I've had not one but two terrible math teachers in my schooling history. Consequently, even though my SAT scores showed a higher math aptitude, I never took calculus and basically avoided math for the remainder of my schooling, including college where I went for a degree in metalsmithing, even though the one class I showed real aptitude in was computer graphics programming. Hindsight is telling me I should have switched majors and found a tutor to overcome my lack of training.

A bad teacher should never be tolerated, and certainly not encouraged. I'd like to see Zenna Atkins theory applied to her medical practitioner, and see what sort of life lessons she gains there. But then, perhaps she has her point of view because she fits the bad teacher mold herself. Anyone know?

From what I understand the article states:

a) these devices are owned by the customer and have a hard drive with moving parts running Windows XP Home

b) the company wants to offer one-shot cleanups that they can run from a usb drive

If this is true, you definitely want to check this out: http://www.ubcd4win.com/ - this tool is designed to create bootable optical disks and also bootable USB flash drives, both to run a BartPE based Windows XP-like environment. The tool includes several virus and malware scanning utilities. It used to support Clamwin but does not currently include it, however I believe that can be added if needed. Hope that helps.

Seems to me in this case the Fed ought to get the last word in based on the longterm impact this may have on the entire country as compared to the economic impact this may have on Louisiana. However, because Louisiana still operates under Napoleanic law unlike the rest of the country, I suspect things are going to get very interesting very shortly.

I agree, I thought the title of this submission was skewed - especially after reading the rest of the article. Microsoft does not appear to be "refusing to patch rootkit infected computers".

A more accurate title would be something along the lines of: Microsoft attempts to prevent inadvertently bricking XP systems with Windows Updates

Bear in mind I'm terrible at coming up with titles. Also bear in mind I'm not a big fan of Windows.

Who can blame him? After all, it is Windows we are talking about here.

So why bother freaking out about secure passwords when we all know the average user downloads pirated movies and MP3s using Limewire, accesses porn sites regularly, syncs their infected iPods with their work desktops and engages in other similar insecure behavior.

There is no way a "secure" password is going to protect any user from their own foolishness. These people need their LOLcatz, and they're not gonna worry about whether they have working antivirus before they click OK on the pop-up banners asking them if it's alright to install yet another toolbar on their browser before granting them access.

I gave up after telling people not to use Limewire, only to have them ask me where else they could get free MP3s and movies to download.

So yeah - they should stop using secure passwords - in fact they might as well post their social security numbers and credit card information on their Facebook profile to save the ID thieves some time and effort and get it over with (I wouldn't be much surprised if this is already happening).

And no, I'm not gonna recommend a Mac or LINUX either. I gave up on trying to convince people to switch to either of those alternatives long ago. It's either too expensive or too much reading/learning. And it doesn't matter what kind of computer you use - if you're you're easily duped by drive-by downloads, you'll be equally easy to dupe using phishing and other social hacking techniques. It's not all viruses & spyware these days.

(goes back to his quiet, clean, & relatively safe corner of the 'net)

It's more important to know what is in the food you eat than how many calories you intake. As evidence I submit this Slashdot article from earlier this week: http://science.slashdot.org/story/10/03/24/2122231/High-Fructose-Corn-Syrup-Causes-Bigger-Weight-Gain-In-Rats?art_pos=49

Maybe I'm going out on a limb here, since I practically no medical schooling, but there have been suggestions by certain medical professionals (names elude me at the moment) that cancer cells could be the body's final (and potentially fatal) attempt to correct other, seemingly unrelated health issues. This would also explain why cancer can return after it has gone into remission.

If so, while this technique would stop the cancer cells from spreading, it may not address the cause of the cancer. I suppose we'll find out if/once the treatment becomes mainstream.

Same here - I never thought I'd say that I trust a Microsoft security product on my personal systems but I've steadily been making the switch across my network and I am satisfied. I've also found it capable of detecting malware that was missed by AVG during a cleanup of a friend's computer.

Maybe I'm a bit sensitive with four young daughters of my own, but I rather dislike the title "Accidental Wii Suicide" for this article. I don't suppose it could be changed to something more appropriate? I also strongly disagree with the Darwin tag. The subject is the death of a toddler, not the death of someone who should be removed from the gene pool.

I sincerely hope I'm not alone by expecting better from Slashdot.

Although due to the fact that "Arr" has been trademarked, I must now instead say "Ess"

I was bored in 11th-12th grade, and I grew tired of watching my peers and their cliques and other silly antics. College was much better by far, although it wasn't perfect by any stretch. But yeah - why not reward students for their hard work with something that will actually benefit them in the long run, as opposed to just putting them in the honor roll.

http://xkcd.com/519/ I think this pretty much sums it up for me.

Isn't this the same company that just recently claimed to have detected a bot-net running from infected Apple OSX systems?

Don't they also have a product for smart phones?

I'm waiting for them to recommend Norton Antivirus for LINUX.

This will be followed by Norton Antivirus for shoes.

To me, the additional power consumption & additional heat, not to mention the additional complexity making troubleshooting more difficult should something go wrong all contribute to my waiting for the prices to drop on the high-end cards. As we all know, it only takes about 6 months or so for something new to be released, resulting in a price drop of everything older.

I have never had more than one video card in any of my machines, and I have yet to find a need for more than one. If anything, I'm eagerly awaiting the integration of the GPU into the CPU.

The great thing about fiction is that it is a safe medium to use if you want to deliver some kernels of truth. That way, you don't have to worry about getting in trouble for giving away too much information to the general public, because most people aren't going to believe it anyway (since it's "just fiction").

I never said that I Am Legend should be taken as gospel. I do believe, however, that some scientists tend to do things because they can, but forget to ask themselves if they should.