Dont miss LinuxCon - a new technical conference providing an unmatched collaboration
and education space covering all matters Linux. September 21-23, 2009 in Portland, OR.
Speakers include Linus Torvalds and Mark Shuttleworth, founder of Ubuntu.
Register by the early registration deadline of August 15th and attend for US$399.
http://p.sf.net/sfu/linuxcon
======================================================================
Slashdot Daily Newsletter
In this issue:
* Shaw Cable Again Blocks Firewire On Canadian Set-Top Boxes
* 21st International Olympiad of Informatics Opens, In Bulgaria and Online
* Encyclopedia Britannica Loses Information-Retrieval Patent Ruling
* Neuros LINK Mixes Quiet, Aesthetics, and Ubuntu
* The iPhone SMS Hack Explained
* College Credits For Trolling the Web?
* China's Response To the Internet Addiction Death
* Netflix Announces Second Data Mining Contest
* Chrome OS Designed To Start Microsoft Death Spiral
* Yemenis Should Be Incensed At Websense
* Deposit Checks By iPhone
* First Internet-Connected Pacemaker Goes Live
* New Company Seeks to Bring Semantic Context To Numbers
* Opera Being Composed On Twitter
* Comparing the MMO Industry With the Silver Screen
* Scientists Create Artificial Bones From Wood
* Working Off the Clock, How Much Is Too Much?
* Music Labels Working On Digital Album Format
* Facebook Acquires FriendFeed
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Shaw Cable Again Blocks Firewire On Canadian Set-Top Boxes |
| from the now-that's-value-added dept. |
| posted by timothy on Sunday August 09, @20:08 (Television) |
| http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/09/237247 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
WestCoastSuccess writes with this excerpt: "A year and a half ago,
Canada's Shaw Cable began encrypting channels with the '0x02' flag. This
flag has the effect of making the IEEE1394 (Firewire) output useless to
customers who use third-party PVRs (such as the excellent MythTV, for
example). After complaints to the CRTC and Industry Canada about this
practice, the encryption flag was dropped on most channels and the
Firewire connection again functioned. [0]Until last night, that is."
Discuss this story at:
http://hardware.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/09/237247
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| 21st International Olympiad of Informatics Opens, In Bulgaria and O|
| from the your-long-awaited-dream-vacation dept. |
| posted by timothy on Sunday August 09, @23:02 (Programming) |
| http://developers.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/09/2338220 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
Kostadin Vodenicharov writes "The [0]International Olympiad in
Informatics is considered one of the most prestigious programming
contests in the world. Currently the [1]21st IOI is being held in
[2]Plovdiv, [3]Bulgaria (which was the country that also hosted the 1st
IOI), from 8th to 15th August. High school students from all over the
world have gathered to put their programming skills to the test. Everyone
else who wishes to participate can do it in the online contest which will
run in parallel with the real one and will present the same tasks to be
solved. The competition itself is going to take place on Monday 10th
August and Wednesday 12th August from 9:00 to 14:00 EEST (UTC+3)."
Discuss this story at:
http://developers.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/09/2338220
Links:
0. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Olympiad_in_Informatics
1. http://www.ioi2009.org/
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plovdiv
3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulgaria
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Encyclopedia Britannica Loses Information-Retrieval Patent Ruling |
| from the rent-seeking-behavior-thwarted-for-once dept. |
| posted by timothy on Monday August 10, @02:08 (Patents) |
| http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/0223249 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]angry tapir writes with a snippet from Good Gear Guide: "A notorious
patent case about a technology that allows people to search multimedia
content may finally be coming to a close. Earlier this week, a judge
ruled that [1]two patents initially awarded to Encyclopedia Britannica
are invalid. The patents were built on the infamous 5,241,671 patent
first unveiled by Compton's NewMedia in 1993 at the Comdex trade show.
That patent, which covered the retrieval of information from multimedia
content and is now owned by Britannica, would have been relevant to the
many companies selling multimedia CD-ROMs at the time."
