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Sci-Fi

Submission + - William Gibson's Neuromancer After 25 Years (macworld.com)

Submitted by
Dr_Ken
Dr_Ken writes: ""Neuromancer is important because of its astounding predictive power. Gibson's core idea in the novel is the direct integration of man and computer, with all the possibilities (and horrors) that such a union entails. The book eventually sold more than 160 million copies, but bringing the book to popular attention took a long time and a lot of word-of-mouth. The sci-fi, community, however, was acutely aware of the novel's importance when it came out: Neuromancer ran the table on sci-fi's big three awards in 1984, winning the Hugo Award, the Philip K. Dick Memorial Award, and the Nebula Award.""
Windows

Submission + - RAID trust issues: Windows or cheap controller? 1

Submitted by NicApicella
NicApicella writes: My new system has two sparklin' SATA drives which I would like to mirror. After having been burned by a not-so-cheap, dedicated RAID controller, I have been pointed to software RAID solutions. I now stand in front of two choices two choices for setting up my RAID: A Windows 7 RC software RAID or a hardware RAID done by the cheap integrated RAID controller of my motherboard.
Based on past experiences I have decided that only my data is worth saving (setting up a system is easier on the soul than loosing years worth of basically everything) — that's why the RAID should mirror two disks (FAT32) that are not the boot disk (= do not contain an OS or any fancy stuff). Of course, such a setup should secure my data: Should a drive crash, I want the system up and running in no time. But that's not enough: Even more importantly, I want any drive and its data to be as safe and portable as possible (that's the reason for choosing FAT32), no matter whether the OS (it wouldn't be the first time Windows fiddled with some part of a hard disk it shouldn't have) or the controller (of the "cheap motherboard integrated"-type) screw up big time.
So, which should I choose? Who should I trust more? Microsoft's Windows 7 or the probably cheapest RAID controller on the market? Any other (decent) solution simply isn't in my budget...
Communications

Submission + - AOL Shuts Down Compuserve (basexblog.com)

Submitted by
Oracle Goddess
Oracle Goddess writes: "After 30 years, Compuserve is all but dead, as AOL has pulled the plug on the once-great company. The original CompuServe service, first offered in 1979, provided its users with addresses such as 73402,3633 and was the first major online service. CompuServe users will be able to use their existing CompuServe Classic (as the service was renamed) addresses at no charge via a new e-mail system, but the software that the service was built on has been shut down. Tellingly, the current version of the service's client software, CompuServe for Windows NT 4.0.2, dates back to 1999."
Security

Submission + - Symantec: it's dangerous to rely on free antivirus

Submitted by thefickler
thefickler writes: Clearly the rise of free antivirus is starting to worry Symantec, with a top Symantec executive warning consumers not to rely on free antivirus software (including Microsoft's Microsoft Security Essentials). "If you are only relying on free antivirus to offer you protection in this modern age, you are not getting the protection you need to be able to stay clean and have a reasonable chance of avoiding identity theft," said David Hall, Symantec's Product Manager Asia-Pacific Consumer Products and Solutions.
The Courts

Submission + - Professor Faces Jail Time for Sharing Drone Plans

Submitted by
Hugh Pickens
Hugh Pickens writes: "Retired University of Tennessee Professor Dr. John Reece Roth has been sentenced to four years in prison after he allowed a Chinese graduate student to see sensitive information on Unmanned Air Vehicles (UAVs), also known as drones. In 2004 the company Roth helped found, Atmospheric Glow Technologies, won a US Air Force contract to develop a plasma actuator that could help reduce drag on the wings of drones, such as the ones the military uses. Under the contract, for which Roth was reportedly paid $6,000, he was prohibited from sharing sensitive data with foreign nationals but despite warnings from his University's Export Control Officer, in 2006, Roth took a laptop containing sensitive plans with him on a lecture tour in China and also allowed graduate students Xin Dai of China and Sirous Nourgostar of Iran to work on the project. "The illegal export of restricted military data represents a serious threat to national security," says David Kris of the U.S. Department of Justice. "We know that foreign governments are actively seeking this information for their own military development. Today's sentence should serve as a warning to anyone who knowingly discloses restricted military data in violation of our laws." During his trial, Roth testified that he was unaware that hiring the graduate students was a violation of his contract. "This whole thing has not helped me, it has not helped the university," said Roth. "And it has probably not helped this country, either.""
Displays

