Comment Re:Duh? (Score 3, Funny) 273
Darn you, HP Laser Jet! I told you not to do that!
Comment Re:Cue the Streisand effect in 3...2...1... (Score 2) 333
I used to work for a company that used JonesDay. I don't work there anymore. I don't think I got replaced by a turtle, though that would be really bizarre.
Comment Re:Sadly, I guess I was reading /. (Score 1) 659
well, it makes me want to die now, that's for sure...
Journal Journal: Bush Wants More Spy Power. 346
The Bush administration is seeking even less judicial oversight in it's spying program. The changes would apply to US email and phone accounts and would shield companies who comply with illegal orders for information.
Journal Journal: What the heck is sucrolose you say? 2
Sucralose is as close to sugar as scientifically possible. It basically is sugar. The molecule is reversed. It taste like sugar but it is lighter and the body passes it right through with no ill effects. It's actually made from sugar.http://splenda.com/page.jhtml?id=splenda/faqs/nocalorie.inc#q1
Submission + - Since when are computers infallible?
ApolloX writes: I've worked in the software industry for a number of years and I understand how volatile large computer and database systems can be. Most of the time, I'm only called in when something breaks. I know first hand that issues such as a lack of concurrency control, or just a bad database optimization, can lead to corrupted or even lost data.
What I don't know is, why most customer support representatives, in the event there is a data error, will treat the customer as if they are liars or trying to scam them. On a recent call to a company, let's call it Givo, my account number was accidently wiped from the system. Throughout the process, I spoke with half a dozen representatives who claimed I had never had their service before and at each step I was "guilty until proven innocent". What's worse was that at some moments, even when presented with evidence of my case history in their system, representatives would disregard it because the system told them my account did not exist and had never existed.
I can recall many similar support calls to other companies over the years in which the phrase "our computer system is never wrong" was repeatedly used as justification for an issue the representative knew little about. Since when did computers become infallible such that the customer is always wrong? Why does it take multiple escalations of support calls before anyone starts believing that maybe the computer made a mistake?
What I don't know is, why most customer support representatives, in the event there is a data error, will treat the customer as if they are liars or trying to scam them. On a recent call to a company, let's call it Givo, my account number was accidently wiped from the system. Throughout the process, I spoke with half a dozen representatives who claimed I had never had their service before and at each step I was "guilty until proven innocent". What's worse was that at some moments, even when presented with evidence of my case history in their system, representatives would disregard it because the system told them my account did not exist and had never existed.
I can recall many similar support calls to other companies over the years in which the phrase "our computer system is never wrong" was repeatedly used as justification for an issue the representative knew little about. Since when did computers become infallible such that the customer is always wrong? Why does it take multiple escalations of support calls before anyone starts believing that maybe the computer made a mistake?
Submission + - The Best VHS Capture System using Free Software?
mrcgran writes: "I have been trying to find the best solution to transfer VHS tapes to a digital format using Free Software only. I would like to lose as little as possible in the conversion, sampling optimally, minimizing noise and being in control of every step of the process. Storage is not a problem. I'm expecting to use around 5GB+ for each hour of raw captured footage.
The software part seems promising: VLC and mencoder for conversion of raw footage, Cinelerra and many others for video editing.
However, the hardware is being tricky. Most try to bloat the device adding functions like TV/compression/edition instead of focusing on the raw A/D conversion. Chipsets are hidden, and parameters like signal-to-noise, sampling rate etc are unavailable for comparison. Information is scattered and very difficult to find.
Which chipsets/products should I look for, specially for use with Linux and BSD? Which ones allow oversampling of pixel resolution and number of frames (in order to average the values and reduce the noise)? Which setup should I use: S-Video/Composite, sampling rate/oversampling, suggestions on high-quality VHS players/heads/tape cleaning processes, etc? Has anyone tried to use scaling algorithms such as hq/scalenx to upscale video and sound resolution? Pitfalls?"
The software part seems promising: VLC and mencoder for conversion of raw footage, Cinelerra and many others for video editing.
However, the hardware is being tricky. Most try to bloat the device adding functions like TV/compression/edition instead of focusing on the raw A/D conversion. Chipsets are hidden, and parameters like signal-to-noise, sampling rate etc are unavailable for comparison. Information is scattered and very difficult to find.
Which chipsets/products should I look for, specially for use with Linux and BSD? Which ones allow oversampling of pixel resolution and number of frames (in order to average the values and reduce the noise)? Which setup should I use: S-Video/Composite, sampling rate/oversampling, suggestions on high-quality VHS players/heads/tape cleaning processes, etc? Has anyone tried to use scaling algorithms such as hq/scalenx to upscale video and sound resolution? Pitfalls?"
