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Comment UDP multitasking? (Score 1) 2

by stoborrobots (#46283233) Attached to: Company plans to beam free Wi-fi to every person on Earth

I think the author of that article is a bit confused... They mention "User Datagram Protocol (UDP) multitasking", and flicking through websites like you flick through TV channels.

I think they're planning to offer a multicast broadcast network with a limited selection of web and/or video channels, over unidirectional 802.11(abgn?) links.

I'm not sure how they plan to have the devices talk to the cubesats, though, the low-power transmitters in my phone and laptop certainly aren't reaching low-earth orbit any time soon...

Sounds like a pie-in-the-sky idea - and the majority of information appears to have come from a reddit discussion...

Submission + - Android vulnerability exploitable in the majority of devices (arstechnica.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: The EZ2Use attack code has been released which exploits a vulnerability that exists in Android versions prior to 4.2. Vulnerable versions are installed on the majority of Android devices and most do not have a path to a patched version. The malicious code is a drive-by malware attack which gives the attacker remote shell access to the phone's filesystem and camera.
This vulnerability and Google's inability to patch many of the vulnerable systems in use is more justification for Google's move to include new functionality in its proprietary GMS application platform where they can simply push out a patched binary that will run atop any Android version. Deprecating functionality in AOSP and re-implementing it in GMS will at least give Google a simple path to patch vulnerabilities like this.

Comment Re:From TFA (Score 1) 237

by stoborrobots (#46282457) Attached to: A New Car UI

... the desired control moves in place to always be at your fingertips

What I don't understand is, if it knows which control I desire, then why do I need to touch it?.

Also, HOW does it know which control I desire?

(For the record - I'm not a fan of voice-operated interfaces, I've seen too many distracting oddities to believe that people will continue to use them long-term.)

Submission + - Home Routers Pose Biggest Consumer Cybersecurity Threat (slashdot.org)

Submitted by Nerval's Lobster
Nerval's Lobster writes: The remote-access management flaw that allowed TheMoon worm to thrive on Linksys routers is far from the only vulnerability in that particular brand of hardware, though it might be simpler to call all home-based wireless routers gaping holes of insecurity than to list all the flaws in those of just one vendor. An even longer list of Linksys (and Cisco and Netgear) routers were identified in January as having a backdoor built into the original versions of their firmware in 2005 and never taken out. Serious as those flaws are, they don’t compare to the list of vulnerabilities resulting from an impossibly complex mesh of sophisticated network services that make nearly every router aimed at homes or small offices an easy target for attack, according to network-security penetration- and testing services. For example, wireless routers (especially home routers owned by technically challenged consumers) are riddled with security holes stemming from design goals that emphasize usability over security, which often puts consumers at risk from malware or attacks on devices they don’t know how to monitor, but through which flow all their personal and financial information via links to online banking, entertainment, credit cards and even direct connections to their work networks, according to a condemnation of the Home Network Administration Protocol (HNAP) from Tenable Network Security. Meanwhile, a January 2013 study from Rapid7 found 40 million to 50 million network-enabled devices, including nearly all home routers, were vulnerable to exploits using UPnP. Is there any way to fix this target-rich environment?

Submission + - Anonimous Army supports ReactOS kickstarter campaign (twitter.com) 1

Submitted by jeditobe
jeditobe writes: Twitter account Anonymous (@YourAnonNews) with more than 1,190, 000 followers recently posted message with words of suuport for ReactOS and it's kickstarter campaign!

ReactOS provides clean environment that is clean from government or hackers trojans.

Submission + - Who ate the Pear? 1

Submitted by PuceBaboon
PuceBaboon writes: Speculation is rife in the Linux community concerning the fate of Pear OS, the popular OS X lookalike distribution. The distribution disappeared a couple of weeks back, with a message implying that the project had been bought "by a very large company" appearing briefly on the web site (which is no longer available... archived courtesy of the WayBackMachine).
LinuxInsider is carrying an article with a nice round-up of the various theories and opinions as to its fate.

Submission + - Slashdot creates beta site users express theirs dislike (slashdot.org) 4

Submitted by who_stole_my_kidneys
who_stole_my_kidneys writes: Slashdot started redirecting users in February to its newly revamped webpage and received a huge backlash from users. The majority of comments dislike the new site while some do offer solutions to make it better. The question is will Slashdot force the unwanted change on its users that clearly do not want change?

