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Comment Re:advice (Score 4, Informative) 185

by gregoryb (#28693029) Attached to: Suggestions For Learning FPGA Development At Home?

As far as development tools, they're overwhelmingly Windows based.

The majority of Xilinx' tools are available in Linux versions. I actually really prefer the Linux versions as using them from command line is far easier under Linux than under Windows (provided you want to script your process instead of using the GUI, probably not as useful for someone just getting started). Also, AFAIK, the larger Xilinx FPGAs require the *nix tools for a guaranteed Map/PAR due to memory limits, etc. You can use the Win32 version, but once utilization gets high enough, the Win32 versions may not be able to completely PAR the design.

-gb
The Courts

Submission + - School District Threatens Suit Over Parent's Blog

Submitted by penguin_dance
penguin_dance writes: A Texas School District is threatening to sue a parent over what it terms, "libelous material" or other "legally offensive" postings on her web site and are demanding their removal. Web site owner, Sandra Tetley, says they're just opinions. The legal firm sending the demand cited 16 items, half posted by Tetley, the rest by anonymous commentators to her blog. The alleged, libelous postings, "accuse Superintendent Lynne Cleveland, trustees and administrators of lying, manipulation, falsifying budget numbers, using their positions for 'personal gain,' violating the Open Meetings Act and spying on employees, among other things."

The problem for the district is that previous courts have ruled that governments can't sue for libel. So now, in a follow up story, the lawyers say, "the firm would file a suit on behalf of administrators in their official capacities and individual board members. The suit, however, would be funded from the district's budget." Tetley, so far hasn't backed down although she said, "she'll consult with her attorneys before deciding what, if anything, to delete."

What was that about "personal gain"?
Google

Free IMAP On Gmail 440

Posted by kdawson from the bout-time dept.
A number of readers are writing in to tell us that Google is rolling out IMAP support for Gmail accounts. Several people say that some of their gmail accounts offer the IMAP option (in Settings, Forwarding and POP/IMAP) and others do not.
Security

Submission + - Skype worm infects Windows PCs (computerworld.com)

Submitted by
walterbays
walterbays writes: "Skype Ltd. warned its users today that a worm targeting Windows PCs is spreading through the service's instant messenger... After hijacking contacts from an infected machine's Skype software, it sends messages to those people that include a live link. Recipients who blithely click on the URL — which poses as a JPG image but is actually a download to a file with the .scr extension — wind up infected."
Software

Submission + - Algorithm Rates Trustworthiness of Wikipedia Pages

Submitted by paleshadows
paleshadows writes: Researchers at UCSC developed a tool that measures the trustworthiness of each wikipedia page. Roughly speaking, the algorithm analyzes the entire 7-year user-editing-history and utilzes the longevity of the content to learn which contributors are the most reliable: If your contribution lasts, you gain "reputation", whereas if it's edited out, your reputation falls. The trustworthiness of a newly inserted text is a function of the reputation of all its authors, a heuristic that turned out to be successful in identifying poor content. The interested reader can take a look at this demo (random page with white/orange background marking trusted/untrusted text, respectively; note "random page" link at the left for more demo pages), this presentation (pdf), and this paper (pdf).
The Courts

Submission + - Attempted IP infringement to be criminalized (arstechnica.com)

Submitted by ianare
ianare writes: Good news for the MAFIAA! H.R. 3155, the "Intellectual Property Enhanced Criminal Enforcement Act of 2007", has been introduced in Congress by Rep. Steve Chabot (R-OH). In most cases, the bill appears to simply double existing penalties. One big change however, is that people could now be charged with criminal copyright infringement even if such infringement has not actually taken place. Not surprisingly, the EFF has condemned the legislation. Another of their concerns is that small changes could have big effects on casual file-sharers for a different reason: P2P users could face greater penalties for infringement after statutory damages are expanded.
Security

Submission + - Firefox and IE still not getting along (heise-security.co.uk)

Submitted by
juct
juct writes: "A new demo shows how Firefox running under Windows XP SP2 can be abused to start applications. For this to work, however, Internet Explorer 7 needs to be installed. This severe security problem promises another round in the "who-is-to-blame-war" between Mozilla and Microsoft. Mozilla currently is leading the race for a patch, as they have one ready in their bugzilla database."
Power

