Here are some of the highlights from the week's Web Tech action on ReadWriteWeb. On the product side: this week we took a look at our readers' favorite web apps, we covered the social news space in depth... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 May 2008 | 3:00 pm
By Andrew Liszewski If a perfectly grilled steak isn't enough to impress your friends at your next barbecue, I'm sure that personally branding their piece of meat will do the trick. And to do that you'll... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 May 2008 | 2:15 pm
By JOHN ROSS A DEAD beaver has been found on a Highland beach, renewing fears the animals are being deliberately let loose into the wild. Police and conservation bodies have launched an investigation into the find between Rosemarkie and Cromarty, on the Black Isle. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 May 2008 | 2:00 pm
By Patrick Lynch, Daily Press, Newport News, Va. May 3--RICHMOND -- Gov. Timothy M. Kaine will seek federal aid for watermen who could be facing hard times due to new commercial crabbing restrictions. Kaine sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of Commerce Carlos M. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 May 2008 | 2:00 pm
By SCOTT HARPER By Scott Harper The Virginian-Pilot Thousands of South Hampton Roads residents will mow their lawns this weekend, empty the grass clippings in clear plastic bags and set them at the curb for collection - and assume they will be recycled. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 May 2008 | 2:00 pm
By Chris Niskanen, Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn. May 3--Times were tough in 1961 for Roger Holmes. He was a new game manager in Douglas County, a fresh-faced but lowly recruit for the Minnesota Department of Conservation, precursor to the Department of Natural Resources. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 May 2008 | 2:00 pm
By John Holland, The Modesto Bee, Calif. May 3--The dairy industry has a problem: Many young people drink less milk as they move from childhood to their teen years. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 May 2008 | 2:00 pm
To cut your phone bill, and spend longer chatting to loved ones overseas, get VoIP, says James Daley The cost of making a phone call has fallen dramatically over the past few years, with many landline providers now charging nothing more than the monthly line rental fee for customers who only use their phone to make national or local calls in the evenings or at the weekend. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 May 2008 | 2:00 pm
I just saw this stat as I was searching for something for the book. Pew said that in 2004, 2007, 53 million Americans “have used the Internet to publish their thoughts, respond to others, post pictures,... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 May 2008 | 1:50 pm
If I were Rupert Murdoch, I think I might just let the Dolans of Cablevision have Newsday. For they’ll likely run it into the ground. Like Brian Tierney, who had the misfortune of winning the Philadelphia... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 May 2008 | 1:19 pm
I like what I’ve seen so far of Israeli startup AllRise - a website that allows users to file complaints against anyone or anything, argue their case, have the community choose sides, and ultimately... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 May 2008 | 1:12 pm
Die Zeit came to interview me at CUNY and here’s the video — subtitled. In it, I mention discovering the early German blog Der Schockwellenreiter and he noticed that in turn with a classic... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 May 2008 | 12:22 pm
Alan Mutter, chronicler of the decline of newspapers, has a good bit of context on the accelerating decline of newspaper circulation. Based on the record 3.5% drop in daily circulation reported today for... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 May 2008 | 12:18 pm
After hinting that the new Dungeons and Dragons license would be aimed at phasing out the older open licenses, Wizards of the Coast have published more details suggesting that this won't be embodied in... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 May 2008 | 11:34 am
After hinting that the new Dungeons and Dragons license would be aimed at phasing out the older open licenses, Wizards of the Coast have published more details suggesting that this won't be embodied in the license itself (though they haven't published the license or its terms of use yet):
Q. Do I have to give up my right to publish 3.5 OGL products in order to publish 4e compatible products?
A. No. Publishers are free to print product lines under either the OGL or 4E GSL. We would love to see our industry colleagues convert their entire product offerings to 4E, as we are doing, but we do not expect or require entire companies to convert to the new edition.
