The Register
Indies celebrate Independence Day
Finding the sharing button
Interview Did anyone, I wonder, ever buy just one Motown single? Or just one 2-Tone single? And while you're pondering... can you even remember what major label your favourite artist is on? Unigram, perhaps. Or Polycorpse.?
4 Jul 2008 at 10:57am
2010: the 5TB 3.5in HDD cometh
Hitachi promises 1TB per square inch
Hitachi has pledged to release a 5TB 3.5in hard drive within two years, and it claims two of the drives will boast enough capacity to store everything in your brain.?
4 Jul 2008 at 10:45am
PC World pips Asus to UK Atom sub-laptop premier
Who has the first SCC with Intel's new chip?
PC World today claimed to have beaten Asus to the punch by launching the first Small, Cheap Computer in the UK equipped with an Intel Atom processor.?
4 Jul 2008 at 10:39am
DARPA calls for 'DUDE' combo infra-nightscope
As in 'Dude, where's my multispectral imaging device?'
DARPA, the renowned bulgy-bonced battle-boffinry bureau (apparent motto: "If you can't beat them... well, some sort of murderous killer robot army would seem to be in order") has just issued its latest call for notions. This time, the Pentagon science chiefs want a new and ultra-puissant combo nightsight module.?
4 Jul 2008 at 10:23am
Welcome back, WiReD!
Photoshoppers, pick up your brushes...
Competition More than a decade after it crashed and burned so spectacularly, WiReD - the house magazine for the Children of the Corn - is returning to the UK.?
4 Jul 2008 at 10:20am
Apple drags its heels on iPhone security patches
Waiting for the second coming
Apple has failed to keep software for the iPhone up to date with patches available for its desktop PCs.?
4 Jul 2008 at 9:39am
Serco sharpens the IT guillotine
Job cuts consultation underway
Government services firm Serco is looking to cut up to 500 jobs from its IT division, with satellite offices and its Birmingham HQ all likely to be hit.?
4 Jul 2008 at 9:12am
Ofcom flashes cash guarantees at BT for fibre investment
Next gen network quid pro quo tabled
The boss of Ofcom has given the clearest indication yet that regulators are ready to offer BT more control over a next generation UK broadband infrastructure in exchange for investment.?
4 Jul 2008 at 8:54am
Consider yourself Moderatrixed
And be damn grateful about it, worms
Well, I was actually hoping to spend this Friday performing my usual duties, perhaps enjoying a little light banter with my colleagues, and then sauntering out at lunchtime to get society-endangeringly drunk.?
4 Jul 2008 at 8:22am
IPS finds no nuggets in ID checking goldmine
Claims targets exceeded, but fee income tiny
Government plans to position the Identity & Passport Service as the UK's de facto identity services broker seem not to have entirely caught the imagination of the private sector, figures in IPS' annual report and accounts suggest. Although IPS recruited 44 new customers for its Passport Validation Service (PVS), income from this for the year ending March 2008 was only £357,000.?
4 Jul 2008 at 8:00am
Wired
Hideo Kojima's Top 5 Memorable Games
The maestro of pixelated sneaking lists his top five memorable games and, weirdly, his own 'Metal Gear Solid' made the cut.
by Game|Life
4 Jul 2008 at 1:57pm
Led Zeppelin Won't Lend Music to Rhythm Games
Despite the success of Guitar Hero and Rock Band, you won't see Led Zeppelin's iconic tunes pop up in either game any time soon. The band isn't comfortable giving gaming companies access to the group's master recordings -- a necessary step in adding the band to any game.
by Game|Life
4 Jul 2008 at 12:00pm
Court Orders YouTube to Fork Over Video Logs
A federal judge orders YouTube to disclose who watches which video clips and when to Viacom and other copyright holders involved in a $1 billion copyright-infringement lawsuit against the video-sharing service.
by Associated Press
4 Jul 2008 at 6:52am
Casual Fan's Guide to 'Doctor Who' Finale
On Saturday, July 5, at 6:40 p.m., the season finale of Doctor Who will go out on BBC1 to an expected audience of 10 million viewers. The specially extended 65-minute episode should be one of the most watched shows of the year in the United Kingdom. For casual sci-fi viewers who might not get what all the fuss is about, this preview will stack up some background data to prime this weekend's big sci-fi send-off for The Doctor and his Tardis crew.
by Underwire
4 Jul 2008 at 2:52am
Wrist-Top Racer Switches From Trainer to Watch With Ease
The Forerunner 405 is a data-driven action hero that tracks speed, distance and heart rate with GPS-enabled accuracy and lab-worthy cardio analysis.
