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+ - Spokeo.com Makes Your Privacy Public->

Submitted by RobK
RobK writes "The site http://www.spokeo.com/ has started showing up in searches when looking for people by name. The scary bit is that they aggregating data from everywhere including property records, email addresses, blogs and social media sites and either creating a very accurate picture of you or just maybe and aerial picture of your house with no effort.

It appears they also aggregate info about your online pseudonyms — allowing that creepy ex girlfriend to find you everywhere.

Where's Waldo? Here he is — http://www.spokeo.com/search?q=Where's+Waldo&s3=t9#:18215136171 — at least until he opts out at http://www.spokeo.com/privacy."
Link to Original Source

Comment: The Reason Slashdot Posted (Score 1) 202

by RobK (#30779004) Attached to: App Store Piracy Losses Estimated At $459 Million
We're all missing why this was posted to slashdot. I too was outraged by the numbers and finally realized that this post was about the *RESPONSE* to the Wall Street article, not the article itself. I'll bet not one of us has read the response at http://mashable.com/2010/01/13/app-store-piracy/ . Let's do that before hanging someone.
It's funny. Laugh.

+ - GoDaddy Lets Their SSL Certificate Expire ->

Submitted by
SuperUberGeek
SuperUberGeek writes "GoDaddy Lets Their SSL Certificate Expire

Of all the biggest blunders you do not want to do, GoDaddy.com has let their security certificate expire and is now taken offline. As of 4:10 PST, Dec 19, 2007 Godaddy.com has ceased to exist. This is a major blooper for a company that prides itself in reselling SSL Certificates, and in providing web based tools to manage your domain names, websites, and auctions for domain names. All three which can expire in the time godaddy is down, presenting a huge problem for anyone who has a domain name expiring tonight, or who needs to manage something for a client using the tools at godaddy."
Link to Original Source
Classic Games (Games)

+ - The Strange History Of The Vectrex

Submitted by
simoniker
simoniker writes "The 'ambitious and unusual' vector-based Vectrex console was one of the most intriguing game console failures of all time, and Bill Loguidice and Matt Barton continue their 'History Of Gaming Platforms' series over at Gamasutra by analyzing the rise, fall, and legacy of the cult '80s console. From the intro: "GCE's vector-based Vectrex failed to win massive audiences, like the Atari 2600 Video Computer System (VCS) or the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) did. Nevertheless, the distinctive platform gained a cult following after being pulled from the market in 1984, two years after its debut, and now enjoys one of the finest homebrew development scenes of any vintage system.""
Businesses

+ - Ask Slashdot: How to Compare Web Analytic Numbers

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes "I work in the marketing and advertising department of a small US-based manufacturing company. Last year I implemented Google Analytics into our website so we could get a better idea of what users were doing while on our website. However, sometimes I'll receive reports from other websites that we advertise with, showing the amount of traffic that they have sent our way. These numbers always conflict with my own data from Google Analytics. Is this par for the course with web analytics, or can this situation be rectified? This data is supposed to provide solid information when making marketing decisions and I need to know that I can trust it. I'm interested in knowing what other Slashdotters have done with their analytical data and the anomalies they have experienced."
Games

+ - XNA Game Studio now supports LIVE - plus new comp->

Submitted by
JamesO
JamesO writes "Microsoft has announced the release of XNA Game Studio 2.0, the next generation of the popular game development platform for Xbox 360 and Windows. The new version builds on Game Studio Express and includes the ability to create online and cross-platform multiplayer games using Xbox LIVE and Games for Windows LIVE. Version 2.0 also adds more than 15 new features.

"When building XNA Game Studio 2.0, we wanted to offer everyone the opportunity to utilise the rich gaming environment of LIVE used by AAA developers for titles such as 'Halo 3' and 'Gears of War,'" said Chris Satchell, general manager of the XNA organization at Microsoft. "We accomplished our goal with this new toolset, and, best of all, it remains highly accessible to students, hobbyists and pros alike."

The addition of LIVE support means developers can now integrate features including matchmaking with minimal coding required.

Microsoft is also ready to launch Dream-Build-Play 2008, following last year's event which saw four community developed games awarded Xbox LIVE Arcade publishing contracts.

