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Submission + - Mauna Loa reaches 400 ppm (noaa.gov)

Submitted by Titus Andronicus
Titus Andronicus writes: Today, NOAA reported that "On May 9, the daily mean concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of Mauna Loa, Hawaii, surpassed 400 parts per million for the first time since measurements began in 1958." For comparison, over the last 800,000 years, CO2 has ranged from roughly 180 ppm to 280 ppm. The last time Earth had 400 ppm was probably more than 3 megayears ago. When will CO2 pass 500 ppm?

Submission + - Transfusions reverse aging and disease, drug isolated. (cell.com)

Submitted by symbolset
symbolset writes: Published today in the journal Cell and reported by WBUR radio in this interview Drs Richard Lee and Amy Wagers have isolated GDF-11 as a negative regulator of age-associated cardiac hypertrophy. Through a type of transfusion called parabiotic or "shared circulation" in mice — one old and sick, the other young and well — they managed to reverse this age-associated heart disease. From there isolated an active agent GDF-11 present in the younger mouse but absent in the older which reverses the condition when administered directly. They are also using the agent to restore other aged/diseased tissues and organs. Human applications are expected within six years.

Since the basis for the treatment is ordinary sharing of blood between an older ill, and younger healthy patient, someone is likely to start offering the transfusion treatment somewhere in the world, soon, to those with the means to find a young and healthy volunteer. It may be time to have the discussion of the consequences of drastically prolonging human life.
Security

Submission + - Security Engineering textbook posted on author's website (cam.ac.uk)

Submitted by Titus Andronicus
Titus Andronicus writes: The (arguably) best single-volume work on computer security, Ross Anderson’s Security Engineering, has been posted on the author's Cambridge website as a bunch of PDF files. The book covers many of the major issues in computer security, such as user psychology and usability, access control, API security, physical security, the economics of security, etc. In light of the recent Pwn2Own results, perhaps the browser makers should read this book.

Submission + - T-Mobile USA to Cease Offering New Contracts? (tmonews.com)

Submitted by Titus Andronicus
Titus Andronicus writes: The T-Mobile news blog TMONews is reporting that T-Mobile USA is considering going contract-free in the near future. Is this the beginning of a new cell phone era in the US? Will the US finally catch up with most of the rest of the world and have a truly competitive mobile communications service industry?

Submission + - LibreOffice 4 Released (documentfoundation.org)

Submitted by Titus Andronicus
Titus Andronicus writes: LibreOffice 4.0.0 has been released. Some of the changes are for developers: an improved API, a new graphics stack, migrating German code comments to English, and moving from Apache 2.0 to LGPLv3 & MPLv2. Some user-facing changes are: better interoperability with other software, some functional & UI improvements, and some performance gains.
Microsoft

Submission + - Open Source exFAT Reaches 1.0 Status (readwrite.com)

Submitted by Titus Andronicus
Titus Andronicus writes: Slashdot editors: I revised my prior submission to more clearly spell out the major use case for exFAT. I also changed one of the URLs to its canonical version.

fuse-exfat, a GPLv3 implementation of the exFAT file system for Linux, FreeBSD, and OS X, has reached 1.0 status, according to an announcement from Andrew Nayenko, the primary developer.

exFAT is a file system designed for sneaker-netting terabyte-scale files and groups of files on flash drives and memory cards between and among Windows, OS X, and consumer electronics devices. It was introduced by Microsoft in late 2006.

Will fuse-exfat cut into MS’s juicy exFAT licensing revenue? Will MS litigate fuse-exfat’s developers and users into patent oblivion? Will there be a DKMS dynamic kernel module version of the software, similar to the ZFS on Linux project?

ReadWrite, The H, and Phoronix cover the story.

Comment Re:Fire your boss. (Score 1) 366

by Titus Andronicus (#42671603) Attached to: Ask Slashdot: How To Convince a Team To Write Good Code?

As others have said or implied, the OP's question is itself incorrect. The actual question is about how to get management to buy in.

Have your management read the relevant sections of the following: (1) Steve McConnell's Code Complete, (2) Chris Sterling's Managing Technical Debt.

