Saint - Slashdot User

Submission + - 60% of Facebook Users Consider Leaving Over Privac (net-security.org)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 19, 2010 @08:21AM

An anonymous reader writes: Will changes to Facebook's privacy settings be enough to address user concerns? A poll of 1588 Facebook users conducted by Sophos has revealed the extent of member concerns over the popular social network's privacy settings. The online survey shows that almost two thirds of Facebook users are considering leaving, with 16% of those polled claiming to have already stopped using Facebook as a result of inadequate control over their data.

Submission + - First Anarchist's Cookbook Convictions (telegraph.co.uk)

Submitted by analysethis on Friday May 14, 2010 @10:59AM

analysethis writes: In the UK last month the author/compiler of the well-known-in-internet-circles 'terrorist handbook' pleaded guilty to seven counts of collecting information that could have been used to prepare or commit acts of terrorism, with a maximum jail term of 10 years. Today the first people caught with downloaded copies have been put behind bars — a white supremacist father and son pairing getting 10 & 2 years respectively, convicted of three counts of possessing material useful for acts of terror. How many will be emptying their recycle bins after this conviction?

As of writing, the book is still freely available on Amazon.com to buy.

Submission + - Are Germany and France Pulling Out of The Euro? (socyberty.com)

Submitted by mygoditsfullofdoom on Friday May 14, 2010 @10:39AM

mygoditsfullofdoom writes: http://socyberty.com/economics/are-germany-and-france-pulling-out-of-the-euro/

Submission + - SketchUp Helps Community Build School in Guatemala

Submitted by

Peace Corps Online

on Friday May 14, 2010 @10:33AM

Peace Corps Online writes: "Jim Fanjoy, an architect in the Peace Corps, has been using Google SketchUp for a school project in Guatemala using the models to help communicate with members of his team and to help bridge the language barrier between his design group and the local work force because the renderings SketchUp produces are easily understandable by laypeople. "In the US, we've spent centuries formalizing a system of presenting design data, and everyone in the construction industry has been trained to read plans, sections, and elevations," says Fanjoy. "In the third world, though, most construction is done by semi-literate craftsmen with a good intuitive sense of what works, but no experience with drawings." Fanjoy decided to present the entire set of drawings in a non-traditional way that could be understood by the work crew using axonometric and three-point projections, carefully placed section cuts, and a lot of layers to show how the building would look during different phases of construction. "Since SketchUp can be found in almost any design office, it also makes a good communication medium between consultants," says Fanjoy. "I emailed my SketchUp model to an engineer in the US, to get his feedback on a few structural issues." Fanjoy has worked closely with the community to determine their needs, and regularly checks on the construction to make everything is being done properly. "Watching the Director of the school unloading building materials from the truck, the students (boys and girls) with their mothers carrying heavy building materials from the truck to the warehouse, and fathers digging the foundation, one sees that this school is not a hand-out, but a true partnership between the community and Computers for Guatemala.""

Submission + - Just a Flesh Wound: BP chief's upper lip is stiff (wordpress.com)

Submitted by looncanada on Friday May 14, 2010 @10:08AM

looncanada writes: With his company's stock price plummeting and the projected damages against BP estimated in the billions, and with 5,000 gallons of the "Texas tea" still flowing into the Gulf of Mexico, BP chief Tony Hayward told the Times of London that it's really no biggee and that, like NASA and the Apollo 13 mission, the strong shall survive.

Submission + - Adobe: We Haven’t Open Sourced Flash -- Yet (allthingsd.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward on Friday May 14, 2010 @10:00AM

An anonymous reader writes: Digital Daily’s posted a very interesting interview with Adobe co-founder Chuck Geschke. The bulk of it focuses on the company’s recent spat with Apple, but there’s some discussion of open standards as well. At one point, the interviewer asks Geschke why Flash isn’t an open standard overseen by an open-standards body. Geschke’s reply: “No, we haven’t put Flash out to a standards body yet as we have with PDF and Postscript. But I wouldn’t be shocked if we do someday when it makes sense.”

Submission + - Diaspora – Open Source Social Network (gizmag.com)

Submitted by The Installer on Friday May 14, 2010 @09:28AM

The Installer writes: In what is quickly shaping up as the David versus Goliath fight to watch, four students from NYU’s Courant Institute are looking to take on social networking behemoth Facebook with Disapora – a distributed, open source social network. They aim to address the privacy concerns that has put Facebook under fire by giving users complete control of their details and content and who they share it with. Through the use of a personal web server called a Diaspora “seed”, users will be able to securely share information, pictures, video and more.

To cut out the middleman, Diaspora will be a distributed network where separate computers connect to each other directly, instead of relying on a central hub to relay information. Since each computer — or “seed” — is owned and hosted by the user, they have total control over what information is shared and with whom. GPG encryption will also ensure that no matter what kind of content is being shared, it can be done so privately and securely. This is sure to appeal to Facebook users concerned about what Facebook does with the personal information stored on its servers.

And making the move to Disapora won’t mean saying goodbye to all your Facebook friends because it will aggregate content from all your existing social networking services including Facebook, Twitter and Flickr. The Diaspora team says their software will actually make those services better as it will allow users greater control over their data. For example, a user’s seed can be used to automatically generate a tweet from a caption and link when uploading an image to Flickr.

