Comment Re:Look for vids of the WMF bug (Score 1) 157
That video wasn't too exciting, but one of the related videos seems to fit the bill for the OP's request: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3atmWmWCwlw
Comment Re::O (Score 5, Funny) 92
They may be optical, but if you grab one and look underneath you might still find a ball or two.
Comment Filed way too late. (Score 2, Informative) 360
You've spent two years on this, and only now getting into the patent? You should be prepared for disappointment. The odds are very high that someone has already patented your exact idea, especially if it's something that you could figure out with no prior RF electronics experience. It's difficult to let go of something that you've put your heart into for so long, but you need to be prepared to do that if you run into problems. Otherwise it could drag you even further down.
Breakthrough in Electricity-Producing Microbe 177
University of Massachusetts researchers have made a breakthrough with "Geobacter," a microbe that produces electric current from mud and wastewater. A conservative estimate puts the energy output increase at eight times that of the original organism, potentially allowing applications far beyond that of extracting electricity from mud. "Now, planning can move forward to design microbial fuel cells that convert waste water and renewable biomass to electricity, treat a single home's waste while producing localized power (especially attractive in developing countries), power mobile electronics, vehicles and implanted medical devices, and drive bioremediation of contaminated environments."
Comment FPGA4Fun and KNJN Altera boards under $50 (Score 1) 185
Read through some of the tutorials at http://www.fpga4fun.com/ and then head over to the sister site http://www.knjn.com/ to find some FPGA boards. You can get a very good introduction to FPGA concepts for less than $50. The Pluto boards with Altera Cyclone FPGAs are perfect for getting your feet wet.
Comment Re:Space versus time tradeoff (Score 5, Interesting) 210
Maybe quantum computers will be really good at doing this.
Logitech Makes 1 Billionth Mouse 456
Smivs writes "Logitech has hailed as a major landmark the production of their one billionth computer mouse.
The news comes at a time when analysts claim the days of the mouse are numbered.
'It's rare in human history that a billionth of anything has been shipped by one company,' said Logitech's general manager Rory Dooley.
'Look at any other industry and it has never happened. This is a significant milestone.'
The computer mouse will achieve a milestone of its own next week when it turns 40.
It was 9 December 1968 when Douglas C. Engelbart and his group of researchers at Stanford University put the first mouse through its paces."
Comment Re:SATA, not IDE (Score 1) 1044
Hint: Build it like a hunk of pipeline. Flanges, bolts, all that stuff are common as dirt (and often buried therein for decades after assembly).
I'd second the pipeline idea. Make it so they don't need fire to open it. I don't think the contents would very useful after having a torch or plasma cutter used on it, since you can't guarantee where the contents will settle to or where they decide is the best place to open it.
550 Metric Tons of Uranium Removed From Iraq 647
Orion Blastar tips us to an AP report that 550 metric tons of "yellowcake" uranium has successfully been removed from Iraq. The operation lasted three months, and it required 37 separate flights and an 8,500-mile trip by boat to reach a port in Montreal. Quoting:
"While yellowcake alone is not considered potent enough for a so-called 'dirty bomb' -- a conventional explosive that disperses radioactive material -- it could stir widespread panic if incorporated in a blast. Yellowcake also can be enriched for use in reactors and, at higher levels, nuclear weapons using sophisticated equipment. The Iraqi government sold the yellowcake to a Canadian uranium producer, Cameco Corp., in a transaction the official described as worth 'tens of millions of dollars.' A Cameco spokesman, Lyle Krahn, declined to discuss the price, but said the yellowcake will be processed at facilities in Ontario for use in energy-producing reactors."
Comment Re:Is lead truly that dangerous ? (Score 2, Informative) 459
There is no such thing as "lead fumes" while soldering. Temperatures are NOT high enough to vaporize lead at all. Granted, some of the flux materials used in solder are not so good for you to breathe, but you will not inhale any lead while soldering. Wash your hands after soldering and your lead intake is practically zero.
'I Was a Hacker for the MPAA' 385
Wired has up an article with a man named Robert Anderson, who was recruited by the MPAA in 2005 to inform on people in the BitTorrent community. In a tell-all interview with the site, Anderson explains how the powerful media organization encouraged him to obtain the information they were looking for: "According to Anderson, the MPAA told him: 'We would need somebody like you. We would give you a nice paying job, a house, a car, anything you needed.... if you save Hollywood for us you can become rich and powerful.' In 2005, the MPAA paid Anderson $15,000 for inside information about TorrentSpy -- information at the heart of a copyright-infringement lawsuit brought by the MPAA against TorrentSpy of Los Angeles. The material is also the subject of a wiretapping countersuit against the MPAA brought by TorrentSpy's founder, Justin Bunnell, who alleges the information was obtained illegally."
Submission + - Day of Silence on the Internet (damontimm.com)
thornomad writes: "Time to pick up the phone (or usb headset) and call a representative or two: pandora.com (and other internet radio sites) has gone silent for the day to protest the impending legistlation that will effect internet radio:
"Hi, it's Tim from Pandora, I'm sorry to say that today Pandora, along with most Internet radio sites, is going off the air in observance of a Day Of Silence. We are doing this to bring to your attention a disastrous turn of events that threatens the existence of Pandora and all of internet radio. We need your help. Ignoring all rationality and responding only to the lobbying of the RIAA, an arbitration committee in Washington DC has drastically increased the licensing fees Internet radio sites must pay to stream songs. Pandora's fees will triple, and are retroactive for eighteen months! Left unchanged by Congress, every day will be like today as internet radio sites start shutting down and the music dies. A bill called the "Internet Radio Equality Act" has already been introduced in both the Senate (S. 1353) and House of Representatives (H.R. 2060) to fix the problem and save Internet radio — and Pandora — from obliteration. I'd like to ask you to call your Congressional representatives today and ask them to become co-sponsors of the bill. It will only take a few minutes and you can find your Congresspersons and their phone numbers by entering your zip code here. Your opinion matters to your representatives — so please take just a minute to call. Visit www.savenetradio.org to continue following the fight to Save Internet Radio. As always, and now more than ever, thank you for your support.
Submission + - 8 reasons not to use MySQL (and 5 to adopt it)
Esther Schindler writes: "Database decisions are never easy, even — or maybe especially — when one choice is extremely popular. To highlight the advantages and disadvantages of the open-source MySQL DBMS, CIO.com asked two open-source experts to enumerate the reasons to choose MySQL and to pick something else. Tina Gasperson takes the 5 reasons to use MySQL side, and Brent Toderash discusses 8 reasons not to. Note that this isn't an "open source vs proprietary databases" comparison; it's about MySQL's suitability in enterprise situations."
Submission + - Sony Debuts Razor-Thin Flexible Display
Mike writes: "Sony Corporation just posted video of their new 2.5 inch display on its' web page. The display is flexible, full color, and apparently inexpensive to make. This could be used in hundreds of cool new products, as well as enhancing thousands of existing products. In fact, it's hard to see where this kind of display wouldn't be used, especially in portable consumer electronics."
Submission + - How Classsmate PC stacks up against OLPC
lisah writes: "While the One Laptop Per Child project pulled itself together and shipped its first Beta machines, Intel was busy developing its own version, the Classmate PC. Inevitable comparisons will be made between the two (especially since OLPC's chairman Nicholas Negroponte called Intel's move "predatory"), so Linux.com's Tina Gasperson and her kids took a Classmate PC for a test run to see how it does in the real world. The upshot? Good battery life, easy to use, and great with ketchup."
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