Chaos Computer Club - archive feed

In 2009 a TED Talk by David Merrill showed small interactive tiles that talked to each other; an MIT “what if” project from their media lab. Little IoT devices that brought computers, toys and board game pieces together. In 2011(version one) and 2012 (version 2) a commercial version, Sifteo Cubes, was released, but I was unaware, thinking the dream prototype was just that, a dream not a reality. They passed me by… In 2014, the v2 software was open sourced - the inevitable precursor to failure - and the company bought by Drone/Robotics developer for the obvious design skills of the Sifteo team; they had, after all, reverse engineered and reapplied wireless keyboard controllers into one of the coolest toys ever! So, I came to them late. Too late. By 2015, the server the control software required, along with the online marketplace for the dozen or so games that were made, were long gone. The Sifteo cubes I’d just (re)discovered from a desperate eBay sale were now just useless, battery powered bricks. And they didn’t even click together! But I was stubborn. I wanted them to work. These little marvels of engineering and educational design. I had some of the software, a couple of the games, and none of the knowledge. Here’s how I managed to resurrect a legend, who I met, what some of them stole from me, and what I learned on the way about this event: https://c3voc.de

The most profound change in radio technology in 100 years is happening now. Radios are transforming from the spaghetti of mind-bogglingly complex electronics into simple (but very fast) digitisers, and all the hard work is being done in software. Hence the name Software Defined Radio (SDR). Gnu Radio is a simple entry point to the world of SDR, and allows you to quickly prototype different kinds of radios by dragging, dropping, and connecting functional blocks. I'll demonstrate, and show that it's surprising what you can do with a radio receiver. about this event: https://c3voc.de

When I first watched Hackers in 1998, the idea of being able to remotely control ships seemed rather fanciful. After working on container ships as an engineer in the mid-2000s, it seemed every more unlikely. We didn't have a full-time Internet connection and all the vital systems were truly air-gapped. But things have changed - ships are becoming more and more connected and complex. As a result, 15 years later, I found myself sat in my pants on the sofa with the ability to control the steering on one of the world's largest cruise ships. We've been able to brick every PLC across tens of oil rigs, pay for food as the captain, and write rude words on the side of the ship. To get to this point, we had to go on a learning voyage across tens of different vessels, including offshore support tugs, super yachts, oil rigs and container ships. Join me on a whistle stop tour of what's on a ship, how it's all connected together, what threats there are and how we find the vulnerabilities. Lots of little tips and tricks that can help anyone examine industrial control systems, understand how they work, and then have a lot of fun with them! Testing work is carried out in my role as Security Consultant at Pen Test Partners about this event: https://c3voc.de

Join the conversation with Professors Rachel Armstrong and Ioannis Ieropoulos, and artist Julie Freeman, to hear about how the ALICE artwork is a springboard for thinking about a new infrastructure that encompasses nomadic lifestyles, smart plumbing, resource autonomy - moving beyond fossil fuels and working with natural energy flows. This technology has global potential to disrupt energy and wastewater systems. Active Living Infrastructure: Controlled Environment (ALICE) is a "living" installation that communicates with microbes in real time by monitoring their electricity production so we can "respond" to them by feeding them with our liquid waste. Drawing together microbial metabolism, data, bioprocessor systems, artificial intelligence, low power electronics and digital displays, ALICE reveals the inner "life" and naturally-organised, imperceptible realm of microbes around us. To hold these digital "conversations" with microbes, ALICE uses the Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) as a communications platform. MFCs are an organic energy source powered by microbes which facilitate contact between humans and microbes through electrical exchanges. The collected and analysed data can tell us about household resources, as microbes can give us information about our consumption, and reveal what we discard in our waste streams—while also powering our homes and, ultimately, cities. https://alice-interface.eu Come and see us in Null Sector! about this event: https://c3voc.de

Interactive talk on anatomy and diagnostic imaging from the perspective of a radiographer. Using powerpoint presentation and anonymised images from real life cases (plus some funny fakes). - what is diagnostic imaging? - how to understand CT/xray images + basic anatomy - 'normal or not' quiz - Q&A on radiography Some images will depict injuries/anomalies which may be distressing to some. There will be talk of injuries and pathology which may be distressing. Its a lighthearted look into radiography, but radiographers are known for gallows humour. about this event: https://c3voc.de

