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Comment Win 7 and Linux (Score 1) 727

by CoolSilver (#41734679) Attached to: Microsoft Urges Businesses To Get Off XP

Sorry Microsoft. I refuse to pay for another operating system. My next desktop will be built as before by hand and will have Linux. My current laptop has Win 7 but I have Fedora as well. As soon as Steam jumps to Fedora I have less reason to care. Any new laptops will be built by System 76 or some other linux based OEM. Really between smartphone and my Galaxy Tab I am good for now or netbook with Fedora as well

 
Crime

Things You Drink Can Be Used To Track You 202

Posted by timothy from the don't-hate-me-because-I'm-a-beautiful-spy dept.
sciencehabit writes with an intriguing story about the potential of figuring out where people have been by examining their hair: "That's because water molecules differ slightly in their isotope ratios depending on the minerals at their source. Researchers found that water samples from 33 cities across the United State could be reliably traced back to their origin based on their isotope ratios. And because the human body breaks down water's constituent atoms of hydrogen and oxygen to construct the proteins that make hair cells, those cells can preserve the record of a person's travels. Such information could help prosecutors place a suspect at the scene of a crime, or prove the innocence of the accused." Or frame someone by slipping them water from every country on the terrorist watchlist.
Bug

Dell Selling Faulty PCs 484

Posted by CmdrTaco from the dude-you-got-a-dud dept.
An anonymous reader writes "PC maker Dell has been accused of selling thousands of desktop PCs despite knowing the machines contained faulty components, according to recently unsealed court documents first reported about on Tuesday by The New York Times."
Toys

Brick Shooting Shotgun Built From Lego By 15-Year-Old 70

Posted by samzenpus from the knock-your-block-off dept.
Lanxon writes "A mildly terrifying young Brit named Jack Streat has managed to build a series of working guns, including a Lee Enfield bolt-action sniper rifle, entirely out of Lego and rubber bands, reports Wired. Streat, who lists himself as 15 years old on his profile, has constructed an enormous and diverse armory of weaponry that fire either rubber bands or Lego bricks. Most are based on real-life guns, including a Steyr AUG, a Tommygun, an AK-47, a belt-fed M429 PARA, an Arctic Warfare sniper rifle, a Glock 17, a pair of semi-automatic TEC-9s, a SPAS 12 pump-action shotgun and a minigun that he calls the Obliterator."

Comment No worse than Myspaz (Score 1) 6

by CoolSilver (#31813100) Attached to: Is Internet Porn Creating a Damaged Generation?

Myspace and other sites as well as parents general lack of actual parenting have already caused the damage.

When I can go on a weekend to the local shopping mall to go to a movie or get something useful, I find hordes of teens and pre-teens without supervision acting inappropriate for a public setting. I really wonder how these kids are going to provide sustainable work for their employers. Let alone have the ability to move on into adult life with any sense of good judgment.

I find a disturbing lack of common sense, logical thinking and reasoning skills, as well as any sense of right or wrong in these children.

It's a wonder I don't go up to half of them and give them a good dose of parenting they don't get at home.
Cellphones

Submission + - Cell Phones to Sniff Out Deadly Chemicals 1

Submitted by
Hugh Pickens
Hugh Pickens writes: "Science Daily reports that Homeland Security's Science and Technology Directorate's Cell-All is an initiative to equip cell phones with a sensor capable of detecting deadly chemicals. A chip costing less than a dollar would be embedded in cell phones and programmed to either alert the cell phone carrier to the presence of toxic chemicals in the air, and/or a central station that can monitor how many alerts in an area are being received. While one alert might be a false positive, hundreds would indicate the need for evacuation. "Our goal is to create a lightweight, cost-effective, power-efficient solution," says Stephen Dennis, Cell-All's program manager. Does this always-on surveillance mean that the government can track your precise whereabouts whenever it wants? On the contrary, DHS says Cell-All will operate only on an opt-in basis and will transmit data anonymously. "Privacy is as important as technology," says Dennis. "After all, for Cell-All to succeed, people must be comfortable enough to turn it on in the first place." Dennis hopes to have 40 prototypes in about a year, the first of which will sniff out carbon monoxide and fire and commercialization may take several years."
Science