Discuss this story at:
http://yro.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/0223249
Links:
0. http://www.goodgearguide.com.au/
1. http://www.goodgearguide.com.au/article/314259/encyclopedia_britannica_loses_patent_ruling
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Neuros LINK Mixes Quiet, Aesthetics, and Ubuntu |
| from the gone-to-seed-is-before-the-good-stuff-in-this-context de|
| posted by timothy on Monday August 10, @05:14 (Media) |
| http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/0624234 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
jonniee writes with a link to Dr. Dobb's Journal's look at a rather cool
living-room-suitable media-centric computer from Neuros (presented as
being suitable mostly for developers and serious hobbyists for now),
excerpting: "The Neuros LINK is [0]essentially a quiet x86 PC running
Ubuntu Linux with an ATI graphics card delivering video via VGA, DVI, and
HDMI output. ... What makes the LINK such a compelling platform for these
folks and Linux/open source developers in general is the recognition that
a real business entity is stepping forward to spend the money necessary
to market and commercialize what tech enthusiasts have been doing for
years."
Discuss this story at:
http://hardware.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/0624234
Links:
0. http://www.ddj.com/linux-open-source/219100482
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| The iPhone SMS Hack Explained |
| from the en-percent- dept. |
| posted by timothy on Monday August 10, @08:12 (Security) |
| http://it.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/0530219 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
GhostX9 writes "Tom's Hardware just [0]interviewed Charlie Miller, the
man behind the iPhone remote exploit hack and [1]winner of Pwn2Own 2009.
He explains the (now patched) bug in the iPhone which allowed him to
remotely exploit the iPhone in detail, explaining how the string
concatenation code was flawed. The most surprising thing was that the bug
could be traced back to several previous generation of the iPhone OS (he
stopped testing at version 2.2). He also talks about the failures of
other devices, such as crashing HTC's Touch by sending a SMS with '%n' in
the text."
Discuss this story at:
http://it.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/0530219
Links:
0. http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/hacking-iphone-security,2384.html
1. http://it.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/03/25/2215203&tid=76
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| College Credits For Trolling the Web? |
| from the sounds-like-xkcd dept. |
| posted by CmdrTaco on Monday August 10, @09:05 (The Internet) |
| http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/1237245 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]Jafafa Hots writes "Some undergraduate and masters level courses at
the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary [1]require trolling as part
of their requirements. In William Dembski's classes on Intelligent Design
and Christian Apologetics, [2]20% of the final grades come from having
made 10 posts defending Intelligent Design Creationism on 'hostile'
websites. There seems to be no requirement that the posts contain
original writing, apparently cut and paste jobs are sufficient. Is this
the first case of trolling the net being part of course requirements?"
Discuss this story at:
http://tech.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/1237245
Links:
0. mailto:jafafahots@gmail.com
1. http://www.richarddawkins.net/article,4149,Dembski-Exam,William-A-Dembski---designinferencecom
2. http://www.designinference.com/teaching/teaching.htm
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| China's Response To the Internet Addiction Death |
| from the i'm-sure-everyone-will-get-a-fair-trial dept. |
| posted by CmdrTaco on Monday August 10, @09:55 (The Internet) |
| http://news.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/1247214 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
eldavojohn writes "Last week, news broke of a [0]tragic incident that
resulted in the death of a 16 year old boy at one of China's internet
addiction camps. Details were scarce except for reports that the camp
remained open. New reports are now coming in from [1]China Daily that
report 13 arrested and the camp closed down on Friday with 122
participants being sent home. The vice-chief of the district has stated
that the authorities are working on the case to identify and punish the
criminals involved in the death. Xinhua is reporting that [2]the camp was
unlicensed. This is directly in conflict with what [3]the Southern
Metropolis Daily reporter is saying, 'When the reporter arrived outside
the rear wall of the school, children on the third and fourth floors
started to stick notes into aluminum cans, drink bottles, and slippers,
and others folded notes into paper planes. They tried to throw them over
the wall, but owing to the distance, none of them succeeded. Some
children had papers bearing the messages "SOS" and "beating" which they
waved out the windows. Some wrote calls for help on their clothing, which
they displayed to the reporter. Some even yelled for help. They were all
stopped by the instructors.' Here is that [4]original story in Chinese.
