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Submission + - Skype crippled by "supernode" failure (zdnet.co.uk) 1

Submitted by zebadee
zebadee writes: Skype's communications network is suffering downtime due to failures in its "supernodes", which sometimes help Skype applications find and establish lines of communication with other computers and phones, Skype said in a blog post this evening.

Skype's communications networks relies on "millions of individual connections between computers and phones to keep things up and running", but when a Skype application has trouble connecting to another computer or phone it will turn to a supernode to find the addressing details of the desired connection.

"Unfortunately, today many of [the supernodes] were taken offline by a problem affecting some versions of Skype. As Skype relies on being able to maintain contact with supernodes, it may appear offline for some of you," Skype wrote in the blog post.

Skype is working to fix the problem by creating what it terms "mega-supernodes" to help bring the communications network back online, Skype wrote.

No mention on which versions are effected or whether it is country specific but my version 5.0.0.152 here in New Zealand is down.

Comment Re:Oh... (Score 5, Informative) 101

by zebadee (#33708184) Attached to: New Zealand Scientists Make Atom-Trapping Breakthrough
As another Otago researcher I attended a presentation by the lead researcher a couple of weeks ago. Although the science was cool his presentation style really sold the show and it’s a shame you can’t see him in action. What made me laugh was that he seemed most proud that he had proved his elementary school teacher was wrong. A fact that is also repeated in the article linked above.

Comment Best buy response (the site is getting slow) (Score 5, Informative) 248

by zebadee (#31604544) Attached to: Best Buy Offers Bogus "3D Sync" Service
Best Buy Responds To “3D Glasses Syncing Service”

(March 23, 2010) We asked Best Buy’s media relations department last week why Best Buy’s Geek Squad offers a fictional 3D glasses syncing service? (link to our original story). Below is the corporate response.

“I wanted to address any lingering confusion about the characterization of services support in the Best Buy Samsung 3DTV offer that was advertised in yesterday’s (March 21) insert. We by no means intended to confuse our customers or offer fraudulent services. The offer is new to our stores, and our own employees were trained on it just this past week.

Let me clarify the services that are included with this offer. Geek Squad will:

1. Set up and connect your TV + up to 5 components (Blu Ray, Cable Box, Satellite Box, etc )

2. Add your internet enabled Blu ray/Gaming Console or internet enabled TV to your existing wireless network so you can access online content such as Netflix and Pandora.

3. Make sure your 3D glasses work – some solutions we sell need TV settings adjusted so that 3D glasses are enabled – there are both 3D and non 3D settings for viewing

4. Review and teach you how to use all of your new gear.

We have some customers who aren’t quite sure how the 3D glasses work, or that the glasses automatically sync with their new 3D TVs. So we wanted to convey that they can depend on Geek Squad to answer their questions during installation and set-up. There is no additional charge for this – and the Geek Squad 3D installation and networking services are included in the total price of this offer.

You know we’re as enthusiastic about 3D as you are, and equally committed to help educate consumers about how to get the most from this home entertainment experience.”

Comment Re:Troubleshooting skills. (Score 1) 829

by zebadee (#29645007) Attached to: Stargate Universe

I liked the show... but they they still need some thinking writers. Why not use a "Keno" to close the hatch?!

They mentioned in the show there was a "safety mechanism" which they suggested required a person to be in the ship/room to close the door.
Security

Submission + - Hackers 'destroy' flight sim site (bbc.co.uk)

Submitted by
zebadee
zebadee writes: "The BBC reports that the flight simulator site Avsim has been "destroyed" by malicious hackers. The site, which launched in 1996, covered all aspects of flight simulation, although its main focus was on Microsoft's Flight Simulator. The attack took down the site's two servers and the owners had not established an external backup system. The site's founder, Tom Allensworth, said that the site would be down for the foreseeable future and was unsure if would ever go back up. "Some have asked whether or not we had back ups. Yes, we dutifully backed up our servers every day. Unfortunately, we backed up the servers between our two servers. "The hacker took out both servers, destroying our ability to use one or the other back up to remedy the situation."

I wonder why such a site would be targeted, are we already at the stage where any site is fair game for destruction if the owners aren't security conscious enough? "

Comment Finning the consumer? (Score 1) 280

by zebadee (#27774221) Attached to: Intel Faces $1.3B Fine In Europe
I understand Intel can't go unpunished but the consumers are going to be the ones ultimately paying these fines. I guess it will help AMD as their performance:price ratio is already good. An increase in Intel chip price can only increase this in AMD's favor. I just wish AMD would get some of the fine as compensation, so that they can use it to invest in increasing their performance to match the new icore7 chips.
Sci-Fi

Submission + - Invisibility cloak edges closer

Submitted by
zebadee
zebadee writes: "Scientists have rendered objects invisible to near-infrared light. Unlike previous such "cloaks", the new work does not employ metals, which introduce losses of light and result in imperfect cloaking. Because the approach can be scaled down further in size, researchers say this is a major step towards a cloak that would work for visible light. By manipulating the optical density of an object, you can transform the light path from a straight line to to any path you want. The new material does this via a series of minuscule holes — which are strategically "drilled" into a sheet of silicon. "In some areas we drill lots of very densely packed holes, and in others they are much sparser. Where the holes are more dense, there is more air than silicon, so the optical density of the object is reduced," Professor Zhang explained. "Each hole is much smaller than the wavelength of the light. So optical light doesn't see a hole — it just sees a sort of air-silicon mixture. So as far as the light is concerned, we have adjusted the density of the object.""
Spam

Submission + - Spam 'produces 17m tons of CO2' (bbc.co.uk)

Submitted by
zebadee
zebadee writes: "Not only is spam annoying but now it seems it is also pretty bad for the planet. A study into spam has blamed it for the production of more than 33bn kilowatt-hours of energy every year, enough to power more than 2.4m homes. This amounts to emissions of more than 17 million tons of CO2, the research by climate consultants ICF International and anti-virus firm McAfee found. ICF say that spam filtering would reduce unwanted spam by 75%, the equivalent to taking 2.3 million cars off the road. The figures were based on the extra energy use spent dealing with spam. All this comes only a few days after Symantec's bi-annual Internet Security Threat report, which found that spam had increased by 192%, with bot networks responsible for approximately 90% of all spam e-mail."
Emulation (Games)

Submission + - Real racing in the virtual world

Submitted by zebadee
zebadee writes: The BBC has a Story about a company aiming to pit gamers against the professionals. iOpener Media has a patented system that sucks in real-time GPS data from racing events and pumps it out to compatible games consoles and PCs. This means you can race in real-time against the like of Lewis Hamilton, Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen. The company also claims to have an AI that solves the problem of overtaking and crashes.

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