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Submission + - Why humanity spends billions and tons of fossil fuel on search of lost planes?

Submitted by Max_W
Max_W writes: After days of massive search finally, -"Report: Signals detected from EgyptAir Flight 804 in Mediterranean" http://edition.cnn.com/2016/05...

Why not to record GPS/GLONASS track constantly into a text file on say twenty flash USB drives enclosed into orange styrofoam with an serial aircraft number on it? In case of an accident, these waterproof USB flash drives are released outside overboard. Certainly the text file is encrypted.

Such a floating USB flash drive would cost maximum a hundred USD even if equipped with a tiny LED lamp; while an aircraft costs millions, and a search may costs billions let alone thousands of tons of burned fossil fuel.

Submission + - The 2015 Nebula Awards

Submitted by Dave Knott
Dave Knott writes: The winners of the 2015 Nebula Awards (presented 2016) have been announced. The Nebulas are voted on by members of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America and (along with the Hugos) are considered to be one of the two most prestigious awards in science fiction. This year's winners are:

Best Novel: Uprooted , Naomi Novik
Best Novella: Binti , Nnedi Okorafor
Best Novelette: “Our Lady of the Open Road,” Sarah Pinsker
Best Short Story: “Hungry Daughters of Starving Mothers,” Alyssa Wong
Ray Bradbury Award for Outstanding Dramatic Presentation: Mad Max: Fury Road , Written by George Miller, Brendan McCarthy, Nick Lathouris
Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy: Updraft , Fran Wilde
Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award: Sir Terry Pratchett
Kevin O'Donnell Jr. Service Award: Lawrence M. Schoen
2016 Damon Knight Grand Master Award: C.J. Cherryh

Submission + - Coca-Cola got a range of MAC addresses reserved (alobbs.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: GNU MacChanger's developer has found by chance that The Coca-Cola company got a range of MAC addresses allocated at the OUI, the IEEE Registration Authority in charge of managing the MAC addresses spectrum. What would Coca-Cola want around 16 million MAC addresses reserved? What are they planning to use them for? Could this part of a strategy around the Internet-of-things concept?
Businesses

The Case Against Net Neutrality 702

Posted by samzenpus from the who-needs-equality dept.
jeek writes "While I certainly don't agree with it, this article tries to make the case that Net Neutrality may actually be bad for America. From the article: 'If the government regulates net neutrality, policies for internet access are set by one entity: the FCC. However, if the government stays out, each company will set its own policies. If you don’t like the FCC’s policies, you are stuck with them unless you leave the United States. If you don’t like your internet service provider’s policies, you can simply switch to another one. So which model sounds better to you?'"
Operating Systems

FreeBSD 6.4 Released 64

Posted by timothy from the unsung-but-nicely-free dept.
hmallett writes "FreeBSD 6.4-RELEASE, the fifth release from the 6-STABLE branch of FreeBSD development, is now available. In addition to being hosted at many FTP sites, ISO images can be downloaded via the BitTorrent tracker, or for users of earlier FreeBSD releases, FreeBSD Update can be used to perform a binary upgrade."
Space

Submission + - 500-fold growth in space comms squeezes SETI@home (networkworld.com) 3

Submitted by
coondoggie
coondoggie writes: "The longest-running search for radio signals from alien civilizations is receiving 500 times more data from an upgraded telescope and better frequency coverage than project planners anticipated, meaning the SETI@home project is in dire need of more desktop computers to help crunch the data. New, more sensitive receivers on the world's largest radio telescope in Arecibo, Puerto Rico, and better frequency coverage are generating 500 times more data for the project than before, project leaders said in a release. SETI@home software has been upgraded to deal with this new data as the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) enters a new era and offers a new opportunity for those who want to help find other civilizations in the universe. http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/23469"
NASA

Submission + - Stern Measures Keep NASA's Kepler Mission on Track 1

Submitted by
Hugh Pickens
Hugh Pickens writes: "NASA's new Space Science Division Director, Dr. S. Alan Stern, appears to be making headway in keeping in space projects like the Kepler Mission at their original budgeted cost creating anguish among researchers and contractors along the way. The New York Times reports that Stern's plan is to hold projects responsible for overruns forcing mission leaders to trim parts of their projects, streamline procedures or find other sources of financing. "The mission that makes the mess is responsible for cleaning it up," Stern says. Because of management problems, technical issues and other difficulties on the Kepler Mission, the price tag for Kepler went up 20% to $550 million and the launch slipped from the original 2006 target date to 2008. When the Kepler team asked for another $42 million, Stern's team threatened to open the project to new bids so other researchers could take it over using the equipment that had already been built. The Kepler group came back with a solution that included cutting back the duration of the four-year mission by six months and scaling back preflight testing. "When they came to believe I was serious and had my boss's backing they took it seriously," says Stern. "They quickly found a way to erase that bill.""
Space

Submission + - Boeing Dreamliner Concerns are Specious (wired.com)

