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Comment The park was not set up safely. (Score 4, Informative) 479

by Mantle (#44777577) Attached to: Man Killed By His Own Radio-Controlled Helicopter In Brooklyn
Here's a couple of reports on that very same park by a few locals:

I had just visited the park where this happened to watch because i love this hobby (prior to the incident) and there really should be more safety precautions taken in fling fields, because these helicopters are only 40-50 yards from the spectators, and there is nothing stopping these things to do what it did to that kid

Last year I went to a fun fly at that field. A lot of those guys, including Roman (who I met), were pretty much flying right in their faces and on the deck the entire time they were flying. Even that day there was an incident where another guy was flying above his skill level on the deck, the tail smacked the ground and the heli started pirouetting out of control. Well it flew right into the pit area and hit a car, and the shattering glass injured somebody. And yet immediately after there were still about 6 or 7 guys at a time flying next to each other on a field that's about 500 feet wide without any concept of staying in their own flight box. Since that day I hadn't been there again and I definitely am not going back there now.

Submission + - Cisco and US Gov't Conspire to Abuse Legal Process (vancouversun.com)

Submitted by
Mantle
Mantle writes: "Justice Ronald McKinnon of the BC Supreme Court has ordered a stay of extradition for a British citizen to face criminal charges in the US after finding the US Prosecutors and Cisco conspired to mislead the Canadian courts about the nature of the crime. Justice McKinnon found that in reality, the criminal charges were based on exaggerations and misleading representations in order to pressure the accused into dropping a civil suit against Cisco.

The entire incident was a planned and deliberate act by Cisco, which prevailed on U.S. prosecutors to “grotesquely inflate” a minor civil complaint into a criminal charge requiring 500 years imprisonment.

"Justice McKinnon said that his main offence was that he “dared to take on a multinational giant.”"

Comment Step one: understand the issue (Score 1) 226

by Mantle (#34261186) Attached to: UK Minister Backs 'Two-Speed' Internet
What you are describing is not "net neutrality", but usage based billing. There is no problem with that on /..

What /.ers are talking about when they refer to net neutrality is the neutral treatment of data based on the content of the data, NOT the manner in which the content is transmitted. That is a very important technical distinction to make that is commonly misapplied when the term "net neutrality" is used without understanding the underlying issue.

Your electricity bill is "electric neutral" already. If BC Hydro were to overturn "electric neutral" they would bill you differently not only the quantity of electricity you used, but for the purpose to which you put the electricity. They could do things like bill you more for powering a non-BC Hydro branded/partner TV or fridge, but they would sell it to you as a "discount" for using their services. If you complained, they would say oh just switch to a competing provider!

Except the only other "competition" colludes with them in price.
Games

Submission + - Blizzard Claims Ownership of All Starcraft II Maps 5

Submitted by ccherlin
ccherlin writes: The EULA of Starcraft II contains an extremely disturbing clause:

3. Map Editor. The Game includes a program that allows you to create custom levels, maps, scenarios
or other materials for use in connection with the Game (the “Map Editor”). The following terms are specific to the Map Editor:
a. Map Content. You understand that the content required to create or modify STARCRAFT® II
Modified Maps (as defined below) is included in the STARCRAFT® II game client, and that all
such content is owned by Blizzard and governed by this Agreement. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE AND
AGREE THAT ALL MAPS, LEVELS AND OTHER CONTENT CREATED OR MODIFIED USING THE MAP
EDITOR (COLLECTIVELY, “MODIFIED MAPS”) ARE AND SHALL REMAIN THE SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE
PROPERTY OF BLIZZARD. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, YOU HERE BY ASSIGN TO
BLIZZARD ALL OF YOUR RIGHTS, TITLE AND INTEREST IN AND TO ALL MODIFIED MAPS, AND
AGREE THAT YOU WILL EXECUTE FUTURE ASSIGNMENTS PROMPTLY UPON RECEIVING SUCH
A REQUEST FROM BLIZZARD.

Prior Blizzard games like Warcraft III had EULA provisions that prohibited selling maps created with their editor, but the copyright remained with the map maker. Now? Anyone who creates a new, popular mod like DotA with the Starcraft II editor will have no rights to their own creation.

