Soldier of FORTRAN :ReBoot:

Do you know anything about hackers? Can you jam with the console cowboys in cyberspace? Ever read Neuromancer? Ever experienced the new wave? Next wave? Dream wave? Or cyberpunk?

Public Key

npub1n5j4s8nkggexsghazm78d2fcyprt9nft0af8yeg52c6cjqg5my8stpj55e

NIP-05 Address

mainframed767@infosec-exchange.mostr.pub

Profile Code

nprofile1qqsf6f2cremyyvngyt73dlrk4yuzq34je54h75njv529vdvfqy2djrcpz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduqs6amnwvaz7tmwdaejumr0dsxacn3a

Publishing to

relay.damus.io

nos.lol

Author Public Key

npub1n5j4s8nkggexsghazm78d2fcyprt9nft0af8yeg52c6cjqg5my8stpj55e

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Last Notes

2026-04-30 17:24:32 UTC

Here's the initial design:
@nprofile…8rm2 https://social.gamefan.net/@techwire/116491803201665255
#simcity #simcity2000
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/116/494/815/783/657/185/original/f989a77584182215.webp

2026-04-26 14:47:28 UTC

I'm not saying it's a bubble, buuuuuut trying to search for videos about what you can actual do with stuff like openclaw and qwen and literally every video is just "this is how you install it" and almost no content showing useful usage.

2026-04-08 16:31:10 UTC

Me dealing with an AI:
I wish for a turkey sandwich—on rye bread—with lettuce and mustard, and, AND, I don’t want any zombie turkeys, I don’t want to turn into a turkey myself, and I don’t want any other weird surprises! You got it?!
#ai #llm #chatgpt #simpsons #simpsonshouseofhorror

2026-04-08 03:16:08 UTC

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@nprofile…f86m
sharif dont like it!
start the ceasefire!
start the ceasefire!

2026-04-06 14:43:50 UTC

On April 6th 2026, doing a slingshot around the moon, Jeremy Hansen got further away from Ontario than any Ontarian in history.
#artemis #artemis2 #csa

2026-04-03 00:10:55 UTC

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@nprofile…44dh so youre telling me I need to go to fuckin space to get away from outlook?

2026-04-02 23:24:13 UTC

I was watching The Pitt recently with my wife and realized, its just star trek, just condensed.
Its competency porn, which is my favorite type of entertainment

2026-04-01 16:56:26 UTC

Ugh, I hate April 1 on the internet. Here come a bunch of really cool stories or product announcements, oops just kidding we're not doing that, back to the doldrums for you.
#aprilfools #aprilfoolsday

2026-03-21 15:28:47 UTC

Oil companies when the price of oil goes up: "The pumps at the station immediately reflect the increased prices we have to pay for fuel"
Oil companies when the price of oil drops: "Actually, its a very complicated system and drops in prices take time to go through the system before theyre reflected at the pimp"
#gas #fuel #oil

2026-03-21 02:33:28 UTC

How did I not know that the GOP had teleportation capabilities to select waffle houses?
Is it science based or like satanic in nature? Either way, huge advancement in travel.
#wafflehouse #teleportation

2026-03-19 23:01:15 UTC

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@nprofile…xy8s to be honest humdingers lack of consequences is close to reality.

2026-03-18 14:27:20 UTC

#investing #privatecredit
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/116/250/637/032/094/988/original/8ae738953040319b.jpeg

2026-03-11 18:57:40 UTC

Is there anything worse than having to make and test github actions?
#github #githubactions

2026-03-04 13:32:50 UTC

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@nprofile…addk what if I use TLS? It says its secure.
(a real thing a client has asked me)

2026-03-03 03:50:33 UTC

If ai art can't be copyright, what does that say for Ai generated code?

2026-03-02 20:36:58 UTC

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@nprofile…4w8z I was working on some 370 assembly this weekend. You might want to try the moshix discord channel.