If management can't or won't learn these lessons, then I can't emphasize enough how correct the P, GP, and OP posts in this thread are.

There are many ways to have management terminated or shoved aside. Go to the targeted manager(s)' boss(es). Or go to the boss(es)' boss(es)' boss(es), etc. Go the board of directors. Go to the investors. Or if management has engaged in illegal activity, report them to the proper authorities, etc. However the OP goes about having his management terminated, he is morally required to do it for the long term benefit of the investors. The investors' long term interests must come first.
Google

Submission + - Google Report Shows Governments Want More Private Data (techweekeurope.co.uk)

Submitted by
judgecorp
judgecorp writes: "The latest Google Transparency Report, which tallies the number of times personal data is requested from Google, shows that governments are becoming more inquisitive than ever. Requests for user data have gone up by 70 percent since Google started these reports in 2009 — but the report shows Google is getting better at saying no: in 2009 it complied — fully or partially — with 76 percent of requests, and that figure is now down to 66 percent."
Java

Submission + - A close look at how Oracle installs deceptive software with Java updates | ZDNet (zdnet.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Oracle's Java plugin for browsers is a notoriously insecure product. Over the past 18 months, the company has released 11 updates, six of them containing critical security fixes. With each update, Java actively tries to install unwanted software. Here's what it does, and why it has to stop.
Censorship

Submission + - Thai labor activist gets 11 years in jail for insulting King (bangkokpost.com)

Submitted by
patiwat
patiwat writes: "Leading Thai labor activist Somyos Prueksakasemsuk has been sentenced to 11 years in jail for lese majeste, insulting King Bhumibol Adulyadej. Somyos was jailed without bail for a year prior to the ruling. Somyos joins a comedian, a drunk tourist, a high-school student, a grandfather recovering from cancer (who died in jail), and thousands of others who have been arrested after the universally revered monarch publicly invited criticism in 2005. Cases have involved sharing insulting Facebook posts, not censoring a web discussion board fast enough, and making insulting blog posts while outside Thailand. Helping identify online insults are a Facebook group called Social Sanction (SS) and the Cyberscouts, a volunteer youth group organized and trained by the previous government."
Microsoft

Submission + - Open Source exFAT Reaches 1.0 Status

Submitted by Titus Andronicus
Titus Andronicus writes: fuse-exfat, a GPLv3 implementation of the exFAT file system for Linux, FreeBSD, and OS X has reached 1.0 status, according to an announcement from Andrew Nayenko, the primary developer.

exFAT is a file system designed for sneaker-netting flash drives and memory cards between and among Windows, OS X, and consumer electronics devices. It was introduced by Microsoft in late 2006.

Will fuse-exfat cut into MS's juicy exFAT licensing revenue? Will MS litigate fuse-exfat's developers and users into patent oblivion? Will there be a DKMS dynamic kernel module version of the software, similar to the ZFS on Linux project?

ReadWrite, The H, and Phoronix cover the story.
Intel

Submission + - Intel Leaving Desktop Motherboard Business (pcworld.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: As soon as its next-gen Haswell CPUs ship, Intel will start to leave the desktop motherboard business. It will be a lengthy process, taking at least three years. The company will be focusing instead on smaller and newer form factors. For one, it will be working on its Next Unit of Computing (NUC) boards, which are 4" by 4" and intended to be a self-contained PC. Legacy support for old motherboards and the new Haswell motherboards will continue through their respective warranty periods. 'Given the competitive landscape, it’s not a big surprise that Intel is refocusing its efforts on areas that have greater potential impact on future growth. All segments of the PC business are under extreme pressure, with sales slipping and users gravitating toward tablets and smart phones. Focusing on reference designs for all-in-one PCs, Ultrabooks and tablets will enable Intel’s partners to more rapidly ship products that appeal to the new generation of mobile users.' AnandTech points out that one of the reasons Intel put out motherboards for so long was to assure a baseline level of quality for its CPUs. Now that the boards coming out of Taiwan are of good quality, Intel doesn't need to expend the effort.

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