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Games

Video Game Use Linked To Breast Feeding 94

Posted by Soulskill from the intentionally-retarded-titles dept.
In order to demonstrate the ridiculousness of some recent studies which grabbed media headlines by claiming "links" between video games and all sorts of negative behavior (such as violence and the lower-quality relationships), Ars Technica's Ben Kuchera did an experiment of his own: "I started calling people I knew, and I asked if they had one or more video games in the house. Then I asked if they breast-fed their children. To my great shock, most answered 'yes' to both. One couple I contacted switched to formula after their child's birth, and told me that they didn't play video games. The data, based on my first round of calls, was conclusive: if you play video games, you are much more likely to breast-feed your children. You're probably ready to shoot five thousand holes in my argument. ... I did my job though, and you clicked on the headline." He goes on point out flaws in media reports and legislation involving such claims.
Sci-Fi

Red Dwarf To Return, Find Earth 298

Posted by Soulskill from the not-nemesis,-the-tv-show dept.
Lawrence Person writes "Everyone's favorite live-action science fiction comedy series will finally return to TV, with Lister, Rimmer, Kryten and the Cat all making it to Earth. The new two-part series Red Dwarf: Back to Earth will appear on digital channel Dave, will be written and directed by Red Dwarf co-creator Doug Naylor, and will reunite the line-up. 'It will sit alongside two further new episodes — the improvised Red Dwarf: Unplugged, which will feature the cast dealing with no sets, effects or autocue, and Red Dwarf: the Making of Back to Earth, a behind the scenes look at the new production.' Personally, I think this is pretty smegging fantastic."

Comment Re:1 question (Score 1) 488

by R_Dorothy (#26636803) Attached to: KDE 4.2 Is Released

WHY would they put something out with such reduced functionality compared to KDE3.5?

8.04 server is going to be supported until April 2013. Since KDE3.x is probably going to be be long gone by then it was decided to go with the 4.x series for the LTS.

I'm not defending that decision, just pointing out "WHY" it was done.
Image

The Science of the Lightsaber 197

Posted by samzenpus from the the-force dept.
Smartcowboy writes "Chances are that you have seen a lightsaber at one time or another, whether on the evening news or down at the local cantina. Therefore you know that a lightsaber is an amazing and versatile device that is able to cut through nearly anything in a matter of milliseconds. Have you ever wondered how these remarkable weapons work? Where does the energy come from, and how are they able to contain that energy in a rod-like column of glowing power? In this article, you will have a chance to look inside a lightsaber and discover the source of its incredible characteristics." I was sure the blade was made from the focused hate and disappointment of the last three movies.
Education

User Interface of Major Oscilliscope Brands? 281

Posted by timothy from the dots-and-squiggles dept.
teddaw152 writes "I've been tasked with ordering an oscilloscope and a logic analyzer for use in a university physics lab, and have found several models that will likely suit our technical needs from the major manufacturers (Agilent, Tektronix, and LeCroy). However, I personally have only used legacy HP scopes, and thus I have no idea what modern features are must haves and which brand's user interface is the most intuitive. Is there anyone out there that has used modern Tektronix/Agilent/LeCroy scopes side by side and can comment on their thoughts from the purely subjective side?"
Education

Submission + - Runnig linux with the same username at schools 2

Submitted by
Carlbunn
Carlbunn writes: "I'm part of a project that's installing Fedora on Brazil's public schools, in the state of Santa Catarina. One of the requisites of the project, is that a whole class of students logs with the same account on the machines, and gets permission to write in the class own folder, stored on a server. The server also has a LDAP server. The thing is, when multiple students open some programs, like firefox, only one copy may run, and we receive a message that's already open in the other machines. We did fixed the problem making home folders and links to every user, but the result got to be very messy, and it doesn't allow simple creation of new users (each class is one user). Is there a more elegant solution? I want to ditch the LDAP server, but to do this, I have to present a better solution to the bigwigs. Centralised remote support is also a big plus. Any ideas?"
Math

Submission + - When do we start learning from negative feedback?