2026-02-27 03:13:55 UTC

Before: open a spreadsheet, make a column a vlookup, filter, done
Now: write a prompt for copilot to generate the spreadsheet. Rewrite the prompt, rewrite one more time, finally a spreadsheet. Review spreadsheet, ask copilot why some columns are missing, new spreadsheet, review carefully, some numbers don't seem right, rewrite the prompt one more time. Give up, do it yourself, but tell your boss how much more productive you are so you don't get let go for not using AI.
#accenture #copilot #ai #llm

2026-02-25 00:35:10 UTC

LEGO
CHRONO TRIGGER!
https://beta.ideas.lego.com/product-ideas/11603c63-c908-4970-b703-3ad18317185a
#lego #snes #retrogaming #chronotrigger

2026-02-23 03:35:47 UTC

https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/116/117/843/594/524/271/original/5ee5ad5ed09e9062.jpg

2026-02-22 01:06:27 UTC

Y'all .... gravity is a hoax!
The earth sucks!

2026-02-18 13:26:01 UTC

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@nprofile…xy8s gotta goose those q1 earnings somehow

2026-02-07 17:24:00 UTC

Honestly, I think the NFT bros were less annoying than the AI bros

2026-02-06 20:54:54 UTC

I just cant get over post from people complaining how terrible Windows is now, and that they cant even access notepad, but yet refuse to move to some other OS. Like, Linux is right there.
#linux #windows #windows11 #notepad

2026-02-03 13:04:03 UTC

KDE is to Windows as Gnome is to MacOs

2026-01-29 21:54:53 UTC

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@nprofile…xy8s enshitification comes for everyone.

2026-01-15 19:58:31 UTC

Whats the endgame for these LLM companies? Like, we're obviously hitting the ceiling of what they can do and their usefulness. Im not an MBA, but I just don't get where they think this is going. Like, you can make images and predict text... is there really billions in writting emails no one is going to read?

2026-01-12 16:43:18 UTC

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And to be clear, by "flee" I mean theyre changing their mailing address but not actually leaving.

2026-01-12 16:35:24 UTC

Watching billionaires "flee" California cause of a 5% tax payable over five years is so hilarious.

2026-01-10 16:46:34 UTC

If you read Satyas plea to stop calling it slop, he admits that they still really don't know what use LLMs will have.
Like, yeah, it writes shitty code, but so do I, and I only need a twinkie and a beer to do that, not nuclear power and lake superior.

2026-01-06 17:17:43 UTC

I'll never forget the conversation i had with some people arguing that we shouldn't provide time off for having a kid and they were bemoaning having to do extra work and that if you can't afford care don't have a kid.
So i flipped it, I asked them how old an infant should be before they go to daycare, I went around the table, asking them one by one, how old they think their a child should be before fulltime day care, most settled on 6 months (which, lol) and seemed appalled when i said a lot of infants end up in day care as young as 6-12 weeks old.
I also pointed out that a boss not thinking ahead for a person not being around is poor planning on their part and you're the sucker who got tricked in to blaming a pregnant person instead of your employer, who had MONTHS to plan for this.

2026-01-04 21:35:32 UTC

Somewhere some tech bro is trying to figure out how to get ads in to linux desktop.
#linux #windows #microsoft #mircroslop

2026-01-04 02:05:30 UTC

I can't get over how shit YouTube search is.
Like, you search a specific topic, you get 5 videos, some you've already watched, then 10 unrelated videos, then maybe 5 more a little on topic, then just random. Even worse on mobile with shorts.
#youtube

2025-12-31 03:36:43 UTC

Why am I getting a bunch of happy birthday emails for Jan 1.... oh yeah, hahahaha

2025-12-29 16:45:59 UTC

The people who obsess over chasing hotel status is such a foreign world to me. Oh, you earned Ambassador status? That's almost a third of your year spent in hotels.
Like, I don't wanna yuck your yum, but the idea of being in hotels for 4 months sounds awful to me.

2025-12-15 02:52:18 UTC

Watched Hijack on Apple TV. It operates on the flawed premise that people answer their phones when they ring.

2025-11-30 23:21:44 UTC

With youtube constantly removing cybersecurity videos for "policy violations" when is @nprofile…ds0c going to setup their own PeerTube instance?
Shits getting bleak over on the advertiser owned video platform.
#defcon #peertube #youtube

2025-11-28 18:04:06 UTC

Its time once again time for everyone's favorite annual contest, Whamageddon!
The rules are simple
The Rules!
The 1st Rule
The objective is to go as long as possible without hearing WHAM's Christmas classic; "Last Christmas".
The 2nd Rule
The game starts on December 1st, and finishes at the end of December 24th.
Use your local timezone, if you'd like.
The 3rd Rule
Only the original version applies. Enjoy the ?#!$&%! out of remixes and covers.
The 4th Rule
You're out as soon as you recognise the song.
Bonus Rule
Post here with the #whamageddon hashtag when you get hit.
PvP?
While we can't stop you from deliberately sending your friends to Whamhalla, the intention is that this is a survival game. Not a Battle Royale. So ... don't be a dick, mkay?
#whamageddon2025
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/115/628/639/421/777/496/original/04eb7628cba3cd60.jpg

2025-11-26 00:53:28 UTC

I can't believe Augustus Caesar died over 3 years ago. RIP king.

