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Comment Re:Apple makes money either way... (Score 1, Informative) 348

Moving to a 64 bit word size has other effects than simply increasing the amount of memory that can be addressed. When doing mathematical computations, if a number doesn't fit in your word you have to fake it. 64 bit words allow for much bigger numbers that can now be handled natively by the CPU. This might make a big difference in crypto performance, like on your SSL connections.

Submission + - Note to Self: NEVER Do This (sciencemag.org)

Jim_Austin writes: A note inadvertently left in the "supplemental information" of a journal article appears to instruct a subordinate scientist to fabricate data.

Comment Bad comparison (Score 1) 258

-> (e.g. the output of a GPLed program is not GPLed, so why should executing a program on a 3D printer be any different?)

The output of a GPL program (a compiler for example) might not be governed by the license on the program, but might be governed by the license on the source file (the design). I can't take Open Source code, compile it with a GPL compiler and sell it for profit without including the source and attribution because "the output of a GPLed program is not GPLed".

I can't use the IBM logo for my own personal use because I 2D printed it myself. Manufacturing does not wash away any need to respect I.P. rights.
Science

ROVs Discover Deep Sea Trash 82

An anonymous reader writes "Deep beneath the ocean's waves, strange creatures such as rockfish and gorgonian coral thrive in the icy depths. Yet there's something else you'll find if you go searching beneath the sea: trash, and lots of it. Researchers have discovered that our trash is accumulating in the deep sea, particularly in Monterey Canyon off of the coast of California. Scientists knew that trash was affecting shallower depths--about 1,000 feet beneath the water. Yet they were unsure whether the effects extended to the truly deep parts of the ocean that reached up to 13,000 feet. They decided that there was only one way to find out: look for themselves."

Submission + - An Open Letter to Google Chairman Eric Schmidt on Drones (diydrones.com)

savuporo writes: DC Area Drone User Group has posted an open letter in response to recent comments by Eric Schmidt about banning drones from private use. Closing section:
Personally owned flying robots today have the power to change the balance of power between individuals and large bureaucracies in much the same way the Internet did in the past. And just as the military researchers who developed GPS for guiding munitions could never have imagined their technology would be used in the future to help people conduct health surveys in the world’s poorest countries or help people find dates in the world’s richest, there is a whole world of socially positive and banal applications for drones that are yet to be discovered. We should embrace this chance that technology provides instead of strangling these opportunities in their infancy. Our hope is that you and the rest of Google’s leadership will embrace this pro-technology agenda in the future rather than seeking to stifle it. We would welcome the opportunity to speak further with you about this topic.

Submission + - DARPA Develops Non-GPS Navigation Chip (gizmag.com)

Zothecula writes: The Global Positioning System (GPS) has proved a boon for those with a bad sense of direction, but the satellite-based system isn’t without its shortcomings. Something as simple as going indoors or entering a tunnel can render the system useless. That might be inconvenient for civilians, but it's potentially disastrous for military users for whom the system was originally built. DARPA is addressing such concerns with the development of a self-sufficient navigation system that can aid navigation when GPS is temporarily unavailable.

Comment Re:Boot to the guest account (Score 1) 572

I agree that a VM is the best solution IF you can keep a user in the VM. The VM software that I've used in the past puts the host machine a click away. A Guest account isn't perfect, but it's pretty easy and gives you some lower level protection. It also means that I don't have to do anything strange or special when I let other people use the machine. They use it in the same mode that I use it. The browsers themselves will still be pretty vulnerable to bad plugins but I run a virus scanner which helps.

A Guest account in Guest Mode would have been nice, but they took that feature away in the release.

Comment Boot to the guest account (Score 5, Informative) 572

The media PC in my living room boots directly into the Guest account. Under the guest account I can USE almost all the programs I have installed seamlessly. There are some minor issues with software updates, XBOX controllers, and a complete inability to configure network settings, but that's about it. If I need to do anything that requires more rights I can deal with the UAC prompts that show up or simply log out and back in as an admin.

I know it's not flawless but I still feel pretty comfortable letting my tech savvy (e.g. dangerous) friends stay over unattended. It wouldn't hold up to anyone seriously determined to break the security but they have access to the physical machine and can't really be stopped anyway.

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