Comment Re:We can be certain of one thing (Score 2) 152
Yep, we can definitely be certain of one thing. We just don't know what that one thing actually is...
Comment Re:Yeah right (Score 1) 149
The ruling is aimed at the NZ police. The US government will honour the ruling for as long as nobody is offering them access to the encryption keys.
Comment Re:He would be an idiot to give up the keys (Score 1) 149
It pretty much just means that if the NZ police give the encryption keys to the FBI, the people who handed over the keys can be prosecuted while the FBI happily uses DotCom's formerly-encrypted data against him.
Of course, who's going to actually arrest the people who provide the encryption keys?
Comment Re:Why? (Score 1) 2219
I'm much the same (although much lighter on bothering to read the comments). And yes, the beta is a step backwards for this. And I'm likely to visit a bit less often if the beta becomes default, just because the information density is so much less.
It's nice to be able to skim the headlines easily, especially when so many of the stories are either dated or uninteresting. And most of the stories will be uninteresting to a large proportion of the users, just because different stories will be uninteresting to different people. Hence we need to be able to skim easily. Sure, make sure there's enough information presented in as easy to understand a format as possible, but we don't want or need yet another generic eye-candy-heavy news site.
Submission + - UK police will have backdoor access to health records
kc123 writes: David Davis MP, a former shadow home secretary has has told the Guardian that police would be able to access the new central NHS database without a warrant as critics warn of catastrophic breach of trust. The database that will store all of England's health records has a series of "backdoors" that will allow police and government bodies to access people's medical data. In the past police would need to track down the GP who held a suspect's records and go to court for a disclosure order. Now, they would be able to simply approach the new arms-length NHS information centre, which will hold the records. The idea that police will be able to request information from a central database without a warrant totally undermines a long-held belief in the confidentiality of the doctor-patient relationship.
Submission + - A Modest Proposal, re: Beta vs. Classic 19
unitron writes: Dice wants to make money off of what they paid for--the Slashdot name--, or rather they want to make more money off of it than they are making now, and they think the best way to do that is to turn it into SlashingtonPost.
They should take this site and give it a new name. Or get Malda to let them use "Chips & Dips".
Leave everything else intact, archives, user ID database, everything except the name.
Then use the Beta code and start a new site and give it the slashdot.org name, and they can have what they want without the embarrassment of having the current userbase escape from the basement or the attic and offend the sensibilities of the yuppies or hipsters or metrosexuals or whoever it is that they really want for an "audience".
They should take this site and give it a new name. Or get Malda to let them use "Chips & Dips".
Leave everything else intact, archives, user ID database, everything except the name.
Then use the Beta code and start a new site and give it the slashdot.org name, and they can have what they want without the embarrassment of having the current userbase escape from the basement or the attic and offend the sensibilities of the yuppies or hipsters or metrosexuals or whoever it is that they really want for an "audience".
Comment Just disable redirects. (Score 1) 457
You can opt out of beta if you turn off redirection in your browser. I've had redirects disabled for months, and I didn't even realise there was a new site in the works until I had half the articles in my feed showing as complaints about beta.
Comment Summary does not match title (Score 1) 1
The title has the correct version number (3.13). The summary, not so much.
Comment Re:Thanks Government (Score 2) 366
Anymore? When did the majority of people actually bother to read the articles before posting comments?
Comment Re:Seems a bit over-hyped (Score 1) 320
Whereas my laptop, with an intel chipset and an uptime of 7 days, is into about 3 gig of swap.
At least I now know why. ;-)
Submission + - NZ rules out software patents in patent overhaul (computerworld.co.nz)
Korgan writes: In what must be a first in the face of ACTA and US trade negotiations pressure, a Parliamentary select committee has released a draft bill that explicitly declares that software will no longer be patentable in New Zealand. FTA: Open source software champions have been influential in excluding software from the scope of patents in the new Patents Bill. Clause 15 of the draft Bill, as reported back from the Commerce Select Committee, lists a number of classes of invention which should not be patentable and includes the sub-clause oea computer program is not a patentable invention.
First Anti-Cancer Nanoparticle Trial On Humans a Success 260
An anonymous reader writes "Nanoparticles have been able to disable cancerous cells in living human bodies for the first time. The results are perfect so far, killing tumors with no side effects whatsoever. Mark Davis, project leader at CalTech, says that 'it sneaks in, evades the immune system, delivers the siRNA, and the disassembled components exit out.' Truly amazing."
High Fructose Corn Syrup Causes Bigger Weight Gain In Rats 542
krou writes "In an experiment conducted by a Princeton University team, 'Rats with access to high-fructose corn syrup gained significantly more weight than those with access to table sugar, even when their overall caloric intake was the same.' Long-term consumption also 'led to abnormal increases in body fat, especially in the abdomen, and a rise in circulating blood fats called triglycerides.' Psychology professor Bart Hoebel commented that 'When rats are drinking high-fructose corn syrup at levels well below those in soda pop, they're becoming obese — every single one, across the board. Even when rats are fed a high-fat diet, you don't see this; they don't all gain extra weight.'"
Comment Re:Really? (Score 1) 205
If it does, then it's clearly not for the reason stated - if someone has physical or root access to the bank's database server then you're screwed whether you use online banking or now.
Comment And in other news... (Score 1) 4
Tech support workers worry that mold may outsmart man.
