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Slashback: Mutuality, Transport, Spyware

Slashback with more unintentionally odd clip art in Microsoft work for fire, Las Vegas monorail progress, the resolution of SonicBlue and TiVo's legal dispute, and more. Read on for the details.

Well, while we were switching things around here at the ad agency ... An anonymous reader writes "While looking around on Microsoft's site checking out the new Tablet PCs I noticed something very out of Place. In one of their Flash Demos for the Tablet PC there is an Apple Powerbook 1400! To see it for yourself, the flash is located here (then "Tablet PC Overview Demo," then "Tablet PC," then "Powerful") The first computer is really that Powerbook! Pic here."

What about to the legal brothels? Sacarino writes "Back in April, Slashdot ran a story about the Monorail project Las Vegas was embarking upon. It would appear that things are progressing nicely. "It's ugly" critics will be put to shame, the designers did a great job of making it non-obtrusive. (if that's possible in Vegas) Soon you too will pile off the airplane, trudge onto the monorail, then run into the casino to spend that money....ahh, Vegas."

Out of court, out of mind. Enry writes "SONICblue and TiVo have dropped the patent infringement lawsuits they filed against each other. The press release reads: "We believe our energies are better spent expanding the market for Digital Video Recorders (DVRs) rather than fighting each other. Both sides believe in the merits of their respective positions, but the overall success of the DVR category is what is most important to the companies at this time." Take that, AdAge!"

Sounds like a nice way to watch movies. For those intrigued by a 640x480, QWERTY-keyboard color, clamshell-case PDA as embodied by the Zaurus 5600, patrickoehlinger writes "Just found news and pictures about the new Sharp Zaurus SL-C700 released in Japan. With a 640 x 480 pixel display, a small design and a great keyboard! Golem.de has a article with pictures, but it's in German."

Would the BBC spy on you? An anonymous reader writes "The previous discussion on RedSheriff on slashdot was extremely confusing as well as mostly off-topic. The fact is, the BBC is downloading spyware to your machine when you surf their site. Very disappointing and surprising. I suggest e-mailing them to let them know what you think. The problem and remedies are covered in Google groups: "

264 comments

  1. BBC and spyware by Slashdotess · · Score: 5, Informative

    Well, it's unfortunate but a lot more sites are doing that, as far as I can see. I always get gator popups here at sparknotes for example and it's a pain to click no all the time.

    Well, I guess my 2 cents wont get very far =/

    1. Re:BBC and spyware by cscx · · Score: 0, Offtopic

      Shouldn't you be reading the book instead of using Sparknotes?

    2. Re:BBC and spyware by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

      An extremely effective solution I've found is to set up Internet Junkbuster proxy (at http://www.junkbuster.com/ijb.html) on your own computer. On Windows systems, you can have it run as a service. Have your web browser use the proxy, and whenever you see an annoying ad, just add it to the blockfile. The proxy automatically rereads the block file if it's updated while it's running, so changes take effect immediately. Just a couple seconds ago, it blocked a potential x-10 ad :P

    3. Re:BBC and spyware by doorbot.com · · Score: 5, Informative

      If you used Mozilla on your Windows box you wouldn't have that problem... I just tried it for myself and no popups or Gator installs.

    4. Re:BBC and spyware by Moonshadow · · Score: 5, Informative
      The Proxomitron is another such solution, and offers such nifty features such as inline ad filtering/right-click unlocking/prevention of annoying javascript/anything else you can do with a regex. Definintely a recommended tool.

      Strangely enough, though, I've been using Phoenix for a while now, and have had no problem with popups. :D

    5. Re:BBC and spyware by Jucius+Maximus · · Score: 2, Interesting
      "If you used Mozilla on your Windows box you wouldn't have that problem... I just tried it for myself and no popups or Gator installs."

      Just one more reason why I use mozilla religiously and disable activeX downloads in MSIE by using X-Setup.

