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Tmack (593755)

Tmack
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http://tmack.net/

Tmack (593755)

  News: Robocars As the Best Way Geeks Can Save the Planet 2008-07-24 18:28

Posted by timothy on Thursday July 24, @06:28PM
from the at-least-the-parts-we-can-drive-on dept.
Brad Templeton writes "I (whom you may know as EFF Chairman, founder of early dot-com Clari.Net and rec.humor.funny) have just released a new series of futurist essays on the amazing future of robot cars, coming to us thanks to the DARPA Grand Challenges. The computer driver is just the beginning — the essays detail how robocars can enable the cheap electric car, save millions of lives and trillions of dollars, and are the most compelling thing computer geeks can work on to save the planet. Because robocars can refuel, park and deliver themselves, and not simply be chauffeurs, they end up changing not just cars but cities, industries, energy, and — by removing dependence on foreign oil — even wars. I, for one, welcome our new robot overlords." (More below.)
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 [+] story, news, earth, transportation, power, robotoverlords, robocars

  Your Rights Online: Encrypting Google Calendar With Firefox Extensions 2008-07-20 16:42

Posted by timothy on Sunday July 20, @04:42PM
from the show-as-unavailable dept.
mrcgran writes "IBM's Nathan Harrington has an interesting essay on using open-source tools to ensure privacy on Google Calendar: 'Today's Web applications provide many benefits for online storage, access, and collaboration. Although some applications offer encryption of user data, most do not. This article provides tools and code needed to add basic encryption support for user data in one of the most popular online calendar applications. Building on the incredible flexibility of Firefox extensions and the Gnu Privacy Guard, this article shows you how to store only encrypted event descriptions in Google's Calendar application, while displaying a plain text version to anyone with the appropriate decryption keys.'"
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 [+] story, yro, privacy, google, haha

  Games: Wii Is the New US Console Leader 2008-07-19 16:33

Posted by timothy on Saturday July 19, @04:33PM
from the depends-who's-counting-and-how dept.
stoolpigeon writes with this snippet from an AFP story carried by Google: "Nintendo said Thursday that its globally popular Wii has become the top-selling video game console in the United States, a crown coveted by rivals Microsoft and Sony. Market-tracking firm NPD Group reports that 666,000 Wii consoles were sold in the United States in June, raising the total sales count in the country to nearly 10.9 million units." I'd rather play board games than video games, but the Wii Fit makes one of these tempting anyhow.
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 [+] story, games, nintendo, wii, screwsony, wagglan

  Games: Referee Recommends Disbarment For Jack Thompson 2008-07-09 18:12

Posted by timothy on Wednesday July 09, @06:12PM
from the disbar-is-such-a-harsh-word dept.
spielermacher writes "GamePolitics is reporting that Jack Thompson — the lawyer every gamer loves to hate — has apparently lost his court case and is facing disbarment. The Referee in the case has gone beyond the Florida Bar's request for a 10-year disbarment and is recommending a lifetime ban. From the Final Report issued by the court: '... the Respondent has demonstrated a pattern of conduct to strike out harshly, extensively, repeatedly and willfully to simply try to bring as much difficulty, distraction and anguish to those he considers in opposition to his causes. He does not proceed within the guidelines of appropriate professional behavior ...' All I can say is that it's about time."
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 [+] story, games, pcgames, court, censorship, haha, suddenoutbreakofcommonsense

  Science: First Results From Messenger's Mercury Flyby 2008-07-04 13:37

Posted by kdawson on Friday July 04, @01:37PM
from the hot-stuff dept.
Several readers noted the special section in Science, published today, with results from Messenger's flyby of Mercury last January. One conclusion is that volcanism has shaped the planet, contrary to earlier theories that Mercury had been "dead on arrival." The LA Time's coverage highlights the finding that Mercury has shrunk by a mile in diameter over its lifetime, due to shrinkage at its core.
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 [+] story, science, space, shrinkage, mercury, nasa

  Ask Slashdot: What Is the Best Way To Disinfect Your Laptop? 2008-07-03 19:53

Posted by timothy on Thursday July 03, @07:53PM
from the use-a-nice-strong-antivirus dept.
akutz writes "I've had the flu since Tuesday afternoon. My wife picked me up from work with a temperature of 103.6 and it finally broke at 98.7 around 3am this morning. Yay. The problem is that I used my laptop during my periods of feverish deliriousness, contaminating my shiny 15" MacBook Pro with the icky influenza virus. I am asking my fellow Slashdotters if they have ever sought out a good way of disinfecting their lucky laptops after an illness. Do you use soap? A light acid bath? Just get the family dog to lick it until it looks clean?"
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 [+] story, askslashdot, medicine, portables, linux, ethanol, lysol

