Slashback: ASIMO History, CSIRO WiFi, Net Neutrality

Slashback tonight brings some corrections, clarifications, and updates to previous Slashdot stories, including a short history of Honda's ASIMO. Also, Intel bows out of the embedded processor market, Microsoft's USB giveaway fizzles, CSIRO gets close to a WiFi win, lawmakers target MySpace again, and the New York Times weighs in on net neutrality. Read on for details.

A Short history of Honda's ASIMO. Ant writes to tell us that Honda has posted a short overview of the evolution leading up to the ASIMO. The history showcases the progress Honda has made in robotics over the last 20 years. It contains drawings, photographs, specifications, and other information about each prototype.

Intel bows out of the embedded processor market. markrages writes "Embedded.com is reporting Intel is withdrawing from the embedded processor market. From the article: 'The company will stop producing the 8051, 251, 8096/196, 188/186, i960, all versions of the 386 (including the 386EX) and 486.'" The product change notification is also available from Intel's site.

Microsoft USB giveaway fizzles. An anonymous reader writes "If you thought you could get something for nothing from Microsoft. Think again. NetworkWorld is reporting that Microsoft is backing down from the free USB drive marketing promotion they launched last February."

CSIRO close to WiFi win. Trapped Database Adm writes "Australian IT reports that Leonard Davis of the U.S. District Court for the eastern district of Texas issued a Markman opinion, providing 'strong support for CSIRO's position in its patent infringement test case.'" From the article: "The CSIRO claims its patent relates to several wireless standards, and the technology covered by its patent is a standard feature of most notebook computers and many other devices. Many technology companies are refusing to pay up, however."

Lawmakers target MySpace again. ardyng writes "It appears Congressman Michael G. Fitzpatrick,(R-Penn) has introduced a bill to the U.S. House of Representatives that would ban minors from accessing social networking websites such as Myspace, as well as any site that 'allows users to create web pages or profiles that provide information about themselves and are available to other users; and offers a mechanism for communication with other users, such as a forum, chat room, email, or instant messenger. The Bill, H.R. 5319, also known as the 'Deleting Online Predators Act of 2006', is still in its infancy, but in its current form, would forbid libraries from allowing access to such sites as well." (That description would also include the site you're reading now.)

New York Times weighs in on net neutrality. KarmaOverDogma writes "The New York Times' Adam Cohen provides an argument in favor of neutrality on the World Wide Web. Cohen succinctly provides a brief history of the World Wide Web, its creator Tim Berners-Lee's vision of how it should operate, why he designed that way, and the forces moving to create a tiered pricing system of access. From stifling creativity and competition to free speech and innovation, Cohen shows why strange bedfellows have come to favor enforcing the 'Democratic Ethic' of the internet by Legislation."

Solution...

[informatico]

"The Bill, H.R. 5319, also known as the 'Deleting Online Predators Act of 2006', is still in its infancy, but in its current form, would forbid libraries from allowing access to such sites as well."

The solution is to force these politians to take vacation 360 out of 365 days of the year to limit the damage and stupidity caused.

They aren't leaving - XScale is the future

[Bruce Perens]

If Intel is still making XScale, they are hardly leaving the embedded market. They are just discontinuing processors that these days aren't worth the silicon, commodity low-margin products that other companies make well.

Bruce

Banning mnors from social networking sites..

[whoever57]

If minors are prohibited, how does one prove one is an adult, and perhaps more importantly, does the information required to prove one is an adult provide yet more ways for one's online activity to be tracked?

From Tim Berners Lee

[Rick Zeman]

"That's not what we call Internet at all," says Sir Tim. "That's what we call cable TV."

Beautiful line, and summed up so even a politco could understand it.

Anti Social Networks

[packetmon]

I'd like to see a law introduced to combat AntiSocial Networks. You know the ones where the parents don't want to take responsibilities for the actions of their kids they don't bother monitoring...

The NEW bill, known as the "How About You Pay Attention to What Your Kids Are Doing" would be introduced into congress immediately.

The bill would use direct as a matter of fact language to define a "getting to know what your kids are doing on the web", which would theoretically force parents to stop making bad decisions and pay more attention to their families.