Submission + - Hackers offer subscription, support for malware
Stony Stevenson writes: Organised gangs are taking a page out of security vendors' books and setting up their own websites that offer support and subscriptions for malware and spyware.
From the article: "For subscriptions starting as low as $20 per month, enterprises can sell "fully managed exploit engines" that spyware distributors and spammers can use to infiltrate systems worldwide, said Gunter Ollmann, director of security strategies at IBM's ISS X-Force team.
Many exploit providers simply wait for Microsoft's monthly patches, which they then reverse engineer to develop new exploit code against the disclosed vulnerabilities, Ollmann said. "Then all you've got to do is just subscribe to them on a monthly basis."
From the article: "For subscriptions starting as low as $20 per month, enterprises can sell "fully managed exploit engines" that spyware distributors and spammers can use to infiltrate systems worldwide, said Gunter Ollmann, director of security strategies at IBM's ISS X-Force team.
Many exploit providers simply wait for Microsoft's monthly patches, which they then reverse engineer to develop new exploit code against the disclosed vulnerabilities, Ollmann said. "Then all you've got to do is just subscribe to them on a monthly basis."
Feed Crestor Effective At Halting Early Atherosclerosis (sciencedaily.com)
An international study using ultrasound technology has found that the most potent cholesterol-lowering drug is also effective at halting early changes in the blood vessels that can lead to atherosclerosis.
Feed LED Array Signals Successful Binding Of Drug-delivery Molecules To DNA (sciencedaily.com)
Biology and chemistry researchers from Virginia Tech are creating molecular complexes to bind to and disrupt the DNA of diseased tissues, such as tumors or viruses. Testing the activity of each of the therapeutic molecule designs has been a time-consuming process. But a student's invention now provides rapid screening to accelerate discovery of promising new drugs.
Feed Insulin Receptors Play A Critical Role In Promoting Islet Growth (sciencedaily.com)
A new study has identified the insulin receptor as an important protein that promotes islet cell growth in mice whose bodies are unable to use insulin properly, or are insulin resistant, a precursor to type 2 diabetes.
Journal Journal: You Can be a Rocket Man
The world's first commercially-available rocket pack is now on the market - for £130,000. Its inventor, Juan Manuel Lozano, who owns Mexican-based Tecnologia Aeroespacial Mexican (TAM), describes the Rocket Belt as "the most spectacular flying machine ever developed". The 52-year-old said the main difference between his belt and the James Bond version is the
Feed Qwest’s Ex-President Can’t Recall Remarks on Finances (nytimes.com)
A former Qwest president testified that he could not recall comments he made in 2000 and 2001 about the company’s financial performance.
Submission + - Interview with initiator of DirectX
Miguel de Icaza writes: "there's a great interview from Shacknews with Alex St. John, one of the earlier DirectX / gaming guys. He talks about almost losing his job going against Bill Gates, and talks a bit about the MS development & political process.
'You know why the "X" on the Xbox is a glowing green X? The original codename for Direct X was "the Manhattan Project," because strategically it was an effort to displace Japanese game consoles with PCs and ultimately the Xbox. We called it "The Manhattan Project" because that was the codename for the program developing the nuclear bomb. We had a glowing radiation logo for the prototype for Direct X, and of course as soon as that got out and the press covered it, it caused a scandal' "
'You know why the "X" on the Xbox is a glowing green X? The original codename for Direct X was "the Manhattan Project," because strategically it was an effort to displace Japanese game consoles with PCs and ultimately the Xbox. We called it "The Manhattan Project" because that was the codename for the program developing the nuclear bomb. We had a glowing radiation logo for the prototype for Direct X, and of course as soon as that got out and the press covered it, it caused a scandal' "
Feed Fired Reporters Start Their Own News Website (techdirt.com)
A group of eight former employees of the Santa Barbara News-Press who claim they were illegally fired for supporting efforts to unionize the newsroom have decided to keep on reporting via a website they set up for themselves. They're covering all sorts of local news, including school relocation plans and property taxes. They claim that this is only until they get their jobs back -- but if the conditions at their old newspaper job were so bad, it makes you wonder why they don't just go ahead and make this new project a full-time effort and do things right. If the Santa Barbara News-Press really is treating its employees as badly as is being made out in reports about the labor dispute, why not create some competition and bring on the best employees from the newspaper to show the management of that paper what happens when you treat employees poorly?
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