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GNU is Not Unix

Submission + - Eben Moglen: Global Software Industry Post-GPL3

Submitted by
Dan Shearer
Dan Shearer writes: "Three days before GPLv3 was released, Eben Moglen delivered the annual lecture of The Scottish Society of Computers and Law in Edinburgh, Scotland giving his thoughts on The Global Software Industry in Transformation: After GPLv3. The text transcription, audio and 384kbit video are up at archive.org. Eben looks back at the "legislative action" achieved by the GPLv3 community over the last 18 months, and also from the 22nd century. A riveting presentation for all present."
Sci-Fi

Submission + - New Concept in Gaming Launched Online and at PAX (technomancer-press.com)

Submitted by
archer904
archer904 writes: "Penny Arcade and Technomancer Press have jointly announced the launch of TerraDrive, a new concept in gaming. It features content generated by the players via an ELOTH:TES style wiki, except that players will play in the universe they have created during the Massively Multiplayer Live Action Role Playing Game phase, which happens at PAX. They say they are expecting 4,000+ players. They are set to get a Guinness World Record for Largest RPG (single venue). After the MMLARPG at PAX, TerraDrive is available as a tabletop role-playing game with a twist: Technomancer Press is publishing adventures for the game based on content from the wiki. This means that a player can buy an adventure one day and find out he named the planet that the action takes place on, and his buddy developed the crime syndicate they're fighting against.

Information is available in wikipedia in the articles TerraDrive and TerraDrive Live, as well as at these URLs:

http://www.pennyarcadeexpo.com/tdlpress.php
http://www.technomancer-press.com/index.php/tdu-pr ess-release/"
The Courts

Submission + - RIAA Wants Agreements to Stay Secret

Submitted by
NewYorkCountryLawyer
NewYorkCountryLawyer writes: "The RIAA is opposing Ms. Lindor's request for discovery into the agreements among the record company competitors by which they have agreed to settle and prosecute their cases together, by which she seeks to support her Fourth Affirmative Defense (pdf) alleging that "The plaintiffs, who are competitors, are a cartel acting collusively in violation of the antitrust laws and of public policy, by tying their copyrights to each other, collusively litigating and settling all cases together, and by entering into an unlawful agreement among themselves to prosecute and to dispose of all cases in accordance with a uniform agreement, and through common lawyers, thus overreaching the bounds and scope of whatever copyrights they might have. ...As such, they are guilty of misuse of their copyrights.""
GNU is Not Unix

Submission + - A commercial look at the GPL (nyud.net)

Submitted by
also-rr
also-rr writes: "I needed to present a five minute brief on the GPL and what it could offer a company.

My aim was to give a clear idea of the basics of the GPL and why it should be considered for some projects. In particular there is a focus on partnered projects and how the GPL might be used to build a better relationship.

Entitled "The GNU GPL: A Commercial View" I hope it's useful for anyone else that needs to persuade a value-focused audience of the benefits of the GPL.

What changes would you make to put the point across more effectively? What changes need to be made for GPL3?"
The Internet

Submission + - Are web-developer certifications worth it?

Submitted by
riyley
riyley writes: "I'm a fairly advanced web developer with some hard experience in HTML, CSS, Javascript, Coldfusion and PHP. Now the HR at my company wants me to prove it in a way they understand, certificate. My boss has asked me to select some solid certifications and i've come up with three providers: W3Schools, BrainBench and ExpertRating.

I would like to know if these companies hold any more weight than the frame around the cert, or if it's a waste of my departments money and time? Is there another company I should look at? I'd prefer that in 3-5 years when i'm ready to move on to another job, that these would still be worth padding my resume with. Is that a pipedream?"
The Internet

Submission + - Answer People in Online Discussions Visualized (cmu.edu)

Submitted by
Marc Smith
Marc Smith writes: ""Answer people", the folks who contribute most of the value in the Internet, are a small minority of all online users. Less than 2% of authors in Usenet newsgroups, a recent paper my co-authors and I (Howard T. Welser, Eric Gleave, Danyel Fisher and Marc Smith) have published in the Journal of Social Structure reports, are likely to be the helpful "answer person" type — authors who reply to many other people with brief replies. The paper Visualizing the Signatures of Social Roles in Online Discussion Groups contains social network visualizations of the ties created when authors reply to one another. These images highlight the difference between these helpful folks and other types of contributors. The findings may apply to other threaded discussions (maybe even Slashdot discussions!)."
Hardware Hacking

Submission + - Cell phone stalking: how plausible?

