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Google

Submission + - Google didn't relicense Java code afterall

Submitted by RedK
RedK writes: In a follow up to yesterday's news piece about Google apparently relicense confidential Oracle code found in Java under the ASL, it seems that the blogger who initially reported the issue was plain wrong as the files that he indicated were in breach of Oracle's copyright do not actually ship with Android. Google has also deleted many of these files which were mostly used as unit tests.
Microsoft

ITC Investigates Xbox 360 After Motorola Complaint 71

Posted by Soulskill from the papers-please dept.
FlorianMueller writes "The US International Trade Commission, which is increasingly popular as a patent enforcement agency, voted to investigate a complaint filed by Motorola against Microsoft last month. Motorola claims that the Xbox infringes five of its patents. In October, Microsoft complained against Motorola, alleging patent infringement by its Android-based smartphones. Apple, Nokia and HTC are also involved with ITC investigations as complainants and respondents. A new one-page overview document shows the ongoing ITC investigations related to smartphones and the products that the complainants would like to have banned from entry into the US market. The good news is that any import bans won't be ordered until long after Christmas. The ITC is faster than courts, but not that fast."
Linux Business

Penumbra: Overture Goes Open Source 74

Posted by Soulskill from the seeing-the-code-won't-dry-your-pants dept.
As promised when the Humble Indie Bundle hit $1 million in donations the other day, indie developer Frictional Games has released Penumbra: Overture's source code. "The code for Penumbra: Overture is a continuation of the one used for the tech demo + some addition for the not so long lived Robo Hatch project. It also contains some code from Unbirth, giving it quite some history." The release also includes the HPL1 engine. "This is engine that has powered all of the Penumbra games and it even includes the stuff used to create the 2D platformer Energetic. The engine code was started in December 2004 and was actively developed until early 2008." The repositories are available at github.
Open Source

OpenNMS Celebrates 10 Years 37

Posted by timothy from the aged-in-oak-barrels dept.
mjhuot writes "Quite often is it claimed that pure open source projects can't survive, much less grow and create robust code. One counter example of this is OpenNMS, the world's first enterprise-grade network management application platform developed under the open source model. Registered on 30 March 2000 as project 4141 on Sourceforge, today the gang threw a little party, with members virtually attending from around the world. With the right business savvy and a great community, it is possible to both remain 100% free and open source while creating enough value to make a good living at it."
Government

Moscow Police Watch Pre-Recorded Scenes On Surveillance Cams 114

Posted by samzenpus from the I-always-feel-like-nobody-is-watching-me dept.
An anonymous reader writes "During several months of 2009, Moscow police looked at fake pictures displayed on their monitors instead of what was supposed to be video from the city surveillance cams. The subcontractor providing the cams was paid on the basis of 'the number of working cams,' so he delivered pre-cooked pictures stored on his servers. The camera company CEO has been arrested."
First Person Shooters (Games)

Open Source FPS Blood Frontier Releases Beta 2 113

Posted by Soulskill from the now-with-bloodier-frontiers dept.
An anonymous reader writes "The open source FPS Blood Frontier has now made their beta2 release. From the article: 'After many months of development, and massive amounts of input from the public, we are proud to present you with the new release of Blood Frontier, v0.85 (Beta 2). This new version totally redefines and improves the game in many ways, creating a whole new style that makes it almost nothing like its predecessor.'"
Earth

Submission + - Ocean Circulation Doesn't Work As Expected (physorg.com)

Submitted by techno-vampire
techno-vampire writes: The familiar model of Atlantic ocean currents that shows a discrete "conveyor belt" of deep, cold water flowing southward from the Labrador Sea is probably all wet. New research led by Duke University and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution relied on an armada of sophisticated floats to show that much of this water, originating in the sea between Newfoundland and Greenland, is diverted generally eastward by the time it flows as far south as Massachusetts. From there it disburses to the depths in complex ways that are difficult to follow. A 50-year-old model of ocean currents had shown this southbound subsurface flow of cold water forming a continuous loop with the familiar northbound flow of warm water on the surface, called the Gulf Stream. "Everybody always thought this deep flow operated like a conveyor belt, but what we are saying is that concept doesn't hold anymore," said Duke oceanographer Susan Lozier. "So it's going to be more difficult to measure these climate change signals in the deep ocean."

Comment Re:This should be a lesson... (Score 5, Informative) 780

by coryboehne (#27962073) Attached to: Hacker Destroys Avsim.com, Along With Its Backups

It's actually very difficult to truly destroy data, especially remotely. There is actually a reason the DoD spec. requires physical destruction of the media.

Unless you have overwritten the area on the physical disk that contained the data, multiple times, the data can still be recovered.

The article doesn't lead me to believe that he's tried very hard to get this data back.. Maybe somebody (not me) who cares about this resource, should offer an attempt at data recovery.. Just be sure to hurry, before they do something that will ensure you cannot recover the data.

I've recovered data off of formatted HDD's, off of corrupted file systems, off of compact flash cards and other media (Really useful if you want to keep those photo's that someone thought was deleted, be aware of this people).

It's amazing how most people seem to think deleted means gone.
Security

Hacker Destroys Avsim.com, Along With Its Backups 780

Posted by timothy from the giving-you-the-benefit-of-their-bad-childhoods dept.
el americano writes "Flight Simulator community website Avsim has experienced a total data loss after both of their online servers were hacked. The site's founder, Tom Allensworth, explained why 13 years of community developed terrains, skins, and mods will not be restored from backups: 'Some have asked whether or not we had back ups. Yes, we dutifully backed up our servers every day. Unfortunately, we backed up the servers between our two servers. The hacker took out both servers, destroying our ability to use one or the other back up to remedy the situation.'"
Earth

GPS Accuracy Could Start Dropping In 2010 210

Posted by timothy from the how-to-blackmail-for-tax-dollars dept.
adamengst writes "A US Government Accountability Office report raises concerns about the Air Force's ability to modernize and maintain the constellation of satellites necessary to provide GPS services to military and civilian users. TidBITS looks at the situation and possible solutions."

Comment Re:Huh? What? WHAT THE HELL! (Score 2, Funny) 138

by coryboehne (#27958393) Attached to: Daydreaming Is Really Complex Problem-Solving

Talk about sleeping on the job... I didn't even post this in the right story...

Did you say something?

About right..

However, I wonder if the author has looked into writing books for academic purposes...

Anyone who has a degree knows just how much money is made on textbooks, and the frequency with which they are replaced and updated.

If I was a writer looking to make a living at it, especially in a vertical field, I would seriously consider writing university level textbooks.

Comment Re:Huh? What? (Score 0, Offtopic) 138

by coryboehne (#27958357) Attached to: Daydreaming Is Really Complex Problem-Solving

Did you say something?

About right..

However, I wonder if the author has looked into writing books for academic purposes...

Anyone who has a degree knows just how much money is made on textbooks, and the frequency with which they are replaced and updated.

If I was a writer looking to make a living at it, especially in a vertical field, I would seriously consider writing university level textbooks.

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