Comment Re:Hitch Hiker's Guide (Score 1) 412
No, that would be the other Wiki.
Cheers,
-j.
Comment Re:Suing Wikipedia or User? (Score 1) 3
It's complicated -- the letter blames both, but the actual lawsuit is aimed against the user who did the uploading.
Our client contacted the Wikimedia Foundation in April 2009 to request that the images be removed but the Wikimedia Foundation has refused to do so leaving our client with no option but to commence legal proceedings against you personally through the UK Courts. The purpose of this message is to inform you of the nature of our clientâ(TM)s claims against you and to give you an opportunity to settle the claims before legal proceedings are commenced. ...
Our client remains willing to enter into a dialogue with the Wikimedia Foundation to discuss terms upon which low-resolution images of paintings in its collection can be made available on the Wikipedia website and our client will continue to write to the Wikimedia Foundation with requests for discussion. However, to date, the Wikimedia Foundation has ignored our clientâ(TM)s attempts to negotiate this issue, preferring instead to take a more harsh approach that one would expect of a corporate entity.
And no, I have no idea what "a more harsh approach that (sic) one would expect of a corporate entity" means.
Incidentally, the Wikimedia Foundation has a long-standing and consistent position on claims like this:
WMF's position has always been that faithful reproductions of two-dimensional public domain works of art are public domain, and that claims to the contrary represent an assault on the very concept of a public domain ... WMF has made it clear that in the absence of even a strong legal complaint, we don't think it's a good idea to dignify such claims of copyright on public domain works.
Cheers,
-j.
Our client contacted the Wikimedia Foundation in April 2009 to request that the images be removed but the Wikimedia Foundation has refused to do so leaving our client with no option but to commence legal proceedings against you personally through the UK Courts. The purpose of this message is to inform you of the nature of our clientâ(TM)s claims against you and to give you an opportunity to settle the claims before legal proceedings are commenced.
Our client remains willing to enter into a dialogue with the Wikimedia Foundation to discuss terms upon which low-resolution images of paintings in its collection can be made available on the Wikipedia website and our client will continue to write to the Wikimedia Foundation with requests for discussion. However, to date, the Wikimedia Foundation has ignored our clientâ(TM)s attempts to negotiate this issue, preferring instead to take a more harsh approach that one would expect of a corporate entity.
And no, I have no idea what "a more harsh approach that (sic) one would expect of a corporate entity" means.
Incidentally, the Wikimedia Foundation has a long-standing and consistent position on claims like this:
WMF's position has always been that faithful reproductions of two-dimensional public domain works of art are public domain, and that claims to the contrary represent an assault on the very concept of a public domain
Cheers,
-j.
Submission + - Wikipedia Sued By National Portrait Gallery (wikimedia.org) 3
jpatokal writes: "The National Portrait Gallery of London is suing a Wikipedia user over his uploads of pictures of some 3,000 paintings, all 19th century or earlier and firmly in the public domain. Their claim? The photos are a "product of a painstaking exercise on the part of the photographer", and that downloading them off the NPG site is an "unlawful circumvention of technical measures". And remember, the NPG's taxpayer-funded mission is to "promote the appreciation and understanding of portraiture in all media [...] to as wide a range of visitors as possible"!"
Is JavaScript Ready For Creating Quality Games? 165
kumpetan writes "After seeing so many games built with JavaScript, and considering the applications it powers and the use of Ajax, it seems like web developers are now in the game development pot. It is getting easier and more popular with libraries like jQuery, MooTools, Prototype, etc. There are even libraries like Game JS, GameQuery or JavaScript GameLib, specifically for this purpose. So, will we start to see more ambitious game projects arise using these tools?"
Ballmer Ordered To Testify In 'Vista Capable' Case 235
alphadogg writes "A federal judge in Seattle has ordered Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer to testify in a class action lawsuit against Microsoft that alleges the company misled consumers in a marketing campaign for its Windows Vista operating system in which computers sold with an older Microsoft OS were labeled 'Vista Capable' when in fact they could only run a basic version of Vista. Ballmer has unique personal knowledge of facts surrounding the case, therefore he must face questioning, Judge Marsha Pechman of the US District Court for the Western District of Washington at Seattle ruled, according to court documents released late Friday."
