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Television

Submission + - Can the NFL control Super Bowl broadcast?

Submitted by
youvegottobekidding
youvegottobekidding writes: "The Indy Star has an article ( http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID= 2007702010431 )about Super Bowl Party Rules. It appears the NFL is ready to bust churches for holding Super Bowl parties because they: use "Super Bowl" in the promotion, show the game on a TV larger than 55", and are not a sports bar. Can they really control how the broadcast is shown when it is sent over the airwaves? It's not like this is pay tv. Call out the ACLU!!!"
Censorship

Submission + - Tennessee Libel Bill Targets Internet

Submitted by
YIAAL
YIAAL writes: "Bill Hobbs reports on a Tennessee bill that would require that allegedly defamatory material on the internet be removed within two days of a complaint being made. The bill provides:

An owner or licensee of a web site or web page shall have fifteen (15) days to remove any defamatory statements about a person from such web site or web page; however if the owner or licensee has been given notice that such statements are defamatory then that owner or licensee shall have two (2) days from the date of the notice to remove the statements from the web site or web page, whichever is less. Failure to remove defamatory statements as provided in this section shall create a presumption of malice intent.
As the poor grammar suggests, this may not have been very well thought out, and it's almost certainly invalid under any reasonable interpretation of Federal (and Tennessee) constitutional law, not to mention the Communications Decency Act. But it serves as a warning that politicians remain anxious to shut down Internet criticism — and, of course, "reasonable" interpretations aren't always the interpretations we get in these cases. Were this bill to take effect, web publishers would basically be forced to remove material upon any charge that it's defamatory, as the risk of not doing so would be higher than most commercial concerns, or impecunious bloggers, would be willing to face."
Microsoft

Submission + - The Trouble with Vista

Submitted by jcatcw
jcatcw writes: After hundreds of hours of testing Vista, Scot Finnie is supremely tired of it. And of Microsoft. Although 80% of the changes in Windows Vista are positive, there is nothing about Vista that is truly innovative or compelling; there's no transformational, gotta-have-it feature in Vista. But the real problem isn't with Vista. It's with Microsoft itself. Microsoft stopped focusing on end users. They "now seemingly makes many decisions based on these two things: 1. Avoiding negative publicity (especially about security and software quality) 2. Making sure the largest enterprise customers are happy."
Windows

Submission + - Windows Vista Upgrade Invalidates XP Key

Submitted by Karrde712
Karrde712 writes: From Vista's EULA (Warning: PDF): "13. UPGRADES. To use upgrade software, you must first be licensed for the software that is eligible for the upgrade. Upon upgrade, this agreement takes the place of the agreement for the software you upgraded from. After you upgrade, you may no longer use the software you upgraded from." According to LXer, during the upgrade process, Microsoft will invalidate your original Windows XP cd-key, preventing its use on another computer. Since you cannot install the Vista upgrade media from a system without Windows XP already on it and activated, this makes the Vista upgrade a one-way move.
The Courts

Submission + - Can I be sued for quitting?

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: I work at a large hosting company in Texas and recently decided to go work for a smaller competitor. I had a great relationship with my employer and wanted to leave on good terms. I felt the new company had just gotten too large and I didn't like working there anymore, I gave them two weeks notice in writing. They were really upset when I insisted on leaving and one week into my last two weeks the V.P. of Sales told me the company was suing me for leaving and suing my new employer for hiring me. They then escorted me out of the building. I was shocked. Should I hire an attorney? Has anybody ever heard of this happening? Do they have any legal basis for suing me? I never signed any non-compete or employment agreement.
Google

Submission + - Google loses "Gmail" in Europe

Submitted by Hippie Hippie Shake
Hippie Hippie Shake writes: Google has just lost the right to use the name "Gmail" in Europe, according to the EU. From the article: "Daniel Giersch, a German-born 32-year old entrepreneur, has just announced that his company received a positive ruling last week from the Harmonization Office supporting his claim that "Gmail" and his own "G-mail" are confusingly similar. G-mail is a German service that provides a "gmail.de" email address, but also allows for a sort of "hybrid mail" system in which documents can be sent electronically, printed out by the company, and delivered in paper format to local addresses." It looks like "Google Mail" from here on out, at least in the Old Country.
Music

Submission + - Teen Accuses Record Companies of Collusion

Submitted by SeaSolder
SeaSolder writes: Some who follow the RIAA's reign of terror recall the name Patti Santangelo. Well, her 16 year old son Robert is making news by counter-suing multiple record companies, alleging that the companies:

"ostensibly competitors in the recording industry, are a cartel acting collusively in violation of the antitrust laws and public policy" by bringing the piracy cases jointly and using the same agency "to make extortionate threats ... to force defendants to pay."
Space

