Powercntrl - Slashdot User

MPAA Bans Google Glass In Theaters 357

Posted by Soulskill on Friday October 31, 2014 @11:35AM from the preemptive-piracy-panic dept.

An anonymous reader writes: The Motion Picture Association of America, along with the National Association of Theater Owners, have banned Google Glass and similar devices from being in movie theaters. They said, "As part of our continued efforts to ensure movies are not recorded in theaters, however, we maintain a zero-tolerance policy toward using any recording device while movies are being shown. As has been our long-standing policy, all phones must be silenced and other recording devices, including wearable devices, must be turned off and put away at show time. Individuals who fail or refuse to put the recording devices away may be asked to leave." This is a change from the MPAA's stance earlier this year that Glass was "no threat" in terms of copyright infringement. A spokesman said the ban is geared toward combating more sophisticated wearables in the future.

YouTube Considering an Ad-Free, Subscription-Based Version 225

Posted by samzenpus on Wednesday October 29, 2014 @02:39PM from the premium-pay dept.

Walking The Walk writes YouTube is looking at creating a paid-subscription model that would allow users to skip the ads on their videos. (A more condensed summary from CBC.) No firm date has been announced, and it sounds like tentative steps right now, but YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki did mention that ad-enabled music videos would still be offered.

PETA Is Not Happy That Google Used a Camel To Get a Desert "StreetView" 367

Posted by samzenpus on Monday October 13, 2014 @10:34AM from the the-camera-that-broke-the-camels-back dept.

First time accepted submitter flopwich writes Google used a camel-mounted camera to get a 'street view' of a stretch of desert in the United Arab Emirates. PETA's director Ingrid E. Newkirk is upset about it, saying they should have used jeeps. "These days, jeeps are in common use in the desert, as are light planes and even dune buggies, and satellite images could also easily have been taken instead," she said. "(Google) should leave camels out of its activites altogether."

3D-Printed Car Takes Its First Test Drive 132

Posted by samzenpus on Sunday September 14, 2014 @05:38PM from the print-and-drive dept.

An anonymous reader points out this advancement in 3D printing. This week, at the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) in Chicago, Arizona-based automobile manufacturer Local Motors stole the show. Over the six day span of the IMTS, the company managed to 3D print and assemble an entire automobile, called the "Strati," live in front of spectators. Although the Strati is not the first ever car to be 3D printed, the advancements made by Local Motors with help from Cincinnati Inc, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, have produced a vehicle in days rather than months.

Comment Re:So what exactly is the market here. (Score 1) 730

by Powercntrl on Tuesday September 09, 2014 @10:17PM (#47868223) Attached to: Apple Announces Smartwatch, Bigger iPhones, Mobile Payments

People keep mentioning the Nomad.

They're quoting CmdrTaco, who used those exact words to describe the original iPod upon it's announcement. Damn kids these days....

You have to remember, Apple eventually decided to release iPods with support for Windows. Will they release a "Watch" that works with Android? Probably not.

Comment Re:Just buy a CRT (Score 1) 167

by Powercntrl on Wednesday August 27, 2014 @11:57PM (#47771861) Attached to: Old Doesn't Have To Mean Ugly: Squeezing Better Graphics From Classic Consoles

Seriously, just buy a good CRT. Stop fooling around with all this line doubler crap

This.

Fancy upscalers and scaling filters can make retro games look (debatably) better on modern displays and maybe for some people that is good enough. But it's hard to beat a Craigslist CRT for an authentic classic gaming experience. Thankfully, there's still plenty of 'em that haven't been dropped off roofs, used for target practice or shipped to the third world for "recycling".

Eventually when the cheap used CRT supply dries up, with luck we'll all have cheap 4k OLED displays and CRT emulation won't look like such a steaming pile of dog shit.

Numerous Methane Leaks Found On Atlantic Sea Floor 273

Posted by samzenpus on Monday August 25, 2014 @02:08PM from the bubbling-up dept.

sciencehabit writes Researchers have discovered 570 plumes of methane percolating up from the sea floor off the eastern coast of the United States, a surprisingly high number of seeps in a relatively quiescent part of the ocean. The seeps suggest that methane's contribution to climate change has been underestimated in some models. And because most of the seeps lie at depths where small changes in temperature could be releasing the methane, it is possible that climate change itself could be playing a role in turning some of them on.

Ask Slashdot: Where Can I Find Resources On Programming For Palm OS 5? 170

Posted by Unknown Lamer on Monday July 28, 2014 @10:03PM from the civilized-pda-for-a-civilized-business-climate dept.

First time accepted submitter baka_toroi (1194359) writes I got a Tungsten E2 from a friend and I wanted to give it some life by programming for it a little bit. The main problem I'm bumping up against is that HP thought it would be awesome to just shut down every single thing related to Palm OS development. After Googling a lot I found out CodeWarrior was the de facto IDE for Palm OS development... but I was soon disappointed as I learned that Palm moved from the 68K architecture to ARM, and of course, CodeWarrior was just focused on Palm OS 4 development.

Now, I realize Palm OS 4 software can be run on Palm OS 5, but I'm looking to use some of the 'newer' APIs. Also, I have the Wi-fi add-on card so I wanted to create something that uses it. I thought what I needed was PODS (Palm OS Development Suite) but not only I can't find it anywhere but also it seems it was deprecated during Palm OS's lifetime. It really doesn't help the fact that I'm a beginner, but I really want to give this platform some life. Any general tip, book, working link or even anecdotes related to all this will be greatly appreciated.

