PhilipMckrack - Slashdot User

Submission + - Net Neutrality dismissed by FTC (for now)

Submitted by Altery on Thursday June 28, 2007 @10:16AM

Altery writes: The FTC has issued a report on broadband competition in which the Commission argues that there is no evidence that Net Neutrality laws are needed. Chairman Deborah Platt Majoras said that legislators should "proceed with caution" in addressing the issue, adding that there are more questions than answers right now about what will and won't harm consumers. Still, the report made it clear that the FTC is on the lookout for abuse, but generally the report is a big win for the telecoms.

Submission + - Controversial security paper nixed from Black Hat (networkworld.com)

Submitted by

coondoggie

on Thursday June 28, 2007 @10:15AM

coondoggie writes: "A presentation scheduled for Black Hat USA 2007 that promised to undermine chip-based desktop and laptop security has been suddenly withdrawn without explanation. The briefing, "TPMkit: Breaking the Legend of [Trusted Computing Group's Trusted Platform Module] and Vista (BitLocker)," promised to show how computer security based on trusted platform module (TPM) hardware could be circumvented. "We will be demonstrating how to break TPM," Nitin and Vipin Kumar said in their abstract for their talk that was posted on the Black Hat Web site but was removed overnight Monday. http://www.networkworld.com/news/2007/062707-black -hat.html"

Submission + - Google Overhauls Google Docs

Submitted by

Anonymous Coward

on Thursday June 28, 2007 @10:04AM

Anonymous Coward writes: "In addition to rolling out Google Docs for Linux, Google recently overhauled the way Google Docs and Spreadsheets work. Blog Kiriath-Arba has a detailed and positive review of the changes with some screenshots:

The Google Docs and Spreadsheets overhaul is a major success. It looks far more like an application, but Google has stayed true to their principles of simplicity and ease-of-use. The overhaul reduces the complexity of the interface while improving the functionality.

I do not believe that Google will ever replace MS Word... for a lot of the work that is currently being done using MS Word or Excel (or even OpenOffie Writer or Calc) Google Docs and Spreadsheets is not merely a free replacement, but an actual improvement.
"

Submission + - Ammonia Could Cut Data-Center Cooling Costs By 50%

Submitted by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 28, 2007 @08:48AM

An anonymous reader writes: In an idea drawn from space technology, Microway CTO Stephen Fried claims he's come up with a way to cut the amount of energy required to cool data centers by 50 percent. Fried, who has a background in chemical engineering, says he has proof-of-concept for his system, which is based on ammonia. The chemical is already commmonly used in mobile coolings systems for RVs and for the International Space Station. (Ammonia cooling is particularly effective in zero gravity.) Fried won't release more details about adapting the technology for data centers, because he's hoping in to receive a patent, but he claims ammonia won't damage computer and data center components. There is one small downside: "It just smells when it leaks," he said.

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