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?"
Comment Re:Two years in the first line? (Score 1) 613
I'm not that familiar with USMC (And the US Navy, they both do much the same way), but one small correction: when your enlistment is up, and you haven't completed your 8 year statutory obligation, it's not the "Inactive Reserve" that you go to, it's the Individual Ready Reserve (at least that's what the US Army terms it). There actually is an Inactive Reserve, but that's for people who basically have a temporary deferment, such as performing missionary obligations in support of a recognized church (usually LDS [Mormons], but others can as well), but you're expected to come back to either a Reserve unit or the IRR, with the time spent in the Inactive reserve added on to your 8 year obligation.
Having said that, there are a number of good opportunities through the Military, a lot of skill training that you're unlikely to get right out of high school (and you're unlikely to get offered them if you haven't graduated high school, and not get in at all if the particular service has already filled their quota of non-HS grads). The other thing about the military training is that you are really unlikely to get paid while undergoing it from any other employer. Uncle Sam will want their pound of flesh for it though, as would any employer who puts a lot of money into an "employee's" training. Mostly rides on how well you do on the ASVAB test, and any other additional tests that some specialties require in addition to that (Like the Defense Language Proficiency Test, or DLPT, which is required for language training, and second-language required jobs, mostly in military intelligence). Your physical category will knock you out from many skills as well, many technical jobs require normal color vision, for instance. Then there's your credit and criminal history, often the better jobs require some sort of clearance, or at least a clean background, and they check your credit history as well, to see if you're at risk for bribery and to gauge your trustworthiness.
Journal Journal: Vista Compatibility Issues Keep Deployment at Less 7%
Feed Science Daily: Recreational Cocaine Use May Impair Inhibitory Control (sciencedaily.com)
Researchers employed the 'stop-signal paradigm' to measure the length of time taken by subjects to initiate and suppress a prepared reaction. The results show that while both recreational users of cocaine and non-users performed similarly in terms of response initiation, users needed significantly more time to inhibit their responses.
Feed Science Daily: Diet Of Walnuts, Blueberries Improve Cognition; May Help Maintain Brain Function (sciencedaily.com)
Junk food junkies take notice. What you eat does more than influence your gut. It also may affect your brain. Increasing evidence shows that mom was right: You should eat your vegetables, and your blueberries and walnuts, too. Scientists are confirming that this age-old adage is worth following. And new studies show that diet may have implications for those who suffer from certain brain ailments.
