http://slashdot.org/firehose.pl News for nerds, stuff that matters en-us Copyright 1997-2009, Geeknet, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 2010-01-05T05:13:04+00:00 Geeknet, Inc. help@slashdot.org Technology hourly 1 1970-01-01T00:00+00:00 http://a.fsdn.com/sd/topics/topicslashdot.gif http://slashdot.org/firehose.pl //slashdot.org/submission/1143606/How-Norway-Fought-Staph-Infections?from=rss Studies are showing that Norway's dirtiest hospitals are actually cleaner than most other countries and the reason for this is that Norwegians stopped taking antibiotics. A number of factors like paid sick leave and now advertising for drugs make Norway an anomaly when it comes to diseases like Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). A Norwegian doctor explains, 'We don't throw antibiotics at every person with a fever. We tell them to hang on, wait and see, and we give them a Tylenol to feel better.' Norway is the most MRSA free country in the world. In a country like Japan where 17,000 die from MRSA every year, 'doctors overprescribe antibiotics because they are given financial incentives to push drugs on patients.' Is it time to rethink our obsession with medication in the US? eldavojohn 2010-01-03T01:46:54+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1143030/Apple-Fails-to-Deliver-on-Boot-Camp-Promise?from=rss For those fans of Apple's Boot Camp package, it looks like you might be waiting on the next "end of year" to use Windows 7 on your shiny silver boxes. Back in October (2009, of course), Apple published a rather short, but rather affirmative, promise stating quite simply that, "Apple will support Microsoft Windows 7 (Home Premium, Professional, and Ultimate) with Boot Camp in Mac OS X Snow Leopard before the end of the year. This support will require a software update to Boot Camp." Needless to say that the support page has no updates regarding the new version. Maybe they're waiting for iSlate? SkydiverFL 2010-01-01T11:31:51+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1142590/Windows-ignores-microsoftcom-in-hosts-file?from=rss If you try to block microsoft.com in your hosts file, windows will just ignore the entry. On Vistas Windows Defender even steps in and tries to stop you from adding microsoft.com to the hosts file, but even if you ignore Defender microsoft.com will still work as if the entry wasn't there. Anonymous Coward 2009-12-31T06:09:00+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1143614/Scientists-Measure-How-Quickly-Plant-Genes-Mutate?from=rss A recent study puts observed numbers on genome mutations in plants. This kind of research is becoming more popular in understanding evolution. The research 'followed all genetic changes in five lines of the mustard relative Arabidopsis thaliana that occurred during 30 generations. In the genome of the final generation they then searched for differences to the genome of the original ancestor.' A single generation has about a one in forty million chance of mutating any letter of the genome. Sound like bad odds? From the article, 'if one starts to consider that they occur in the genomes of every member of a species, it becomes clear how fluid the genome is: In a collection of only 60 million Arabidopsis plants, each letter in the genome is changed, on average, once. For an organism that produces thousands of seeds in each generation, 60 million is not such a big number at all.' eldavojohn 2010-01-03T02:07:50+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1143452/The-Amiga-circa-2010-Dead-and-Loving-it?from=rss While many Amiga users have moved on to Linux, Mac OS X, and even, gasp shock, Microsoft Windows some of us don't want to give up so easily. There are two open source projects that are keeping the Amiga legacy alive even if Amiga Inc. seems to be deader than a doornail and not really doing much but selling old Classic Amiga games for new platforms.Like WINE there was a project to run AmigaOS 3.1 software for Linux and other platforms but it was made into an open source operating system named Amiga Research OS or AROS. It is best run inside an emulator and while it is not a modern OS as Linux it can be downloaded and run inside of Linux and the downloads section has more. While it is not ready for prime-time yet it is a promising OS that is being ported to many platforms and uses the user friendly Amiga GUI we Amiga users grew up with.OK maybe AROS is not modern enough for you, and you like Linux instead. Then you might like Anubis OS as it is a hybrid of AROS and Linux. Much like when Apple took NextOS (based on *BSD Unix and the MACH kernel) and Classic Mac OS to make Mac OS X, this project wants to take Linux and AROS and do the same thing.For those who want the classic Amiga there is UAE the Universal Amiga Emulator that needs kickstart ROMs and boot disk images to work. You can buy them from the Amiga Forever software and the emulator comes with all the files you need plus other goodies.For the classic Amiga 68K series it is recreated via the Minimig that uses SD cards instead of floppy disks. A must for retro computer hobbyists. AmigaOS 4.1 exists for PowerPC based SAM 440EP systems like the SAM 440Ep systems and parts sold here. I am not associated with Amiga Kit or Amiga Inc. or any Amiga company. I am just an Amiga user since 1985 and very much into retro computing.While the Amiga may seem dead, and it has been dead since 1994 when Commodore went out of business, the Amiga still exists in some form. The Amiga is dead and loving it, and the Anubis OS name is named after the Egyptian God of the Underworld, and when