Follow Slashdot stories on Twitter

 


Forgot your password?
Close
typodupeerror

Comment Re:Is SJVN getting forgetful? (Score 1) 71

by Shag (#65503744) Attached to: 'The Year of the EU Linux Desktop May Finally Arrive'

Universities here are starting to tell CS and STEM students "you are on your own" when they get Macs. Because, as it turns out, a lot of stuff is more difficult on a Mac. For example, there are massive issues to get VMs runnign reliably for the students. Yes, I had one student with a Mac in my IT security class that just used GCC and GDB for the buffer overflow analysis on the Mac commandline and while the results were a bit different, they were fine and we discussed the differences. But 4 others did not manage. And that is a serious problem. Apple is doing way too much "different for the sake of being different" and that just does not cut it in quite a few scenarios.

I'm not a CS type, but I work in STEM, and having tried numerous times to bring obscure scientific stuff over from Unix or Linux and get it to build on MacOS, I absolutely agree with what you just said above. That sort of stuff is better left to experienced developers who focus on MacOS. I do use Linux, Windows and MacOS every workday, but I don't use Windows on weekends. I'd pick a Mac laptop 10 times out of 10 for general use, presuming I had access to networked Linux systems.

Comment Scammers are ahead of the curve (Score 4, Insightful) 8

For at least five years now, I've seen scammers leaving fake customer service numbers for major brands all over the web. Q&A sites, open comments, wherever. The usual tip-off is that they list the SAME number as customer support for Microsoft, Apple, and Google. Or for CoinBase, PayPal, and whoever else. Obviously, call that number and you're getting scammed.

I had thought they were just trying to game search results -- put a number enough places and some non-zero number of people will find it. But in a world where AI bots are scraping the web, this approach is even more effective, because the AI bots aren't going to think critically about what they're sucking up.

Wonderful, just wonderful.

Comment Is SJVN getting forgetful? (Score 1) 71

by Shag (#65481494) Attached to: 'The Year of the EU Linux Desktop May Finally Arrive'

A few years back, I wrote in these very pages that Microsoft didn't want you so much to buy Windows as subscribe to its cloud services and keep your data on its servers. If you wanted a real desktop operating system, Linux would be almost your only choice.

Almost. Like, there's only one "real desktop operating system" that's not Windows, is Unix-based, focused on the desktop and userspace, and has about 15% of worldwide desktop OS market share, compared to 6% for Linux.

But pay no attention to that, this is clearly a binary choice between Windows and Linux. Carry on.

Comment Re:tl;dr (Score 1) 35

ChatGPT summary:

Duolingo, once widely praised, is now under fire after CEO Luis von Ahn announced a shift toward an "AI-first" strategy. This includes phasing out human contractors, using AI in hiring and performance reviews, and restricting new hires unless automation isn't feasible. The announcement sparked a strong negative response online, especially on TikTok and Instagram, prompting the company to temporarily remove all social media posts.

The backlash is more intense than prior criticism over layoffs and AI integration in late 2023. Users flooded comment sections with complaints about the replacement of humans with AI, emphasizing the importance of human connection in language learning.

In response, Duolingo posted cryptic and satirical videos featuring a masked "rebel" confronting von Ahn. While von Ahn defended the use of AI to scale content creation and improve efficiency, he admitted the LinkedIn announcement was poorly communicated. He emphasized AI as a tool to support—not replace—employees and claimed the company is still hiring.

Von Ahn later reiterated on LinkedIn that Duolingo aims to empower its workforce through AI education and resources, without addressing the fate of contractors. The controversy highlights growing public skepticism toward AI-driven policies, which often appeal more to executives and investors than to everyday users and workers.

Submission + - Univ. of Waterloo Coding Competition Results Withheld Over Suspected AI Cheating

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: Finding that many students violated rules and submitted code not written by themselves, the University of Waterloo's Centre for Computing and Math decided not to release results from its annual Canadian Computing Competition (CCC), which many students rely on to bolster their chances of being accepted into Waterloo’s prestigious computing and engineering programs, or land a spot on teams to represent Canada in international competitions.

"It is clear that many students submitted code that they did not write themselves, relying instead on forbidden external help," the CCC co-chairs explained in a statement. "As such, the reliability of 'ranking' students would neither be equitable, fair, or accurate. [...] It is disappointing that the students who violated the CCC Rules will impact those students who are deserving of recognition. We are considering possible ways to address this problem for future contests."

Submission + - GitHub login authentication (github.com)

Submitted by QuietLagoon
QuietLagoon writes: What is the problem? I try to login in to github.com using a username and password that was accepted in the past, and I even passed the odd test of which way it this thing pointing. But when I try to go further in the login process, I seem to be ignored.

When I click on the continue link on the page, I just stray there.

Is github using security to reduce its user load? Trying to save some money by turning away users?

Slashdot Top Deals

"Laugh while you can, monkey-boy." -- Dr. Emilio Lizardo

Close