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The Almighty Buck

Submission + - Mini-Jets Set to Revolutionize Civilian Aviation

Submitted by longacre
longacre writes: A new class of aircraft known as Very Light Jets (VLJs) is close to takeoff and could result in a giant leap forward in private aviation. The sub-10,000 lb planes carry 2 to 6 passengers (plus 2 pilots) up to 450 mph and as high as airliner altitudes of 41,000 feet. The price range: only $1.5 to $4 million, which is about half that of a current entry-level biz-jet. Popular Mechanics examines the advances in engine technology that make these low-cost fliers possible — the Diamond D-Jet, for example, uses a derivative of the ultra-high thrust-to-weight ratio engine found in Tomahawk cruise missiles. Also, a breakdown of the VLJ offerings from aviation giants Cessna and Embraer, the notable HondaJet, and others from smaller concerns such as Eclipse Aviation. The theoretical next step: the Extremely Light Jet, which could carry 2 passengers 250 mph for the price of a Bentley.
Music

Submission + - SoundExchange cuts royalties for small webcasters

Submitted by Pontifex minimus
Pontifex minimus writes: Music royalty collection group SoundExchange has offered an olive branch to small webcasters. They are willing to delay the exorbitant new rates set by the Copyright Royalty Board until 2010 for small webcasters in hopes that they can keep Congress from passing the Internet Radio Equality Act. Larger outfits, like Live365 and Pandora would not be affected and would have to pay the new rates. '"Although the rates revised by the CRB are fair and based on the value of music in the marketplace, there's a sense in the music community and in Congress that small webcasters need more time to develop their businesses," said John Simson, executive director of SoundExchange.' SaveNetRadio rejected SoundExchange's offer, saying that it throws 'large webcasters under the bus.'
Microsoft

MS Wants To Identify All Web Surfers 281

Posted by kdawson from the time-to-visit-more-health-sites dept.
Moochman writes "New Scientist reports on a technology Microsoft is developing to identify users based on their browsing habits. Quote: 'The software could get its raw information from a number of sources, including a new type of 'cookie' program that records the pages visited. Alternatively, it could use your PC's own cache of web pages, or proxy servers could maintain records of sites visited. So far it can only guess gender and age with any accuracy,' but the aim is to be able to identify name, occupation and location as well. On a related note, The Inquirer reports on Microsoft's plans to widen the use of its identity-verification technology CardSpace, which is built into Windows Vista and available as an add-on to XP. It's being envisioned as an identity solution for the entire internet: says Kim Cameron, pioneer of the technology, 'We feel it has to solve all use cases.' (Aha, so the anonymous use cases, too, eh?) One might ask, with all of this user-ID information on hand, how long will it be until the Feds come knocking on Microsoft's door asking for help? They already have."
The Internet

Submission + - Uk considering Cyber Crime Site

Submitted by Hennell
Hennell writes: Attempting to keep up with technology and technology related crimes is obviously a hard task, and whilst big companies can use the legal system if caught out, the average person doesn't always seem to have much methods for help. The UK's House of Lord's Science and Technology select committee, are considering a website where people can report incidents of cyber-crime.

From the article:
"One of the problems is that people who, for example, have been the victim of an eBay scam tend to think how stupid they were and that there is no point in going to police. If you were mugged you would be sure to go straight to the police," he said.
"In the UK, people are being told to go to their bank first. We are not sure that is right. These are crimes and the police should be equipped to deal with them," Lord Broers said.
Privacy

Submission + - Recording Industry vs The People

Submitted by Dimentox
Dimentox writes: The RIAA and Ms. Andersen have finally squared off over the counterclaims in Atlantic v. Andersen in Oregon, with the RIAA moving to dismiss Ms. Andersen's counterclaims. Ms. Andersen has interposed counterclaims for Electronic Trespass, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, Invasion of Privacy, Fraud, Negligent Misrepresentation, the tort of Outrage, Deceptive Business Practices under Oregon Trade Practices Act, and the Oregon RICO statute. The RIAA has moved to dismiss the counterclaims. Ms. Andersen opposes the RIAA's motion. More at http://recordingindustryvspeople.blogspot.com/
Biotech

Submission + - Nanoparticles Home in on Brain Cancer

Submitted by Virtual_Raider
Virtual_Raider writes: From TFA: "Researchers at the University of Michigan announced the testing of a drug delivery system that involves drug-toting nanoparticles and a guiding peptide to target cancerous cells in the brain. Their study finds that via this method more of the drug can be delivered to a tumor's general vicinity."