Over my time in academia, I've endured a number of existential crises whilst learning about the concepts within philosophy that are required in order to undertake academic research. I figured that, if I'm going to spend the rest of my life constantly questioning my existence and reality itself, why not share this experience with others, too? A problem shared is still a problem that keeps you awake at night staring into the abyss unable to function. But hey, at least now I'm not alone. In order to explain these theories and share my recurrent episodes of screaming WHYYYYYYYY at the universe, I've collected a number of memes and references over the years to convey concepts such as what is it to 'exist', why the scientific method is just as 'made up' as anything else, how we define 'truth' and lots of other tasty things to create a pervasive, disjointed feeling that you just can't seem to shake. Join me in this journey and then we can all go and sit by the lake and have a good cry / scream / rock back and forth because what does it all mean and what even is real anyway and I'm off to go eat a cake because while I can't actually prove if the cake is a lie or not I'm convinced it is damn tasty and I NEED TO FEEL SOMETHING OTHER THAN THIS EXISTENTIAL UNCERTAINTY FOREVER OKAY? about this event: https://c3voc.de

In recent years automatic machine translation has dramatically improved in performance, with the availability of neural networks and huge amounts of data. Why does it work, and more importantly, when does it break? What kinds of language are machines terrible at translating, and is there anything we can do about it? What might change in the future? Come along to learn which aspects of a Universal Translator seem relatively plausible, which seem next to impossible at the moment, and some machine learning explanations for why the Enterprise's computer might not convey the gory details when a Klingon is insulting you. about this event: https://c3voc.de

Meet the Board, ask questions, discuss topics, have fun Meet the Board, ask questions, discuss topics, have fun about this event: https://c3voc.de

The B2Space satellite launch solution is based on the “rockoon” concept (rocket + balloon), and will comprise of a stratospheric balloon, which will lift a self-operative platform from which the launcher is deployed. A solid propellant rocket will deliver the satellites into the required customer orbits (Within Low Earth Orbits [LEO] ), which are orbits with altitudes ranging from 200km to 1000 km, approximately). The talk will describe the concept and the steps taken to develop the rockoon project. about this event: https://c3voc.de

As cringe as I often find it talking about myself, this seems to be the thing about my background that amazes people I mention it to. I spent 6 years failing to do a CS PhD, co-founded a (failed) fin-tech startup and watched the 2008 credit crunch from the inside of a multi-billion dollar hedge fund. Thanks to a chance meeting with an artist (who was hanging a door at the time), I rediscovered both my childhood love of drawing and a joy in the tech that I had started to hate. I'll talk about failing and reinvention; imposter syndrome; being neurodivergent; my experiences of the commercial world and the art world; finding a space in which you feel comfortable – but not *too* comfortable; and the power of collaborating. about this event: https://c3voc.de

The hurdy-gurdy is an ancient musical instrument (10th century) with drones and melody strings bowed by a rotating wheel, played by pressing keys which contact them at different points. It featured in TV series such as “Black Sails” and “Walking Dead” as well computer games. A major barrier is that they are very expensive at thousands of pounds each and built to order with lead times of over a year. Rather like bagpipes, they are loud. For pipers, practice e-chanters are available while nothing similar exists for the hurdy-gurdy. The Digi-Gurdy project started as a 3D printed version of the keyboard part of the instrument in isolation, with some internal electronics, for my own personal use to learn a few tunes on. After posting on Thingiverse, a website for sharing 3D printed ideas, I had many requests from people asking me to build them one. This open-source project has developed through many variations which I would bring to the talk, resulting in an all laser-cut wooden full-size hurdy gurdy design with a realistic crank handle system and a detachable playable keybox for travelling. It is an electronic device, with correctly placed keys, that outputs data via the industry standard MIDI communications system for electronic musical instruments, via a USB cable to an attached or wirelessly paired phone or iPad running suitable MIDI player software. It is a low-cost way to enter the Hurdy Gurdy world and allows practice anywhere using headphones, thus preventing eviction or divorce! about this event: https://c3voc.de

The Mayflower Autonomous Ship is a fully autonomous, AI powered research vessel, that will at the time of this talk will hopefully have completed its primary mission to cross the Atlantic from Plymouth UK, to Plymouth Massachusetts without any human intervention or control. The AI captain installed will guide the ship across the Atlantic, avoiding obstacles, plotting courses around the weather and balancing the many variables needed to safely cross one of the most dangerous oceans. As well as it's main goal to cross the Atlantic, it will also be operating a number of data collection and ocean science experiments to help researchers better understand our oceans, as well as developing new technologies to help automate science at the edge. This talk, will give a history of the Mayflower Autonomous Ship, a look into the exciting science conducted aboard including our Whale Song detector and Electronic Tongue, and how everything is brought together using open source and a great team. about this event: https://c3voc.de