Is China handling this delicate issue appropriately or are the news
reports of justice and monitoring treatments merely a facade?"
Discuss this story at:
http://news.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/1247214
Links:
0. http://slashdot.org/story/09/08/05/1329241/Teen-Killed-At-Chinese-Internet-Addiction-Camp
1. http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2009-08/10/content_8547901.htm
2. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-08/08/content_11845538.htm
3. http://www.danwei.org/front_page_of_the_day/the_camp_which_beat_kids_to_de.php
4. http://www.nanfangdaily.com.cn/epaper/nfds/content/20090810/ArticelA06003FM.htm
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Netflix Announces Second Data Mining Contest |
| from the sixteen-tons-and-whaddaya-get dept. |
| posted by CmdrTaco on Monday August 10, @10:40 (The Internet) |
| http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/1343248 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]John Snodgrass writes "Neil Hunt, Chief Product Officer at Netflix,
has announced on the Netflix Prize Forums that they are planning to hold
a [1]new data mining competition. The second competition will have some
twists and is expected to be shorter in duration. It will feature two
grand prizes, to be awarded in a 6 and 18 month time frame. A previous
competitor still active on the board has already dubbed it: The Sparse
Matrix: Reordered" and "The Sparse Matrix: Factorizations"."
Discuss this story at:
http://tech.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/1343248
Links:
0. mailto:johns@instantservice.com
1. http://www.netflixprize.com//community/viewtopic.php?id=1520
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Chrome OS Designed To Start Microsoft Death Spiral |
| from the a-little-bit-optimistic dept. |
| posted by CmdrTaco on Monday August 10, @11:21 (Google) |
| http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/1442221 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]Al writes "Technology Review has a feature article that explores
[1]the business strategy underlying Google's decision to develop its
Linux-based operating system, Chrome OS. Writer G. Pascal Zachary argues
that Eric Schmidt has identified a sea-change in the software business,
as signaled by Microsoft's recent problems and by the advancement of
cloud computing. Zachary notes that Larry Page and Sergey Brin have
pushed to develop a slick, open-source alternative to Windows for around
six years (with the rationale that improving access to the Web would
ultimately benefit Google), but that Schmidt has always refused. While
developing Chrome OS is a significant gamble for Google, Zachary believe
it will exploit Microsoft's historical weakness in terms of networking
and internet functionality, forcing its rival to better serve Google's
core business goals, whilst initiating its own steady, slow-motion
decline."
Discuss this story at:
http://tech.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/1442221
Links:
0. http://www.technologyreview.com/
1. http://www.technologyreview.com/web/23140/page2/
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Yemenis Should Be Incensed At Websense |
| from the not-the-worst-of-their-problems dept. |
| posted by CmdrTaco on Monday August 10, @12:00 (Censorship) |
| http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/1449206 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
Slashdot Regular [0]Bennett Haselton writes "Websense, a US-based
Internet censoring software maker, claims not to sell to foreign
governments that are censoring Internet access for all of their citizens.
But the OpenNet Initiative reports that national ISPs in Yemen have been
using Websense to filter Internet access for at least the past four
years. Will Websense revoke their license? And what would happen then?"
Update: 08/10 21:01 GMT by [1]KD : Bennett adds, "After the story ran,
Websense sent me this update." "Since we were informed about the
potential use of our products by Yemeni ISPs based on government-imposed
Internet restrictions in Yemen, we have investigated this potential
non-compliance with our anti-censorship policy. Because our product
operates based on a database system, we are able to block updated
database downloads to locations and to end users where the use of our
product would violate law or our corporate policies. We believe that we
have identified the specific product subscriptions that are being used
for Web filtering by ISPs in Yemen, and in accordance with our [2]policy
against government-imposed censorship, we have taken action to
discontinue the database downloads to the Yemeni ISPs."