      Seriously, gator has gotten to epidemic levels. I'm a university student (in Canada) and I've gotten to the point where whenever I log onto a machine, I automatically fire up Ad-Aware and scrup the machine for spyware. (Every engineering student gets 500 mb to store/install whatever.) 60%+ of the time gator is running, plus there's a bunch of bonzibuddy shite. The really bad ones have cnsmin installed which is much harder to get rid of. (Ad-aware can't do it on its own.)

      The point I'm trying to make here is that it's gotten to the stage where it's "everyone for themselves." The web is the wild wild west and only those gunslingers who are the fastest and smartest remain at the top of the food chain.

    6. Re:BBC and spyware by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Junkbuster has been moribund for a long time -- the code was taken over and developed as privoxy.

    7. Re:BBC and spyware by mrbuttle · · Score: 2, Informative

      The last official release from Junkbusters Co. was in 1998. You may want to take a look at Privoxy . It's Junkbuster rebuilt, with many new features, at version 3.0 and a release date of Aug 28 2002. It's available in most of the favorite flavors

    8. Re:BBC and spyware by sahrss · · Score: 1

      Just wanted to insert a link to Webwasher, great windows ad/javascript/self-proxy program. For IE only...it's the sort of thing to use on your parent's computer, etc.

    9. Re:BBC and spyware by zandermander · · Score: 2

      Funny, I just went to the link you posted and I didn't get a pop-up.

      Oh, wait... maybe it's because I use Mozilla!

      Yeah, cheap shot but someone had to make it...

      ;-)

    10. Re:BBC and spyware by A+Rabid+Tibetan+Yak · · Score: 2, Interesting

      At the moment, I'm posting with Crazy Browser. It's free but not Open Source, and it's a small wrapper for the IE rendering engine that does tabbed browsing and popup killing all in one.

      Hope you guys find it useful :). Otherwise, I also use Phoenix, similar with Mozilla.

    11. Re:BBC and spyware by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      From the BBC Privacy statement


      RedSheriff, an independent measurement and research company, gathers non-personal data regarding the visitors to our site on our behalf using cookies and code which is embedded in the site. Both the cookies and the embedded code provide non-personal statistical information about visits to pages on the site, the duration of individual page view, paths taken by visitors through the site, data on visitors' screen settings and other general information. The BBC uses this type of information, as with that obtained from other cookies used on the site, to help it improve the services to its users.

      If you wish to reject RedSheriff's cookie, you can use the process set out below in point 7. To disable the embedded code, you will need to send requests directly to privacy@redsheriff.com. Further information regarding RedSheriff's privacy statement can be found at http://www.redsheriff.com/6.0.0.htm.


      Section 7 is the usual browser settup instructions for rejecting cookies.

    12. Re:BBC and spyware by netsharc · · Score: 1

      It's not for IE only, like the others, it acts a proxy server, if you set the proxy server settings in your browser correctly, you can use it using any browser. I used to use Webwasher, but I find Proxomitron superior to it.

      --
      What time is it/will be over there? Check with my iPhone app!
    13. Re:BBC and spyware by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      untested by me, but: Ad-Aware should be able to handle CnsMin as of reffile 042-24-09-2002. Also, SpyBot - Search & Destroy should handle it.

    14. Re:BBC and spyware by Jucius+Maximus · · Score: 1
      "untested by me, but: Ad-Aware should be able to handle CnsMin as of reffile 042-24-09-2002. Also, SpyBot - Search & Destroy [kolla.de] should handle it."

      I've tested it and it doesn't work. You have to manually castrate the DLL and THEN use ad-aware.