Travelling by rail in most of the world is one of the safest forms of transport you can take, and in the UK even minor collisions make the news. But it wasn't always quite that way... This talk will be a potted history of the safety of the railways in the UK and Ireland, starting from the early days when signalling was thought of as an inconvenience, and anything with wheels on it which sort-of went round went on the track. Eventually, the railway companies learned the benefits of adopting safer methods of working (sometimes requiring some encouragement from the law), leading to the introduction of some Victorian methods we still use today. Finally, we look at the more modern era with the railway losing its way with privatisation, and onto the current time, where computers and paperwork solve everything. Perhaps. Featuring: Swiss Cheese, Charles Babbage vs. Brunel, working too hard, forgetting where you put your trains, losing your religion, a dark and stormy night, drunken driving, a loose screw, shifting foundations, and more. No previous knowledge of the rail industry is required. The talk will cover some recent fatal accidents at a high level. about this event: https://c3voc.de

It is very common for businesses with small teams to use cloud services to synchronise their work, stay in touch etc. All of these can also be achieved using open source software. However, making the different open source applications to authenticate through a single mechanism is somewhat challenging. In this presentation, I will cover the use of LDAP to authenticate cloud services like Nextcloud and Rocket.Chat. I'll cover 389 Directory Server to provide the LDAP service. It is very common for businesses with small teams to use cloud services to synchronise their work, stay in touch etc. All of these can also be achieved using open source software. However, making the different open source applications to authenticate through a single mechanism is somewhat challenging. In this presentation, I will cover the use of LDAP to authenticate cloud services like Nextcloud and Rocket.Chat. I'll cover 389 Directory Server to provide the LDAP service. about this event: https://c3voc.de

4 lightning talks about different mathematical subjects 1. *A tip for when to take risks in board games and in life*. I will give an insight into how Google's AlphaGo AI chooses its next move, and give an example of a game that seems biased against you, but you actually have a slight advantage. 2. *Teaching a robot to tell jokes*. I will introduce the concept of factor graphs and describe an application of them to joke generation. 3. *The twitter bot that is playing the longest possible game of chess*. The World Chess Federation has some rules to prevent games from going on forever. I will outline a proposal by Tom Murphy VII for the longest possible legal chess game, and show the Twitter bot that I made to celebrate this achievement. 4. *A little theory of abundant numbers*. Abundant numbers, e.g. 12, 60, 360, are useful as they have many factors. I will show you how common these numbers are and how to find them. about this event: https://c3voc.de

This talk tells the extraordinary story of Muriel Howorth - science fiction author, choreographer, gardener and amateur nuclear physicist. Far away from the cares of Britain's Atomic Weapons Establishment, Howorth worked from her home in Eastborne in the early 1960s on an astounding DIY atomic experiment. Her aim was to solve world hunger. Sarah Angliss shares rarely seen archival material as she tells Howorth's story and considers the potential of citizen science and the perils of techno fixes for complex societal problems. This event may contain references to giant mutant vegetables. about this event: https://c3voc.de

It began with buying an old Datatrak navigation receiver, and ended in the reverse-engineering of an entire navigation system -- one that had been dead since 2014. A demonstration of how a 1980s navigation receiver was reverse-engineered to component level, and the structure of the network analysed to protocol level, using the data stored in the receiver's battery-backed RAM. Includes sections on how land (not satellite) radio navigation works, PCB reverse engineering, how old recordings of the signals were recovered, and the design of an Arduino shield to generate new Datatrak signals. An ongoing project of interest to PCB and software reverse engineers, and radio enthusiasts. about this event: https://c3voc.de

This talk focuses on effective communication with the openSUSE community. Many workgroups have formed around the new Adaptable Linux Platform. However, not all of them are reporting the public yet. [ALP Community Work Group ](https://en.opensuse.org/openSUSE:ALP/Workgroups/Community)would like to encourage workgroup drivers to increase transparency by sharing our recommendations on how to communicate with the openSUSE community. This talk focuses on effective communication with the openSUSE community. Many workgroups have formed around the new Adaptable Linux Platform. However, not all of them are reporting the public yet. [ALP Community Work Group ](https://en.opensuse.org/openSUSE:ALP/Workgroups/Community)would like to encourage workgroup drivers to increase transparency by sharing our recommendations on how to communicate with the openSUSE community. about this event: https://c3voc.de

Org mode is an extension to the Emacs text editor. The talk will introduce a trusted system to manage your daily life and keep track of all the stuff that matters to you. The mein difference to other personal productivity apps is: - **You** have control over your files. - Files are in plain text, you can even read them without org mode. - The application is Open Source, so no risk that is discontinued because the business plan didnt work. - The user can customize it for his own needs and is not forced to adapt to the needs of a tool. **About me:** Software Engineer, 25+ years on Linux, using Org mode daily for at least 12 years now. Org mode is an extension to the Emacs text editor. The talk will introduce a trusted system to manage your daily life and keep track of all the stuff that matters to you. The mein difference to other personal productivity apps is: - **You** have control over your files. - Files are in plain text, you can even read them without org mode. - The application is Open Source, so no risk that is discontinued because the business plan didnt work. - The user can customize it for his own needs and is not forced to adapt to the needs of a tool. **About me:** Software Engineer, 25+ years on Linux, using Org mode daily for at least 12 years now. about this event: https://c3voc.de

