Blather, Waffle and Poppycock!

[Raider4]

Raider, would you rather spend a few moments waiting to get in or have the site run like turtles stampeding through peanut butter because every AI bot and it's brother are hogging the site's bandwidth for training material?

The wait is annoying. but I'm more troubled - is that the right word? - by thinking "How? What is it doing?".

Clearly it's not turning on the webcam to spy on me - a little light turns on when the webcam is active - but then, what is it doing? Probing my system in some way? Installing "something" without me knowing? What?

[Ithoriel]

The wait is annoying. but I'm more troubled - is that the right word? - by thinking "How? What is it doing?".

Clearly it's not turning on the webcam to spy on me - a little light turns on when the webcam is active - but then, what is it doing? Probing my system in some way? Installing "something" without me knowing? What?

Cloudflare is a content delivery network (CDN) and an internet security system which aims to improve a website's speed, to protect it from cyber threats, and to ensure it remains available during high traffic periods. It is regularly used by online retail stores, blogs and corporate websites. Cloudflare aims to keep page loading speeds high and to block malicious activity like DDoS attacks, without degrading the user experience in the process. It sits between the user device and the target website.

Does that help?

[Last Hussar]

I understand the "is this a heart attack or just the home made Rogan Josh" dilemma very well.

    

[Raider4]

Cloudflare is a content delivery network (CDN) and an internet security system which aims to improve a website's speed, to protect it from cyber threats, and to ensure it remains available during high traffic periods. It is regularly used by online retail stores, blogs and corporate websites. Cloudflare aims to keep page loading speeds high and to block malicious activity like DDoS attacks, without degrading the user experience in the process. It sits between the user device and the target website.

Does that help?

No, not really. Is that from a Cloudflare page?

It doesn't explain what it's doing to my computer when I see the message. Again, am I being probed? Is it installing "something" without permission? Why does my CPU usage shoot to ~95% when the message is being shown?

All rhetorical questions - I don't expect answers, especially on miniatures/wargaming forum.

Thanks anyway.

[fred.]

CF operates at the network level - the site owner routes traffic into CF before it hits their web server. It is not putting anything on your computer. 

But from what you are saying I would be worried about something that might already be on your computer - that could be causing the CPU spike, and perhaps triggering the CF 'are you human' page frequently

[Raider4]

But from what you are saying I would be worried about something that might already be on your computer...

Don't think so. Windows Defender doesn't find anything, and I get the same "Verifying..." page and wait using an iPad.

[Ithoriel]

No, not really. Is that from a Cloudflare page?

Oh dear! 13 years of retirement and I'm still spouting corporate-ese?

Not a direct quote from Cloudflare but I have been reading their website quite a bit recently. This isn't the only place the issue of Cloudflare challenges has been raised. Family and friends have also been aware of the rise of the "are you human" challenges in recent times.

I blame AI bots! 

It doesn't explain what it's doing to my computer when I see the message. Again, am I being probed? Is it installing "something" without permission? Why does my CPU usage shoot to ~95% when the message is being shown?

All rhetorical questions - I don't expect answers, especially on miniatures/wargaming forum.

Thanks anyway.

As fred said, it's not loading anything on your computer, though I imagine it's checking your IP address to work out where on the planet you are.

There are sites where I am challenged every time I access them, others that rarely do a visible check.

I do wonder sometimes if my habit of regularly clearing the crud from my PC affects it. Not sure why it would. Are bots particularly scrupulous in their housekeeping?

[Techno 3]

Has everyone else in the U.K. melted ?
Gad.....the heat.

(This is from someone who hates the cold....THIS is too hot, even for me.)

[Ithoriel]

Pleasantly warm and sunny here in Edinburgh, as far as I'm concerned, Phil.

There again, it's 24.6C and I am right on the border between cool and warm. The living room is at 28.3C and I consider that "cosy."

YMMV!

[fsn]

Has everyone else in the U.K. melted ?
Gad.....the heat.

(This is from someone who hates the cold....THIS is too hot, even for me.)

32^o here. Too hot for everything. I've just done a good impression of a puddle.
 

[Big Insect]

In Bristol twas so hot the bridge melted 
You gotta laugh    

[Big Insect]

Actually, it is a bit warm here. The car thermometre was on 35.5 this evening as a drove across to my long suffering allotment, in the vain (& pointless) task of trying to keep my eldest grandsons pumpkins & squash plant alive! Even the melons in the greenhouse have shrivelled up & died & allegedly they like the heat 

I only went across as I had been 'ejected' from my study, as it is always the coolest place in the house (temperature wise that is).
The wife needed to be on a 2hr "full moon womens group" Zoom call with the USA, this evening, so I am left to swelter in the sitting room.
Of course, when she mentioned it was a "full moon" thing, I should have known better than to, even ever so briefly, look up into the clear early evening sky. I didn't have to say anything, but that fertive look just said it all as good as if I'd shouted "but it's not a full moon". But it was seen & noted and was enough to warrant me being on the wrong end of one if those 'withering' Get Back in Your Box looks    I'll get me coat.

Least ways I can watch 'Fury' again, in peace. 

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DYxEN0qM6dk/?igsh=dXNnbnFuaDBkbGsw

[Scorpio_Rocks]

I have a thermometer in the conservatory - it has markings up to 60 degrees C...

IT got too hot and broke!

I only noticed this evening from outside as it has been far too hot to actually enter the "glass box" for days now!

[Lord Kermit of Birkenhead]

Freinds dogs both sparked out. Black fur coats ideal in these temps

[Techno 3]

Our little collie cross Jack Russell cross rat is 90/95% white with a mostly black head and a couple of black patches on her right rear leg.

The difference in temperature between the white bits and the black bits is SO noticeable to the touch.

We're only giving the 3 dogs a VERY short walk in the field at the mo'.

The old Lab retriever is pretty sensible as is the little collie.....The mad (lurcher) dog is another matter.
We really have to keep an eye on him, and get him in at the earliest opportunity.!

[Steve J]

Very draining yesterday here in Brsitol, but at least we had a good breeze in the evening which meant we could sleep for once in days! A few days ago the car showed 40C on the dashboard thermometer, which was toasty to say the least. Quite a few of my seedling plants have given up the ghost due to the heat .

[Big Insect]

Big unexpected thunder bang in middle of the night. Set all the local dogs barking frantically. But sadly no rain.

But as my plants & seedlings dry up, the bl**dy grass just keeps in growing on the allotment. So, if it cools down its strimning for me - regardless if 'no mow May'!

[Lord Kermit of Birkenhead]

Some thunder rumbels long way off last night, but no rain.

[Techno 3]

Yesterday afto'.....one HUMONGOUS thunderstorm...mains power 'flicked' over a dozen times....hail came down like a good'un..and there were two suspicious 'snap' like sounds from the direction of the PC. (Think of the noise a cap gun used to make.)

Today the PC tells me I've got 'no internet'..which may be true for the PC...but the tablet works fine, and the hub's showing the right colour, so that's not 100% accurate.

EE's automated system has found a fault 'on the line ' and has passed this on to Openreach, so hopefully fixed properly in a day or so.
The Ethernet cable was Windows' guess...but when I change that for the spare.....even worse.
Who knows ?

Cheers - Phil.