the Amiga repaired a floppy disk it renamed it as "Lazarus" the man Jesus raised from the dead. So the Amiga has a history of dying and coming back from the dead. It is the Kenny McCormick of computer systems and technology. Orion Blastar 2010-01-02T14:51:57+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1143074/NASA-Mars-rover-Spirit-has-survivability-option?from=rss As NASA celebrates its Mars rover Spirit’s sixth anniversary exploring the red planet it is hunting for a way to keep the machine, which is mired in a sand trap, alive to see a seventh year. On its Web site, the space agency this week noted there may indeed be such an option. That option would be spinning the wheels on the north side of Spirit, letting it dig in deeper in the Martian sand but at the same time improving the tilt of the rover’s solar panels toward the Sun.http://www.networkworld.com/news/2010/010110-layer8-nasa-mars-spirit-rover.html?hpg1=bn coondoggie 2010-01-01T14:55:47+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1143468/Google-Chrome-Displaces-Safari-as-Third-in-Survey?from=rss According to a Net Applications survey, Google Chrome has replaced Apple's Safari as the number three browser. This may be partially explained by the release of the Chrome beta on Mac and Linux, but may also be due to users jumping ship from IE. More analysis on this topic can be found here at ComputerWorld. As anecdotal evidence of Google Chrome usage gaining steam, Bank of America has apparently recently added Google Chrome to their list of officially supported browsers. Azureflare 2010-01-02T16:07:07+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1144408/Constitutionality-of-RIAA-Damages-Challenged?from=rss In SONY BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, defendant has filed a motion for new trial, attacking, among other things, the constitutionality of the jury's $675,000 award as being violative of due process. In his 32-page brief (PDF), Tenenbaum argues that the award exceeded constitutional due process standards, both under the Court's 1919 decision in St. Louis Railway v. Williams, as well as under its more recent authorities State Farm v. Campbell and BMW v. Gore. Defendant also argues that the Court's application of fair use doctrine was incorrect, that statutory damages should not be imposed against music consumers, and that the Court erred in a key evidentiary ruling. NewYorkCountryLawyer 2010-01-04T18:31:53+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1142998/Nintendo-Shuts-Down-Fan-Made-Zelda-Movie?from=rss An independently filmed adaptation of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, called The Hero Of Time, has been taken offline by Nintendo as of the end of December. The film's producers write: "We came to an agreement with Nintendo earlier this month to stop distributing the film... We understand Nintendo’s right to protect its characters and trademarks and understand how in order to keep their property unspoiled by fan’s interpretation of the franchise, Nintendo needs to protect itself — even from fan-works with good intentions." Filming for the feature-length, non-profit film began in August 2004 and the movie was completed in 2008. It premiered in various theatres worldwide, including in New York and Los Angeles, and then became available online in the middle of December, before it was targeted by Nintendo's legal team. As both an avid Zelda fan and an appreciator of independent works, I was extremely disappointed in Nintendo's strong-arming of a noncommercial adaptation to the Game of the Year for 1999. Andorin 2010-01-01T10:02:47+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1143418/INTERPOL-granted-full-immunity-in-the-US?from=rss Without any fanfare or notice in the media, President Obama has granted INTERPOL diplomatic immunity while conducting investigations on American soil. While INTERPOL has been allowed to operate in the US in the past, under an executive order by President Reagan, they've had to follow the same rules as the FBI, CIA, etc., while on American soil. This means, among other things, INTERPOL is immune to Freedom of Information Act requests and that INTERPOL agents cannot be punished for most any crimes they may commit. Hopefully the worst we'll see from this is INTERPOL agents ignoring their speeding tickets. ShakaUVM 2010-01-02T12:35:45+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1143658/DC-Suing-ATampT-for-Unclaimed-Phone-Minutes?from=rss "The suit claims that AT&T should turn over unused balances on the calling cards of consumers whose last known address was in Washington, D.C. and have not used the calling card for three years."AT&T's prepaid calling cards must be treated as unclaimed property under district law," the attorney general's office said in a statement.According to the attorney general's office, that sum, known in the industry as "breakage," represents some 5 to 20 percent of the total balances purchased by consumers who use the calling cards.States and municipalities have often similarly used unclaimed property laws, known as escheat laws, to claim ownership of unused retail gift card balances.A spokesman for AT&T declined to comment on the lawsuit.The case is: District of Columbia vs. AT&T Corp, Superior Court of the District of Columbia.