FlashBIOS - Slashdot User

Submission + - DISH Buys Blockbuster Assets Out Of Chap. 11 (ibtimes.com)

Submitted by

gabbo529

on Wednesday April 06, 2011 @11:49AM

gabbo529 writes: "The future of a once iconic video chain, Blockbuster, is officially in the hands of DISH Network. The satellite TV service provider announced today that it was the winning bidder in bankruptcy court for Blockbuster's assets. The winning bid was for a mere $320 million.All told, the company said it expects to pay a net $228 million in cash to acquire Blockbuster at the closing which is expected to occur in the second quarter of 2011."

Submission + - Interpol Wants a Global Identity Card System (net-security.org)

Submitted by Orome1 on Wednesday April 06, 2011 @10:29AM

Orome1 writes: The head of INTERPOL has emphasized the need for a globally verifiable electronic identity card (e-ID) system for migrant workers at an international forum on citizen ID projects, e-passports, and border control management. INTERPOL Secretary General Ronald K. Noble said: "At a time when global migration is reaching record levels, there is a need for governments to put in place systems at the national level that would permit the identity of migrants and their documents to be verified internationally via INTERPOL." Issuing migrant workers e-ID cards in a globally verifiable format will also reduce corruption and enable cardholders to be eligible for electronic remittance schemes that will foster greater economic development and prosperity in INTERPOL member countries.

Submission + - No Sleep, Better Mood (abcnewsradioonline.com)

Submitted by anonymousNR on Wednesday April 06, 2011 @10:01AM

anonymousNR writes: Matthew Walker at the University of California, Berkeley, and his team found some interesting things about people with no sleep.
There is a nature article with probably more details but its behind a pay wall.
Given the amount of sleeplessness slashdot community suffers, you may want to know that if you didn't sleep last night "it is good for you"

Comment Re:slightly off-topic, but (Score 1) 388

by FlashBIOS on Tuesday April 05, 2011 @09:42PM (#35728008) Attached to: House Votes To Overturn FCC On Net Neutrality

Once again, you are confusing capacity with consumption. Once you realize the difference between the two I have a gold star with your name on it.

Comment Re:slightly off-topic, but (Score 1) 388

by FlashBIOS on Tuesday April 05, 2011 @08:45PM (#35727420) Attached to: House Votes To Overturn FCC On Net Neutrality

The bandwidth available to your neighborhood at any given time period is consumed.

No it isn't. What you are seeing as a slowdown is overselling. Overselling has nothing to do with usage caps and the mythical consumption. The pipes may be full but still nothing is consumed.

If everyone in your neighborhood was _under_ their cap and still got on at the same time, you'd have the same problem.
If everyone in your neighborhood was _over_ their cap and still got on at the same time, you'd have the same problem.

Also, (especially now days) not all types of Internet connections are subject to the whims of your neighbors. As the anti-UBB people are stating the ISPs are simply avoiding infrastructure improvements.

Comment Re:slightly off-topic, but (Score 1) 388

by FlashBIOS on Tuesday April 05, 2011 @07:38PM (#35726608) Attached to: House Votes To Overturn FCC On Net Neutrality

this is a great video on why usage based billing is a scam.

I can't watch the video right now, but is it a scam due to a problem with a certain implementation of usage based billing or is it due to some insurmountable flaw in the basic concept?

The concept. The fine video states (correctly as far as I'm concerned) that as bits are not a manufactured physical product, nor are they ever consumed, you shouldn't be charged for usage (i.e. consumption).

It also goes on to state that 1) bandwidth gets cheeper the more people use it, 2) that if ISPs are having a problem because a few ruin it for the many they over sold, and 3) makes allegations that usage based billing is a result of ISPs wanting to charge for content (TV, voice, etc.) that the Internet allows for for free.

This topic can get easily tainted with other issues ("I pay for the electricity I use, and that's fair, why isn't this fair too?") and I feel the video does a nice job explaining the Anti-UBB position.

Comment Re:"CULT" is just hate speech (Score 1) 426

by FlashBIOS on Monday February 14, 2011 @10:04PM (#35205620) Attached to: Paul Haggis vs. the Church of Scientology

A dictionary is a responsive collection of definitions to the popular usage of the term. As english is "living" and evolves over times, there will be instances where the popular definition doesn't match the dictionary's.

I think it easy to say "cult" is one of those words as, I believe, the majority of people view that word with a negative slant.