by Matthew Honan
3 Jul 2008 at 11:00pm
Transformer: Kayak Adjusts Its Shape to Go With Your Flow
You can prep this flexible kayak for almost any weather or sea condition with hydraulic jacks that stretch and adjust the skin with ease. It's pricey, but wow -- it's like several kayaks in one.
by Clare Baldwin
3 Jul 2008 at 11:00pm
Titanium Frame Handles Any Cycling Terrain
The lightweight Psychlo-X is a road racer and mountain bike in one. Our riders take this and three more cyclo-cross bikes through a gauntlet of pavement, dirt and grass.
by Mark McClusky
3 Jul 2008 at 11:00pm
Sex Drive: How to Keep the Fireworks Going From Afar
Many long-distance lovers have become experts in how tech can augment sexuality.
No commuter couple should go without Skype, Twitter and mobile phones, while sex toys can take the repetitive stress injury out of a long-distance affair.
But it's not much of a stretch to think that there's a bigger need (read: market) for "tele-amore" devices than there ever will be for teledildonics (online sex toys controlled by a lover from anywhere in the world). And yet we don't have a lot of options when we're looking for devices designed to arouse our emotions.
Not everyone is comfortable enough with both sex and computers to get internet-enabled vibrators working, but we all want to interact with our partners in special ways. Despite the frenzy around social media applications, we still don't have sensual devices that extend that functionality beyond virtual space.
All it would take is something like the Ambient Orb hooked up to a desktop dot to get my heart racing.
Joseph Kaye, a Ph.D. candidate at Cornell University studying human-computer interaction, developed the Virtual Intimate Object, or VIO, to study the effect of low-bandwidth applications on long-distance intimacy.
The VIO is a dot that sits in your system tray (Windows) or desktop (Mac) and monitors an identical dot on your partner's computer. When your partner clicks his or her dot, yours fills with color; as time goes by without a click, the color slowly fades until the circle is just an outline.
In Kaye's 2004 study (.pdf), five long-distance couples kept journals of how often they clicked the VIO and how using it made them feel. He notes that while he originally thought of the VIO as the source of intimacy, he realized that the journals quickly became an integral part of the experience for the couples.
Just as dancing leads to necking which leads to spanking and then to the oral sex, what was enough on day one was merely adequate by day five of the study.
By week's end, participants had several suggestions for additional functionality: a choice of colors, the option to play a sound, and the ability to replace the circle with their own set of graphics. They had become emotionally engaged not just with their partners, but with the application.
If you can get all that from a 2-D dot, think what you could do with an object you can touch.
Unfortunately, the closest thing I can find to that type of technology for consumers is the Nabaztag rabbit, a wireless device that connects with other Nabaztag rabbits over the internet. From a strictly romantic standpoint, they one-up the Chumby and the Tux Droid in that the rabbits can "marry" each other, so that when one partner moves their rabbit's ears, the paired rabbit's ears move the same way.
Chat acronyms, make way for the semaphore signs of love.
The Nabaztags are excruciatingly cute. I've wanted a set for years, but they weren't specifically designed for suitors. (Nor are they the seamless technical experience they claim to be, apparently: The Nabaztalk user forums provide a sobering counterpoint to the Nabaztags' slick product marketing.)
The human-computer interaction folks at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology seem to understand the connection between technology and emotion, but their clever projects -- like the Lover's Cups that light up when a far-away partner takes a sip or the Mutsugoto interactive art bed -- have yet to break free of academia and museums.
Gadgets like teledildonics and sex machines that stimulate the body but shouldn't be used at work or in public only go so far. Sex tech doesn't have to be explicit to be effective: If you and your distant partner have been together long enough, you realize that tech that fosters intimacy, playfulness and common experiences has a much greater impact on the quality of your union than just having orgasms now and then.
I want to glance at the shelf and see an object glowing warmly because someone special sent me a message. I want to let someone know I'm thinking about him, simply by stroking my fingers over a smooth surface.
I know I'm not the only one who wants to interact through something sensual and swoopy and erotic that has no connection to business, chores or taxes.
I want my ambient intimacy object. Are you listening, developers? There's a mountain of money to be made keeping long-distance lovers connected in our increasingly complicated world.
See you in a fortnight,
Regina Lynn
- - -
Regina Lynn is the author of Sexier Sex: Lessons From the Brave New Sexual Frontier. She blogs at reginalynn.com.
by Regina Lynn
3 Jul 2008 at 11:00pm
July 4, 1776: To Preserve, Protect and Defend ...
