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The Internet

Submission + - Legal problems for Wikipedia

Submitted by
ToiletDuck
ToiletDuck writes: "The Wikimedia Foundation has been named in a lawsuit filed by literary agent Barbara Bauer, apparently over her less-than-complimentary Wikipedia biography (mirror). The lawsuit comes in the wake of the resignation of Brad Patrick, Wikimedia's General Counsel and Executive Director. When questioned about Wikipedia's liability in an interview with GC South last year, Patrick stated 'Our belief is that since every post is attributed to an individual, is time-stamped and is retained in the database, the foundation itself is not publishing that content. We view individual editors as responsible and have prominently displayed on every edit page that individuals are responsible for their own contributions. We take the position that we are a service provider and are protected under section 230 [of the Communications Decency Act].' Should Wikipedia be liable for defamatory information added by its volunteer editors?"
Programming

Submission + - Borrow items from your neighbors...

Submitted by
neighborrow
neighborrow writes: "with neighborrow.com you make the most of the items you use least and pay the least for the items you want most! neighborrow.com is a global yet extremely localized, interactive, online library (glocal onlinebrary) which enables you to see the DVDs, books, CDs, games, tools, and other items that are available in your building or neighborhood, and allows you to check them out and borrow them, FREE. Now you can find (and borrow, trade, or donate) items in your neighborhood without compromising anyone's privacy, especially your own (all profiles can are can be private and secure, addresses are kept private and exchanges can be anonymous if desired). Securely lend the items you rarely use but still want to own, trade the items you don't want at all, and share the cost of new items. Finally, a fun, free, safe and practical way to get the most out of your stuff. Sharing with your neighbors really saves dollars and makes sense."
XBox (Games)

Submission + - Ubuntu running on the Xbox 360

Submitted by
Anonymous Coward
Anonymous Coward writes: "Cpasjuste has managed to get Ubuntu (comunity developed Linux-based operating system) running on the Xbox 360. It contains all the standard applications such as a WEB BROWSER, spreadsheet software, instant messaging software and more. To get it running King Kong is required as well as the vulnerable kernels. Read more about it here at: http://forums.maxconsole.net/showthread.php?p=4670 13#post467013 The news stub can be found here: http://www.maxconsole.net/?mode=news&newsid=15411"
Software

Submission + - Best OSS Systems Mgmt App You Never Heard Of

Submitted by
FLOSSisnot4Teeth
FLOSSisnot4Teeth writes: "You probably are familiar with Nagios and Webmin as two of the most widely deployed open source systems management applications. However, this month's SourceForge.net Project of the Month is probably a newcomer to open source systems and network administrators. Zenoss Core is a systems monitoring platform, released under GPL and over the last year it's become one of the most popular SF.net projects. Unlike most of these new "commercially backed" open source projects, Zenoss Core is the only version, their corporate sponsor doesn't offer a "pro version". Also their developers have been committing code back to other projects like RRDTool and Twisted. I have been playing around with Zenoss for about six months and have been totally impressed. Would be curious to see what other Slashdot readers think."
Businesses

Submission + - Economist Talks on Details of Software Startups

Submitted by bobdole3k
bobdole3k writes: Larry Smith, a world class economist from the University of Waterloo has dedicated his career to studying software enterprises. Recently, he gave a talk on the mechanics of starting a successful software company. Through his extensive knowledge of the industry, Smith provides a detailed analysis of what worked and what didn't in software startups. A video of the talk is available on the Computer Science Club's media archive.
Windows

MS Trying To Spur Vista Sales With Discounts 329

Posted by kdawson from the wee-mite-desperate dept.
Ang writes "Is Microsoft having worries about selling Vista already? Ars reports that Microsoft has announced yet another 'discount program' for Vista, but these new discounts work out to only about 10% off list price — not much when you notice that retailers already sell Vista below list. To make matters worse, the discount program would still end up costing you $100 more than the older 'family' discount built around Vista Ultimate in some situations. Ars spends seven paragraphs explaining this convoluted offer. Is all of this complexity supposed to help sell Vista?" If you must buy Vista, it might be advisable to sit on your wallet for a while. The discounts are bound to get sweeter.
Operating Systems

Submission + - Applying Art of War Principles to OSS Battle

Submitted by
mrbluze
mrbluze writes: "Openaddict has an interesting read on how to best fight the good fight against the Evil Empire, quoting Sun Tzu's famous work.


