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======================================================================
Slashdot Daily Newsletter
In this issue:
* Wikipedia Losing Contributors, Says Wales
* Saving Gas Via Underpowered Death Traps
* Online Parody Cartoon Targeted For Prosecution
* Are 'Real Names' Policies an Abuse of Power?
* What Today's Coders Don't Know and Why It Matters
* Internet Eats Into Time-Warner Cable Porn Profits
* Do Macs Have an Edge Against APTs?
* Early Look At <em>The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim</em>
* Widespread Hijacking of Search Traffic In the US
* China's 5-Year Cyberwar Met With Western Silence
* Ask Slashdot: Overcoming Convention Hall Wi-Fi Interference?
* Google's Self Driving Car Crashes
* Why Some People Don't Have Fingerprints
* Bethesda Tells <em>Minecraft</em> Creator: Cease and Desist
* First PS3 Jailbreaker Arrested In South Africa
* Belarus Cracks Down On VKontakte
* Spam King Wallace Indicted For Facebook Spam
* Hundreds of Bank Account Details Left In London Pub
* Google Developing Master API — Web Intents
* Court: Domain Seizures Don't Violate Free Speech
* Mozilla's Vision of an 'Internet Life' Platform
* Probing Insulin Pumps For Vulnerabilities
* Measuring Openness In Open Source Projects
* Update Brings Android USB Mounting To Chromebooks
* DOE Announces Philips As L Prize Winner
* Sony Wins 'Epic Fail' Honors At Pwnie Awards
* The History of Invisible Ink
* NASA's Juno Blasts Off To Investigate Jupiter
* Video Game-Like Programs Could Treat Schizophrenia
* Book Review: Build Mobile Websites and Apps For Smart Devices
* Twitter To Open Source Streaming Data Analyzer
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Wikipedia Losing Contributors, Says Wales
| from the citation-needed dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @12:58 (Wikipedia)
| with 474 comments
| https://news.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1621200/Wikipedia-Losing-Contributors-Says-Wales?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
derGoldstein writes "According to an AP report, 'Wikipedia founder Jimmy
Wales said the nonprofit company that runs the site is [0]scrambling to
simplify editing procedures in an attempt to retain volunteers.' He
explained, 'We are not replenishing our ranks... It is not a crisis, but
I consider it to be important.' Despite Wikipedia's wide-reaching
popularity, Wales said the typical profile of a contributor is 'a
26-year-old geeky male' who moves on to other ventures, gets married and
leaves the website."
Discuss this story at:
https://news.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1621200/Wikipedia-Losing-Contributors-Says-Wales?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=138983240
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Saving Gas Via Underpowered Death Traps
| from the wait-until-you-see-my-steel-plated-prius dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @17:47 (Transportation)
| with 398 comments
| https://science.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/2059256/Saving-Gas-Via-Underpowered-Death-Traps?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Harperdog writes with this excerpt from a story at Miller-McCune: "Yes,
it's true that the fuel-economy standards the U.S. has been using cost
lives. Economist Mark Jacobson has estimated that for every
mile-per-gallon we raise the standards, [0]149 traffic fatalities occur
per year. That would mean 1,490 deaths if the standards were raised from,
say, 30 miles-per-gallon to 40. But this doesn't have to be the case.
It's possible, Jacobson has concluded, to increase fuel efficiency
without also decreasing safety. And if government officials are smart,
they'll tailor the regulations behind the new standards to do this."
Discuss this story at:
https://science.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/2059256/Saving-Gas-Via-Underpowered-Death-Traps?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://www.miller-mccune.com/business-economics/saving-gas-via-underpowered-death-traps-34722/
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Online Parody Cartoon Targeted For Prosecution
| from the what-renton-might-need-is-some-attention dept.
| posted by timothy on Thursday August 04, @20:20 (Censorship)
| with 295 comments
| https://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/08/04/2354245/Online-Parody-Cartoon-Targeted-For-Prosecution?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SeattleGameboy writes "It seems that the Renton (suburb of Seattle)
police need a remedial course on the U.S. Constitution," linking to a
story at Seattle TV station KIRO which says "The Renton City Prosecutor
[0]wants to send a cartoonist to jail for mocking the police department
in a series of animated Internet videos. The 'South-Park'-style
animations parody everything from officers having sex on duty to certain
personnel getting promoted without necessary qualifications. While the
city wants to criminalize the cartoons, First Amendment rights advocates
say the move is an 'extreme abuse of power.'"
Discuss this story at:
https://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/08/04/2354245/Online-Parody-Cartoon-Targeted-For-Prosecution?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://www.kirotv.com/investigations/28758502/detail.html
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Are 'Real Names' Policies an Abuse of Power?
| from the not-every-comment-deserves-attribution dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @14:59 (Facebook)
| with 268 comments
| https://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1836214/Are-Real-Names-Policies-an-Abuse-of-Power?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[0]telekon writes "Microsoft researcher Danah Boyd argues in this article
that 'The people who [1]most heavily rely on pseudonyms in online spaces
are those who are most marginalized by systems of power.' This comes in
the wake of criticism aimed at [2]Facebook and [3]Google for their stance
on anonymity and pseudonymity. A related article from the Atlantic
discusses [4]how revolutionary the real name requirement really is."
