Ghostalker474 - Slashdot User

City Laws Only Available Via $200 License 411

Posted by kdawson on Friday November 13, 2009 @10:00AM from the calling-doctor-malamud dept.

MrLint writes "The City of Schenectady has decided that their laws are copyrighted, and that you cannot know them without paying for an 'exclusive license' for $200. This is not a first — Oregon has claimed publishing of laws online is a copyright violation." This case is nuanced. The city has contracted with a private company to convert and encode its laws so they can be made available on the Web for free. While the company works on this project, it considers the electronic versions of the laws its property and offers a CD version, bundled with its software, for $200. The man who requested a copy of the laws plans to appeal.

Comment Re:Illegal? (Score 1) 268

by Ghostalker474 on Tuesday July 01, 2008 @04:43AM (#24013131) Attached to: Encrypted Traffic No Longer Safe From Throttling

They'd rather blame P2P usage then admit to their shareholders they didn't do the math properly when making the rates for customers.

Submission + - Solar wind electric sail propulsion

Submitted by

Tjeerd

on Monday April 23, 2007 @03:55AM

Tjeerd writes: "The goal of sending probes anywhere in the Solar System in reasonable time has remained elusive. Finnish scientists have invented a new propulsion method which utilises the solar wind, promises high speed for small payloads and may be technically possible to build in the near future. The solar wind is a very tenuous but high speed (300-800 km/s) plasma stream blowing radially outward from the Sun. The solar wind powers the aurora and governs space weather. The average dynamic pressure (force per unit area) of the solar wind is 2 nanopascal, corresponding to 0.2 grams weight per square kilometre. Read the press release or visit the electric sailing site."

Submission + - Geeks Make Better Lovers

Submitted by on Monday April 23, 2007 @02:56AM

An anonymous reader writes: Before going to bed, I decided to hit some more websites and then this Wired article hit me back. It seems I already have some more solutions from the infinite space of answers about why my partners start to undress when I start talking about technology. Quoting: "Geeks have seen all the porn you can imagine and then some, priming them to be open to your sexual peccadilloes. They are not only less likely to be shocked by your exotic requests — they might not even realize that other people think your turn-ons are exotic."

Submission + - The Controversy Over Content: Piracy 101

Submitted by mrneutron2004 on Monday April 23, 2007 @02:41AM

mrneutron2004 writes: No amount of law or enforcement of law will eliminate the appeal of new technologies. The trick is determining where to draw the line between law and individual freedoms, so that the adaptations of new technology become accepted and normalized. Right now the line is not only blurry, but jumping dangerously close to having negative consequences for individual freedom and expression. http://www.fastsilicon.com/opinions-editorials/the -controversy-over-content-piracy-101.html?Itemid=2 7

Submission + - Why Computer RPGs Waste Your Time, Part 2

Submitted by

spidweb

on Monday April 23, 2007 @02:28AM

spidweb writes: "RPG Vault has the second part of a long-time RPG designer's rant regarding what is so terrible about the genre. This month: trash monsters, the boring identical monsters you are forced to kill again and again. From the article: "So many role-playing games fall prey to what I call Long Corridor Syndrome. At a certain point, late in the game, you can tell that the developers ran out of time, money and ideas, and all you find are long, straight corridors filled with monsters and nothing else of interest."

The article is at

http://rpgvault.ign.com/articles/782/782155p2.html "

Submission + - Prison releases felon after getting phony fax

Submitted by twigles on Monday April 23, 2007 @01:44AM

twigles writes: "Officials released a prisoner from a state facility after receiving a phony fax that ordered the man be freed, and didn't catch the mistake for nearly two weeks." Apparently even the most rudimentary steps are overlooked when technology is in play.

Submission + - What is open source hardware?

Submitted by

ptorrone

on Monday April 23, 2007 @12:28AM

ptorrone writes: "What is open source hardware? In this article MAKE magazine divides up electronic hardware into layers, each of which has different document types and licensing concerns: Hardware (mechanical) diagrams, schematics & circuit diagrams, layout diagrams, core/firmware, software/API — each layer has an example provided and links to many of the open source hardware projects currently being worked on."

