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+ - Senator seeks to extend ban on 'undetectable' 3D-printed guns->

Submitted by SonicSpike
SonicSpike writes "As the technology to print 3D firearms advances, a federal law that banned the undetectable guns is about to expire. The New York senator Chuck Schumer says he is seeking an extension of the law before it expires on 9 December.

Schumer said the technology of so-called 3D printing has advanced to the point where anyone with $1,000 and an internet connection can access the plastic parts that can be fitted into a gun. Those firearms cannot be detected by metal detectors or x-ray machines. Schumer says that means anyone can download a gun cheaply, then take the weapons anywhere, including high-security areas.

The Democrat is pushing the extension along with Senators Patrick Leahy of Vermont and Bill Nelson of Florida. The effort was announced on Sunday."
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Comment: Re:Because... (Score 1) 228

by TheMadTopher (#44928329) Attached to: What I Did During My Summer Vacation: <em>Burning Man</em> Edition

Of course you know hipster-hating is the latest trend...be careful about following the latest trend...it might turn you into a hipster.

I've been hating hipsters since before it was hip to hate them. I'm the hippest hipster hater there is.

I think I have to go hate myself now....

Comment: Re:It's like deja vu all over again (Score 5, Insightful) 786

by TheMadTopher (#43642083) Attached to: Microsoft's "New Coke" Moment?

Office 2010 - not a whole lot different from 2007, but a lot more popular now that people are familiar with the Ribbon

I'm sorry, but no. Just because people are complaining vocally anymore about something originally done five years ago and another screw-up that took place three years ago doesn't mean things are ok now. I got use to the ribbon, but I still hate it and it is still way less productive than the file menu.

Where are mod points when I want them? People lost the choice as it was use 2003 software or use the ribbon. Businesses eventually migrate as support and features in 2003 got dropped.

Productivity wise, 2003 file menus >>>>>> ribbon.

Comment: Re:Greed (Score 1) 130

by TheMadTopher (#38902215) Attached to: DC Comics Announces "<em>Before Watchmen</em>"

I saw the same thing in Magic: The Gathering. Someone would pay hundreds of dollars for a rare first-print power card, and would rationalize it as an investment. Ha! Then -- to the surprise of only a few morons -- WotC reprinted most of these cards and made the originals next to worthless.

Wizards of the Coast has a long standing list of reserved cards which will not be reprinted. http://www.wizards.com/magic/tcg/article.aspx?x=magic/products/reprintpolicy. While the company and certain pockets of players have sometimes hated this list, Wizards has honored it. Many cards on that list have actually gone up significantly in value the last few years.

Comment: Re:Or maybe not? (Score 2) 261

by TheMadTopher (#37526060) Attached to: Should College Go Online?

Nope. Because colleges/universities are more interested in making money than educating.

Please mod the 2nd post up. I have a junior and a freshman in the state universities. It's sickening how money grubbing the universities have become.

  • $10/meal meal plans. Yes, even $10 for those dry cereal breakfasts.
  • High fees for everything -- parking, dorm fees, application fees, gym facility fees
  • Dorms that cost more than 1 bedroom apartments.
  • Tuition that rises much higher than inflation (5-15% per year)
  • To get around legislatively mandated maximum tuition increases, my state universities now have a "tuiition differential fee" which according to the prepaid plans is expected to rise 20% to 40% per year. The differential fee at the state universities was $4600 this past school year.
  • The universities are getting in bed with the health insurance companies too. Many states now make health insurance mandatory for their university students. Not on the parents plan? Add $1000 for 9 months of health insurance that the university kindly prearranged to get you from company XYZ. I can only imagine what insurance companies kick back to be the default health insurer. Oh, prior illnesses are not covered obv.
  • Universities also get kicks from banks who compete to be the default bank for the university. If students want their financial aid to be direct deposited they HAVE TO get an account with the default bank, else wait an additional 2-6 weeks to get a paper check. The banks know they can make it up on students overdrafting or just monthly account fees
  • Since students were undercutting campus book stores by buying new and used books online, one of my state universties is now focusing on getting "university specific special edtion" publications of books. Sorry, you can't buy that Biology book off eBay/Amazon, you need the special University fo XYZ edition.
  • Mandatory online homework websites. $50-$100 per class. Cause the teacher can't email out a doc/pdf?
  • Some classes now also require eBooks for classes. One of my kids is in a class that we paid $90 to have access to the online book for 5 months. After 5 months -- nothing. Want to go back and reference something? Too bad, pay another $90

So yeah, the higher education system is nothing more than a money machine these days.

Eventually they should have it so you only need to goto classrooms for your hands on stuff and physical sciences. And all books should be fully downloadable.

Comment: Re:Gave up too quickly (Score 1) 394

by TheMadTopher (#37242762) Attached to: Ex-Board Member Says HP Is Committing 'Corporate Suicide'

I'd love to know whether there's something about the tech industry that makes it susceptible to this level of mismanagement, as so many tech companies seem to have been badly mismanaged over the years.

A lot of the people who rise up and take over get their positions due to their political positioning in the company and not due to their real business decision making ability. I've seen too many bad or even clueless managers/vices get to positions of power that way.

Comment: Bitcoin article (Score 1) 258

by TheMadTopher (#37118624) Attached to: GPGPU Bitcoin Mining Trojan

What is Bitcoin? For somebody whos never heard of it before, how do you describe it?

Mike Koss: Bitcoin is a digital currency. The really interesting thing about it is that it's totally decentralized. No government agency, no bank stands behind it. It was a geek by the name of Satoshi Nakamoto who started it in January 2009. He just invented a protocol and said, if you want to join me in this activity, we will all share in this new world of creating our own currency.

So how does it work, exactly? Can you give us a Bitcoin 101 on the mechanics? How do you get a Bitcoin, how is it created, and what's the economy like?

Peter Vessenes: Fundamentally, how you get a Bitcoin would be just like how you buy anything else. You could buy one online because they're digital. You can come by Startpad. Mike will sell you one, or I will sell you one. Or ten or whatever you want. The way most people are obtaining their Bitcoins is just through some economic transfer.

http://www.geekwire.com/2011/rewind-risks-aside-seattle-startup-vets-see-potential-in-bitcoin

Comment: Incidental headline from a movie plot? (Score 1) 234

by TheMadTopher (#37055272) Attached to: Terrorist Target Mexican Nanotechnology Professors
This sounds like a incidental headline one would see in some movie script where people get sent back in time to stop the advancement of some technology that ultimately leads to some sort of global doom or financial ruin for someone.

And who knew Jeri Ryan was living in Mexico these days?

An authority is a person who can tell you more about something than you really care to know.

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