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Media

Submission + - New media centre distro eAR OS

Submitted by spandex_panda
spandex_panda writes: I read just now about a new media centre version of Ubuntu, actually it is an independent distro but seems to be including a new media center app which is GPL licensed. A developer has posted something here talking about a few things regarding it.

I think this is one of those things Ubuntu really needs, although I haven't tried it it looks great from the screen shots and the developer sounds very professional and organised. I personally don't like myth-tv as it is not quite 'shiny' enough! Something like eAROS could be the beginning of some more Linux migration as people move from windows based media centers to linux based ones.
Software

Submission + - Can Linux find one good way to install software? (practical-tech.com)

Submitted by
fyc
fyc writes: "Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols has written about the latest attempt to create an API that would allow independent software vendors to create software packages that are integrated into the distro's package manager, the LSB Package API. There are similar projects to this, including Linspire's CNR (Click N Run), which is planned to support distros using the Debian and RPM package managers, including Debian, Fedora, OpenSUSE, Ubuntu and Linux Mint."
Music

Submission + - RIAA Demands Radio Royalties

Submitted by
digitrev
digitrev writes: "Wired has an article regarding the RIAA's latest foray into procuring royalty payments from the radio industry. From the article

On Monday, the recording industry sent the National Association of Broadcasters — the trade group representing the $16 billion a year AM-FM broadcasting business — a can of herring to underscore that it believes its arguments against paying royalties are a red herring. The NAB says its members should not pay royalties because AM-FM radio "promotes" the music industry.
musicFIRST, another industry group, sent the NAB four different songs, "Take the Money and Run" by the Steve Miller Band; "Pay me My Money Down" by Bruce Springsteen; "Back In the U.S.S.R" by Paul McCartney and "A Change Would Do You Good" by Sheryl Crow.

It's also worth noting the 6 year old Onion story. Yet another sad case of reality imitating fiction."
Role Playing (Games)

Submission + - Blizzard Entertainment Hinting at Diablo III? (diablofans.com)

Submitted by tigreye007
tigreye007 writes: Something is stirring over at Blizzard Entertainment, but as per usual, they're keeping it hush-hush, and all the while giving us vague hints at the possibilities. The most obvious hint is a newly-added splash screen on most of Blizzard's web sites. The splash image at first glance looks like a cracking chunk of ice, but a closer look reveals small runic symbols with circles around them that most people currently believe will continue to be added each day leading up to this weekend. With the start of their annual Worldwide Invitational (WWI) on Saturday, they're definitely building up a buzz, and many signs are pointing to the coming of the next version of Diablo, i.e. Diablo III. A 50+ page (and quickly growing) thread filled with speculation and hope can be found here.
Networking

Submission + - Time Warner Dumps Usenet

Submitted by TheGrumpster
TheGrumpster writes: Following in the footsteps of Verizon, it would seem, Time Warner has apparently dumped all usenet newsgroup service. A connection to any of their groups gives the following: "Time Warner Cable will be discontinuing its newsgroup service effective 06/23/2008. For more information please visit: http://help.rr.com/HMSFaqs/e_newsgroups_termination.aspx" Comically, they cite a "lack of use" as the reason for dropping usenet. I guess the 1.5 TB of goodiez I downloaded during the past year isn't sufficient to demonstrate "use".
Software

Submission + - Cutting-Edge AI projects?

Submitted by
Xeth
Xeth writes: "I'm a consultant with DARPA, and I'm working on an initiative to push the boundaries of neuromorphic computing (i.e. artifical intelligence). The project is designed to advance ideas all fronts, including measuring and understanding biological brains, creating AI systems, and investigating the fundamental nature of intelligence. I'm conducting a wide search of these fields, but I wanted to know if any slashdotters knew of any neat projects along those lines that I might overlook (I liken it to asking around the local CS department lounge). Maybe you're working on a project like that and want to talk it up? No promises (seriously), but interesting work will be brought to the attention of the project manager I'm working with. If you want to start up a dialog, send me an email, and we'll see where it goes. I'll also be reading the comments for the story."
Encryption

Submission + - When Is a Self-Signed SSL Certificate Acceptable? 5

Submitted by UltraLoser
UltraLoser writes: When is it acceptable to encourage users to accept a self-signed SSL cert? Recently the staff of a certain website turned on optional SSL with a self-signed and domain mismatched certificate for its users and encourages them to add an exception for this certificate. Their defense of this certificate is that it is just as secure as one signed by a commercial CA and because their site exists for the distribution of copyrighted material the staff do not want to have their personal information in the hands of a CA. In their situation is it acceptable to encourage users to trust this certificate or is this giving users a false sense of security?
The Courts

Submission + - NetBSD moves to a 2 Clause BSD License (netbsd.org)

Submitted by jschauma
jschauma writes: Alistair Crooks, president of the NetBSD Foundation, announced recently that it ``has changed its recommended license to be a 2 clause BSD license.'' This makes NetBSD even more easily available to a number of organizations and individuals who may have been put off by the advertising or endorsement clauses. See Alistair's email and NetBSD's licensing information for more details.
Software

Usability Testing Hardy Heron With a Girlfriend 846

Posted by kdawson from the sleeping-on-the-couch-tonight dept.
toomin writes "Reviews of the latest Ubuntu version, 8.04 Hardy Heron, are everywhere, but most of them are undertaken by geeks familiar with Linux. This guy sits his girlfriend down at a brand-new Ubuntu installation and asks her to perform some basic tasks. Some of them are surprisingly easy, others frustrate and annoy. There are lots of little usability tweaks he stumbles upon just by seeing the desktop experience from the point of view of the mainstream user."

Open Source 'Sage' Takes Aim at High End Math Software 360

Posted by CmdrTaco from the that'll-take-awhile dept.
coondoggie writes "A new open source mathematics program is looking to push aside commercial software commonly used in mathematics education, in large government laboratories and in math-intensive research. The program's backers say the software, called Sage, can do anything from mapping a 12-dimensional object to calculating rainfall patterns under global warming."
Handhelds

Man Claims iPod Set His Pants Aflame 270

Posted by ScuttleMonkey from the lighter-and-gasoline-in-his-pocket-had-nothing-to-do-with-it dept.
alphadogg writes to mention that an Atlanta man is claiming an iPod Nano actually caught fire in his pants creating flames that lasted 15 seconds and reached up as far as his chest. Apple hasn't responded to the claims yet other than sending him a packet to return the iPod.
Space

Meteorite Causes Illness in Peru 357

Posted by Zonk from the i've-read-a-book-about-this dept.
eldavojohn writes "A meteorite struck in Peru on Saturday leaving cinders, rock & water boiling out of the ground. Villagers nearby reported headaches & vomiting and attributed it to the event. From the article, 'Seven policemen who went to check on the reports also became ill and had to be given oxygen before being hospitalized, Lopez said. Rescue teams and experts were dispatched to the scene, where the meteorite left a 100-foot-wide (30-meter-wide) and 20-foot-deep (six-meter-deep) crater, said local official Marco Limache.' It's not yet clear whether this is from the meteorite, gas trapped underground that was released or a chemical reaction between the two."
Links

Submission + - Common Census map update (commoncensus.org)

Submitted by
Gil
Gil writes: "The Common Census project's map was recently updated. The project surveys users about where they live and what cities and neighborhoods they identify with in order to create a map of the US drawn up into spheres of influence. It's nerdy enough to warrant a look at the map. This was the first time the map has been updated in nearly a year."

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