Submission + - Is Kindle DX worth the money

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Now that some little time has passed, and the hype has died down a bit, I'm wondering if anyone has taken the $500 plunge and gotten a Kindle DX. From the academic-paper-reading-geek perspective, is it worth the money? How well does it work with pdfs, and is it easy to get them on and off? I haven't been able to find any good reviews on the interweb that address its usability as I would like to use it.
Robotics

Submission + - Flapping NAV Performs Controlled Hovering Flight (businesswire.com) 1

Submitted by
Anonymous Coward
Anonymous Coward writes: "AeroVironment, Inc. was awarded a Phase II contract extension in April from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to design and build a flying prototype for the Nano Air Vehicle (NAV) program. As part of this program AV has accomplished a technical milestone never before achieved: the controlled hovering flight of an air vehicle system with two flapping wings that carries its own energy source and uses only the flapping wings for propulsion and control. Two wings for propulsion and control, nothing else. Video at http://www.avav.com/uas/adc/nano/"
Java

Submission + - Emulated PC enables Linux desktop in your browser! (ox.ac.uk) 1

Submitted by
Ianopolous
Ianopolous writes: "Classic DOOM and DSL Linux Desktop inside your Java-enabled browser! The latest JPC, the fast 100% java x86 PC emulator, is now available online at http://www-jpc.physics.ox.ac.uk with online demos and downloads. JPC is open source and is the most secure way of running x86 software ever — 2 layers (applet sandbox, JPC sandbox) of independently validated security make it the world's most secure means of isolating x86 software. Visit the website to try out some classic games and play around with Linux all within your web browser — refresh = reboot!"

Comment Trademarks != (Copyright || DRM) (Score 4, Informative) 226

by jskora (#27894251) Attached to: Trademarks Considered Harmful To Open Source
DRM and copyright protect stuff, technology or data or ideas. Trademark, on the other hand protects a name, an identity.

Kleenex has not been the only brand of facial tissues for a very long time, the name is protected but not the concept. RedHat and CentOS, as already mentioned, are a perfect example of this working, the name RedHat is protected but the open source code is not.

Brand means more in some cases and than in others, as consumers and techies are at times very brand loyal. But when things become commodity items, consumers look less at brand than function, need, and appeal.
Education

Submission + - Masters or not? 2

Submitted by mx12
mx12 writes: With the semester finishing up, I have been thinking about my education future. I am currently an undergrad in computer engineering and I am thinking about getting my masters. I have a year left in school, and most of my professors seem to think that getting a masters is a great idea, but I wanted to hear from people out in the working world. If I could get my masters paid for by the lab I work in, is a masters in computer engineering better than two years of experience at a company?

Thanks everyone!
Security

Zombie Macs Launch DoS Attack 757

Posted by timothy from the but-wait-you-told-me dept.
Cludge writes "ZDNet has a story (and several related articles) about how Symantec has discovered evidence of an all-Mac based botnet that is actively involved in a DOS attack. Apparently, security on the exploited Macs (call them iBots?) was compromised when unwary users bit-torrented pirated copies of iWork 09 and Photoshop CS4 that contained malware. From the article: 'They describe this as the "first real attempt to create a Mac botnet" and note that the zombie Macs are already being used for nefarious purposes.'"
The Courts

Judge Rules Fox Has Copyright Claim To Watchmen 262

Posted by timothy from the there-are-ways-of-telling dept.
fermion writes "According to the NYT, a judge has decided that Fox owns the copyright to Watchmen, not Warner. Is this an example of copyright law becoming so complex that companies can abuse the court system to prevent competition, or just extreme incompetence by Warner? In the current business environment, either explanation is believable. Yet it is unbelievable that seasoned producers would spend hundreds of millions of dollars to create a movie that they can't even release. It seems the judge didn't want to bring this to a jury, and maybe daring Warner to appeal, or Fox to settle." The article says that Fox acquired movie rights to the Watchmen story in the late 1980s, but budget disputes and personnel changes have muddied the waters; Wikipedia has a bit more on the "development hell" which has plagued the film project.

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