Discuss this story at:
https://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1836214/Are-Real-Names-Policies-an-Abuse-of-Power?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. mailto:canweriotnow@gma%5B%5Dcom%5B'il.'ingap%5D
1. http://www.zephoria.org/thoughts/archives/2011/08/04/real-names.html
2. http://slashdot.org/story/11/08/03/0523211/Facebook-Exec-Online-Anonymity-Must-Go-Away
3. http://it.slashdot.org/story/11/07/27/1246200/Security-Expert-Slams-Google-Pseudonym-Policy
4. http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2011/08/why-facebook-and-googles-concept-of-real-names-is-revolutionary/243171/
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| What Today's Coders Don't Know and Why It Matters
| from the we'll-just-test-on-production dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @18:26 (Programming)
| with 215 comments
| https://developers.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/2111243/What-Todays-Coders-Dont-Know-and-Why-It-Matters?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[0]jfruhlinger writes "Today's programmers have much more advanced
languages and more forgiving hardware to play with ��� but it seems [1]many
have forgotten some of the lessons their predecessors picked up in a more
resource-constrained era. Newer programmers are less adept at identifying
hardware constraints and errors, developing thorough specifications
before coding, and low-level skills like programming in assembly
language. You never know when a seemingly obsolete skill will come in
handy. For instance, Web developers who cut their teeth in the days of
14.4 Kbps modems have a leg up in writing apps for laggy wireless
networks."
Discuss this story at:
https://developers.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/2111243/What-Todays-Coders-Dont-Know-and-Why-It-Matters?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://joshreads.com/
1. http://www.itworld.com/print/190213
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Internet Eats Into Time-Warner Cable Porn Profits
| from the internet-is-for-porn dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @09:32 (Businesses)
| with 209 comments
| https://news.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1217200/Internet-Eats-Into-Time-Warner-Cable-Porn-Profits?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[0]Hugh Pickens writes "Big cable companies like Comcast and Time Warner
Cable keep saying they don't see Web video cutting into their business,
but there's at least one big, dirty exception. Time Warner Cable said in
its quarterly earnings report that its video-on-demand (VOD) business
dropped significantly in the last quarter. Asked to explain where the
drop came from, CEO Glenn Britt came clean, more or less: much of the
drop is because, instead of renting a porn video in HD for $9.98, [1]Time
Warner's customers are getting their porn fix on the internet for free.
'One of the things going on with VOD is that there's been fairly steady
trends over some time period now for adult to go down, largely because
there's that kind of material available on the Internet for free,' says
Britt. 'And that's pretty high margin.' To be fair, drooping porn rentals
don't account for all of Time Warner Cable's VOD decline. Chief Financial
Officer Rob Marcus said that while '[2]the biggest piece of the
year-over-year decline was in fact in the adult category,' the rest of
the drop is because there weren't many big pay-per-view events like
boxing matches last quarter, and because regular movie rentals are down,
too."
Discuss this story at:
https://news.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1217200/Internet-Eats-Into-Time-Warner-Cable-Porn-Profits?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://hughpickens.com/slashdot/
1. http://allthingsd.com/20110729/time-warner-cables-porn-problem-it-isnt-selling-enough-porn/
2. http://seekingalpha.com/article/282653-time-warner-cable-management-discusses-q2-2011-results-earnings-call-transcript?part=qanda
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Do Macs Have an Edge Against APTs?
| from the not-the-debian-variety-of-apt dept.
| posted by timothy on Thursday August 04, @20:58 (China)
| with 195 comments
| https://apple.slashdot.org/story/11/08/04/2315236/Do-Macs-Have-an-Edge-Against-APTs?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[0]itwbennett writes "Macs aren't being hit with advanced persistent
threat (APT) attacks, but that doesn't mean they're invulnerable, say
researchers at iSec Partners. Speaking at the Black Hat conference in Las
Vegas Wednesday, iSec founder Alex Stamos and his team of researchers
took a look at the typical stages of an APT attack ��� and compared how the
Mac would do versus Windows 7. Their conclusion: Macs provide good
protection against the initial phases of the attack, but once the bad
guys are on the network, it's a whole different story. 'They're pretty
good for [protecting from] remote exploitation,' Stamos said. '[But]
[1]once you install OS X server you're toast.'"