Submitted by SoyChemist
SoyChemist writes: On the most recent edition of his new show, Dan Rather reported that the new 787 Dreamliner aircraft may be unsafe. Since then, dozens of news agencies have jumped on the bandwagon. Most of them are reporting that the carbon fiber frame may not be as sturdy as aluminum. Few have bothered to question Rather's claims that the composite materials are brittle, more likely to shatter on impact, and prone to emit poisonous chemicals when ignited. While there is a lot of weight behind the argument that composite materials are not as well-studied as aircraft aluminum, the reasoning behind the flurry of recent articles may be faulty. The very title of Rather's story, Plastic Planes, indicates a lack of grounding in science. Perhaps the greatest concern should be how well the plane will hold up to water. Because they are vulnerable to slow and steady degradation by moisture, the new materials may not last as long as aluminum. Testing them for wear and tear will be more difficult too.
NASA

Submission + - Blogger finds Y2K bug in NASA global warming study 11

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: According to the article at http://www.dailytech.com/Blogger+finds+Y2K+bug+in+ NASA+Climate+Data/article8383.htm a blogger has discovered a Y2K bug in a NASA climate study by the same writer who accused the Bush administration of trying to censor him on the issue of global warming. The authors have acknowledged the problem and released corrected data. Now the study shows the warmest year on record as being 1934, not 1998 as previously reported in the media. In fact, the corrected study shows that half of the 10 warmest years on record occurred before World War II.
Utilities (Apple)

Submission + - Mac systems management (computerworld.com)

Submitted by
johannacw
johannacw writes: "This story has in-depth info about how to manage Macs using Apple's Managed Preferences architecture. It includes how to use the 14 built-in systems-management areas, how preferences interact, how to secure workstations and help users access resources including applications and printers. It's a must-read for any systems admin working in a Mac or mixed environment. Written by Ryan Faas, this is a follow-up to his popular "Inside Apple's Workgroup Manager." "
Censorship

Submission + - MPs outlaw satire in New Zealand

Submitted by
mernil
mernil writes: "New Zealand's Parliament has voted itself far-reaching powers to control satire and ridicule of MPs in Parliament, attracting a storm of media and academic criticism. The new standing orders, voted in last month, concern the use of images of Parliamentary debates, and make it a contempt of Parliament for broadcasters or anyone else to use footage of the chamber for "satire, ridicule or denigration"."
Power

Submission + - Using Gym Rats' Body Power to Generate Electricity

Submitted by
Carl Bialik from WSJ
Carl Bialik from WSJ writes: "A Hong Kong health club is hoping that a car battery, some StairMasters and dozens of gym rats can help ease the world's energy problems. It is just one of a wave of projects that are trying to tap the power of the human body, the Wall Street Journal reports. From the article: 'The human power project at California Fitness was set in motion by Doug Woodring, a 41-year-old extreme-sports fanatic and renewable-energy entrepreneur, who pitched the experiment to the gym's management last May. "I've trained my whole life, and many megawatts have been wasted," says Mr. Woodring, who has worked out at the Hong Kong gym for years. "I wanted to do something with all that sweat." '"
Microsoft

Submission + - Alternative to Groove?

Submitted by jpmahala
jpmahala writes: We had been using Groove internally at our company for quite some time (before the Microsoft buyout), and were interested in adding more users to the program. However, after clicking on the link to the store on Groove's website, I find a message from Microsoft that the product is no longer being offered. Following the link provided by Microsoft , I find that it is bundled into the Office2007 product now and it does not seem to be offered as a standalone product.

I'm sad to see that sort of thing happen, and I am unwilling to upgrade everyone to Office2007 just for the sake of Groove. Is there any viable alternative out there?
Linux Business

Submission + - Dell to Linux users: Not so fast

Submitted by
PetManimal
PetManimal writes: "After all the hubbub over Dell's note about manufacturing Linux-friendly Dells and choosing distros, the company is now telling users not to expect factory-installed Linux laptops and desktops anytime soon:

The company said today that the note was just about certifying the hardware for being ready to work with Novell SUSE Linux, not an announcement that the computers would be loaded and sold with the operating system in the near future.
According to the article, Dell says that lining up certification, support and training will 'take a lot of work.'"
Security

Submission + - Webmail at Work

Submitted by
rtobyr
rtobyr writes: "I don't allow users at my organization to use any third party e-mail. When users complain, I point out that we can't control the security policies of outside systems. End users tend to think that big business will of course have good security; so I ran a test of the "Big Four:" Hotmail, Yahoo Mail, AOL/AIM Mail, and GMail. Yahoo Mail was the only webmail provider to allow delivery of a VBS script. GMail was the only provider to block a zipped VBS script. End users also tend to think that a big business would never pull security features out from under their customers. We Slashdotters know that AOL and Microsoft have both compromised the security of their customers. I don't know of any security related bad press for Yahoo or Google. Three of my Big Four either allow VBS attachments or have a poor security track records. So my Ask Slashdot question is this: If you are a network administrator, do you limit your users' ability to use third party e-mail, and if so, do you allow for GMail or other providers that you've deemed to have secure systems and repuations?"

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