Submission + - Swedish factory fined $3,000 for robot attack (theregister.co.uk)

Submitted by

rodrigoandrade

on Thursday April 30, 2009 @01:38PM

rodrigoandrade writes: "Maintenance worker was attacked by a robot. The robo-assault reportedly took place in 2007, when a man attempted to repair a defective machine used to lift rocks without properly checking the power supply beforehand. And unfortunately, the human head isn't all that different than a big juicy rock to such a robot."

Submission + - The Sewing Machine War (volokh.com)

Submitted by lousyd on Thursday April 30, 2009 @01:17PM

lousyd writes: Volokh has hosted a paper by George Mason University law professor Adam Mossoff on the patent fracas a century and a half ago surrounding the sewing machine. A Stitch in Time: The Rise and Fall of the Sewing Machine Patent Thicket challenges assumptions by courts and scholars today about the alleged efficiency-choking complexities of the modern patent system. Mossoff says that complementary inventions, extensive patent litigation, so-called "patent trolls," patent thickets, and privately formed patent pools have long been features of the American patent system reaching back to the antebellum era.

Submission + - Apple Reportedly Considering Making Its Own Chips

Submitted by afabbro on Thursday April 30, 2009 @12:29PM

afabbro writes: There are scattered reports today that Apple is building a team to design its own chips, with an eye towards reducing power consumption on iPods and iPhones.

Feed Macworld: iPhone business apps allow export to Google Docs, Spreadsheets (macworld.com)

From feed by macworldfeed on Monday November 10, 2008 @06:12PM

The latest version of two business-oriented iPhone applications from epiPhoné Coders' Guild allow you to export data to Google Docs or Spreadsheets.

Feed Wired: Learn Tricks to Make iTunes More Useful (wired.com)

From feed by wiredfeed on Monday November 10, 2008 @06:12PM

Apple's desktop jukebox software is slow and lacking in advanced features, but it does what many other apps can't -- it works with your iPhone. Since you can't live without iTunes, here are some sweet tips that make it easier to stomach.

China Defines Internet Addiction 201

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on Monday November 10, 2008 @05:45PM from the one-more-addiction-to-the-list dept.

narramissic writes "Three years after the first clinic dedicated to Internet addiction opened in Beijing, Chinese doctors have now officially defined it as an ailment. Those afflicted with this ailment spend six or more hours a day online and exhibit at least one of the following symptoms: difficulty sleeping or concentrating, yearning to be online, irritation, and mental or physical distress. Do you meet the criteria? You're in good company: About 10 percent of China's 253 million Internet users exhibit some form of addiction to the medium, and 70 percent of those people are young men, an official Xinhua News Agency report said."

Submission + - IOC trademarks line of Canadian National Anthem (boingboing.net) 3

Submitted by

gravis777

on Tuesday September 30, 2008 @03:17PM

gravis777 writes: "BoingBoing is reporting that the International Olympic Committee has trademarked a line from the Canadian National Anthem and is threatening to sue anyone who uses it. The line in question is "with glowing hearts". FTA:

The committee is so serious about protecting the Olympic brand it managed to get a landmark piece of legislation passed in the House of Commons last year that made using certain phrases related to the Games a violation of law. The list includes the number 2010 and the word "winter," phrases that normally couldn't be trademarked because they are so general.
"

Comment VMware (Score 1) 1

by azimman on Thursday July 31, 2008 @07:32PM (#24425669) Attached to: Creating a Security Test Evironment

Use VMware. Just test the apps in a known good VM with known variables; such as hardware, os version and patches, and other apps.

Feed news.com: Microsoft confirms it spent half billion on Danger (cnet.com)

From feed by cnetfeed on Thursday July 31, 2008 @07:32PM

That tidbit was among the nuggets in Microsoft's annual report, which was filed Thursday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Submission + - Creating a Security Test Evironment 1

Submitted by

Enderandrew

on Thursday July 31, 2008 @07:18PM

Enderandrew writes: "Our IT department has been tasked with creating a list of authorized software, and only allowing software to be added to such a list after it has been thoroughly tested. On principle that sounds like a great idea. I wonder why he haven't done that already. The practical side of me then immediately wonders how we should test apps to make sure they are secure. We have tools to scan internal websites, and we use MBSA for our Windows servers. However, I'm turning to Slashdot wondering what are the best methods for creating a test environment where I can analyze apps for security vulnerabilities. We're a multi-platform shop, but my main concern lies with Windows apps."

Submission + - NYT explores the world of Internet trolls (nytimes.com)

Submitted by

prostoalex

on Thursday July 31, 2008 @07:14PM

prostoalex writes: "New York Times magazine explores the history and status quo of Internet trolling. They look at the early days of Usenet trolling, current anonymous forums, and social networking pages as the latest venues for trolls: "In the late 1980s, Internet users adopted the word troll to denote someone who intentionally disrupts online communities. Early trolling was relatively innocuous, taking place inside of small, single-topic Usenet groups. The trolls employed what the M.I.T. professor Judith Donath calls a pseudo-naïve tactic, asking stupid questions and seeing who would rise to the bait. The game was to find out who would see through this stereotypical newbie behavior, and who would fall for it. As one guide to trolldom puts it, If you don't fall for the joke, you get to be in on it.""

Journal Journal: better than steroids, exercise in a pill

Journal by kesuki on Thursday July 31, 2008 @07:03PM

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/07/080731135918.htm

it made the ABC news, but the researchers had to combine 2 pills, to get it right. AICAR (5-Aminoimidazole-4-carboxyamide ribonucleoside) and GW1516. the Olympics is so worried the substance might be abused, that they're including it in the urine screen.

Face-Swapping Software To Protect Privacy 85

Posted by timothy on Thursday July 31, 2008 @06:14PM from the so-long-as-we-can-choose-the-swappees dept.

(0d0 writes "Some researchers at Columbia University's Computer Vision Labratory have developed software to automatically replace faces in batches of photos. Practical applications include protecting the identities of people in Google's Street View, coupling it with a digital camera's burst mode to create a perfect group photo, or protecting the identities of witnesses or law enforcement and military personnel. Other links to coverage include Boing Boing, American Public Media, and New Scientist."

Screenshots For New Wii SimCity Released 68

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on Thursday July 31, 2008 @06:02PM from the hand-that-rocks-the-tectonic-plates dept.

Kotaku has a host of screenshot images from the new upcoming Wii sim, SimCity Creator. Looks like the new SimCity allows you to not only build and manage a city, but utilize a whole new range of disaster tools as well. Can't wait to introduce my citizens to the new hand of God.

NASA Announces Water Found On Mars 281

Posted by timothy on Thursday July 31, 2008 @05:24PM from the so-val-kilmer-can-breathe-easy dept.

s.bots writes "Straight from the horse's mouth, NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander has identified water in a soil sample. Hopefully this exciting news will boost interest in the space program and further exploration of the Martian surface." Clearly, this has long been suspected, but now Martian water's been (in the words of William Boynton, lead scientist for the Thermal and Evolved-Gas Analyzer) "touched and tasted."

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