Discuss this story at:
https://apple.slashdot.org/story/11/08/04/2315236/Do-Macs-Have-an-Edge-Against-APTs?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://www.itworld.com/
1. http://www.itworld.com/it-managementstrategy/189719/does-mac-have-edge-against-state-sponsored-hacking
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Early Look At <em>The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim</em>
| from the potions-that-destroy-your-soul dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @06:26 (Role Playing (Games))
| with 192 comments
| https://games.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/0515236/Early-Look-At-The-Elder-Scrolls-V-Skyrim?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bethesda plans to launch their newest Elder Scrolls game, Skyrim, in
November, and they've finally started to take the wraps off the game.
[0]A preview at Eurogamer provides some information about the game's
combat, the UI, and exploration of the game world. Quoting: "RPGs send
you into menus more than almost any other game genre, so it's weird that
more thought doesn't go into inventory design, but as I play around with
powers, weapons and items to lighten my load it becomes clear that Skyrim
is a welcome exception. Its nested menus are accessed almost as smoothly
as iPad page swipes, and navigating them is quick and clean. You can set
favorites, equip items to either hand, and examine things in detail. More
than once during my brief hands-on I have to rotate an object to look for
a clue to a puzzle, or read a document, and it's all done without going
to a different screen or do anything more complex than wiggling sticks
and hitting a face button. It's easy to imagine that a system like this
in Oblivion or Fallout could have shaved hours off the average player's
actual game-time. As it is, it saves valuable seconds in my hands-on, and
seconds are my currency today, so thank you to whomever at Bethesda
designed the inventory."
Discuss this story at:
https://games.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/0515236/Early-Look-At-The-Elder-Scrolls-V-Skyrim?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-08-04-the-elder-scrolls-v-skyrim-hands-on-preview
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Widespread Hijacking of Search Traffic In the US
| from the par-for-the-course dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @08:50 (Privacy)
| with 189 comments
| https://search.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1144250/Widespread-Hijacking-of-Search-Traffic-In-the-US?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[0]Peter Eckersley writes "The [1]Netalyzr research project from the ICSI
networking group has discovered that on a number of U.S. ISPs' networks,
search traffic for Bing, Yahoo! and sometimes Google is [2]being
redirected to proxy servers operated by a company called [3]Paxfire. In
addition to posing a grave privacy problem, this server impersonation is
being used to redirect certain searches away from the user's chosen
search engine and to affiliate marketing programs instead. Further
analysis is available [4]in a post at the EFF."
Discuss this story at:
https://search.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1144250/Widespread-Hijacking-of-Search-Traffic-In-the-US?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. https://www.eff.org/
1. http://netalyzr.icsi.berkeley.edu/
2. http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn20768-us-internet-providers-hijacking-users-search-queries.html
3. https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Paxfire
4. https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2011/07/widespread-search-hijacking-in-the-us
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| China's 5-Year Cyberwar Met With Western Silence
| from the we're-just-napping dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @10:56 (China)
| with 181 comments
| https://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1422254/Chinas-5-Year-Cyberwar-Met-With-Western-Silence?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[0]jfruhlinger writes "McAfee yesterday outlined what it calls
[1]Operation Shady RAT, a five-year campaign of cyberespionage launched
by a national government against international organizations and private
corporations. That government was almost certainly China's, so the
question becomes: [2]why are the Western nations silent about it? One
fact revealed by the raids is that, predictions of cyberpunk novels
nonwithstanding, private companies are still quite weak in the face of
national governments ��� and it's those national governments that must act
against such intrusions."
Discuss this story at:
https://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1422254/Chinas-5-Year-Cyberwar-Met-With-Western-Silence?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://joshreads.com/
1. http://it.slashdot.org/story/11/08/03/138231/Governments-IOC-and-UN-Hit-By-Massive-Cyber-Attack
2. http://www.itworld.com/security/190077/why-west-silent-5-year-cyberwar-launched-china
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Ask Slashdot: Overcoming Convention Hall Wi-Fi Interference?
| from the easy-enough-kill-all-the-users dept.
| posted by timothy on Friday August 05, @19:50 (Wireless Networking)
| with 155 comments
| https://ask.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/235257/Ask-Slashdot-Overcoming-Convention-Hall-Wi-Fi-Interference?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
bbowman writes "One of my job responsibilities is to set up the small
network for our company's exhibit at the trade shows we attend. The
mobile demo devices we use depend upon a reliable Wi-Fi connection to a
router I have in the exhibit. In the days leading up to the opening of
the trade show, W-iFi connections are reliable and work as expected.
However, as soon as the show opens none of our devices can reliable
maintain a Wi-Fi connection to the router. The devices we use at the
trade shows are Windows-based laptops, iPods/iPads, Android tablets, and
a variety of Wi-Fi enabled cell phones. I have tried using channels 1, 6,
and 11 (as well as the others) and used different routers (Linksys,
D-Link, Netgear) without success. I'm sure it is likely that there are
poorly insulated electrical cabling, fluorescent lighting, and other
issues that would contribute to Wi-Fi interference in the convention
hall. A quick scan shows dozens and dozens of discoverable Wi-Fi networks
nearby. If I take the router back to my hotel room, I have zero
connection problems. How can I overcome this so that Wi-Fi works reliably
in the convention hall?"