    15. Re:BBC and spyware by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Hmm thanks, I'll check it out. :)

  2. Monorail!? by Pean · · Score: 2, Funny

    Lyle Lanley: Well, sir, there's nothing on earth Like a genuine, Bona fide, Electrified, Six-car Monorail!
    What'd I say?
    Ned Flanders: Monorail!
    Lyle Lanley: What's it called?
    Patty+Selma: Monorail!
    Lyle Lanley: That's right! Monorail!
    Miss Hoover: I hear those things are awfully loud...
    Lyle Lanley: It glides as softly as a cloud.
    Apu: Is there a chance the track could bend?
    Lyle Lanley: Not on your life, my Hindu friend.
    Barney: What about us brain-dead slobs?
    Lyle Lanley: You'll be given cushy jobs.
    Abe: Were you sent here by the devil?
    Lyle Lanley: No, good sir, I'm on the level.
    Wiggum: The ring came off my pudding can.
    Lyle Lanley: Take my pen knife, my good man.
    I swear it's Springfield's only choice...
    Throw up your hands and raise your voice!
    All: Monorail!
    Lyle Lanley: What's it called?
    All: Monorail!
    Lyle Lanley: Once again...
    All: Monorail!
    Marge: But Main Street's still all cracked and broken...
    Bart: Sorry, Mom, the mob has spoken!
    All: Monorail!
    Monorail!
    Monorail!

    --
    ----------
    "Duffman says a lot of things, OH YEAH!" - Duffman
    1. Re:Monorail!? by unicron · · Score: 1

      I call the big one Bitey.

      --
      Finally, math books without any of that base 6 crap in them.
    2. Re:Monorail!? by Cyno01 · · Score: 4, Funny

      Mono! D'oh!

      --
      "Sic Semper Tyrannosaurus Rex."
    3. Re:Monorail!? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      yeah yeah yeah "You can get mono from riding the monorail?"
      "True!, no wait, false"
      "No, false, you were right the first time?"

    4. Re:Monorail!? by Kragg · · Score: 3, Funny

      '-1 Wanker. Too much Simpsons. It was funny now it aint.'

      On an offtopic note, how about people get to enter their own + or - reason?

      +1 just.
      -1 wrong.
      -1 quiet, the adults are talking
      +1 damn, you're famous, people need to hear you

      --
      If you can't see this, click here to enable sigs.
    5. Re:Monorail!? by c13v3rm0nk3y · · Score: 2

      You call that an anchor?

      --
      -- clvrmnky
    6. Re:Monorail!? by erik_fredricks · · Score: 0, Offtopic

      Ah, Phil Hartman, underappreciated genius. May he rest in peace. He was also (among many others) the voice of Troy McClure, who you may remember from such films as "I Was a Teenage Pr0n Junkie," "Goat.se.cx Boogie," and "Karma Whores in 3D."

      His role as Lyle Landley was classic, though. "North Haverbrook? Now where do I remember that name?"

      --

      THE GOOD HUMOR MAN CAN ONLY BE PUSHED SO FAR
      Bart Simpson on chalkboard in episode 2F18

    7. Re:Monorail!? by smegball · · Score: 1

      Mone means one. And rail means rail. And that concludes our intensive three-month training session.

  3. PowerBook: isn't it obvious? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

    They just want to make a point that what you can do with their stuff (turn screen backwards) you can't with a PowerBook!!

    1. Re:PowerBook: isn't it obvious? by ekrout · · Score: 4, Funny

      Not quite.

      The Apple PowerBook 1400 ships with a 133MHz proc., 16MB of DRAM, and a 750MB hard disk drive.

      In the Flash movie on Microsoft's site, it's shown running Windows XP, which simply wouldn't happen on a box with such meager specs.

      --

      If you celebrate Xmas, befriend me (538
    2. Re:PowerBook: isn't it obvious? by Kaz+Riprock · · Score: 2

      Maaaayyyyybe, they're just running an old version of this with this.

      Well, you never know...

      --
      Mordor...a magical, mythical land where women are more rare than dragons--but where every man would rather find a dragon
    3. Re:PowerBook: isn't it obvious? by damiam · · Score: 1

      You can with an iBook...

      --
      It's hard to be religious when certain people are never incinerated by bolts of lightning.
    4. Re:PowerBook: isn't it obvious? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      ...completely ignoring the fact that the Powerbook runs on a totally different architecture, so even if the specs were better it'd be pretty difficult to get XP onto it...

    5. Re:PowerBook: isn't it obvious? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Or maybe the Powerbook is really a PC!!

  4. detection and removal of redsherrif by axjms · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Not to sound like too much of an idiot but the newspost didn't have much in the way of detecting the spyware on my box. I suppose it is safe to assume if I have hit the BBC site lately I am "infected" but I would like to be able to remove it manually not just disable it in the firewall. Anybody willing to offer some insight on this on both win2k(work) and linux boxes?