Submitted by
Soulfader
Soulfader writes: "A story in the local paper caught my eye: Cell Phone Stalkers Still Terrorizing Families. I immediately envisioned a pack of flip phones with loud faceplates and obscene background images demanding money from a Sidekick at knifepoint, but it turns out that a few Tacoma families have been targeted for harassment, apparently through their cell phones: "The stalkers' alleged method involves hijacking mobile phones, turning them into eavesdropping devices and spy cameras and using the phones to send threatening voice mails and text messages — all by remote control." A related story offers vague ideas about how this might be done. I'm asking a wider, more technical audience: how feasible is this, really?

(Most Unfortunate Phrasing Award goes to the police spokesman: "One of our tech guys who should be looking for child porn has spent 50 hours doing nothing but this.")"
Space

Submission + - Hubble sees Night Shining Clouds (nasa.gov)

Submitted by illeism
illeism writes: NASA is reporting an interesting pheonmenon in the upper atmosphere — Night-Shining Clouds.

Very little is known about how these clouds form over the poles, why they are being seen more frequently and at lower latitudes than ever before, or why they have been growing brighter. AIM will observe two complete cloud seasons over both poles, documenting an entire life cycle of the shiny clouds for the first time.
"It is clear that these clouds are changing, a sign that a part of our atmosphere is changing and we do not understand how, why or what it means," stated AIM principal investigator James Russell III of Hampton University, Hampton, Va. "These observations suggest a connection with global change in the lower atmosphere and could represent an early warning that our Earth environment is being changed
United States

Submission + - New York! My kinda' place... I got a permit! (nytimes.com)

Submitted by G4Cube
G4Cube writes: From the NY Times, New York City May Seek Permit and Insurance for Many Kinds of Public Photography... "Some tourists, amateur photographers, even would-be filmmakers hoping to make it big on YouTube could soon be forced to obtain a city permit and $1 million in liability insurance before taking pictures or filming on city property, including sidewalks". If ever a law was made for cops to "thump and trump" anyone, this is one. "Hey buddy. "You got a permit? Yeah, I'm talkin' to you.
Corel

Submission + - France

Submitted by
cheap shopping
cheap shopping writes: "Washington — The federal official with the power to mobilize a massive federal response to Hurricane Katrina was Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, not the former FEMA chief who was relieved of his duties and resigned earlier this week, federal documents reviewed by Knight Ridder show."
Security

Submission + - University professor chastised for using Tor

Submitted by
Irongeek_ADC
Irongeek_ADC writes: "As reported in the The Chronicle of Higher Education, University IT "professionals" came knocking on Professor Censarini's door asking about why he was using the Tor network. While there they also asked that he not teach his students about it, and said it was likely against university policy. An interesting read that goes to show even Universities are turning big brother."
OS X

Submission + - Discuss: Vista versus OSX

Submitted by brelle
brelle writes: Technology Review has set up a forum, in which two editors have taken sides: one for Vista and one for OSX. Each article presents great arguments and is enlightening to the reader. Here is the piece: Vista vs. OSX? http://www.technologyreview.com/Infotech/18154/ There is a raging discussion going on!
United States

Submission + - DISA plans new top-secret presidential network

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: http://www.fcw.com/article97585-02-06-07-Web

The info in this story came from the DISA budget....

The White House Communications Agency (WHCA) has developed a six-year plan budgeted at $35 million to beef up presidential communications with a new top-secret network and multimedia Crisis Management System (CMS) designed to operate in a wide range of fixed locations, on Air Force One and on a new fleet of presidential helicopters.

The WHCA also said it plans to begin research on development of communications systems that can operate in High Altitude Electromagnetic Pulse (HEMP) environments. HEMP, generated by a nuclear blast, can knock out most forms of radio communications.

URL has the full story
User Journal

Journal Journal: Journal

Journal by Soulfader
Why would I need a journal on /.? That's like writing a short story in the margins of an encyclopedia.

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