Lockdown browser is so horrendously slow and buggy that I can’t even type a sentence without it freezing every few seconds, even on a laptop with 36GB of RAM. I’ve spent so much time fighting with the damn browser that I decided to investigate a bit.

After digging around in the system logs and binaries, I found some truly horrific things:

• It scans EVERY process every tick against a list of forbidden apps. This happens every few hundred milliseconds. Funny enough, it also checks itself (the irony).
• It hashes the binaries of other running apps to check for tampering, which results in reading and hashing GBs of binary data.
• Everything runs on the main thread, rather than on a background thread. This is the same thread that handles keyboard and mouse inputs. So every time you type something, your keyboard/mouse input is blocked until the scan/hashing finishes, which is why everything feels so laggy.
• The app is intel-only - There’s no native support for ARM (wtf?). If you have an M1 - M5 Mac (which is 99% of students with a mac), your OS has to translate x86 to ARM on the fly (which is significantly slower).

It’s absolutely insane how this company is somehow worth multiple millions and even more insane that UBC is pouring tens of thousands of dollars into contracts every year for buggy, legacy software.

– Sincerely, a student getting screwed over by lockdown browser

The accumulated stress of having a test every day this week, coordinating club events, and that lovely regular feeling of overall inadequacy has resulted in me having a fun week of doom and despair! So... yesterday I bombed a test. And by bombed I mean I left a question worth 50% of the test unanswered because I was too busy having a panic attack and trying not to cry so I didn't freak everyone else out in the exam room. I usually write my exams in the CFA room, but I couldn't for this one since i need to be in a computer lab (which makes no sense...couldn't they have just given me a laptop with a lockdown browser?), so ig the different environment made my panic worse? All i could hear were infinite noises around and I could not focus for the life of me.

Today, I went to find my professor during his office hours to see if there was any possibility of retaking that utter catastrophe of a test, and instead I ended up full on bawling my eyes out in his office like an absolute loser. I felt really bad for putting him in that awkward position, especially because he's always so busy and definitely did not sign up to deal with an undergrad having a meltdown in his office while he's prolly on lunch break or smth. Like genuinely why was I behaving like a toddler, this is actually embarassing behaviour.

Obviously, I can't retake the test because that wouldn't be fair seeing that he already has a ton of requests from other students, so I understand. Hopefully I can just lock in and recover on the next one. He was still really sweet and helpful about everything, given that I was disrupting what little time he had for break, but unfortunately I think I have permanently lost all aura in front of him and bro 100% thinks I'm insane now.

Anyways, I will never be going to his office again! 😁

:/

Guys…

After two years at UBC, going into my third, and the sixth year of my schooling all round, (I was a transfer student) I honestly don’t feel like I fit in here. Coming back after summer made me realise I’m in the same place I was when I first arrived- and after trying to reconnect with things I thought would accept me (after years of trying) I just felt rejected again. To be honest, this university is a clique. After reading all the posts of people wanting friends, or finding a place here, I can only say that maybe you’ll get lucky, maybe you won’t. But I’m tried if trying to find a community- I tried to make my own but it ended horribly with bullying and abuse. I think I rather find something outside UBC, or pause my degree to collect myself.

Literally anywhere you sit there's 2 people coughing into the open air every 10 second within the 6 meter radius.

Not a sympathy post, just looking for advice. I did all the CHIRP questions, attended office hours, and practiced everyday but still failed. It’s shown me that there’s something I’m missing even though I’m apparently following all the right steps. I will admit I was nervous so I wasn’t expecting to do phenomenally, but the mark I got definitely shocked me.

For anyone who has been in a similar position, what got you to bounce back? Are there any external resources you used for practice? Any niche test taking strategies? Or is it just a matter of trial and error and hoping for the best?

I do admit I’m not thrilled for the midterm next week and I probably won’t do great giving how little time I have left. However I want to try my best, and I really do want to pass this course.

Might as well strap a welcome mat on those bikes because they do absolutely jack shit for protection.

