through a switched capacitor filter. Very neat. I might build one.

Yeah it is. Have had to put it off for a couple of days. Just found the sodding fridge has conked out . Literally 2 hours after a week of shopping arrived FFS.

Hmm, you seem to have the knack for domestic appliances dying on your watch. However, I won't taunt you like I did with my menus of roast and baked things when your oven went west. I'll just grab a cold beer, lean back and watch everybody else taunt you...

Hahaha I'd completely forgotten about that disaster 

Yeah it is. Have had to put it off for a couple of days. Just found the sodding fridge has conked out . Literally 2 hours after a week of shopping arrived FFS.

Could be worse. You could have found out tomorrow.

Indeed. Turns out most of the stuff didn't need to be refrigerated that was in there. I'll stick the meaty things in the freezer (fortunately separate) and deal with it tomorrow!

[Sam Spastic]

Glad to see another Firefox user. Chrome is such an asshole of a browser.

Long-time Firefox user here, too. I have other browsers installed for testing, etc., but FF is my daily driver.

My browser history: NCSA Mosaic > Netscape Navigator > Netscape Communicator > Mozilla Application Suite/SeaMonkey > Mozilla Firefox

I also used Waterfox for a couple of years during the Quantum/extensions fiasco so I could keep using existing add-ons.

Same here - except dual-based with IE. One can say many things against MS and IE, but their Favorites storage is transparent and stable over the versions. Came also from Netscape to Mozilla.

Running TenFourFox here.(PowerPC) Have about 50 tabs open to the evilBay.
Also started with Mosaic. (Amiga computer)

[VK5RC]

@bd bugger re the fridge, re the sdr, I had the 7300 and was pretty happy with it, but got the 7610  -  I think well worth the extra money - I sold the 7300.
Both good radios really - the man made noise is the big problem here - a -'big' (about 40m perimeter) horizontal loop at about 10m height with ladder feedline - 4:1 balun then atu SGC 230 works the best at my place.
de Rob
VK5RC

[tggzzz]

Yeah it is. Have had to put it off for a couple of days. Just found the sodding fridge has conked out . Literally 2 hours after a week of shopping arrived FFS.

My fridge is >30 years old, as is my dishwasher. I've had them from new. No, they weren't particularly expensive examples.
My freezer is >25years old, and cost £10 second hand.
Car is 15years/0.11Mmiles old, gets serviced twice a decade whether it needs it or not.

So, WTF is going on under the flightpath into Heathrow? Alternatively, since I used Which?'s reports as the basis for most of those choices, I consider that subscription a bargain

[tggzzz]

I noticed a design in AoE 3e which was quite interesting. They used a crap square oscillator running at 10x the frequency desired and rammed it through a switched capacitor filter. Very neat. I might build one.

Or look at a DDS data sheet, which often has a 7th order elliptical filter on the output. Cuts the oversampling down significantly.

Oh, don't use X7R capacitors in the filter

Indeed. Turns out most of the stuff didn't need to be refrigerated that was in there. I'll stick the meaty things in the freezer (fortunately separate) and deal with it tomorrow!

Chill out (ho ho):

• think of game, where traditionally pheasant is ready when its body is found on the floor
• in a supermarket the decent steak has been aged for a month at ~10C - i.e. current outside temperatures
• this place http://meatboxbristol.co.uk/ ,where some of the (expensive) beef has been in the fridge since mid-August

[Specmaster]

Yeah it is. Have had to put it off for a couple of days. Just found the sodding fridge has conked out . Literally 2 hours after a week of shopping arrived FFS.

My fridge is >30 years old, as is my dishwasher. I've had them from new. No, they weren't particularly expensive examples.
My freezer is >25years old, and cost £10 second hand.
Car is 15years/0.11Mmiles old, gets serviced twice a decade whether it needs it or not.

Two things spring to mind here, yes of course appliances will typically last that long if you don't switch them on   

Seriously appliance were really made much better than they are today, back in the day when you brought those, even over engineered in some cases, barn door engineering is the phrase I think?

So, WTF is going on under the flightpath into Heathrow? Alternatively, since I used Which?'s reports as the basis for most of those choices, I consider that subscription a bargain

Do you still subscribe? If so and have done ever since you made those purchases then its possible that you might have over the years paid the différance once you get round to actually replacing them no?

[Specmaster]

@bd139, That's a real bummer but look on the Brightside, its also Black Friday this week, you might find a real bargain fridge. Start trawling the web looking the early bird deals, Amazon have emailing me with their earlybird deals because I'm a prime user, just got myself an Amazon Echo Plus with a £100 off for just £49.99, now to look for compatible gear that I can remotely control via it and then I can be a proper coach potato 

[mnementh]

Mmmmhmmm... and have your WiFi credentials cyclically broadcast in plaintext by the front doorbell.  Fuck Amazon Echo and everything it does for to you.

mnem
I didn't do thaaaat...

[mnementh]

                  

Almost a workbench...

With the addition of my little "Fifteen Dollah" CV/CC PSU, my bench is now approaching something close to usefulness. The aluminum pipe-wrench is just because I stole it for $US5 while out thrifting.  The build went something like this: Find little panel regulator module on Amazon for $14; go thrifting for a power source. Turn up a large linear power brick rated at 24V/2A made by Ault for CAD$4; figure its probably good for considerably more given its heft. Tinker around with it on the bench; find the thing will happily drive 3.5A while only sagging from 28.8V to 25.5V on the input side, even running through the OEM overload thermistor. 

Take another trip thrifting looking for an enclosure (among other things on my list); look at everything from a little redwood gift box (later given to my wife) to a little PC subwoofer enclosure with a 3" sub in it. Find some desk lamps and a couple Harmony One remotes; give up & go look through the crafty wooden boxes at the Dollarama. Everything is either just a hair too small or way too big or just too kitschy even for me.  Then I find this little steel mesh thing for CAD$1.50. Sold!

My original intent was to put a bit of ply on the opening & paint it, then cut the panel meter into the bottom, turning that into the top. When I discovered that the panel mount just snapped into the top of the thing, everything else just fell into place and I realized KISS was the way to go here. Fastened the XFMR to the inside using a bit of bent rubberized coathanger, did up the wiring in 16ga silicone wires from my RC modeling parts box, then added a fan robbed from an old IPTV box and it was up & running.

I can get 26V at 1A; max looks to be 24V@3.5A-ish. Fan control output is 12V; it appears to be hardcoded to switch on at 2.01A CC mode, no PWM. Not sure if there's any thermal control or not.

Still... a good little piece pf kit for CAD$19.50/US$15; now I just need to get something to look at (and generate) wiggly lines in a wire and I might stop feeling like I'm back at my high-school electronics bench. 

I'll let y'all know how I fare with the component tester once I have some assortment of components to test with it... 

mnem
*goes to lie down before he falls down*

[AVGresponding]

You know mnem has gone over the edge when he starts dressing his PSU in fishnet stockings...