Discuss this story at:
https://ask.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/235257/Ask-Slashdot-Overcoming-Convention-Hall-Wi-Fi-Interference?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Google's Self Driving Car Crashes
| from the had-to-happen-one-day dept.
| posted by timothy on Friday August 05, @19:02 (Google)
| with 149 comments
| https://tech.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/2250249/Googles-Self-Driving-Car-Crashes?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[0]datapharmer writes "We've all read previous stories on slashdot about
[1]Google's driverless car, and some have even pondered if [2]a crash
would bring the end to robotic cars. For better or for worse, we will all
find out soon, as [3]the inevitable [4]has occurred. The question
remains, who is to blame. A Google spokesperson told [5]Business Insider
that 'Safety is our top priority. One of our goals is to prevent
fender-benders like this one, which occurred while a person was manually
driving the car.'"
Discuss this story at:
https://tech.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/2250249/Googles-Self-Driving-Car-Crashes?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://www.gainesvillecomputer.com/
1. http://tech.slashdot.org/story/11/03/04/2229242/Google-Cars-Drive-Themselves-In-Traffic
2. http://tech.slashdot.org/story/11/04/02/1529237/Googles-Driverless-Car-and-the-Logic-of-Safety
3. http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-20088751-71/googles-self-driving-wreck-really-human-error/
4. http://jalopnik.com/5828101/
5. http://www.businessinsider.com/googles-self-driving-cars-get-in-their-first-accident-2011-8
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Why Some People Don't Have Fingerprints
| from the are-they-diabolical-masterminds dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @14:01 (Medicine)
| with 136 comments
| https://science.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1722231/Why-Some-People-Dont-Have-Fingerprints?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
sciencehabit writes "A small number of people in the world don't have
fingerprints. The condition is known as adermatoglyphia, and one
scientist has dubbed it the 'immigration delay disease' because sufferers
have such a hard time entering foreign countries. In addition to smooth
fingertips, they also produce less hand sweat than the average person.
Now researchers have [0]identified the genetic mutation behind the
condition ([1]abstract)."
Discuss this story at:
https://science.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1722231/Why-Some-People-Dont-Have-Fingerprints?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2011/08/the-mystery-of-the-missing-fingerprints.html?ref=hp
1. http://www.cell.com/AJHG/abstract/S0002-9297(11)00298-9
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Bethesda Tells <em>Minecraft</em> Creator: Cease and Desist
| from the lawyers-being-lawyers dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @18:05 (The Courts)
| with 129 comments
| https://games.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/2123244/Bethesda-Tells-Minecraft-Creator-Cease-and-Desist?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
dotarray writes with news that Notch, creator of Minecraft, has received
[0]a letter from Zenimax, parent company of Bethesda, [1]demanding that
he rename his company's new game, which is called Scrolls. They claim it
bears too strong a resemblance to The Elder Scrolls. Notch said: "First
of all, I love Bethesda. I assume this nonsense is partly just their
lawyers being lawyers, and a result of trademark law being the way it is.
... I agree that the word 'Scrolls' is part of that trademark, but as a
gamer, I have never ever considered that series of (very good) role
playing games to be about scrolls in any way, nor was that ever the focal
point of neither their marketing nor the public image. The implication
that you could own the right to all individual words within a trademark
is also a bit scary. We looked things up and realized they didn���t have
much of a case, but we still took it seriously. Nothing about Scrolls is
meant to in any way derive from or allude to their games."
Discuss this story at:
https://games.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/2123244/Bethesda-Tells-Minecraft-Creator-Cease-and-Desist?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://twitpic.com/61cckm/full
1. http://notch.tumblr.com/post/8519901309/bethesda-are-suing-us-heres-the-full-story
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| First PS3 Jailbreaker Arrested In South Africa
| from the how-quaintly-soviet-of-them dept.
| posted by timothy on Thursday August 04, @23:28 (Crime)
| with 116 comments
| https://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/005204/First-PS3-Jailbreaker-Arrested-In-South-Africa?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[0]GusGous writes "South African newspaper Beeld reports that the first
person known to be [1]arrested for jailbreaking the Playstation 3 was
arrested in Parktown, Johannesburg today. This raid was conducted by the
South African Police Service's Commercial Crime Unit, after receiving
criminal complaints from the South African Federation Against Copyright
Theft (SAFACT). Members of the police were assisted by the South African
Revenue Service (SARS) Computer Forensics Lab. The police confiscated
goods of around R100 000 (14000 USD)." See also this [2]story in
Afrikaans; [3]Google translation.