Ah, and it also uses lasers to activate the nanoparticles (40nm) inside the brain. No mention of sharks tho'

+Raider of the lost BBS

Intel Patents the "Digital Browser Phone" 170

Posted by kdawson from the move-over-skype-yahoo-and-google dept.
tibbar66 writes, "This sounds like an invention that has been invented many times before (e.g. Skype). Yet on October 10, 2006 Intel was granted a patent for a 'digital browser phone.' The patent was filed on Feb. 25, 2000. Here's the abstract: 'A telephone system wherein all the functions of a digital telephone can be accessed and implemented on a personal computer alone, thereby eliminating the need for a telephone set. By means of the computer display and mouse, keyboard or other input/output command devices, a user accesses and implement all digital telephone functions without the physical telephone set, the personal computer also providing the audio function. A graphical representation of a telephone set or other telephone-related form is provided on the computer display and accessed by the mouse, keyboard or other command device, this being accomplished by a computer program providing graphical interface implementation. A significant advantage of the system is computer access to and utilization of digital telephone functions from a remote location with communication via Internet, LAN, WAN, RAS or other mediums.'"
Windows

Submission + - Vista Download for Developers Crashes and Burns

Submitted by QuickDeal
QuickDeal writes: The widely announced availability of the Windows Vista RTM as a download for developers from Microsoft MSDN seems to have crashed and burned. When asked about this, MSDN support replied "Sorry, the site was updated recently and there have been some issues with the download page. The Windows Vista is temporarily removed from the site, but it will be posted to the download site again later. This is a global issue and at this time MSDN Technicians are working non-stop to fix it. Please try again later as it may come up at any moment. We apologize for the inconvenience and thank you for your understanding." In fact, it has been unavailable for at least 24 hours. The site itself gives no indication of this, and in fact, continues to direct people to the non-existant download page.
Upgrades

Submission + - Computer Building Guide

Submitted by
Joseph Jamison
Joseph Jamison writes: "You have spent months saving money for your first computer build. You have spent weeks picking out computer parts and posting them on 10 different forums only to be criticized by other forum members. You finally decided what to buy and you placed your order.



UPS Santa arrived with all your geeky goodies and you can't wait to get down and dirty and start putting your pride an joy together. You rip open all the boxes like a kid on Christmas morning. Your floor is cover in computer parts and packaging, and then you suddenly feel intimidated. You realize you have never done this before and you don't know what the hell your doing. Relax, putting a computer together is easier then a 5000 piece jigsaw puzzle. We will walk you through all the basic steps to get your computer from packaging to a working machine.

You have spent months saving money for your first computer build. You have spent weeks picking out computer parts and posting them on 10 different forums only to be criticized by other forum members. You finally decided what to buy and you placed your order.



UPS Santa arrived with all your geeky goodies and you can't wait to get down and dirty and start putting your pride an joy together. You rip open all the boxes like a kid on Christmas morning. Your floor is cover in computer parts and packaging, and then you suddenly feel intimidated. You realize you have never done this before and you don't know what the hell your doing. Relax, putting a computer together is easier then a 5000 piece jigsaw puzzle. We will walk you through all the basic steps to get your computer from packaging to a working machine.



To start off you need to find yourself a good spot to build your computer. A desk, or table works best. If you use the Dinning room table make sure your project is complete before dinner time.



For most computer builds you will just need a Phillips Screw Driver. Here are some other items that will make your building a little easier

Phillips Screw Driver
Marker
Scissors
Flash Light
Grabber
Multitool
Thermal Paste
Zip Ties



The case we will be using has a Motherboard tray. Not all cases have a Motherboard tray. If your case doesn't have one you may find it easier to do some of these steps differently.



On some motherboard trays the holes for the Motherboard Standoffs are marked so its easier to know which holes to put the standoffs in. If your tray isn't marked use a marker to mark which holes fit your motherboard. This is important because a stray standoff could cause a short in your motherboard causing your system not to boot or worse killing your motherboard.



Put the standoffs in the marked holes and install the I/O shield. Don't forget to install the I/O Shield before you install the Motherboard. Otherwise you will be taking your Motherboard back out to put it in. No you can't squeeze it in there.