Submission + - Netherlands loses comms satellite on launch pad

Submitted by
Ynsats
Ynsats writes: "The Register is reporting that SES New Skies of the Netherlands lost a Boeing NSS-8 satellite on the launch pad when it's Zenit launch vehicle exploded on the launch pad. The launch pad is a converted oil rig and is operated by Sea Launch. The resulting blast engulfed the rig in flames but fortunatly, there were no injuries due to the remote operation of the rig keeping the crew at a safe distance. The launch vehicle was carrying a communications satellite "equipped with nearly 100 transponders for high-speed internet, broadcasting and other services". The Zenit rocket is a multi-stage, kerosene and liquid oxygen-fuelled rocket that Sea Launch has had 23 successes with with one failure in 2000 due to a valve problem in the second stage of the rocket."
Spam

7 Ways to Be Mistaken for a Spammer 383

Posted by CmdrTaco from the mispell-male-genitalia-i-dare-you dept.
ancientribe writes "The "This is Spam" button popping up on many service providers' email services can be empowering for a user, but it can also be the kiss of death for a legitimate business that gets canned with a click of that button. Dark Reading has a story on seven common missteps that can lead to a case of mistaken spammmer identity for a legit business trying to send its marketing email, newsletters or other correspondence."
Google

Why "Yahoo" Is The #1 Search Term On Google 347

Posted by CmdrTaco from the because-we're-lazy dept.
An anonymous reader writes "Google Trends indicates that over the course of the past year the search term "Yahoo" became more popular than "sex", making it the #1 query on Google. Yahoo apparently faces a similar dilemma with roles reversed: When you search for "Google" on Yahoo, Yahoo thoughtfully displays a second search box as if to tell you, "Hey cutie, you have a search engine right in front of you!" A puzzling phenomenon? An strange aberration?"
Education

Submission + - Microsoft copies, then patents IDE technology

Submitted by
Michael Kolling
Michael Kolling writes: "Not content with a monopoly only in the office, Microsoft goes after the schools and university market.

A while ago, Microsoft caused a minor ripple in the world of educational software when it appeared that they were blatantly copying features from the small, but reasonably popular BlueJ IDE.

Now they are about to make bigger waves by applying for a patent for the technologies they copied, potentially muscling the environment that orignially popularized these features out of the market.

BlueJ is a not-for-profit project at the University of Kent, and the software is distributed free. It is doubtful that the University could or would sustain a court clash with the Redmond giant.

Microsoft have long tried to increase their share in the beginners' programming market, where BlueJ is at home. Now they are getting into a position to sue the competitor out of the market. Using the technologies they copied as the weapon against the competitor is a twist worthy of Conan The Barbarian.

Details of the case are here."
It's funny. Laugh.

Submission + - Top Porn Publisher Switches from Blu-ray to HD DVD

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: In some circles, they say Betamax lost to VHS because VHS had more porn titles. Will the adult video industry hold similar sway in the high-def DVD battle? While the industry was said to embrace HD DVD in general, one of the more "high-brow" porn publishers, Digital Playground, was all set to publish in Blu-ray. But the company just announced that its first four titles are in HD DVD. Why the change of heart?
Quickies

Submission + - Sleep Disturbances associated with suicide

Submitted by brainvoid
brainvoid writes: In the first known report of its kind, a study published in the January 1st issue of the journal SLEEP finds that sleep disturbances are common among suicide attempters, and that nightmares are associated with suicidality.
The study, conducted by Nisse Sjöström, RN, and colleagues of Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Göteborg, Sweden, focused on 165 patients between the ages of 18-68, who were admitted to medical units or psychiatric wards at Sahlgrenska after a suicide attempt. It was discovered that 89 percent of subjects reported some kind of sleep disturbance. The most common complaint was difficulties initiating sleep (73 percent), followed by difficulties maintaining sleep (69 percent), nightmares (66 percent) and early morning awakening (58 percent). Nightmares were associated with a five-fold increase in risk for high suicidality.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?ne wsid=59937
Sony

Submission + - French court slaps down Sony DRM

Submitted by john-da-luthrun
john-da-luthrun writes: A French court has ruled that Sony's CONNECT Store infringes French consumer law, reports the TechnoLlama IP blog. Under French law, it is illegal to tie the purchase of a service (such as downloading a music file) to the purchase of a another product, so Sony were held to be breaking the law by selling music files that required a Sony player in order to access them. The court also found that Sony had failed to inform customers that its ATRAC 3 files can only be played on Sony digital players. A similar case in France involving Apple's iTunes/iPod tie-in is ongoing.
Businesses

Submission + - The 10 Big Tech Stories Of 2006

Submitted by digihome
digihome writes: CRN.com picks the 10 big stories of 2006, the ones that you followed closely throughout the year and that kept you coming back for more. Some you love to hate, along with the one we've been waiting for so long that its arrival seemed anticlimactic. And more than a few that made you angry. What do you think were the top stories of 2006? http://www.crn.com/sections/breakingnews/breakingn ews.jhtml?articleId=196801036

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