From announce at lists.nycbug.org Mon Apr 4 09:08:04 2011 From: announce at lists.nycbug.org (NYC*BUG Announcements) Date: Mon, 04 Apr 2011 09:08:04 -0400 Subject: [announce] NYC*BUG This Week Message-ID: <4D99C2B4.10400@ceetonetechnology.com> Upcoming Meetings, BSDCan * * * April 06, 2011 BSD High Availability 6:45 PM, Suspenders Restaurant backroom 111 Broadway in Manhattan http://www.suspendersbar.com/ The BSD High Availability (HA) suite has some very handy and powerful features. However, as with all systems, there are certain considerations to be made when rolling out a HA implementation. This talk will focus on the security considerations when rolling out a BSD HA implementation. The talk will cover the following: * An explanation of the BSD HA environment (CARP, pfsync, sasyncd) * How these components, specifically CARP, function at a lower level * Current and potential attacks against the HA environment, including some demos * Security considerations when rolling out a HA implementation and applicable work-arounds * Ideas on how to improve the security and flexibility of the BSD HA tool suite Speaker Biograpy Sam hails from a small country in the middle of nowhere called New Zealand, where people live in mud huts and rub sticks together to produce fire. When not foraging for berries and miscellaneous woodland creatures, Sam works for Lateral Security as a security consultant (a more CEO-friendly word for hacker) where he breaks into systems for a living. Previous to that, he spent several years in programming and system administration roles. He caught the BSD bug many years ago when his friend enlightened him to the fact that he too could have a solid block cursor at the terminal. * * * May Meeting: The Unix Method of Development Management with William Baxter * * * BSDCan is next month. BSDCan, a BSD conference held in Ottawa, Canada, has quickly established itself as the technical conference for people working on and with 4.4BSD based operating systems and related projects. The organizers have found a fantastic formula that appeals to a wide range of people from extreme novices to advanced developers. You know you`ll like it. BSDCan 2011 will be held on 13-14 May 2011 at University of Ottawa, and will be preceded by two days of Tutorials on 11-12 May 2011. Registration is open: http://www.bsdcan.org/2011/register.php From announce at lists.nycbug.org Wed Apr 6 09:15:39 2011 From: announce at lists.nycbug.org (NYC*BUG Announcements) Date: Wed, 06 Apr 2011 09:15:39 -0400 Subject: [announce] NYC*BUG Tonight: FreeBSD High Availability Message-ID: <4D9C677B.5010607@ceetonetechnology.com> NYC*BUG Meeting Tonight & May BSDCan Is Coming * * * * April 06, 2011 BSD High Availability 6:45 PM, Suspenders Restaurant backroom 111 Broadway in Manhattan http://www.suspendersbar.com/ The BSD High Availability (HA) suite has some very handy and powerful features. However, as with all systems, there are certain considerations to be made when rolling out a HA implementation. This talk will focus on the security considerations when rolling out a BSD HA implementation. The talk will cover the following: * An explanation of the BSD HA environment (CARP, pfsync, sasyncd) * How these components, specifically CARP, function at a lower level * Current and potential attacks against the HA environment, including some demos * Security considerations when rolling out a HA implementation and applicable work-arounds * Ideas on how to improve the security and flexibility of the BSD HA tool suite Speaker Biography Sam hails from a small country in the middle of nowhere called New Zealand, where people live in mud huts and rub sticks together to produce fire. When not foraging for berries and miscellaneous woodland creatures, Sam works for Lateral Security as a security consultant (a more CEO-friendly word for hacker) where he breaks into systems for a living. Previous to that, he spent several years in programming and system administration roles. He caught the BSD bug many years ago when his friend enlightened him to the fact that he too could have a solid block cursor at the terminal. NOTE: Sam is visiting New York this week, and offered to give this presentation. It was great timing, as this was proposed as a useful meeting topic recently. * * * * May 04, 2011 The Unix Method of Development Management 6:45 PM, Suspenders Restaurant backroom 111 Broadway in Manhattan The Unix approach has been summarized in many ways, but most simply it`s about a certain method in simplicity, portability and interoperability. Jamming a square peg into a round hole it`s not. The chapter entitled Basics of the Unix Philosophy in The Art of Unix Programming provides more comprehensive explanations. Take that approach and look at development projects with dozens of programmers in whatever language. How is the Unix method relevant? How do Unix principles aid in structuring and coordinating software development, even for, say, Java developers? William Baxter argues that the Unix methods and principles are the most useful set of tools for directing developers, even more so when bad habits need to be relearned for the goal of creating good code. Speaker Biography William Baxter, a senior developer with decades of experience leading programming projects, will discuss the process of managing developers and their projects. * * * * Are you going to BSDCan? Talk@ is a great place to coordinate transportation with other NYCBUG members. From announce at lists.nycbug.org Wed Apr 20 20:35:58 2011 From: announce at lists.nycbug.org (NYC*BUG Announcements) Date: Wed, 20 Apr 2011 20:35:58 -0400 Subject: [announce] Update: BSD Certification news Message-ID: <4DAF7BEE.3090806@ceetonetechnology.com> Very important news for BSD Certification: it will now be available in a computer-based which greatly expands the availability of the exam. See the full announcement below: > > > > > > > > > We're pleased to announce that after 7 months of negotiations and the work required to make the exam available in a computer based format, that the BSDA exam is now available at several hundred testing centers throughout the world. The press release is available here: > > http://www.bsdcertification.org/news/pr061.html > > Feel free to post that release on blogs, social media, and interested mailing lists. > > I'd like to give special thanks to the people that assisted in this major milestone: > > James Vasile from the Software Freedom Law Center for his assistance in the contract negotiations. > > Dr. Sandra Dolan, our psychometrician, for her assistance in assuring the quality and correctness of the computer based version of the exam. > > Lisa Lukas, Dave Moore, Stephen Schimsky, and Christina Stebbins from SMT for their training, support, customizations, and general help throughout this transition period. > > The rest of this email contains details for those interested in taking the BSDA at a testing center. > > You can view the testing center locations here: http://www.isoqualitytesting.com/mlocations.aspx. It should be noted that the bulk of the training centers are in North America but there is some coverage in countries that we have not been able to host a paper based version of the exam yet. If your organization is interested in becoming a testing center, contact me off-list for the details on becoming a testing center. > > Due to the costs of providing a computer based version of the exam, the price for this format has been set at $150 USD. We will continue to offer paper based versions of the exam at the price of $75 USD. If you are interested in seeing the paper based version of the exam offered at a local conference, user group, school, or employer, contact me off-list for the details on how to arrange an exam event. > > If you already have a BSDCG ID, you can use that when registering for a computer based exam. An entry has been added to the registration website for computer based exams: https://register.bsdcertification.org//register/register-for-an-exam. You will not be able to book a time at a testing center until you pay for your exam. Payments are still made through our registration website: https://register.bsdcertification.org//register/payment. After your payment is received, a separate email will be sent to you within 24 hours containing your testing center username and password and the rest of the information that you will need to book an exam. It is very important that you follow the instructions in that email, especially if you need to reschedule your exam date as there are monetary penalties if you do not contact the testing center within the time requirements to reschedule your exam. Once you receive your testing center email, you will have up to one year to schedule and take your exam. > > The FAQ has been updated: http://www.bsdcertification.org/FAQ.html. If any of your questions regarding the computer based version of the exam remain unanswered, please post them here so they can be added to the FAQ. > > Cheers, > > Dru Lavigne > Chair, BSD Certification Group