2025-11-24 19:27:57 UTC

The irony of Google ruining their search so you'd spend more time there just as a search replacement came online to eat their lunch (chatgpt) will never not be funny.

2025-11-21 01:27:34 UTC

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@nprofile…scce looks like a bunch of bubbles

2025-11-20 15:35:39 UTC

I wish @nprofile…exf3 would allow custom emojies like MSN Messenger did.
#signal

2025-11-18 14:56:18 UTC

Fuckin CEOs
#chatgpt #ceo #subnautica2 #llm #ai
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/115/571/274/119/350/697/original/b61ac9ef0c23b1a7.jpeg

2025-11-17 18:28:38 UTC

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@nprofile…2y2x I remember reading a 2600 article teaching you to write a polymorphing virus in 2002.

2025-10-31 22:55:33 UTC

To all those who celebrate Happy Halloween
#happyhalloween #spooky #bustinmakesmefeelgood
https://youtu.be/0tdyU_gW6WE?si=sovBP0bIIsRGHkXB

2025-10-30 18:47:00 UTC

This is what they took from us
#NES #NAVS #retrogaming #retrocomputing
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/115/464/595/127/674/021/original/8ac8728fc84c40b7.png

2025-10-28 13:40:38 UTC

#layoffs #ai #llm #corporate
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/115/452/067/823/347/698/original/5294b4c4832fbc85.jpeg

2025-10-24 19:00:19 UTC

If meta wanted people to actually use their AR glasses they would make the come with an ad blockers built in.
But alas, we live in a world where advertisers run the tech industry.

2025-10-24 14:45:25 UTC

Headline Prediction:
Millions of private users data stolen by malware targeting co-pilot Recall data

2025-10-24 03:04:48 UTC

Interview with ZSNES creator!
#zsnes #snes #retrogaming #retrocomputing #zopharsdomain #emulator #emulation
https://youtu.be/iG-oqvj4Tqk?si=7RaZOQIvPuPQZ3O4

2025-10-23 23:43:05 UTC

Nothing says you've got a great product like having to force it on your user base.
Now the question: which Microsoft product am I talking about?

2025-10-23 17:50:03 UTC

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@nprofile…4gvd Jesus this is too dystopian even for cyberpunk

2025-10-19 13:06:52 UTC

Been playing Hades 2 and now I have THAT song stuck in my head.
#hades2

2025-10-18 20:22:49 UTC

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@nprofile…vj8n ouch

2025-10-17 22:10:19 UTC

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@nprofile…2war Youre absolutely right! This is a good idea!

2025-10-17 13:36:56 UTC

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@nprofile…svvz don't forget they changed the menus and iconography too! Features!

2025-10-17 07:46:18 UTC

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@nprofile…k7y9 fuck, I knew i should've bought CAD when I had the chance.

2025-10-17 07:43:42 UTC

So, what does Windows 11 actually offer? Like, what makes it better than 10? Other than security patches what new feature does it have that would make someone actually want to upgrade?
This is not a joke, im actually curious. Im a Linux person, but I remember the jump from 98 to XP and it was worth it. Now... I don't see it.
#windows #windows11 #windows10 #ms #microsoft #win10 #win11

2025-10-15 23:16:16 UTC

Just take the TRON 2.0 plot and make a good movie. How fucking hard is it. Stupid Hollywood.
#tron #tronares #tron3 #tron2

2025-10-14 13:55:16 UTC

This is so cool!!
PC Decomps are Happening! Carmageddon "Decomp" and PC Port
https://youtube.com/watch?v=JvjATRADOyw&si=eptpP_6FQ-8viGIf
#carmageddon #retrogaming #decompilation #pcgaming

2025-10-13 18:35:25 UTC

Absolutely amazing
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/115/368/281/744/120/630/original/c180a508275c6d1f.png

2025-10-11 05:06:34 UTC

If you can afford it, get a therapist. Yes you. Don't think you need one? Perfect, get one anyway.