1776: The Declaration of Independence is signed. It will take 117 years before someone gets around to saying, "Hey, maybe we should preserve this thing."
The Declaration of Independence can be fairly said to stand alongside the Magna Carta and Bill of Rights as the most important documents in the history of democracy. Its significance was understood from the moment it was signed, so one is left to wonder why its preservation was ignored for so long.
During the Revolutionary War, the Declaration of Independence was rolled up and toted around like a Thomas Bros. map, although, given the vicissitudes of war, that's perhaps understandable. Less understandable is what came later. Water was spilled on it while it was being copied in 1823. Then it was tacked up on the wall at the U.S. Patent Office for about 40 years, where it was subjected to a strong northern light.
Finally, the suggestion was made in 1903 that maybe it shouldn't be exposed to sunlight and, oh, by the way, maybe it should be kept dry, too. The latter turned out to be a bad idea because the Declaration, which was written on parchment, actually needs a bit of moisture to keep from cracking.
It wasn't until 1951 that the first modern preservation efforts began. The document was sealed inside a bronze, bullet-proof glass case at the National Archives building in Washington, D.C. Humidified helium replaced oxygen to prevent further erosion, and the glass was filtered to cut down on light exposure.
Beginning in 1987, using camera equipment developed for the Hubble Space Telescope, preservationists were able to monitor the Declaration for even the most minute signs of fading or flaking ink.
The measures proved effective, so much so that the Declaration outlived its original protective case. After undergoing careful inspection for further erosion in 2003, the document was resealed in a titanium casement filled with inert argon gas. Similar preservation techniques are used to protect the Bill of Rights and Constitution.
The Declaration of Independence remains on display in the rotunda of the National Archives, where it is seen by roughly 6,000 tourists every day. At night, when the crowds have all gone home, the case is lowered 22 feet into a vault.
That's almost as much protection as the French give to Napoleon.
Source: History.com
by Tony Long
3 Jul 2008 at 11:00pm
From Foldup Kayaks to Swim Goggles, Wired Reviews the Hottest Summer Gear
Our blowout Summer Test gadget reviews have something for everyone from lightweight tents, folding bikes and GPS navigators to tricked-out training watches and pro-quality swim goggles.
by Summer Test
3 Jul 2008 at 11:00pm
MacWorld News
iPhone cases: Incase Fitted Sleeve and Uniea U-Suit
The new iPhones may be on the horizon, but that doesn?t mean we?ve forgotten about the ?old? ones. We take a look at two cases, one from Incase, the other from Uniea.
4 Jul 2008 at 12:38pm
Video: World Tech Update
In this week?s show: YouTube stars gather in Boston, a laptop is stolen from a car in just 90 seconds, a look at new robots, a tearful farewell to Bill Gates and we look inside a cable laying ship.
4 Jul 2008 at 10:00am
Headphone Buyer's Guide
Earbuds or headphones? Full-size or miniature? No matter what kind of listening hardware you like to plug into your iPod (or iPhone), Dan Frakes has some advice and recommendations for finding the perfect pair.
4 Jul 2008 at 8:15am
Review: SOHO Organizer 7.0.2
Chronos's SOHO Organizer 7.0.2 suite provides a feature-rich alternative to Apple's built-in that will appeal to business and power users
4 Jul 2008 at 7:26am
Review: iCal 3.0.3 calendar program
For the price, and for most users, there is no better calendar application and calendaring system for the Mac OS. It's a bit weak in the task-management department, but even business users may now find that iCal can manage everybody's calendars easily, effectively, and economically.
4 Jul 2008 at 6:21am
Espy 1.0
Espy is an address book that uses an iPhoto-inspired interface for sifting through your contacts.
4 Jul 2008 at 5:50am
Excerpt: Learn GarageBand tips and tricks
It?s no secret that GarageBand is entry-level music editing software. But at the same time, GarageBand can perform feats that aren?t immediately obvious. In this excerpt from Take Control of Recording with GarageBand, Jeff Tolbert shares some tips and tricks for the music-creation software.
4 Jul 2008 at 2:36am
Review: Sunbird 0.8 calendar program
If you use Mozilla's Thunderbird e-mail client, or if you need to access a calendar on a server from different computers running different operating systems, or if you need a bit more help than iCal provides for managing your tasks, Sunbird is definitely worth a look. And Sunbird is free.
3 Jul 2008 at 4:30pm
Free music from the Rhapsody MP3 Store
Before you dash off to that barbeque, take the time to get a free album from the newly opened Rhapsody MP3 Store.
