Submission + - 15 things you didn't know about Google
typedo writes: Think you know everything about Google.Wait a second and check this out.
http://bloggerwhale.blogspot.com/2007/03/10-things -you-didnt-know-about-google.html
Submission + - Most impressive game AI?
togelius writes: "I have the feeling that when developers make the effort to put really sophisticated AI into a game, gamers frequently just don't notice (see e.g. Forza). Conversely, games that are lauded for their fantastic AI are sometimes based on very simple algorithms (e.g. Halo 1). For someone who wants to apply AI to games, it is very interesting to know what AI is really appreciated. So, what is the most impressive game AI you have come across? Have you ever encountered a situation where it really felt like the computer-controlled opponents were really thinking, that there were "someone in there"?"
Submission + - Duke Nukem Forever: What Went Wrong
Dr. Eggman writes: YouGamers has a 5 page interview with 3DRelms' Scott Miller, which focuses on what went wrong in developing Duke Nukem Forever. Along with Miller's confession comes conformation of Prey 2. Primarily, a perfectionist attitude is blamed for the 10+ year development.
...When it's done.
Perfection is not possible — that's the biggest lesson we've learned. No game is perfect. Well, maybe Tetris. ;-)
But there finally appears to be a light at the end of the tunnel; appologies have been made, realistic goals are set, and a screenshot has been dropped. We won't see Duke Nukem Forever this year, but we may just get a new in-game trailer......When it's done.
Submission + - Apple - Repair All or Nothing
Alan Hatcher writes: "Is the experience detailed by this blogger common with Apple? Do they usually refuse to do partial fixes or is this a problem with an employee at Apple?"
Submission + - AOL: The biggest Wi-Fi privacy invader ever?
PetManimal writes: "Preston Gralla points to a project being carried out by Skyhook Wireless, an AOL business partner, to build a private database of 16 million Wi-Fi routers throughout the U.S. and Canada, including network name and precise location. Skyhook has been gathering the data by driving trucks with Wi-Fi and GPS gear up and down streets in 2,500 cities and towns in North America. The data is apparently being gathered to support the AIM "Near Me" plugin which will show potential instant messaging buddies in your vicinity, but Gralla sees a more sinister side of the Skyhook project:
"... Who's to say that they're only gathering basic information about your router? Will they also gather whether it uses encryption or not? Will they grab other information as well? One thing is very clear: Skyhook Wireless isn't spending all this money just so it can support an AOL plug-in. Its ultimate goal, it says on its Web site, "is to expand the market for Location-Based Services (LBS) by making precise location information accessible to users and application providers." In other words, the data will be made available to the highest bidder.
Submission + - RIAA Adds More Colleges to Hit List
NewYorkCountryLawyer writes: "The RIAA has sent 405 more blackmail letters, adding to its hitlist an additional 23 universities, including Boston University (50 pre-litigation settlement letters), Columbia University (20), Dartmouth College (11), DePaul University (18), Drexel University (20), Ferris State University (17), Ithaca College(20), Purdue University (38), University of California — Berkeley (19), University of California — Los Angeles (21), University of California — Santa Cruz (17), University of Maine system (27), University of Nebraska — Lincoln (25), University of Wisconsin system (66, including the following individual campuses: Eau Claire, Madison, Milwaukee, Parkside, Platteville, Stevens Point, Stout, and Whitewater), Vanderbilt University (20), and Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University (16). This follows on the heels of the offensive it launched last month targeting 400 students at 13 institutions."
Submission + - Bill Gates Wants More Cheap Labor
SuhlScroll writes: "Looks like Uncle Bill was down in Meh-hee-co running his mouth about how the U.S. should allow more "high-skilled immigration" (read: "Give me cheaper labor, I don't have enough money now!!"):
http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?typ e=worldNews&storyid=2007-03-21T055743Z_01_N2024750 7_RTRUKOC_0_US-MEXICO-MICROSOFT-IMMIGRATION.xml&sr c=rss&rpc=22
Apparently Bill and Microsoft are trying this political tact yet again so that they don't have to go through the "rebound" phase of the 2000 dot-com crash. They must be used to not paying much for programming help since The Bust, and apparently they don't want to experience the free market effects (i.e., having to pay higher salaries and compensation) of the increasing IT labor demand without watering it down with cheap foreign labor to help their bottom line. Does this guy have NO shame???"
Submission + - First Vista Virus?
gubby writes: "For those of you feeling adventurous, I happened upon a javascript virus at zeenews.com today which bypasses IE7 safegaurds, Windows OneCare and erases the MBR as far as I can tell. Symantec doesn't have it listed yet and it appears to work just as well with XP. Any further details are appreciated as I am at work and cannot pursue this right now."
Submission + - ReactOS Internals
An anonymous reader writes: NewsForge and Neowin have picked up on a talk that ReactOS lead kernel developer Alex Ionescu gave about the internals of ReactOS. In his talk, Ionescu explains the similarities between ReactOS and Windows. and how ReactOS is close to being API compatible with Windows Server 2003. How long will Microsoft allow ReactOS to go unchecked?
Submission + - Another example of RIAA legal incompetence
UnknowingFool writes: "In another move of legal brillance, the RIAA asked for a default judgement on January 25th in the case of Atlantic vs Boggs "on the ground that Defendant has failed to appear or otherwise respond to the Complaint . . ." The court denied the motion because the defendant did appear before the court a month earlier on December 20. What makes the motion appear so boneheaded is that not that the RIAA lawyers seemingly forgot that the defendant appeared, it is that defendant, representing himself at the time, appeared in person before the court while the RIAA phoned in, a move that the court admonished. The transcript seems to show that judge is sympathetic to the defendant in the case.
"The Court: You're not here looking at Mr. Boggs, but I doubt seriously he's doing this. . . these titles don't seem to go along with Mr. Boggs persona."
Submission + - UPS Cancellation Impacts Airbus Program
Good writes: The Airbus superjumbo program suffered a major new setback Friday as UPS Inc. said it would cancel its order for 10 A380s, leaving the aircraft maker with an empty order book for the cargo version of its much-delayed flagship.
The move comes just a week after UPS, the world's largest shipping carrier, said it had agreed with Airbus to postpone its first freighter delivery until 2012 — three years later than originally promised
Journal Journal: BBC Says Don't Upgrade to Vista.
Tim Weber, BBC Business editor, described his Vista upgrade ordeal and warns users not to do it. The Vista Upgrade Advisor underestimated what he needed, it took him more than three hours, cost more than $200 in new parts, broke his web cam and pocket PC and left him with an unstable system. The vendors tell him there will be no drivers and that he should have bought new devices long ago. He summarizes the end result:
