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Comment Re:On one hand... (Score 1) 483

You are correct sir! I forgot about Roddenberry rewriting the script. He even talked about it at conventions and wrote up an account of it somewhere. Roddenberry and Ellison were friends at the time, and according to one version of the story, Roddenberry would go over to Ellison's house and pester him about the screenplay. Ellison would prevaricate, and Roddenberry would then "borrow" some of the records from Ellison's music collection. Ellison had to turn in the script to get his records back. Only trouble was, Ellison didn't quite get the idea of writing for a budgeted TV show, he had all sorts of crowd scenes in it, huge FX shots, etc. It was also MUCH longer, almost too long even for a two-hour movie. So Roddenberry had to rewrite it, taking all the impossible or over-budget stuff out. The result is essentially a collaborative effort between two writers, Ellison and Roddenberry. And I forgot all this. OMG, am I getting old? I blame it on the rock music and all them violent video games I play.

Comment I thought there was a time limit (Score 1) 483

on writers' shares of secondary rights in contracts before the 1990s. I'd love to look at the 1960 and 1966 contracts to see, but I sincerely doubt they are anywhere to be found outside the WGA-W archives or the LA public library. So I don't have the faintest clue as to whether Ellison has a leg to stand on. If he does, go for it, though he'll only get just enough to pay half his lawyer's bill. Unless the writer of this spin-off trilogy is a big name, he'll be getting around $40,000 per book (maybe a little more, maybe MUCH LESS). The books themselves have limited earning potential, hard to tell for a TOS novel, could be high six or low seven figure sales. Remember, the ST franchise is fractured and competes against itself. Lots of TNG ppl don't like TOS, lots of Voyager ppl don't like TNG, etc. Most of the earnings for the trilogy go to the outlets and the publisher. The license to publish it might have brought only $100,000. Hey, maybe Ellison's lucky and its $250,000 (I doubt it, but I'm always wrong about these things). If he doesn't have a leg to stand on, this is about his anger at his work being spun off without his permission. But all Hollywood writing is work-for-hire, so you're boned if you think you'll ever have a say in how your work is used.

Comment SOP for Hollywood (Score 1) 483

All of them rip off the writers. It's part of the culture. That's why many writers now wear "producer" labels. They get to write and the new label gets them more respect.

What's so special about now? Besides, contractually, I think writers are only eligible for residuals for the first 17 years after the series was on. I could be wrong, "Always in motion, Hollywood writing contracts are."

Comment Re:I met Bobby Fischer once (Score 1) 192

I enjoy a challenge, and I purposefully die enough in my favorite shooters that no one thinks I'm a pro, semi-pro maybe. But I often hang out with real pros, elite gamers, and when they appear in a game, guys bail so fast, you'd think we were on the Titanic. Some of the pros change their names every so often, just to get a game. But you know who they are, you know when someone snipes you from the freakin' other side of the damn map, from behind a pillar next to crashed gunship, and you know, you just know it's that damn DeathWolf under another name!

Comment Re:Interesting... (Score 1) 242

Memory in mammals is a complex thing. Just how thorough was this "genetic crippling" of the memories of these mice? Are other genes involved in mammalian memory than just those affected by the experimenters? Where did the mice come from? If from a commercial source, maybe their creation and breeding are somehow flawed. So many questions, so few real answers from this article.

I look forward to future experiments of this sort. Maybe something will come of it; or maybe the experiment was flawed. I'm keeping an open mind until more information is available.

Medicine

FDA Testing Artificial Liver 146

NIckGorton writes "Research is now underway in the US to seek FDA approval for an artificial liver. The Extracorporeal Liver Assist Device (ELAD) filters blood through a cartridge containing immortalized human liver cells with fiber tubes running through that allow the patients blood to interact with them. This allows the matrix of liver cells to perform both the metabolic (cleansing the blood of toxins/waste) and synthetic (producing albumin, clotting factors, etc) functions of the patient's failing liver. A small trial in China showed a statistically and clinically significant difference in 30 day survival with ELAD."
Google

The In-Progress Plot To Kill Google 234

twitter writes "Four years after Steve Ballmer vowed to kill Google, Wired details Microsoft's, AT&T's, and big publishers' ongoing slog. The story is filled with astroturfers, lobbyists and others spending millions to manufacture FUD about privacy and monopoly in order to protect the obsolete business models of their patrons, who are mostly known for progress-halting monopoly and invasion of privacy. Their greatest coup to date was preventing Google from rescuing Yahoo."
Education

