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Comment Just like the Nook - with the same problem (Score 2, Interesting) 29

by northernboy (#63182224) Attached to: Apple Books Quietly Launches AI-Narrated Audiobooks

The original Nook could do basic text to speech - which was hailed as a real boon to people with sight challenges. Although I'm certain the AI does a better job with inflection and such, but the fundamental problem remains.
The reason almost no one knows or remembers this feature is that the moment it was revealed, book authors invoked their copyright authority to prohibit "derivative works". Barnes and Nobel were forced to disable this feature. Of course, Apple is probably too big to be dissuaded by a few measly class-action lawsuits contesting this.

Submission + - Corporations feel cyber breaches are a minor cost of business

Submitted by northernboy
northernboy writes: The Rand Corporation has completed a study of corporate responses to cybersecurity breaches which shows that most corporate loses fall into the range of a minor cost of doing business.
From the press release:
Researchers found that the typical cost of a breach was about $200,000 and that most cyber events cost companies less than 0.4 percent of their annual revenues. The $200,000 cost was roughly equivalent to a typical company's annual information security budget.

“Relative to all the other risks companies face, the cyber risks often aren't as big a deal as we think,” said Sasha Romanosky, author of the study and a policy researcher at RAND, a nonprofit research organization. “It may be bad for you if you are the victim, but it doesn't change the behavior or strategy of a company. Like you and me, companies are self-interested and operate in ways that minimize their costs. You can't begrudge them for working that way.” ...
  “If it is true that on average that businesses lose 5 percent of their annual revenue to fraud, and that the cost of a cyber event represents only 0.4 percent of a firm's revenues, then one may conclude that these hacks, attacks and careless behaviors represent a small fraction of the costs that firms face, and therefore only a small portion of the cost of doing business,” Romanosky said.

Given that finding — and surveys that indicate consumers are mostly satisfied with the ways companies respond to data breaches — he says that businesses “lack a strong incentive to increase their investment in data security and privacy protection.” Moreover, if their losses are not out of line with other costs, he said, “maybe the firms are already doing the right thing,” making government policies to induce more precautions unnecessary.

So, cheer up! There isn't really any significant problem here. Unless you happen to be a consumer, but Hey, if the current ones get damaged, there are always plenty more where they came from...

Submission + - Google Fiber wins critical Nashville Metro Council Vote (arstechnica.com)

Submitted by bundis
bundis writes: Nashville's Metro Council passed the "One Touch Make Ready" proposal that would allow Google Fiber techs to move AT&T and Comcast lines and equipment. The critical third vote by the Metro Council took place on Wednesday night. Of course, AT&T and Comcast have voiced their displeasure. Lawsuits are inevitable so this story is far from over.

Submission + - How Ransomware Is Impacting Companies In Six Major Industries (helpnetsecurity.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Ransomware is a legitimate threat, with estimates from the U.S. Justice Department showing that over 4,000 of these attacks have occurred every day since the beginning of 2016. While several ransomware attacks on healthcare companies have made headlines this year, the issue is more widespread. BitSight analyzed the security ratings of nearly 20,000 companies to identify common forms of ransomware, and discovered that the Education sector is actually the most impacted group, followed by Government.

Submission + - Yahoo Preparing to Reveal 'Massive' Loss of User Data (bloomberg.com)

Submitted by JustAnotherOldGuy
JustAnotherOldGuy writes: Yahoo! Inc. is preparing to disclose a “massive” data breach of its main service, Recode reported, just as Verizon Communications Inc. prepares to take over the ailing internet company’s core assets.Such a revelation would confirm earlier reports that the same hacker who’d stolen data from LinkedIn was now selling information from 200 million Yahoo accounts on a dark web marketplace. The data up for sale included user names, scrambled passwords and birth dates and likely dated from 2012. Reports of the security breach come just as Chief Executive Officer Marissa Mayer is about to close a deal with Verizon that ends the once-dominant internet firm’s independence.

Comment Ahhh... THAT'S why Ubuntu runs under Windows... (Score 2) 491

by northernboy (#52931481) Attached to: Microsoft Signature PC Requirements Now Blocks Linux Installation: Reports

Oh... I get it now. I was trying to understand why suddenly bash and some of the Ubuntu pieces were suddenly supported on Windows. So, since you can easily get access to all your real Linux tools and suchlike (or will eventually) there's actually no reason at all to complain that you can't install the OS - just run it on Windows.

All that "Developers want access to their tools" blather explaining why MS decided to create the layer that allows Linux code to run just didn't seem convincing. This must have been the goal all along. I think this time it just might stick. Oh well. I'm not a gamer or video editor, so I suspect that when it's time for me to replace my current laptop, there'll be a reasonably speced ARM solution so I won't really notice. I already said "Goodby" to Microsoft, I guess it will soon be time to say the same to Intel.

