Warning, permanent magnets, and touch screen computers...

[junker]

or any other computer where the cpu can be physically contacted by a permanent magnet.

In the nature of some experiments I did for the airline industry regarding influence of strong magnetics, I have several sorts of permanent magnets around. One group is 4 of the niodium permanent magnet type. Now these are each about as big around as a US dime, and as thick as say a stack of 14 dimes. Largish as these go, but certainly palm-able.

The point is that one of these magnets is 400 gauss in strength, and placed within a inch or so of any touch screen device, well....the results will be unpredictable in the specifics, but not in the main. The effect will *not* be good. On tests on some devices, complete resets of the cpu occurred.

The reason that I post this is that one of our spyders picked up some threads about such palm-able magnets at an anarchist site.

One would hold out some hope that even nutjob anarchists would have the good sense to realize how close the country is to 'flipping out' over the election, and to also realize that the USofA has the most heavily armed population ever in existence so it would *not* be good for us to flip out, metalurically speaking.

So, ifn' y'all know of any anarchists who are planning to go out and about with magnets on tuesday, a swift smack on the side of their heads with a 20 pound salmon might be in order.

Not to minimize the potential problem here...what are poll workers going to do when their touch screen machines dump their memory and do the bat-shit jig?

These magnets are very easily detectable as their fields are quite strong so any of the various metal detectors will find them...usually even through lots of clothes or flesh.

[librechik]

1. I voted at the central election office, and they used a metal detector

It's a courthouse usually, so the machine is always there for entry.

but when I vote in my neighborhood precinct, no metal detector.

[LiberalFighter]

2. Which would suggest that if computers are used for voting...

that the same procedure should be used when working on projects...

Back it up every 5 minutes or so. Or the results should be transmitted to a protected site in the vicinity.

[RedEagle]

4. These things are vulnerable to two touches at the same time

At least the touch screens are.

No, can't transmit while the election is in progress and it's not a good idea to do it at the close of polls, either. Modems are a huge problem and should be banned. Take the results and DRIVE them in.

Magnets could be a problem but the things are so easily confused anyway.

If you don't think the screen has been recalibrated in a while or you are going to a screen where you've seen lots of hand activity on the screen (sometimes you can see that without seeing how the person voted), ask the poll worker to recalibrate the screen.

If they haven't been taught how to do that basic function....

[LiberalFighter]

8. Why drive them in??

The results should be announced at the polling place, called into central and paper copies provided.

Makes it more difficult to mess with the results when it is not centralized.

[drunkdriver-in-chief]

3. GOP may use this issue to shut down the polls

On tueday they may say the touch screens are being disrupted (even if they're not) by magnet carrying anarchists and say they have no choice but to postpone the election.

[rednek_Liberal]

5. Great, so now I not only

Have to Leave my Magnets At home, But Im supposed to pick up a rather large salmon on my way to the polls...Next thing you know someone will want me thinking about why Im voting in the first place.
This civil respoinsibility stuff is getting to be too much.

[sam sarrha]

6. salmon with an ax inside is preferable

[Zorra]

7. Do magnets make paper and pen balloting ineffective?

No?

Well, golly gee, we have the solution!

Now why didn't our republican run government think of that?

Oh, yeah....they did....that's why we have electronic voting machines. Expensive, unreliable, need maintenance, and so very, very easy to fix an election with.