This story continues at:
http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/1449206
Discuss this story at:
http://yro.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/1449206
Links:
0. mailto:bennett@peacefire.org
1. http://slashdot.org/~kdawson/
2. http://www.websense.com/content/censorship-policy.aspx
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Deposit Checks By iPhone |
| from the bad-day-to-be-a-bank-teller dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Monday August 10, @12:49 (Input Device|
| http://mobile.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/1552217 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
kaychoro writes to mention that at least one privately held bank is
planning on removing a little bit more legwork for the consumer by
allowing the [0]electronic submission of paper checks via a new iPhone
app. The app would allow users to take a picture of the front and back of
the check and submit that to the depository. "Customers will not have to
mail the check to the bank later; the deposit will be handled entirely
electronically, and the bank suggests voiding the check and filing or
discarding it. But to reduce the potential for fraud, only customers who
are eligible for credit and have some type of insurance through USAA will
be permitted to use the deposit feature. Mr. Peacock said that about 60
percent of the bank's customers qualify."
Discuss this story at:
http://mobile.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/1552217
Links:
0. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/10/technology/10check.html?_r=3&scp=1&sq=USAA&st=Search
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| First Internet-Connected Pacemaker Goes Live |
| from the jailbreak-your-heart dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Monday August 10, @13:41 (Medicine) |
| http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/1611238 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
The Register is reporting that a New York woman has become the first
person to have their [0]pacemaker wirelessly connected to the internet
for full-time monitoring. "The device contains a radio transmitter which
connects to receiving equipment in New Yorker Carol Kasyjanski's home,
using a very low-power signal around 400MHz, to report on the condition
of her heart. Any problems are instantly reported to the doctor, and
regular checkups can be done by remotely interrogating the home-based
equipment ��� the pacemaker itself doesn't have an IP address, fun as that
would be."
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/1611238
Links:
0. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/08/10/internet_connected_pacemaker/
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| New Company Seeks to Bring Semantic Context To Numbers |
| from the quick-create-another-standards-body dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Monday August 10, @14:28 (Math) |
| http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/1628250 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
A new company, True#, is seeking to bring [0]extensive semantic context
to numbers to give them obvious meanings just as certain words have
obvious meanings to most readers. "Most of us can probably recognize
3.14159 and the conceptual baggage it carries, but how many of us would
recognize 58.44? (That's a mole of sodium chloride, in grams, for the
curious.) And the response that would work for words--look it up--doesn't
work so conveniently for numbers. Only one of the top-10 hits in Google
refers to salt, and Bing fails entirely (though it does offer "Women's
Sexy Mini Skirts by VENUS"). Clearly, we haven't figured out how to make
the Web work for numbers in the same way it does for words."
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/1628250
Links:
0. http://arstechnica.com/web/news/2009/08/using-the-web-to-embed-meaning-in-numbers.ars
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Opera Being Composed On Twitter |
| from the how-to-jump-the-shark dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Monday August 10, @15:21 (Music) |
| http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/1746211 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
musefrog writes "The BBC is reporting that the UK's Royal Opera House is
to [0]stage an opera created through social networking site Twitter.
'Members of the public have been invited to submit their 'tweets' online
��� messages of up to 140 characters ��� which will form the new libretto.The
first scene of the as-yet-untitled work has already been completed and
features a man who has been kidnapped by a group of birds. Excerpts will
be performed at the Royal Opera House in September.' I'm personally
looking forward to lots of idiotic net memes and inane emo ramblings
being trilled out by aging sopranos."
Discuss this story at:
http://tech.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/1746211
Links:
0. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts_and_culture/8193917.stm
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Comparing the MMO Industry With the Silver Screen |
| from the talkies-will-never-take-off dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Monday August 10, @16:13 (Movies) |
| http://games.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/183241 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
Karen Hertzberg writes "With video gaming ��� specifically the massively
multiplayer online titles ��� quickly surpassing Hollywood's cash flow, it
seems logical that the silver suits at Tinsel Town would begin paying
attention to their digital brethren. On the same line of thought,
Hollywood provides the MMO industry with a history in the entertainment
medium that we simply don't have. Ten Ton Hammer's Cody Bye sat down with
four industry experts to draw together some [0]similarities between MMOs
and films, and he attempted to use those points to draw out some
predictions for the future of the MMO gaming industry."