Submission + - NIST Releases Handbook of Mathematical Functions

Submitted by Anonymous Coward on Friday May 14, 2010 @08:37AM

An anonymous reader writes: NIST announced the publishing of NIST Handbook of Mathematical Functions reference text (967pp), also available in digital form at the Digital Library of Mathematical Functions. Access with a MathML enabled browser (Firefox or IE+plugin) to view equations as scalable text rather than bitmaps; the 3D graphs can also be viewed with a VRML plugin for local rotating / zooming.

Submission + - The Holy Grail Of Infinitely Variable Transmission (gizmag.com)

Submitted by ElectricSteve on Friday May 14, 2010 @07:36AM

ElectricSteve writes: Ready for a bit of a mental mechanical challenge? Try your hand at understanding how the D-Drive works. Steve Durnin's ingenious new gearbox design is infinitely variable — that is, with your motor running at a constant speed, the D-Drive transmission can smoothly transition from top gear all the way through neutral and into reverse. It doesn't need a clutch, it doesn't use any friction drive components, and the power is always transmitted through strong, reliable gear teeth. In fact, it's a potential revolution in transmission technology — it could be pretty much the holy grail of gearboxes... if only it wasn't so diabolically hard to explain.

Submission + - More details on Facebook's new security features (skunkpost.com)

Submitted by crimeandpunishment on Friday May 14, 2010 @06:03AM

crimeandpunishment writes: The Associated Press details the new security features Facebook is rolling out in the wake of the heated criticism it's receiving over the way it handles its users' privacy. They include: asking to be notified if your account is accessed from a computer or mobile device you haven't used before, roadblocks when there's unusual activity such as simultaneous log-ins from opposite sides of the planet, and a feature similar to what Google offers Gmail users....where you can check where the latest log-ins have come from. Some of the new features are out already, while others are still being tested.

Submission + - Acer to launch Chrome OS netbook next month (pcpro.co.uk)

Submitted by Barence on Friday May 14, 2010 @04:51AM

Barence writes: Acer is preparing to launch devices based on Google's Chrome OS at next month's Computex trade show, according to reports. Multiple sources have apparently told VentureBeat that the company will show off devices at the Taipei show at the beginning of June. It doesn't specify what the devices are, although given that Chrome OS is primarily designed for low-powered laptops and Acer's status as the world's second biggest PC maker, it seems inconceivable that the devices won't be netbooks. Meanwhile, Google is considering implementing a Coverflow interface into Chrome OS. One design adheres fairly closely to Apple's template, and allows users to flip through applications and web pages with "hotkeys and swiping gestures". Favicons will be displayed beneath the pages, allowing users to click these and head straight to the application.

Submission + - First Look: Fedora 13 Goddard (zdnet.com.au)

Submitted by engochick on Friday May 14, 2010 @01:25AM

engochick writes: Chris Duckett from ZDNet's been at it again, installing the pre-release of Fedora 13's Goddard distribution ahead of its release later in the month. Don't judge it by the first ugly image!

Submission + - iPad is Destroying Netbook Sales

Submitted by

Hugh Pickens

on Thursday May 06, 2010 @11:32AM

Hugh Pickens writes: "Fortune magazine reports that sales growth of low-cost, low-powered netbooks peaked last summer at an astonishing 641% year-over-year growth rate but netbook sales fell off a cliff in January and shrank again in April — collateral damage, according to Morgan Stanley's Katy Huberty, from the January introduction and April launch of the iPad. In support of Huberty's theory, she offers a Morgan Stanley/Alphawise survey conducted in March that found that 44% of US consumers who were planning to buy an iPad said that they were buying it instead of a netbook or notebook computer. In related news, Apple announced that it sold its one millionth iPad last week, just 28 days after its introduction on April 3. “One million iPads in 28 days—that’s less than half of the 74 days it took to achieve this milestone with iPhone,” says Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Demand continues to exceed supply and we’re working hard to get this magical product into the hands of even more customers.”"

Comment Awful Story + great effects = Blockbuster (Score 5, Insightful) 782

by Saint on Monday January 04, 2010 @10:51AM (#30640576) Attached to: <em>Avatar</em> Soars Into $1-Billion Territory

I feel as though I am the only one not drinking from the cool-aid on this one. The story line, apart from the apparently necessary political message, is nothing more than a rehash of a million other stories. From the noble savage to the walking armor suit so reminiscent of the suit that worn in the Aliens finale by Sigourney Weaver, this story was a soup of elements found in many other stories and movies. Were this story presented as a book, without James Cameron's name, it would have been rejected outright.

The only creative elements that exist in this movie were the special effects and associated artistry, which made the movie worth watching. They were outstanding.

Finally, why do entertainers continue to feel that they have to present their beliefs within a movie. If I want to be preached at or listen to political messages, I will go to church or read a newspaper/book. I do not want to see it in movies or hear it at concerts.

Blizzard Offers Look Inside WoW At GDC 188

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday September 18, 2009 @01:01PM from the belly-of-the-beast dept.

Yesterday morning at GDC Austin, Blizzard's J. Allen Brack and Frank Pearce took to the stage to finally give a peek inside the inner workings of World of Warcraft. Tipping the scales at around 4,600 people utilizing 20,000 computer systems and 1.3 petabytes of storage, Blizzard has created a raging behemoth. The Online Network services group alone has "data centers from Texas to Seoul, and monitor over 13,250 server blades, 75,000 cpu cores, and 112.5 terabytes of blade RAM. [Pearce] points out the picture of the GNOC (Global Network Operations Center) in their slideshow, a data core that even has televisions tuned to the weather stations. They use those to ensure that conditions of the data center are up to their standards; with only a staff of 68 people they ensure connectivity across the globe for the numerous WoW servers."

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