(Reporting by Emily Chasan; Editing by Steve Orlofsky and Matthew Lewis)"Radley Balko of Reason Magazine covers it here: D.C. to AT&T: All Your Unused Minutes Are Belong to Us (props for the cool title :) Suki I 2010-01-03T05:32:55+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1143162/Irelands-Blasphemy-law-comes-in-to-effect?from=rss As of January 1, it is a crime in Ireland to commit Blasphemy. The law was changed in July 2009 to fill a gap in the Irish Constitution, which states that it is a crime but does not define what it is, an omission highlighted in a Supreme Court decision in 1999. A July story in the Irish Independent described the situation in more detail. The story has also been covered in The Guardian (UK) today.To mark the occasion, Atheist Ireland published a list of 25 blasphemous quotations on the blasphemy.ie website, from such controversial figures as Bjork, Frank Zappa, Richard Dawkins, Randy Newman, and Pope Benedict XVI. (The last-mentioned was quoting a 14th Century Byzantine Emperor, but that's no excuse.) stereoroid 2010-01-01T19:59:22+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1142830/What-Would-Have-Entered-the-Public-Domain-Tomorrow?from=rss "Casino Royale, Marilyn Monroe’s Playboy cover, The Adventures of Augie March, the Golden Age of Science Fiction, Crick & Watson’s Nature article decoding the double helix, Disney’s Peter Pan, The Crucible"... "How ironic that Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, with its book burning firemen, was published in 1953 and would once have been entering the public domain on January 1, 2010. To quote James Boyle, "Bradbury’s firemen at least set fire to their own culture out of deep ideological commitment, vile though it may have been. We have set fire to our cultural record for no reason; even if we had wanted retrospectively to enrich the tiny number of beneficiaries whose work keeps commercial value beyond 56 years, we could have done so without these effects. The ironies are almost too painful to contemplate." Anonymous Coward 2009-12-31T19:15:09+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1143944/2009-Darwin-Award-Winners-announced?from=rss From the woman who jumped in a swollen creek to rescue her drowning ... moped, to the man who hopped over the divider at the edge of the highway to take a leak, and plunged 65 feet to his death, 2009 was a year both exceptional and unexceptional for Darwin Award-worthy behavior! Greg Lindahl 2010-01-04T01:17:37+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1143272/Twitter-Bans-Obvious-Passwords?from=rss President Obama and CNN reporter Rick Sanchez were among dozens of Twitter accounts compromised in January, 2008 after hackers managed to crack their passwords, forcing Twitter to reevaluate its sign-up process and technologies. Now bloggers have discovered that Twitter has a list of banned passwords when new users sign up for the service which is embedded in the source code of the page itself. Banned terms include commonly chosen generic passwords, such as “123456”, “password” and “password1”, as well as car names (“porsche”, “ferrari”) and football teams (“Chelsea”, “arsenal”). Perhaps predictably for a website popular with technology fans, science fiction terms figure in the list too. “THX1138”, the title of the first feature film directed by George Lucas of Star Wars fame, is banned, as is “NCC1701” – the registry number of Star Trek’s starship Enterprise – and “trustno1”, which was Fox Mulder’s password in The X-Files. pickens 2010-01-02T05:05:08+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1142914/Microsoft-Says-Goodbye-GUI-Hello-MUI?from=rss On New Year's Eve, the USPTO revealed that Microsoft is seeking patents for controlling a computer by simply flexing a muscle. Microsoft proposes using Electromyography (EMG) sensors and a wired or wireless human-computer interface to interact with computing systems and attached devices via electrical signals generated by specific movement of the user's muscles. 'It is important to consider mechanisms for acquiring human input that may not necessarily require direct manipulation of a physical implement,' explained the inventors. 'For example, drivers attempting to query their vehicle navigation systems may find it advantageous to be able to do so without removing their hands from the steering wheel, and a person in a meeting may want to unobtrusively communicate with someone outside. Also, since physical computer input devices have been shown to be prone to collecting microbial contamination in sterile environments, techniques that alleviate the need for these implements could be useful in surgical and cleanroom settings.' Any suggestions for how to Ctrl-Alt-Del with a Muscle User Interface (MUI)? theodp 2010-01-01T02:24:53+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1143240/China-Arrests-Thousands-in-Internet-Porn-Crackdown?from=rss Chinese police have arrested 5,394 people — with another 4,186 criminal cases in the works — in one of the largest crackdowns on Internet porn in the country. Even more arrests were expected in 2010, according to the Ministry of Public Security's website (In Chinese or Google translated into English). According to the Reuters article on the crackdown, one of the justifications was that the pornography was 'threatening the emotional health of children.'From the English translation of the Ministry of Public Security's website linked above, it appears that certain provinces are also offering 1,000 yuan and 2,000 yuan awards, per person, for reporting illegal websites to the Government. Clandestine_Blaze 2010-01-02T03:23:53+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1143192/Lava-Tube-Found-Maybe-Ideal-Spot-for-Lunar-Base?from=rss A Lava Tube has been found on the moon that could serve as an ideal structure to host a lunar base or colony. The tube is estimated by a paper in the American Geophysical Union as being over 200 feet wide and close to 300 feet deep. Such a tube provides protection from the severe lunar temperature swings, solar radiation and other hazards of space. What are we waiting for? Camel Pilot 2010-01-01T22:12:29+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1143182/Myths-About-Code-Comments?from=rss Jason Baker gives his take on the biggest misconceptions about code comments: 1) Comments are free ('When you update the code that the comment references, you usually have to update the comment as well'). 