cyberbian - Slashdot User

Submission + - Macrovision responds to Steve Jobs on DRM

Submitted by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 16, 2007 @09:13PM

An anonymous reader writes: Macrovision Corporation, best known for its long history of DRM implementations, (everything from VCRs to software copy protection), has responded to Steve Jobs open letter regarding DRM. With ample experience and despite the obvious vested interests, it's great to hear their point of view.

In the letter they acknowledge the "difficult challenges" of implementing DRM that is truly "interoperable and open"; but they also feel that DRM "will increase electronic distribution", if implemented properly, because "DRM increases not decreases consumer value", such as by enabling people to "rent" content at a lower price than ownership, and lowering risks for content producers.

While I'm impressed they responded, I can't say I'm impressed by lofty goals that might not be reached for years. The reality is, current DRM implementations often leave users with the bad end of the deal. What do you think? Should people give DRM manufacturers more time to overcome the challenges and get it right?

Submission + - Inventor of the TV remote dies

Submitted by QuietLagoon on Friday February 16, 2007 @08:12PM

QuietLagoon writes: Zenith Electronics Corporation said today that Engineer Robert Adler, who co-invented the TV remote control with fellow Engineer Eugene Polley, has passed on to the big sofa in the sky. In his six-decade career with Zenith, Adler was a prolific inventor, earning more than 180 U.S. patents. He was best known for his 1956 Zenith Space Command remote control, which helped make TV a truly sedentary pastime. The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences awarded Adler and co-inventor Polley, another Zenith engineer, an Emmy in 1997 for the landmark invention.

Submission + - DD-WRT now running on X86

Submitted by

JimBowen

on Friday February 16, 2007 @08:08PM

JimBowen writes: "The popular linux-based router firmware project, DD-WRT, based on the free OpenWRT, has recently been made to run on an ordinary PC. This allows a significant increase in performance by the use of much faster hardware, with more memory, enabling advanced SPI firewalls even in the presence of high load P2P software. Various community extensions provide support for extra features like NAS. With the combination of large, desktop-sized storage, this makes for an extremely powerful, yet manageable and easily deployable home server. There is a tutorial on how to set it up over at graynetwork.org."

Submission + - General Aviation System in Jeopardy

Submitted by robwmc on Friday February 16, 2007 @07:42PM

robwmc writes: I'm not sure how many here on /. are pilots but the Bush administration evidently want to make that number decline. The new budget calls for charging user fees for access to airspace, raising the aviation fuel tax to $0.70 per gallon and raising fees for everything related to being a GA pilot. Take a look at one of the various articles on the AOPA website.

The AOPA has worked very hard for keeping the system "fair" for the average Joe to keep the cost of flying affordable for the general public.

Submission + - Geo-engineering to fend off climate change

Submitted by moon_monkey on Sunday February 11, 2007 @06:57PM

moon_monkey writes: While cutting greenhouse gases might be the best way to halt climate change, it's reassuring to know some scientists are already thinking about ways to combat fend off runaway warming if this doesn't work. NewScientistSpace has an interesting blog post about some pretty crazy-sounding ways for combating climate change. These include pumping sulfur into the atmosphere, sending thousands of tiny mirrors into orbit and even painting all our roads white to reflect the Sun's rays. Could this be the next X-prize?

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