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Comment What are better news aggregators?? (Score 1) 381

I, too, liked the high information density of the previous Google News. This "improvement" ruined that for me, and I've abandoned Google News (and told them so in a feedback).

So... what other news aggregator that has good information density and picks up most/all of the reputable news sources?

Submission + - Ask Slashdot: Which dataplan provider to use when traveling in the USA

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: I am visiting USA 3-4 times a year and I need a data service. I also need to keep my cell phone number, so swapping the SIM card in my phone is not an option. I have bought those 19.95$ phones in Best-Buy to get a local number, but those were voice only. So I have been thinking about getting a MiFi hotspot.

I have been looking at pre-paid plans from Verizon(only 700 LTE band for their pre-paid hotspot), AT&T, T-Mobile etc. perhaps to put in a MiFi hotspot or buy a hotspot from a provider, but have no idea which one to use, their reputation, real life coverage etc. It is clear that all data plans in the USA are really expensive, I get 100GB monthly traffic with my Scandinavian provider for the same price as 6-8 GB montly in the US, which I guess could be a problem with our Apple phones as they do not recognize a metered WiFi hotspot. But that is another issue.
I travel all over but most of the time outside the big cities and my experience from roaming with my own phone and the cheap local phone so far tells me that coverage fluctuates wildly depending on the operator.

Comment Typo Alert - It's Spelled "Felten" with two Es (Score 1) 360

by garnett (#45086833) Attached to: The Linux Backdoor Attempt of 2003

Please correct the main post - you've got Ed Felten's name misspelled twice. See the cited blog post (https://freedom-to-tinker.com/blog/felten/the-linux-backdoor-attempt-of-2003/), and Wikipedia's article on him (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Felten). Apparently this misspelling happens often enough that Wikipedia redirects silently.

Thanks, folks.
Image

Smart Wallets React To Spending By Shrinking 98

Posted by samzenpus from the smaller-by-the-hour dept.
fangmcgee writes "These high-tech wallets are digitally programmed to react to your bank account levels by shrinking in size, refusing to open, or vibrating whenever a transaction is processed. From the article: 'The Proverbial Wallets come in three attractive styles to fit your spending needs: The Mother Bear has a constricting hinge that makes it harder to open the closer you approach your monthly budget, while the Bumblebee buzzes every time a transaction is processed. The Peacock inflates and deflates with the amount of cash in your account, which puts your assets on “display” for potential mates, according to the designers.'"
Transportation

Heroic Engineer Crashes Own Vehicle To Save a Life 486

Posted by kdawson from the delta-vee dept.
scottbomb sends in this feel-good story of an engineer-hero, calling it "one of the coolest stories I've read in a long time." "A manager of Boeing's F22 fighter-jet program, Innes dodged the truck, then looked back to see that the driver was slumped over the wheel. He knew a busy intersection was just ahead, and he had to act fast. Without consulting the passengers in his minivan — 'there was no time to take a vote' — Innes kicked into engineer mode. 'Basic physics: If I could get in front of him and let him hit me, the delta difference in speed would just be a few miles an hour, and we could slow down together,' Innes explained."
Science

The Proton Just Got Smaller 289

Posted by samzenpus from the size-does-matter dept.
inflame writes "A new paper published in Nature has said that the proton may be smaller than we previously thought. The article states 'The difference is so infinitesimal that it might defy belief that anyone, even physicists, would care. But the new measurements could mean that there is a gap in existing theories of quantum mechanics. "It's a very serious discrepancy," says Ingo Sick, a physicist at the University of Basel in Switzerland, who has tried to reconcile the finding with four decades of previous measurements. "There is really something seriously wrong someplace."' Would this indicate new physics if proven?"
Medicine

Doctor Invents 'Zero Gravity' Radiation Suit 83

Posted by samzenpus from the baron-harkonnen-approved dept.
DrFrasierCrane writes "You think you feel weighed down when your dentist lays that lead apron on you to take X-rays: how about the doctors who deal with radiation treatments and have to wear those aprons all day long? A Dallas, Texas, doctor has created a 'zero gravity' radiation suit for just that problem. From the article: 'Physicians are supposed to wear a lead apron during those procedures. It is back-breakingly heavy and doesn't cover the body completely. The zero gravity suit eliminates the weight and the exposed openings.'"
Earth

Supplies of Rare Earth Elements Exhausted By 2017 958

Posted by kdawson from the they-don't-call-them-rare-for-nothing dept.
tomhudson writes "While we bemoan the current oil crisis, I ran across an editorial that led me to research a more immediate threat. Ramped-up production of flat-panel displays means the material to make them will be 'extinct' by 2017. This goes for other electronics as well. Quoting: 'The element gallium is in very short supply and the world may well run out of it in just a few years. Indium is threatened too, says Armin Reller, a materials chemist at Germany's University of Augsburg. He estimates that our planet's stock of indium will last no more than another decade. All the hafnium will be gone by 2017 also, and another twenty years will see the extinction of zinc. Even copper is an endangered item, since worldwide demand for it is likely to exceed available supplies by the end of the present century.' More links at the journal entry."

Join IT Support For Abuse and Despair 51

Posted by ScuttleMonkey from the state-the-obvious dept.
tomhudson writes "The Register is reporting that IT support people feel abused and frustrated, with 2/3 swearing, almost half being depressed for the rest of the day, and 15% throwing things. Personally, I thinks their stats are off: I've thrown a monitor, a laser printer, keyboards, books, CDs, drives, kicked a few chairs, etc. Who hasn't? What have you thrown lately?"

Comment Put Up or Shut Up - Email Your Congressperson (Score 1) 58

by garnett (#5044727) Attached to: Tauzin To Delay National "Do Not Call" List
If you don't like it, don't just post your whining on Slashdot.

Tell Reps. Tauzin and Dingell how you feel about this by sending them email from the U.S. House's "Write Your Representative" website at http://www.house.gov/writerep/. Just enter the state of Lousiana and zipcode 70360-1111, and your email will go to Tauzin. Dingell is in Michigan at 48124-1111. Make sure you also send one to your own rep. Maybe a few thousand (dare I hope, 100,000?) protests will help them reconsider.

Here's what I just sent them:

"I am very disappointed that you have blocked the initial $16M funding for the FTC's proposed national do-not-call list, as reported by the Washington Port. The money requested is very small, and the benefit to consumers is very large. Most consumers strongly favor, AND WOULD USE, the list if offered it. That the telemarketers association opposes it is only to be expected, and should not affect the FTC being allowed to pursue its development.

Please reconsider your action, and permit immediate funding for the FTC's nationwide do-not-call list.

Thank you."

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