Feed WoW players learn value of Windows updates (theregister.com)

From feed by registerfeed on Tuesday April 10, 2007 @07:13PM

'Vuln left me naked and penniless'

Subscribers playing World of Warcraft on Windows machines continue to find their accounts stolen more than eleven months after hackers first began targeting them using a Trojan attack, according to posts on the game's official website. The perpetrators are employing sophisticated techniques that involve hundreds of booby-trapped sites that in some cases use the ANI cursor vulnerability that Microsoft patched last week.

Feed Sun and Fujitsu to release 256-thread (M)onster (theregister.com)

From feed by registerfeed on Tuesday April 10, 2007 @07:13PM

'M' is for mainframe

Exclusive Longtime mainframe hater Sun Microsystems has borrowed big iron rhetoric to pitch its upcoming line of midrange and high-end servers built with Fujitsu.

Feed Alzheimer's Genetic Roots Explained (sciencedaily.com)

From feed by sdfeed on Tuesday April 10, 2007 @07:12PM

Scientists have long known that individuals with a certain gene are at higher risk for developing Alzheimer's disease. Now a new study helps explain why this is so. The research has uncovered a molecular mechanism that links the susceptibility gene to the process of Alzheimer's disease onset. The findings may lead to new pathways for development of Alzheimer's therapeutics.

Feed Down Syndromes, Fragile X, Linked To Faulty Brain Communication (sciencedaily.com)

From feed by sdfeed on Tuesday April 10, 2007 @07:12PM

The two most prevalent forms of genetic mental retardation, Fragile X and Down syndromes, may share a common cause, according to researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine.

Submission + - Halo 3 Beta times announced

Submitted by

Anonymous Coward

on Tuesday April 10, 2007 @07:02PM

Anonymous Coward writes: "May 16 at 5am PDT (1pm GMT), and will run until June 6, 11:59pm (June 7, 7:59am). The beta for the sequel to one of the greatest shooters of all time will allow users the first chance to try out three new maps (Snowbound, High Ground and Valhalla), cool new weaponry and vehicles for running people over, and is available to those who purchased a copy of first party title Crackdown or those fortunate enough to have secured a place via a beta lottery. The beta will be used to gather information and opinions that may be utilized by Bungie during the ongoing development of the highly anticipated title, set for release in 2007 when master Chief plans to "finish the fight" Microsoft has officially confirmed that the multiplayer beta of Halo 3 will commence worldwide via Xbox Live on May 16 at 5am PDT (1pm GMT), and will run until June 6, 11:59pm (June 7, 7:59am). Gentlemen.... welcome to flavour country."

Submission + - Can F/OSS projects be killed by dormant patents?

Submitted by skelly33 on Tuesday April 10, 2007 @06:54PM

skelly33 writes: I am working on putting together an open source project that has commercial applications but am concerned that some day some random company with a thick patent portfolio is going to see it and try to stamp it out with a cease and desist claiming that they own the concept. The trouble is that many clever concepts have been conceived but lay dormant in patents that are just waiting around for a lawsuit where the patent holder has no intent of ever turning it into a product. Is this a legitimate concern for someone who would much rather avoid investing deep into a project so as not to be brought down by some idiotic/costly lawsuit, or is there any degree of protection afforded through original research and not-for-profit development of an otherwise patented concept under the banner of "Open Source"?

Submission + - Australian ISP blacklists GMail - blames Google

Submitted by

BigLug

on Tuesday April 10, 2007 @06:44PM

BigLug writes: "The Age reports that Australia's largest ISP has blacklisted GMail. "BigPond has slammed Google's spam fighting credentials". Why? Because "Google's mail servers were blacklisted by BigPond". BigPond attempts to lay the problem at Google's feet, claiming that Google didn't act fast enough to de-list themselves after they were incorrectly listed. BigPond uses Trend Micro's anti spam solutions, but even Trend Micro think BigPond got it wrong and even "praised Google's handling of the issue". Should a service such as GMail be responsible for monitoring every ISP's blacklist for incorrect listings?"

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