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Comment Re:No Shit (Score 4, Informative) 281

by Jaysyn (#45712379) Attached to: DRM Has Always Been a Horrible Idea

Does not compute.

Also, I'm fairly certain that certain games on Steam don't have any DRM whatsoever and can be used without Steam (though, they're probably a minority).

That is correct. The amount of DRM that goes into a Steamworks game is controlled by the publisher, not by Valve.

http://steam.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_DRM-free_games
Government

Geeks For Monarchy: The Rise of the Neoreactionaries 730

Posted by samzenpus from the I-wish-to-subscribe-to-your-newsletter dept.
Third Position writes "Many of us yearn for a return to one golden age or another. But there's a community of bloggers taking the idea to an extreme: they want to turn the dial way back to the days before the French Revolution. Neoreactionaries believe that while technology and capitalism have advanced humanity over the past couple centuries, democracy has actually done more harm than good. They propose a return to old-fashioned gender roles, social order and monarchy."
XBox (Games)

Xbox One Controller Cost Over $100 Million To Develop 206

Posted by Soulskill from the go-big-or-go-home dept.
mrspoonsi writes "The Xbox One controller went through many radical designs, including a built-in pico projector and a cartridge designed to release smell. Apparently, 'the core base didn't appreciate them,' so these wacky features were dropped in favor of a standard controller. According to VentureBeat, over $100 million worth of research went into the design they ended up using. 'Microsoft’s first tweaks for a new controller focused on the overall size and how it’d fit into hands, golden or otherwise. Using the Xbox 360 controller as a starting point, the engineers would make plastic-molded or 3D-printed prototypes that were each 1 millimeter wider or narrower than the last, testing a full range of up to plus or minus 8 millimeters. “That gave us the ability to test, with actual users including women and children, which width feels best,” said Morris. “We tested with more than 500 people throughout the course of the project. All ages, all abilities.” ... Morris and his team then looked at different thicknesses and shapes of the grips (or “lobes,” as he calls them), plus the angle of the triggers, different styles of analog sticks, and more.'"
Privacy

Boston Cops Outraged Over Plans to Watch Their Movements Using GPS 409

Posted by Unknown Lamer from the funny-thing-about-that-... dept.
Hugh Pickens DOT Com writes "The Boston Globe reports that the pending use of GPS tracking devices, slated to be installed in Boston police cruisers, has many officers worried that commanders will monitor their every move. Boston police administrators say the system gives dispatchers the ability to see where officers are, rather than wait for a radio response and supervisors insist the system will improve their response to emergencies. Using GPS, they say, accelerates their response to a call for a shooting or an armed robbery. 'We'll be moving forward as quickly as possible,' says former police commissioner Edward F. Davis. 'There are an enormous amount of benefits. . . . This is clearly an important enhancement and should lead to further reductions in crime.' But some officers said they worry that under such a system they will have to explain their every move and possibly compromise their ability to court street sources. 'No one likes it. Who wants to be followed all over the place?' said one officer who spoke anonymously because department rules forbid police from speaking to the media without authorization. 'If I take my cruiser and I meet [reluctant witnesses] to talk, eventually they can follow me and say why were you in a back dark street for 45 minutes? It's going to open up a can of worms that can't be closed.' Meanwhile civil libertarians are relishing the rank and file's own backlash. 'The irony of police objecting to GPS technology for privacy reasons is hard to miss in the aftermath of United States v. Jones,' says Woodrow Hartzog. 'But the officers' concerns about privacy illustrate just how revealing GPS technology can be. Departments are going to have to confront the chilling effect this surveillance might have on police behavior.'"

Comment Re:How would it handle a large load? (Score 4, Informative) 499

by Jaysyn (#45402109) Attached to: How 3 Young Coders Built a Better Portal To HealthCare.gov

Estimating your subsidy is simple math. Verifying your personal and financial information is a totally different issue.

And before they start handing out tax dollars as subsidies, they damned sure better verify the applicant's income.

The insurer handles this part. HealthSherpa just tells you what plans are available for your area, & kicks you over to the insurer to review & purchase the plan.

Source: my girlfriend signed herself & her child up today using HealthSherpa as a starting point.
Cellphones

Journalists Banned From Using Smartphones At 2014 Sochi Olympics? 114

Posted by samzenpus from the no-tweet-for-you dept.
First time accepted submitter SlongNY writes in with a story that journalists may be banned from taking photos or videos with smartphones at the 2014 Olympics. "'Journalists using mobile phones to film athletes or spectators will be considered a serious violation and will result in cancellation of accreditation,' said Vasily Konov, head of the state-run R-Sport news agency, which controls accreditation at the games. According to Buzzfeed, Mr. Konov later denied that he had said the ban was in place. Radio Free Europe, however, also reported him as saying the same thing."
Government

Republican Proposal Puts 'National Interest' Requirement On US Science Agency 382

Posted by Soulskill from the otherwise-the-terrorist-win dept.
ananyo writes "Key members of the U.S. House of Representatives are seeking to require the National Science Foundation (NSF) to justify every grant it awards as being in the 'national interest.' The proposal, included in a draft bill from the Republican-led House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology and obtained by Nature, would force the NSF to document how its basic science grants benefit the country. The requirement is similar to one in a discussion draft circulated in April by committee chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas). At the time, scientists raised concerns that 'national interest' was defined far too narrowly. The current draft bill provides a more expansive definition that includes six goals: economic competitiveness, health and welfare, scientific literacy, partnerships between academia and industry, promotion of scientific progress, and national defense. But many believe that predicting the broader impacts of basic research is tantamount to gazing into a crystal ball. 'All scientists know it's nonsense,' says John Bruer, president of James S. McDonnell Foundation and former co-chair of an NSF task force that examined requiring scientists to state the 'broader impacts' of their work in grant applications."

Comment Re:Why we have a 5th Amendment (Score 1) 871

by Jaysyn (#45108173) Attached to: Bennett Haselton's Response To That "Don't Talk to Cops" Video

It's good that you've followed the conversation, where it was made abundantly clear, where we discussed the fact that it *does* depend on the jurisdiction. So many people just find one like to argue with, and troll away.

With a userid lower than mine, you've been here for a long time. I'd think you'd know enough to actually (oh my gosh) read before trolling.

1.) I wasn't trying to troll.

2.) I can't see anywhere in this thread where jurisdiction is mentioned or implied, and the subject is referring to the 5th Amendment. If I've missed it somehow, my apologies.

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