dancallaghan - Slashdot User

Why Do We Use x86 CPUs? 552

Posted by Cliff on Thursday January 04, 2007 @11:13AM from the because-their-cheap dept.

bluefoxlucid asks: "With Apple having now switched to x86 CPUs, I've been wondering for a while why we use the x86 architecture at all. The Power architecture was known for its better performance per clock; and still other RISC architectures such as the various ARM models provide very high performance per clock as well as reduced power usage, opening some potential for low-power laptops. Compilers can also deal with optimization in RISC architectures more easily, since the instruction set is smaller and the possible scheduling arrangements are thus reduced greatly. With Just-in-Time compilation, legacy x86 programs could be painlessly run on ARM/PPC by translating them dynamically at run time, similar to how CIL and Java work. So really, what do you all think about our choice of primary CPU architecture? Are x86 and x86_64 a good choice; or should we have shot for PPC64 or a 64-bit ARM solution?" The problem right now is that if we were going to try to "vote with our wallets" for computing architecture, the only vote would be x86. How long do you see Intel maintaining its dominance in the home PC market?

Microsoft Buyout of Ailing Sony Possible 363

Posted by CowboyNeal on Saturday April 08, 2006 @09:07AM from the possible-but-not-probable dept.

imashoe writes "BonaFideReviews has published an interesting article stating that a Microsoft buyout of Sony is quite possible sometime in the not-so-far future. From the article: 'All this added up, you have to ask yourself. Will the next Playstation you purchase post-PS3 run a Microsoft operating system and have backwards compatibility for PS1 PS2 PS3 Xbox and Xbox360? Putting your rabid love for Sony aside, this doesn't seem as far fetched as it once did, when the Sony name wasn't covered in enough red tape to fill the Grand Canyon.'"

Apple to Face iPod Clone Attack 394

Posted by Zonk on Sunday April 02, 2006 @05:34AM from the they-have-cool-armor dept.

chr1sb writes "The Age has a commentary piece outlining how Apple's domination of the online media market is continuing to grow, but speculating that significant competition from the likes of Nokia and Motorola will rapidly relegate Apple's presence in the market to a corner, just as clone manufacturing of IBM PCs dominated the initial success of the Macintosh. From the article: 'The iPod/iTunes system will move into a niche with Macintosh computers because Steve Jobs has again stuck with closed architecture and total control. This will happen quickly because mobile phones are being turned over about every year.'."

Swedish Study Finds Cell Phone Cancer Risk 282

Posted by Zonk on Sunday April 02, 2006 @03:40AM from the i-call-my-tumor-tummy dept.

dtjohnson writes "A new Swedish study has found that heavy users of cell phones had a 240 percent increase in brain tumors on the side of their head that the phone was used on. The study defined 'heavy' use as more than 2,000 total hours, or approximately one hour of use per workday for 10 years. An earlier British study was previously discussed here that didn't find an increased risk, although that study covered fewer subjects and only followed one type of brain tumor for a shorter period of time. Or course, the biggest epidemiological study of all is the one we are all participating in whenever we use our cell phone. The results from that study won't be available for a while."

The Simpson's Movie Confirmed 334

Posted by Zonk on Sunday April 02, 2006 @01:34AM from the not-a-joke dept.

bagsc writes "BBC News reports Twentieth Centruy Fox confirms The Simpsons are going to the movies! Should hit theatres in 2007." From the article: "A 25-second trailer for the film has been shown to US audiences at screenings of Ice Age: The Meltdown, promising to introduce 'the greatest hero in American history'. It then cut to Homer Simpson, wearing only his underwear, who admitted: 'I forgot what I was supposed to say.'"

The Cure for Information Overload 94

Posted by Zonk on Saturday April 01, 2006 @05:39PM from the technological-success-story dept.

Ged writes "Those librarian blogerati have done it again: they've just discovered 'The Cure for Information Overload'. It's a very elegant formula if you ask me, with obvious SRU/SRW applications, and maybe even TLA ramifications. I'm not sure about all of the conclusions, but it sure is an interesting theory."

Microsoft Blogger Robert Scoble Goes to Google 51

Posted by Zonk on Saturday April 01, 2006 @04:34PM from the busy-business-day-for-a-saturday dept.

Brian Puccio writes "Possibly as a result of their recent purchase by Chinese national interests, Robert Scoble, (in)famous Microsoft blogger and evangelist, has decided to go work for Google: 'I just got off the phone with Larry Page. He's offered me a job to run Google's PR department and I've decided to take him up on it. Why? Because I finally realized that Steve Gillmor is right. Microsoft Office is dead and I wanted to be at the company that is the future of everything... My first project will be to convert the Scoble Dashboard over to a Linux box.'"

Make Your OWN OMG Ponies SIGNS!!! WITH GLITTER!!! 168

Posted by CmdrTaco on Saturday April 01, 2006 @04:00PM from the that-is-so-cute-:)-:) dept.

nick125 writes "I've put together a quick guide on making a OMG PONIES!! sign. The howto has 9 simple steps, which, you will get a OMG PONIES!! sign at the end. The howto (pictures included!) is here."

Comment Re:The old guard passes away... (Score 1) 296

by dancallaghan on Tuesday March 28, 2006 @04:55AM (#15009200) Attached to: Stanislaw Lem Dies in Krakow

I don't think so. Have a look at the copyright page on Amazon, it is the 1970 Kilmartin and Cox translation (and although it's not explicit in that edition, earlier ones like the one at my university's library do make it clear that that translation is from the French).

Will Novell's Desktop Linux Catch On? 327

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on Tuesday March 14, 2006 @09:28AM from the i'll-drink-to-that dept.

Laura writes "Novell says its newly released Suse Linux Enterprise Desktop 10(SLED) can replace Windows for the average office worker. But will enterprises embrace a widespread migration from Windows?" From the article: "The desktop market is a very mature market, and Microsoft has a very strong presence there, which makes it hard for customers to move off [...] However, Jeff Jaffe, executive vice president and chief technology officer at Novell, said at the SLED 10 launch Thursday he is fairly confident that if enterprises have a chance to kick the tires of the new desktop OS, mass migration from Windows is soon to follow."

Legal Issues of Opening Up Proprietary Standards? 269

Posted by Cliff on Monday March 06, 2006 @01:16PM from the consequences-of-reverse-engineering dept.

mrjb asks: "The Alesis HD24 is a 24-track, hard disk audio recorder with a built-in 10 megabit FTP server. To improve on file transfer speed, Alesis offers an external Firewire drive with a program called FST/Connect which reads the disks under Windows. I've contacted Alesis about a Linux solution, but none is planned. Also, they are (understandably) not very eager to reveal the file system specs. After a few days of staring at hex codes, I now know enough about the FS to read HD24 IDE disks under Linux (no Firewire required). As I know I benefit from the efforts of the Samba and OpenOffice teams, I'd love to share this info. I'm not, however, the least bit interested in Alesis suing me (in fact, I might want to send them my CV at some point). What would your advice be in such a delicate situation of conflicting interests?"

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