Submission + - Database of Private SSL Keys Published (threatpost.com)

Submitted by Trailrunner7 on Monday December 20, 2010 @08:40AM

Trailrunner7 writes: A new project has produced a large and growing list of the private SSL keys that are hard-coded into many embedded devices, such as consumer home routers. The LittleBlackBox Project comprises a list of more than 2,000 private keys right now, each of which can be associated with the public key of a given router, making it a simple matter for an attacker to decrypt the traffic passing through the device.

Published by a group called /dev/ttyS0, the LittleBlackBox database of private keys gives users the ability to find the key for a specific router in several different ways, including by searching for a known public key, looking up a device's model name, manufacturer or firmware version or even giving it a network capture, from which the program will extract the device's public certificate and then find the associated private SSL key.

Venezuelan Gov't Seeks Internet Content Bill 248

Posted by Soulskill on Saturday December 11, 2010 @01:50PM from the suddenly-the-fcc-doesn't-look-so-bad dept.

Ah, none is more coward! writes "Several local and international news outlets report that the overwhelmingly pro-Chávez Venezuelan National Assembly is considering a reform of their Social Responsibility law to include Internet content. Besides regulations on mature content and mandatory airing of government messages, the existing bill includes broad prohibitions against 'destabilizing' and 'disquieting' content. The Assembly also has a proposal for a single national Internet access point, 'with a view to handling outgoing and incoming traffic in Venezuela.'"

GOG.com Not Really Gone 276

Posted by samzenpus on Wednesday September 22, 2010 @04:24PM from the stepped-out-for-a-minute dept.

gspr writes "On Sunday, Slashdot and many others reported that DRM-free games site GOG.com was shutting down. Now the site is back, revealing that it was all a hoax. According to the site: 'Now it's time we put an end to all the speculations once and for all. It's true that we decided that we couldn't keep GOG.com the way it was so we won't. As you probably know by now, GOG.com is entering its new era with an end of the two-years beta stage and we're launching a brand new GOG.com with new, huge releases.' So it was all an advertising stunt."

Scientists Cut Greenland Ice Loss Estimate By Half 414

Posted by samzenpus on Thursday September 09, 2010 @04:57AM from the not-so-bad-after-all dept.

bonch writes "A new study on Greenland's and West Antarctica's rate of ice loss halves the estimate of ice loss. Published in the journal Nature Geoscience, the study takes into account a rebounding of the Earth's crust called glacial isostatic adjustment, a continuing rise of the crust after being smashed under the weight of the Ice Age. 'We have concluded that the Greenland and West Antarctica ice caps are melting at approximately half the speed originally predicted,' said researcher Bert Vermeeersen."

Submission + - Mega-Volcanoes Might Be Detectable on Alien Earths (discovery.com)

Submitted by

astroengine

on Thursday September 09, 2010 @04:19AM

astroengine writes: "Could we detect a huge volcanic eruption on an exoplanet 30 light-years from Earth? Possibly, say scientists from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. What's more, there may be an opportunity for us to spot the ashy pollution ejected into the exoplanetary atmosphere when NASA's James Webb Space Telescope is launched in 2014. According to Discovery News, this would be a huge discovery if an Earth-like world was found to have active volcanoes: "A geologically active terrestrial planet may be more suitable for life. It recycles crust, unleashes greenhouse gasses, opens new environmental niches, and generally provides a dynamic environment for advantageous life forms""

Submission + - Viking Landers Might Have Missed Martian Organics (sciencenews.org)

Submitted by Sonny Yatsen on Wednesday September 08, 2010 @06:32PM

Sonny Yatsen writes: A new study suggests that the Viking Landers might have found organic compounds on Mars, but failed to recognize them because of the methodology used to detect organics. The findings may suggest specific strategies that would improve on the way organic compounds are detected on the red planet.

Submission + - Microwave-Powered Rocket Ascends without Fuel (technologyreview.com)

Submitted by TravisTR on Wednesday September 08, 2010 @10:13AM

TravisTR writes: A scale model is further proof that beamed-energy propulsion works.

Google Logo Changes Again, Hinting RT Search? 212

Posted by CmdrTaco on Wednesday September 08, 2010 @09:01AM from the i-prefer-fake-time dept.

siliconbits writes "The Google homepage is sporting a new logo that changes color as you type, and it is likely a big hint as to what the company will announce at its search event on Wednesday. When you arrive on the search giant homepage today, you will be greeted with a gray Google doodle."

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