Become a fan of Slashdot on Facebook

 



Forgot your password?
typodupeerror
×

Comment Re:How is it worth anything? (Score 1) 245

Those VC's certainly do much due diligence.. When you go and sign up, it's broken - you don't even have to agree to the terms of use or privacy policy, let alone fill anything else in after giving them your email. Considering they deal in advertising, and with all the other sneaky/underhanded advertising going on around the net - with out having to agree to the terms and all, I would think that is scary grounds for all kinds of law suits if they give out information, spam you, etc..
Image

New Zealand Government Opens UFO Files Screenshot-sm 100

astroengine writes "Following hot on the heels of a series of international UFO sighting disclosures, the New Zealand government has joined the party and made public 2,000 pages of UFO eyewitness accounts dating back to 1952. Helpfully, the NZ newspaper The Dominion Post has scanned the documents and has made them available online. Among the accounts of alien encounters and strange lights in the sky is one of New Zealand's most famous UFO mystery: the Kaikoura sighting. But was it aliens? Probably not, but it makes for an entertaining read."

Comment Re:Hello Censorshipch (Score 1) 606

While I do agree with this, I don't think that it's the over all problem/concern.. Everyone knows (and elsewhere as well) that practically every large industry, including the government in the US is corrupt - hell, didn't the financial industry (banks -> walls street) almost take out the financial industries of countries all over the world through a domino effect?

These kinds of leaks *will* come back to bite us, although I'm starting to wonder if this is some kind of rebellion starting - with all the corruption with these very large industries, including the legal system and government which is suppose to prevent it, it seems next to impossible to change anything and gain control of our country again - so what's left? Tell the world what is really going on, hand them proof and let the 'best friends' of the elite tell them where to go and what they can do with 'X'.

What are 300,000,000 people to do when 90% of everything they are told is 'crafted' and/or 'fabricated' - and mind you not from the government, but from the for-profit news industry, the advertising that is constantly bombarding them and the legal system that is turning into for-profit only as well..

Corporations run the United States, not the government, and it's corrupt - I can very much see how one could view that the 'normal' process of how to change things could take wayyyy to long, and in the mean time more corruption occurs and gets worse. If your at a loss - what else can you do than to air the dirty laundry of those in power to the world, and let the other 5.7 billion inhabitants help you fight - by having their government(s) telling those in power of you to f' off, and with a big 'F'...
Robotics

Willow Garage Robot Fetches Beer, Engineers Rejoice 114

kkleiner writes "Willow Garage has pulled off the ultimate engineering feat: teaching a PR2 robot to fetch you a beer from the fridge. Not only can the PR2 select the correct brew from the fridge, it can deliver, and even open the beer as needed. That's right, all the humans have to do is drink and relax. Prepare yourself for some major robot-envy as you check out the PR2 delivering much-needed refreshment in the video."
The Internet

BBC To Create Internet Protocol TV Standard 128

Robadob sends word that the BBC has been granted approval for Project Canvas, "a partnership between the BBC, ITV, BT, Five, Channel 4, and TalkTalk to develop a so-called Internet Protocol Television standard." The approval came with several interesting requirements: "Project Canvas must always remain free-to-air but users 'may be charged for additional pay services that third parties might choose to provide via the Canvas platform, for example video on demand services, as well as the broadband subscription fees.' Access to Project Canvas must not be 'bundled with other products or services' and 'listing on the electronic program guide will be awarded in a fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory manner." In addition, a preliminary draft of the tech specs for the project must be published within 20 working days, in order to allow broadcasters and manufacturers of set-top boxes to adopt the new standards. Significantly, "Other broadcasters and content providers must have access to the platform."

Comment Re:Anybody care to comment on... (Score 1) 248

Firstly, will this bring about any (if present) early termination clause in contracts as a "significant change in terms?"

Would it be even possible to break the contract with AT&T, if you no longer agree with the new terms of Apple? I only have the iPod, although from what I understand it would make this fancy smart phone practically pointless with out all the apps..

Comment Re:Yeah, it's called blissful ignorance (Score 1) 380

haha - didn't realize I was actually defending him, I was just replying to Mr Whirly - didn't even know about CrazyJim :-P And no - I'm defiantly not defending him, intentionally at least...

And are you actually saying that since science is "changing all the time" and nothing is 100% proven that zero scientific theories are valid? Whoa. Well, they never will be (at least to folks like you) but to me being 99.99999999% certain of something is good enough.

More power to ya - I'm just saying that when that 0.000000001% discovers something brand new and changes the fundamental understanding on how we understand our surroundings - at least I can say that I wont be dumb founded and lost, as I would have already known that there was still more out there.. With a search I dug up this as a quick example - http://science.slashdot.org/story/08/11/03/2229248/New-Type-of-Particle-May-Have-Been-Found

Comment Re:Yeah, it's called blissful ignorance (Score 1) 380

Wow, a spiritual person having a hard time believing something that can be scientifically proven that contradicts their own personal views that cannot be scientifically proven. There's a first.

