Comment Nice try (Score 1) 599
The binary option is there to catch the bots, isn't it?
Nice try, but you won't catch us out that easily.
Comment Re:Letter writing (Score 1) 613
I never had a pen-pal or a reason to write letters, until just this week.
My last girlfriend and I are geographically very distant and after a period of letting each other move on realised that neither of us wanted to lose the very good interpersonal relationship we have. Email just wasn't cutting it. Something about it is just too hasty. So we decided to start writing letters to each other, and I have to say I'm pretty excited about the whole thing.
I was taught proper letter writing etiquette back in school, but I don't recall much of it now. Does anyone have any good letter writing tips?
Submission + - Working with Microsoft clients - what OS to run?
LordNyuknyuk writes: I currently work as a young network engineer that services approximately 40 small businesses with Windows networks (SBS 2000/2003, Terminal Server, WinXP Pro machines — however there is light with Smoothwall applicances in place as well). As a result, I've been running a WinXP/Fedora dual boot machine, with the Fedora mainly for my own personal education and hobby. The XP Pro boot has become my 'daily driver' as it helps for supporting these clients in a standardised way — and I think it is a useful tool to run the OS that you are supporting. I don't mind it — it is a nice system once you have it tuned correctly.
I am planning on travelling and picking up some contract work along the way. I have bought a new notebook with Vista Business OEM, which I don't mind so far, but don't prefer to XP Pro (and I'm waiting to be get roasted by the Slashdot crowd). I have heard though through various channels that a lot of large enterprise businesses will not even be considering rolling out Vista for a couple of years. Microsoft has granted downgrade rights to XP Pro to Vista Business OEM users.
My question is: What would be the best OS to run here? Do I get ahead of the curve with the Vista, and discard the useful tool of running the OS that I will ultimately be supporting on a day to day basis? Do I setup a tri-boot to get the best of all worlds and sacrifice the disk space, keeping in mind the complexity, hardware support, pooled email/contact details etc? Do I forsake Vista for now and 'downgrade' to the XPPro/Linux dual boot? Does anyone perform in-the-field and first level support with MS using customers armed only with your Ubuntu beast? Is there any value in Virtual Machines in this case?
I am planning on travelling and picking up some contract work along the way. I have bought a new notebook with Vista Business OEM, which I don't mind so far, but don't prefer to XP Pro (and I'm waiting to be get roasted by the Slashdot crowd). I have heard though through various channels that a lot of large enterprise businesses will not even be considering rolling out Vista for a couple of years. Microsoft has granted downgrade rights to XP Pro to Vista Business OEM users.
My question is: What would be the best OS to run here? Do I get ahead of the curve with the Vista, and discard the useful tool of running the OS that I will ultimately be supporting on a day to day basis? Do I setup a tri-boot to get the best of all worlds and sacrifice the disk space, keeping in mind the complexity, hardware support, pooled email/contact details etc? Do I forsake Vista for now and 'downgrade' to the XPPro/Linux dual boot? Does anyone perform in-the-field and first level support with MS using customers armed only with your Ubuntu beast? Is there any value in Virtual Machines in this case?
Submission + - Google Working on Linux.
wizitchizit writes: "Google is preparing its own distribution of Linux for the desktop, in a possible bid to take on Microsoft in its core business — desktop software.
A version of the increasingly popular Ubuntu desktop Linux distribution, based on Debian and the Gnome desktop, it is known internally as 'Goobuntu'.
Google has confirmed it is working on a desktop linux project called Goobuntu, but declined to supply further details, including what the project is for.
It's possible that it's just one of the toys Googleplex engineers play with on Fridays, when they get time off from buffing the search engine code or filtering out entries about Tiananmen Square.
It could be for wider deployments on the company's own desktops, as an alternative to Microsoft, but still for internal use only.
But it's possible Google plans to distribute it to the general public, as a free alternative to Windows.
Read the whole story..."
Read the whole story..."
Submission + - Do the banks want your money or your home? (thebankruptcynews.com)
thebankruptcynews writes: My concern is that, at this juncture, banks have a real interest in liquidating bad loans and transferring those loans to lower risk borrowers, that's why they are not making any real effort to salvage bad loans and are forcing foreclosures of risky loans that may harm their access to cheap new funds.
http://services.thebankruptcynews.com/blog/?p=30
Submission + - World's largest diamond found in South Africa (mybroadband.co.za)
slash-sa writes: "The world's largest diamond, said to be twice the size of the
previous biggest stone, has
been found in the North West province of South Africa. According to the
South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) the diamond was transported to
a secure vault in Johannesburg under strict security measures."
