Topic: Sysadmins

The FAA NOTAM system outage on January 11, 2023, which grounded over 12,000 flights, is officially blamed on a damaged database file in a 30-year-old system. However, independent IT sources suggest the event was actually a cyber intrusion characterized by "wonky" system behavior and inconsistent data entries. The scrambling of military jets and airborne tankers during the ground stop remains unexplained by the Department of Transportation.

A systems administrator writes in to critique the lack of technical knowledge among "tech educators" and increases his donation. The segment also includes a "jobs karma" request for a long-time producer who was laid off from a mutual insurance company just before Christmas.

The hosts reject the formal "play clip three" style used by radio hosts like Mark Levin, preferring a more intuitive, non-verbal workflow. They describe a "smooth as silk" execution where the producer anticipates the speaker's needs without explicit cues. A YouTube video titled "How the Sausage is Made" is referenced as a visual guide to their live production process.

The hosts discuss the technical challenges of maintaining the noagendasocial.com server, specifically regarding software updates and database management. They note that users frequently request fixes for broken features like GIF uploads and often lock themselves out using two-factor authentication. Mention is made of the Mastodon open-source project recently adding a trademark to its name, which the hosts interpret as a sign of impending venture capital involvement.

The Obama administration proposed modernizing the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act to include cybercrime under RICO racketeering laws. The new provisions would criminalize the trafficking of passwords and the possession of certain electronic interception devices, carrying penalties of up to 20 years in prison. Critics argue these laws could unfairly target system administrators and white-hat hackers.

System Administrator Appreciation Day passed without significant recognition from mainstream media outlets or late-night hosts like Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. The role of network and systems administrators is highlighted as essential for global infrastructure. The lack of public awareness regarding the importance of these technical professionals remains a point of contention.

During a House hearing, a former White House attorney's inability to remember the names of IT staff she worked with at the IRS drew criticism. Referring to a technician only as "a dude named Ben," the testimony sparked a discussion about the lack of respect for sysadmins and IT professionals within government agencies. Representative Jason Chaffetz questioned the witness's professional interactions during her six-month tenure.

General Keith Alexander claims that current metadata programs could have prevented 9/11 by identifying hijackers calling from California. Future recommendations include licensing system administrators and allowing the NSA to launch "zero-day" attacks to protect national security, potentially increasing government control over network infrastructure.

A 16-year-old listener named David, who is blind and autistic, emails the show to explain why some blind individuals have a "robotic" speech cadence. He attributes it to years of listening to low-quality screen readers like Eloquence or DecTalk. Despite being bullied in school, David expresses his ambition to become a systems administrator rather than relying on social security.

The media narrative surrounding Edward Snowden has shifted to a "war on sysadmins," portraying those with "super-user" privileges as potential threats. The hosts argue that attempting to automate these roles or requiring "two-key" authentication for system tasks is a mistake that will lead to technical failures. They also mention General Keith Alexander's $18 billion budget for a "cyber army."

A producer who works as a sysadmin describes how he secures No Agenda donations by fixing home computers in exchange for show support. The hosts suggest that Executive Producers should list their show credits on LinkedIn to increase profile views and professional networking opportunities.

A 16-year-old listener sent his first-ever check along with a longhand letter, explaining he chose to donate his summer internship earnings to the show instead of the Red Cross. The importance of maintaining the skill of writing in longhand is discussed. The segment ends on a somber note, offering "karma" to the show's Welsh sysadmin whose mother recently passed away from cancer.

Spectre 360 is a revolutionary employee monitoring software that records all computer activity, including screen captures and file transfers, to guard against "insider threats." The hosts discuss how this software acts as a digital keylogger and screen recorder, potentially causing resentment in the workplace. They suggest that employees will simply bypass such surveillance by using their personal mobile phones.

With over five million Americans holding security clearances and 1.5 million holding top-secret status, the hosts argue that foreign intelligence agencies likely already have the information Snowden leaked. They highlight the critical role of system administrators (sysadmins) in government programs, including an anecdote about a drone program sysadmin who became physically ill from viewing strike footage. They warn that targeting sysadmins will only make government systems more insecure.

The hosts thank artist Thijs Brouwers for his contributions and discuss the technical challenges of maintaining the No Agenda servers. They describe the constant "pounding" from search bots and malicious scrapers. They praise their system administrators for keeping the show notes and media archives accessible despite these resource-heavy automated attacks.

The show experienced a two-week outage on iTunes due to an image-resizing bug in the iOS 5 environment. An anonymous system administrator at Apple helped identify the issue, which involved Apple's servers stripping and resizing mp3 artwork. The hosts thank the "good guys on the inside" for maintaining the infrastructure.

A sysadmin from Texas set up a Google AdWords campaign to promote the No Agenda formula. The hosts discuss their travel route to Austin, which will take them through Arizona and New Mexico. They emphasize the importance of supporting independent media, quoting a sentiment that if you don't pay for something, you shouldn't expect it to be there tomorrow.

Adam Curry and John C. Dvorak open Episode 346 of the No Agenda show on Sunday, October 9, 2011. The hosts greet their audience of "sysadmins worldwide" and "human resources" in the chatroom. Curry reports on his recent visit to the Occupy Wall Street protests in Los Angeles.

Adam Curry recaps a successful listener meetup at The Spaghetti Warehouse in Akron, Ohio. He notes the high concentration of system administrators and technical professionals in the audience. He also mentions a PR representative named Cricket who attended the event.

Adam Curry and John C. Dvorak open episode 322 of the No Agenda show, with Curry broadcasting from a mobile RV in Virginia as part of the Hot Pockets 2008 Tour. Curry describes a recent meetup in the Virginia area attended by numerous producers, many of whom claim to hold high-level security clearances or work as government contractors. The hosts discuss the logistics of the RV tour, the local traffic conditions in the DC metro area, and the high concentration of technical and intelligence personnel among their listener base.