Comment Re:In other news (Score 1) 663
You had Lightning connectors to your Raspberry Pi's?
Comment The whole google labs shutdown is odd (Score 1) 1
I don't quite get the whole Google labs shutdown thing, and Android App Inventor shutdown is the most puzzling of all. If you're creating new things anyway, how else are you going to do it? Use more closed betas, so you don't have to devote as much computing resources to it? I must be missing some pieces of the puzzle....
Submission + - Google Pulls Plug on Programming for the Masses 1
theodp writes: Google has decided to pull the plug on Android App Inventor, which was once touted as a game-changer for introductory computer science. In an odd post, Google encourages folks to 'Get Started!' with the very product it's announcing will be discontinued as a Google product. The move leaves CS Prof David Wolber baffled. ' In the case of App Inventor,' writes Wolber, 'the decision affects more than just your typical early adopter techie. It hurts kids and schools, and outfits like Iridescent, who use App Inventor in their Technovation after-school programs for high school girls, and Youth Radio's Mobile Action Lab, which teaches app building to kids in Oakland California. You've hurt professors and K-12 educators who have developed new courses and curricula with App Inventor at the core. You've hurt universities who have redesigned their programs.' Wolber adds: 'Even looking at it from Google's perspective, I find the decision puzzling. App Inventor was a public relations dream. Democratizing app building, empowering kids, women, and underrepresented groups — this is good press for a company continually in the news for anti-trust and other far less appealing issues. And the cost-benefit of the cut was negligible-believe it or not, App Inventor was a small team of just 5+ employees! The Math doesn't make sense.'
Submission + - Under cyber attack? Need help? Aussie gov says DIY (zdnet.com.au)
mask.of.sanity writes: Days after the Pentagon's #2 called for a Nato cyber-shield, the Australian government has announced it won't lift a finger to help the country's businesses to defend themselves against cyber attacks unless it presents a high risk to national security. Instead, Australia's security agencies will forge a response based on the "pathology of the problem", incorporating the risk the attack poses to government and the community.
A senior security official said the government "struggles to defend its own systems from the current threats", let alone that of other industries.
He went on to rubbish claims that existing military force strategies can be applied to cyber warfare, noting that the demarcation between civil attacks, such as domestic hacking, and those against nation-states, such as espionage, is blurry.
Former US counter-terrorism advisor Richard Clarke said the US government has taken a similar line.
A senior security official said the government "struggles to defend its own systems from the current threats", let alone that of other industries.
He went on to rubbish claims that existing military force strategies can be applied to cyber warfare, noting that the demarcation between civil attacks, such as domestic hacking, and those against nation-states, such as espionage, is blurry.
Former US counter-terrorism advisor Richard Clarke said the US government has taken a similar line.
How PC Game Modders Are Evolving 98
Lanxon writes "Wired has a lengthy investigation into the state of PC game mods, and the amateurs keeping the scene exciting in the wake of draconian DRM placed on many PC titles by major studios. It highlights a number of creative modders, such as Scott Reismanis, founder and editor of Mod DB, and his community-driven alternative to Valve's Steam — Desura — which is 'a distribution system, and, like Steam, will sell games and champion indie titles. But the way it handles mods makes it even more exciting.'"
How Do I Manage Seasoned Programmers? 551
An anonymous reader writes "I have a technology background and worked as a programmer for a few years before slipping over to the dark side. I am now on the business side and have been given responsibility for a small team of Java programmers. While the technology aspect of what my team works on doesn't scare me, I need ideas to make sure the team stays motivated while reporting to me, a business-oriented guy. Perhaps I should mention I am in my early 30s while the majority of the team constitute an older, wiser generation. What advice should I follow to avoid turning into yet another Bill Lumbergh?"