Marilyn sends us this, "photo gallery of bizarre playground equipment mostly from Russia includes a happily impaled Baba Yaga, ghouls, a climbing turnip, decapitated monkeys decorating a swing set, and... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 May 2008 | 11:31 am
Marilyn sends us this, "photo gallery of bizarre playground equipment mostly from Russia includes a happily impaled Baba Yaga, ghouls, a climbing turnip, decapitated monkeys decorating a swing set, and a stationary merry-go-round."
Link
(Thanks, Marilyn!)
By Rossel, Jan Bart Wilson, Pip B; Hussain, Dawar; Woo, Nick S; Gordon, Matthew J; Mewett, Osman P; Howell, Katharine A; Whelan, Jim; Kazan, Kemal; Pogson, Barry J As the sun tracks daily through the sky from east to west, different parts of the canopy are exposed to high light (HL). Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 May 2008 | 11:00 am
By Jackson, Nancy Mann Lawmakers are creating blogs to get their constituents involved. In some places, legislators are "Very Big Deals" and regularly quoted in the local media, says Virginia Delegate Kristen Amundson. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 May 2008 | 11:00 am
By Goodman, G During testimony before the House Armed Services Committee's Strategic Forces Subcommittee in late February, USAF Gen Kevin P. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 May 2008 | 11:00 am
By Elizabeth Moore, Newsday, Melville, N.Y. May 3--ALBANY -- E-tailing juggernaut Amazon.com has filed suit against the state of New York challenging a new law that requires it to collect sales taxes on transactions here. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 May 2008 | 11:00 am
By Lorraine Mirabella, The Baltimore Sun May 3--The region's multiple-listing service for residential real estate is launching an exchange for commercial properties that could eventually include about 10,000 properties. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 May 2008 | 11:00 am
By Macquet, Audrey Ralet, Marie-Christine; Loudet, Olivier; Kronenberger, Jocelyne; Mouille, Gregory; Marion-Poll, Annie; North, Helen M The Arabidopsis thaliana accession Shahdara was identified as a rare naturally occurring mutant that does not liberate seed mucilage on imbibition. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 May 2008 | 11:00 am
By White, Katherine J Curtis I investigate the relationship between county population change and farm dependence in the Great Plains region during the twentieth century, using spatial data analysis techniques. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 May 2008 | 11:00 am
By Jason Gertzen, The Kansas City Star, Mo. May 3--Sprint faces actions in June that it says could "cripple" its Nextel network after losing a federal court case Friday. The U.S. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 May 2008 | 11:00 am
From their hole-in-the-wall office in Doral, brothers Rudy and Robert Pedraza are waging war on Silicon Valley. The 24- and 22-year-old computer whiz kids are undercutting Apple by building "clone" computers with Mac software and selling them for less money than the tech behemoth. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 May 2008 | 11:00 am
An inspection of factories and other workplaces in China's richest province found about 1,000 children working illegally, authorities say. Inspectors visited 3,600 businesses in Dongguan, a major industrial center in the Pearl River delta, China Daily reported. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 May 2008 | 8:00 am
California officials said the state could be forced to ration water after the driest spring in at least 150 years. Water officials told the San Francisco Chronicle the state could be on the verge of a long-term drought. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 May 2008 | 8:00 am
Results are bolstered by strong advertising growth at its cable networks and sales of 'Rock Band.' Boosted by... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 3 May 2008 | 7:00 am
The Screen Actors Guild and the Hollywood studios issued a joint statement today regarding their contract negotiations. Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 3 May 2008 | 7:00 am
New evidence confirms the plant was being raised more than 4,600 years ago, researchers say. Previous thinking held that it was converted to a crop only in the Mississippi Valley. ... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 3 May 2008 | 7:00 am
The software giant reportedly sweetens its takeover offer by billions of dollars to close in on a deal. After... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 3 May 2008 | 7:00 am
NewYorkCountryLawyer writes "At Fordham Law School's annual IP Law Conference this year, Slashdot member NewYorkCountryLawyer had a chance to square off with Kenneth Doroshow, a Senior Vice President of the RIAA, over the subject of copyright statutory damages. Doroshow thought the Jammie Thomas verdict of $222,000 was okay, since he said, Ms. Thomas might have distributed 10 million unauthorized copies. NYCL, on the other hand, who has previously derided the $9250-per-song file verdict as 'one of the most irrational things [he has] ever seen in [his] life in the law', stated at the Fordham conference that the verdict had made the United States 'a laughingstock throughout the world'. An Australian professor on the panel said 'The comment has been made a few times that America is out of whack and you are a laughingstock in the rest of the world. As the only non-American on the panel, that's true. We do see the cases like Thomas in our newspapers, and we think: "Wow, those crazy Americans, what are they up to now?" This whole notion of statutory damages is not something that we have within our Copyright Act. You actually have to be able to prove damage for you to be able to be compensated for that.' NYCL also got to debate the 'making available' issue, saying that there was no 'making available' right in US copyright law, despite the insistence of the program's moderator, the 'keynote' speaker, and a 'majority vote' of the audience that there was such a right. The next day 2 decisions came down, and a month later yet another decision came down, all rejecting the 'making available' theory."