2025-10-10 17:25:19 UTC

I wonder if big tech is secretly on here running an instance, or maybe, through third parties, bought one up that needed support. Wouldn't surprise me.

2025-10-08 18:30:21 UTC

Man, as a linux and mac user I'm loving reading all the 'Windows 11 wont let you make a local account' takes and thinking: Boy am I happy I don't have to deal with any of that shit
#windows #windows11 #linux

2025-10-03 17:42:33 UTC

Like, its 100% a bubble right? I just read this whole article and can summarize it as: I use AI for spell check and to quickly look something up (except for the IBM person who was just marketing their AskHR product).
Literally, the most asinine stuff like 'reading my emails' and 'critiquing my talks.' Billion dollar industry right there.
https://www.businessinsider.com/executives-share-how-they-use-ai-2025-9

2025-10-01 14:09:08 UTC

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@nprofile…4arc some easy reading:
Children of Time
Project Hail Mary
Hunt for Red October
Player of Games
Storm Front

2025-09-09 14:57:59 UTC

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@nprofile…5p22 yeah, but that was mostly internet grifters, whereas all this AI stuff is... uh.... huh

2025-09-09 12:52:26 UTC

Remember when every TV maker tried to push 3d on us, and thay 3d was the future, and there were 3d movies and Nintendo made a 3d console? And how it all fizzled away?
That's what AI feels like.

2025-09-06 01:58:23 UTC

New mainframe handle just dropped
#tso #mainframe #toronto
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/115/154/834/890/193/536/original/caa8bcdf9f2cc919.jpg

2025-09-05 16:05:21 UTC

IYKYK
#mainframes #itdepends
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/115/152/537/552/228/005/original/66785045862c1169.png

2025-09-04 19:39:26 UTC

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@nprofile…tesj 🎵 Suprise Supriiiiiise 🎵

2025-09-04 13:51:48 UTC

Shocker
#ai #llm #google
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/115/146/347/714/294/103/original/6e98555066338762.png

2025-09-04 02:05:41 UTC

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@nprofile…qjds who buys this crap? They're having layoffs to goose the books. The stock has lost 1/3 in value since the beginning of the year. AI isn't replacing anyone, they're just laying off people to save money.

2025-08-22 12:46:07 UTC

#osint challenge level impossible: where am I?
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/115/072/483/601/700/828/original/02b5fb568d78d870.jpg

2025-08-19 23:11:07 UTC

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@nprofile…60lz @h4890@liberdon.com one can hope. Gonna be great when all the mega corps, who are like 40% through their AI adoption just drop it like nothing happened cause its no longer the *in* thing

2025-08-19 23:08:48 UTC

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@nprofile…ptfv they can't steal my password if I don't remember hit. Check mate NSA

2025-08-18 18:44:30 UTC

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@nprofile…fchh through "I" in llm stands for intelligence

2025-08-17 19:16:26 UTC

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Metal..... gear?

2025-08-17 18:51:36 UTC

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IM SORRY WHAT? THIS GUY CAN CONTROL HORNETS? IN MY STEALTH GAME?

2025-08-17 17:07:01 UTC

Playing Metal Gear Solid 3 for the first time. And woof the controls are sure set in that time period. But the game is hilarious. In classic Kojima theres a 'oggle women button. Thankfully im playing on a steam deck and can pause during cutscenes, cause they are LOOOOOOON and go on for ever.
So far I've beat two bosses

2025-08-16 22:55:19 UTC

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@nprofile…qre8 toss up, laguardia or ohare are up there for me. I once had a 4 hour flight from laguardia to DC. I thought it was strange, but had no choice. Plane pushed back on time, then we sat on the tarmac for 3 hours, even had drink service. Then we finally took off and landed in about an hour

2025-08-16 22:51:01 UTC

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@nprofile…naem was it like this for our parents? Like every new model of car must've been amazing, then eventually its shit boxes no one likes.
Like I wonder if its just cause we're older and more cynical, or we truly are in the end times.