Submission + - Toyota Unveils Plug in Hybrid Prius (extremetech.com)

Submitted by phlack
phlack writes: Toyota has announced a plug in hybrid vehicle, based on their popular Prius. So far, it will only have a range of 8 miles on the battery (13km). They are going to test this vehicle on the public roads...a first for the industry.
Networking

Submission + - BitTorrent Comes to the Cell Phone (slyck.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Finally, a BitTorrent interface for the mobile phone. Dubbed uTorrent mUI, the web user interface allows the end user to control torrent downloads remotely. The interface still lacks the ability to add torrents, however bringing BitTorrent capabilities to the cell phone is a giant step forward.
Biotech

Submission + - Matching cancers and chemical treatments

Submitted by
Roland Piquepaille
Roland Piquepaille writes: "When oncologists meet a new patient affected by a cancer, they have to take decisions about the best possible treatment. Now, U.S. researchers have devised an algorithm which matches tumor profiles to best treatments. They've used a panel of 60 diverse human cancer cell lines from the National Cancer Institute — called NCI-60 — to develop their "coexpression extrapolation (COXEN) system." As said one researcher, "we believe we have found an effective way to personalize cancer therapy." Preliminary results have been encouraging and clinical trials are now planned. But read more for additional references."
Media

Submission + - Kodak unveils brighter CMOS color filters (eetimes.com)

Submitted by brownsteve
brownsteve writes: Eastman Kodak Co. unveiled what it says are "next-generation color filter patterns" designed to more than double the light sensitivity of CMOS or CCD image sensors used in camera phones or digital still cameras. The new color filter system is a departure from the widely used standard Bayer pattern — an arrangement of red, green and blue pixels — also created by Kodak. While building on the Bayer pattern, the new technology adds a "fourth pixel, which has no pigment on top," said Michael DeLuca, market segment manager responsible for image sensor solutions at Eastman Kodak. Such "transparent" pixels — sensitive to all visible wavelengths — are designed to absorb light. DeLuca claimed the invention is "the next milestone" in digital photography, likening its significance to ISO 400 color film introduced in the mid-1980's.
Links

Submission + - Is Scientific Consensus a Threat to Democracy? (ft.com)

Submitted by
chance_encounter
chance_encounter writes: "President of the Czech Republic Vaclav Klaus has published an article in the Financial Times in which he seems to equate the current global warming debate with totalitarian thought control: "The dictates of political correctness are strict and only one permitted truth, not for the first time in human history, is imposed on us. Everything else is denounced." He goes on to state: "The scientists should help us and take into consideration the political effects of their scientific opinions. They have an obligation to declare their political and value assumptions and how much they have affected their selection and interpretation of scientific evidence." At the end of the article he proposes several suggestions to improve the global climate debate, including this point: "Let us resist the politicisation of science and oppose the term "scientific consensus," which is always achieved only by a loud minority, never by a silent majority.""
Patents

Submission + - eBay may Lose "Buy it Now" Button in Paten (lawbean.com)

Submitted by
Spamicles
Spamicles writes: "A judge has delayed his ruling on the eBay patent infringement case. eBay has been involved in a legal dispute over the use of its popular "Buy it Now" button, which allows consumers to skip the bidding and purchase items on eBay directly. The patent suit was filed six years ago by MercExchange L.L.C. In May of 2003, a jury ruled in MercExchange's favor finding that eBay did in fact infringe on the patent, but in 2005 the US Supreme Court ruled that MercExchange was not automatically entitled to a court order blocking the offending service, essentially handing a victory down to patent reform advocates. However, the ruling by the Supreme Court does not affect the final judgment of the court."
Software

Submission + - Nerdy photo in Vista DVDs thwarts disk pirates

Submitted by maximus1
maximus1 writes: Microsoft says that the tiny photo on the Windows Vista business edition installation disks is an antipiracy feature. The tiny photo of three grinning men — less that 1 mm in size — is one of several images incorporated into the hologram's design intended to make it harder to replicate a Vista DVD, according to Nick White on Microsoft's Vista team blog. "The real story is interesting, but conspiracy theorists will be disappointed to learn that it is not the result of a deliberate attempt to deceive," White wrote.

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