Discuss this story at:
https://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/005204/First-PS3-Jailbreaker-Arrested-In-South-Africa?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. mailto:agsgous@gmail.com
1. http://techsmart.co.za/features/news/1st_local_PS3_jailbreak_raid_and_arrest.html
2. http://www.beeld.com/Suid-Afrika/Nuus/1ste-Jailbreaker-ter-wereld-in-SA-gearresteer-20110803
3. http://translate.google.com/translate?js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&sl=af&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.beeld.com%2FSuid-Afrika%2FNuus%2F1ste-Jailbreaker-ter-wereld-in-SA-gearresteer-20110803
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Belarus Cracks Down On VKontakte
| from the nice-firm-clapping dept.
| posted by timothy on Friday August 05, @02:24 (Censorship)
| with 103 comments
| https://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/0155204/Belarus-Cracks-Down-On-VKontakte?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[0]decora writes "On several recent [1]Wednesdays, Russian language
social networking site [2]Vkontakte has been blocked by the government of
Belarus. The blocks are partly to prevent the organization of 'Silent
Protests,' in which citizens [3]gather in city squares, and clap in
protest against president Alexander Lukashenko. The government has
designated the people involved as [4]"social network revolutionaries" and
charged many with disorderly conduct. One VKontakte user, Mikhail
Karatkevich, is to be put on trial [5]August 10 for [6]'organizing a mass
rally' after he posted a meeting notice onto his page. According to
[7]Charter 97, the regime has even set up fake proxy servers to capture
the unwitting; [8]Tor is the suggested solution."
Discuss this story at:
https://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/0155204/Belarus-Cracks-Down-On-VKontakte?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. mailto:decorat@mail.com
1. http://charter97.org/en/news/2011/7/20/40783/
2. http://vkontakte.ru/help.php?page=about
3. http://humanrightshouse.org/Articles/16677.html
4. http://pyx.by/eng/news/belarus/857/
5. http://charter97.org/en/news/2011/8/4/41254/
6. http://charter97.org/en/news/2011/8/4/41232/
7. http://charter97.org/en/news/2011/7/27/40998/
8. https://www.torproject.org/
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Spam King Wallace Indicted For Facebook Spam
| from the that's-guilty!-guilty!-guilty! dept.
| posted by timothy on Friday August 05, @08:09 (Facebook)
| with 91 comments
| https://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/020222/Spam-King-Wallace-Indicted-For-Facebook-Spam?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[0]itwbennett writes "Notorious spam king [1]Sanford Wallace is facing
federal fraud charges for allegedly breaking into the Facebook accounts
of 500,000 victims in 2008 and 2009 and using the stolen credentials to
post 27 million spam messages. The charges are outlined in an indictment,
filed July 6 but made public Thursday after Wallace turned himself in to
federal authorities. If convicted, Wallace could get more than 16 years
in prison."
Discuss this story at:
https://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/020222/Spam-King-Wallace-Indicted-For-Facebook-Spam?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://www.itworld.com/
1. http://www.itworld.com/security/190331/spam-king-sanford-wallace-indicted-facebook-spam
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Hundreds of Bank Account Details Left In London Pub
| from the when-found-they-were-mumbling-and-bleary dept.
| posted by timothy on Friday August 05, @05:18 (Privacy)
| with 85 comments
| https://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/0012209/Hundreds-of-Bank-Account-Details-Left-In-London-Pub?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[0]twoheadedboy writes "Another day, yet another data security failure.
Two companies have been found in breach of the Data Protection Act after
[1]tens of thousands of tenants' details were left at a London pub,
alongside 800 records with bank account details. A contractor who had
stored data from two different companies on an unencrypted USB drive was
responsible. We've all lost things on a night out, but rarely is it other
people's banking information. The two firms involved have been told to
get a grip on their security procedures, but they escaped a fine from the
ICO."
Discuss this story at:
https://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/0012209/Hundreds-of-Bank-Account-Details-Left-In-London-Pub?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://www.itpro.co.uk/
1. http://www.itpro.co.uk/635422/hundreds-of-bank-account-details-left-at-london-pub
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Google Developing Master API — Web Intents
| from the one-api-to-rule-them-all dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @10:15 (Google)
| with 83 comments
| https://tech.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1331210/Google-Developing-Master-API-mdash-Web-Intents?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[0]GeneralSecretary writes "Google is developing an API to allow web apps
to easily share information with various services. Quoting: 'Android OS
addresses this problem with Intents, a facility for late run-time binding
between components in the same or different applications. In the Intents
system, the client application requests a generic action, e.g. share, and
specifies the data to pass to the selected service application. The user
is given a list of applications which have registered that they can
handle the requested intent. The user-selected application is created in
a new context and passed the data sent from the client, the format of
which is predefined for each specific intent type. We are hard at work
[1]designing an analogous system for the web: Web Intents. This web
platform API will provide the same benefits of Android Intents, but
better suited for web application. ... As with Android, Web Intents
documents an initial set of intent actions (edit, view, share, etc.) that
likely cover the majority of use cases on the web today; however, as the
web grows and sites provide more functionality, new intent actions will
be added by services that document these intents, some more popular than
others. To foster development and use of intents, we plan to create a
site to browse existing intents and add new intents.'"
