The Order of Things

One of the great things about computers and software is that it can very quickly and accurately alphabetize lists.  This sort of task is perfect for a processor as it can order a list of 100 names if literally the blink of an eye.  Contrast the same task to a human which will take in the order of numerous minutes to accomplish.  However, one thing that computers don’t deal well with is exceptions to rules.  I was recently setting up a computer and I had setup numerous login IDs and the problem that I faced was that the name of the primary user of the computer was in the middle of the alphabet and I wanted this user listed first as she would be the main user of the computer. 

In order to override how a computer sorts, it’s important to understand how sorting is done in the first place.  Each character on the keyboards is assigned a numeric value – and the sorting is then done by comparing two characters to see which has the lower value.  The numbers 0-9 have a lower sequence than the letters A-Z followed by a-z.  The trick is in understanding that the <space> bar generates a character value just as any displayed character does and as such the name “John Smith” actually contains 10 characters (4 for the first name a space and then 5 for the last name).  Using this knowledge, a SPACE character can be added to the beginning of a name to force it towards the top of the list. 

To illustrate, let’s consider the following list of people without any special prefix and the resulting sort order:

Bob

Jane

John

Peter

Sam

If John was to be the primary user of the computer – and the name that is desired to be at the top of the list, then adding a space to the front of his name will result in the reordered list

 John

Bob

Jane

Peter

Sam

One caveat to the above approach, sometimes software or websites will remove all leading or trailing spaces, so this technique won’t work.  The alternative in this case is to use some other character other than the space.

- John

Bob

Jane

Peter

Sam

What a Tangled Web We Weave

With apologies to Shakespeare, this month’s technology article has nothing to do with deception, but I think that the first part of this famous line is very appropriate as it relates to today’s technology. As technology becomes more sophisticated and complicated, it begins to weave itself in and out of the fabric of every aspect of our society. So much so, that it can be exceedingly difficult to unweave the technology from our daily lives. In particular, I’ve been following a couple of aspects of technology over the past year and what I am seeing concerns me as they both offer wonderful futures but at the same time, I am convinced that the impact of these technologies hasn’t been fully investigated and thought through and by the time that this has been done, it will be next to impossible to unweave these technologies from the fabric of our society.

I have been following the development of 3D printing literally since it was just a concept. I think that in general 3D printing will have phenomenal benefits in a wide variety of applications, but as we’re seeing now, once the lid of possibilities has been lifted and therein lies the concern as not all applications are good applications.

Already, manufacturers of 3D printer “plans” have distributed the schematics for a working pistol made completely from 3D generated parts. The ability for anyone who has access to a 3D printer being able to produce any type of weapon – effectively bypassing – criminal code laws is staggering.

Given that Pirate Bay has recently announced that they will support and administer a 3D Design file-sharing repository, I have significant concerns that there will be not only be issues with there being various designs of weapons, but also the doors will be opened wide for counterfeit parts and the mass production of items and parts that are currently protected by copyright. This technology will either be a lawyer’s dream or nightmare.

The other area where I have concerns is with the rapidly developing prototype of autonomous – or self-driving – cars. Again, this sounds wonderful in concept and in some aspects, our roads will be safer as – in theory – a vehicle can make decisions quicker and more accurately but there’s a plethora of issues that I’m not convinced have been thought through properly.

First and foremost – to what extent will the driver still be responsible for the operation of the vehicle and any ensuing accidents? Although the current generation of autonomous automobiles is predicated on the premise that the driver has to be actively engaged and ready to take control, I wonder how much an individual’s attention will be on the road if their hands aren’t on the steering wheel and constantly – and actively – observing conditions and reacting accordingly. One of the theories of a society where there are autonomous vehicles is that they will be able to communicate with each other which will make roads safe. If 4 autonomous vehicles approach an intersection with a 4 way stop then the cars could communicate with each other and the order of precedence could be evaluated and shared, but what if one of the vehicles is driven by a human, how will this factor in the collective’s decisions as to how to proceed.

My primary concern though is that with the advent of technology, there will always be those that will exploit any level of security to compromise the device. We’re seeing it with any technology currently on the marketplace, so how can we put our lives in the balance with a vehicle that’s infected with malware?



There’s no question that our society benefits from technology, but as in these two cases, technology is being developed without the proper foresight and protocols in place to ensure that the risks are minimized. It’s next to impossible to unweave this technology from the fabric of the society, it’s in everyone’s best interest that the pros and cons have been weighed and evaluated and contingencies developed.