Submission + - Is Google too smart for its own good?
An anonymous reader writes: Google's famous for hiring the best and the brightest, but when they get bored, they're bound to create the son-of-Google, warns Fortune's Jeffrey O'Brien. (The whole story.)
Submission + - Are Wiis Built to Be Thrown?
MaryAlan writes: I have a question for the Slashdot Nation. We keep hearing stories about people destroying their HD TVs with thrown Wiimotes, about shattered displays and broken wrist straps, but we don't really hear about the survival rate of the Wiimotes themselves very often. Does it survive? One of the editors over at About.com recently threw his Wiimote over 17 feet and at high speeds into a wall during a game of Bowling, only to have it work again without so much as a scratch. Another friend told me he'd destroyed his Wiimote by accidentally hitting the wall with it while playing tennis. So it raises the question of how much Nintendo designed these things to survive abuse — so here's the question: Was the Wiimote designed for throwing? Of the people that have thrown the Wiimote (I know you're out there), have you found it to be ok afterwards, or are people finding that the Wiimote is flimsy and easily broken? Besides the likelihood of destroying something valuable or accidentally pegging a loved one in the head, are the Wiimotes durable?
Submission + - NZ gets iTunes, at last!
b.rudge writes: "Apple iTunes has opened it's cyber doors to New Zealand shoppers, along with the Apple Store. From the press release;
"Apple® today launched the iTunes® Store (www.apple.com/nz/itunes) in New Zealand, giving New Zealanders access to outstanding local music and the same innovative features, breakthrough pricing and seamless integration with iPod® that have made iTunes the most popular music jukebox and online music store in the world. Apple today also opened the online Apple Store® New Zealand (www.apple.co.nz/store), where customers can quickly and conveniently purchase Apple's complete lineup of innovative products, including the wildly popular iPod digital music player, the critically acclaimed Intel based Mac® desktop and notebook computers, the iLife® '06 suite of digital lifestyle applications, a vast assortment of iPod and Mac accessories from Apple and third parties and Mac OS® X, the world's most advanced operating system.
Submission + - PostgreSQL 8.2 Released
An anonymous reader writes: With the winter holidays approaching, the developers of PostgreSQL have released version 8.2 as a present to us all. Tests really do prove that this is a performance release. With this release will PostgreSQL finally shed it's slow reputation? PostgreSQL 8.2 is trouncing MySQL with query optimization improvements, indexing without blocking INSERT/UPDATE/DELETE operations, and more...
Yet how does it compare to the big boys, Oracle and DB2? This release of PostgreSQL it is still missing SQL:2003 Window Functions so critical in business reporting. That means Oracle and DB2 still reign supreme in the OLAP/Data warehouse market. Even without many of the SQL:2003 features, this is good release. Get PostgreSQL 8.2 and take it for a spin!
Yet how does it compare to the big boys, Oracle and DB2? This release of PostgreSQL it is still missing SQL:2003 Window Functions so critical in business reporting. That means Oracle and DB2 still reign supreme in the OLAP/Data warehouse market. Even without many of the SQL:2003 features, this is good release. Get PostgreSQL 8.2 and take it for a spin!
Submission + - US must give up civil rights to protect freedoms?
An anonymous reader writes: It seems non-intuitive that Retired U.S. Army Gen. Carl Stiner says Americans may have to give up civil liberties in order to win the war on terror which is necessary to protect our freedoms. Article requires free registration, bugmenot works.
From the article:
"Retired U.S. Army Gen. Carl Stiner says Americans might have to give up some civil rights if they want to win the 'war on terrorism.'
However, he did not name any specific rights that might need to be given up."
"America has much at stake, including access to oil, its dominant position in the world, cherished freedoms, and a way of life that could vanish if the United States does not prevail, Stiner said."
Submission + - Linux Isn't Just For Grownups Anymore
digihome writes: from the Is-That-A-Penguin-In-The-Classroom? Department
It looks like the education space could be the first, real place where Linux could grab a beachhead in the desktop PC market. Take a look at Indiana, for example. In about a year, through a public school grant program, State of Indiana education officials have moved at least 22,000 students from Windows-based desktops to Linux-based desktops.
http://www.crn.com/weblogs/thechart/blog.jhtml?id= 196601151#196601151
