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AT&T

Submission + - US carriers finally doing something about cellphone theft (macworld.com)

Submitted by zarmanto
zarmanto writes: In a move that is so long overdue that it boggles the mind, the FCC and the four largest cellular providers in the US state that they will be joining forces to combat cell phone theft. From TFA:

"Over the next six months, each of the four operators is expected to put in place a program to disable phones reported as stolen and within 18 months the FCC plans to help merge them into a central database in order to prevent a phone from being used on another carrier’s network."
The Military

Submission + - Military surplus a bonanza for law enforcement (sfgate.com)

Submitted by k6mfw
k6mfw writes: from the article: "San Francisco may be known for antiwar movements and peace rallies, but when local law enforcement agencies needed help with supplies, they've turned to the U.S. military."
"A total of 163,344 new and used items valued at $26.2 million — from bath mats acquired by the sheriff of Sonoma County to a full-tracked tank for rural San Joaquin County — were transferred last year to state and local agencies."
Facebook

Submission + - Security Hole Exposes Android, iOS To Facebook Identity Theft

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Gareth Wright, a U.K.-based developer of apps for Android and iOS, has discovered a security hole in Facebook’s native mobile apps that he says can be used to steal personal information about you. The problem is that Facebook’s apps for the two platforms do not encrypt your login credentials, meaning they can be easily swiped over a USB connection, or more likely, via malicious apps.
Android

Submission + - Ask Slashdot: No comprehensive app for Slashdot yet? (google.com) 4

Submitted by CCarrot
CCarrot writes: While looking for a comprehensive Slashdot app for Android, I was somewhat shocked to find that there isn't one out there (yet). There are plenty of apps that allow you to read stories and comments, including this one that lets you download and read stories and comments offline, however there are none (that I could find) that allow you to a) log in, or even b) post comments, not to mention check on friends' posts, monitor your comment history and replies, moderate posts, etc., etc.

To be fair, the mobile version of the site is very usable on cellphones and such, although html markup is rather a pain on a phone. It just surprises me that nobody has developed a dedicated app for it yet, especially considering that /. is 'news for nerds'. Any thoughts? Is one of the regular readers currently developing one in their oh-so-abundant 'spare' time? Or would anyone even use such an app if it were available? (besides me, of course...)
Security

Submission + - Sky News Hacked Email Of Canoe Fraudster John Darwin (techweekeurope.co.uk)

Submitted by
twoheadedboy
twoheadedboy writes: "Sky News has defended itself over hacking the email accounts of John Darwin, the man who faked his own death whilst canoeing, and his wife who benefited from the £500,000 insurance money whilst the man hid in their marital home. It emerged today that Sky News had allowed a journalist to obtain access to email accounts, in order to uncover communications between the Darwins. Head of Sky News, John Ryley, said the broadcaster stood by its actions as “editorially justified.”"
America Online

Submission + - Before the Internet: The golden age of online services (itworld.com)

Submitted by
Esther Schindler
Esther Schindler writes: "Think nostalgia isn't what it ought to be? Well, you're in luck. Steven Vaughan-Nichols has written a walloping overview of the pre-Internet online services he used to review for Computer Shopper (which, as it happens, is where he and I first met... perhaps you knew me at 72241,1417 in the early 90s?). Because, you young whippersnappers, before there was the World Wide Web, back when 2,400bps modems were "high-speed," millions of people used online services like AOL, CompuServe, and GEnie to work with each other, gossip, and share Star War jokes. (To my dismay, though, he leaves out Plato Homelink. sniff!) If you have a strange fondness for the sound of a modem connecting and (like me) are still proud of being able to whistle at 300bps, you'll nod along with his trip into the time machine."
It's funny. Laugh.

Submission + - Patent Troll Targets Samsung and RIM with Emoticon Button Patent (justia.com)

Submitted by eldavojohn
eldavojohn writes: Apparently the Samsung and Apple patent hoedown has received some uninvited guests that wish to troll with the big trolls — all over a built in button for an emoticon. According to Varia Holdings (don't bother googling, you won't find anyone trying to license their patents to you) "by asserting [its European] emoticon patent against Apple, Samsung has recognized the value of the type of invention embodied in [Varia's] ‘731 Patent." And, thusly, Varia feels this provides grounds to sue Samsung and RIM. Techdirt provides commentary on the obviousness of said patent while raking the USPTO examiner over the coals (although curiously gives Samsung a free pass).
Piracy

Submission + - Pirate Bay Financier Won't Face Jail Time (itproportal.com)

Submitted by hypnosec
hypnosec writes: The man responsible for providing a large portion of the funding for torrent search website The Pirate Bay will not be going to jail, instead spending his four month sentence in a Swedish apartment with an electronic tag. While the main three Pirate Bay founders could soon be finding themselves locked up behind bars for several months, the fourth defendant and early days financier of the site, Carl Lundström, has things a little better. Whilst hoping to have his sentence abolished by an appeals court — no doubt somewhat because of the near $7 million fine attached — it was upheld, though now at least spent in swankier accommodation than a jail cell.

Submission + - Ask Slashdot: What are your top work-from-home tips? 2

Submitted by
ichard
ichard writes: "In a couple of months I'm going to start working from home full-time. I've been thinking about the obvious things like workspace ergonomics, but I'm sure there are more subtle considerations involved in a zero-minute commute. What are other Slashdot readers' experiences and recommendations for working from home?"
AI

Submission + - Computer Competes in Crossword Tournament (i-programmer.info)

Submitted by mikejuk
mikejuk writes: Can a computer program, Matt Ginsberg's Dr.Fill, beat the best human crossword puzzle solvers? Not yet according to the results of last weekend's American Crossword Puzzle Tournament in which the computer was foiled by the ingenuity of the human puzzle setters.
But was it a stitch up?
Before the contest, last year's winner Dan Feyer (who went on to win again last weekend) said he expected that the contest would include "a puzzle or two that involved innovative twists or patterns to trip up Dr. Fill."
So were puzzles chosen deliberately to put the computer program at a disadvantage?
Tournament organizer Will Shortz shook his head and smiled when that question was put to him.
Perhaps the lesson is not to let the humans know you are coming..
Chrome

Submission + - Chrome beats IE for first time ever (statcounter.com) 2

Submitted by Kjella
Kjella writes: Sunday 18th of March should go down in browser history. For the first in many years IE is no longer then #1 web browser, with Chrome narrowly beating IE with 32.71% to 32.50% while Firefox on third with 24.81%. As the figures are substantially higher for Chrome and lower for IE on weekends it's only for a day but it's another big milestone. While IE still is in a clear lead in North America and Oceania, it is tied with Firefox in Europe while Chrome now leads in Asia and South America and Firefox leads in Africa.
Graphics

Submission + - Sunside Games To Release Their Radiance Engine As "Free Open-Source Software" (indiegamemag.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: IGM Reports that Sunside Games will be releasing their mobile game engine as free-open source: "When we questioned them about this impressive engine, they announced this news exclusively to us: 'Radiance will be released as free open-source software in the near future after Crow ships. It won’t be GPL or anything copy-left, it will be under a BSD or MIT style license. People will be able to use it however they’d like. Sunside will continue to invest in the technology for its future titles and anyone that wants will be able to take advantage of our technology without charge for any project commercial or otherwise.' "

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