antdude - Slashdot User

Submission + - A Cost Analysis of Vista Content Protection (auckland.ac.nz)

Submitted by

Ant

on Tuesday October 23, 2007 @03:24PM

Ant writes: "A Cost Analysis of Windows Vista Content Protection is an article written by Peter Gutmann on digital rights managements (DRM) and side effects in Windows Vista. Its executive summary says: "Windows Vista includes an extensive reworking of core OS elements in order to provide content protection for so-called 'premium content', typically HD data from Blu-Ray and HD-DVD (high definition digital video disc) sources. Providing this protection incurs considerable costs in terms of system performance, system stability, technical support overhead, and hardware and software cost. These issues affect not only users of Vista but the entire PC/personal computer industry, since the effects of the protection measures extend to cover all hardware and software that will ever come into contact with Vista, even if it's not used directly with Vista (for example hardware in a Macintosh computer or on a Linux server). This document analyses the cost involved in Vista's content protection, and the collateral damage that this incurs throughout the computer industry." Seen in Sfranklin's /. comment."

Submission + - What bugs us on Earth gets worse in space... (go.com)

Submitted by

Ant

on Saturday October 13, 2007 @02:09PM

Ant writes: "ABC News (one print page) says space invaders have colonized the International Space Station (ISS). When astronaut Peggy Whitson moves into the orbiting laboratory today for a six-month stay, she'll have two human roommates — as well as countless ones invisible to the naked eye, from microbes that can corrode metal to germs that can cause serious infections in people. Outer space is a cold and sterile place, but spaceships are not. As the 9-year-old space station ages, it's likely to grow more micro-organisms that could pose a risk to its human residents and the station itself. Adding an extra worry, scientists have seen signs that the human immune system weakens during space trips. "Wherever man goes, microbes go," says Cheryl Nickerson of Arizona State University, who studies disease-causing micro-organisms. Most of the bugs in orbit aren't dangerous, she says, but "there's absolutely a risk ... to the crew." In a study published Tuesday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Nickerson found that salmonella bacteria turned deadlier after a few weeks in space. The bacteria rode into orbit as an experiment aboard National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)'s space shuttle Discovery in 2006... Seen on Blue's News."

Submission + - Space Age inventions you probably use. (cnn.com)

Submitted by

Ant

on Tuesday October 09, 2007 @10:05AM

Ant writes: "CNN shares ten inventions used in Space Age research that make people's life safer and more comfortable. Seen on Shacknews."

Submission + - Some like it (food) hot. (boston.com)

Submitted by

Ant

on Tuesday October 09, 2007 @08:17AM

Ant writes: "Boston.com reports that boomers' failing taste buds are shaping the future of American food. Supermarkets and restaurants, in the last few years, are practically bursting into flames with more spicey food. Seen on Blue's News."

Submission + - World moves into the ecological red. (reuters.com)

Submitted by

Ant

on Monday October 08, 2007 @08:36AM

Ant writes: "Reuters report that the world moved into "ecological overdraft" on Saturday, the point at which human consumption exceeds the ability of the earth to sustain it in any year and goes into the red, the New Economics Foundation think-tank said. Seen on Educated World."

Submission + - Hoax e-mails of naked Angelina Jolie cause 80% ... (dailymail.co.uk)

Submitted by

Ant

on Sunday October 07, 2007 @01:47AM

Ant writes: "LookitThose' DSL/Broadband Reports' security forum thread shares a Daily Mail article on how fake emails claiming to offer nude photographs of Angelina Jolie, Nicole Kidman, Natalie Portman, Milla Jovovich and pixelated videogame babe Lara Croft are behind 80% of computer viruses last month, according to experts. For, though claiming to contain shocking pictures of female celebrities, the emails, once opened, install a malicious rootkit..."

Submission + - In da Race to Buy Concert Tickets,Fans Keep Losing (nytimes.com)

Submitted by

Ant

on Saturday October 06, 2007 @04:51PM

Ant writes: "The New York Times (no log in should be required) report that some fans quietly give up and others complain to government officials about being unable to order concert and sporting event tickets online and finding out that the same tickets available somewhere else. Sometimes, these tickets are many times the face value — on secondary sellers like Stubhub.com and TicketsNow minutes after the public sale began. Seen on Blue's News."