Privacy Lawsuit Against Google Rests On Battery Drain Claims 175

Posted by Soulskill on Wednesday July 23, 2014 @05:15AM from the discovery-will-be-powered-by-bing dept.

Jason Koebler writes: According to plaintiffs in a class-action lawsuit against Google, personal information about you and your browsing, email, and app-using habits that is regularly sent between apps on you Android phone is harming your battery life. As odd as it sounds, this minor yet demonstrable harm is what will allow their lawsuit to go forward. A federal judge ruled that the claim "requires a heavily and inherently fact-bound inquiry." That means there's a good chance we're about to get a look into the ins and outs of Google's advertising backbone: what information is shared with whom, and when.

Comment Re:Isn't this Apple's entire shtick ? (Score 1) 291

by Powercntrl on Monday July 21, 2014 @04:58PM (#47503515) Attached to: Why My LG Optimus Cellphone Is Worse Than It's Supposed To Be

I mean say what you want about their current products, but their entire deal has been putting software on devices that for the vast bulk of users doesn't suck.

His problem is that he is on T-Mobile.

On AT&T, Verizon or Sprint, he could've just signed a contract and gotten an iPhone 5C for free* (so-called) during various promotions. Thanks to T-Mobile's spin campaign of "We eliminated contracts because the public is too stupid to realize a finance agreement is still a contract", purchasing a phone from them means financing or coughing up the full cost of the phone. Hence, you have the current situation where T-Mobile's service is only cost competitive against the other big 3 carriers if you buy a cheap phone or happen to already own a phone that is compatible with their network.

Texas Town Turns To Treated Sewage For Drinking Water 242

Posted by timothy on Saturday July 12, 2014 @02:29PM from the says-something-about-the-west-texas-average dept.

Scientific American reports that Wichita Falls, Texas has taken an unusual step, precipitated by the years-long drought that Texas has faced: it's using treated sewage for drinking water. From the article: To launch what it calls its "Direct Potable Reuse Project," the city pipes water 12 miles from its wastewater treatment plant to this treatment facility where it goes through microfiltration. A pump pulls water through a module filled with fibers that removes most of the impurities. Then it is forced through a semi-permeable membrane that can remove dissolved salts and other contaminants. The process, called reverse osmosis, is used by the U.S. military, in ships and in the manufacture of silicon chips. The water then gets blended with lake water before going through the regular water treatment system. ... At 60 cents per 1,000 gallons, it's far cheaper than any other source of water, [Wichita Falls' public works director Russell] Schreiber said. ... He said there have been few complaints so far. A glass of the finished product, sampled at a downtown restaurant, tasted about average for West Texas.

Train Derailment Dumps Two 737 Fuselages Into Clark Fork River 187

Posted by timothy on Friday July 04, 2014 @07:56PM from the fell-off-the-truck dept.

McGruber (1417641) writes "Boeing builds its 737 airplane fuselages in a Wichita, Kansas factory. The fuselages are then shipped on top of railroad flatcars (as shown in this photograph) to Boeing's Renton, Washington plant, where assembly is completed. Unfortunately, a train carrying two fuselages to Renton derailed approximately 18 miles east of Superior, Montana. The 737s slid down a steep embankment and ended up in the Clark Fork River. That'll buff right out."

Researchers Create Walking, Muscle-Powered Biobots 33

Posted by samzenpus on Friday July 04, 2014 @12:29AM from the franken-bot dept.

Zothecula writes If you're going to deploy robots in biological settings – for example, inside the body – it makes a lot of sense to build those robots out of actual biological body parts. Muscle, for example, is a very effective, biodegradable replacement for an electric actuator that can run in a nutrient-rich fluid without the need for any other power source. Bio-robotics experts in Illinois have demonstrated a bio-bot built from 3-D printed hydrogel and spinal muscle tissue that can "walk" in response to an electrical signal. Their next step will be trying to incorporate neurons that can get the bot walking in different directions when faced with different stimuli.

'Vampire' Squirrel Has World's Fluffiest Tail 54

Posted by Unknown Lamer on Tuesday July 01, 2014 @03:04AM from the in-the-dead-of-night-squirrel-bites dept.

sciencehabit (1205606) writes Few scientists have ever seen the rare tufted ground squirrel (Rheithrosciurus macrotis), which hides in the hilly forests of Borneo, but it is an odd beast. It's twice the size of most tree squirrels, and it reputedly has a taste for blood. Now, motion-controlled cameras have revealed another curious fact. The 35-centimeter-long rodent has the bushiest tail of any mammal compared with its body size.

Comment Some newer coins intend to stay ASIC resistant (Score 2) 281

by Powercntrl on Monday June 16, 2014 @01:24AM (#47243841) Attached to: Bitcoin Security Endangered By Powerful Mining Pool

While the threat of a 51% attack may be blown out of proportion (a pool sells their cut of the coins that are mined and it is in their best interest that the coin remain as valuable as possible - attacking a coin would be counterproductive), some altcoin developers have stated that they will change their coin's proof-of-work algorithm if ASICs are developed for it. Vertcoin and Execoin's developers have both stated they'll do whatever it takes to keep ASICs out.

Most of the speculation that fuels the pump-and-dump world of altcoins is based on the belief that Bitcoin may not end up being the cryptocoin that average people use to buy pizza, pay their bills, etc.

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