Fixed that for you.. Other than that, I'm not so sure I would completely agree with your statement, science is changing all the time, and with the changes more and more doors are opening up - some shedding light and others opening to yet a another deep void that is left to be explained let alone theorized. Science has proven lately to show that previous scientific facts/proofs were flat out wrong because of these new doors that have opened - until 100% of everything is explained/proven and not merely theorized (and not 99.999% either as that remaining 0.001% can open yet another door to endless questions) saying that something isn't so is just plain ignorance. It's ignorant because you've stopped thinking/feeling for your self and has accepted what 'someone' else says is so...

You need to remember that 'religion' is the bureaucratic version of spirituality - two completely different things, like being human and being a corporate lawyer/politician is two completely different things (pun intended). Personally, I believe that science is looking for a needle in a haystack the size of the universe - in which the needle is sitting on your nose. The notion of "God" is so freaking simple it's ridiculous, although due to religion it has become so complicated and intricate that it is taking science to try and unravel it - aka, disprove it (which it won't)..

A simple question - whats *two* things that EVERY human being on this planet has in common, that's not biological or physical and regardless of religion or beliefs - and then ask your self what the relationship is...

Comment Re:Law enforcement thinks they're above the law. (Score 2, Interesting) 187

I'd be curious to know if there was some kind of unofficial threat from the FBI that if the given operator doesn't comply they will be investigated for impeding the given investigation or something - as we all know we are breaking some kind of law at any given moment, although with the newly in acted laws for national security due to terrorism, we are probably violating these as well at any given time - let alone in the past...

Comment Re:Floor mat, really? (Score 1) 1146

There's something else I don't quite understand - I've had the gas pedal stick on me a more than few times because of the floor mat. The problem I'm having with Toyota's theory though is that in my situation the floor mat simply held the gas pedal where it was on each occasion - so when I went to stop/slow down, letting off the gas didn't do anything - but it sure as hell didn't floor the beast to where I was all the sudden doing 90 and thrown back into the seat (as one of the reports claim) and yes the brakes did still work - just more pressure was required to use them.

Comment Re:Turn the tables (Score 1) 1364

Your religion is not the only one, and the Constitution protects all religions equally. My religion recognizes same sex marriages, and performs said ceremonies. By denying me the right to call what my religion does 'marriage' you are infringing on my freedom of religion.

Great, I'm happy for you - seriously, you have a belief that your particular religion 100% supports and backs. Although, how can you possibly believe that you are NOT pushing your beliefs and religion onto others when yours is right and every one else is wrong?!?!

Sorry, you lose and my right to religious freedom wins. Ahhhh, love that US Constitution, don't you?

Ironically, this does have everything to do with religious freedom, and your again ignoring (or it's escaping you) the issue with terminology and the definition of marriage. Some very prominent religions forbid divorce, while others at the same scale allow it with out any issue what so ever - both having very different definitions of what marriage is suppose to be. As such, your beliefs have introduced another core fundamental difference - which from your use of words is obviously perfectly fine for you but apparently others who believe differently not only are the flat out wrong but they are bigots. Again, your the one forcing your beliefs on others - or they are labeled.

This is probably going to go over your head, (again) but I'll say it anyway - this is all about terminology. The government crossed the line a ways back when it endorsed, sanctioned and gives breaks to those in such a union - crossing the line when it comes to "separation of church and state". They should have instead had the "civil union" introduced, since in the eyes of the government the backing of a religion should be irrelevant and not tolerated - otherwise you get BS like this. The governments use of the term marriage instead of civil union, is the cause of everything around this. Since it uses a term from religious backgrounds - it merges church and state. As such, since your religion condones acts that fundamentally change the definition of what marriage is for many others, the terminology needs to be addressed as it's not the religious background that is relevant to the government nor should it be.

As you are proving with the name calling and labeling - ideals, beliefs and religious aspects are being introduced and argued upon solely because you need your beliefs to be accepted by the government due the one word - "marriage". If the government did not use the term, but instead the "civil union" for all religions, this would have come down to yet another splintering of religious sects. But because the gov uses the term, and the term has deep roots in many religions - and because your beliefs differ so much on those core roots, you have no choice but to change those core roots. Your use of name calling and labeling so eloquently proves my point - as petty as it is, your arguing that your beliefs and religion has the right to exist, in which there is no reason why it can't - although it -is- fundamentally different at certain levels and since the government uses the same terminology as this core belief, you have no choice but to re-define this terminology otherwise why in the hell would you care? What did you expect when you tried to redefine such a core belief in so many people? Jeeze, when Pluto was declassified as an actual planet many people flipped out about it and that belief was no where near the scale of what marriage is...

