6d10

My employer gave me an RSA SecurID fob. It's a stick about the size of my thumb with a small LCD screen. Every thirty seconds or so it generates a new six-digit number. It also shows a set of tick marks to provide a relative time until the next number is generated.

I've never had one of these before. I've read about the three guys behind the technology but I've never had the chance to use it. While the technology is fascinating, the actual use of it is kinda dull and it's supposed to be that way. I pull up a tool, type my username, then type my password and the six digits I see on one line and I'm in my corporate network no matter where I go.

If that were all I saw, I'd barely notice this stick. Nevertheless, this thing is an OCD victim's dream! Any time I want a new number to attempt to factorize in my head, I can look down and see "330985" or perhaps "063098". This rules! I have a stiiiiiiiick!

Oh dude, just think: I don't even need to flip a coin anymore. I can look at the stick and the odd or even state of the next number will be yes or no. Sweet! Stick ruuuuuulez!

I wonder whether Harvey Dent would use one of these sticks. He could still flip it in his hand like a coin...

I guess this isn't really random number generation. The stick has a serial number, which is tied to my user account. Is it merely playing a sequence of precalculated digits? Not according to Wikipedia. SecurID ties the serial number only to a seed record, so each stick is doing its own math and the RSA authentication server merely runs the same calculation at that same moment.

I have a stick! My key chain is getting pendulous.

-drinkin' drinks, Ps/d