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Comment Depends on the conference (Score 2) 109

It definitely depends on the conference. I attend an annual conference for a niche open source project. As is typical of many open source projects, documentation tends to not be the strongest suit. But sessions at the conference are almost always full of great information and real-world examples. Plus the networking and face time with others youâ(TM)ve known only from email or IRC...it all adds up to a worthwhile trip each year. Keynote speakers, on the other hand, are almost universally worthless.
Mars

4-Billion-Pixel Panorama View From Curiosity Rover 101

A reader points out that there is a great new panorama made from shots from the Curiosity Rover. "Sweep your gaze around Gale Crater on Mars, where NASA's Curiosity rover is currently exploring, with this 4-billion-pixel panorama stitched together from 295 images. ...The entire image stretches 90,000 by 45,000 pixels and uses pictures taken by the rover's two MastCams. The best way to enjoy it is to go into fullscreen mode and slowly soak up the scenery — from the distant high edges of the crater to the enormous and looming Mount Sharp, the rover's eventual destination."
GNOME

GNOME 3.8 Released Featuring New "Classic" Mode 267

Hot on the heels of the Gtk+ 3.8 release comes GNOME 3.8. There are a few general UI improvements, but the highlight for many is the new Classic mode that replaces fallback. Instead of using code based on the old GNOME panel, Classic emulates the feel of GNOME 2 through Shell extensions (just like Linux Mint's Cinnamon interface). From the release notes: "Classic mode is a new feature for those people who prefer a more traditional desktop experience. Built entirely from GNOME 3 technologies, it adds a number of features such as an application menu, a places menu and a window switcher along the bottom of the screen. Each of these features can be used individually or in combination with other GNOME extensions."
Hardware

Submission + - Auto Makers Announce Electric Car Charging Standard (motorward.com)

Overly Critical Guy writes: Auto makers are launching a universal EV charger that charges an electric vehicle in 15 to 20 minutes. The standard, called Combined Charging System, has been approved by the Society of Automative Engineers and ACEA, the European association of vehicle manufacturers, as the standard for fast-charging electric vehicles.
Privacy

Submission + - Supreme Court: GPS devices equivalent of a search, (wired.com) 2

gambit3 writes: "The Supreme Court says police must get a search warrant before using GPS technology to track criminal suspects.

The court ruled in the case of Washington, D.C., nightclub owner Antoine Jones. A federal appeals court in Washington overturned his drug conspiracy conviction because police did not have a warrant when they installed a GPS device on his vehicle and then tracked his movements for a month."

Comment Re:These works were written between 40 - 60 years (Score 2) 721

This would be a good time to bring up the American Library Association's Digital Copyright Slider:

http://www.librarycopyright.net/digitalslider/

Makes it easy to determine the length of copyright in the US. Like, as another poster noted, no works from 100 years ago will be protected by copyright today.

Submission + - HDMI and its stupid labelling requirements (pcauthority.com.au)

An anonymous reader writes: In many ways HDMI has revolutionized the way we connect devices. By unifying video and audio into a single cable manufacturers have been able to make their products easier to setup than ever before. Until recently there hasn't actually been much difference in HDMI cables. But things are about to get confusing with the introduction of HDMI 1.4. By the 1st of January 2012 manufacturers of products with HDMI ports won't actually be able to call HDMI 1.4 by itst real name. In fact, come November 18 this year those selling cables won't be able to use HDMI 1.4 or HDMI 1.3 to delineate between different products. Instead cables that support version 1.4 of the HDMI standard will have to use one of five different labels. The new labels? Well, as this story explains, they're going to cause a new level of confusion for anyone hooking up a home cinema. Add to this the fact that the HDMI organisation keeps the specifics of its specifications secret and translation between version numbering and marketing speak is nigh on impossible.

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