Comment Re:Two words (Score 1) 591
They'd have to amend the TOS to do that, otherwise most of the time, the dictionary is consulted on the meaning of a word. Although, truth in advertising might get in the way.
Comment Re:And then imagine (Score 1) 591
Then the municipal corporation would similarly deteriorate, and they'd also feel free to raise prices to whatever they want and operate it as a cash cow as well... funds diversion is nothing new in government. No competition is no competition.
Comment Re:And then imagine (Score 1) 591
Correct, but it explains the digital divide... the newest, latest, and greatest stuff tends to go to the places that has the most bang for the buck.
Comment Re:Two words (Score 1) 591
But without even notifying them at the time of the disconnect? That seems shady, even with a TOS...
Also, you'd have to get into the actual facts of the case and the TOS. Then you get into is 44 gig a week really a network burden?
Comment Re:And then imagine (Score 1) 591
But far, FAR more even.
You can easily build a business selling internet service in New York City.
But then, isn't that the point of a municipal corporation... serving the municipality?
But would a state ran corporation do any better? The places in the middle of nowhere would still be the last to get anything, if at all. I grew up in rural Ohio... a large number of roads where I grew up were either dirt or gravel... and roads are a governmental function. State Governments and their associated corporations are heavily influenced by politics, where does most of the pork go? To where most of the voters are of the party in power... that means suburbia... the same general areas that are seeing deployments of fiber now.
Comment Re:And then imagine (Score 4, Insightful) 591
Korea, and Japan are highly competitive markets when it comes to telecommunications. So, I beg to differ that "the best internet in the world with the lowest cost is municipal internet."
The problem in the US is very low population density combined with a duopoly when it comes to internet service. Municipal/Government corporations have a history of being less effective, and more expensive than private business... If anything, stimulus money needs to create competition in regions... I.E. a competitor to AT&T, and the CableCo. So, pay Verizon to overbuild AT&T... AT&T would have to compete or die. Like i said, it's simply the lack of competition.
Comment Re:Two words (Score 1) 591
Yeah, IANAL, but to cut you without notice like that... I think could be a problem for them.
HP Creates First Hybrid Memristor Chip 155
An anonymous reader writes "HP researchers have built the first functioning hybrid memristor-transistor chip. Lead researcher Stanley Williams and his team built the very first memristor — the '4th fundamental element' of integrated circuits after resistors, capacitors and inductors — back in April. Memristors can remember their resistance, leading to novel electronic capabilities. The new FPGA circuit uses memristors to perform tasks normally carried out by (many more) transistors and is therefore smaller, more power efficient and cheaper to make, HP says. Memristors could also turn out to be a more compact, faster alternative to flash memory."
Fedora 10 Released 211
ekimd writes "Fedora 10, aka 'Cambridge,' was released today. Some of the major features include: 'wireless connection sharing enables ad hoc network sharing, better setup and use of printers through improved management tools, virtualization storage provisioning for local and remote connections now simplified, SecTool is a new security audit and intrusion detection system.' Versions of major software include: Gnome 2.24, Eclipse 3.4 and RPM 4.6. A features list can be found here."
Reader Nate2 suggests LinuxFormat's detailed look at the new release, and adds a few more details about the software it contains: the release includes "a new graphical boot-up sequence, OpenOffice.org 3, many improvements to sound support via PulseAudio and other updates."
New Nanotech Fabric Never Gets Wet 231
holy_calamity writes "New Scientist reports on a simple coating for polyester that renders it unwettable — even after two months underwater it emerges dry to the touch. Water cannot attach to the new fabric thanks to nanostructured filaments and a structure that traps a constant air layer. One potential use is for low-drag swim wear."
Symantec Reports Spate of Attacks Via Recent Windows Flaw 56
Surprised Giraffe writes "Symantec is warning of a sharp jump in online attacks that appear to be targeting a recently patched bug in Microsoft's Windows operating system, an analysis that some other security companies disputed. Symantec raised its Threat Con security alert level from one to two because of the attacks, with two denoting 'increased alertness.' The attacks spotted by Symantec target a flaw in the Windows Server Service that Microsoft says could be exploited to create a self-copying worm attack."
MSI Wind U100, Overclocked With Liquid Nitrogen 95
james writes "What do you get when you combine a MSI Wind U100 notebook with liquid nitrogen?
The new Intel Atom frequency World Record ... and some
damn cool pictures!
A large copper pot is used, sitting on top of the GPU and chipset, and cold transfer through the original heatsink plate to the CPU. This was cooled down to about -20 C to achieve the new world mark. (Intel Atom N270 @ 2315mhz) For more information you can check out the original forum thread.
Lenovo Service Disables Laptops With a Text Message 257
narramissic writes "Lenovo plans to announce on Tuesday a service that allows users to remotely disable a PC by sending a text message. A user can send the command from a specified cell phone number — each ThinkPad can be paired with up to 10 cell phones — to kill a PC. The software will be available free from Lenovo's Web site. It will also be available on certain ThinkPad notebooks equipped with mobile broadband starting in the first half of 2009. 'You steal my PC and ... if I can deliver a signal to that PC that turns it off, hey, I'm good now,' said Stacy Cannady, product manager of security at Lenovo. 'The limitation here is that you have to have a WAN card in the PC and you must be paying a data plan for it,' Cannady added."
Judge Excludes 3 "John Does" From RIAA Subpoena 225
NewYorkCountryLawyer writes "In one of the RIAA's 'John Doe' cases targeting Boston University students, after the University wrote to the Court saying that it could not identify three of the John Does 'to a reasonable degree of technical certainty,' Judge Nancy Gertner deemed the University's letter a 'motion to quash,' and granted it, quashing the subpoena as to those defendants. In the very brief docket entry (PDF) containing her decision, she noted that 'compliance with the subpoena as to the IP addresses represented by these Defendants would expose innocent parties to intrusive discovery.' There is an important lesson to be learned from this ruling: if the IT departments of the colleges and universities targeted by the RIAA would be honest, and explain to the Courts the problems with the identification and other technical issues, there is a good chance the subpoenas will be vacated. Certainly, there is now a judicial precedent for that principle. One commentator asks whether this holding 'represents the death knell to some, if not all, of the RIAA's efforts to use American university staff as copyright cops.'"
Google Chrome Tops Browser Speed Tests 371
ThinSkin writes "So many Web browsers, so little time. The folks at ExtremeTech have assembled the ultimate browser test to determine which Web browser is king. From speed tests to rendering tests, different browsers traded off wins, but Google Chrome came out on top."