One gray squirrel, its bushy tail twitching, barked a warning as another scrounged for food nearby. It was an ordinary spring day at Hampshire College, except that the rodent issuing the... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 3 May 2008 | 5:43 am
A HIGHLY successful project to provide computers and internet connections for school pupils in some of Barnsley's most deprived communities is expected to be extended. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 May 2008 | 5:00 am
By F.A. Krift Two Pittsburgh artists intend to collaborate with Google to create a photographic project in the North Side that might be hidden inside one of the Internet company's mapping products, if it goes off as planned. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 May 2008 | 5:00 am
Microsoft Corp. finally dangled a higher takeover bid in front of Yahoo Inc. Friday, hoping to reach a friendly deal after weeks of saber rattling. Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 3 May 2008 | 4:38 am
Microsoft Corp. finally dangled a higher takeover bid in front of Yahoo Inc. Friday, hoping to reach a friendly deal after weeks of saber rattling. The Redmond, Wash.-based software... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 3 May 2008 | 4:21 am
SlackFan writes "Slackware 12.1 has been released with kernel 2.6.24-5. 'Among the many program updates and distribution enhancements, you'll find better support for RAID, LVM, and cryptsetup; a network capable (FTP and HTTP, not only NFS) installer; and two of the most advanced desktop environments available today: Xfce 4.4.2, a fast, lightweight, and visually appealing desktop environment, and KDE 3.5.9, the latest 3.x version of the full-featured K Desktop Environment.'"
Two days, go Boing Boing ran a story on the deteriorating relations in the fight to free the supposedly copyrighted laws of the great State of Oregon. Well, the situation is definitely at an impasse and June 2 has been set as the date by which this situation is either resolved or we post the full text of all 2005 and 2007 statutes.
Karl Olson of the firm Levy, Ram & Olson LLP, Attorneys, delivered the news on behalf of Justia and Public.Resource.Org when he said:
"My clients respectfully cannot agree to the Public License. First, and most fundamentally, it would require them to acknowledge that portions of the Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS) are protected by copyright, and they respectfully but vigorously disagree that portions of the ORS are protected by copyright."
Adam Savage is at Maker Faire this year and he brought some of his incredible creations, including a Maltese Falcon, an Indiana Jones whip, and this beautiful recreation of a Dodo bird skeleton.
requires out-of-state online companies to collect sales tax from shoppers in New York. "We are challenging the constitutionality of the recently enacted legislation in New York,"... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 3 May 2008 | 1:36 am
shankar writes "Engineers at Eyebeam, an art and technology center based in New York, have created a scaled-down open-source version of Surface, called Cubit. By sharing the Cubit's hardware schematics and software source code, the engineers are significantly reducing the cost of owning a multitouch table. 'Multitouch displays are not new technology; in fact, they've been built in research labs for decades. Mitsubishi Electric Research Labs created an iconic multitouch table called DiamondTouch; more recently, Jeff Han, founder of Perceptive Pixel, based in New York, developed wall-sized multitouch screens that he sells to corporations and major government agencies. But because of the falling costs of many touch-screen components, such as infrared light sources and small cameras and projectors, it's now becoming feasible for people without access to a lab or venture-capital money to make their own multitouch displays.'"
