Comment Academics meh... (Score 5, Interesting) 150
Seriously, forget the academics. Put 10 teens in a room of various social types with a smart developer who listens and a programmable mobile device. You'll come out with a product.
Red Flag Linux Forced On Chinese Internet Cafes 295
iamhigh writes "Reports are popping up that Chinese Internet Cafes are being required to switch to Red Flag Linux. Red Flag is China's biggest Linux distro and recently received headlines for their Olympic Edition release. The regulations, effective Nov. 5th, are aimed at combating piracy and require only that cafes install either a legal version of Windows or Red Flag. However, Radio Free Asia says that cafes are being forced to install Red Flag even if they have legal versions of Windows. Obviously questions about spying and surveillance have arisen, with no comment from the Chinese Government."
Copper Thieves Jeopardize US Infrastructure 578
coondoggie supplies an excerpt from Network World that might make you consider a lock for your pipes: "The FBI today ratcheted up the clamor to do something more substantive about the monumental growth of copper theft in the US. In a report issued today the FBI said the rising theft of the metal is threatening the critical infrastructure by targeting electrical substations, cellular towers, telephone land lines, railroads, water wells, construction sites, and vacant homes for lucrative profits. Copper thefts from these targets have increased since 2006; and they are currently disrupting the flow of electricity, telecommunications, transportation, water supply, heating, and security and emergency services, and present a risk to both public safety and national security." (A July, 2006 post on Ethan Zuckerman's blog gives an idea of how widespread cable theft has affected internet infrastructure, and basketmaking, in Africa.)
Apple Says Macs Are Safe, No Antivirus Needed 449
lobridge writes "Over the last two days multiple news feeds (and Slashdot) have been reporting that Apple has been quietly recommending antivirus software for their machines. It appears now that Apple has deleted an entry on their forums that suggested this and are saying that Mac computers are 'safe out of the box.'"
Battlestar Galactica Gets Spinoff Prequel Series 297
It was recently announced that sci-fi remake series Battlestar Galactica is getting a whole new spinoff prequel series called "Caprica." Signed on for twenty hours worth of finished product, including a two-hour pilot, the new series is to be set 50 years prior to Battlestar Galactica, and will focus on two rival families, the Graystones and the Adamas. "Enmeshed in the burgeoning technology of artificial intelligence and robotics that will eventually lead to the creation of the Cylons, the two houses go toe-to-toe blending action with corporate conspiracy and sexual politics. 'Caprica' will deliver all of the passion, intrigue, political backbiting and family conflict in television's first science fiction family saga."
Submission + - Anti-virus software as malware?
Dr Dave writes: "After a recent, Fortune 100 client of mine was experiencing 50%-90% of developer CPU cycles during builds spent on virus checking, I've become sensitive to how these checkers operate and consume resources. In the past few months I've asked for refunds on a few of these products — the most recent one that cannot execute out-of-the-box without an "update" before even doing an initial scan. Asking for support requires downloading an .exe "chat program" and, of course, the product wants to install lots of components to "monitor" your system health.
My question is "at what point does security 'solution' software become malware?" I've felt we passed this point long ago, so only even consider scanning my system when I've had to download some software. I realize the risks of an unprotected system — I've done and published security research for much of the federal government — but I'm planning to not upgrade to Vista unless the security services can be turned off.
I'd rather keep my CPU cycles and my piece of mind at the expense of allowing scripts, exe's and Active X controls to run on my PC."
My question is "at what point does security 'solution' software become malware?" I've felt we passed this point long ago, so only even consider scanning my system when I've had to download some software. I realize the risks of an unprotected system — I've done and published security research for much of the federal government — but I'm planning to not upgrade to Vista unless the security services can be turned off.
I'd rather keep my CPU cycles and my piece of mind at the expense of allowing scripts, exe's and Active X controls to run on my PC."
Submission + - PCI SIG releases PCIe 2.0
symbolset writes: "According to The Register PCI SIG has released version 2.0 of the PCI Express base specification.
The PCI-SIG release is here. The electromechanical specification is also due to be released shortly:The new released doubles the signalling rate from 2.5Gbps to 5Gbps. The upshot: a x16 connector can transfer data at up to around 16GBps.
"The companion PCI Express Card Electromechanical 2.0 specification is currently at revision 0.9, having completed its 60-day member review. The PCI-SIG anticipates that this specification too will be released in the near future.
