Slashback: Playstation, CueCat, Games

This edition of Slashback has updates and clarifications on the official release of Sony's PS2 Linux, relative security among various operating systems, dirty output on power-boosted Linksys wireless access points, and more, flying hardware you might have figured was no more, and more.

Maybe a bad day at the factory? An anonymous reader submits: "I'm not sure where the other fellow got his WAP11, but mine don't show the dirty output his does." See this diagram for a much more desireable outcome, if you care to play with (a little bit of) fire.

First application should be a GPL'd AIBO obedience school. gonz writes: "An update to the previous reported linux on ps2 kit has been submitted by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) to the people previously registering interest on their technology sites. The update consist of that it will be released in May on both SCEA (us) and SCEE (pal areas, including Europe and Australia) territories. A website has been set up at this place. On a side note, registering for notification when pre-ordering can apparently be done too: 'Finally, although sales haven't yet started, if you send an e-mail with the message "subscribe" to [e-mail] we'll let you know when pre-ordering starts.'"

Lessons in obviousness. John Kozubik writes: "I have written an article describing, in a manner I have not yet seen, why the court decision by the U.S. appeals court in SF that claimed in-line linking was not fair use was inherently flawed. It is a short piece written for both the technical and the non-technical, and I think it raises a strong point concerning the arbitrary nature of browser behavior."

If they'd launch some pigs, perhaps global phones would be affordable. Guppy06 writes: "Many of you may be surprised to learn that Iridium (famous for trying to compete with cell phones and failing miserably) is still throwing up satellites (I sure was). The article on CNN tells of the technical woes of getting this particular Delta II off the pad in Vandenberg as Iridium tries to put five more spares into orbit."

Couldn't they have spayed or neutered them instead? Speaking of old hardware, Anonymous Radio Shack Employee writes: "RadioShack has sent a notice to all of its employees to destroy all CueCats (preferably with a hammer). Apparently the CueCat is among a couple of dozen items that RadioShack has given up on, and wants destroyed. The memo says that store employee's can not benefit from the items on the list. Which sucks because my store has over a hundred of these things just sitting in the back room." This week's Linux Weekly News has a great, detailed followup to the recent flap over relative OS security sparked by a post in Windows Informant.

Speaking of flawed links..

[Anonymous Coward]

fair use was HREF="http://www.kozubik.com/published/decisions.t xt">http://www.kozubik.com/published/decisions. txt">inherently flawed.

oh, the irony.

i proclaim...

[doooras]

i will have the first webserver running on a cue cat.

Just think of the entertainment.

[Inspired Chaos]

Alright! I'm deffinately ready for the "101 ways to destroy a Cuecat" video craze. :)

Cuecats being destroyed . . .

[Pituritus Ani]

. . . can only mean that they will become more scarce. Then, decades from now, when I'm old and grey, I'll retire on the income from selling the ones I collected from every Radio Shack in the four state area when Digital Convergence broke out the jackboots.

I dance a jig on their grave. See where empty-headed threats and intellectual property rhetoric lead?

Great

[Tadrith]

Somebody call the humane society!

Oh... they're not *real*?

Sigh...

[Will_Malverson]

Use the Preview Button! Check those URLs! Don't forget the http://!

Radio Shack Addendum

[UsonianAutomatic]

Cue::Cats are only to be destroyed with the special Cue::Hammer.

The Cue::Hammer, when connected to your computer's serial port, will digitally scan any object it is used upon and automatically take you to a website featuring...

oh, never mind.

Radio Scrap

[Hydro-X]

Wow! Something from Radio Scrap that actually needs help in falling apart! :]

Maybe They Have Rabies!

[Anonymous Coward]

From a local RadioShack guy, "If your Cue:Cat begins to foam at the mouth, smash it with a hammer. Your kids will understand. If possible, get another before they notice..."

Headline

[Mwongozi]

For some reason I missed the word "Slashback" on this headline and thought it was a story about interfacing your cuecat with your PS2 and using it to play games.

Now that would be cool.

Re:Digital Convergence

[antistuff]

It gets even funnier when you look under the picture of the cuecat and it says "available now for windows operating systems".

i bet thats what they thought the first time.

nastiness

[jaavaaguru]

The picture of the modulated signal from the WAP11 on the HP8565a should be rated PG due to explicit content :-)
I mean, what does the 1st one look like to you?

Re:Just think of the entertainment.

[extra88]

FYI, bonsaicuecat.com is still up for grabs.

Re:Radio Scrap

[Anonymous Coward]

My first dumpster diving experiences were at Radio Shack.

It was great pickins, usually stuff that had soda or something spilled in it that could be easily cleaned out. Nothing was ever smashed, unless it had been obviously dropped or something.

I was the first kid on my block with the latest gadgets, and never had to pay a cent for them. Mini tv sets, A cd player when the only cds out there were Michael Jackson's Thriller and some bad classical, and tons of other cool stuff.

Of course, the downside was that my parents alternated between thinking I was shoplifting to thinking I was selling drugs to afford all this stuff.

Re:Radio Shack

[Yorrike]

Not ashamed, more relieved that the truth is finally out there. It's a weight off my chest.

Trust me, when I heard of this occurance, I shed a tear for those poor, defenseless CRTs, being dumped in an umarked, undignified grave when there where thousands who would have given them the love they needed.

I often wake screaming with guilt (or it could be caffine induced insanity, same diff I suppose).

Re:Radio Shack

[John Miles]

I think you may be missing some important aspects of transformer fundamentals. :)

Re:Maybe its like bagels?

[MathJMendl]

They should just license the food to the shelters under the BSD license [freebsd.org]! Here is food...do what you will with it.

This is somewhat alarming!!

[erroneus]

Since policy states that something no longer useful, serviceable or sellable should be destroyed...

Uh... what does it say in their fine print about a 'retirement plan' again???

My problem is...

[HiredMan]

I put my Schroedinger's CueCat in a box and tossed in a single hammer.

It may be destroyed or it may not. I can't be sure.

;)

=tkk

Re:Maybe its like bagels?

[Anonymous Coward]

Better to use the GPL. Make them cough up their modifications.

Food wants to be Free!

Re:Nah..

[TokyoJimu]

> It wasn't even fun for the novelty value.

Reminds me of the early '90s in Japan when business cards started sporting barcodes, encoded with the phone and fax numbers printed on the card.

I could never quite grasp why anyone would want to use a scanner to scan the number, which would then output the touch-tones to the phone, instead of just punching eight buttons.

I admit I'm not totally immune to technology for technology's sake, but...what were these people thinking!