Zelatrix - Slashdot User

Comment Re:let me stop you right there (Score 1) 72

by Zelatrix on Sunday July 08, 2012 @02:28PM (#40583733) Attached to: Book Review: Head First Python

If you're implying that the modern English usage of veteran is nearer to "experienced" then you're right, but the word originally derives from the Latin vetus, meaning "old". So I think OP's point is fair.

Comment Re:Memory? (Score 1) 189

by Zelatrix on Sunday June 03, 2012 @11:17AM (#40201169) Attached to: Geezers Pick Stronger Passwords Than Young'uns

That is a really good idea, and not one I've seen before. I'm stealing it!

Comment Reminds me of Monster Cable vs Blue Jeans Cable (Score 1) 519

by Zelatrix on Saturday July 30, 2011 @06:11PM (#36935530) Attached to: Ask Slashdot: Dealing With the Business Software Alliance?

Although that never went to court. In fact, the action was limited to one letter from each party.

Kurt Denke's response to Monster was legendary, and can be found here.

Notice that he doesn't admit, concede, claim or offer anything at all. Just asks for a proper claim to be stated, and makes a few salient observations.

In your position, I'd get a lawyer like Kurt Denke to write my response to the BSA.

Xbox Live Enforcement — No Swastika Logo 473

Posted by Soulskill on Wednesday November 24, 2010 @04:55AM from the pursuing-the-rare-double-godwin dept.

itwbennett writes "It's one of those questions that really should never come up, but as blogger Peter Smith points out, Stephen Toulouse, the head of Xbox Live enforcement, is used to fielding all sorts of strange questions. Recently, one of those questions was apparently 'Can I use a Swastika as my logo in Call of Duty: Black Ops?' When Toulouse responded with the obvious answer ('No, of course you can't, we'll ban you.') he was met with some pushback by people he refers to as 'contrarians' and 'internet pundits' who decided to educate him on the long and storied history of the swastika as a symbol of good fortune and how just because the Nazis used it, it doesn't make the symbol itself a bad thing. Toulouse covers the topic on his blog in a post titled Context and it's an interesting read if for no other reason than to get a peek inside the day-to-day issues the Xbox Live Enforcement team deals with."

Submission + - Amateur programmer meets software patents (google.com)

Submitted by Roy van Rijn on Wednesday July 07, 2010 @06:28PM

Roy van Rijn writes: A couple of weeks ago, in a spare weekend, I wrote software that could recognise music through listening to the microphone, much like SoundHound and Shazam. After populair demand I was just about to release the code into the open source community when I got an email from Landmark Digital Services LLC. They claim my hobby project is infringing their patents. This took me on a journey to find out more about software patents and the validity of the requests I got from the company.

The 1-Second Linux Boot 156

Posted by timothy on Friday February 26, 2010 @10:53PM from the unexamined-boot-is-not-worth-booting dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Less than one second Linux boot! This video shows an OMAP3530 capturing video data from a camera and rendering it to an LCD display — the video appears on the LCD display in less than a second from reset."

Secret Service Runs At "Six Sixes" Availability 248

Posted by timothy on Friday February 26, 2010 @08:56PM from the only-need-half-as-many dept.

PCM2 writes "ABC News is reporting that the US Secret Service is in dire need of server upgrades. 'Currently, 42 mission-oriented applications run on a 1980s IBM mainframe with a 68 percent performance reliability rating,' says one leaked memo. That finding was the result of an NSA study commissioned by the Secret Service to evaluate the severity of their computer problems. Curiously, upgrades to the Service's computers are being championed by Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, who says he's had 'concern for a while' about the issue."

Modded Xbox Bans Prompt EFF Warning About Terms of Service 254

Posted by Soulskill on Friday December 04, 2009 @01:19AM from the by-reading-this-you-bequeath-me-all-your-possessions dept.

Last month we discussed news that Microsoft had banned hundreds of thousands of Xbox users for using modified consoles. The Electronic Frontier Foundation has now pointed to this round of bans as a prime example of the power given to providers of online services through 'Terms of Service' and other usage agreements. "No matter how much we rely on them to get on with our everyday lives, access to online services — like email, social networking sites, and (wait for it) online gaming — can never be guaranteed. ... he who writes the TOS makes the rules, and when it comes to enforcing them, the service provider often behaves as though it is also the judge, jury and executioner. ... While the mass ban provides a useful illustration of their danger, these terms can be found in nearly all TOS agreements for all kinds of services. There have been virtually no legal challenges to these kinds of arbitrary termination clauses, but we imagine this will be a growth area for lawyers."

Submission + - PCWorld refuse hardware repair due to Linux. 10

Submitted by

Tikka

on Tuesday September 11, 2007 @11:43AM

Tikka writes: "Today I visit PC World (London, UK) because my 5 months old laptop has developed a manufacturing fault, the hinge to the display has started to crack the plastic casing.
Anyone in the know, will know that this is due to the joint inside and this means that ultimately the screen will separate from the keyboard in time.

Repair was refused, because I have Gentoo Linux on my laptop — Replacing the Windows Vista that was pre-installed.

PC World have said that this has void my warranty and there is nothing they will do for me, I spoke to a manager who said that he has been told to refuse any repairs if the operating system has been changed.

I feel this has really gone against my statutory rights and will do everything I can to fight it, I will review comments for your advice."

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