Discuss this story at:
https://tech.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1331210/Google-Developing-Master-API-mdash-Web-Intents?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://adamrich.info/
1. http://blog.chromium.org/2011/08/connecting-web-apps-with-web-intents.html
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Court: Domain Seizures Don't Violate Free Speech
| from the that-was-fast dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @16:21 (United States)
| with 83 comments
| https://news.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1936201/Court-Domain-Seizures-Dont-Violate-Free-Speech?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Since last year we've been following the story of how [0]domains are
being seized by the U.S. government for allegedly facilitating online
piracy. The seizures received a [1]legal challenge back in June from the
owners of one such site, and now [2]a U.S. federal court has returned a
ruling in the matter: "District Court Judge Paul Crotty decided to deny
Puerto 80's request, which means the domain will remain in the hands of
the U.S. Government. The Judge argues that seizing Rojadirecta's .com and
.org domains does not violate the First Amendment of the Constitution.
'Puerto 80's First Amendment argument fails,' the Judge writes. 'Puerto
80 alleges that, in seizing the domain names, the Government has
suppressed the content in the "forums" on its websites, which may be
accessed by clicking a link in the upper left of the home page. The main
purpose of the Rojadirecta websites, however, is to catalog links to the
copyrighted athletic events ��� any argument to the contrary is clearly
disingenuous.' The judge further ruled that the claimed 32% decline in
traffic and the subsequent harm to Puerto 80s business is not an issue as
visitors can still access the site through foreign domains. Puerto 80's
argument, that users may not be aware of these alternatives, was simply
waived."
Discuss this story at:
https://news.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1936201/Court-Domain-Seizures-Dont-Violate-Free-Speech?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://yro.slashdot.org/story/10/11/27/1910232/DHS-Seizes-75-Domain-Names
1. http://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/06/13/218206/First-Challenge-To-US-Domain-Seizures-Filed
2. http://torrentfreak.com/domain-seizures-does-not-violate-free-speech-110805/
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Mozilla's Vision of an 'Internet Life' Platform
| from the wrapping-people-in-data dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @17:03 (Mozilla)
| with 69 comments
| https://news.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/2018238/Mozillas-Vision-of-an-Internet-Life-Platform?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
An anonymous reader writes "Mozilla chairperson Mitchell Baker has been
saying the company may be changing and thinking beyond Firefox in the
future. Her ideas have become clearer: [0]she is formulating an 'Internet
Life' platform (not based on Gecko) that would enable users to manage
their identity on web. Mozilla believes this could be a way for the
company reach new users. She wrote, 'Windows is a locked down operating
system compared to Linux. One is proprietary, one is free software. In
the early days some Mozilla contributors urged that we should care only
about Linux. They felt our mission would be better served by limiting our
offering to platforms that align well with the Mozilla mission. We choose
a different path. We chose to take our values to where people live.
People were living on Windows, so we went there. We made it easy for
people to switch from Windows to Linux by providing key functionality
across platforms. If we hadn���t, the web would be a very sorry place
today. We should bring Mozilla values to where people are living today.
We should do so at multiple layers of Internet life.'"
Discuss this story at:
https://news.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/2018238/Mozillas-Vision-of-an-Internet-Life-Platform?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://blog.lizardwrangler.com/2011/08/04/extending-our-reach-many-layers-of-user-sovereignty/
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Probing Insulin Pumps For Vulnerabilities
| from the panic-versus-sanity dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @11:37 (Medicine)
| with 64 comments
| https://tech.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1514210/Probing-Insulin-Pumps-For-Vulnerabilities?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Several readers have sent in news of a presentation at the Black Hat
security conference from a diabetic security researcher, [0]Jerome
Radcliffe, who is looking into the security of automated insulin pumps.
While most of the headlines are sensationalist, referencing "lethal
attacks from a half-mile away," Scott Hanselman [1]breaks down the media
reports and weeds out the inaccuracies, explaining that while this is a
valid area of concern, diabetics don't need to cover themselves in
tinfoil just yet. "Just to be clear, Jerome has not yet successfully
wirelessly hacked an insulin pump. He's made initial steps to sniff
wireless traffic from the pump. I realize, as I hope you do, that his
abstract isn't complete. Hopefully a more complete presentation is
forthcoming. I suspect he's exploiting the remote control feature of a
pump. ... What Jerome has done, however, is posed a valid question and
opened a door that all techie diabetics knew was open. It is however, an
obvious question for any connected device. Anyone who has ever seen
OnStar start a car remotely knows that there's a possibility that a bad
guy could do the same thing."
