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The Media

FCC To End Exclusive Cable For Apartments 269

Posted by kdawson from the falling-prices-gardyloo dept.
spiffyman writes "The New York Times is reporting that on Wednesday the FCC will end exclusive contracts to provide cable service to apartment buildings. Commission Chairman Kevin J. Martin is quoted as saying that cable prices have risen 'about 93 percent in the last 10 years' and that the FCC hopes to see more competition out of this move. This is a step in the right direction. In my apartment, for example, I have (dead) outlets for one cable company but am forced to go with the higher-priced firm. Moves like this will help those who live in areas where competition — even minimal competition — exists. The article also discusses the impact this may have on low- to middle-income families, who disproportionately live in apartment complexes."
HP

Italian Judge Tells HP To Refund Pre-Installed XP 225

Posted by kdawson from the fair's-fair dept.
Paolo DF writes "An Italian user asked for a refund after buying a Compaq computer that came with Windows XP and Works 8 pre-installed. HP tried to avoid the EULA agreement which states, approximately: '[I]f the end user is not willing to abide by this EULA... he shall immediately contact the producer to get info for giving back the product and obtaining refunds.' The court ruled in favor of the user (Google translation from the Italian), who received back €90 for XP and €50 for Works. Here is the ruling (PDF, Italian)."

Feed Engadget: NVIDIA to announce Intel-compliant integrated graphics chips (engadget.com)

From feed by engfeed

Filed under: Desktops

The latest development in the soap opera that is the PC components industry sees NVIDIA expanding beyond its usual focus on AMD systems to offer new integrated graphics solutions designed for Intel-based desktops. Reuters reports that the upcoming GeForce 7050, 7100, and 7150 will be compatible with current and upcoming Intel chips, ship in machines priced from $400 to $600, and are said to "give the performance of an entry-level separate graphics processor unit" -- a claim we'll be interested to see tested. Now that NVIDIA is taking direct aim at the world's largest chipmaker, we wouldn't be at all surprised to see Intel strike back in the discreet graphics space -- and then it doesn't take much to imagine NVIDIA retaliating once again by whipping up its own line of CPUs, does it?

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Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
The Internet

Researchers Suggest P2P As Solution To Video Domination of The Internet 121

Posted by Zonk from the making-it-all-work dept.
JPawlak writes "NewScientistTech reports that big businesses may be realizing the benefits of P2P technologies. Blizzard uses it to distribute patches for World of Warcraft, and now researchers at Microsoft are indicating internet users may have to use it to help distribute online video clips. The growing cost associated with delivering such content may be becoming prohibitive for some companies. 'The team also suggest a way to prevent Internet Service Providers' costs jumping when their users start uploading much more data. The trick is to allow sharing only between people with the same provider, when data transactions are free. That restriction would cut the pool of sharers into smaller groups, meaning MSN's servers would have to do more to fill any gaps in the service. But costs could still fall by more than half, simulations showed.'"
Music

Music Industry Set To Introduce the "Ringle" 348

Posted by kdawson from the latest-brain-damage dept.
mrneutron2003 writes "The RIAA has officially backed a move by the recording industry to reintroduce the CD single. Populated with three songs and a ringtone, this brilliantly clueless idea is to be marketed as a 'ringle,' complete with an even more clueless retail price of $6-7 per CD. Apart from the fact the industry hasn't agreed on how the ringtone is to be redeemed (Sony BMG, the initial proponent of the idea, is the exception here), the pricing puts it way out of line with legitimate digital music downloads." At $7, retailers would enjoy a profit margin they haven't seen since the days of cassette tapes and vinyl.
Security

Tor Used To Collect Embassy Email Passwords 99

Posted by kdawson from the getting-their-attention dept.
Several readers wrote in to inform us that Swedish security researcher Dan Egerstad has revealed how he collected 100 passwords from embassies and governments worldwide, without hacking into anything: he sniffed Tor exit routers. Both Ars and heise have writeups on Egerstad's blog post, but neither adds much to the original. It's not news that unencrypted traffic exits the Tor network unencrypted, but Egerstad correctly perceived, and called attention to, the lack of appreciation for this fact in organizations worldwide.
Windows

Vista Pirates To Get "Black Screen of Darkness" 873

Posted by kdawson from the there-goes-china dept.
jcatcw writes "Microsoft has just turned on Reduced Functionality mode, worldwide, and sent a letter to OEMs explaining the consequences of Vista piracy. These include a black screen after 1 hour of browsing, no start menu or task bar, and no desktop. Using fear as a motivator, the email warns resellers to 'make sure your customers always get genuine Windows Vista preinstalled.'"
It's funny. Laugh.

