Follow Slashdot blog updates by subscribing to our blog RSS feed

 



Forgot your password?
typodupeerror
×
Android

Submission + - Malware Controls 620,000 Phones, Sends Costly Messages (net-security.org)

Orome1 writes: "A new discovered malware is potentially one of the most costly viruses yet discovered. Uncovered by NQ Mobile, the "Bill Shocker" (a.expense.Extension.a) virus has already impacted 620,000 users in China and poses a threat to unprotected Android devices worldwide. Bill Shocker downloads in the background, without arousing the mobile device owner's suspicion. The infection can then take remote control of the device, including the contact list, Internet connections and dialing and texting functions. Once the malware has turned the phone into a "zombie," the infection uses the device to send text message to the profit of advertisers. In many cases, the threat will overrun the user's bundling quota, which subjects the user to additional charges."
Linux

Submission + - Linux: Booting via UEFI Can Brick Samsung Notebooks (heise.de)

wehe writes: "Heise News reports today some Samsung notebooks can be turned into a brick if booted just one time via UEFI into Linux. Even the firmware does not boot anymore. Some reports in the Ubuntu bug tracker system report that such notebooks can not be recovered without replacing the main board. Other Linux distributions may be affected as well. Kernel developers are discussing a change in the samsung-laptop driver.
http://www.heise.de/open/meldung/Linux-Booten-per-UEFI-kann-Samsung-Notebooks-schrotten-1793534.html"

Network

Submission + - Fujitsu's New Data Transfer Protocol 30 Times Faster than TCP (paritynews.com) 1

hypnosec writes: Japan based technology giant, Fujitsu, has announced a new data transfer protocol that is capable of transferring data up to 30 times faster than that of currently used Transmission Control Protocol (TCP). The new technology, which is a proprietary, has been developed through a software-only approach and is based on User Datagram Protocol (UDP) that is used in streaming media. Even though UDP is a stateless protocol, Fujitsu’s technology has been developed such that it can differentiate between dropped packers and those which haven’t managed to reach the intended destination. Fujitsu carried out tests between US and Japan and the results were amazing – a 30 times improvement over TCP communications in data transfer throughput and a reduction in packet delivery latency to a sixth of previous levels.
DRM

Submission + - Occupy ACM - No More Paywalls (i-programmer.info)

mikejuk writes: The scandal that is the archaic practice of making money from research paid for by the public has raised its head once again. Perhaps now it is time for members of academic organizations such as the ACM to take the democratic lead and force open access policies. The ACM in particular needs to think again, but members probably shouldn't take the drastic step of leaving the ACM in protest. Instead what needs to happen is that the democratic process should take it course and scientists who naturally want a wide audience for their work should insist on open access.
The Internet

Submission + - Worldwide IPV6 adoption, where do we stand today? (arstechnica.com)

skade88 writes: IPv4 is much like a limited natural resource, it can't last forever. The well of new IPv4 addresses is already running dry in many parts of the world. The solution to this problem, which was presented decades ago, is to switch to IPv6. With peak IPv4 far behind us, why do we still see limited IPv6 adoption? Ars takes a good look at where we are and where we are going with the future of IP addresses, the internet and you.
Android

Submission + - Ubuntu for Mobile Phones and Smartphones (boffillbernardes.com)

An anonymous reader writes: The popular Linux based operating system, Ubuntu, was announced by Canonical to be running on Android devices. Ubuntu is one of the new operating system that will challenge the dominance of Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android system. Just recently, Mozilla, the creator of Firefox web browser has launched their very own Firefox OS. Another Linux based operating system called Joli is now being developed and is moving from laptops to smartphones.
Crime

Submission + - The latest craze? High-voltage fences promise to zap would-be copper thieves (networkworld.com) 1

coondoggie writes: "It may be a gimmick or maybe the ultimate answer, but a California city this week Ok'd a draft ordinance that would let businesses install 7,000 volt electric fences to protect sites from rampant copper thieves. As reported by the Sacramento CBS station, the reaction form one business owner to the ordinance says it all: "It'll be a little fun to watch one of these guys get electrocuted holding my fence trying to rob me.""
Iphone

Submission + - AT&T enables FaceTime over cellular for all, including unlimited data users (bgr.com)

zacharye writes: When AT&T announced earlier this year that it would support FaceTime video calling on Apple’s iPhone over cellular data connections only for those customers who switched to new shared data plans, people were not happy. The backlash came fast and furious, and some advocacy groups questioned whether or not the new policy was legal. AT&T eventually buckled under the pressure and said users with any tiered data plan and an LTE-enabled device would be able to use FaceTime over cellular. The move was seen as a big step in the right direction, but AT&T confirmed that the many iPhone users with grandfathered unlimited data plans still would not be able to make FaceTime calls over cellular connections. As it turns out, however, AT&T may have quietly reversed that decision as well...
Science

Submission + - Making Sense Of Colors And Shapes In The Toilet (npr.org)

mjjochen writes: Just in time for the big American eating festival known as Thanksgiving, comes this NPR story on the shape and color of our bodily waste products. Discussion on the color, shape, smell, & even taste are included. Now we can have just as much fun analyzing things after the meal as we did consuming the meal — for the scatologically inclined, read on!

"Here at Shots, we're all for "breaking the taboo around the toilet" (see our recent posts on squatting and fake feces). And we get the sense that there's more confusion out there about what ends up in the toilet than most people would care to admit. And so for World Toilet Day, we're sharing a couple of infographics we stumbled upon recently."

Microsoft

Submission + - Microsoft Banned GPLv3 From UEFI Secure Boot Solutions (muktware.com)

sfcrazy writes: Microsoft may have attracted some headlines and discussion on Slashdot for being a 'sponsor' at the Linux Foundation's Europe event LinuxCon. But this sponsor is not giving the Linux Foundation any special treatment when it comes to UEFI Secure boot. The Foundation's James Bottomley says how challenging the process is and they are still waiting for Microsoft's response to get the signed bootloader. Some key findings are:
1. Microsoft has banned GPLv3 and similar licences to be used in bootloader
2. There are some agreements that you have to sign with Microsoft with go beyond UEFI. These can be problematic.

Comment Re:Disputed claims (Score 1) 122

The difference is that the WWII planes could only do it in a near-suicidal dive. The X-1 could do it intentionally, under normal powered flight.

2 things you may not know:

- The Me262 was a jet fighter/bomber. WWII plane. As cited in a post above, some claim it broke the sound barrier in levelled flight.

- The Me163 was a rocket fighter. Some claim it broke the sound barrier in 1944. The Bell X-1 is almost a copy of its design.

No official world records, I'm afraid. Well, there was this war going on, that made quite difficult for international records bodies to arrange for a convenient validation spot...

Of course, these planes were on the wrong side of History. So hardly anybody today knows they existed at all...

Too lazy for links. Just google "Me163" and "Me262".

Slashdot Top Deals

Living on Earth may be expensive, but it includes an annual free trip around the Sun.

Working...