3 Jul 2008 at 3:58pm
Google blurs faces to protect privacy in French StreetView
Google has chosen to blur the faces of people caught on camera by the French edition of its StreetView service.
3 Jul 2008 at 2:15pm
US CERT Technical Cyber Alert System Documents
SB08-182: Vulnerability Summary for the Week of June 23, 2008
Vulnerability Summary for the Week of June 23, 2008
SB08-175: Vulnerability Summary for the Week of June 16, 2008
Vulnerability Summary for the Week of June 16, 2008
SB08-168: Vulnerability Summary for the Week of June 9, 2008
Vulnerability Summary for the Week of June 9, 2008
TA08-162B: Microsoft Updates for Multiple Vulnerabilities
Microsoft Updates for Multiple Vulnerabilities
TA08-162C: Apple Quicktime Updates for Multiple Vulnerabilities
Apple Quicktime Updates for Multiple Vulnerabilities
TA08-162A: SNMPv3 Authentication Bypass Vulnerability
SNMPv3 Authentication Bypass Vulnerability
SB08-161: Vulnerability Summary for the Week of June 2, 2008
Vulnerability Summary for the Week of June 2, 2008
SB08-154: Vulnerability Summary for the Week of May 26, 2008
Vulnerability Summary for the Week of May 26, 2008
TA08-150A: Apple Updates for Multiple Vulnerabilities
Apple Updates for Multiple Vulnerabilities
SB08-147: Vulnerability Summary for the Week of May 19, 2008
Vulnerability Summary for the Week of May 19, 2008
Slashdot
Interview With Author of the First Spoof Language
An anonymous reader brings us Computerworld's interview with Don Woods, one of the creators of Compiler Language With No Pronounceable Acronym (INTERCAL). INTERCAL and its documentation were created in 1972 as a parody of that era's languages and instruction manuals. Among other things, Woods had this to say: "We designed the language without too much trouble. Writing the manual took a while, especially for things like the circuit diagrams we included as nonsensical illustrations. The compiler itself actually wasn't too much trouble, given that we weren't at all concerned with optimising the performance of either the compiler or the compiled code. I admit I'm surprised at its longevity. Some of the jokes in the original work feel rather dated at this point. It helps that the language provides a place where people can discuss oddball features missing from other languages, such as the 'COME FROM' statement and operators that work in base 3." Read more of this story at Slashdot.
by Soulskill
4 Jul 2008 at 6:43pm
IE 8 To Include New Security Tools
Trailrunner7 writes "Internet Explorer has been a security punching bag for years, and rightfully so. IE 6 was arguably the least secure browser of all time. But Microsoft has been trying to get their act together on security, and the new beta of IE 8, due in August, will have a slew of new security features including protection against Type-1 cross-site scripting attacks, a better phishing filter and better security for ActiveX controls."Read more of this story at Slashdot.
by ScuttleMonkey
4 Jul 2008 at 5:44pm
NC Judge Takes "A Fresh Look" At RIAA Subpoenas
NewYorkCountryLawyer writes "When some North Carolina State students recently brought to the attention of the Court the apparent illegality of the RIAA's investigations by unlicensed investigators, they also caught the attention of the judges. After reading these new papers, District Judge Louise W. Flanagan, who admits that she's been routinely signing the RIAA's ex parte discovery orders in the past, has indicated that she is now going to take 'a fresh look' at the RIAA's tactics. She issued a stay of the subpoena, ordering NC State not to respond to it, and referred the motions to dismiss the cases to a Magistrate Judge for him to take that 'fresh look' at what has been going on."Read more of this story at Slashdot.
by ScuttleMonkey
4 Jul 2008 at 4:56pm
Open Source Twitter Competitor Emerges
ruphus13 writes "Twitter has had a lot of public woes with Open Source technologies like Ruby on Rails, and a lot of alternatives have sprung up in the micro-blogging world, but no one has managed to dislodge twitter in its usage or appeal. Now, an Open Source alternative by Identi.ca, backed by project Laconica has emerged. From the article, 'It supports OpenID for logins, is completely free software, and is designed to apply a Creative Commons license to all the traffic that it carries. It's also built to support the OpenMicroBlogging protocol, meaning that (at least in theory) it can attack scalability issues by federating together multiple autonomous servers. The underpinnings of Laconica include PHP, PEAR, and XMPP. You can download a tarball of the source, or check it out directly if you're using Darcs (there's also an unofficial mirror on Google Code, giving you Subversion access for a read-only copy).' The community will still need to work on this, if a true competitor to twitter is to be had. It is lacking APIs, and SMS integration. Oh, and millions of users!"Read more of this story at Slashdot.