"Sites like Myspace and Facebook have opened the door to a new online community of social networks between friends, students and colleagues," "However, this new technology has become a feeding ground for child predators that use these sites as just another way to do our children harm." As stated by a congressman. However, "children under age should not be left alone to use a computer unmonitored. There are plenty of programs available to curtail things from happening. It seems parents don't want to face their responsibilities..." stated packetmon.

Deleting Online Act of 2006

[Gnpatton]

'Deleting Online Predators Act of 2006' are you kidding me? How about just 'Deleting everything Online Act of 2006' This bill is FAR too broad? How many websites have a forum? Just about all.

Re:From Tim Berners Lee

[IWannaBeAnAC]

politico: Cable TV is good, the consume^Wcitizens sit there passively absorbing everything that we can feed to them - just gotta make sure we retain sufficient control over the big media

politico: Hey, this intarweb thing can be used for subversive anti-government messages! Lets make it more like cable TV!

What is Obscene?

[Stoned4Life]

As far as that bill goes, before deciding that material obscene to minors should be banned, how about we decide _what_ is obscene to minors. Isn't this really a morality issue up to the _parents_ not Big Brother? Material described as obscene and harmful to minors is so disgustingly vague, that anyone can come on and say Microsoft.com is harmful to minors. Let's ban that (yay). I don't want legislators in congress deciding what is and isn't obscene for me.

pas trop gouverner!

[Quirk]

Don't govern too much! IIRC the adage not to govern to much is essential to Adam Smith's doctrine of laissez-faire. And Adam Smith's 'The Wealth of Nations' is the handbook of American business; but now it seems that American law makers on all levels are intent on creating the most annally retentive, overly legislated country in the world. I'm guessing the Salem witch trials are soon due for a revival.

As a Canadian it appears that Americans are getting all the stick and no carrot. While being gagged and bound by unenforcable laws and taxed to support humongous government the American people go without the social programs and safety nets that coutries like Canada enjoy as a consequence of being over governed.

In the beginning was Adam Smith and things were OK; then came J.M. Keynes, government programs and a chicken in every pot, followed by J.K. Galbraith and the military industrial complex. What you've got going now I haven't got words for, but, better you than me.

NN Mediocre article

[illuminatedwax]

What a mediocre article. He could've at least brought up the "double-dipping" nature of the tiered system.
At least do some better research:

The blogging phenomenon is possible because individuals can create Web sites with the World Wide Web prefix, www, that can be seen by anyone with Internet access.

No wonder my site isn't working: I forgot to add the www prefix!!

Banning minors?

[O'Laochdha]

I could see banning under-13's (who already require parental supervision), but minors? What does a sixteen-year-old have to fear from a pedophile? Even if this passes (oh, Canada!), it's an absurd smoke-and-mirrors measure.

Re:Solution...

[Xyrus]

Even better, we should pay them to not do anything at all. At this point, it's better.

Maybe that's what they really want, so they're purposely screwing things up to the point we just say, "Here, take the money! I don't care! Just don't do anything!"

We pay farmers not to grow, why can't we pay congress to NOT legislate?

~X~

Re:"Lawmakers target MySpace again."

[Total_Wimp]

Myspace is to today as AOL Chatrooms were to the 90's. All the hip pedophiles use MySpace.

You are absolutely correct. Pedophiles definately use MySpace. They also use the carpool lane, the grocery store, a knife every time they want to chop lettuce and even a voting booth from time to time. The sooner we ban all these things the safer our precious children will be.

TW

Re:net neutrality

[MadMidnightBomber]

For instance, the Sender Policy Framework (SPF) so-called spam solution is being adopted all over the place without nary a complaint.

Huh? The guy who does the DNS records gets to decide which hosts are allowed to send mail for a particular domain. S/he can break email for that domain in plenty of ways without SPF. And I fail to see how my saying you can't send mail for my domain is breaking the end-to-end model. If you were talking about port 25 blocking, I could agree.

Wait... Your children drive?

[hackwrench]

Subject line aside, the (rough) equivalents of this using your examples would be:

No driving in the carpool lane when you have a child in the car, as pedophiles may see them.
Children may not go to the grocery store where pedophiles may see them.
No using a knife when there is a child in the room. (a bit harder as a knife is not a place).
Children may not be in tow when going to vote as pedophiles might see them.