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: I work on a system which creates a model. In short it learns how to follow/create rules instead of following rules to learn. So far so good. Now I'm on a dead line and realized that it's behavior favors no feedback or positive feedback and that negative feedback is more complicated and therefore it learns it slower and requires a more mature/larger model. So my question is when do babies/kids start learning from negative feedback.
Privacy

Submission + - What are you willing to consent to, to land a job? 3

Submitted by Pooch
Pooch writes: I'm a network and systems administrator with more than two decades of experience under my belt. I've worked for Fortune-100 companies, a few startups, and started my own company which has since gone public. Recently, after a quick phone screen, I arranged a day-long job interview with a Big! Internet Company. They seemed very interested in me, I was very interested in the job, everything seemed like a great fit, and I have no doubt I could have brought a lot to the table. Just prior to the interview, however, I was presented with a background check consent form that I was required to sign before things could move beyond the interview stage. The consent form said they wanted to investigate things that "[...] may include my educational history, employment history, social security trace, driving records, consumer credit information, and civil and criminal court records." They further required that "I authorize without reservation any party or agency contacted by [Big! Internet Company] to furnish the above-mentioned information." And, my consent was to be in force from the time I signed the form until I left the company. Of all the companies I have worked for, none have required such a broad spectrum of information. Somewhat invasive, IMHO. Needless to say, I balked at the request (even though most of the information might be publicly available). The recruiter admitted that for my position they wouldn't need most of the requested information but when I asked her to clarify what they actually did need for my position she said it didn't matter because they wouldn't create consent forms specific to various positions and that I would have to sign the broad consent form. The net result was that I didn't sign the consent form and I didn't interview with them. I'm a very private person and I have nothing to hide, but I also don't want employers (or others) poking their nose so very far into my private life. And yeah, I understand the obvious need for some of the information. Also, this was not a company that I absolutely had to work for ... perhaps if it had been I might have been a bit more willing to "give it up", but it wasn't. My question for Slashdot readers: what are you willing to give up to work for a company, any company? What are you willing to give up to work for a company that you really really really want to work for?
Software

Submission + - which license for Second Life? (greenphosphor.com)

Submitted by
arkowitz
arkowitz writes: "I've created a system called totem for visualizing data inside Second Life. It consists of some Second Life code (scripts in objects), a database, and a gateway servlet that lets them communicate. I want to make the Second Life piece open source, so that anyone can come up with cooler ways to visualize data (I have a simple 3d bar chart format so far). I may or may not keep the servlet part closed. What license should I use? Keep in mind that I *want* others to be able to make their own visualizers and charge L$ for them."
The Internet

Submission + - Are you a victim of Wikipedia deletionists?

Submitted by CowardX10
CowardX10 writes: The recent Slashdot story Call For Halt To Wikipedia Webcomic Deletions combined with the commentary I read for the Wikinews article on this subject made me feel the scope of what's happening in terms of deletionist admins angering and driving away a lot of contributors. I posted the following comment there and now here hoping to get feedback showing that this problem goes far beyond Webcomics.

The assholes have definitely taken over

My friend who used to contribute a lot in terms of articles and even money decided to stop because the deletionist assholes made it such a pain for him that he now despises the site. And although almost none of his contributions were deleted, he hated the way half his time was spent arguing with deletors about his work.

Even Jimbo Whales has experienced this. He started an article on Mzoli's Meats , a butcher shop and restaurant in South Africa. When it was almost speedily deleted, he told the deletors to "excuse themselves from the project and find a new hobby.". In other words, get a life and stop ruining the project. Unfortunately, a bunch of editors added information to the article so it's now kept, saving Jimbo from having to confront either the bitterness many have felt in getting their work destroyed or remaking policy so that people like my friend would continue contributing.

These asshole admins are really making Wikipedia a crappy site, and their effect on valuable editors is worse than what any nasty vandal might do since admins are part of the power hierarchy. This is another valuable lesson in what happens when you give thoughtless small minded people a little power. They make their pronouncements and mass annihilations without any consideration on what the effect might be on a person who has spent sometimes hundreds of man hours creating, maintaining, and protecting his/her articles. They dismiss people by spouting some arbitrary interpretation of policy backed up by their cabals, while those who have better things to do like actually create content get fucked over. James Derk of The Daily Southtown wrote an article where he talks about having a similar experience.

Also, here's a good Slashdot thread illustrating the intellectual dishonesty of the deletionist admins. It is part of the Slashdot story Call For Halt To Wikipedia Webcomic Deletions which is filled with former contributors testifying to their own treatment at the hands of these assholes. It's sad how some people seem to really get off on destroying the work of others.

I think it's interesting how when I don't know about a subject, editing an article on it would be considered vandalism. But it's perfectly OK for the deletors to destroy work relating to things they often know nothing about. Sometimes they even use their very ignorance as justification.

I think Wikipedia has a choice right now. Allow a lot more in than they are currently doing and piss off the deletionists, or let these deletionists have their way and piss off the content creators(And I should add, it's not only deleted articles that are targeted, but plot synopses, trivia sections, clearly permissible images, etc. have all succumbed to the slash and burn mentality of these deletionists.). So Jimbo, who would you rather keep around?

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