Are My Ideas Being Stolen? If So, What Then? 508

BinaryGrind writes "I just got started taking Computer Science classes at my local university and after reading Universities Patenting More Student Ideas I felt I needed to ask: How do I tell if any of my projects while attending classes will be co-opted by my professors or the university itself and taken away from me? Is there anything I can do to prevent it from happening? What do I need to do to protect myself? Are there schools out there that won't take my work away from me if I discover TheNextBigThing(TM)? If it does happen is there anything I can do to fight back? The school I'm attending is Southern Utah University. Since it's not a big university, I don't believe it has a big research and development department or anything of that ilk. I'm mostly wanting to cover my bases and not have my work stolen from me."
Sci-Fi

Canadians Miss Out On Doctor Who Season Finale 303

darthcamaro writes "Canadians were among the last people in the world to get the season 4 finale of Doctor Who which already aired in the UK and Australia. The Canadian public broadcaster — CBC — decided to cut out nearly 20 minutes from the episode, leaving fans wondering what was going on. Doctor Who isn't the easiest show to follow at the best of times — but Canadians are now up in arms (or at least hockey sticks) over their taxpayer-funded broadcaster's lack of respect for SciFi hosers."
Earth

A Sixth Region In the Magnetosphere 69

Roland Piquepaille writes "As you probably know, Earth's magnetosphere, 'the invisible bubble of magnetic fields and electrically charged particles that surrounds and protects the planet from the periodically lethal radiation of the solar wind,' was discovered in 1958. Until now, it was believed to comprise five regions, including the ionosphere or the Van Allen radiation belts. Now, a US research team has discovered a sixth region, called the warm plasma cloak."
Security

Online Billpay Provider Loses Control of Domains 232

An anonymous reader writes "Several sites are running a story about a domain hijacking at Checkfree, the largest provider of online bill payment services to numerous banks and credit unions. According to Network Solutions, someone logged in to the domain administration page using Checkfree's account, and redirected its domains to a site in the Ukraine configured to serve up malware to unsuspecting users." Things like this make me nervous about switching to otherwise-tempting online bill payment, but checks are dangerous, too.
Image

Prescription Handguns For the Elderly and Disabled 1093

Repton writes "Thanks to the Second Amendment, even the elderly have the right to keep and bear arms. The problem is that many of the guns out there are a bit unwieldy for an older person to handle. However, the inventors of the Palm Pistol are planning to change all that with a weapon that is ideal for both the elderly and the physically disabled. In a statement submitted to Medgadget, the manufacturer, Constitution Arms, has revealed the following: 'We thought you might be interested to learn that the FDA has completed its "Device/Not a Device" determination and concluded the handgun will be listed as a Class I Medical Device.' Physicians will be able to prescribe the Palm Pistol for qualified patients who may seek reimbursement through Medicare or private health insurance companies."
Privacy

Replacing Metal Detectors With Brain Scans 327

Zordak writes "CNN has up a story about several Israeli firms that want to replace metal detectors at airports with biometric readings. For example, with funding from TSA and DHS, 'WeCU ([creepily] pronounced "We See You") Technologies, employs a combination of infra-red technology, remote sensors and imagers, and flashing of subliminal images, such as a photo of Osama bin Laden. Developers say the combination of these technologies can detect a person's reaction to certain stimuli by reading body temperature, heart rate and respiration — signals a terrorist unwittingly emits before he plans to commit an attack.' Sensors may be embedded in the carpet, seats, and check-in screens. The stated goal is to read a passenger's 'intention' in a manner that is 'more fair, more effective and less expensive' than traditional profiling. But not to worry! WeCU's CEO says, 'We don't want you to feel that you are being interrogated.' And you may get through security in 20 to 30 seconds."
Cellphones

How To Find a Mobile Games Publisher? 119

n01 writes "In the last few months of my spare time, I've been implementing an abstract strategy board game (that I invented) along with a decent AI. The game resembles TwixT in that it is also a connection game, and could be played without the need for a cellphone or computer. The implementation on the Java 2 Mobile Edition platform will soon be finished, with only some minor usability and sound issues to fix. While I enjoyed working on the game (actually more than on my day job as a programmer) I would still like to earn some money from selling the game, so I can work more on such projects in the future. What experiences have Slashdot readers had with selling their applications/games for mobile phones? With which publisher will I have the broadest audience and achieve the highest earnings? Would you try to publish the game both as a mobile game and a traditional board game?"

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