It's not enough that we're better (because we are) — we also have to out maneuver our opponent in the press and in the hearts/minds of the average user.
"
Toys

Submission + - Million Dollar Laptop

Submitted by thefekete
thefekete writes: 'UK-based bespoke luxury goods creator Luvaglio has created the first million dollar laptop.'

'Full details of the laptop have not been released at this point, but it is known that it incorporates a 17" widescreen LED lit screen with a specially designed anti-reflective glare coating for clear and brighter image, 128GB of Solid State Disk space and a slot loading Blue-Ray drive. There is an integrated screen cleaning device and a very rare coloured diamond piece of jewellery [sic] that doubles up as the power button when placed into the laptop and also acts as security identification.'

Story from gizmag.com
Businesses

Submission + - Software Start-ups: What Worked and What Did Not

Submitted by Andareed
Andareed writes: Many people have the technical talent to create a software product but lack the business knowledge needed to start a successful software company around their product. Renowned economist Larry Smith discusses what is needed to create a successful software company. Smith also gives examples of software companies that have failed and software companies that have succeeded, and explains why they were unsuccessful or successful.
The Internet

Submission + - Karl Rove uses unauthorized email server

Submitted by
JenniefromtheShire
JenniefromtheShire writes: "http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/3/24/172031 /681

From citizen92 at dailykos.com:

Karl Rove and GWB43.com — Huge National Security Threat?
by citizen92 [Subscribe]

Sat Mar 24, 2007 at 02:36:13 PM PDT

Over the past few days, there have been many great diaries about the recent discovery of the gwb43.com e-mail system. A story in the National Journal (only available by subcription) yesterday added an additional nugget — that Karl Rove does 95% of his e-mailing over that server. Nice. And end run around the Presidential Records Act. And a political move to hide what could be incriminating records.

What has not yet been mentioned, however, is the likely huge national security breach that might have resulted from Karl's cavalier practices.

Bear with me.

citizen92's diary :: ::
The White House is a huge target for electronic espionage by friendly and hostile foreign powers. For those of you who may have visited Washington, this may be evident when you stroll by the various embassies scattered around the city — with their unusual sculptures of antennas and wires on their roofs. The Russians have a compound just three blocks north of the White House.

The US Government spends undisclosed amounts on countermeasures to protect its critical information and its secure networks. And it has the experts to make sure that those countermeasures are working.

But, as usual, the government is focused on the foes outside — not the foes within. Government, meet Karl Rove's OpSec (operational security) program.

As you read, I would have to guess (but I have absolutely no knowlegde if this is true or not) that foreign intelligence services have already paid thorough visits to the various servers that are operated by the RNC down in Chattanooga. You know, GWB43.com. RNCHQ.COM. Bobcorker.com. Why? Well, it's been made pretty clear that Karl Rove conducts business through those domains. 95% of his business. And so do other senior White House staff. If you were a foreign spy, wouldn't you be interested? And might it be a possibility, that MAYBE the RNC servers aren't quite as secure as the government servers? MAYBE?

If I were an Information Security Officer for the White House, my system would be "flashing red." Don't forget that Karl Rove is a Deputy Chief of Staff (the number 3 position) at the White House. He likely see's PDB's and other classified information. And for him to be able to do 95% of his work from the RNC account, he would have to get some of this information flowing from the White House network. Heck, maybe he forwards his eop.gov e-mail to the RNC account.

Point being, this could represent a HUGE SECURITY BREACH. I hope that the RNC servers have been seized by someone in US Government (NSA, CIA or otherwise) to find out exactly what has happened here. And I really hope that political muscle hasn't blocked that.