This year Microsoft will once again be challenging aspiring developers to create their dream games for the chance to win a publishing contract. The event kicks off with the Silicon Minds Warm-Up Challenge, with registration available from December 14. Winners will be announced at the Games Developers Conference, as will details of the main challenge. Prizes for the Warm-Up Challenge will include the opportunity to interview for an internship with Microsoft Research's Machine Learning Group, Rare or Lionhead Studios

"Artificial intelligence is so important to the games we make at Lionhead Studios, and we are very excited to see what the community can come up with in this Warm-Up Challenge to Dream-Build-Play 2008," said Peter Molyneux, managing director at Lionhead Studios."
Link to Original Source
Cellphones

+ - Cellphone User Shocked by $85,000 CAD Bill->

Submitted by
PuNKY^BReWSTeR
PuNKY^BReWSTeR writes "It is a well known fact that competition and fair prices for decent cellular plans are virtually non-existent in Canada. This one takes the cake however. According to CBC, a Calgary man received an $85,000 cell phone bill from Bell after using us as a modem.

From the article:

"The thing is, they've cut my phone off for being like $100 over. Here, I'm $85,000 over and nobody bothered to give me a call and tell me what was going on." Staniaszek said Bell told him they will adjust his bill to a different plan for people who use their phones for internet purposes. But even after the adjustment, his bill will still be more than $5,000."
Link to Original Source
Networking (Apple)

+ - SPAM: Why Commodore rejected Apple 25 years ago 1

Submitted by alphadogg-networkworld
alphadogg-networkworld writes "An Apple II PC being sold by Commodore International in 1982? It came very close to happening, but luckily for Apple, Commodore rejected the idea, instead going with its revolutionary Commodore 64. Apple was one of the companies that approached influential Commodore to sell PCs, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak said during an energetic panel discussion to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Commodore 64 PC, which took place at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View on Monday evening."
Link to Original Source
It's funny. Laugh.

+ - Slashdot Gems 1

Submitted by
Anonymous Coward
Anonymous Coward writes "In the years I have read Slashdot, I have often enjoyed the cleverness and humor of some of the readers replies to the various stories. Take for instance one of the stories posted today about Iran building a supercomputer with 216 AMD processors, one wit quipped that 'Not only can they never be allowed to have nukes but it will be a cold day in hell before they are allowed to get the processing power to run Windows Vista!!!!!'

For the benefit of posterity, I recommend that these 'gems' should be collected and published in a book entitled 'Slashdot Gems.' However, if you feel this task would be quite an undertaking, a simplier way of sharing the mirth would be ask your readers for a list of their memorable Slashdot moments, and then post them in a story thread entitled 'The Best of Slashdot Humor'."
Privacy

+ - Facebooks CEO Zuckerberg Apologizes for 'Beacon'->

Submitted by
Tech.Luver
Tech.Luver writes "Beacon, the online advertising system that was supposed to light Facebook's way to riches, has created such a dark storm of controversy that Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg today told users they could turn it off. About a month ago, we released a new feature called Beacon to try to help people share information with their friends about things they do on the web. We've made a lot of mistakes building this feature, but we've made even more with how we've handled them. We simply did a bad job with this release, and I apologize for it. Last week we changed Beacon to be an opt-in system, and today we're releasing a privacy control to turn off Beacon completely. You can find it here. If you select that you don't want to share some Beacon actions or if you turn off Beacon, then Facebook won't store those actions even when partners send them to Facebook. ( http://techluver.com/2007/12/05/facebook-chief-executive-mark-zuckerbergs-thoughts-on-beacon/ )"
Link to Original Source
The Media

+ - The tortured business of game reviewing->

Submitted by Dinkelfustem
Dinkelfustem writes "In the wake of the recent GameSpot controversy, Ars Technica has a piece that lays out the pressures under which game reviewers work, and the perks that are dangled before them.

"One gaming company even sent a few members of the gaming press onto a zero-g flight to promote its game. The trip would have cost thousands of dollars if purchased, and one writer who went gushed about how the gaming company made his dreams come true. Again, it's not paying for a review or positive coverage, it's just a very expensive gift. When you hear writers say things like 'they cannot thank so-and-so enough' for a gift like that, you know it's a lie. There is a very specific way to thank them. That is why the money was spent."

When your entire site ends up funded by one small group of advertisers, it's hard to avoid the pressure."
Link to Original Source

"If you are afraid of loneliness, don't marry." -- Chekhov

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