    --
    It is not enough to succeed, others must fail. - Gore Vidal
    1. Re:detection and removal of redsherrif by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative
    2. Re:detection and removal of redsherrif by Masami+Eiri · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Ad-Aware works pretty well

    3. Re:detection and removal of redsherrif by VS1 · · Score: 4, Informative

      its a java applet, called RedSheriff. check your firewall logs. i found the google discussion group to be quite informative. and ad-aware dosnt find it, so says the googel discussion that was posted with the story.

      good luck.

      --
      "Humanize war? You might as talk about humanizing hell!" -- British Admiral Jacky Fisher
    4. Re:detection and removal of redsherrif by Letch · · Score: 1

      Redsherrif is a java applet so its loaded when you visit the webpage. Its not really, AFAIK, installed on your machine. So nothing to remove. A person on the usenet thread refrenced claims Ad-Aware doesnt spot it.

    5. Re:detection and removal of redsherrif by axjms · · Score: 1

      So now I am confused. The redsheriff privacy policy seems to indicate they just are standard cookie spyware which would seem to be no problem with adaware. But if this is java were does it reside? .... Ahhh I just read Letch's post. I understand now why adaware wouldn't detect it. I guess disabling jave in the browser will squash it then.

      --
      It is not enough to succeed, others must fail. - Gore Vidal
    6. Re:detection and removal of redsherrif by Spy+Hunter · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I don't understand what this java applet is supposed to do. Is is supposed to stay in memory and watch you as you surf other sites? I don't see how it can. Java applets embedded in web pages only run while you are at the page. There are java applications that can do more stuff, but they have to be signed and I think you need to click Yes on a security dialog. What is it that this java applet actually does?

      --
      main(c,r){for(r=32;r;) printf(++c>31?c=!r--,"\n":c<r?" ":~c&r?" `":" #");}
    7. Re:detection and removal of redsherrif by Merkins · · Score: 4, Informative
      I don't understand what this java applet is supposed to do. Is is supposed to stay in memory and watch you as you surf other sites? I don't see how it can

      It doesn't stay in memory. It just loads up on every page of the site that is using it and sends back details like referers and time spent between pages back to Red Sherrif. Red Sherrif are basically an Internet market research company.

      So, while it does track usage on the BBC site as well as any other Red Sherrif client sites, it isn't the same as something like Gator which will hang around on your PC and do other nasty stuff in the background.

      There is another company that do it (although maybe they have merged now) called IMR Worldwide.

    8. Re:detection and removal of redsherrif by Spy+Hunter · · Score: 2
      Well I don't see what the problem is then. The referrer stuff is trivial to get anyway (don't browsers send the referrer as part of every HTTP request?). The only new information Red Sherrif can gather is the time spent on the last BBC page you visit and the link you use to leave the site. This information could be gotten other ways, such as links that bounce through bbc servers (http://bbc.co.uk/leavesite.cgi?www.foosite.com), although this would be a bit slower and wouldn't work in all cases.

      I don't see what the big deal is. Just because the Internet wasn't originally designed such that sites couldn't tell how you left them doesn't make that information sacred. If Red Sherrif was tracking all of your browsing, then THAT would be a violation of privacy. If you're really THAT concerned about browsing totally anonymously, you should be using Anonymizer or even browsing Freenet or something.

      --
      main(c,r){for(r=32;r;) printf(++c>31?c=!r--,"\n":c<r?" ":~c&r?" `":" #");}
    9. Re:detection and removal of redsherrif by jon_eaves · · Score: 4, Informative
      IMR Worldwide was called Sofres IMR (and a bunch of other names I can't remember) and has changed their name to RedSheriff.

      The software used to be called WebMeasure, and now to maintain corporate branding it's "RedMeasure"

      This stuff has been around for just ages. I was part of the company that wrote this software for them originally. It has been around since 1997/98 however it's just started to be used by more people It's nothing more than a slightly sophisticated cookie, and if you don't trust my word for it, download it and decompile it.

