Become a fan of Slashdot on Facebook

 


Forgot your password?
Close
typodupeerror
×
Software

How Ford Will Upgrade Owners' Display Screens 215

Posted by timothy from the changing-focus dept.
gManZboy writes "'Sometime early next year, Ford will mail USB sticks to about 250,000 owners of vehicles with its advanced touchscreen control panel. The stick will contain a major upgrade to the software for that screen. With it, Ford breaks the model in which the technology in a car essentially stayed unchanged from assembly line to junk yard' — and Ford becomes a software company. This shift created a hot new tech job at Ford: human-machine interface engineers — people who come from a range of backgrounds, from software development to mechanical engineers, and who can live in the worlds of art and science at once."
Businesses

Two Porn Companies Take ICANN and .xxx Registrar To Court 272

Posted by timothy from the acourtin'-we-will-go dept.
SharkLaser writes "Two of the largest porn companies on the internet, Manwin and Digital Playground, yesterday sued both ICANN and ICM Registry, which runs the .xxx TLD, over extorting defensive registrations with ICANN's blessing. 'The complaint focuses on ICM's recently concluded "sunrise" period, during which porn companies, for about $200, could apply to own a .xxx address matching their trademark or .com domain.' Schools also felt the same way, and had to reserve domains under their name so that no porn content could be put up on them. The .xxx TLD has also previously been subject to criticism by both religious groups and adult industry, but for different reasons. Religious groups believe the .xxx TLD legitimizes pornography, while the adult industry believes it could lead to censorship."

Comment Re:Evidence that patents need a limited time frame (Score 5, Informative) 323

by ICLKennyG (#38085036) Attached to: Apple's New Patent Weapon — Location Services
20 years from filing - earliest filing - even in a reissue.

Therefore, at most Feb 2018 or about 6 more years.

A reissue filed 10 years after issuance is only able to narrow the scope of patents.

You armchair patent lawyers sure love your hysteria in the morning. Switch to coffee.

Comment Re:I use my iPhone very judiciously (Score 1) 254

by ICLKennyG (#37946212) Attached to: My phone's battery lasts ...
I use mine incessently. Gaming/browsing/calling/texting both ways on a nearly 2 hour masstransit commute and often several hours at home while in front of the TV. Even with sporatic office usage thrown in, I get about 2 full days of use from an iPhone 4s. My Bluetooth radio is permanently on (though not always in use) and the wifi switches over when it's in range (I don't micromanage the radios). Just because your Dual Core 1.7GHz Samsung Galaxy S Prime Touch II FauxG S Platinum Edition with AMOLED5HD doesn't get the same performance doesn't mean that a phone has to be completely disabled to last more than 8 hours on a charge. This is something I struggled with coming from Android. I look at the spec sheet and see that the iPhone should be inferior, but the biggest advantage you get is that because it's not running extreme hardware it can last through a full day of even the most demanding use. The spec sheet is irrelevant when you are out of juice. I'm actually a little surprised that Apple hasn't gotten Justin Long and John Hodgeman to run an ad campaign on this fact alone.

Comment Re:Talk about clueless IT (Score 1) 370

by ICLKennyG (#37686074) Attached to: US Drone Fleet Hit By Computer Virus
If Corporate IT got paid what these guys get paid, they'd be at another IT shop faster than you could say "Federal Pay Freeze"

Everyone bitches that Federal Civilians are paid too much, but this is the reality of a compensation system that is 15-30%+ below the prevailing market rate (by their own employer's standards). http://www.opm.gov/oca/payagent/2010/PayDisparities.asp Imagine if your employer put out a report that said you got paid 35% less than you were worth and then asked you to take a pay freeze while campaigning on further reducing your compensation so they can get reelected. It becomes hard to attract and retain talent.