Discuss this story at:
https://tech.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1514210/Probing-Insulin-Pumps-For-Vulnerabilities?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://blackhat.com/html/bh-us-11/bh-us-11-briefings.html#Radcliffe
1. http://www.hanselman.com/blog/HackersCanKillDiabeticsWithInsulinPumpsFromAHalfMileAwayUmNoFactsVsJournalisticFearMongering.aspx
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Measuring Openness In Open Source Projects
| from the get-your-tape-measure dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @12:16 (Open Source)
| with 64 comments
| https://news.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1538239/Measuring-Openness-In-Open-Source-Projects?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[0]suy writes "Several open source projects exist under a variety of
licenses, and we qualify them as free/open source depending on the
license under which the final product is released. But there are other
considerations, like the existence of a public roadmap, participation in
the decision making, or access to the latest source code to make
contributions. Vision Mobile has published a report that [1]compares and
measures the openness of several open source projects: Android, Eclipse,
Linux, MeeGo, Mozilla, Qt, Symbian (till the existence of the Foundation)
and WebKit. Eclipse and Linux scored the highest and Android the lowest."
A related article about the report asks [2]whether open source needs
corporate backing to truly succeed.
Discuss this story at:
https://news.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1538239/Measuring-Openness-In-Open-Source-Projects?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://barnacity.net/
1. http://www.visionmobile.com/blog/2011/07/the-open-governance-index-measuring-openness-from-android-to-webkit/
2. http://www.pcpro.co.uk/features/369145/does-open-source-need-corporate-backing-to-succeed
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Update Brings Android USB Mounting To Chromebooks
| from the now-merge-them-even-harder dept.
| posted by timothy on Thursday August 04, @22:02 (Android)
| with 42 comments
| https://mobile.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/0143223/Update-Brings-Android-USB-Mounting-To-Chromebooks?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
sfcrazy writes "Google has [0]updated its stable channel for Chromebooks
(Acer AC700, Samsung Series 5, and Cr-48). The latest version of Google
chrome running on these devices is Chrome 13. The feature has added
Google Cloud Print settings to Settings > Under the Hood. It now allows
auto-connect using 3G, remove/forget added VPN connections and 802.1x
support. The update brings the most needed feature ��� USB mounting of
Android."
Discuss this story at:
https://mobile.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/0143223/Update-Brings-Android-USB-Mounting-To-Chromebooks?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://googlechromereleases.blogspot.com/2011/08/stable-channel-updates-for-chromebooks.html
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| DOE Announces Philips As L Prize Winner
| from the bright-ideas dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @17:26 (Technology)
| with 42 comments
| https://tech.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/2056227/DOE-Announces-Philips-As-L-Prize-Winner?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
JStyle writes "The DOE has [0]officially announced a winner of the L
Prize, giving the award to Philips in the [1]60W Incandescent Bulb
replacement category. The goal of the L Prize competition is to 'develop
high-quality, high-efficiency solid-state lighting products to replace
the common light bulb.' Philips' LED light bulb won using less than 10W
of power while claiming a life of greater than 25,000 hours. The light
bulb is set to go on sale as early as spring of 2012."
Discuss this story at:
https://tech.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/2056227/DOE-Announces-Philips-As-L-Prize-Winner?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://www.lightingprize.org/philips-winner.stm
1. http://www.lightingprize.org/overview_60watt.stm
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Sony Wins 'Epic Fail' Honors At Pwnie Awards
| from the reasonable-chance-of-defending-their-title-too dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @15:21 (Sony)
| with 40 comments
| https://entertainment.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1848235/Sony-Wins-Epic-Fail-Honors-At-Pwnie-Awards?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
hypnosec writes "Hackers' favorite recent target, Sony, has [0]won an
award at the Black Hat conference held in Las Vegas this week. However,
much to the embarrassment of the company, the award it nailed was [1]in
the category of 'Epic Fail' of the year. The [2]Pwnie awards, which are
like Oscar equivalents in the hacker community, gave this 'honor' to Sony
following the [3]series of cyberattacks it was subjected to a few months
back, which saw the company's PlayStation and PC gaming networks go down,
as well as many other services suffering heavily."
Discuss this story at:
https://entertainment.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1848235/Sony-Wins-Epic-Fail-Honors-At-Pwnie-Awards?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://edition.cnn.com/2011/TECH/web/08/04/pwnie.awards.hacking/
1. http://www.itproportal.com/2011/08/05/sony-crowned-epic-fail-at-pwnie-awards/#ixzz1UAEksyRC
2. http://pwnies.com/winners/
3. http://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/04/27/142238/77-Million-Accounts-Stolen-From-Playstation-Network
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| The History of Invisible Ink
| from the lightbulbs-and-cabbage-juice dept.
| posted by samzenpus on Friday August 05, @15:38 (Security)
| with 37 comments
| https://science.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1239233/The-History-of-Invisible-Ink?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As a kid I had a minor obsession with invisible ink after learning about
it in a science club. An impressive stack of vinegar and lemon scented
papers filled my desk, but [0]the history of invisible ink is much more
interesting than a summer enrichment program. Starting with the Roman
general Pliny the Elder using milk from the thithymallus plant, to modern
inks which are only visible under UV light, the science of invisible ink
has grown quite complex. Some of the oldest CIA documents contain
[1]recipes for special inks, and [2]MI6 and their very own "adult"
mixture during WW1.