2025-08-16 21:55:08 UTC

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@nprofile…4qtp and generalized quantum computing

2025-08-16 21:14:41 UTC

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Looks like countdown.ai isn't being used

2025-08-16 21:10:20 UTC

Has anyone made a static website that has a countdown to AGI that is perpetually 10 years away?

2025-08-15 01:48:28 UTC

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@nprofile…22gg unironically yes

2025-08-13 06:13:59 UTC

If you liked Red Alert 2 (i love it and still play it once a year) you owe it to yourself to get Tempest Rising. Runs great on my Debian box and is pretty much the perfect homage to Red Alert and Command and Conquer.
#redalert #commandandconquer #cnc #TempestRising

2025-08-13 04:09:58 UTC

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@nprofile…6wnj the most obtario post ever

2025-08-13 01:42:09 UTC

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@nprofile…cgcz @nprofile…k5y2 @nprofile…3dcq we gave them the point after they came and talked to us. SBBS inadvertently cleaned it up, despite my best efforts to stop it from doing that

2025-08-12 22:32:37 UTC

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@nprofile…sf83 @nprofile…k5y2 @nprofile…3dcq lol

2025-08-12 16:44:33 UTC

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@nprofile…k5y2 @nprofile…3dcq you can actually still play around with it just go to phreakme.com make an account (its free and we don't track anything) and then log on to the bbs with Syncterm
#bbs #syncterm

2025-08-11 19:23:11 UTC

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@nprofile…3dcq I also wrote a custom oneliner for people to post in, and was worried no one would post anything, boy was i wrong
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/115/011/751/262/895/435/original/8e886e81cc83460f.png

2025-08-11 19:15:38 UTC

Helping run the PhreakMe contest at #DEFCON33 with my team of people was a huge honor. I made a custom BBS for people to play on and wrote a program that shows the teams in the BBS itself! Congrats again to the winning team!
@nprofile…3dcq #defcon
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/115/011/723/455/985/062/original/4eade461fc05b839.png

2025-08-11 03:46:46 UTC

This was a crazy hacker summer camp for me:
At @nprofile…9lqc I:
- chaired the Proving Ground track, was so insanely rewarding
- gave a talk about how to write a good CFP
At #blackhat2025 i:
- coached to amazing talks, watching thier talk and confidence approve day after day was just amazing
- gave a talk about hacking z/OS Unix with long time cospeaker and vest friend Bigendian Smalls
At @nprofile…3dcq i:
- gave a talk about hacking z/os Unix, this time solo, I heard it went pretty good
- ran the #phreakme contest where we had phreaking challenges and a pretty kick ass bbs, and our challenge was selected as a black badge again this year!
All in all, it was a pretty great week! Thank you vegas! See you next year.
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/115/008/077/891/142/778/original/1cd99c42c179293c.jpg
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/115/008/077/974/609/209/original/420ceb010656acd8.jpg
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/115/008/078/037/022/093/original/56195b111dde54fd.jpg
https://media.infosec.exchange/infosec.exchange/media_attachments/files/115/008/078/139/547/002/original/ec4a5cbaa691e3df.jpg

2025-08-11 02:44:14 UTC

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@nprofile…0r3q it happens, make sure you catch the replay, I had a great time

2025-08-05 02:07:31 UTC

This AI shit is so Dot Com era coded. Remember when cool.com owner was offered millions for the domain and instead said they could make more with their own website. Same shit.

2025-08-04 16:11:17 UTC

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@nprofile…37lj lucky

2025-08-02 16:27:55 UTC

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@nprofile…0dp3 I dunno, this seems like a third party app that you can install via flathub and not an official Gnome package
https://github.com/qwersyk/Newelle

