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Apple

Apple To Distribute OS X Lion via the Mac App Store 517

An anonymous reader writes "Apple this Summer is expected to release Mac OS X Lion. As opposed to other OS X releases, however, Lion will also be available for purchase via the Mac App Store, further solidifying Apple's efforts to make the Mac App Store an integral part of the Mac user experience." A lot of questions surrounding this related to the ability to make bootable disks. And also, why don't they just use apt-get? I gotta admit: it makes me nervous getting my OS from an App Store — which is strange considering how many kernels I've downloaded, built and booted over the years.
NASA

NASA Gravity Probe Confirms Two Einstein Predictions 139

sanzibar writes "After 52 years of conceiving, testing and waiting, marked by scientific advances and disappointments, one of Stanford's and NASA's longest-running projects comes to a close with a greater understanding of the universe. Stanford and NASA researchers have confirmed two predictions of Albert Einstein's general theory of relativity, concluding one of the space agency's longest-running projects. Known as Gravity Probe B, the experiment used four ultra-precise gyroscopes housed in a satellite to measure two aspects of Einstein's theory about gravity. The first is the geodetic effect, or the warping of space and time around a gravitational body. The second is frame-dragging, which is the amount a spinning object pulls space and time with it as it rotates."
Moon

Former Senator Wants to Mine The Moon 351

MarkWhittington writes "Harrison Schmitt, Apollo Moonwalker, geologist, and former United States Senator, recently presented a plan to solve the world's long term energy problems by developing fusion power fueled with helium-3 mined from the Moon. He presented this plan in a speech at Williston Basin Petroleum Conference."
Bug

Apple Releases iOS 4.3.3 To Fix Location Tracking 212

An anonymous reader writes "Apple has released a software update (iOS 4.3.3) to fix the much-talked-about iPhone Location Tracking bug. Apple faced a lot of criticism over the issue — iPhone and iPad secretly tracks users' locations and saves them in the device's cache as well as in a hidden file which is copied to the PC whenever the computer gets synced with device."

Comment Shouldn't they have to honor the contract? (Score 2, Interesting) 327

I know that when Gateway sold its Professional Services Unit to MPC (formerly MicronPC) in 2007 and then MPC filed for chapter 11 a year later, MPC was obligated to honor the existing warranties whether they were originally contracted with the former Gateway unit or the later MPC unit. To this day, we're still having warranty work done by a third-party company on behalf of Gateway/MPC. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MPC_Computers

Comment Re:A real (but expensive) solution: (Score 1) 578

You know how data restoration companies do it? They take out the spindle with the platters, and put it in their own reading device with its own controller. And with that you can read and write the exact bits (as long as quantum physics allow it). But the head has to be compatible (e.g. perpendicular recording needs entirely different heads).

I bet those devices can be bought, and I bet their controller is actually just software on the computer (for flexibility). I also bet they come with different head configurations. But they are definitely not going to be cheap.

Hey, at least it is a real solution. :)

Having worked for a successful "data restoration company", I can say that you are absolutely incorrect. There is no mysterious 'reading device with its own controller'. Why would you even need one when the drive you're working on is often modular? Individual components can often be replaced (head stack, spindle motor, PCB, etc) from another drive that matches the original in a very specific way (this differs by manufacturer). Have you actually ever been trained to perform invasive data recovery, or are you just going by what someone told you over the phone?

Comment Re:As a Russian (Score 1) 548

On the other hand, I actually have to thank Infinity Ward for MW2, for one simple reason: it's been a while since any American game depicted a proper, honest-to-God Russian invasion of U.S. soil, complete with shelled cute "American Dream" neighborhoods and burning White House, and the overall gloomy atmosphere of verging on defeat. At least it's markedly different from your typical drivel of a U.S. Rambo squad on rampage somewhere in Siberia, taking out Russian soldiers by the thousands. Just as unrealistic, too, but hey, at least you can appreciate how it looks from the other side now. I only wish there was an option to play for the paratroopers in the initial wave :)

Take a look at World in Conflict for PC. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_in_conflict

Comment Re:If Seagate keeps this up (Score 1) 559

The model number listed in this scenario is 'ST3500320AS'. Note the 'ST'. Re-branded Seagate/Maxtor drives start with 'STM'. So as far as drive technology goes, the affected editions should be Seagate-original designs. However, if they've (mistakenly) added Maxtor engineers to their PCB/firmware tech teams...

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