Discuss this story at:
https://science.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1239233/The-History-of-Invisible-Ink?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://io9.com/5827076/the-sordid-secrets-of-invisible-ink
1. http://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/04/20/1531228/CIA-Declassifies-Pages-From-Their-Cookbook
2. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/8015180/MI6-used-bodily-fluids-as-invisible-ink.html
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| NASA's Juno Blasts Off To Investigate Jupiter
| from the already-looking-forward-to-the-pretty-pictures dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @13:40 (NASA)
| with 33 comments
| https://science.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1710252/NASAs-Juno-Blasts-Off-To-Investigate-Jupiter?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[0]coondoggie writes "NASA [1]shot its 4-ton Juno spacecraft into the
cosmos today with the ultimate goal of learning everything we can about
the largest planet in our solar system, Jupiter. Juno, once described as
a flying armored tank, will take five years to reach its destination,
slated to arrive at Jupiter in August 2016." NASA has an explanation of
the steps involved in [2]getting Juno through the launch, and an animated
film [3]explaining the mission. The [4]mission website has streaming
video of Juno's progress, and NASA's press kit [5]explains the goals and
the spacecraft in detail (PDF).
Discuss this story at:
https://science.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1710252/NASAs-Juno-Blasts-Off-To-Investigate-Jupiter?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://networkworld.com/
1. http://www.networkworld.com/community/blog/nasa%E2%80%99s-juno-spacecraft-blasts-investigate-jup
2. http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/juno/news/juno20110804.html
3. http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/videogallery/index.html?media_id=104732731
4. http://missionjuno.swri.edu/
5. http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/press_kits/JunoLaunch.pdf
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Video Game-Like Programs Could Treat Schizophrenia
| from the leveling-up-your-sanity-skill dept.
| posted by Soulskill on Friday August 05, @16:33 (Medicine)
| with 24 comments
| https://games.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/2029201/Video-Game-Like-Programs-Could-Treat-Schizophrenia?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
derGoldstein writes "Discovery is pointing to an ongoing study by Sophia
Vinogradov, professor of psychiatry at UC-San Francisco, who is 'trying
to determine whether computer-based cognitive remediation, a type of
[0]brain training through video game-like programs, is effective for
treating schizophrenia. ... In a handful of blinded and randomized trials
with computer-based training, Vinogradov has reported cognitive
improvements for both recently diagnosed patients and those living with
the disorder for several years. So far, treatment ��� such as 50 hours of
training over a 10-week period ��� has shown great promise for patients
when compared to control groups.'"
Discuss this story at:
https://games.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/2029201/Video-Game-Like-Programs-Could-Treat-Schizophrenia?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://news.discovery.com/human/video-games-schizophrenia-110804.html
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Book Review: Build Mobile Websites and Apps For Smart Devices
| from the read-all-about-it dept.
| posted by samzenpus on Friday August 05, @14:20 (Book Reviews)
| with 18 comments
| https://books.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1132231/Book-Review-Build-Mobile-Websites-and-Apps-For-Smart-Devices?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[0]Michael J. Ross writes "With the proliferation of handheld devices
that allow access to the Web, more business owners and other technology
decision-makers are demanding that their organizations' websites be fully
accessible on those devices, and even be repackaged as new web-based
applications. But designers and developers who may be quite proficient in
making non-mobile websites and web apps, can feel uncertain as to how to
craft those products, or even where to start the process of learning how
to do so. Recently, several books have been published to address this
need, including Build Mobile Websites and Apps for Smart Devices,
authored by Earle Castledine, Myles Eftos, and Max Wheeler." Read on for
the rest of Michael's review
This story continues at:
https://books.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1132231/Book-Review-Build-Mobile-Websites-and-Apps-For-Smart-Devices?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
Discuss this story at:
https://books.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/1132231/Book-Review-Build-Mobile-Websites-and-Apps-For-Smart-Devices?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://www.ross.ws/
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Twitter To Open Source Streaming Data Analyzer
| from the right-sporting dept.
| posted by timothy on Friday August 05, @19:23 (Open Source)
| with 4 comments
| https://developers.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/2256224/Twitter-To-Open-Source-Streaming-Data-Analyzer?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
splitenz writes "Expanding the field of complex event process software
with another offering, Twitter will release as open source its
[0]software for analysing live large-scale data streams, called Storm.
Although the software has been compared to Hadoop, Storm is best suited
for analysing live data streams, such as millions of Twitter feeds."
Discuss this story at:
https://developers.slashdot.org/story/11/08/05/2256224/Twitter-To-Open-Source-Streaming-Data-Analyzer?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email#commentlisting
Links:
0. http://www.arnnet.com.au/article/396234/twitter_open_source_streaming_data_analyzer
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