Catch up on stories from the past week (and beyond) at the Slashdot story archive

 



Forgot your password?
typodupeerror
×

Comment MPAA will fix this (Score 1) 334

Does this mean that the studios should be liable for all of the damage caused by tv shows and movies intended for children under 3? I mean sure, the parents could have prevented it, but they wouldn't have to if they weren't produced in the first place! And this line of logic is why the MPAA will never allow this to become a law, so it's pointless to debate how this would ever be regulated, or why anyone would think that the government should instruct us on how to raise our kids.

Comment U-verse really can't compete (Score 4, Informative) 168

FTA:

Speaking of fiber, what about AT&T? The company did not make the top 15. In fact, the fiber-based AT&T U-verse service got an index of 7.9, putting it at number 22.

I'm really not surprised by this. One of the worst features of U-verse is that the tv and internet share the same bandwidth. After a little at home testing I found that my '18mbs' connection dropped by almost 6mbs per HD channel we were watching or recording. So while you pay for both, you can really only use one at a time. I promptly dropped their cable. The most frustrating fact is that we can't get Fios in my neighborhood. When we called to set it up while moving in the gentleman kindly informed me that if AT&T services my area Fios will not. Still trying to figure out how that is legal...

Submission + - Game Mechanics Applied to Prison Management (cnn.com)

HungryMonkey writes: Seth Priebatsch, founder of mobile companies SCVNGR and LevelUp, attributes the success of Angola's latest warden to the application of game mechanics in a real life situation.

— On October 20 in a small town in Louisiana, there will be a rodeo, complete with the prerequisite boots, bulls and Marlboro-man doppelgangers. But this particular rodeo will take place not at a fairgrounds, but at the Louisiana State Penitentiary, also known as "Angola." The riders are untrained inmates who have earned the right to participate — and feel up to 6 seconds of freedom atop an angry bull — in a highly calculated and wildly effective prison reward system. Oh, we'll get back to that. First, though, I want to acquaint you with Burl Cain. He's the Angola warden that I'm fairly convinced moonlights as a savvy game designer. In 2004 Cain was charged with giving a makeover to America's largest and bloodiest maximum-security prison, home to 5,300 violent offenders.

Cain's play-by-play at Angola reads like a deck of game-mechanics cards. To change behavior, he introduced a progression system that was notched with "appointments" — challenges inmates had to conquer to in order to get a reward. Rise to the challenge and you could earn the right to own a pet, to take a job, even the freedom to roam the grounds. To reach the highest level, known at Angola as becoming a Trustee, can take up to 10 years. It's not an easy game, but it's one that the majority of its players are highly motivated to play.

At a certain point in the climb to Trustee status, inmates earn the opportunity to participate in the Angola Rodeo, held each spring and fall in an arena that holds more than 7,500. The day consists of 11 events, including bull riding.


Comment You get what your paid for (Score 1) 684

Yes, they are getting brain damage. No, this isn't really a surprise to anyone. But I have to ask, isn't this why they get paid the big bucks? No one is forcing them to play this game. A quick breakdown finds that your average NFL player makes 1848% what Average Joe does. And no, that's not a typo.

Average US salary: $41,673.83

Avergage NFL Salary: $1.9 million

Median NFL Salary: $770,000.00

Average NFL career: 3.5 years

In that 3.5 years the average NFL player, at MEDIAN salary, will earn $2.7 million or roughly the amount that Average Joe will pull in after 65 years. (160 years if the NFL player gets the average salary.) IMHO they are selling their health later in life for the riches now.

Science

Submission + - Florida University cuts CS department and increases its athletic department (forbes.com) 1

HungryMonkey writes: In a move that highlights the priorities of the US college system,

The University of Florida announced this past week that it was dropping its computer science department, which will allow it to save about $1.7 million. ... Meanwhile, the athletic budget for the current year is $99 million, an increase of more than $2 million from last year. The increase alone would more than offset the savings supposedly gained by cutting computer science."

