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AMD

Submission + - How To Request Better ATI Linux Support

An anonymous reader writes: Michael Larabel, the editor of Phoronix, has outlined some strategies for contacting ATI's partners (OEM/ODM/AIBs) to seek ATI Linux fglrx driver improvements. He states that contacting ATI or AMD directly is the "wrong approach". He also states "I know for certain that at least one major OEM would like to see improved Linux support but is afraid that the Windows support would then be at risk." Michael also cites examples from the past where Lenovo had sought after improved Linux display drivers, which resulted in several new features last year. His statements on how to achieved improved driver support for the binary blob can be found on his blog.
The Courts

IBM Asks Court To Declare Linux Non-Infringing 133

A Cyclic Graph writes "We finally have a redacted version of IBM's Reply Memorandum in Support of Summary Judgment on Counterclaim 10 in SCO v. IBM. In short, IBM is asking the Court to declare that Linux doesn't infringe upon any of SCO's purported intellectual property. This document is the last word on that matter until the Court either declares there to be no doubt that Linux is free of infringement, or decides that that issue has to be decided by the jury. In their brief, IBM points out that SCO puts forth a convoluted set of non-answers referencing each other to disguise it's inability to answer IBM. Their set of cross-references is so complex that Groklaw readers graphed the claims to make what little sense of them they could."
Education

MIT Drops DRM-Laden Journal Subscription 141

Gibbs-Duhem writes with news that MIT has dropped its subscription to the Society of Automotive Engineers' web-based database of technical papers over the issue of DRM. The SAE refuses to allow any online access except through an Adobe DRM plugin that limits use and does not run on Linux or Unix. Also, the SAE refuses to let its papers even be indexed on any site but their own. SAE's use of DRM is peculiar to say the least, as they get their content for free from the researchers who actually do the work. And those researchers have choices as to where they send their work, and some of the MIT faculty are pretty vocal about it. From the MIT Library News: "'It's a step backwards,' says Professor Wai Cheng, SAE fellow and Professor of Mechanical Engineering at MIT, who feels strongly enough about the implications of DRM that he has asked to be added to the agenda of the upcoming SAE Publication Board meeting in April, when he will address this topic."
Censorship

Submission + - NFL Caught Abusing the DMCA

Implied Oral Consent writes: "You know how the NFL puts up those notices before every game saying "This telecast is copyrighted by the NFL for the private use of our audience, and any other use of this telecast or of any pictures, descriptions or accounts of the game without the NFL's consent is prohibited"? Well, Ars Technica is reporting that Wendy Seltzer thought that that was over-reaching and posted a video of the notice on YouTube. Predictably, the NFL filed a DMCA Take Down notice on the clip. But Ms. Seltzer knows her rights, so she filed a DMCA Counter Notice. This is when the NFL violated the DMCA, by filing another Take Down notice instead of taking the issue to court — their only legitimate option, according to the DMCA. Unfortunately for the NFL, Ms. Seltzer is a law professor, an EFF lawyer, and the founder of Chilling Effects. Oops!"
Music

Submission + - How to Turn A Music Lover to Piracy

dugn writes: "The Consumerist (consumerist.com) is running a story about how a run of the mill (read non-tech-savvy) music lover was pushed to become a pirate. http://consumerist.com/consumer/drm/how-i-became-a -music-pirate-245644.php A simple good piece that shows how the end user experience of DRM is starting to get needed traction in more blogs and mainstream web sites."
Graphics

Submission + - Will lack of DX10 on XP spur OpenGL development?

Sparr0 writes: "Since Microsoft's announcement that DirectX 10 will not be released for Windows XP, which means no Shader Model 4.0 and no Geometry Shaders, I have been waiting for news of game developers switching to OpenGL in order to get the best graphics on the best hardware on the most popular gaming OS... But there is nary a whisper of such. Will such a shift occur, even if only in small amounts? When? Why not? It is probably safe to say that Unreal Tournament 3 (AKA UT2007) will have OpenGL as an option in Windows, but that is both unsurprising and also a long way off. Ditto for Quake Wars, and most anything else that we already knew was going to have a native Linux clients. But where are all of the other big names with Windows-only offerings? Why haven't we heard from Valve, Blizzard, Sony, or EA, to name a few?"
Privacy

Residential Wi-Fi Mapping Database Revealed 167

Talaria writes "An enormous database of home wifi routers and their locations has been revealed after the Internet Patrol did some digging following AOL's recent announcement of their new "Near Me" service, which allows AIM users to see which of their instant messenger buddies are geographically near them. The database, containing the unique IDs of more than 16 million wireless routers and their locations, has been compiled by AOL partner Skyhook Wireless, which claims to have mapped the majority of residences in the U.S. and Canada."
Windows

Quirks and Tips For Upgrading To Vista 236

jcatcw writes "Computerworld's Scot Finnie has some advice for those considering an upgrade to Vista. He praises the work Microsoft has done on the installation program, but thinks it still presents problems for those who wish to upgrade. He recommends the free Windows Vista Upgrade Adviser. Then, be sure to pick the best edition for your use." From the article: "Don't bother wiping your hard disk. Just run the in-place upgrade from your previous installation. You'll be given the option to perform either an Upgrade or Custom (advanced) installation. Opt for the Custom install to clean-install Vista, and Windows Vista Setup does something smart: It creates a folder called Windows.old in your root directory that contains your old Documents and Settings, Program Files and Windows folders. (Note that on my test machine, this added step used an additional 7GB of disk storage.)"
Data Storage

Submission + - SAN's and disk utilization

pnutjam writes: "I work for a small to medium mental health company as the Network Administrator. While I think a SAN is a bit of overkill for our dozen servers it was here when I got here. We currently boot 7 servers from our SAN and all their disks are also on the SAN. Several of them have started to show excessive disk load, notably our SQL server and our old file, print, & domain controller server. I am in the process of seperating our file/print server from our domain controller, but right now I get excessive disk load during the morning when people log on (we use roaming profiles). I think part of this is because the disks need to be defragged. I get different answers from everybody when I ask if I should defrag on the servers (windows 2003), or the SAN (xiotech), or both. I also get conflicting answers when I inquire whether I would get better throughput from newer fibre-channel cards (ours are PCI-x, PCI-e is significantly faster), or mixing in some local disks, or using multiple fibre channel cards.

I would like to know if anybody else has dealt with a similar situation or has some expertise in this area."

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