Submission + - Major Oil Company Data Leaked By Service Provider (blogspot.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: At the recent Black Hat USA 2010 security conference, a well known security service provider accidentally leaked a sensitive penetration test report on a major US-based oil company containing enough sensitive information to gain Windows domain administrator access rights as well as the username and password for everyone in the target company's domain. According to the detailed, 39-page report, these access rights included the ability to access servers containing SCADA system information. The report was not encrypted or password-protected in any way. Anyone with access to the leaked document and a copy of Microsoft Word could read the report in full.

The file was inadvertently distributed on USB keys provided to some attendees.

Reference:
http://sharpesecurity.blogspot.com/2010/07/major-oil-company-data-leaked-by.html

Comment Re:Someone doesn't like second hand market? (Score 1) 461

by Mantle (#31202924) Attached to: Sony Joins the Offensive Against Pre-Owned Games

While technically this correct, in practice you cannot always de-authorize your consoles.

*You must MANUALLY deauthorize your PSN account on EACH PS3 which you have ever logged in.*

That means:
If your PS3 crashed and you were unable to get to the deauthorize menu item, you lose that "slot" forever.
If you reformat YOUR OWN PS3 without deauthorizing your PSN account, you lose that "slot" forever.
If you have shared your PSN account with someone and they don't deauthorize the account, you lose that "slot" forever.

Citation: I've read this on the official Sony FAQ some time in the past but I can't find it right now, so here is another link that explains how things work: http://forums.bit-tech.net/showthread.php?t=158147
Microsoft

Microsoft Pushes For Single Global Patent System 495

Posted by timothy from the what-about-ecosystems dept.
Xerolooper writes "What would the world be like if everyone could enjoy the same patent system we use in the USA? From the article: 'A senior lawyer at Microsoft is calling for the creation of a global patent system to make it easier and faster for corporations to enforce their intellectual property rights around the world.' They have already attracted opposition from the open-source community and the Pirate Party. According to the article, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) will be meeting in Geneva on the 17th and 18th of September."

Comment Re:This is all wrong. (Score 1) 327

by Mantle (#29237993) Attached to: Crime Expert Backs Call For "License To Compute"
That's all fine and dandy if the attacker/zombie is under the jurisdiction of the Australia government, but what if it is not? Is the insurance company really going to step into your shoes and chase someone halfway across the world to get a judgment and enforce it? What if you don't have a cause of action against the attacker/zombie in the foreign jurisdiction? Ironically, the effect of your proposed law would be to protect foreign victims of Australian attackers. I guess what you are proposing is some sort of multi-national treaty whereby all signatories of the treaty would enact similar legislation to force internet users to take liability for the actions of their computers. Good luck!
Bug

Apple Faces Inquiries In the EU On iPhone Accidents 174

Posted by kdawson from the or-are-you-just-glad-to-see-me dept.
o'reor writes "As more cases of iPhone screen explosions emerge in the news on this side of the pond, Apple is now facing official inquiries and lawsuits in France. This situation has forced Apple finally to break silence and acknowledge the incidents: 'We are aware of these reports and we are waiting to receive the iPhones from the customers. Until we have the full details, we don't have anything further to add.' Following those reports, the European Commission had already decided last week to step in, while Apple tried to dismiss the problem as 'isolated incidents.' Meanwhile, iPhone explosion-related sites are now popping up on the Internet, releasing games such as iPop to chill out and relax on the subject, but also giving users advice on preventing iPhone accidents, or detecting imminent explosions."
Space

Astronomer Photographs Meteor Through Telescope 81

Posted by samzenpus from the expensive-camera dept.
Matt Rogers writes "Amateur astronomer Mike Hankey may be the first person on earth to take a picture of a fireball meteor through a telescope. The picture has been confirmed authentic by numerous professional astronomers and asteroid hunters. This picture could possibly be the first of its kind. Taking a picture of a meteor is a very difficult thing to do, taking a picture of a meteor through a telescope is near impossible. The hunt is on in southern PA for the meteorites that broke away from this space rock. Using Hankey's picture, as well as security tape, meteorite hunters have been able to narrow down the crash site to a smaller area. Even with the trajectory roughly determined, professional meteorite hunters think finding these meteorites may be near impossible. However if they are found they will be immensely valuable and could be very large."

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