Comment Re:Reeks of Rorty (Score 1) 624

by ICLKennyG (#37606588) Attached to: NY Senators Want To Make Free Speech A Privilege
At some point the warm light of day will shine on your sheltered, precious little snow flake and melt him in a matter of seconds. Get the fuck over it people. Kids commit suicide. It's not new. The only thing different is Nancy Grace shows it to ya (oh and boy does she show it to you) every night and decry's how terrible it is and that your kid will be next.
One suicide is a tragedy, but everyone living in a rubber room singing Kum ba yah until we all kill ourselves is worse. Will these kids be able to go into a job interview and say "You have to hire me, or I will tell on you for excluding me!"? Stop preempting Darwin, people!
Cellphones

James Murdoch's Defense Crumbles 272

Posted by timothy from the and-in-the-alternative-no-one-saw-me-do-it dept.
Hugh Pickens writes "Brian Cathcart writes that whatever happens to News Corp., it will surely happen without James Murdoch, the clever, dashing heir apparent to his buccaneer father, Rupert, who has become a liability with little hope of survival. James Rupert told members of Parliament that when he approved a payment of about $1.1 million in 2008 to settle the first lawsuit brought by a phone-hacking victim, he was not shown an email that suggested phone hacking was more widespread at the News of the World, and not limited to one 'rogue' reporter. 'He is saying one thing—that in briefing him they gave an "incomplete picture" — and, remarkably, in a statement Thursday, they publicly denied that,' writes Cathcart. All the News Corp. executives used to tell the same story but one by one as the pressure has grown these people have been cast off or have drifted away and now as the little group has splintered and scattered, and they all need to save their own skins. 'It's not just James who is done,' writes David Carr in the NY Times. 'Rupert Murdoch, as we have long known him, is done as well.'"

Comment Re:Already up to date (Score 1) 155

by ICLKennyG (#36833698) Attached to: Top General: Defense Department IT In "Stone Age"
You confuse a law for a regulation, and a corporate one at that.

The problem at the DoD is that for any of those procurement processes there are multiple layers of regulations and laws that if violated will allow the contractor to sue the US Government and in some cases the official overseeing the contract. Short of a few anti-trust and contract rules, as an individual corporation you are free to solicit bids from anyone or exclude anyone for (almost) any reason. The Secretary of Defense does not have the same power as the CIO of Microsoft when it comes to procurement. Just ask EADS and Boing.
Businesses

EA Considers Service-Based Business Model For Sports Games 64

Posted by Soulskill from the friend-or-foe-depends-on-price dept.
Andrew Wilson, head of development for EA Sports, spoke at the Develop 2011 conference about an unusual business plan the company is considering for future games: "[Wilson] raised the subject of Amazon's Whispersync feature, which allows customers to download a digital book for one price and then read it on whichever format they like from PCs to smartphones and Kindle, without having to pay again for each platform. He suggested that eventually EA Sports may well move toward the same model with its own games, even providing all of its titles, from FIFA and Madden to Tiger Woods PGA Tour golf, for one fixed price on multiple platforms – all linked by the same social gaming ecosystem. 'It's about handing over control to the gamer,' he said. 'Ultimately, what we want to get to is this concept where we break down the barriers between the franchises. John Riccitiello, our CEO, says it seems like such a waste – we spend $20-40M making each of these games, but most gamers only ever play one, because the business model is an impediment. So how about we drive toward a model where every gamer can experience everything we make without paying that much more money. You've got to recognize that given the opportunity, the consumer will play and they will bring their friends.'"
Google

Google To Discontinue Google Labs 165

Posted by samzenpus from the shut-it-down dept.
kai_hiwatari writes "Today, Google has announced that they are closing down Google Labs. They say this will help them prioritize their product effort. Google says closing Google Labs means ending many of their experiments. However, not every experiment will be gone. Google will be incorporating the Labs experiments they have decided to continue in other product areas. Android apps such as Google Goggles, Google Listen etc. will continue to be available in the Android Market."

Comment Re:Easy (Score 1) 417

by ICLKennyG (#36716712) Attached to: DisplayPort-To-HDMI Cables May Be Recalled Over Licensing
It's not a trademark issue. It's a patent issue. The HDMI connector/technology is surely patented. Yes, the license that puts the logo on the packaging is a trademark but the patent is the valuable protection. This is how Sony, et al. can put DRM on their audio discs and just not put the CD Logo on the case. The patent to make a generic CD expired long ago. The HDMI spec is surely still riddled with covered patents that require the license. This means that to actually make a product that would be useful, i.e. connect to an HDMI source or display, you would need to use one of the technologies covered by the patent. Calling it magical digital interconnect isn't going to solve your problem.

Slashdot Top Deals

Beware of Programmers who carry screwdrivers. -- Leonard Brandwein

Close