Submission + - Slashdot beta sucks 9

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Maybe some of the slashdot team should start listening to its users, most of which hate the new user interface. Thanks for ruining something that wasn't broken.

Comment Re:dont blame the voters (Score 2) 269

by stoborrobots (#46159019) Attached to: How Voter Shortsightedness Skews Elections

It is irrational to remain ignorant if you care about principles.

Actually, as was pointed out, it's irrational to care about principles. Rationality dictates that your principles are actually worth far less than they cost.

At least do 5 minutes of fucking research.

And therein lies the rub - where? That 5 minutes of research has to be done somewhere... TV? Internet? Radio? Newspapers? The library?

If you go to Google, (or Bing), thanks to the filter bubble which knows that you lean Right, it sends you to Fox, where your 5 minutes of research tells you that the Right is all right. It knows that I lean Left, so it sends me to CNN which tells me that the Right is full of Tea Party derpers.

So how do I, an average voter, know where I should be doing my "5 minutes of fucking research"?

Submission + - HP denies access to Service Packs and Firmware for out-of-warranty customers.

Submitted by joshitnc
joshitnc writes: In a move that is sure to put a wedge between HP and their customers, today, HP has issued an email informing all existing HP customers that they would no longer be able to access or download service packs, firmware patches and bug-fixes for their server hardware without a valid support agreement in place, stating:

"You are receiving this communication because you have been identified as a customer using HP ProLiant Servers and HP Services.

HP has made significant investments in its intellectual capital to provide the best value and experience for our customers. We continue to offer a differentiated customer experience with our comprehensive support portfolio. HP, as an industry leader, is well positioned to provide reliable support services across the globe with proprietary tools, HP trained engineers, and genuine certified HP parts. Only HP customers and authorized channel partners may download and use support materials. In line with this commitment, starting in February 2014, Hewlett-Packard Company will change the way firmware updates and Service Pack for ProLiant (SPP) on HP ProLiant server products are accessed. Select server firmware and SPP on these products will only be accessed through the HP Support Center to customers with an active support agreement, HP CarePack, or warranty linked to their HP Support Center User ID and for the specific products being updated. We encourage you to review your current support coverage to ensure you have the appropriate coverage to maintain uninterrupted access to firmware updates and SPP for these products."

If a manufacturer ships hardware with exploitable defects and takes more than 3 years to identify them, should the consumer have to pay for the vendor to fix the these defects?

Submission + - Adobe's new ebook DRM will leave existing users out in the cold come July (the-digital-reader.com)

Submitted by Nate the greatest
Nate the greatest writes: Whether it's EA and SimCity, the Sony rootkit scandal, or Ubisoft, we've all read numerous stories about companies using DRM in stupid ways that harm their customers, and now we can add Adobe to the list. Adobe has just announced a new timeline for adoption of their recently launched DRM, and it's going to take your breath away.

In a video posted to Youtube, Adobe reps have stated that Adobe expects all of their ebook partners to start adopting the new DRM in March. This is the same DRM that was launched only a few weeks ago and is already causing problems, but that hasn't stopped Adobe. They also expect all the stores that use Adobe's DRM to sell ebooks (as well as the ebook app and ebook reader developers) to have fully adopted the new ebook DRM by July 2014. That's when Adobe plans to end support for the old DRM (which everyone is using now). Given the dozens and dozens of different ebook readers released over the past few years, including models from companies that have gone under, this is going to present a significant problem for a lot of readers. Few, if any, will be updated in time to meet Adobe's deadline, and that's going to leave many readers unable to buy DRMed ebooks.

Submission + - Linus Torvalds gives 'thumbs up' to Nvidia for Nouveau project (muktware.com)

Submitted by sfcrazy
sfcrazy writes: Linus Torvalds has had some harsh words for Nvidia in the past. Their failure to work constructively with the Linux community is especially disappointing in light of the company’s large presence in the Android market. That said, where there is life, there is change, and that is just what happened yesterday. Torvalds publicly gave a thumbs-up to Nvidia for posting early open source drivers for the recently released Nvidia K1 processor; something that was totally unexpected but received with open arms. Hey, this time I'm raising a thumb for nvidia. Good times. — said Linus.

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