117079
submission
An anonymous reader writes:
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?com mand=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9014483&intsrc=hm_ list
Visitors to Sen. John McCain's MySpace page were likely surprised today by a statement that the Senator has reversed his position on gay marriage and "come out in full support of gay marriage ... particularly marriage between passionate females." Most won't be surprised that the statement was apparently posted as a prank.
The co-founder of an online news site, who said he designed the MySpace template used for McCain's page, claimed responsibility for changing the site . Mike Davidson, cofounder of Newsvine, said on his Web site that he commandeered the MySpace page because McCain's office used a design template of his without providing him credit. Davidson also said his imagery was used on the page and his server is used serve up McCain's MySpace images.
98312
story
teamhasnoi writes
"Back in 2004, we discussed a program that deleted your home directory on entry of a pirated serial number. Now, a new developer is using the same method to protect his software, aptly named Display Eater. In the developers's own words, 'There exist several illegal cd-keys that you can use to unlock the demo program. If Display Eater detects that you are using these, it will erase something. I don't know if this is going to become Display Eater policy. If this level of piracy continues, development will stop.'"
98332
submission
CazazzaKid writes:
The band Nine Inch Nails have been running an Alternate Reality Game called "Year Zero" to promote their upcoming album. As part of the campaign, they have distributed MP3s of songs from the album, containing hidden codes that can be used as clues in the game. A German fan, who helped distribute the intentionally leaked music on his blog, has now received a ceise and desist order from Universal, as well as a $670 fine.
98308
story
marty writes
"Februrary is not a good month for Mozilla developers. Infoworld reports about the efforts of Polish researcher Michael Zalewski, who apparently kept finding new vulnerabilities in the popular browser on a daily basis through the month, first postponing the 2.0.0.2 update, and then finding a remotely exploitable flaw in it immediately after its release."
98188
submission
hedgefighter writes:
One week after Dell launched its new user feedback site Dell IdeaStorm, the PC manufacturer has made its first reply. Changes for several suggestions, including bolstering the "Plant a Tree" program and easier bloat-ware removal, have already been made or are on the way. In regards to the overwhelming request for GNU/Linux, Dell is entertaining the idea, but seems hesitant to make any breakthrough changes. Though the acknowledgment is promising to the many petitioners, the "Dell recommends Windows Vista(TM) Business." tag at the top of the page is less than encouraging.
98164
story
MattSparkes writes
"The 'Superbot', a modular robot that transforms itself into different shapes in order to walk, crawl and clamber up inclines, has been demonstrated in at the University of Southern California. Each bot module is effectively a robot in its own right, and can move independently, flip over and rotate like wheels. They also have 3D accelerometers that let them know their precise orientation. The six sides of each module can dock with any other module. Once connected, the modules can communicate, coordinate shape changes and even transmit power. The bot's creators hope it will make a great working companion for places like, say, the Moon. Or Mars."
97836
story
Dr. Eggman writes
"Tom's Hardware recently posted an article specifying how the professionals at Kroll Ontrack recover data from a RAID array that has suffered a hard drive failure, allowing for recovery of even RAID 5 arrays suffering two failures. The article is quick to warn this is costly, however, and points out the different types of hard drive failures that occur, only some of which are repairable. Ultimately the article concludes that consistent backups and other good practices are the best solution. Still, it provides an interesting look into the world of data after death."