2) Comments make code more readable ('by far the most pervasive myth that I've encountered'). 3) You should comment every function, method, class, and module ('documenting something that needs no documentation is universally a bad idea'). 4) Code must always be 'self documenting' ('would you rather use a one-liner that requires a 3-line comment, or a 10-liner that requires no comments?'). Care to share your comments on programming comments in the comments? theodp 2010-01-01T21:15:41+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1141890/OnLive-One-Step-Closer?from=rss It looks like OnLive, the remote gaming system that steams HD video over the Internet, is one step closer to becoming reality, according to an article on DSL Reports in response to a presentation by Founder & CEO Steve Perlman at Columbia University. hysma 2009-12-29T19:49:37+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1144662/Rejuvinate-the-Movie-Theater-Industry?from=rss US$1 billion dollars is a lot of money for a movie to make. Sure, lots of that came from overseas for Avatar, but recouping 3x the cost of the movie is a major boon for a movie studio. I have an idea that would cause a massive rebound in the movie theater industry. If a movie grosses the cost of production (using the numbers advertised in the press, of course) in a particular country/region, then show the movie for $1 per seat ($5 for 3D) at all theaters in that region, but only in theaters already showing the flick. The studios will still make a couple of bucks, and a theater would have already been forced to play their games to get the flick in the first place. But everything after that is gravy, or should I say popcorn and sugar. I also might not feel so bad about seeing a couple of ads at the beginning then. Some theaters report that up to 85% of their profit comes from their snack bar, and more customers means more snack bar usage. Besides, it would cement the supposition that the movie industry is recession proof. Midnight Warrior 2010-01-05T05:11:01+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1141700/Is-OpenOfficeorg-a-Threat-Microsoft-Thinks-So?from=rss Most people regard OpenOffice.org as a distant runner-up to Microsoft Office, and certainly not a serious rival. Microsoft seems to feel otherwise judging by a new job ad on its site for a "Linux and Open Office Compete Lead". According to this, competing with *both* GNU/Linux and OpenOffice.org is "one of the biggest issues that is top of mind" for no less a person than Steve Ballmer. Interestingly, a key part of this position is "engaging with Open Source communities and organizations" — which suggests that Microsoft's new-found eagerness to "engage" with open source has nothing to do with a real desire to reach a pacific accommodation with free software, but is simply a way for it to fight against it from close up, and armed with inside knowledge. Glyn Moody 2009-12-29T12:00:05+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1143414/Neodymium-97-of-world-supply-from-China?from=rss Britain and other Western countries risk running out of supplies of certain highly sought-after rare metals that are vital to a host of green technologies, amid growing evidence that China, which has a monopoly on global production, is set to choke off exports of valuable compounds.Failure to secure alternative long-term sources of rare earth elements (REEs) would affect the manufacturing and development of low-carbon technology, which relies on the unique properties of the 17 metals to mass-produce eco-friendly innovations such as wind turbines and low-energy lightbulbs.China, whose mines account for 97 per cent of global supplies, is trying to ensure that all raw REE materials are processed within its borders. During the past seven years it has reduced by 40 per cent the amount of rare earths available for export. GuyFawkes 2010-01-02T12:30:41+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1141876/Photovoltaic-Eye-Implant-Gives-Sight-to-the-Blind?from=rss Researchers at Stanford University recently announced that they have developed a new artificial retina implant that uses photovoltaic power and could help the blind see. The problem with previous implants was that there was no way send power to the chip in order to process light and data inside the eye, so the new device uses miniature photovoltaic cells to provide power the chip as well as to transmit data through the eye to the brain. The new device has great promise to help people afflicted by the loss of photoreceptor cells by using the power of the sun. MikeChino 2009-12-29T18:58:35+00:00 //slashdot.org/submission/1142984/Ten-Most-Ridiculous-Uses-of-Stimulus-Funds?from=rss Verum Serum lists the ten most ridiculous uses of stimulus funds among which are: a $9.3 million to fund the design and development of a coordinated colony of robotic bees, a $712,883 research grant to develop oemachine-generated humor, and a $427,824 grant to design better video games for senior citizens based on their unique oegame-play needs. Anonymous Coward 2010-01-01T09:27:12+00:00