Submission + - Google stock price hits $666 for the first time (yahoo.com)
Anonymous Coward writes: "Google's stock price hit $666 for the first time today. Classic evil company behavior."
Submission + - ECMAScript 4 Overview Released (ecmascript.org)
mad.frog writes: "The ECMA Committee that has been working on the next revision of ECMAScript (aka JavaScript, aka JScript) has released an overview paper describing ECMAScript 4 as the language currently stands. They're expecting the standard to be finished in October 2008.
The paper is available at http://www.ecmascript.org/es4/spec/overview.pdf.
This paper is not a spec, it is *just* a detailed overview. Some features may be cut, others may be changed, and numerous details remain to be worked out, but by and large this is what TG1 expects the language to look like."
Submission + - Music Sharing Site Oink Shut Down (mtv.com)
chancie writes: "The music file sharing website Oink has been shut down pending a criminal investigation. Currently on the site there is a threat to those who used Oink: "A criminal investigation continues into the identities and activities of the site's
users". The site boasts the leaking of over 60 major pre-release albums."
Submission + - EU to adopt equivalent of US H1-B visa
An anonymous reader writes: The BBC reports that the European Union is poised to adopt a new type of visa meant to ease immigration of skilled workers within the next few years. At the moment, 50% of skilled migrants worldwide go to the US. Only 5% go to Europe. It is hoped that these "blue cards", similar to the American "green card" work visas, will change these statistics and attract the technology and other skilled workers that the EU desperately needs.
Submission + - Verisign to sell DNS root server lookup data?
An anonymous reader writes: According to this article at Domain Name News, Verisign is considering selling partial access to DNS root server lookup data. The data would be made available to registrars, who in turn could use it for traffic tasting non-existent domains entered by any internet user.
Submission + - Turbolinux, Microsoft patent cross-licensing (eweek.com)
willdavid writes: "By Peter Galli (eWeek):
The agreement is the first between Microsoft and a Linux server and desktop platform distributor in Asia.
Linux vendor Turbolinux is expanding its relationship with Microsoft with a patent cross-licensing agreement with the software maker.
The deal, which was announced by the two companies Oct. 22, is the first between Microsoft and a Linux server and desktop platform distributor in Asia. Turbolinux is headquartered in Tokyo.
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,2204865,00.asp"
Submission + - OiNK is taken down by Interpol, admin arrested 2
QuietR10t writes: Scott Gilbertson from Wired raises an interesting point: "However, there is one interesting quote in the IFPI's press release. Jeremy Banks, head of the IFPI's Internet Anti-Piracy Unit, says in the press release: "OiNK was central to the illegal distribution of pre-release music online. This was not a case of friends sharing music for pleasure. This was a worldwide network that got hold of music they did not own the rights to and posted it online." (emphasis mine)
The IFPI seems to be making a distinction of scale between professional piracy groups and friends sharing files, even if, so far as I know, copyright laws in Britain (and the U.S.) make no such distinctions."
http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2007/10/oink-is-the-lat.html
There are also rumors of investigation into users, but with 180k users I'm not sure they would know where to start.
The IFPI seems to be making a distinction of scale between professional piracy groups and friends sharing files, even if, so far as I know, copyright laws in Britain (and the U.S.) make no such distinctions."
http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2007/10/oink-is-the-lat.html
There are also rumors of investigation into users, but with 180k users I'm not sure they would know where to start.
Submission + - Microsoft Pledges Not To Sue Turbolinux Users (informationweek.com)
mytrip writes: "Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) said it will not pursue any legal action against Linux users who use a server distribution of the open-source operating system offered by Turbolinux.
The pledge is part of a "broad collaboration agreement" that Microsoft on Monday said it has struck with Turbolinux, which specializes in distributing open-source software in emerging markets like China, Japan, and India.
"The agreement will provide intellectual property assurance for Turbolinux customers who purchase Turbolinux Server," Microsoft said in a statement."
The pledge is part of a "broad collaboration agreement" that Microsoft on Monday said it has struck with Turbolinux, which specializes in distributing open-source software in emerging markets like China, Japan, and India.
"The agreement will provide intellectual property assurance for Turbolinux customers who purchase Turbolinux Server," Microsoft said in a statement."
