Alain Williams - Slashdot User

Submission + - Work begins on hardware to aid Edsac replica recreation (bbc.co.uk)

Submitted by

Alain Williams

on Wednesday January 09, 2013 @06:25AM

Alain Williams writes: "Plans to rebuild the pioneering Edsac computer are a step closer to completion as parts that will form its metal chassis start to be manufactured.

Edsac — Electronic Delay Storage Automatic Calculator — ran its first program in 1949 and was created to help scientists at Cambridge University."

Submission + - Man makes Tardis that looks bigger inside (bbc.co.uk)

Submitted by

Alain Williams

on Monday December 24, 2012 @03:17PM

Alain Williams writes: "A US-based Dr Who fan has built a model of the Tardis designed to look bigger on its inside than its outside. He used blender to create the inside that can be seen when viewed with a smartphone."

Submission + - Proposal for new HTTP code for censorship (guardian.co.uk)

Submitted by

Alain Williams

on Sunday June 24, 2012 @06:24AM

Alain Williams writes: "Some ISPs return a code of 403 Forbidden when they have been ordered by court to prevent their customers visiting a URL. Tim Bray proposes 451, an appropriate reference to the dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. This could be fun: censors often don't like being exposed for what they really are!"

Submission + - Apple drops 'thermonuclear' patent bombshell (theregister.co.uk)

Submitted by

Alain Williams

on Sunday April 01, 2012 @07:33AM

Alain Williams writes: "Apple has launched a new patent assault on its competitors, first granted to the American Mathematical Society in October 1912, subsequently renewed, then acquired by Apple at an unknown date. The first entry among the patent's Claims describes "A quadrilateral having all four interior angles of 90, opposite sides that are parallel, and congruent diagonals that bisect each other.""

Submission + - Actress sues Amazon over her age on its IMDb site (bbc.co.uk)

Submitted by

Alain Williams

on Wednesday October 19, 2011 @04:11AM

Alain Williams writes: "An actress has sued Amazon.com for more than $1m (£639,000) after her age was posted on its Internet Movie Database. She says revealing her age on the site will lose her acting opportunities. So is her career dependent on lies ?"

Submission + - Kodaks' patent spat threatens photo web sites (bbc.co.uk)

Submitted by

Alain Williams

on Wednesday December 22, 2010 @05:02AM

Alain Williams writes: "The fallout from a patent dispute between Kodak and web photo site Shutterfly could embroil many online image sites, says patent experts.

Kodak claimed it owns patents regarding the display of online images that is being infringed by Shutterfly."

Submission + - EveryDNS.net forces Wikileaks offline (bbc.co.uk) 1

Submitted by

Alain Williams

on Friday December 03, 2010 @05:21AM

Alain Williams writes: "EveryDNS claims that the DDOS affecting Wikileaks "have ... threaten[ed] the stability of the EveryDNS.net infrastructure", so they have stopped Wikileaks DNS. How true was this DDOS affecting them, or were they leaned on ? This stinks."

Submission + - UAE 'moves to suspend some Blackberry services' (bbc.co.uk)

Submitted by

Alain Williams

on Sunday August 01, 2010 @08:19AM

Alain Williams writes: "The move comes amid UAE concerns that data from the devices is immediately exported offshore and managed by a foreign organisation.
The UAE's telecoms regulator, TRA, said last week the devices could therefore pose a threat to national security.
It follows an alleged attempt last year by the state-run telecoms company to install spyware on Blackberry handsets."

Submission + - Slashdot poll suggestion

Submitted by Alain Williams on Tuesday March 09, 2010 @06:54AM

Alain Williams writes: ''Job control: largest job number''

When you hit Ctrl-z in an app and type ''jobs'' you will get a list of job numbers in square brackes, eg ''[2]'', what is the largest number that you have seen ?
(I currently have 20 on one of my ssh sessions).
Options

* 2
* 5
* 10
* 20
* 20+
* I don't control my jobs

Submission + - TomTom joins Open Invention Network (prweb.com)

Submitted by

Alain Williams

on Monday March 23, 2009 @01:48PM

Alain Williams writes: "TomTom has joined the club that help to protect Open Source from the nuisance of patents. This raises the stakes. How will M$ reply ?"

Submission + - How many network interfaces (phcomp.co.uk)

Submitted by

Alain Williams

on Friday January 16, 2009 @08:57AM

Alain Williams writes: "tcpdump -D will tell you how many network interfaces you have on your machine. What is the number ? Choices:

3

4

5-7

8-10

11+

Mine is 12."

Submission + - Why Apple Won't Allow Adobe Flash on iPhone (wikileaks.org.uk)

Submitted by

Alain Williams

on Wednesday November 19, 2008 @09:45AM

Alain Williams writes: "Basically because they want to continue to control everything that is run on an iphone — ensure that people have to buy stuff at their itunes store."

Submission + - MS Virus takes out 3 London hospitals (bbc.co.uk)

Submitted by

Alain Williams

on Tuesday November 18, 2008 @03:07PM

Alain Williams writes: "3 London hospitals have had to shut their IT systems for 24 hours while they are disinfected from a MS Virus. When will these people ever learn ?"

Submission + - UKUUG continues court action on OOXML

Submitted by

Alain Williams

on Thursday June 19, 2008 @09:06AM

Alain Williams writes: "UKUUG is continuing with its legal challance of BSI's action in approving OOXML. The next step should a hearing in front of a judge. They need funding to help with the action."

Submission + - Get scared RIAA (theregister.co.uk)

Submitted by

Alain Williams

on Wednesday October 10, 2007 @09:55AM

Alain Williams writes: "More bands are considering putting music up for free/cheap download. Looks as if the meme is catching on. How long before the RIAA is down to it's last musician ?"

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