Submission + - 5 Hotspots Where Languages Are Becoming Extinct (anthropology.net)

Submitted by

Ant

on Sunday September 30, 2007 @02:27PM

Ant writes: "Anthropology.net shares an alarming report on the rate of extinction of languages . It says, "Every 14 days a language dies. By 2100, more than half of the more than 7,000 languages spoken on Earth — many of them never yet recorded — will likely disappear, taking with them a wealth of knowledge about history, culture, the natural environment, and how the human brain works." Seen on Neatorama."

Submission + - The 10 Worst Disasters of the Last 101 Years... (msn.com)

Submitted by

Ant

on Sunday September 23, 2007 @05:35PM

Ant writes: "MSN Lifestyle (ten pages; with photographs) briefly re-examines some of the most catastrophic events Mother Nature has ever wrought upon American soil-the tragedy that transpired, the heroes who survived, the lessons people learned from their aftermath. It is a selective list offering a variety of events that ultimately altered the future of weather forecasting and disaster response. Seen on Blue's News."

Submission + - Do Not Call listings to expire in 2008. (yahoo.com)

Submitted by

Ant

on Friday September 21, 2007 @10:53AM

Ant writes: "Yahoo! News report that the cherished dinner hour void of telemarketers could vanish next year for millions of people when phone numbers begin dropping off the national/United States (U.S.)'s Do Not Call list. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which oversees the list, says there is a simple fix. But some lawmakers think it is a hassle to expect people to re-register their phone numbers every five years. Numbers placed on the registry, begun in June 2003, are valid for five years. For the millions of people who signed onto the list in its early days, their numbers will automatically drop off beginning next June if they do not enroll again... Seen on Blue's News."

Submission + - Top 10 Most Influential AI Games (aigamedev.com)

Submitted by

Ant

on Thursday September 20, 2007 @09:34PM

Ant writes: "AiGameDev lists ten of the most influential artificial intelligent (AI) games of all time. They are video and computer games that have used artificial intelligence in innovative ways to critical acclaim, and some of them that have managed to integrate cutting-edge AI technology too... Seen on Blue's News."

Submission + - Older Men + Younger Women = Longer Lifespan (go.com) 1

Submitted by

Ant

on Thursday September 20, 2007 @05:52AM

Ant writes: "According to this three page ABC News story, scientists say older men coupling with younger women increased human lifespan. Scientists think they've found one of the reasons why humans defy evolution theory and live well beyond their reproductive life. It's all those old guys latching on to younger women and passing their good genes down to their kids... Seen on Shacknews."

Submission + - Controversial Games (yahoo.com)

Submitted by

Ant

on Thursday September 20, 2007 @04:54AM

Ant writes: "Yahoo! Video Games says that from the very beginning, video gaming has managed to stir up controversy... Regardless of whether or not you happen to believe that video games are a valid form of artistic expression, you can't argue with their ability to tick people off. And over the past 15 years, they've gotten really, really good at doing just that. This article looks at some of gaming's most controversial games with screen shots and videos. Seen on Blue's News. Where is Mortal Kombat?"

Submission + - Americans getting lax about clean hands? (reuters.com)

Submitted by

Ant

on Thursday September 20, 2007 @03:15AM

Ant writes: "This Reuters news article reports that Americans' hands are getting dirtier according to United States/U.S. researchers on Monday. They said 77 percent of more than 6,000 men and women washed their hands in public restrooms — a 6 percent decline compared with a similar study in 2005. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, handwashing in the single-most important prevention step for reducing disease transmission... Seen on Blue's News."

Submission + - Attacking Multicore CPUs. (theregister.co.uk)

Submitted by

Ant

on Sunday September 16, 2007 @04:21AM

Ant writes: "The Register reports that the world of current multi-core central processing units (CPUs) just entered is facing a serious threat. A security researcher at Cambridge disclosed a new class of vulnerabilities that takes advantage of concurrency to bypass security protections such as antivirus software The attack is based on the assumption that the software that interacts with the kernel can be used without interference. The researcher, Robert Watson, showed that a careful written exploit can attack in the little timeframe when this happens, and literally change the "words" that they are exchanging. Even if some of these dark aspects of concurrency were already known, Watson proved that real attacks can be developed, and showed that developers have to fix their code. Fast... Seen in a Broadband/DSL Reports' security forum thread."

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