Comment Didn't FTC Do This in 2013? (Score 1) 113

by northernboy (#52734569) Attached to: AT&T, Apple, Google To Work On 'Robocall' Crackdown

I guess I misunderstood TFA. Didn't FTC hold a $50,000 challenge in 2013 and award a prize?

I immediately attempted to set this up at my house but of course ATT didn't implement the third party ring feature which is the central requirement. Funny thing...

Oh well. We have an answering machine, anyone who calls is welcome to use it. All the phones have their ringers off. We get about 20 calls a day, and about 2 messages a week. I wonder who all the other calls are from?

Comment Cheap Bluetooth 4.0 module (Score 1) 135

by northernboy (#51279167) Attached to: Ask Slashdot: Cheap and Fun Audio Hacks?

Around Thanksgiving, the Linux Voice podcast had a "find of the fortnight" about a small, cheap Bluetooth 4.0 module that can easily be added to an existing system. The card is designated KRC 86B, and a raw board is about $10. As a raw board, there is programming in place that handles everything you need to send audio from your phone and the board has audio in and out all configured. I think they are the same ones that are used for Bluetooth connections in new cars these days.

Bare boards have soldering pads, but no connectors. I paid a bit more for one ($14) that already had all the connectors attached - all I did was provide micro-USB power, and connect to my receiver with a standard audio miniplug. Pair and play!

There are tutorials all over the place on how to gracefully integrate these things into your existing box, but mine's just dangling out front. Despite the simplicity and low cost, the sound is excellent! Don't take my word for it, they're about $10, just do it!

Submission + - Wouldn't Watson Make a Great Telemarketer?

Submitted by northernboy
northernboy writes: I got a very convincing automated telemarketing call the other day — I believed an actual person was on the line for 3 or 4 minutes — either their script anticipated my questions/comments or they had some sort of speaker-independant response working. That got me thinking — what a great application for Watson! A counter-argument for every reason you come up with not to buy. Never flustered into getting off-script. Of course, they'd have to sell a LOT of crap to justify the cost... Still, play along for a few minutes and let me know what you think.

Submission + - Making Wireless Carriers Play Together 1

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Ok, so the idea of opening all Wi-Fi networks in a misthought utopian vision didn’t go over so well. But no one discussed the best part of open Wi-Fi networks: bonding different Wi-Fi and mobile carriers to get the best price and decent performance. We could save money and avoid lock in by bouncing to whoever gives us the best rate, and, when we need speed, jump on all of them at once for a network bonded boost.

Submission + - Firmware Flaw Bricks Samsung Laptops on Linux Boot (theregister.co.uk)

Submitted by northernboy
northernboy writes: The Register is reporting on a dangerous new EFI development (unrelated to Secure Boot) that on ocassion will permanently diable the motherboard of certain Samsung laptops after booting Ubuntu 12.x (and probably other distributions) from USB. Apparently a Samsung hardware driver is involved in the issue. Canonical has informed Samsung of the problem, but there does not seem to be any urgency on Samsung's part.

Comment Re:Overreaching? (Score 0) 409

by northernboy (#41981953) Attached to: Apple Orders Memory Game Developers To Stop Using 'Memory' In Names

Um, if you think that copyrighting/trademarking a common word is reaching, what about color?

I don't have links for the recent decision over red soles on women's shoes, nor the company in Germany that trademarked the color blue, but how about this item from 1995, in which Justice Breyer decided that companies DO have the right to trademark colors: http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1995-03-29/news/1995088024_1_color-trademark-protection-pink

Compared to that, a simple little thing like trademarking a common word is pretty tame.

Submission + - Help OED Find First Reference to 'FAQ' (oed.com)

Submitted by northernboy
northernboy writes: The Oxford English Dictionary needs your help! In order to authoritatively document the history and usage of the English language, the editors are seeking references to the first appearance of the term 'FAQ'. While I really wanted to post their appeal for a reliable reference to the first usage of 'cooties' (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3zbY069E9g&list=PL07253E5BE6882EC9&index=5&feature=plpp_video) I felt that the Slashdot editors were more likely to post this item if it were in support of the more noble cause of identifying the first usage of FAQ, as we know it (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VxBIwL38V0&list=PL07253E5BE6882EC9&index=7&feature=plpp_video).

Surely someone in the Slashdot community has access to a documented first sighti
ng of the term FAQ?

Please dig deep into your archives, and help the editors of the Oxford English D
ictionary today!

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