Whirling Twirling Propeller Trike 136

Posted by CmdrTaco from the mit-students-with-to-much-time dept.
hankmt writes "A student at MIT has built a tricycle that applies force to a giant rear fan, instead of directly to the wheels. The effect...well, it's best to look for yourself, but it would be pretty useful on the post-apocalyptic roads of the Australian Outback. The blades of the trike even have built in LED lights which display colored patterns...and also warn pedestrians of their impending deaths."
Media

Submission + - Linux-Based Archos 704 WiFi A/V Player Reviewed (cooltechzone.com)

Submitted by
hardyh
hardyh writes: "CoolTechZone.com's Gundeep Hora reviews Archos' latest Linux-based 704 multimedia player with WiFi integration. He concludes, "As we have already stated, the audio, video and photo performance was great. Menus worked flawlessly, the audio quality is superb, and so is video playback. The battery life passed the stated specs slightly, a pleasant surprise, indeed. However, there are certainly some quirks in the product that could be taken a look at and improved upon. Obviously this product is designed for travelers and isn't meant to replace your HTPC or another multimedia device that's more convenient than the Archos 704 WiFi."
Displays

Submission + - Harry Potter's screaming book now a reality.

Submitted by
An anonymous reader writes: The BBC is reporting that researchers from Mid Sweden University have managed to create paper that talks when you touch it, using pressure-sensitive inks and printed speakers. At the moment it really only works for billboards, because it requires a cardboard backing, but before long we can expect to see it in packaging and probably in children's "talking books" too.

The key to the billboard's capabilities is a layer of digital paper that is embedded with electronics.

This is printed with conductive inks, which, when applied with pressure, relay information to a micro-computer that contains recorded audio files. Sound then streams out from printed speakers, which are formed from more layers of conductive inks that sit over an empty cavity to form a diaphragm.

This functional layer is sandwiched between a thick sheet of extra-strong cardboard and another sheet of paper that is printed with the billboard's design.
Science

Bad Math Causes Explosion at CERN Collider 270

Posted by CmdrTaco from the allright-which-of-you-got-the-A dept.
javipas writes "The Large Hadron Collider at the CERN has suffered a big explosion deep inside that has caused a leak of hellium gas and the quick evacuation of everyone working there. The reason: a mathematical mistake that affected the design of the giant superconductive magnets made by Fermilab. Now the company will have to repair and upgrade the 24 magnets that are installed on the 27 km. circunference of one of the most important research centers on Earth." This story might seem strangely familiar to you.
Businesses

Halliburton Moving HQ To Dubai 555

Posted by kdawson from the might-as-well dept.
theodp writes "Much-maligned defense contractor Halliburton is moving its corporate headquarters from Houston to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. Dubai's friendly tax laws will add to Halliburton's bottom line. Last year the company earned $2.3B in profits. Sen. Patrick Leahy called the company's move 'corporate greed at its worst.' Halliburton, once headed by VP Dick Cheney, has been awarded contracts valued at an estimated $25.7B for its work in Iraq."
Microsoft

Submission + - Windows Vista WGA Still Plagued By Problems

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: IWeek blogger Alex Wolfe writes that Vista is Still Plagued By Windows Genuine Advantage "False Postive" Problems. Along with his own experience (a support person hung up on him), he cites numerous cases on Microsoft's own forums where users have be forced to reactivate their copies of Vista and told there's a problem with their license.

[Messages like this: "After running vista for a few weeks, I rebooted this morning to find that my purchased copy of vista is no longer genuine."]
Based on the volume of problems, Wolfe characterized Microsoft's downplaying of false-positives last month as "spin control." Right now, the only "technical" solution when you run into this is to type "slui 4" into the command line and then go through phone activation. Have you had a problem with WGA? Do you agree with Wolfe that WGA should be shut off until Microsoft can resolve the 'false positives' problem? More importantly, do you think this could seriously undermine adoption of Vista?

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