We asked our readers to submit the coolest, hardest-to-find gadgets they could think of. After two weeks, these are the favorites. There are far too many gems to include here, so visit the rare-gadget submission page to browse more than 100 entries.
Left: Smallest Mechanical Pocket Calculator
Submitted by Anonymous
Submitter's comment:
"Designed by an Austrian prisoner (Curt Herzstark) in KZ Buchenwald during World War II, it remains the smallest pure mechanical calculating device on Earth. Its more than 700 pieces are all made out of metal, nearly all types of calculations are possible: Enter the number, turn the crank, and out comes the result."
:
An Enigma!
Submitted by Mokum Von Amsterdam
The Enigma machine was most famously used by the Nazis to create encrypted messages during World War II. Allied forces were able to decrypt many important Enigma messages, elevating its significance in the history books.
Submitter's comment:
"The Enigma machine based its cipher capabilities on a series of wired rotor wheels and a plugboard. Through a web of internal wiring, each of the 26 input contacts on the rotor was connected to a different output contact. The wiring connections of one rotor differed from the connections on any other rotor."
:
Widelux
This is our own submission, but many of our readers voted for it, so we're including it here. The Widelux has a swing-lens that takes beautiful wide-angle shots. The lens preserves perspective so that faces don't appear distorted as with most wide-angle lenses. They went out of production in the '80s and are a rare treat for camera junkies.
:
Loco Box "The Choker" Compressor Pedal
Submitted by Alamo Death Toll
Submitter's comment:
"Jason Falkner, guitarist and producer, mentioned it in Tape Op magazine: 'It's an incredible-sounding foot compressor. Whomever I tell about this -- an engineer or producer -- they go on the hunt for it.... Everything on my four-track recordings went into that Choker.' After that article, the value of this impossible-to-find pedal skyrocketed."
:
Pixar Image Computer
Submitted by Dan
Submitter's comment:
"Way before Pixar made movies, they made parallel-image computers. Wikipedia says fewer than 300 of these were ever sold, and I think that may be an overestimate."
:
Nixie Tubes
Submitted by Anonymous
Submitter's comment:
"These outdated display devices from the 1950s use 10 number-shaped cathodes suspended in a thin gas to create glowing digits, and are every steampunk toymaker's dream."
:
Vectrex, Vector Graphics Home Video Console
Submitted by Jager
Submitter's comment:
"While I never actually got to own one, I used to play with this machine in Sears whenever we were at the mall (and c'mon, it was the '80s -- when weren't you at the mall?).
"Fun and addictive -- like most videogames of the time -- but original, as it used an actual built-in vector-graphics monitor for gameplay (as opposed to "raster" graphics). Fun fun fun!"
:
Golden DeLorean
Submitted by Anonymous
Submitter's comment:
"American Express originally intended to build 100 of these gold-plated DMC-12s as a Christmas 1981 advertising promotion, but only two were ever built, and a third from spare parts."
:
Nagra SNST
Submitted by David A. Goldfarb
Submitter's comment:
"Nagra Cold War spy recorder originally designed for undercover surveillance during the Kennedy administration, later widely used in law enforcement. It uses tape the same width as cassette tape but on open reels and packs automatic dynamic level control and audio-compression circuitry into its machined aluminum 145 x 100 x 28 mm case."
:
ARP 2600
Submitted by Chris Yewell
Submitter's comment:
"The ARP 2600 is without a doubt one of the finest analog synthesizers ever. It is very popular and has been used by artists for more than 20 years in all forms of music, especially today's electronic music. The 2600 is a professional, semi-modular, monophonic, patch-cable synthesizer that competed directly against the first professional Modular Moog synths during the early 1970s. From Vintage Synth Explorer.
