Comment Re:30% is too high! (Score 3, Insightful) 238
Except for all the grants and tax subsidies given to businesses. Such hypocrisy.
Submission + - What causes degradation of wireless signals over time? 4
acer123 writes: Lately I have replaced several home wireless routers because the signal strength has been found to be degraded. These devices, when new (2+ years ago) would cover an entire house. Over the years, the strength seems to decrease to a point where it might only cover one or two rooms. Of the three that I have replaced for friends, I have not found a common brand, age, etc. It just seems that after time, the signal strength decreases. I know that routers are cheap and easy to replace but I'm curious what actually causes this. I would have assumed that the components would either work or not work; we would either have a full signal or have no signal. I am not an electrical engineer and I can't find the answer online so I'm reaching out to you.
Can someone explain how a transmitter can /slowly/ go bad?
Can someone explain how a transmitter can
Comment Re:Zuckerberg more sinister than portrayed (Score 1) 350
Where's my mod points? This has to be one of the funniest posts I've seen in a long time.
Comment Re:OMG!!!! NOES11111 (Score 1) 560
according to the Americablog site this photo was taken in 2001. If that's true this is more than aesthetic manipulation.
http://www.americablog.com/2010/07/bp-photoshops-fake-photo-of-command.html
Submission + - Patent Reform Bill Approved by House Committe
Alex Forster writes: The House Committee on the Judiciary approved far-reaching legislation to reform the nation's patent system Wednesday.
The Patent Reform Act of 2007 largely reflects the IT sector's lobbying effort to curtail lengthy, expensive patent infringement lawsuits, but Wednesday's committee deliberations centered on finding compromises acceptable to opponents — namely the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, manufacturers, and large research universities — so that the bill could win approval.
Committee Chairman John Conyers, D-Mich., described the current patent system as inefficient, bogged down by inappropriate litigation rules, unreliably funded, and resulting in patents of "questionable quality." The bill would make it harder to secure a patent and easier for rivals to challenge one, and it would change how courts determine an infringed patent's value.
Some Journals Rejecting Office 2007 Format 474
hormiga writes "Some scholarly journals are rejecting submissions made using new Office 2007 formats. Science and Nature are among publishers unwilling to deal with incompatibilities in the new formats, and recommend using older versions of Office or converting to older formats before submission. The new equation editor is cited as a specific problem. Rob Wier recommends that those publishers consider using ODF instead."
Apple Mac OS X Update For 17 Vulnerabilities 259
BSDetector writes "Apple has released fixes for 17 OSX vulnerabilities, ranging from system takeover to denial-of-service attacks. It was the fifth security update released this year. It also marked the first time this year that an operating system security update from Apple did not patch a vulnerability disclosed by the January Month of Apple Bugs project. Today's update pushed Apple's year-to-date patch total to over 100. More than one of the affected flaws were called 'critical' or 'dangerous'."