How we got onto YouTube as Makers and a realistic look at what it's like to be content creators including some of the pitfalls, with examples of 'how going viral can be a curse'. Participants are: James Bruton Matt Denton Ruth Amos about this event: https://c3voc.de

A traditional Linux file system tree in the root file system has quite a number of directories with special purpose, documented in the Filesystem Hierarchy Standard (FHS). An operating system installation by default populates most of those directories with different kinds of files, e.g. by means of a package manager. When looking closer this theoretical order is quite a mess in practice. Alternative approaches to manage and update software components of the operating system such as MicroOS reveal the inconsistencies and require stricter separation of different types of files. This talk analyzes where we're coming from, how the tree looks today and where we're heading. The talk will be based on https://lnussel.github.io/2020/12/16/fslayout/ A traditional Linux file system tree in the root file system has quite a number of directories with special purpose, documented in the Filesystem Hierarchy Standard (FHS). An operating system installation by default populates most of those directories with different kinds of files, e.g. by means of a package manager. When looking closer this theoretical order is quite a mess in practice. Alternative approaches to manage and update software components of the operating system such as MicroOS reveal the inconsistencies and require stricter separation of different types of files. This talk analyzes where we're coming from, how the tree looks today and where we're heading. The talk will be based on https://lnussel.github.io/2020/12/16/fslayout/ about this event: https://c3voc.de

Ru Callender has been a self proclaimed, self taught Radical undertaker for the past 23 years, and draws upon a diverse range of influences in his work, such as rave culture, punk DIY, crop circles and performance art and ritual magic. He had written an account of this time in a book entitled “What remains? Life death and the human art of undertaking” for the progressive US publishers Chelsea Green. Ru will be in conversation with Sophie Lovejoy, funeral celebrant and life coach and EMF favourite. Trigger warning: We die. about this event: https://c3voc.de

The Apollo Guidance Computer (AGC) was a critical element in the success of the Apollo Moon landing programme, and was one of the first digital computers to use the then new technology of integrated circuits. By modern standards, its design has many unusual aspects, such as: - The logic circuits were made entirely from 3 input NOR gates. - Design was split into 24 logic modules, but due to limits on gate/chip count per module, individual gates were sometimes 'borrowed' from unrelated modules. - Shift and rotate operations existed, but were not available during interrupts. - Numerical overflows disabled interrupts. - There was no stack. - Limited memory addressing range, combined with a need for ever more memory lead to a complex memory banking system. - Word length was 15 bits, ones-complement (mostly). - No floating point - everything done in integer - programmer responsible for avoiding overflows. - Single bit 'Up/Down' Analog to Digital conversion (kind of) throughout, with the curious side-effect that the faster the spacecraft was rotating, the slower the computer would run... On top of the limited hardware was built an impressive realtime system supporting cooperative multitasking, a virtual machine running interpreted commands, a powerful fault detection and restart system, and an innovative VERB NOUN user interface. This talk aims to describe the architecture, with particular focus on aspects which are unusual by modern standards. about this event: https://c3voc.de

Placeholder for the second Lightning Talks session about this event: https://c3voc.de

simpledrm is a fbdev replacement implemented in the DRM kernel subsystem. It allows for smoother handover from the early boot phase to when a "real" DRM driver is loaded. In addition it allows for Wayland support on simple display adapters that do not have their own DRM driver. It has already been mainlined for a while but is not in active use by major linux distributions. In this talk I will briefly introduce you to the project and show you how you can test it on your machines. I have recently learned about this effort and started looking at DRM. This talk is held by a kernel newbie. simpledrm is a fbdev replacement implemented in the DRM kernel subsystem. It allows for smoother handover from the early boot phase to when a "real" DRM driver is loaded. In addition it allows for Wayland support on simple display adapters that do not have their own DRM driver. It has already been mainlined for a while but is not in active use by major linux distributions. In this talk I will briefly introduce you to the project and show you how you can test it on your machines. I have recently learned about this effort and started looking at DRM. This talk is held by a kernel newbie. about this event: https://c3voc.de

This talk will go over the history of the openSUSE Bar. How it started and what it has done. This talk will go over the history of the openSUSE Bar. How it started and what it has done. about this event: https://c3voc.de

Keysmashes are way of expressing emotions through spamming random letters on a keyboard but what do they actually mean? How random is a keysmash? Where do keysmashes come from? What can we learn about a person from their keysmashes? This talk is a beginners guide to the world of keysmashes and what they tell us about modern communications and online communities. about this event: https://c3voc.de