:
PXL 2000 Deluxe Audio Cassette Video System
Submitted by MvE
Submitter's comment:
"What makes this camera unique? In 1987, Fisher-Price manufactured a video camera capable of recording audio and video onto a standard Type II audio cassette. The image quality topped out at 160Khz (compared with 2.5Mhz for a normal signal), so the image comes out grainy and ghostly. A favorite these days for film students wanting an ethereal and artsy feel. Find yours on eBay."
We asked our readers to submit the coolest, hardest-to-find gadgets they could think of. After two weeks, these are the favorites. There are far too many gems to include here, so visit the rare-gadget submission page to browse more than 100 entries.
Left: Smallest Mechanical Pocket Calculator
Submitted by Anonymous
Submitter's comment:
"Designed by an Austrian prisoner (Curt Herzstark) in KZ Buchenwald during World War II, it remains the smallest pure mechanical calculating device on Earth. Its more than 700 pieces are all made out of metal, nearly all types of calculations are possible: Enter the number, turn the crank, and out comes the result."
:
An Enigma!
Submitted by Mokum Von Amsterdam
The Enigma machine was most famously used by the Nazis to create encrypted messages during World War II. Allied forces were able to decrypt many important Enigma messages, elevating its significance in the history books.
Submitter's comment:
"The Enigma machine based its cipher capabilities on a series of wired rotor wheels and a plugboard. Through a web of internal wiring, each of the 26 input contacts on the rotor was connected to a different output contact. The wiring connections of one rotor differed from the connections on any other rotor."
:
Widelux
This is our own submission, but many of our readers voted for it, so we're including it here. The Widelux has a swing-lens that takes beautiful wide-angle shots. The lens preserves perspective so that faces don't appear distorted as with most wide-angle lenses. They went out of production in the '80s and are a rare treat for camera junkies.
:
Loco Box "The Choker" Compressor Pedal
Submitted by Alamo Death Toll
Submitter's comment:
"Jason Falkner, guitarist and producer, mentioned it in Tape Op magazine: 'It's an incredible-sounding foot compressor. Whomever I tell about this -- an engineer or producer -- they go on the hunt for it.... Everything on my four-track recordings went into that Choker.' After that article, the value of this impossible-to-find pedal skyrocketed."
:
Pixar Image Computer
Submitted by Dan
Submitter's comment:
"Way before Pixar made movies, they made parallel-image computers. Wikipedia says fewer than 300 of these were ever sold, and I think that may be an overestimate."
:
Nixie Tubes
Submitted by Anonymous
Submitter's comment:
"These outdated display devices from the 1950s use 10 number-shaped cathodes suspended in a thin gas to create glowing digits, and are every steampunk toymaker's dream."
:
Vectrex, Vector Graphics Home Video Console
Submitted by Jager
Submitter's comment:
"While I never actually got to own one, I used to play with this machine in Sears whenever we were at the mall (and c'mon, it was the '80s -- when weren't you at the mall?).
"Fun and addictive -- like most videogames of the time -- but original, as it used an actual built-in vector-graphics monitor for gameplay (as opposed to "raster" graphics). Fun fun fun!"
:
Golden DeLorean
Submitted by Anonymous
Submitter's comment:
"American Express originally intended to build 100 of these gold-plated DMC-12s as a Christmas 1981 advertising promotion, but only two were ever built, and a third from spare parts."
:
Nagra SNST
Submitted by David A. Goldfarb
Submitter's comment:
"Nagra Cold War spy recorder originally designed for undercover surveillance during the Kennedy administration, later widely used in law enforcement. It uses tape the same width as cassette tape but on open reels and packs automatic dynamic level control and audio-compression circuitry into its machined aluminum 145 x 100 x 28 mm case."
:
ARP 2600
Submitted by Chris Yewell
Submitter's comment:
"The ARP 2600 is without a doubt one of the finest analog synthesizers ever. It is very popular and has been used by artists for more than 20 years in all forms of music, especially today's electronic music. The 2600 is a professional, semi-modular, monophonic, patch-cable synthesizer that competed directly against the first professional Modular Moog synths during the early 1970s. From Vintage Synth Explorer.