      I just looked at the Beebs source code from their home page and it's exactly the same as it was back then.

      Anyway, here's the source code. Check for yourself. (Thanks to DJ's decompiler) It's doing nothing more than sending the duration of the time on a particular page.

      For the non-appleted amongst us, start() occurs when the page is loaded, stop() occurs when the page is left.

      Grrrrr, frigging lameness filter stopped me from posting the source. Anyway, get it from here.

    10. Re:detection and removal of redsherrif by anshil · · Score: 1

      Java applets embedded in web pages only run while you are at the page.

      Who told you that? Lesson X in java thread programming is to terminate yourself nicely if the user leaves youe side - if you do it wong YOU KEEP RUNNING!!!

      --

      --
      Karma 50, and all I got was this lousy T-Shirt.
    11. Re:detection and removal of redsherrif by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The main annoyance of RedSheriff is that the browser has to load the Java VM which takes both time and resources.

    12. Re:detection and removal of redsherrif by fistynuts · · Score: 1

      Woop-de-doo. So I get a Java applet I can't see running while I'm at the BBC website. Oh no, it can see where I came from! What, it can tell how long I spend on each page at the BBC site? Save us all from this spyware!

      Please. /Any/ website can tell what page you were viewing beforehand. Oh no, it's taking up my computer's resources! Then (a) get a better computer so you don't notice or (b) disable Java or JavaScript in your browser.

      There are infinitely more nasty things out there, how come this gets a /. mention and they don't?

      --
      "You heard the man, Tubbs.. get undressed."
    13. Re:detection and removal of redsherrif by greenrd · · Score: 2
      Well, that may or may not be true. However, the applet should be disposed and shouldn't be able to actually do anything at that stage apart from use the CPU.

  5. Monorail Gamble by greymond · · Score: 5, Funny

    I'm all for that thing - Actually I think EVERY CITY IN THE WORLD should have a monorail and then we should have monorails connected by super fast trains - then I won;t have to fly anymore. I HATE flying, not because of terrorists - I just don't have wings and don;t like being flung around in a giant metal bird.

    1. Re:Monorail Gamble by ekrout · · Score: 5, Funny

      So basically you can't stand to fly. You're not that naive, and are just out to find the better part of yourself.

      It must not be easy being you.

      --

      If you celebrate Xmas, befriend me (538
    2. Re:Monorail Gamble by BitHive · · Score: 5, Funny

      No, let's replace all public phone booths with transporter booths, that way we can go anywhere in the world for a few dollars! And then we can power our homes with fusion reactors and have picnics on the moon with Jesus!

    3. Re:Monorail Gamble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Thank you for the chuckle! You have a new friend!

      Posted anonymously to avoid the wrath of Mod.

    4. Re:Monorail Gamble by IanBevan · · Score: 1

      I don't have wheels and don't like being driven around in a small metal cabin...

    5. Re:Monorail Gamble by zulux · · Score: 2, Funny

      and have picnics on the moon with Jesus!

      And then we can all go play Duke Nukem Forever! Together!

      --

      Moneyed corporations, non-working 'poor' and criminal prisoners are turning productive citizens into tax-slaves.

    6. Re:Monorail Gamble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Any bets on what's coming out first, transporter booths or DNF?

    7. Re:Monorail Gamble by matman · · Score: 1

      Anywhere in the world? You mean anywhere in space and time. :)

    8. Re:Monorail Gamble by sissyfuss · · Score: 1

      > I just don't have wings and don;t like being flung around in a giant metal bird.

      I guess then that you do have lots of little wheels, or that you like being flung around in a giant metal tube. ;)

      "'To each her own,' said the old woman as she kissed the cow."

    9. Re:Monorail Gamble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Personal Rapid Transit doesn't require a monorail, but for travel between cities something like a "bullet train" would be faster. (Travel via PRT between cities might be possible if the cities are close enough that they've put in links between compatible PRT systems)

    10. Re:Monorail Gamble by dsr9996 · · Score: 1
      I'm more than some pretty face beside a train...

      Made me laugh, too!

      Peace,
      Devin

    11. Re:Monorail Gamble by geekoid · · Score: 2

      perhaps you should try using an airplane instead of a giant metal bird.