2025-08-01 21:45:22 UTC

With #DEFCON33 basically a week away and #BSidesLV/#BlackHat in 3 days I wanted to use this time to to share a blog post I wrote a while ago that is still very relevant if you're one of the lucky few selected to give a talk. For those who don't know I'm a speaking coach at BlackHat, the chair for the BsidesLV proving ground track and have been a BSidesLV mentor for more than 10 years.
------------
Everyone wants you to give the best talk you can. You’re awesome, your talk is awesome, why let small things make it less so. These are my opinion and this list is in no way exhaustive. Some of these come from some of the talks I’ve given, some come from mistakes I’ve made and/or seen other people make.
TL;DR: Rehearse your talk and Have FUN!
1) Watch other talks. This sounds dumb but you really can’t know what you want your talk to be like without watching some talks on the subject at the same venue. Take what you liked from some talks and try an incorporate it in to your talk. Obviously you won’t be Dan Kaminsky (I still miss him) up there but you should have at least a general idea of what made a great talk great and an ok talk just ‘ok’.
2) Balance your slides. You’re not talking at a Ted conference. Cat memes are fun for a bit but eventually people want to see something informative. On the same note, this isn’t an IEEE symposium so try and make your slides a little fun. This doesn’t mean use every color on the spectrum of visible light, but does mean to make it entertaining. Again, using number one above you should be able to tell how much information is good. With the slides, however, make sure they are consistent across the board. If you use a fade animation use it on ALL slides
3) You can’t force funny. If you want to have a fun, funny talk (who doesn’t) don’t try and force it on the audience with comics or memes. I get it, the XKCD comic is super relevant to the point you were trying to make and thats fine. But by the 6th one it gets tiresome and distracting. Also, your super relevant funny in joke with your ‘crew’ might not play well in front of such a diverse audience (trust me on this one) and nothing crushes your soul more than this awesome joke you had bombing at the beginning of your talk. But don’t be discouraged, if you’re passionate about the topic and have a sense of humor that will come out no matter how serious your slides are.
4) Ignore the ‘Rules’. You’ve seen them, the ‘Rules for effective presentations’. You can get away with ignoring those. You can have 1 or 10 bullets on your slides, it’s fine, so long as it feels natural. HOWEVER there’s one unbreakable rule: DO NOT READ YOUR SLIDES WORD FOR WORD. In fact, I almost prefer more information in slides than less, makes it easier for offline viewing. But you need to speak about the slides not *the* slides. Also, you don’t need an agenda, thats what the abstract is for, but ALWAYS include a (short) bio section about why we should listen to you.
5) Practice your demos. I don’t care how many times you tested the demo at home. Until you run through the entire demo start to finish, at least 5 times, you’ll forget it on stage. While you practice, take notes so you can refer to them when you’re in front of 1,000+ people freaking out. But more importantly…
6) RECORD YOUR DEMOS. I prefer LICEcap and record animated GIFs that auto play in PowerPoint so it doesn’t ruin the flow of the talk. This tool works great in Windows, Mac and Linux (under Wine). But you don’t have to use that, you can record videos, screenshots, whatever. I don’t care how you do it, but do it. I can promise you the demo will work at home, in your hotel room, in the room your speaking in, even the last test, right before your talk will work without fail. But then, right in the heat of your talk, with all eyes on you and the camera staring in to your soul, just as you're about to wow the audience, it won’t work. You’ll forget a flag and someone from the audience will yell out ‘YOU HAVE SOURCE AND DEST IP WRONG, IDIOT’ (the idiot isn’t spoken except for in your head). Or you forget to get on the wifi network again after the laptop went to sleep, or your server died, or someone in the audience is fucking with you, or you forgot to sacrifice to the demo gods. Whatever. It won’t work 100% of the time, guaranteed, unless you record it. I can promise you, if you record the demo your demo’s will work 100% of the time because that’s how it works.
Also, this is something that always bugs me, make you terminal/browser font HUGE. When you’re doing demo’s 2 feet from your monitor its easy to see. When someone is 100 feet away maybe not so much.
7) Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse, rehearse, rehearse. Rehearse your talk. I can tell you there’s nothing worse than watching a talk and the person speaking has no idea what point the slide, that they wrote 5 months ago, is trying to make. I’m sure it was a great point 5 months ago but that awkward ‘huh, I don’t actually know what this slide is talking about’ while they read the slide hurts. This isn’t the only reason. You can’t tell how your talk flows without rehearsing it. You can’t know that the slide your wrote 2 months ago actually doesn’t make any sense. You can’t tell that the demo you said you’d perform would work better in the middle instead of at the end. You’ll also know your slides well enough that you can talk about upcoming slides, or hint at things to come making your talk more interesting. And if you think ‘well, I wrote the slides the night before I know them, I don’t need to rehearse’ shut your damn mouth and think again. And when I say rehearse, I don’t mean ‘mumble your way through the slides at your desk in front of the computer.’ I mean stand the fuck up and pace the room with a clicker like you would on stage and run through your demos. You’ll feel like an idiot, but you’ll feel like an even bigger idiot when you make a fool of yourself in front of 500 people and 6,000 youtube viewers.