Put the motherboard in the tray, and line up the holes in the motherboard to the standoffs on the tray. Make sure the I/O ports are inserted into the I/O shield properly to avoid problems later. Start screwing in the motherboard to the tray. Its best to put all the screws in loose at first so you have room to move the motherboard so each hole lines up with its standoff. Once all the screws are in tighten them up. Make sure you put in all the screws to make sure your Motherboard is secure.



Install the CPU into socket. Make sure you put the CPU in the right way. Most CPUs and Sockets are marked with arrows so you know which direction the CPU goes.



Put the thermal paste onto the CPU. Careful not to glob it on. You don't need to cover the whole CPU in gunk. One drop should be enough. Read the directions for the Thermal Paste your using for proper application.



Install the Heat sink and Fan. Make sure you install it the right way. Again refer to the directions for proper placement. Like everything else, not all HSFs are the same.



Installing RAM is probably the easiest part of the build. It only goes in one way, and snaps into place. Check your Motherboard manual for proper placement.



Install your Video Card and any other add in cards, like Sound Cards and Controller Cards if you have them. Then set your Tray to the side.



Prepair your Power Supply for installation. Some Cases have a PSU adapter so your PSU fits securely into the case.



Put in your PSU, and get the cables straight so it's easier to install the rest of the components.



Its easier if you install your drives, and Bay Devices before inserting the Motherboard tray. Some drives won't fit past the motherboard into the drive bays.



Get all the cables out of the way and slide in the Motherboard tray.



Once the Motherboard Tray is in place, connect all the cables and wires. Check with your Motherboard manual to insure you connect the right cables and wires to the right ports on the Motherboard.



Once you get everything connected, you can use zip ties to tidy up the cable management. Using Loom, and Sleeving will help make the insde of your case look more uniform and organized.



Well now that we are done we can fire it up and watch our build come to life. Your now ready to setup the Bios and install your OS.

When building your computer just remember to keep your parts organized. Keep the manuals for all of your parts handy for quick reference. If your using Used parts you can go on the manufactures website and download the manual. If you get to the point where you feel stuck posting on the forums can help you get a solution to your problem."
Slashdot.org

Submission + - The World's Most-High Tech Urinal

Submitted by
Mudzy
Mudzy writes: "In an effort to handle its nighttime public urination problem, Victoria, the capital of British Columbia, is considering installing high-tech urinals that disappear below street level during the day. Then at night, an operator comes by with a remote and the Urilift hydraulically lifts to sidewalk level in about two minutes. Then the unit is ready to serve all the nighttime party animals who don't mind peeing in a very exposed public urinal. The $75,000 system has been installed across the Netherlands, and have spread to London and Belfast, but Victoria will be the first North American city to try them out."
PlayStation (Games)

Submission + - The PS3 has been smashed.

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Well, they did it. From the creators of the site smashmyxbox.com comes Smash My PS3. They went out on release day and bought one of the first PS3's. Then they smash it with a sledgehammer in front of the store. There is a video here of the whole process (careful, some of you Sony fanboys).

The Wii is next in line it seems...
It's funny. Laugh.

Submission + - Rockstar host Dodgeball Vid Tournament at 13 Univ.

Submitted by
Joe R
Joe R writes: "Rockstar Games has recently hosted a dodgeball video tournament between 13 universities all across the United States to promote their newly released game Bully though CollegeHumor.com. They sponsored each school to host an actual dodgeball tournament and video tape the footage to capture the essence of the Bully game and make a contest on who can produce the best video. As the thirteen universities are pitted against each other in a standard bracket formation, schools such as: DePaul, Wayne State, Penn State, Michigan State, U Texas, Florida State, Texas State, U Maryland, USC, North Western, U Arizona, U Michigan and UIC. They are eliminated one by one by popular vote. Now being the final match, you decide who should take the video championship crown. Link here http://www.collegehumor.com/bully"
Businesses

Submission + - Call center workers experience "acoustic shock

Submitted by
bigenchilada
bigenchilada writes: "Via the BBC, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6157350.stm, "experts" are saying that call center workers using telephone headsets can experience "acoustic shock" from a sudden sharp rise in the acoustic pressure produced by the headset. The BBC reports that "many of the 900,000 call centre staff are at risk. . . increasing numbers of injuries and illnesses are caused by acoustic shock."

The rising use of earbuds with mp3 players wasn't mentioned, but are we headed for a future full of hearing aid users caused by in-ear and close to in-ear speakers? This was examined in 2005 (google search:http://www.google.com/search?q=ipod "hearing loss"), but call center workers weren't asked about their iPod use in conjunction with their headset use."

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