SpaceX Successfully Tests Nine-Engine Cluster 182
the_other_chewey writes "At their test facility in Texas, SpaceX, the privately funded space-flight company, have successfully tested their nine-engine cluster which is planned to provide the heavy lifting capability for their Falcon 9 and Falcon 9 Heavy rockets.
The firing lasted three minutes (a full 'mission duty cycle,' i.e. a simulated launch) under full power, delivering 3.8MN (or 855,000 lbs.) of thrust. SpaceX have made a video of the test available. The Waco Tribune has a short report about it, with comments by locals."
Comment So all that buzzwordiness boils down to... (Score 1) 105
2.5 million euros of taxpayer money wasted on adding a bunch of little extensions to the Eclipse development environment:
As one of their two demos, they show how you can use the GUI to add an Amazon EC2 instance "in only five minutes" -- as opposed to typing one (1) command or using Amazon's own ElasticFox.
Submission + - Wikipedia begets Veropedia
Ponca City, We Love You writes: "October saw the launch of Veropedia, a collaborative effort to collect the best of Wikipedia's content, clean it up, vet it, and save it in a quality stable version that cannot be edited. To qualify for inclusion in Veropedia, a Wikipedia article must contain no cleanup tags, no "citation needed" tags, no disambiguation links, no dead external links, and no fair use images after which candidates for inclusion are reviewed by recognized academics and experts. One big difference with Wikipedia is that Veropedia is registered as a for profit corporation and earns money from advertising on the site. Veropedia is supposed to help improve the quality of Wikipedia because contributors must improve an article on Wikipedia, fixing up all the flaws, until a quality version can be imported to Veropedia. To date Veropedia contains about 3,800 articles."
Submission + - Linux in every seat on the Airbus 380 (networkworld.com)
jpatokal writes: "Singapore Airlines will be rolling out the A380 "superjumbo" on October 26th, and a surprise awaits in the seat of every passenger: their personal Linux PC, running Red Hat. In addition to running the in-flight entertainment, passengers can also use a full copy of StarOffice, and there's a USB slot for importing/exporting documents or plugging in your own keyboard/mouse. Screen size is 10.6" (1280x768) in economy, 15.4" in business and a whopping 23" in first class. The system is already available on their current B777-300ER planes and will also be outfitted on the upcoming B787 Dreamliners."
Submission + - ISS life support systems in trouble
timboc007 writes: The Sydney Morning Herald is reporting that key life-support systems on the International Space Station have failed. Whilst it is expected, at this stage, that they may be repaired, the worst-case scenario would be evacuation of all ISS crew. From the TFA:
In Soviet ISS, it seems, computers reboot YOU!The failure occurred in computers on the Russian segment of the 16-nation space station — computers that control navigation and critical life-support systems on the huge orbital base. Without them, the station cannot maintain proper orbit and the crew cannot stay on board.
Submission + - Judge Takes Cleaners To The Cleaners - For $54M (komotv.com)
IHC Navistar writes: Frivolous lawsuits have reached a new low: Roy L. Pearson Jr. is suing a family owned and operated dry cleaning business in Washington, D.C. for losing a pair of his pants. The amount he is asking for: $54 million, which is down from his original asking of $67 million, and has so far rejected three attempts at a settlement. He is also seeking $15,000 for the use of a rental car so he can take his dry cleaning to a different cleaners for the next 10 years. If you are already one who is peeved by such outlandish lawsuits, their is one last twist: Roy L. Pearson is currently an Administrative Law judge for the City of Washington, D.C., and is no longer seeking damages in regards to the pants. The old adage "A lawyer who represents himself has a fool for a client." couldn't be truer, especially since Pearson is representing himself.
Full Story: http://www.komotv.com/news/national/7965977.html
Full Story: http://www.komotv.com/news/national/7965977.html
Journal Journal: What to get your geeky girl for Valentine's Day 1
So you're one of the lucky few with a geek as a girlfriend, but your genius has failed you in regards to possible V-Day gifts. Why not get her a pair of Caffeine Earrings and matching necklace, a Diskette Handbag, or a
