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Submission + - Family Guy proves too un-PC for Microsoft (thefirstpost.co.uk) 1

Barence writes: Two weeks after announcing its sponsorship of a special episode of Fox's edgy animated sitcom Family Guy, the computer giant has pulled out, saying the programme is "not a fit with the Windows brand". Quite why Microsoft thought Family Guy would complement their brand is anyone's guess — the Family Guy special that was to be sponsored by Microsoft was recorded on October 16 and reportedly features jokes about deaf people, the Holocaust, feminine hygiene and incest. Fox plans to air the show on November 8, as scheduled, partnered with a new, as-yet undisclosed, "integrated" sponsor.
Internet Explorer

Submission + - What the CIA really thinks of Internet Explorer 3

Mike writes: "Ever wonder what the CIA really thinks of Microsoft's Internet Explorer? How about just viewing the source of some of their javascript programs. When defining variables to define the browser the client uses, the CIA is very specific. Just look at the javascript source for the program found here: https://www.cia.gov/kids-page/games/break-the-code/code-1.html and you will see the CIA is telling the kiddies of the world that Microsoft's Internet Explorer is: bugRiddenCrashPronePieceOfJunk.

Here is the sample code:
var bugRiddenCrashPronePieceOfJunk=(navigator.userAgent.indexOf('MSIE 5')!=-1&&navigator.userAgent.indexOf('Mac')!=-1)

Nice. At the very least, you see how the CIA views the browser."
Security

Submission + - Former MS (now FF)Security Honcho: MS Hides Holes (mozilla.com) 1

theranjan writes: "When Jeff Jones, a Security Strategy Director at Microsoft, decided to compare Internet Explorer security vulnerabilities with those of Mozilla Firefox, and decided to publish his results showing that Internet Explorer was more secure, he perhaps forgot that the Head Security Strategist of Mozilla, Window Snyder, was a former MS employee, in fact the security lead for the Service pack of Windows XP and Server. In a rebuttal of the study, Window Snyder said that the number of vulnerabilities publicly acknowledged was just a "small subset" of all vulnerabilities fixed internally. The vulnerabilities found internally are fixed in service packs and major updates without public knowledge. This is probably one of the first times that we have confirmation from one of Microsoft's former workers that this practice is routinely followed in Microsoft. This also confirms that the studies performed or referenced by Microsoft touting itself as the safest Operating system, comparing the vulnerabilities between OSes, needs to be taken with bucketfuls of salt. Finally, Window speaks out against the practice of counting bugs,stating plainly that "If we as an industry would just acknowledge that counting bugs is useless then vendors could feel safe talking about what they are doing to protect users" and "Were not building fixes for our PR team, were building them for our users. Go ahead and count.""
Government

Submission + - Kevin Rudd wins Australian Election (abc.net.au)

gunny01 writes: "Kevin Rudd, the head of the Australian Labor Party, has defeated the Liberal Party incumbent John Howard in Saturday's federal election, with a 5.8% swing. This ends Howard's eleven year term in office, and it also appears at this stage that he has lost his seat. If this turns out to be correct, Peter Costello will be the Opposition leader in the new government.

Rudd, among other things, has promised to scrap the current governments unpopular industrial relations reforms and give Australians access to access to 100Mbs broadband and free laptops to every senior school student."

The Internet

Submission + - Discovery makes broadband up to 100 times faster

xaviergisz writes: "Today's Sydney Morning Herald has a story about a nifty algorithm which will speed up ADSL connections. the University of Melbourne research fellow Dr John Papandriopoulos has developed an algorithm to reduce the electromagnetic interference that slows down ADSL connections. Most ADSL services around the world are effectively limited to speeds between 1 to 20Mbps, but if Dr Papandriopoulos's technology is successfully commercialised that speed ceiling would be closer to 100Mbps. Cross-talk in current day DSL networks effectively produces noise onto other lines, and this noise reduces the speed of your connection. Dr Papandriopoulos said his algorithm served to minimise that interference and thus maximise the line speed. Dr Papandriopoulos, whose efforts also earned him the University of Melbourne's Chancellor's Prize for Excellence, said he would leave for the US in about two weeks. He has already applied for two patents relating to his discovery."

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