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KDE

Submission + - Original KDE3 vs. KDE4 Memory Comparison Debunked (jarzebski.pl)

Submitted by
An anonymous reader writes: The author of the original KDE 3.5 vs KDE 4.0 memory comparison, which indicated that KDE 4.0 used less memory than the KDE 3.5 series, has come out with a more accurate benchmark. In reality, KDE 4.0 uses 110 MB more memory than KDE 3.5.8. This was no surprise to many KDE developers, who saw many mistakes in the way the original results were obtained. However, given the new composite window manager, Plasma/Oxygen bling, and numerous new features, the extra memory consumption is probably well worth it!
United States

Submission + - Hayward fault ready to produce killer quake

Submitted by scienceguy111
scienceguy111 writes: The central California Hayward fault is a "ticking time bomb" with the ability to cause massive devastation when it produces another monstrous earthquake. Working off a 140-year average cycle of creating killer earthquakes, next October is when scientists predict the next one will occur. The number of people moving to the East Bay is increasing at record rates, making possible injuries and deaths an even higher number.
Microsoft

Submission + - Windows Vista SP1 Includes More Than 300 Hot Fixes (informationweek.com)

Submitted by
mytrip
mytrip writes: "Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) has released a detailed roster of the contents of its forthcoming service pack for Windows Vista, and the list includes more than 300 hot fixes covering everything from data protection to video performance.

Microsoft marketing VP Michael Sievert told InformationWeek in Marchthat Vista was "high quality right out of the gate" and that the company would likely dribble out small updates as required via its Windows Update service.

Since then, however, users have apparently reported enough problems with Vista to force a change in Microsoft's thinking."
Security

Submission + - Icelandic teen prank calls White House (msn.com)

Submitted by
mytrip
mytrip writes: "Teen says he pretended to be Iceland's president, scheduled call with Bush.

REYKJAVIK, Iceland — A teenager says he convinced the White House he was Iceland's president and managed to schedule a call with George W. Bush but was found out before he got to talk to the president.

"My call was transferred around a few times until I got hold of Bush's secretary and managed to book a call meeting with Bush the following Monday evening," Vifill Atlason, 16, told Reuters.

Local police confirmed the National Security Unit at the national police headquarters had asked them to bring Atlason in.

Jon Bjartmarz, chief superintendent at Iceland's national police headquarters, said Icelandic police had not spoken to their U.S. counterparts about the matter. He declined to say how police were tipped off about Atlason's call.

"As far as we're concerned, there will not be any further investigation, and I don't know if the American government is taking any action because of this," he said."
Software

Submission + - A short history of Microsoft's OOXML ISO campaign (fanaticattack.com)

Submitted by
christian.einfeldt
christian.einfeldt writes: "Russell Ossendryver is the open format advocate whose open letter to the GNOME Foundation touched off a widespread debate about whether and to what extent GNOME is supporting Microsoft's drive for ISO status for its OOXML office productivity data format. Now, Ossendryver has published the first in a concise three-part series aimed at examining Microsoft's strategy in opposing ODF's rapid growth as an open international data standard. It is not news that Microsoft has vigorously lobbied to have its OOXML standard supplant ODF, the current international office productivity data format standard, such as its recent efforts to halt the adoption of ODF by the Dutch Parliament. But Ossendryver's summary gives a bird's eye overview of that history, based on his extensive involvement in those debates as a long-time member of the OpenDocument Fellowship."
KDE

Submission + - KDE takes stand on OOXML; GNOME dithers (itwire.com) 2

Submitted by sproketboy
sproketboy writes: Three cheers for the developers and management of the K Desktop Environment. They have taken a principled stand on the divisive issue of OOXML, the Microsoft Office Open XML document format. And for this the KDE folk deserve a round of applause.
The Courts

Submission + - Verizon Being Sued for GPL Infringement (internetnews.com)

Submitted by darthcamaro
darthcamaro writes: Guess who is infringing on open source code now? According to the SFLC it's none other than Verizon. They filed a law suit in New York yesterday. Today the SFLC spoke to the media to lay out its case.
From the article:
"We sent initial communications to Verizon three weeks ago," SFLC Legal Director Dan Ravicher told InternetNews.com. "They never responded. Thus, there are no negotiations underway with them. That is what forced us to file the lawsuit, because it was our only last option to get Verizon to address our clients' concerns." The SFLC is seeking an injunction against Verizon as well as damages. At this early stage, the SFLC had not yet put a figure on the amount it's seeking.
Security

Submission + - Find Out What Car Anyone Owns With Progressive.com

Submitted by I Ride A Segway
I Ride A Segway writes: Thanks to Progressive.com, all you need is a name and an address, and you can find out what car(s) that person owns. Sounds amusing at first, until you realize that what amounts to convenience for Progressive's potential customers could also be considered a rather big privacy concern for others. Innocently looking up your friends and neighbors and that guy you hated in High School is one thing; Using it to stalk politicians, celebrities, and other people in the public eye is quite another. Either for criminal intent or just plain embarassment, information as simple as that (public record not withstanding) can be easilly misused....Incidentally, Al Gore apparently still drives a hybrid. :)
Communications

Submission + - 9th Circuit Very Skeptical of NSA Surveillance (mercurynews.com)

Submitted by iluvcapra
iluvcapra writes: Yesterday before a three-judge panel of the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals, the US government argued that two class action lawsuits against the government and AT&T should be dismissed, because to litigate them in open court would cause the revelation of state secrets. The lawsuits allege that the government has installed a vast system of electronic surveillance gear at internet gateways along the US west coast to monitor all internet traffic, and that this information is monitored without a warrant, even when both endpoints are domestic. The panel was extremely skeptical of the governments argument:

"Is it the government's position that when the country is engaged in a war, that the power of the executive when it comes to wiretapping is unchecked?" asked 83-year-old Judge Harry Pregerson, one of the court's staunchest liberals, of a Bush administration lawyer. "The king can do no wrong, is that what it comes down to?"


The government was unwilling to even provide a sworn affadavit that the eavesdropping was only of foreign correspondence. If the 9th Circuit allows the lawsuits to proceed, the government will appeal to the US Supreme Court.
Google

Submission + - Google Distributing Sun Office Software (physorg.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "According to an article on PhysOrg.com, over the weekend Google and Sun began their assault on Microsoft Office's stranglehold on the market by including StarOffice as part of the Google Pack download. The two companies had announced a partnership in this regard a couple of years ago, but this is the first sign that the collaboration is bearing fruit. StarOffice normally costs $70 when purchased from Sun, but Google is giving it away free, though Sun will apparently not provide technical support for the package. In turn, Sun announced Wednesday that "Sun has also added Internet search capabilities to all of its StarOffice products," using Google."
Patents

Submission + - USPTO wants to stop bad patents from issuing (linux.com)

Submitted by Down-with-the-patents
Down-with-the-patents writes: As reported by Slashdot earlier, the US Patent and Trademark Office is collaborating with the Peer-to-Patent program to stop bad patents from issuing. Brigid Quinn, spokesperson for the USPTO explains the motivation of the USPTO to open a behind-closed-doors process to public. Groklaw's Pamela Jones admits "that when it comes to software, there is more knowledge outside of USPTO than inside it." While some of Jones' readers are stayong away away from the pilot program, to let the patent system collapse, Jones says that's a goal she understands but don't view as realistic. The project seems to doing pretty well with over a 1,000 active contributors and plans to replicate it in other Patent Offices starting with the UK Patent Office next year.

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