by ScuttleMonkey
4 Jul 2008 at 4:05pm
Lost Footage of "Metropolis" Found
ram.loss writes "According to a Reuters article, a long version of Metropolis has been found at a cinema museum in Argentina, by a newly appointed archivist. The reels have been authenticated by the Murnau foundation at Germany. 'Although estimates of its original length vary depending on the speed at which it is shown, Possmann said "Metropolis" was conceived as a film lasting just over 2-1/2 hours. Around 20 to 25 minutes of footage that fleshes out secondary characters and sheds light on the plot would be added to the film pending restoration, he added. But around 5 minutes of the original were probably still missing, he said.'"Read more of this story at Slashdot.
by ScuttleMonkey
4 Jul 2008 at 3:12pm
eBay'er Arrested for Attempting to Sell His Vote
The Associated Press reports that Max P. Sanders, 19 is charged with a felony for attempting to auction off his vote in the upcoming presidential election on eBay. From the article: '"Fundamentally, we believe it is wrong to sell your vote," said John Aiken, a spokesman for the office. "There are people that have died for this country for our right to vote, and to take something that lightly, to say, 'I can be bought.'" [...] "It's a real shame"' Yes, that is a terrible shame, isn't it. Perhaps we should arrest, prosecute, and imprison everyone who sells their vote. The boy says it was all a joke, but prosecutors aren't laughing. Max faces up to 5 years in prison and $10,000 in fines if he is convicted.Read more of this story at Slashdot.
by MacDork (posted by ScuttleMonkey)
4 Jul 2008 at 2:21pm
Prominent Mathemathicians Rebuke Recent Riemann Hypothesis Proof
Bryan writes "Xian-Jin Li's purported proof of the Riemann Hypothesis (reported on recently) has been rebuked by Fields Medalist Terence Tao. Fortunately, Dr. Li's proof fails alongside a respectable graveyard of previous attempts." Relatedly, jim.shilliday writes "The proof cites and appears to be based in part on the work of the leading French theorist Alain Connes. A few hours ago, Connes posted a comment on his blog stating that the purported proof is so badly flawed that he stopped reading it."Read more of this story at Slashdot.
by ScuttleMonkey
4 Jul 2008 at 1:29pm
First Results From Messenger's Mercury Flyby
Several readers noted the special section in Science, published today, with results from Messenger's flyby of Mercury last January. One conclusion is that volcanism has shaped the planet, contrary to earlier theories that Mercury had been "dead on arrival." The LA Time's coverage highlights the finding that Mercury has shrunk by a mile in diameter over its lifetime, due to shrinkage at its core.Read more of this story at Slashdot.
by kdawson
4 Jul 2008 at 12:37pm
Bavarian Police Can Legally Place Trojans On PCs
An anonymous reader writes "The Bavarian Parliament passed a law that allows Bavarian police to place 'Remote Forensic Software' (Google translation) on a suspect's computer as well as on the computers of a suspect's contacts. They may break into houses in secret to install the RFS if a remote installation is not possible; and while they are there a (physical) search is permitted too. The RFS may be used to read, delete, and alter data." The translation says that RFSs may be used in cases of an "urgent threat to the existence or the security of the Federation or a country or physical, life or liberty of a person... Even where there is a reasonable assumptions on concrete preparatory acts for such serious offenses."Read more of this story at Slashdot.
by kdawson
4 Jul 2008 at 11:34am
Google Seeking "FriendRank" Patent
theodp writes "In its just-published patent application for Network Node Ad Targeting, Google hatches plans for identifying the most influential of a circle of friends and providing this 'influencer' with 'financial incentives from advertisers in exchange for permission to display advertisements on the member's [social network] profile' (sound familiar, Jeremy?). Doing so will 'provide advertisers with the option of targeting either all members in the community or advertising only on the profile of the influencer, thereby targeting the entire community,' explains Google. Who says you can't buy friendship!"Read more of this story at Slashdot.
by kdawson
4 Jul 2008 at 10:30am
Sophos Latest Virus Alerts
4 Jul 2008 Troj/Broute-A
4 Jul 2008 Troj/DNSCha-C
4 Jul 2008 Troj/Agent-HEM
4 Jul 2008 Troj/BHO-GA
4 Jul 2008 Troj/FakeVir-CR
4 Jul 2008 Troj/FakeVir-CS
4 Jul 2008 Troj/PWS-ART
4 Jul 2008 VBS/Psyme-HT
4 Jul 2008 Mal/DwndLdr-AF
4 Jul 2008 Mal/DwndLdr-AG
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