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Security

Submission + - Is China creating the world's largest botnet army? (socialsignal.com)

Submitted by
david_a_eaves
david_a_eaves writes: "The Chinese government is mandating that all computers sold in China come with Internet blocking software. Rob Cottingham writes an excellent piece noting how the censorship application of this software should be the least of our concerns. This new software may create an opportunity for the Chinese Government to appropriate these computers and use them to create the worlds largest botnet army."
Unix

Submission + - SPAM: Saving Unix one kernel at a time

Submitted by
coondoggie
coondoggie writes: "In this its 40th year of operating system life, some Unix stalwarts are trying to resurrect its past. That is they are taking on the unenviable and difficult job of restoring to its former glory old Unix software artifacts such as early Unix kernels, compilers and other important historical source code pieces. In a paper to be presented at next week's Usenix show, Warren Toomey of the Bond School of IT is expected to detail restoration work being done on four key Unix software artifacts all from the early 1970s — Nsys, 1st edition Unix kernel, 1st and 2nd edition binaries and early C compilers. In his paper, Toomey states that while the history of Unix has been well-documented, there was a time when the actual artifacts of early Unix development were in danger of being lost forever. [spam URL stripped]"
Link to Original Source
Digital

Submission + - US Switch To DTV Countdown Begins (cnet.com)

Submitted by
s31523
s31523 writes: "In Februrary lawmakers postponed the switch from analog to digital TV. Now, the new June 12th deadline is upon us with no sign of another delay. CNET is reporting that the President himself has stated, "... I want to be clear: there will not be another delay.", so it looks like it is going to happen, for real this time. Even with the delay, there are still millions of estimated viewers that are unprepared. Local stations may participate in the voluntary "Analog nightlight" services in which TV stations agree to keep an analog signal turned on in addition to their digital signals to provide information about the DTV transition and to notify unprepared TV viewers of emergencies, such as hurricanes."
Republicans

Submission + - Senator Applauds Pirate Bay Trial, Chides Canada (gamepolitics.com)

Submitted by eldavojohn
eldavojohn writes: Republican Senator Orrin Hatch spoke Tuesday at the World Copyright Summit in Washington DC and hailed the Pirate Bay guilty verdict as an important victory. He expressed severe disappointment in Canada for showing up on our watch list for piracy next to China and Russia. Senator Hatch also said, 'In fact, one study reports that each year, copyright piracy from motion pictures, sound recordings, business and entertainment software, and video games costs the U.S. economy $58 billion in total output, costs American workers 373,375 jobs and $16.3 billion in earnings, and costs federal, state, and local governments $2.6 billion in tax revenue. During this time of economic turmoil, we must ensure that all copyrighted works, both here and abroad, are protected from online theft and traditional physical piracy. After all, U.S. copyright-based industries continue to be one of America's largest and fastest-growing economic sectors.' GamePolitics notes that for his 2006 campaign, Hatch was rented for $7,000 by the RIAA and also got on his knees for $12,640 from the MPAA.
Handhelds

Submission + - Will AT&T Charge Extra For MMS & Tethering (infoworld.com)

Submitted by
snydeq
snydeq writes: "InfoWorld's Bill Snyder questions whether AT&T's jockeying on tethering and MMS may signal iPhone pricing surcharges to come. After all, as Apple's exclusive U.S. partner, Ma Bell should have plenty of insight into upcoming iPhone features and revenue opportunities. Yet AT&T was very conspicuous in its absence from the list of providers who will support tethering and MMS at Tuesday's launch of the new iPhone at WWDC, and by Wednesday, it was backpedaling furiously, saying it will offer both services — later in the year. Certainly, the exclusive arrangement between the companies is proving to be an ugly roadblock to Apple's iPhone vision. But Snyder thinks it may go deeper than that: 'My best guess is that we'll see horrendous pricing surcharges for tethering and MMS, on top of the already expensive data and voice charges iPhone users pay. I don't think AT&T execs wanted to stand up at WWDC and announce that.'"
Games

Submission + - Sony's Tretton sounds off on E3 leaks (cnbc.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Sony is hinting that previously released games might be able to use its motion sensor controller. Jack Tretton said it would be "absolutely conceivable" that existing games could get a patch when the controller comes out next year — and implied that some of the games shown at E3 this year could ship with motion sensing built into them. The president and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment of America is also not happy about the leaks that preceded the company's E3 press conference. Tretton says it has become impossible to keep a secret in the gaming industry because of third-party publishers — and he's worried about the ramifications that will have as the company develops the PS4.
Programming

Submission + - Should undergraduates be taught Fortran? (walkingrandomly.com)