Submission + - Recession proof -- red light ticket revenue (nbc-2.com)

Submitted by NicknamesAreStupid
NicknamesAreStupid writes: A Fort Meyers news station reports a nerdy husband getting his wife out of a red-light ticket by proving the light was set with too short of a yellow. Then he goes out and proves that nearly 90% of the lights are set an average of about 20% too short. Is this an local incident, or have local governments nationwide found a new revenue source? What puzzles me is how a single picture can tell if you ran a light. If you are in the intersection before the light turns red, you have not run it, even if it takes a little while to clear it (say to yield to an unexpected obstacle). Wouldn't you need two pictures — one just before the light went red showing you are NOT in the intersection, and another after the light went red showing you in the intersection?

Comment Unconstitutional seizure but not search (Score 1) 1

by CoolSilver (#31809042) Attached to: Unconstitutional?

I would say it would be an unconstitutional seizure of your property. Constitutional search. However, they had a warrant for his property at that address. Regardless if there were different leases for the same rented space, they had the proper address.

Though for your property you claim they should have only been limited to "plain sight". Meaning if they saw a illegal substance in plain sight they could seize it. If they had probable cause that they saw your computer and it was a computer based crime they would have cause for a new warrant.

Granted, because a computer based crime can be done on any computer on the same connection or residence they should have had a warrant for all computers in the residence that could use that connection.

Where the fuzzy part gets is who all else can use a connection via wireless causing a search of innocent property.

Comment Responsbl disclosure is Security Through Obscurity (Score 2, Insightful) 182

by dragisha (#31808668) Attached to: Why Responsible Vulnerability Disclosure Is Painful and Inefficient

And we all know what it really is.

Protect your system as good as you can, firewalls, backups, whatever, or just rely on your own obscurity, and publish!

Act surprised, act I-told-you-so, be outraged with whatever happens, and then - in few days - install a patch.

Comment Re:You Pretentious, Nieve Twit (Score 1) 789

by nick1000 (#31806478) Attached to: Adobe Evangelist Lashes Out Over Apple's "Original Language" Policy
Dear mqbastard, you sir are incorrect.

Have you ever used ActionScript? It seems to be that you are ranting about something you have no idea of.
The moment you tell me Steve Jobs coded, I realize that you have drunk way too much Job's kool aid.

Apple is closing down the web by forcing rich internet applications to be built using a platform/sdk that runs only on apple devices.
Flash despite its inconsistencies run all major OS/devices.

Just ask Tim Berners Lee which side of the debate he is on, Adobe's open platform or Apple's closed platform. Maybe you'll realize that you are drinking Steve Job's rather than Lee's kool aid.

Submission + - Virgin server admin in need of help 6

Submitted by
Dragon_Eater
Dragon_Eater writes: "Dear Slashdot,

        I want to setup three kids, 12, 14 and 15, with newer computers so they will stop fighting for time on the one ten year old Dell they share now. I can get the individual computers and a server put together without any problems but the computer handicapped single parent needs to be able to do the following via an simple application/webpage:

                — View client computer status, On/off, sleeping etc.
                — Deny internet access, not LAN, just the web
                — Scheduled time usage of computer, ex. 7AM to 10PM on school nights etc.
                — Force log-out and/or shutdown of clients, for grounding purposes
                — Some kind of firewall filter for blocking undesired web content

        And as the administrator for this network I would like the following options:

                — Remote virus scanning of client machines, or scheduled task
                — Some kind of hardware monitor, high temp / fan speed low etc.
                — Email alerts for various log files / alarms

        Given the lists above I am thinking about a Linux based router/server machine and running windows on the clients for game compatibility. I also know that a server and network boot client is possible but not sure where to start on that one. I have lots of experience setting up PC's and a passable knowledge of Linux but am severely lacking in the server/client department so any help the Slashdot community could offer would be greatly appreciated.

Dragon Eater"

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C Code. C Code Run. Run, Code, RUN! PLEASE!!!!

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