Submission + - Cheating IT Grads are being deported
kalpatin writes: International students could be getting deported from Australia if they are found guilty of cheating. ABC Australia reports that Masters students have been cheating in their theses and the hard copies of their work matches the electronic sources found on the Internet.
Submission + - Richard Stallman missing in Peru earthquake ?
An anonymous reader writes: Early reports suggest that Richard Stallman was travelling in Peru when the 8.0 quake struck on Thursday the 16th August. Wikinews is asking for any further information.
Submission + - Stallman missing in Peru quake area (wikinews.org)
Titoxd writes: "The Wikinews front page reports that Richard Stallman was in the area of the 8.0-magnitude quake that struck Perú yesterday.
While he was expected to arrive at his destination on August 20 (yes, in the future), anyone that hears from him would help quell a lot of rumors in the near future."
Submission + - Physicists Discover Interstellar Dust 'Alive' (sciencedaily.com)
reezle writes: An international team has discovered that under the right conditions, particles of inorganic dust can become organised into helical structures. These structures can then interact with each other in ways that are usually associated with organic compounds and life itself.
Quite bizarrely, not only do these helical strands interact in a counterintuitive way in which like can attract like, but they also undergo changes that are normally associated with biological molecules, such as DNA and proteins, say the researchers. They can, for instance, divide, or bifurcate, to form two copies of the original structure. These new structures can also interact to induce changes in their neighbours and they can even evolve into yet more structures as less stable ones break down, leaving behind only the fittest structures in the plasma.
"These complex, self-organized plasma structures exhibit all the necessary properties to qualify them as candidates for inorganic living matter," says Tsytovich, "they are autonomous, they reproduce and they evolve."
Quite bizarrely, not only do these helical strands interact in a counterintuitive way in which like can attract like, but they also undergo changes that are normally associated with biological molecules, such as DNA and proteins, say the researchers. They can, for instance, divide, or bifurcate, to form two copies of the original structure. These new structures can also interact to induce changes in their neighbours and they can even evolve into yet more structures as less stable ones break down, leaving behind only the fittest structures in the plasma.
"These complex, self-organized plasma structures exhibit all the necessary properties to qualify them as candidates for inorganic living matter," says Tsytovich, "they are autonomous, they reproduce and they evolve."
Submission + - Bubble Bobble: Physics in Microfluidics Chips
SoyChemist writes: The physics of moving droplets of water around in the channels of a microfluidics chip is tricky. Even simple tasks, like merging two drops, required a lot of problem solving. At the International Conference on Bioengineering and Nanotechnology at the Biopolis in Singapore, Professor David Wietz explained how his research group at Harvard tackled those problems. Prototype devices can sort, combine, and split drops so fast that they are rated in kilohertz. In that sense, the rapid evolution of microfluidics technology feels like the dawn of personal computing all over again. It kinda looks like it too. The many videos that he showed during his presentation bore a funny resemblance to classic video games like Pac Man and Bubble Bobble.
Submission + - Girlfriend Stabs Boyfriend Over Game System (olgn.net)
An anonymous reader writes: As seen on OLGn
A Warren woman is in jail and the father of one of her children is in critical condition after a stabbing early Monday morning at a Buckeye Avenue N.W. home. Police say an argument that started over a missing video game system led to the arrest of 30-year-old Tara Wheatley and a flight to Cleveland MetroHealth Medical Center for her boyfriend, Andrew P. McMichael, who had stab wounds to his back, neck and left arm.
Submission + - Man Has Thumb Surgery to Enable Better iPhone Use
iamdrscience writes: "ZDNet is reporting that 28 year old Thomas Martel has undergone "whittling" thumb surgery to enable better use of the iPhone. The procedure involved making a small incision into both thumbs and shaving down the bones, followed by careful muscular alteration and modification of the fingernails. Were turning plastic surgery from something that people use in service of vanity, to a real tool for improving workplace efficiency says Dr. Robert Fox Spars, who worked on developing the procedure."
Submission + - MidnightBSD 0.1-RELEASE Available (midnightbsd.org)
An anonymous reader writes: MidnightBSD 0.1 is now available. It includes several software packages such as ksh, sudo, OpenNTPD, gcc 3.4.4, BIND 9.3.4 (plus patch), and others in the base system.
"MidnightBSD is a desktop operating system for x86 compatible, and soon amd64 compatible architectures. It was originally based on FreeBSD 6.1 Beta. The goal of the project is to create a BSD with ease of use and simplicity in mind."
"MidnightBSD is a desktop operating system for x86 compatible, and soon amd64 compatible architectures. It was originally based on FreeBSD 6.1 Beta. The goal of the project is to create a BSD with ease of use and simplicity in mind."