  News: TV Viewers' Average Age Hits 50 2008-07-01 21:08

Posted by CmdrTaco on Tuesday July 01, @09:08PM
from the hey-i'm-almost-that-old-now dept.
Ant writes "Variety reports on a recent study that says TV viewership's median age is outside the 18-49 years demographic: "The broadcast networks have grown older than ever — if they were a person, they wouldn't even be a part of TV's target demo anymore." These totals exclude DVR users, and apparently the oldest since they started tracking it. Of course you know what the means ... TV is for old people! The internet has confirmed it.
by DJ Jones on Monday June 30, @03:03PM (#24002249)
Attached to: Review of Das Keyboard
Model M = The most annoying keyboard ever created. The guy in the cube behind me insists on using one. Aside from punch-card mainframes it is the loudest most obnoxious piece of computer equipment ever created.

There is a reason modern keyboards are quiet and it's not because of cheap manufacturing. It's common courtesy.

Seriously, it's not cool in an office setting.
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 [+] comment

  News: LugRadio Decides To Call It Quits 2008-06-30 14:46

Posted by timothy on Monday June 30, @02:46PM
from the an-excellent-run-by-smart-folks dept.
[vmlinuz] writes "After four years, 100+ shows and over 2 million downloads, the guys behind LugRadio, the irreverent Open Source podcast from England have decided to call it a day, with the desire to 'go out on a high.' The last ever show will be recorded at LugRadio Live UK 2008 on the 19th and 20th July in Wolverhampton, England. There are also blog entries from the two long-standing members of LugRadio, Jono Bacon and Stuart 'Aq' Langridge." I hope the back catalog will remain available — LugRadio has since its start been one of the best online audio offerings out there.
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 [+] story, news, media, linux, os, england, jonobacon

  Technology: MySpace's Melting Makes Murdoch Mad 2008-06-23 11:33

Posted by CmdrTaco on Monday June 23, @11:33AM
from the ems-on-monday dept.
Barence writes "Facebook has overtaken rival social network MySpace for the first time — provoking an angry outburst from Rupert Murdoch, the man who paid $580m for MySpace only three years ago."
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 [+] story, tech, social, facebook, haha, alliteration, myspace
by DriedClexler on Thursday June 19, @03:03PM (#23858361)
Attached to: Confessions of a Wi-Fi Thief
*sigh*

Three things are certain in life:

1. Death
2. Taxes
3. Increasingly complicated analogy wars in discussions of wi-fi freeriding
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 [+] comment

  GE Microbes Make Crude Oil From Many Sources[->] 2008-06-15 22:23 polymath69

Submitted by polymath69 on Sunday June 15, @10:23PM
According to The Times Online, genetically modified microbes have been developed capable of turning surplus material such as wood chips, sugarcane, or others, not into ethanol, but into a substance which could substitute directly for crude oil. They claim it could be sold for about $50/bbl, and the production process would be carbon negative.

"Ten years ago I could never have imagined I'd be doing this," says Greg Pal, 33, a former software executive, as he squints into the late afternoon Californian sun. "I mean, this is essentially agriculture, right? But the people I talk to — especially the ones coming out of business school — this is the one hot area everyone wants to get into."

He means bugs. To be more precise: the genetic alteration of bugs — very, very small ones — so that when they feed on agricultural waste such as woodchips or wheat straw, they do something extraordinary. They excrete crude oil.

Unbelievably, this is not science fiction.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/article4133668.ece
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 [+] , biotech

  Science: Paper Stronger Than Cast Iron 2008-06-09 23:20

Posted by kdawson on Monday June 09, @11:20PM
from the write-on dept.
TaeKwonDood writes "All paper is made of cellulose, which at the nanoscale level is quite strong, but paper processing makes large, fragile fibers that break easily. Researchers in Sweden have have come up with a manufacturing process that keeps the fibers small, resulting in 'nanopaper' with over 1.6 times the tensile strength of cast iron (214 megapascals vs. 130 mPa). And since cellulose is the most abundant organic compound on the planet, it's cheap to use compared to other exotic, expensive-to-produce options — such as carbon nanotubes."
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 [+] story, science, storage, paper, millipascal, transparentaluminum
by mapkinase on Monday June 09, @03:03AM (#23701371)
Attached to: Weak US Dollar Means Nintendo Favors Europe For Now
It will all end on Jan 20, 2009, when our new shiny young eloquent energetic (black, not that it matters) president will turn water into wine. Scratch that. "make environment for others to turn water into wine".
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by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday May 27, @08:03PM (#23563411)
Attached to: Would You Rent a Song For a Dime?
I would rent a song for a dime if you would lick my balls for a quarter.
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