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Comment: Re:Why no internet (Score 1) 155

by Draveed (#37963918) Attached to: Ask Slashdot: Touchscreen Device For the Elderly?
This is exactly what I was thinking about doing for my mom! I can't stand Apple, but I'm considering putting my hatred aside and getting her an iPad just because it's probably going to be the simplest tablet for her to use. I often worry about how she passes the day with daytime TV and some local newspapers. It would be nice to get her in touch with old friends. Get her a few simple game apps, or some more news sources for her to read. Maybe get her addicted to Farmville like my aunt...
Space

NASA Solar Sail Lost In Space 111

Posted by samzenpus
from the never-to-sail-again dept.
An anonymous reader writes "According to Spaceflight Now: 'NASA has not heard from the experimental NanoSail-D miniature solar sail in nearly a week, prompting officials to wonder if the craft actually deployed from a larger mother satellite despite initial indications it ejected as designed.' NanoSail-D's spring-ejection was indicated at 1:31 a.m. EST Monday, leading to a predicted release of the spacecraft's sail membrane around 1:30 a.m. EST Thursday."
Games

Dead Space To Launch Early, Banned in Three Countries 87

Posted by Soulskill
from the good-with-the-bad dept.
EA Redwood Shores' Dead Space seems to be one of the few games that has its release constantly moved forward. Shortly after news that the game's European debut was moved up to Oct. 24th, the company announced that the US launch date would be moved up to October 14th. Unfortunately, EA's Ben Swanson also said the game has been banned in China, Germany, and Japan. (Announcement here, sound toggle to the upper right of the page.) Previews of the game are available from Ars and Gamespy.
Government

Canadian DMCA Proposal About To Die 186

Posted by Soulskill
from the aboot-time dept.
An anonymous reader writes "Like the previous Bill C-60 before it, the proposed Bill C-61 that would bring DMCA-like laws to Canada is poised to die on the order table, never to receive a vote, as the current minority government falls. An election call is expected in days. Everybody expects that some form of these laws will be back yet again (third time's a charm?). There are too many interests pushing for change to let it go. But here's a chance for Canadians to influence politicians about it in an election campaign, and hopefully strike a better balance. And for those of you in the rest of the world who are laboring under a DMCA-like copyright law, let's hear your stories about why such laws are a good or bad idea, and if bad, how you would amend the law to make it tolerable. With the polls probably on Oct. 14th, Canadians will be looking for a few good ideas."
The Courts

Colombia prof. claims giants infringe LED patents

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes "The United States International Trade Commission (USITC) has launched an investigation into a large number of electronic giants at the behest of Dr. Gertrude Neumark Rothschild. She claims her patents relating to short wavelength diodes have been infringed upon by companies such as Sony, Toshiba and LG, to name a few. Dr. Neumark appears to be different from the average patent troll in that she is a Professor Emerita at Colombia University and has worked in this field for decades. Such an investigation could have a large impact on consumer electronics industry, and the continued push towards Blu-ray in particular."
Robotics

Bar owner builds robot to fight "bums"->

Submitted by dubg90
dubg90 writes "A bar owner in Atlanta has built a roving security robot to clean up his neighborhood. The robot, built from an assortment of parts, roams the streets in search of malcontents loitering in the nearby area. Controlled by remote, the robot allows the controller to speak to persons of interest through a PA system, broadcast video to a big screen in the bar, and even soak it's victims with a jet of cold water."
Link to Original Source
Censorship

Network Solutions Suspends Site of Anti-Islam Film 874

Posted by kdawson
from the pre-emptive-suppression dept.
h4rm0ny notes the furor over an anti-Islamic movie due to be released on the Web in the next week. After Pakistan disrupted YouTube worldwide over an interview with right-wing Dutch MP and filmmaker Geert Wilders, Network Solutions, acting as host as well as registrar, has suspended Wilders's site promoting the 15-minute film "Fitna" (a Koranic term translated as "strife"). The site now displays a notice that it is under investigation for possible violations of NetSol's acceptable use policy. According to the article the company's guidelines include "a sweeping prohibition against 'objectionable material of any kind or nature.'" The article describes the site's content before NetSol pulled the plug as a single page with the film's title, an image of the Koran, and the words "Coming Soon." No one but Wilders has seen the film to date. The Dutch government has distanced itself from the film, fearing Muslim backlash. A million Muslims live in The Netherlands. Wilders's party, which controls 9 of 150 seats in the Dutch parliament, was elected on an anti-immigration platform.
Windows

University of Penn. Recommends Against Vista SP1 286

Posted by kdawson
from the windows-me-plus-seven dept.
At least one university liberal enough to accept the deeply flawed and mostly rejected Vista OS is recommending faculty and students stay away from SP1. "University of Pennsylvania tech staffers are advising faculty and students not to upgrade their computers to the new service pack for Microsoft's Windows Vista operating system. The school's Information Systems & Computing department said it will support Vista SP1 on new systems where it's pre-installed, but added that it 'strongly recommends that all other users adopt a "wait and see" attitude,' according to a newly published department bulletin." And CIO magazine doesn't quite go so far as to call on Microsoft to throw away Vista, but it does ask its readers to weigh in on that topic.

Some men are heterosexual, and some are bisexual, and some men don't think about sex at all... they become lawyers. -- Woody Allen

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