Comment Re:Turn the tables (Score 1) 1364

...because you are a bigot who wants to impose your religious values onto other religions besides your own and wants to dictate what ceremonies other religions are allowed to perform.

I oppose it and my reasons have zero to do with any religious or spiritual values/beliefes. Going along with the GP's argument, if your after state sanctioned and recognized "unions" that offer the same perks and legal rights as the state recognized and sanctioned "religious" unions - ie: marriage, then that's one thing and it should be recognized but not because your "gay" - but because the individuals involved are citizens of the given state.

Marriage always has been and always will be a religious matter. Those individuals who are not religious and want the 'perks' of making a commitment to each other - get the states version of marriage which is just a civil union that is happening to be using the same terminology - I'm referring to going to the local court house and getting hitched.

IF you are only after the 'perks' of the state sanctioned civil union, then this is a deal of the state crossing the line of the separation between church and state - and all federal/state government should scratch using the terminology of "marriage" and simply use "union" instead. If this is not the case, then sadly it's you who is trying to impose your religious values on others.

Comment Re:15 years old (Score 1) 759

...do not have a listening service configured in the client firewall and are therefore not affected by this vulnerability

Why couldn't other software have this 'listening service' and there for be vulnerable?

From the security bulletin, XP SP2/3 and XP PRO x64 SP2 are vulnerable (DOS). "This security update resolves several privately reported vulnerabilities in Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) processing." - Just because one certain piece of software isn't vulnerable to this attack vector, doesn't mean another wouldn't...

The bug(s) are still there, sounds like they are just searching for reasons not to fix them, FTFA...

Although the two bugs can be exploited on Windows 2000 and XP, Microsoft downplayed their impact. "A system would become unresponsive due to memory consumption ... [but] a successful attack requires a sustained flood of specially crafted TCP packets, and the system will recover once the flood ceases."

Comment Re:His contract may still include these works (Score 1) 276

While this was my original line of thinking, I'd have to also assume that the artist has his copy of the contract and it was gone over with a fine tooth comb before organizing the raid for this - especially against a corporate entity the size of Sony.

Even though it's all agreed here that Sony is going to find some way out out of this, it may still turn out to be a boon for the lowly citizen (world wide) as this as well may be able to be used as a precedent (not a legal one though) just in our favor - even though the laws are different, it comes down to the 'magic' math, and what Sony (RIAA) considers intent and potential profit.

IANAL, although from what I do understand is that the US legal system has little to do with the actual laws, and a heck of lot more on how well the given side argues (civil cases of course) - I wouldn't think it wouldn't be that much of a stretch to point out that the arguments used in their defense of this (Sony), would counter all the arguments used in their prosecution attempts. In other words, even though it's a different country, different laws, different way of doing things - they are still held to their word, and considered truthful - because of that, I would think it could be used as a good argument that they are making everything up, if it counters whats been said to be truthful else where.. There any lawyers on, that could verify one way or the other if this could be possible - not the outcome of the foreign case, but what is said under oath in the foreign case...

Comment Re:And California is releasing the "non violent" (Score 1) 640

I can come home and destroy my liver after a long day at work, but I can't sit down and enjoy some THC?

And thats the whole problem unfortunately, the fact that the U.S. is too dependent on the almighty $$$. Destroying your liver costs you $$$, in both obtaining the liquor and obtaining the resulting medical treatments. There is zero $$$ (all around) in smoking some homegrown free Cannabis, but there are major $$$ in fining and criminalizing you for smoking it. If we were to legalize Cannabis, it would take a big chunk of the $$$ out of the drug cartels world wide - which is desirable, although at the same time there would be the same (if not more) amount in $$$ taken away from the private companies contracted to 'help out' the government in these 'wars/battles' - whether it's in in IT contracts, manufacturing weapons, logistics, medical, testing, etc.. someone rich and powerful is going to loose out. Even if were made legal, and a huge tax added to it - the amount of $$$ it would cost you would drop so much, that the amount of $$$ in taxes would not offset how much is profitable - perhaps for the government it self it could come relatively close, but not for the private companies with the trickle down effect.

It's all about the $$$, and it's just to bad that we are so addicted to it - personally, I'm concerned that this country will have to go bankrupt and implode before this changes. Obama has already had to personally visit our largest creditor (China) and make the case that we are capable of paying our bills, as they are getting concerned about the amount of debt we are racking up and the ability to pay it off...

Slashdot Top Deals

"The fundamental principle of science, the definition almost, is this: the sole test of the validity of any idea is experiment." -- Richard P. Feynman

Working...