:
PXL 2000 Deluxe Audio Cassette Video System
Submitted by MvE
Submitter's comment:
"What makes this camera unique? In 1987, Fisher-Price manufactured a video camera capable of recording audio and video onto a standard Type II audio cassette. The image quality topped out at 160Khz (compared with 2.5Mhz for a normal signal), so the image comes out grainy and ghostly. A favorite these days for film students wanting an ethereal and artsy feel. Find yours on eBay."
Amazon.com is suing New York over a new law that requires out-of-state online companies to collect sales tax from shoppers in New York. Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 3 May 2008 | 12:56 am
Mining company says 500-year-old find has yielded Iberian coins, ivory and weapons. Shipwreck treasure found off Namibia Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 3 May 2008 | 12:55 am
Amazon.com is suing New York over a new law that requires out-of-state online companies to collect sales tax from shoppers in New York. "We are challenging the constitutionality of the... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 3 May 2008 | 12:42 am
in front of Yahoo Inc. Friday, hoping to reach a friendly deal after weeks of sabre rattling. The Redmond, Wash.-based software maker upped its offer beyond the original value of... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 3 May 2008 | 12:16 am
The diet mimics the effects of starvation and induces chemicals in the brain that appear to reduce seizures. In its first clinical trial, researchers find it helps children. ... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 3 May 2008 | 12:14 am
Iddo Genuth writes to mention that MIT researchers have made their first pass at bringing the common yellow post-it note into the digital age. Using a combination of artificial intelligence, RFID, and ink recognition the team hopes to make the digital version as ubiquitous as possible. "The Quickie application not only allows users to browse their notes, but also lets users search for specific information or keywords. Using a freely available commonsense knowledge engine and computational AI techniques, the software processes the written text and determines the relevant context of the notes, categorizing them appropriately. "The system uses its understanding of the user's intentions, content, and the context of the notes to provide the user with reminders, alerts, messages, and just-in-time information" - said the inventors. Additionally, each Quickie carries a unique RFID tag, so that it can be easily located around the house or office. Therefore, users can be sure never to lose a bookmarked book or any other object marked with a Quickie."
Microsoft Corp. finally dangled a higher takeover bid in front of Yahoo Inc. Friday, hoping to reach a friendly deal after weeks of saber rattling. The Redmond, Wash.-based software... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 2 May 2008 | 11:23 pm
Special food regime for children with epilepsy reduces number of seizures by 75%, according to Great Ormond Street Hospital study Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 2 May 2008 | 11:09 pm
An anonymous reader writes "Raytheon is bringing 'Iron Man' to life, according to EETimes. 'The movie opens in theaters worldwide today, but the real "iron man" has already been under construction at Raytheon Company (Salt Lake City, Utah) since 2000. Raytheon's Exoskeleton project is the brainchild of project leader Stephen Jacobsen and is being funded by the U.S. Army. The project, according to the company, permits soldiers to don an Exoskeleton suit that amplifies their strength — enabling them to lift 200-pound payloads without tiring.'"
Wired.com brings you up-to-the minute news, video and photos from Maker Faire, an annual celebration of do-it-yourself culture that is expected to draw 500 exhibitors and 60,000 attendees.
Wired.com brings you up-to-the minute news, video and photos from Maker Faire, an annual celebration of do-it-yourself culture that is expected to draw 500 exhibitors and 60,000 attendees.
Engadget recently grabbed a few minutes with Sun CEO Jonathan Schwartz. They were able to get some great information on the JavaFX Mobile platform as well as Java on the iPhone and how the struggle against Microsoft is going with respect to open source.
Microsoft Corp. reportedly dangled a higher takeover bid in front of Yahoo Inc. Friday, hoping to reach a friendly deal after weeks of saber rattling. The Redmond, Wash.-based software Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 2 May 2008 | 9:10 pm
You are cordially invited to an orgy of cartoon mayhem: Valve's superb Team Fortress 2 is free to play this weekend to celebrate a new update, and we've got a 26-player server set up and ready to roll. And we're playing now!