Submission + - Helpers instead of frameworks: date, don't marry
An anonymous reader writes: Frameworks like Rails are generally an all-or-nothing commitment. I find that frameworks are great when they handle what you want, but are a bear when you have requirements that must go outside of them. I've instead been shifting toward "helpers" instead of frameworks. Helpers are small utility functions or classes that you can use to simplify things, but that you can ignore if they get in the way. You marry frameworks, but can merely date helpers, keeping your options flexible. An example helper is a function to generate a drop-down list (HTML Select). It takes a pipe-delimited list of value-description pairs. I have another function that can generate such delimited lists from a database query for longer lists. I don't have to use either if they don't fit my needs; or I can rewrite them for a specific application. They are kept simple by trying not to make them overly generic. Over time my helper kit gets better and better. What are your experiences with such?
Submission + - Amazon.de selling iPhones?
Giuseppe writes: "Amazon.de is preselling iPhones on its web site: 899 euros for the 4GB model, 999 euros for the 8GB one. Is this reliable or just some kind of joke? :)"
Submission + - Is America really that bad?
Fyz writes: Being an avid reader of Slashdot and other internet-based media while living in Europe, it is easy to get the impression that the US is not a very nice place. Everyday, a steady stream of insane lawsuits, insane convictions, insane laws, insane rules and insane pundits dominate the news I get from the media. I'm planning a longer stay in the US to do some postgraduate studies in physics, in part because my instincts tell me that it can't possibly be as bad as the impression the news gives me. Basically, I'm hoping to get a reality check. So my questions are these: Isn't the feeling "on the ground" very much different than portrayed in discussion on this site? And are the many stories of peoples rights being trampled on something you can relate to, or are they rare extremes?
Submission + - Burning Man IP contested
tinkerghost writes: The Burning Man Festival is evidently a hot issue right now. CNN has a small article about one of the original promoters suing the other 2. He's trying to get the 'Burning Man' IP (Trademark & Logo) released to the public domain — I would thing that CC-Non-commercial might be a better way to go.
Submission + - Bilingualism slows down Alzheimer's/Dementia
Dee writes: "From the article: "Bilingual people typically develop dementia about four years later than those who only speak one language, a research team from York University in Toronto and other institutions said.
The research was conducted on 184 patients with Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia undergoing treatment at the Memory Clinic at the Baycrest Research Centre for Aging and the Brain in Toronto. Researchers analyzed various data on patients including their academic background and occupation. "
This seems like the best motivation I've come across for learning a second language, and it makes sense when you think about it. What with your brain needing to parse information between two seperate formats, just straight up thinking to yourself in different languages seems like it would exercise your grey matter. Maybe it's time to start trying to get the grandparents to learn French!"
This seems like the best motivation I've come across for learning a second language, and it makes sense when you think about it. What with your brain needing to parse information between two seperate formats, just straight up thinking to yourself in different languages seems like it would exercise your grey matter. Maybe it's time to start trying to get the grandparents to learn French!"
Submission + - Nintendo DS was UK's Best Selling Console '06
Anonymous Coward writes: "According to this IGN article, the Nintendo DS outsold every other console in the UK, handheld and otherwise, with unprecedented Christmas sales. From the article: 'More than half a million people bought a DS in Blighty last month, taking the total number sold across Europe to a staggering 1.7 million units — the highest ever monthly sales for the handheld since its launch in 2005.'"
Submission + - Google Panorama Viewer Released by UCL
Dr Andrew Hudson-Smith writes: "University College London has released a simple methodology for viewing 360x180 degree panoramas direct in Google Earth. Using backface culling it is possible to project a image onto a sphere and then navigate inside of it within Google Earth. A step by step tutorial is provided as well as a series of files, the examples could be the first of many panoramas to spring up in Google Earth."
Submission + - Apple attacks iPhone skin makers-a blogger speaks
An anonymous reader writes: Hi,
Apple is famous for attacking bloggers — currently, the next wave is rolling against bloggers who publish links to iPhone skins for Windows Mobile or Palm OS.
Now, the head editor of a small tech blog called TamsPalm decided to respond — feel free to comment!
http://tamspalm.tamoggemon.com/2007/01/15/the-way- of-the-iphony-review/
Apple is famous for attacking bloggers — currently, the next wave is rolling against bloggers who publish links to iPhone skins for Windows Mobile or Palm OS.
Now, the head editor of a small tech blog called TamsPalm decided to respond — feel free to comment!
http://tamspalm.tamoggemon.com/2007/01/15/the-way