Submitted by
Mike Croucher
Mike Croucher writes: "Despite the fact that it is over 40 years old, Fortran is still taught at many Universities to students of Physics, Chemistry, Engineering and more as their first ever formal introduction to programming. According to this article this shouldn't be happening anymore since there are much better alternatives such as Python that would serve a physical science undergraduate much better. There may come a time in some researcher's lives where they need Fortran but this time isn't in 'programming for chemists 101'. What do people in the slashdot community think?"
Space

Submission + - Junior-Sized Supernova Discovered by New York Teen (spacefellowship.com)

Submitted by
Matt_dk
Matt_dk writes: "In November 2008, Caroline Moore, a 14-year-old student from upstate New York, discovered a supernova in a nearby galaxy, making her the youngest person ever to do so. Additional observations determined that the object, called SN 2008ha, is a new type of stellar explosion, 1000 times more powerful than a nova but 1000 times less powerful than a supernova. Astronomers say that it may be the weakest supernova ever seen."
Censorship

Submission + - SPAM: Online vigilantes or "Crowdsourced justice"

Submitted by
destinyland
destinyland writes: "Chinese credit the "human flesh search engine" for successfully locating "the kitten killer of Hangzhou" from clues in her online video. But in February the same force identified a teenaged cat abuser in Oklahoma — within 24 hours of the video's appearance on YouTube. "Netizens are the new Jack Bauer," argues one science writer, and with three billion potential detectives, "attempts to hide will only add thrill to the chase." But China's vigilantes ultimately turned their attention to China's Internet Propaganda Office, bypassing censorship of a director's personal information using social networks, including Twitter. The author suggests there's a new principle emerging in the online world: "The Internet does not forget, does not forgive and cannot be stopped. Ever.""
Link to Original Source
Television

Submission + - Comedy Central buys 26 new Futurama episodes 1

Submitted by
e9th
e9th writes: "TVWeek reports that 20th Century Fox TV and Comedy Central have officially struck a deal for 26 new episodes of Futurama, due to the strong ratings of its reruns and feature-length specials. Matt Groening is quoted as saying, 'We're thrilled Futurama is coming back. We now have only 25,766 episodes to make before we catch up with Bender and Fry in the year 3000.'"
Security

Submission + - Microsoft Surface to coordinate SuperBowl Security (microsoft.com)

Submitted by suraj.sun
suraj.sun writes: Microsoft Surface being used to coordinate Super Bowl security :

TAMPA — January 28, 2009 — With nearly a quarter of a million people in Tampa for Super Bowl-related activities, efforts to ensure tight security communications and response surrounding the event are underway with ESPONDER's integrated solution for planning, tracking and reporting of all security matters surrounding the game.

For well over a year now, more than 60 Federal, State, regional, local and municipal authorities have been working with the ESPONDER technology partnership to plan the security details for Super Bowl XLIII, one of the only major sporting events that receives National Security status.

Beginning this week and continuing past the final game whistle, ESPONDER will connect onsite and remote authorities, allowing them to remotely track all activities in real time with mapping as well as 3-D displays, 2-way radio integration and immediate communication.

Microsoft : http://www.microsoft.com/industry/government/news/e_sponder_super_bowl.mspx

Video : http://video.msn.com/?mkt=en-US&playlist=videoByUuids:uuids:286ccd43-a8c8-4fd8-be1f-f942d4da016f&showPlaylist=true&from=shared
Government

Submission + - How to teach a healthy dose of skepticism? 1

Submitted by
c0d3h4x0r
c0d3h4x0r writes: "It's no accident that "whatcouldpossiblygowrong" is one of the most common tags applied by Slashdotters to stories about proposed ideas or laws; the ability to spot and predict faults is a big part of what makes a great engineer. It starts with having a healthy skepticism about the world, which leads to actual critical thinking. Many books and courses teach critical thinking skills, but what is the best way to encourage and teach someone to maintain a healthy dose of skepticism? Is it even teachable, or is it just an innate part of the geek personality?"
Transportation

Submission + - General Motors: Driverless cars ready by 2018

Submitted by
Gregor Stipicic
Gregor Stipicic writes: " Cars that drive themselves — even parking at their destination — could be ready for sale within a decade, General Motors Corp. executives say. "This is not science fiction," Larry Burns, GM's vice president for research and development, said in a recent interview. GM plans to use an inexpensive computer chip and an antenna to link vehicles equipped with driverless technologies. The first use likely would be on highways; people would have the option to choose a driverless mode while they still would control the vehicle on local streets, Burns said. He said the company plans to test driverless car technology by 2015 and have cars on the road around 2018. "

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