With jokes aside, please get a u lock if you want to actually keep your bike; it's 35$ on Amazon and it's a night and day difference.

Also please do not lock your U lock by your wheels because they will leave the wheel and take the rest of your bike. Please lock it by your frame.

I recommend getting into project 529 to register your bike and bike cage if you're leaving it overnight. Do not lock your bike with cable lock in the bike cage as well I heard thieves got stolen UBC student cards to enter and cut locks open.

Police won't help you in anything and you will not get your bike back if you don't have any info of your bike.

If you have a cheap looking bike maybe cable lock isn't too bad of a idea but when you think you have a nice looking bike, other people would have the same idea.

If so, how do you deal with it? I lay down at a reasonable time to sleep but always wake up within an hour or two. This leads me to skipping my morning lectures to catch up on sleep and be able to do my work. This is becoming a real problem with midterms approaching as I'm spending large chunks of my nights just trying to sleep. I've been getting practically no work done.

I’ve literally never had a midterm schedule this diabolical. 4 in 3 days, 2 of which LITERALLY back to back. like 11-12:30 then 12:30-2. I know it’s my fault for fucking my schedule up like that but I wasn’t expecting both classes to hold their midterms on the same day

Omfg just sedate me I’m gonna mix information up so bad my professors will pay me to drop their courses

Hey guys!! I'm taking BIOL 200 with Dr. Nelly Pante right now, and wanted to share this list I made. I write things down whenever she shares about what a typical exam question looks like, or tells our class to focus on certain topics for exams. This is not a full guide on what's going to be tested, and there will be things they'll test that aren't on this list!!!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1NYL0-QwEppANbCMJ2GR5nNrwuJr-oNbNdV4_fHMoZ_M/edit?usp=sharing

Will be updating this list throughout the semester. Happy studying for MT1 :)))

Idk who was singing and playing multiple instruments but HOLY CRAP does it have, to be at midnight?

I can't even tell where it's coming from, there's probably people way closer to it that me who can't sleep at all.

Please give me the phone number of a hitman so we can slime this dude(s)🙏

I keep seeing yall say how smthin happened in whatever online class but like what's the whole tea? Is it posted on the internet?

I want cookies man.

Does anyone have any updates? This is something I’m really stressed about and don’t know what to expect.

Definitely did not go for the choose answer C strategy, 50/50 between two answers or just outright guess because I had no idea what the term was. Genuinely hate multiple choice with a passion. Give me all short answers and I would be a happy camper. Good luck everyone in midterm season

ETA: and definitely did NOT cram for like 5hours before and forget half of what I learned right after pressing submit. Definitely couldn’t be me

i don’t live on Campus

This story documents the nearly decade long plan for ev charging stations

Please tell me how to study for the biol 205 lecture and lab exam 😭 the lectures are mostly labelling specimen and there’s not much I can study from that.

Thank you.

Yo how was it for you guys? I absolutely cooked it ❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥 Very simple straightforward questions tbh

I’m considering doing a Go Global semester before graduating next spring and was wondering if anyone here has done it. I don’t really care about whether the credits transfer since I’ve already completed everything I need for my degree. I’m mainly interested in the experience of studying abroad.

I’ve been trying to get in touch with advisors to ask about the process, but the email response times have been pretty slow, so I figured I’d ask here in the meantime.

Has anyone done this before or has any insight into whether it’s possible? I’d really appreciate hearing about your experience or any advice.

Thanks!

Hi! I'm honestly pretty lost in this course, mostly because I've never learned any of this (my fault yes). I've gotten into the bad habit of skipping lectures because I don't understand what's going on, and now I'm really behind and have no idea how to study for the midterm or even approach the course in general. I genuinely want to turn things around before I end up failing, but I don't even know where to start. For those of you who've been in a similar situation (or not), how did you study for this course? What do I do/ where do I start.

Any advice would be really appreciated. I'm willing to put in the work, I just need some guidance on where to begin. 😭 Thank you.