High schools have been doing this sort of thing for years but I wish I wasn't suprised to see this at the college levels.

Submission + - 12 more billionaires pledge to give away 50% of their wealth (cnn.com)

HungryMonkey writes: 12 more billionairs have joined The Giving Pledge' , committing to give away at least 50% of their wealth, either within their lifetime or upon their deaths.

Twelve billionaires — with names like Ackman, Bronfman, and Musk — have added their names to the Giving Pledge, the campaign started by Warren Buffett and Bill and Melinda Gates in 2010 to spur philanthropy among the superrich. That brings the number of total members, many signing jointly with their spouses, to 81.

Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and George Lucas are listed as current members, but Steve Jobs had declined to participate. Note that this is merely a moral pledge, not a contract.

Comment Re:So how come they are "smart" meters? (Score 1) 189

Smart meters do not use the old electro-mechanical method to measure power consumption. They are solid state and have no moving parts or coils that can be tampered with by a magnetic field.

Ok, so I actually RTFA and according to it:

The bureau also said another method of attacking the meters involves placing a strong magnet on the devices, which causes it to stop measuring usage, while still providing electricity to the customer.

That certainly sounds like tampering with a magnetics field. I'd hazard to say that there a multiple types of smart meters,

Comment Re:Kind of shady? (Score 2) 158

I mean, aren't there laws against doing things like hacking into computers you don't own? Isn't this aiding in a crime? The last time I checked, even government agencies were obliged not to break laws.

You've got it all wrong. I'm sure they hack into their own computers, nothing illegal there. Then they sell the knowledge of these exploits to their customers in order to protect them from these weaknesses. Now, if someone in one of those agencies "goes against policy" and uses these exploits against someone else, how is it their fault?

Comment Re:$35 Million Dollars (Score 2, Funny) 195

The actual lesson is: Criminals are bloody stupid. If I had $35 million worth of drugs in a place, I would avoid doing anything that could get the police into my place.

Or like letting them in without a warrant. FTA:

The officers didn't have a search warrant, so they knocked on the door of the apartment and asked the occupants for permission to come in. They consented, Tomkins said.

But lets be honest, it's not that all criminals are stupid. The smarter ones are currently looking for the original owner of that iPad with some questons about those mp3's he has...

Comment Re:Of all the games mentioned, what's missing? (Score 1) 350

FTA:

Rogue still boasts a large fanbase that regularly partakes in sessions of both the original and more recent variants like NetHack and Angband.

I still play Nethack on a regular basis, which totally baffles my wife. This game is the epitome of replay value. On another note, it's a shame they don't consider gaminig consoles, as FF1 brings back so many fond memories.

Comment Re:Does it work. (Score 1) 212

Jeep Rubicon? Excuse me, but that's an Italian river and more familiar with the phrase 'Crossing the Rubicon' akin to making a move from which there is no return, as Julius Caesar took his legion across the river (I'm sure they didn't have Jeeps then). How utterly preposterous, isn't it?

Aside from it's historical roots, the Rubicon is a famous trail in the Sierra Nevada, a portion of which is used by Jeep as a testing ground. It is also where they host their Jeep Jamboree . (Not to be confused with the other Jeep Jamboree.)

Iphone

Submission + - The iPhone is a nightmare for carriers (cnn.com)

HungryMonkey writes: According to the latest EBITDA numbers from AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon, the subsidies they have to pay Apple in order to carry the iPhone is drastically reducing their profits. From the Article: "A logical conclusion is that the iPhone is not good for wireless carriers," says Mike McCormack, an analyst at Nomura Securities. "When we look at the direct and indirect economics that Apple has managed to extract from the carriers, the carrier-level value destruction is quite evident."
So one money sucking leech has attached itself to another money sucking leech?

Slashdot Top Deals

Remember to say hello to your bank teller.

Working...