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Politics

Submission + - Portugal to turn Creative Commons illegal? (blogspot.com)

Submitted by
Mind Booster Noori
Mind Booster Noori writes: "Today the Portuguese Ministry of Culture made a two hours and a half long presentation and debate of their new law proposal regarding private copies. During the event, with the proposal's text presented in my hands and the debate that followed, the Socialist party (which is on the government at the moment) presented their vision where Creative Commons harm Culture, and in this law proposal they intend to turn them illegal."
Government

Submission + - DOJ: FBI Too Focused On Child Porn (itworld.com) 1

Submitted by
itwbennett
itwbennett writes: "The Department of Justice has issued a scathing report [PDF] on the ineffectiveness of the FBI in investigating and countering cyber attacks. The shortcomings are partly attributed to lack of training and lack of communication, but the biggest issue is the allocation of effort. From the report:

Overall, we determined that in FY 2009 the FBI used 19 percent of its cyber agents on national security intrusion investigations, 31 percent to address criminal-based intrusions, and 41 percent to investigate online child pornography matters.

"

Comment MS Protection; Not an open source slam (Score 1) 566

by Kurusuki (#35232090) Attached to: Microsoft Bans Open Source From the Windows Market
It's not saying Open Source is banned. The idea of open source does not make something free to distribute or make derivative works. The clauses copied in other comments are simply license requirements which cannot be used in licenses intended to be used in software distributed on Microsoft's network. Think of it this way, you can open your source; you can't require source distribution in your license, you can't allow derivative works to be created of your software, and you can't allow redistribution at no cost. These are clearly protecting Microsoft's interests as a marketplace. If someone were to purchase your software off their marketplace, and the licenses allowed free redistribution, nothing would prevent that individual from then giving away the 'app' to all his or her friends for free. If it was licensed for derivative works the individual could make a minor change and freely distribute the derivative work. The source code clause has me a bit confounded, but I believe it may be to mitigate risks and liability for Microsoft.

This legalese would not limit an app author from releasing the source, on their own website for example. Lastly, remember open source does not implicitly mean free. See Unix.
Education

Submission + - iPhone App Raises Qs of Who Owns Student creations (chronicle.com) 1

Submitted by alphadogg
alphadogg writes: An iPhone app designed by a team of students for a contest at the University of Missouri at Columbia has helped lead the institution to rewrite its intellectual-property policies.

Members of the student competition, hosted by the Reynolds Journalism Institute at the Missouri School of Journalism, had been informed that the university might assert a partial or complete claim to the products that the students were creating. That led some students to drop out, said Anthony Brown, then an undergraduate in the department of journalism.

They argued that student inventions, even if fostered to some degree by faculty mentors, stood apart from the work done by faculty members using university resources.

Leaders of the journalism department signed letters in support of the students’ case. “Today’s students have a skill sets that simply were not reflected in the old intellectual-property rules,” said Keith Politte, manager of the Technology Testing Center at Reynolds Journalism Institute and one of the creators of the competition in which Mr. Brown was involved.
Google

Submission + - Bing Is Cheating, Copying Google Search Results (searchengineland.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Google has run a sting operation that it says proves Bing has been watching what people search for on Google, the sites they select from Google’s results, then uses that information to improve Bing’s own search listings. Bing doesn’t deny this.

Submission + - John Draper (Cap'n Crunch) benefit (jetcityorange.com)

Submitted by jetcityorange
jetcityorange writes: Charity auction for John Draper (Cap'n Crunch) of an original Cap'n Crunch whistle from the cereal box *and* a copy of the June 72 issue of Ramparts with the article on how to make a black box. All proceeds go directly to John Draper to help him after his recent surgery.

Phone phreaks unite! An elder needs our help!

www.JetCityOrange.com/john-draper/

Jerry Whiting
JetCityOrange / Seattle
Security

Submission + - The American Traveler Dignity Act (house.gov)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Rep. Ron Paul has introduced the American Traveler Dignity Act. As he explains it, 'My legislation is simple. It establishes that airport security screeners are not immune from any US law regarding physical contact with another person, making images of another person, or causing physical harm through the use of radiation-emitting machinery on another person. It means they are subject to the same laws as the rest of us. Imagine if the political elites in our country were forced to endure the same conditions at the airport as business travelers, families, senior citizens, and the rest of us. Perhaps this problem could be quickly resolved if every cabinet secretary, every member of Congress, and every department head in the Obama administration were forced to submit to the same degrading screening process as the people who pay their salaries.' There's also video of the introduction of this bill and you can write your representatives if you want to let them know how you feel about this issue.
The Internet

Submission + - 16-Bit ALU Computer Made in MineCraft (joystiq.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Joystiq.com reports: "Sure, lots of players are building memories and geek tributes in the incredibly popular indie sandbox game Minecraft, but here's something actually functional: a working 16-bit ALU (arithmetic logic unit) designed entirely in the game. The "wires" are made from Redstone, a unit in the game that can carry a fiery charge. So to calculate numbers, creator "theinternetftw" just lights torches representing binary numbers on one end, and then waits to see which torches (representing binary digits) light up on the other; giving him the mathematical answer he's looking for. Crazy? Yes. Nerdy? Very. Awesome? Indeed."
Privacy

Submission + - Does AT&T Deserve The Same Privacy Rights As Y (techdirt.com) 1

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: The Supreme Court has agreed to hear an important case to determine whether or not AT&T deserves "personal privacy" rights. The company claimed that the FCC should not be allowed to distribute (under a Freedom of Information Act request) data it had collected concerning possible fraud and overbilling related to the e-rate program. The FCC argued that the information should be made public and that companies had no individual right to "personal privacy," the way individuals do. As it stands right now, the appeals court found that companies like AT&T do deserve personal privacy rights, and now the Supreme Court will take up that question as well. Given the results of earlier "corporation rights" cases, such as Citizens United, at some point you wonder if the Supreme Court will also give companies the right to vote directly.
Windows

Submission + - HowTo: Windows 95 on iPad (techarena.eu)

Submitted by dzhorov
dzhorov writes: Ever felt bored of your iPad? Fear not, in this HowTo video is described how you can install Windows 95 on your iPad device...

Submission + - When naming your pokemon goes too far! (rarityguide.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: These 2 kids trade pokemon, but one of them is not satisfied with its name and wants to trade back. Hilarious fight ensues. This forum fight goes on for 6 (!!) pages until and admin notices and closes the thread. Fascinating read to learn how small kids fight about an apparently trivial issue like a pokemon's name.

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It's a naive, domestic operating system without any breeding, but I think you'll be amused by its presumption.

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