There is a lot more riding on this than just Karl Rove's political future....

****UPDATE****

Commenter kck suggested that I also point out a few more relevant details.

The "private email addresses" that Rove and some unidentified quantity of White House and possibly other government officials tracks back to a company called Smartech based in Chatanooga, TN. There are some interesting observations about Smartech at Cannonfire's blog, specifically that the gwb43.com domain shares a mailserver with other domains, including:

bcorker.com
bobcorkerforsenate.com
consultmhi.com
georgewbush.com
gop.com
gop.net
gop.org
gopcontact.com
gopemail.com
gopteamleader.com
govtechsolutions.com
newt.org
ohiogop.org
republicanvictoryteam.com
republicanvictoryteam.net
republicanvictoryteam.org
rga.org
rnc.org
rnchq.org
socialsecurityblueprint.com
speakergingrich.com
speakergingrich.net
technomania.com
thehuntercompanies.com
thirdwave2.com
thirdwave2.net
winningwomen.com
wrcb.com
wrcb.net
Cannonfire also observes that the Ohio 2004 election results were tallied on systems maintained by Smartech. Curious yet?

****SUNDAY UPDATE****

Commenter Rosaura makes an excellent observation on the root of the criminality of this whole outside e-mail system.

Tonight I stumbled across the collection of Abramoff emails connected with the Indian Gaming hoo-haw, and sure enough, Susan Ralston was using SusanRalston@gwb, sralston@georgewbush.com, sralston@aol.com, and sRalston@rnchq.org.

It's not as if these crooks didn't know it was wrong. Have a look at Rosaura">this email exchange at pages 113 and 118:

From: Abramoff, Jack (Dir-DC-Gov)[/o=GTLAW/ou=WDC/cn=Recipients/cn=abra moffj] on behalf of Abramoff, Jack (Dir-DC-Gov)
Sent: Friday, February 07, 2003 10:25 AM
To: Ring, Kevin (Shld-DC-Gov)
Subject: RE: email on jena

Dammit. It was sent to Susan on her mc pager and was not supposed to go into the WH system.

— Original Message —
From: Ring, Kevin (Shld-DC-Gov)
Sent: Friday, February 07, 2003 10:26 AM
To: Abramoff, Jack (Dir-DC-Gov)
Subject email on jena

Your email to Susan was forwarded to Ruben Barrales and on to Jen Farley, who read it to me last night. I don't know what to think about this, but she said is better not to put this stuff in writing in their email system because it might actually limit what they can do to help us, especially since there could be lawsuits, etc. Who knows? Just letting you know what she said, Anyway, I had called her to talk about Jena. She has not heard from anyone on the other side of this issue.

— Original Message —
From: abramoff
Sent: Thursday, February 06, 2003 4:24 PM
To: Susan Ralston
Subject: Louisiana

I don't want to bother you guys with a meeting request, so I was hoping you could pass on to Karl that Interior is about to approve a gaming compact and land in trust for a tribe which is an anathema to .....
Two things we learn here.

1/Abramoff was aware of the need to lob e-mails outside of the White House e-mail system. And Abramoff is a crook.

2/Jennifer Farley, the was aware of the need to send e-mails outside of the system, and she told Abramoff co-conspirator Kevin Ring as such.

Farley was not the Director of Intergovernmental Affairs. Nor was she the Deputy Director. Nor was she the Assistant Director. She was the Deputy Assistant Director. That's a low level staff position. A $35,000 year job.

Point being, if low-level staffer Jennifer Farley knew about the e-mail couching, then there had to be a policy mandating these procedures at the White House. And policies are set from the top."
Music

RIAA Says Accused Students Are Settling 345

Posted by kdawson from the cheap-at-half-the-price dept.
As we've been reporting, the RIAA has been offering settlements to college students suspected of sharing music online. Reader Weather Storm notes that more than a quarter of the alleged music pirates have accepted the RIAA's offer. Quoting: "...an attorney Ohio University arranged to meet with its students... said $3,000 is the standard settlement offer, though cases have settled for as much as $5,000."

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