Submission + - Uber Revises Privacy Policy, Wants More Data From Users

Submitted by itwbennett on Friday May 29, 2015 @09:33AM

itwbennett writes: Uber Technologies is revising its privacy policy to allow it to access a rider’s location when its smartphone app is running in the background, and to send special offers to users’ friends and family. Writing about the policy update in a blog post Thursday, Katherine Tassi, managing counsel of data privacy at Uber, noted that users will be in control in either case, and will be able to choose whether to share that data. The company has faced criticism in the past over how it handles sensitive information, particularly over its so-called ”God view” tool that apparently lets some Uber employees track the location of customers that have requested car service.

Submission + - Artist Uses 3D Printing To Preserve Artifacts Destroyed By ISIS (vice.com)

Submitted by tedlistens on Friday May 29, 2015 @09:21AM

tedlistens writes: From th burning of the Library of Alexandria to the destruction of the Buddhas of Bamiyan in Afghanistan by the Taliban to the Nazi's battle to burn as much “degenerate art” as they could find, mobs and soldiers have been quick to destroy what took societies centuries to create; what museums and collectors spent decades collecting, preserving, and documenting for the public.

The digital era looks different: files can be cheaply hosted in data centers spread across several states or continents to ensure permanence. Morehshin Allahyari, an Iranian born artist, educator, and activist, wants to apply that duplicability to the artifacts that ISIS has destroyed. Now, Allahyari is working on digitally fabricating the sculptures for a series called “Material Speculation” as part of a residency in Autodesk's Pier 9 program. The first in the series is “Material Speculation: ISIS,” which, through intense research, is modeling and reproducing statues destroyed by ISIS in 2015. Allahyari isn't just interested in replicating lost objects but making it possible for anyone to do the same: Embedded within each semi-translucent copy is a flash drive with Allahyari’s research about the artifacts, and an online version is coming.

Comment Re:Energy saving vs winter conditions. (Score 1) 376

by norttipertti on Wednesday February 12, 2014 @02:52PM (#46230811) Attached to: Laser Headlights Promise More Intense, Controllable Beams

I wish we all could live at Florida, but alas - there's plenty of people on the north side of arctic circle.

Comment Energy saving vs winter conditions. (Score 1) 376

by norttipertti on Wednesday February 12, 2014 @04:09AM (#46226625) Attached to: Laser Headlights Promise More Intense, Controllable Beams

So, new laser lights run with less energy consumption and cooler than traditional headlights. So either you waste energy on a heater that keeps lights clear of ice and snow or keep stopping often to scrape ice off the headlights.

I think I'll stay with the old technology.

Comment Re:Aren't there already products like this? (Score 1) 156

by norttipertti on Saturday January 22, 2011 @04:47PM (#34967276) Attached to: Apple Files Patent For Display Mouse

_Touch_screen is new, otherwise:
http://metku.net/index.html?sect=view&path=mods/loginoki/index_eng

Mouse with display, that's so 2006...

Comment Could be on my shopping list (Score 2) 41

by norttipertti on Saturday August 29, 2009 @01:34AM (#29240037) Attached to: Developer Explains Clone/Transhumanist RPG

Game seems quite interesting. Somehow a bastard child of good old Paranoia and Scalzi's Shadow Brigades comes to mind.
I guess I have to give it a whirl at some point.

Comment Trellis works for me (Score 1) 321

by norttipertti on Friday February 27, 2009 @03:40PM (#27015745) Attached to: Best FOSS Help Desk Software For Small Firms?

I have been using Trellis ( http://www.accord5.com/trellis ) both as a helpdesk and as a problem tracking and management solution between housing cooperatives and building maintenance companies.
It's completely open source and quite easy to modify to different needs.
Creating tickets with e-mail piping sucks big time out of the box, but like I said - easy to modify...