Comment As long as George Lucas didn't buy it... (Score 3, Funny) 65
...coming soon; All new revisions, extra footage, Han Solo shot accidentally!
Comment Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Score 2) 585
Plays well enough with an Xbox360 controller.
(In fact, they are fantastic for most console emulation)
Don't even bother trying to play N64 games with a Playstation controller, blecch.
Comment What about Dick Hyman? (Score 2, Funny) 335
Comment Re:Wait, what? - The next step (Score 2, Informative) 542
The next step is to run more tests with more hives, and more test groups (with - as suggested elsewhere in the discussion - graduated exposure levels)
Not to run around like a headless chook claiming the preliminary test actually means anything.
1. Do limited unscientific test.
2. Profit!
3. ???
Comment Re:Silly question - Couchdb (Score 1) 45
Try couchdb if you want to select ranges.
Its keys are stored in a heap, so selecting ranges of values is a core use case.
The view system also uses the same mechanism, so by having a cached view you can emit any key you like per record, and grab individual or ranges of values.
Nifty.
Submission + - What's the best way to teach myself math? 4
An anonymous reader writes: I have a secret. In high school I failed two out of three years of math classes and eventually dropped out of school completely. Although dropping out was the most foolish thing I have ever done, I am not dumb. I earned my general equivalency diploma as soon as was legally possible and from there went on to college and beyond. That was many years ago and my most basic algebra, trigonometry, and geometry skills are slipping away at an alarming rate. I'm looking for a self-guided course covering the equivalent of 4 years of high school mathematics including calculus. My math skills are holding me back. How can I turn this around?
Submission + - Possession of the Anarchist's Cookbook==Terrorist
Anonymous Terrorist writes: Back in the midsts of time, when I was a lad and gopher was the height of information retrieval I read The Anarchist's Cookbook in one huge text file. Now it appears the UK government considers possession of the book an offence under the Terrorism Act 2000 and is prosecuting a 17 year old boy, in part, for having a copy of the book.
Submission + - Which Lost/Stolen Laptop Trackers Do You Like? 2
saudadelinux writes: "I got held up at gunpoint in July, and my laptop was stolen. Fortunately, I was able to get a new one, and I'm typing this post on it.
There companies out which for a fee, install tracker software on your laptop. If it's stolen or lost, they track its whereabouts whenever it gets on the 'Net and work with local law enforcement and ISPs to find the machine. I'm wondering: does anyone use one of those services? Does anyone have a recommendation for which company to go with? I'm using a dual-boot Ubuntu/XP machine, and the couple of companies I've looked at do Windows-only. Are there Linux options? TIA, saudadelinux"
There companies out which for a fee, install tracker software on your laptop. If it's stolen or lost, they track its whereabouts whenever it gets on the 'Net and work with local law enforcement and ISPs to find the machine. I'm wondering: does anyone use one of those services? Does anyone have a recommendation for which company to go with? I'm using a dual-boot Ubuntu/XP machine, and the couple of companies I've looked at do Windows-only. Are there Linux options? TIA, saudadelinux"
Submission + - Red Cross sued for using... a red cross (iht.com) 4
Swampash writes: "Johnson & Johnson, the health-products giant that uses a red cross as its trademark, is suing the American Red Cross, demanding the charity halt its use of the red cross symbol on products it sells to the public."
Submission + - Largest-known planet befuddles scientists (msn.com)
langelgjm writes: "As mentioned today on the BBC World Report:
The largest planet ever discovered is also one of the strangest and theoretically should not even exist, scientists say. Dubbed TrES-4, the planet is about 1.7 times the size of Jupiter and belongs to a small subclass of "puffy" planets that have extremely low densities. The finding will be detailed in an upcoming issue of Astrophysical Journal. "TrES-4 is way bigger than it's supposed to be," Mandushev told Space.com. "For its mass, it should be much smaller. It basically should be about the size of Jupiter and instead it's almost twice as big." "TrES-4 appears to be something of a theoretical problem," said study team member Edward Dunham, also of the Lowell Observatory. "Problems are good, though, since we learn new things by solving them."
The largest planet ever discovered is also one of the strangest and theoretically should not even exist, scientists say. Dubbed TrES-4, the planet is about 1.7 times the size of Jupiter and belongs to a small subclass of "puffy" planets that have extremely low densities. The finding will be detailed in an upcoming issue of Astrophysical Journal. "TrES-4 is way bigger than it's supposed to be," Mandushev told Space.com. "For its mass, it should be much smaller. It basically should be about the size of Jupiter and instead it's almost twice as big." "TrES-4 appears to be something of a theoretical problem," said study team member Edward Dunham, also of the Lowell Observatory. "Problems are good, though, since we learn new things by solving them."
