vodhner - Slashdot User

Australian Government Ignoring Problems With Proposed Filters 292

Posted by Soulskill on Sunday October 26, 2008 @09:20AM from the la-la-la-i-can't-hear-you dept.

halll7 writes with an update to the proposed Australian national firewall we discussed recently. According to the BBC, "The official watchdog, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), has been conducting laboratory tests of six filtering products, and the government plans a live trial soon. ... After its recent trials, ACMA reported significant improvements on earlier studies. The network degradation on one product was less than 2%, although two products were in excess of 75%." Now, Ars Technica reports that "an Australian newspaper has uncovered documents showing that the government minister responsible for the program has ignored performance and accuracy problems with the filters, then tried to suppress criticism of the plan by private citizens." The EFA has a great deal to say in opposition of these plans.

China Launches First Willing Manned Mission Into Space 46

Posted by samzenpus on Thursday October 02, 2008 @02:18PM from the willing-participant dept.

Their program now includes helmets and food.

Knol, the Wikipedia Maybe-Fork? 102

Posted by timothy on Friday September 19, 2008 @10:30AM from the hey-baby-just-say-maybe dept.

Bennett Haselton contributes the following essay on the consequences of license choice as it applies to sites based on user contributions; read on below for more of his big idea for making Knol a more useful resource. "Google Knol should allow its writers to publish under a Creative Commons Share Alike license. The preceding sentence may not mean much to you, but if you've ever wanted to cite a Wikipedia article as a source, or simply read a Wikipedia article with some assurance that someone wasn't pulling your leg with some creative editing, or if you've wanted to contribute to Wikipedia but couldn't afford the time unless you received some modest compensation for it, then the addition of this one simple feature to Knol might make all the difference." (More below.)

EFF Sues NSA, President Bush, and VP Cheney 267

Posted by timothy on Thursday September 18, 2008 @01:10PM from the aw-heck-why-not dept.

VisualE writes "The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) will file a lawsuit against the National Security Agency (NSA) and other government agencies today on behalf of AT&T customers to stop the illegal, unconstitutional, and ongoing dragnet surveillance of their communications and communications records. The five individual plaintiffs are also suing President George W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, Cheney's chief of staff David Addington, former Attorney General and White House Counsel Alberto Gonzales and other individuals who ordered or participated in the warrantless domestic surveillance."

Microsoft To Announce Jerry Seinfeld Ads Cancelled 587

Posted by samzenpus on Thursday September 18, 2008 @05:02AM from the put-it-to-bed dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Valleywag says the Jerry Seinfeld ads are over — In a phone call, Frank Shaw confirms that Microsoft is not going on with Seinfeld, and echoes his underlings' spin that the move was planned. There is the 'potential to do other things' with Seinfeld, which Shaw says is still 'possible.' He adds: 'People would have been happier if everyone loved the ads, but this was not unexpected.'"

"Anonymous" Hacks Palin's Private Email 1733

Posted by kdawson on Wednesday September 17, 2008 @06:34PM from the should-have-used-hushmail dept.

netbuzz writes "'Anonymous,' best known for its jousts with Scientology, has apparently hacked Sarah Palin's private Yahoo email account. Contents, including sample emails, an index, and family photos, have been posted by Wikileaks, which calls them evidence that the GOP vice presidential candidate has improperly used private email to shield government business from public scrutiny." Note that there is no easy way to tell if the material on Wikileaks is genuine or a hoax. Update by J : Genuine.

The Pentagon's Unmanned Spokesdrone

Posted by samzenpus on Wednesday August 06, 2008 @03:37PM

With the spokesdrone rolling off the line it can't be long before the Cheney quail hunting buddybot is unveiled.

German Police Women to Get Bullet Resistant Bras 5

Posted by samzenpus on Monday August 04, 2008 @03:35PM

In an effort to save perfectly round, firm, heaving boobs from any undue harm, German police women will soon be issued bullet-proof bras. The bras were created to act as a second barrier of defense when it was found that normal bras would cause injuries to breasts by pushing plastic and metal parts into the majestic globes after being shot. The new bras are emblazoned with the word "police" and made from cotton, polyester, elastic and some other synthetic materials, thickly padded and with no metal or plastic studs or fasteners to cause irritation to the delicate flesh. It is theorized that the bras could actually protect the women attached to the breasts as well.

Comment Re:Use a project model - step out of your dev role (Score 1) 147

by vodhner on Wednesday March 07, 2007 @12:43PM (#18263208) Attached to: Getting Accurate Specifications for Software?

While it's useful to generate a prototype that your customers can respond to, remember that they will think it's real. So if it seems to work, you may be moved on to another task and leave an inefficient, unsupportable prototype in place as "the real thing". That can be very bad. Might be good to add lots of artificial delays in the prototype. Then you can keep explaining, "this is just a mockup, powered by squirrels running on treadmills; when you like what you see, we'll re-write the whole thing for speed."

I agree with those who are saying, effectively, that software development is an interactive service. If you want to code no-ops to the hard metal based on rigorous specs, you have to get a job in aeronautic or space navigation software. Anything else is developed impulsively based on customer whims, and you have to learn to enjoy that process.

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