Here’s how I do it.
- Slides are done when they’re due (or at least a week before the conference)
- Before you leave for the conference rehearse the slides in the comfort of your home, office, conference room, whatever. Use this time to adjust your slides, demo’s etc. Stand up, pace the room, pretend you’re in front of the audience.
- When you get to the hotel, plug your laptop in to the TV and give your talk to your hotel room like you would if you were on stage. You can still make some changes at this point, its fine. But if you make any major changes you should run through it again.
- Go down and check out the room your going to talk in.
- The day of your talk (or the night before if its a first thing in the morning talk) rehearse one last time. Try not to make any more changes at this point, it is what it is.
You should also be using this time to….
8) TIME YOUR DAMN TALK. If the talk is slated for 45 minutes, try for about 50-55 minutes when you’re rehearsing it. When people get nervous they might forget the funny 2 minute anecdote or talk fast or skip something in the demo, its cool, it’s not your fault. You can always try to pad out the talk but that only happens if you’re good at improv and public speaking. For example, at Thotcon I was about 50% through my slides in the first 10 minutes of my 45 minute talk. While speaking to the content on stage, in my head I was thinking ‘shit shit shit, what story can I tell to pad this out’. I eventually told the story about RACF and John the ripper and finished on time. I can tell you, however, that when a talk is slated for 45 minutes and goes 25, that sucks for the audience. Because everyone in the room knows there’s more than 25 minutes worth of content but the speaker didn’t prepare it. On that same note, seeing someone rush through their last 20 slides in a minute because they were giving a 1.5 hour long talk in a 20 minute slot sucks just as much. You should know that your talk takes Allotted time +/- 5 minutes. And don’t rely on a super robust question period to pad out the time. If they even allow questions, people signed up for a talk not a panel.
9) Bring your own equipment. Maybe you have the most common laptop on the planet with all the modern audio and visual connections available. Oops, the conference only has display port and thats the ONE port your new laptop doesn’t have and they don’t have a display port to HDMI connector. I guess you could use a different laptop that someone gave you (but you never rehearsed with so you have no idea how it works) and I sure as hell hope you recorded those demos in an easy to use format because who knows what codecs are on this loaner laptop. Oh, maybe your friend can run and buy one of those cables last minute, hope he gets back before the talk. All of this last minute panic could be avoided if you bring your own cables. Also, bring your power supply and plug in your laptop. Something happens to laptops and I guess they get stage fright or something cause I’ve seen batteries I swore were at 100% flash the ‘low battery warning’ during a talk (thankfully I was at the end of the talk).
10) Backup your (recorded) demos and slides. You’ve spent MONTHS on research and preparing for this awesome talk. Why risk losing all your perfected slides and demos because the person on the flight to Vegas spilled their coffee on your laptop. Just put the current slides somewhere, anywhere. I use Dropbox and OneDrive but you can use whatever you like from Github to your VPS on the dark web.
11) Show Up Early. Plan to be at the talk before yours. Check in with the organizers if you’re supposed to but generally be in the room you’re speaking at an hour before your talk. This lets you feel out the room and know what you can expect from the space. It also gives the organizers one less thing to worry about.
12) Pictures! If you’re putting pictures in your presentation, just make them take up the whole screen. You don’t need a title and if you thought the picture was good enough to include why not make it large enough so those in the back can see it? If you REALLY need a title just say it out loud.
THIS IS BY FAR THE MOST IMPORTANT ONE.
11) Have Fun. Seriously, you worked so damn hard to get to this point. Once you get on stage take a deep breath and try and take it all in. The camera, the audience, it’s all for you, they’re all here for you, to see you speak and silently judge you. Hahaha you’re freaking the F out right now if you’re giving a talk this week. Good, freak out before the talk, not during the talk. But seriously, have fun up there and know they came to hear you speak on this topic because you’re awesome.
Hopefully this will help some people give the best talk they can give. Looking forward to seeing some awesome talks! Below are some optional rituals and things I do and then powerpoint tips I’ve found useful.

2025-07-31 15:51:09 UTC

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@nprofile…4m93 same! Im enjoying this season so far

2025-07-17 03:53:37 UTC

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@nprofile…37lj its pronounced got