All you need is the Steam client, a half-decent PC and and a good internet connection: download what you need at the TF2: Gold Rush Update site. Don't worry if you can't make it just this second: the server should be up all night.
Here's how to find us. Open up Team Fortress 2, click Find Servers and then check the "Custom" tab. Our server name is Boing Boing Team Fortress 2. Our direct ip, if you need it, is 208.167.248.53:27015. The password is "jackhammerjill" without the quotes. That should bring you in!
The server's up and running now! We're looking forward to being stabbed in the back, immolated, uber-charged and exploded by all of you!
Weekend Schedule: (The server's up 24/7, but it's good to set gathering times)Friday 4 p.m.-lateSaturday, 4-7 p.m. ESTSunday, 4-7 p.m. EST
Microsoft Corp. is reportedly in active talks with Yahoo Inc. Friday and has increased its bid for the Web pioneer. Microsoft upped its offer "by several dollars" per share, according to... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 2 May 2008 | 8:29 pm
SEATTLE - Microsoft Corp. is reportedly in active talks with Yahoo Inc. Friday and has increased its bid for the web pioneer. Microsoft upped its offer "by several dollars" per share,... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 2 May 2008 | 8:29 pm
arbitraryaardvark writes "Mega-spammer Jeremy Jaynes was convicted in Virginia of spamming in '05, sentenced to 9 years, and lost his appeal, 4-3, at the Virgina Supreme Court. But the court has just ordered a new hearing on whether the anti-spam statute is unconstitutional under the First Amendment. Slashdot previously covered the appeal and the conviction."
It's safe to say Jeremy Snyder gets a charge out of the two-seat Tesla Roadster whenever he pulls one off the lot _ and not because it's equipped with an all-electric engine. As he... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 2 May 2008 | 8:17 pm
haroldag writes "After Walter Bender's resignation as president of OLPC, Charles Kane enters to take his place as the new boss. Kane says 'The OLPC mission is a great endeavor, but the mission is to get the technology in the hands of as many children as possible. Whether that technology is from one operating system or another, one piece of hardware or another, or supplied or supported by one consulting company or another doesn't matter. It's about getting it into kids' hands. Anything that is contrary to that objective, and limits that objective, is against what the program stands for.'"
The company that brought us three-point seat belts, crumple zones and side-impact airbags wants to make traffic injuries and fatalities a thing of the past.
The summer's superhero blitz begins with a fab flick that brings the Golden Avenger to life. Get the lowdown on Stan Lee's cameo, the science of Iron Man's armor suit and much more.
Meredith writes "A bill that would penalize companies for assisting repressive regimes in censoring the Internet may finally be headed to a vote. The Global Online Freedom Act 'would not only prevent companies like Yahoo from giving up the goods to totalitarian regimes, but would also prohibit US-based Internet companies from blocking online content from US government or government-financed web sites in other countries.' Unfortunately, there's also a giant loophole: the president would be allowed to waive the provisions of the Act for national security purposes."
From the police blotter in Federal Way, Washington:
At 4:02 p.m. April 10, two women went into the Federal Way police station claiming that over the past two years, a paranormal person has been placing sensors on their bodies and visiting them in their house at 28600 block of 25th Place South. They said that the ghost has been having sexual intercourse with them. One woman said that these incidents started in Kent and continued when she moved here. The other woman said that this just started now.
Link to Federal Way Mirror, Link to more at Damn Data
vossman77 writes "I was looking into renewable energy from a hobbyist perspective, maybe generating a few watts of solar or wind power, just to reduce my electric bill. But upon further review, I found out that I need a special grid tie AC inverter that shuts off when the grid turns off (for worker safety reasons) and makes the current in-phase with the grid. These two additional features over the cheap inverters sold at department store, makes the cost upwards of $2000, but support more watts than I need. While this is fine for large scale projects, it is out of range for a small scale hobbyist. A Google search came with some home brew hacks at best. So, are there any Slashdotters out there doing small scale renewable energy projects with grid tie systems? What are other options for the hobbyist to play around with renewable energy, other than charging a cell phone?"