Submission + - Forensics Expert says Al-Qaeda Images Altered
WerewolfOfVulcan writes: Wired reports that researcher Neal Krawetz revealed some veeeeeery interesting things about the Al-Qaeda images that our government loves to show off.
From the article: "Krawetz was also able to determine that the writing on the banner behind al-Zawahiri's head was added to the image afterward. In the second picture above showing the results of the error level analysis, the light clusters on the image indicate areas of the image that were added or changed. The subtitles and logos in the upper right and lower left corners (IntelCenter is an organization that monitors terrorist activity and As-Sahab is the video production branch of al Qaeda) were all added at the same time, while the banner writing was added at a different time, likely around the same time that al-Zawahiri was added, Krawetz says." Why would Al-Qaeda add an IntelCenter logo to their video? Why would IntelCenter add an Al-Qaeda logo? Methinks we have bigger fish to fry than Gonzo and his fired attorneys... }:-) The article contains links to Krawetz's presentation and the source code he used to analyze the photos.
From the article: "Krawetz was also able to determine that the writing on the banner behind al-Zawahiri's head was added to the image afterward. In the second picture above showing the results of the error level analysis, the light clusters on the image indicate areas of the image that were added or changed. The subtitles and logos in the upper right and lower left corners (IntelCenter is an organization that monitors terrorist activity and As-Sahab is the video production branch of al Qaeda) were all added at the same time, while the banner writing was added at a different time, likely around the same time that al-Zawahiri was added, Krawetz says." Why would Al-Qaeda add an IntelCenter logo to their video? Why would IntelCenter add an Al-Qaeda logo? Methinks we have bigger fish to fry than Gonzo and his fired attorneys... }:-) The article contains links to Krawetz's presentation and the source code he used to analyze the photos.
Submission + - $500 million dollar piracy ring busted in China
Blahbooboo3 writes: Reported by several news organizations, pirated software worth more than $500 million has been seized by authorities in China as part of a joint operation run by Chinese police and the FBI. Microsoft estimates that the software piracy of an international counterfeiting syndicate, over the past six years, cost the company at least $2 billion in lost software revenue. Microsoft said that key information in the investigation came from its Windows Genuine Advantage program, an antipiracy system that can check whether an OS is legit. It's generally accepted that Microsoft has done well out of software piracy: it helps products become widely used, and as the market matures, people start to pay for their software. And this has been a major factor in Windows beating Linux in China, as Bill Gates admits.
Submission + - Phone call whitelist?
javacowboy writes: I've been getting lots of strange phone calls lately. Most of the time, my phone would ring less than three times and then stop before I can answer. Then, a couple of nights ago, I got a call at 3am in the morning. It had stopped ringing by the time I woke up. *69 revealed a number with an area code of 632, which does not exist. I called the number, and the call would not complete past the area code.
I'm getting fed up with:
I want a product or service with which I can set up a whitelist of numbers that I allow to make my phone ring. Any number not on the list, or an unlisted phone number, tries to call me, and the phone doesn't ring at all.
I would pay as much for this service as I would pay to have my number removed from the phone directory.
Is there any legal way for me to do this?
I'm getting fed up with:
- Wrong numbers
- Wrong numbers that hang up on me as soon as I speak into the phone
- Telemarketers
- Crank calls
- Weird calls than hang up before I answer
- Late night calls
- People I know that I no longer wish to speak to
- etc
I want a product or service with which I can set up a whitelist of numbers that I allow to make my phone ring. Any number not on the list, or an unlisted phone number, tries to call me, and the phone doesn't ring at all.
I would pay as much for this service as I would pay to have my number removed from the phone directory.
Is there any legal way for me to do this?
Submission + - Bookstore owner burns books in protest
gollum123 writes: "Tom Wayne has amassed thousands of books in a warehouse during the 10 years he has run his used book store, Prospero's Books ( http://www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/books/05/28/bookbu rning.ap/index.html ). But when he wanted to thin out the collection, he found he couldn't even give away books to libraries or thrift shops; they said they were full. So on Sunday, Wayne began burning his books in protest of what he sees as society's diminishing support for the printed word. "This is the funeral pyre for thought in America today," Wayne told spectators outside his bookstore as he lit the first batch of books. he envisions monthly bonfires until his supply — estimated at 20,000 books — is exhausted."
Submission + - Dell PCs with Ubuntu are Less Expensive
Chandon Seldon writes: "Contrary to many earlier expectations, it turns out that Dell's prices for its Ubuntu PCs are cheaper than similar Windows Vista PCs for all three Models. With the savings for skipping the Microsoft Tax ranging from $50 to $140, it looks like kickbacks for pre-installed software weren't that big a deal after all."
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