Submission + - Politics Shorting Out the Power Grid? (eweek.com)
eweekhickins writes: Electric plants were built to be reliable, available, and efficient; not necessarily to be secure. That explains the past, but not the present. So why are electric utilities so vulnerable to a cyberattack — vulnerable enough to put national security at risk? First and foremost, you'd think utilities would treat these systems with at least as much security as you treat your mainstream IT systems. But according to security expert Joe Weiss, that's exactly what they've refused to do. "The bottom line is that the utilities simply don't want to do very much, and, consequently, what they've done is written a standard that provides all sorts of exemptions and exceptions and ambiguousness so they can do as little of what they consider necessary and not have to do anything."
And they can get away with this because? Congressional gridlock you say? Imagine the gridlock when all the traffic lights go out in Washington.
Submission + - Microsoft Not Refunding Points When XBOX360 Dies (achieve360points.com) 4
DonnarsHmr writes: "After spending 26 hours, 55 minutes on the phone with 800-4MY-XBOX and 33 hours, 55 minutes trying the various fixes suggested by customer service, being hung up on multiple times by a CSR, and having a note attached to his file instructing CSRs to blow him off without resolving the issue, Speaker Ender finds out Microsoft will not be transferring his 25,600 ($319.87 worth) XBOX Live points to his new XBOX after his old one died. In fact, Microsoft will not be doing any refunds of transfers when an XBOX dies and has to be replaced.
$320 of paid for content? Stolen by Microsoft."
$320 of paid for content? Stolen by Microsoft."
Submission + - Universal Edition Shuts down Music Library
An anonymous reader writes: The International Musical Score Library Project, a canadian based project running for a few years now, making musical scores freely available to the public has been forced to shutdown under threat (pdf) of legal action from Universal Edition.
Submission + - Stolen unencrypted laptop contains 159,000 records (computerworld.com) 1
DLa Voie writes: "I received a letter from Administaff yesterday stating my data (SSN and other personally identifiable information) was one of the 159,000 records contained on the unencrypted laptop. The laptop computer, which was reported missing on Oct. 3, contained data that was being compiled "in response to a governmental reporting requirement", according to Administaff. How long will it be before this negligence stops, and what type of action do you suggest when this reoccurring scenario happens?"
Submission + - Military contractor censors anti-war candidate (huffingtonpost.com) 1
James in Chicago writes: NBC as subsidiary of General Electric, is hosting a debate at Drexel University October 30th. They have set arbitrary funding requirements such that they exclude Senator Mike Gravel from the debates. Whether or not you agree with Gravel's politics he has been the most outspoken candidate concerning the war and the military-industrial-complex. GE on the other hand has over 2 billion dollars worth outstanding military contracts. When military contractors such as GE get to decide which political candidates are heard what does that mean for this Democracy?
Submission + - Endgame for Europe's Microsoft Case (spiegel.de)
YaRoman writes: "The European Commission finally gets the software giant to agree to its 2004 interoperability ruling. But the open-source sector isn't celebrating quite yet.
On Sept. 17, the day that the European Commission won its sweeping court victory (more...)against Microsoft, Neelie Kroes, Europe's tough competition cop, was asked when she would like Microsoft to comply in full with the EC's 2004 antitrust decision. "The sooner the better," was her terse reply. "Let them start this afternoon."
It took several more weeks of negotiations, including breaking bread with Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer in a small restaurant near Kroes' hometown of Rotterdam and almost daily follow-up phone calls with him, before she finally got her way. On Oct. 22, a beaming Kroes announced closure to Europe's seven-year-long battle with the U.S. software giant. Microsoft, she explained, agreed to three substantial changes in its business practices that will bring it into compliance with the EC's 2004 ruling. She called the agreement "a victory for consumers."
http://www.spiegel.de/international/business/0,1518,512988,00.html"
Submission + - P2P Source Arrested, OiNK.cd Raided, Shut Down (torrentfreak.com)
eldavojohn writes: "A British man was arrested who was allegedly the source of a distribution supply chain for leaking albums & movies to file sharers. He operated OiNK which was by invite only and would post files to be distributed which would then show up hours later further down the supply chain on other file sharing sites. This scheme stretched across many nations and is the result of a two year investigation by the IFPI. They hope that by infiltrating these layers of abstraction to the source, they can stop the early leaking of media."
