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Submission + - Dropbox is dropping Linux after 11 years (dropboxforum.com)

Submitted by rokahasch
rokahasch writes: Starting today, 10th of August, most users of the Dropbox desktop app on Linux have been receiving notifications that their Dropbox will stop syncing starting November.

Over at the Dropbox forums, Dropbox have declared that the only Linux filesystem supported for storage of the Dropbox sync folder starting the 7th of November, will be on a clean EXT4 fs.

This basically means Dropbox drops Linux support completely, as almost all Linux distributions have other file systems as their standard installation defaults nowadays — not to mention encryption running on top of even an EXT4 file system which won't qualify as a clean EXT4 fs for Dropbox (such as ecryptfs which is the default in for example Ubuntu for encrypted home folders).

The thread is trending heavily on Dropbox' forums with the forum's most views since the thread started earlier today. The cries from a large amount of Linux users have so far remained unanswered from Dropbox, with most users finding the explanation given for this change unconvincing. The explanation given so far is that Dropbox requires a fs with support for Extended attributes/Xattrs. Extended attributes however are supported by all major Linux/Posix complaint file systems.

Dropbox have up until today supported Linux platforms since their services began back in 2007.

Comment Re:Ubuntu (Score 1) 311

by beef623 (#41162421) Attached to: Ask Slashdot: Is the Rise of Skeuomorphic User Interfaces a Problem?
Yes, a lot of it is Unity, but in general Ubuntu is drifting closer and closer to the Mac side of the house than previous versions, and quite a bit closer than any other linux distro I've used.

I don't see much resemblance to iOS, but a default install of Ubuntu 12 looks very Mac like. The minimize/maximize/close icons default to the left side of the window (and require jumping through hoops to move them back to the right), the unity launcher looks and behaves very much like the dock and the style of the icons and top menu bar appear very Macish. Also, like you mentioned, there are fewer and fewer customization options available from the UI which is very Apple-like. Oh, and like OP said, the whole skeuomorphic thing.

Comment Doubtful (Score 1) 301

by beef623 (#38501372) Attached to: Do E-Readers Spell the Demise Of Traditional Schooling?

I don't think it will or should change things as much as the article seems to imply. Different people learn differently, and for some, lecturing works. Personally, lecturing did practically nothing for me, I just need the time set aside and the goal to work toward because I'm not very good at setting those for myself. Nothing irked me more than comp sci professors who insisted on having computers turned off while lecturing.

For e-readers, while they may contribute, I just don't think there is enough of a difference in tech for them to cause that large of a shift in method. Also, for several (myself included), some things are just easier to do with a physical book.

Comment My 2 cents (Score 1) 238

by beef623 (#37103216) Attached to: Do Spoilers Ruin a Good Story? No, Say Researchers
It sounds like the spoilers were written into the stories that had them. Having the story spoiled as part of the story itself isn't quite the same as having someone walk up to you on the street and give away the ending. I still wouldn't want that practice to become mainstream because I happen to like not knowing what will happen. Once you've read through a story once, you can't really go back and have that same experience again.

Comment Re:I guess I should prepare for extinction then (Score 1) 422

by beef623 (#28640083) Attached to: Standalone GPS Receivers Going the Way of the Dodo
Until the GPS reception on a smartphone is at least semi-reliable, I don't think there's anything to worry about. My blackberry can't always find a satellite in an open field on a clear day, much less in a car on a cloudy day while moving. My little garmin on the other hand, has only lost reception once that I can remember in the year or two that I've had it. It even gets reception in the middle of nowhere underwater in the rain.
Image

Phantom Hourglass Review 89

Posted by Zonk from the always-dig-that-crazy-hat dept.
Of all the titles in the Legend of Zelda series, some of the most-respected have been for handheld consoles. Link's Awakening, the Oracle duo, and Minish Cap all manage to combine on-the-road gaming with a certain purity of Zelda-ness. Link's most recent adventure on the small screen, Phantom Hourglass, generally continues this tradition and introduces a number of new elements to the property. Unique controls, a true sequel, and cel-shaded graphics all make Hourglass stand out from 'traditional' Zelda games, and together the whole hangs together fairly well. Read on for my impressions of this pint-sized return to Hyrule.
Biotech

New Microscope Watches Cells in 3D 50

Posted by CmdrTaco from the still-not-available-for-peepers dept.
Jamie found a story about a new 3D Microscope which creates 3D videos of cells in action. Traditionally scientists have had to choose between high resolution and animation, so no doubt this device will cure the common cold.
Hardware Hacking

Submission + - New water-cooled hard drives coming (arstechnica.com)

Submitted by CoolHandLuke
CoolHandLuke writes: NEC and Hitachi are teaming up on a liquid cooling system for hard drives. The goal is to cut down on noise levels while providing more efficient cooling. 'Hitachi and NEC are developing the water-cooled hard drive systems for desktop computers mainly to reduce noise levels to 25 decibels, 5 decibels quieter than a whisper. To do this, NEC and Hitachi actually wrap the hard drive in "noise absorbing material and vibration insulation." According to Hitachi and NEC, the cooling cold plate they're planning to use is the most efficient plate ever used for heat conduction, which means they'll be able to cool the hard drives quicker and more efficiently.'
The Internet

Submission + - US playing Russian roulette with broadband (arstechnica.com)

Submitted by LarryBoy
LarryBoy writes: In a speech given at the YearlyKos Convention in Chicago, FCC Commissioner Michael Copps lambasted US broadband policy, saying that the US is 'playing "Russian roulette with broadband and Internet and more traditional media."' Copps also took issue with an op-ed piece ('Broadband Baloney') by fellow commissioner Robert McDowell last week. 'In his speech, Copps didn't mention McDowell by name, but he did claim that broadband in the US is "so poor that every citizen in the country ought to be outraged." Back when then OECD said that we were number four in the world, he said, no one objected to its methodology. Copps also had fighting words for those who blame the US broadband problems on our less-dense population; Canada, Norway, and Sweden are ranked above us, but all are less dense than the US. Besides, this argument implies that broadband is absolutely super within American urban areas. Copps noted, though, that his own broadband connection in Washington, DC was "nothing compared to Seoul."'

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