Discuss this story at:
http://games.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/183241
Links:
0. http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/72378
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Scientists Create Artificial Bones From Wood |
| from the sticks-and-bones dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Monday August 10, @17:05 (Medicine) |
| http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/1840220 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
steve_thatguy writes "According to Discovery News, Italian scientists
have [0]made artificial bone from wood. Created by blasting wood blocks
with heat until they are nearly pure carbon then coating them with
calcium, the scientists say the material allows bones to heal faster and
more securely. Unlike titanium, the wood-based artificial bones flex
slightly much like real bone, and the porous nature of the wood allows
for better bio-activity with surrounding tissue. Though human testing is
still likely years away, the material is currently being used
successfully in sheep and may have other industrial applications."
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/1840220
Links:
0. http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2009/08/10/artificial-bone.html
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Working Off the Clock, How Much Is Too Much? |
| from the volunteering-isn't-voluntary dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Monday August 10, @17:54 (Businesses) |
| http://ask.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/1953231 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
The Wall Street Journal has word of [0]yet another suit against an
employer who required an "always on" mentality to persist because of
easily available communications. Most of us working in some sort of tech
related job are working more than 40 hours per week (or at least lead the
lifestyle of always working), but how much is too much? What methods have
others used in the past to help an employer see the line between work and
personal life without resorting to a legal attack? "Greg Rasin, a partner
at Proskauer Rose LLP, a New York business law firm, said the recession
may spawn wage-and-hour disputes as employers try to do the same amount
of work with fewer people. The federal Fair Labor Standards Act says
employees must be paid for work performed off the clock, even if the work
was voluntary. When the law was passed in 1938, 'work' was easy to define
for hourly employees, said Mr. McCoy. As the workplace changed, so did
the rules for when workers should be paid."
Discuss this story at:
http://ask.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/1953231
Links:
0. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124986371466018299.html
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Music Labels Working On Digital Album Format |
| from the i-bet-it-wont-be-open dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Monday August 10, @18:45 (Music) |
| http://entertainment.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/2053200|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
Nerdfest writes to mention that just weeks after Apple announced their
new "Cocktail" digital album project, the four big record companies are
moving forward with their own [0]project dubbed "CMX". The new digital
album will feature songs, lyrics, videos, liner notes, and artwork.
"However, this may be of little interest if CMX isn't compatible with
iTunes, the default music software for iPods, iPhones and Apple
computers. Whereas labels are eager to resuscitate the album format in an
age of singles, Apple is concerned with selling hardware, including a
tablet computer rumored to be launching this fall. The major labels plan
to launch CMX, which is just a working title for the format, in November.
It will reportedly be 'soft-launched' with a few select releases."
Discuss this story at:
http://entertainment.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/2053200
Links:
0. http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/aug/10/major-labels-new-digital-format
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Facebook Acquires FriendFeed |
| from the friends-indeed dept. |
| posted by kdawson on Monday August 10, @19:37 (Social Networks) |
| http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/08/10/2235252 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
Several readers including [0]carpenter37 let us know that [1]FriendFeed
has sold itself to Facebook. Nobody who knows is talking about the terms
of the deal. Here is [2]Facebook's announcement, and here is
[3]FriendFeed's, which elaborates: "As my mom explained to me, when two
companies love each other very much, they form a structured investment
vehicle." FriendFeed was founded in 2007 by four ex-Googlers, including
Paul Buchheit ��� the engineer behind Gmail and the originator of Google's
"Don't be evil" motto ��� and Bret Taylor, a former group product manager
who launched Google Maps.
Discuss this story at:
http://tech.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/10/2235252
Links:
0. mailto:carpenterj37@yahoo.com
1. http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/08/10/facebook-acquires-friendfeed/
2. http://www.facebook.com/press/releases.php?p=116581
3. http://blog.friendfeed.com/2009/08/friendfeed-accepts-facebook-friend.html
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