In the 1990s, a Colorado man named Larry Proctor purchased some beans at a market in Mexico.
He selectively bred them for a few years and claimed to have invented "a new field bean variety that produces distinctly colored yellow seed which remains relatively unchanged by season." He called it the "Enola bean," and was granted a "20-year patent that covered any beans and hybrids derived from crosses with even one of his seeds."
His claim of 60 cents per pound of beans sold in the US "caused a steep decline in exports of such beans from Mexico to the USA, according to Mexican government sources."
Today, the United States Patent and Trademark Office revoked Proctor's patent claims
The bean was erroneously granted patent protection in 1999, as US Patent Number 5,894,079, in a move that raised profound concerns about biopiracy and the potential abuse of intellectual property (IP) claims on plant materials that originate in the developing world and remain as important dietary staples, particularly among the poor.
CIAT was able to dispute the inventor's claims to a unique color by providing published evidence of 260 yellow beans among the almost 28,000 samples of Phaseolus in its crop "genebank." At least six of the CIAT varieties were, to most observers, identical to the bean described in Proctor's patent documents on the basis of color and genetic markers. CIAT also put forward publications to show that the claims in the patent application took credit for research already widely available in scientific literature and thus claims made regarding the breeding of the bean in his patent also failed to meet the patent office's statutory requirements for "non-obviousness and novelty."
Droog Design's Do Hit Chair is a cube made from .04" steel. It's shipped with a sledgehammer for you to customize it's shape yourself. Created by Marjin van der Poll, it's available from Unica Home for $6718 for one that he pre-hammered. A smash-your-own model is $5924. Link(via Paper Magazine)
UPDATE: Here is a video of the chair being customized. Link
Parker sez, "All day I sit around and dream of ways to combine bb posts...
Anyway, I took the liberty of adding the four committees that the EFF suggests calling about border control's unchecked laptop searching authority to Fred Benenson's new Cause Caller. Now if you have a few minutes, Cause Caller can do the heavy lifting and you can do your country proud and defend your rights to a few senators and congressmen. And because it's a wiki, you can add or edit the list of people to call or the script. As Cause Caller's website says, have fun getting in touch with democracy!"
Link
(Thanks, Parker!)
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You are cordially invited to an orgy of cartoon mayhem: Valve's superb Team Fortress 2 is free to play this weekend to celebrate a new update, and we've got a 26-player server set up and ready to roll. And we're playing now!
All you need is the Steam client, a half-decent PC and and a good internet connection: download what you need at the TF2: Gold Rush Update site. Don't worry if you can't make it just this second: the server should be up all night.
Here's how to find us. Open up Team Fortress 2, click Find Servers and then check the "Custom" tab. Our server name is Boing Boing Team Fortress 2. Our direct ip, if you need it, is 208.167.248.53:27015. The password is "jackhammerjill" without the quotes. That should bring you in!
The server's up and running now! We're looking forward to being stabbed in the back, immolated, uber-charged and exploded by all of you!
Weekend Schedule: (The server's up 24/7, but it's good to set gathering times)
Friday 4 p.m.-late
Saturday, 4-7 p.m. EST
Sunday, 4-7 p.m. EST
Today on BoingBoing Gadgets, we reviewed a 3G USB modem that works great on Macs and high-end canine gear; listened to The Harmonium; drank a strictly-conforming European pint; watched Belkin try to bring novelty to the world of mouse pads; built an ornithopter and a difference engine; guzzled yoghurt with a specially-shaped spoon; and listened to a beautiful boombox in a double-bass fiddle.
Most of the afternoon, however, was spent setting up a server so y'all can play Team Fortress 2 over the weekend. 
Droog Design's Do Hit Chair is a cube made from .04" steel. It's shipped with a sledgehammer for you to customize it's shape yourself. Created by Marjin van der Poll, it's available from Unica Home for $6718 for one that he pre-hammered. A smash-your-own model is $5924.
