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Television

Submission + - Comcast disables Tivo Serial Port channel changing (google.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Across New England, updates have apparently been rolled out to Comcast's Motorola cable boxes that disable the serial port so that Tivo can no longer change channels. My dual-tuner Tivo can still access non-digital channels, but I have to use the cable remote to access HBO and the like. If you're a Comcast user with a Tivo, please let Comcast know you're displeased with this behavior — although they may be working with Motorola to back-out the change. New cable boxes with functioning serial ports will have the serial port disabled after automatically downloading this update. Asking tech support for a "Factory Default Reset" might help for some boxes. Comcast claims to have been unaware of the update and blames Motorola for pushing it out — begging the question of why a service provider would allow a hardware vendor to make changes to their customers' devices without so much as a heads-up?
Education

Submission + - Why are blue feathers blue? [pics] (scienceblogs.com)

Submitted by
grrlscientist
grrlscientist writes: "How birds grow colored plumages, especially violet, blue and white.

From the story: Because blue light have very short wavelengths, it is reflected more easily than other colors of light with longer wavelengths. This was first understood in 1869, when scientist John Tyndall noted that miniscule particles in earth's atmosphere preferentially scattered blue light resulting in the familiar "sky blue" of a clear summer day. Shortly afterward, Rayleigh demonstrated that Tyndall's "fine particles" are actually gas molecules in Earth's atmosphere, specifically, nitrogen and oxygen. Tyndall's contribution is widely recognized by describing this phenomenon as "Tyndall scattering" and referring to structural blue colors as "Tyndall Blues.""
The Internet

Submission + - How to Take Down the Power Grid

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Ira Winkler, a security expert, writes about how hacking into the control systems set up by utility companies is frighteningly easy on the recently launched Website Internet Evolution. In his article he describes how he broke into a power company's internal network through a vulnerability on its Website, and proceeded to gain access to everything on its internal network, from the Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition system that controls the grid, to the personnel records of the CIO and CEO. Winkler's suggested solution to the problem is legislation from Congress forcing power companies to enforce more rigid security. However, he says he's not holding his breath for such laws to be passed. "Congress is impotent, as the power grid remains incredibly vulnerable, and people need to be outraged," he says. Is Winkler really right about how laughably easy it is to hack to grid? Should we be worried?
Portables (Apple)

Puncturing the "PCs Are Cheaper Than Macs" Myth 823

Posted by kdawson from the used-to-be-true dept.
jcatcw writes "The recently converted Scot Finnie went notebook shopping. At the high end of the notebook spectrum, in order to get comparable power and features, a Dell machine comes in $650 over the Apple, and it was clunkier and weighed more. Sony couldn't beat the Apple either. Midrange and low-end machines, though, turn out to be pretty comparable, with more choices in the PC arena but some good values if you happen to want what Apple has decided you need. So, if you're talking name-brand hardware, it's just no longer the case that PCs are cheaper than Macs."

Microsoft Pushing Municipal Wi-Fi 67

Posted by Zonk from the something-in-the-air dept.
PreacherTom writes "Microsoft is moving to be the latest player to bring its formidable weight to bear in the growing Wi-Fi market. The software giant's recent deal to provide content and services through partnership with municipal Wi-Fi operator MetroFi in Portland, Ore., will intensify the battle between Google, Yahoo!, and MSN for online traffic. Why the focus? Content providers who capture the growing municipal Wi-Fi market will be in a better position to enjoy higher traffic to their sites and greater customer loyalty — and, as a result, grab a greater share of the $16 billion of expected online advertising dollars this year, according to consultancy eMarketer. 'It's a battle for eyeballs,' says Matt Rosoff, an analyst with the consultancy firm 'Directions on Microsoft'."

What Not To Do With Your Data 319

Posted by samzenpus from the do-not-put-in-mouth dept.
Tiny Tim writes "Stupidity strikes! A data recovery company has revealed the dumbest data disasters it's confronted this year — including rotting bananas, smelly socks and a university professor's foolhardy application of WD-40."

Immaturity Level Rising in Adults 862

Posted by ScuttleMonkey from the is-not-are-too dept.
Ant writes to tell us that a Discovery News article is exploring the old adage, "like a kid at heart", which may be closer to the truth than we would like to admit. New research is showing that grown-ups are more immature than ever. From the article: "Specifically, it seems a growing number of people are retaining the behaviors and attitudes associated with youth. As a consequence, many older people simply never achieve mental adulthood, according to a leading expert on evolutionary psychiatry."

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