      FYI, they do serve alcohol on airplanes... ;)

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
    12. Re:Monorail Gamble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Alright, E r i c, your kwest for karma and /friends has gone far enough. I'm liking the puns, but theme songs? You're better than that.

    13. Re:Monorail Gamble by theCoder · · Score: 1

      Personally, my money's on the second coming :)

      --
      "Save the whales, feed the hungry, free the mallocs" -- author unknown
  6. Sharp Zaurus SL-C700 by megaversal · · Score: 1

    Does anyone know where/how to get Japanese-only products (like the lovely SL-C700) here in the States? I've seen a few places (and Googled for a few more) but I'm curious if anyone knows of a good place from experience. I'm very interested in getting the C700 (who wouldn't be!?).

    --
    Sig!
    1. Re:Sharp Zaurus SL-C700 by HamNRye · · Score: 3, Informative

      try http://dynamism.com. Not a plug! I haven't ordered from them, just browsed. Lik-Sang (http://lik-sang.com) has some other things, but tends to focus on Video Games.

    2. Re:Sharp Zaurus SL-C700 by megaversal · · Score: 1

      Great, thanks. I've only found Toyo Electronics to have a really nice selection. Dynamism looks like another website I'll be adding to my list of places to shop.

      --
      Sig!
  7. Redsheriff by dolo666 · · Score: 4, Informative

    Here is a link to Redsheriff's privacy policy, cached on google (just in case).

    1. Re:Redsheriff by dolo666 · · Score: 3, Informative

      Here is a link to the Redsherrif removal info.

  8. Homer sez... by ocie · · Score: 4, Funny

    Hello, Vegas? Give me 100 bucks on red... D'oh! All right, I'll send you a check.

    --
    JET Program: see Japan, meet intere
  9. Powermac too by Dolly_Llama · · Score: 5, Interesting

    If you can sit through the whole demo, there's a second mac. About two thirds of the way through is a PowerMac Desktop I'm gussing circa 1996. I'm no mac expert. Maybe someone else can identify the model?

    --

    Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known. -- Carl Sagan

    1. Re:Powermac too by bo0push3r · · Score: 1

      95/96 sounds about right. it's probably a performa of some type. certainly from the performa/quadra era.

    2. Re:Powermac too by BJH · · Score: 1

      Looks like a 7200 or maybe a 7600.

    3. Re:Powermac too by Dark+Lord+Seth · · Score: 4, Funny

      Well, the MS marketing department obviously has no clue what they are doing then...

      Marketing Manager: Look, give me some Microsoft notebooks and a Microsoft PC to use in our new flash on the double!
      MicroSerf: Uhm, we don't make those, we only cripple them.
      Marketing Manager: Damn it! What is the first, least expensive thing you can find?
      MicroSerf: Uhm, this company we just bought out used "Macintosh" equipment, so called "Powerbooks" as wel as some sort of desktop system...
      Marketing Manager: Excellent! We'll use those! Make sure the flash files include blue gradients.
      MicroSerf: Blue gradients?
      Marketing Manager: LOTS of blue gradients and a cheesy music that would make a Game Boy cry.
      MicroSerf: Jawohl herr oberst!
    4. Re:Powermac too by HamNRye · · Score: 2

      It is a 7600. The floppy drive is lower than the CD. With the 7200, the floppy was considered your main removable storage option.

      (The Mac in my office is a 700... No, I am not a dealer in antiquities.)

      ~Hammy

    5. Re:Powermac too by Dolly_Llama · · Score: 4, Interesting
      in all likelihood MS contracts an advertising firm to create the flash demo for them. Ad firm creative directors then mine for stock art of people using computers and them photoshop XP onto the monitors. Since the stock art is created by yet more advertising types, the computers in said stock art is more likely to be macintosh than is statistically likely in a sample of office situations.

      Ahh, advertising... the festering, never healing scab on the ass of American Industry.

      --

      Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known. -- Carl Sagan

    6. Re:Powermac too by vladkrupin · · Score: 1

      did it occur to anyone that maybe, just maybe, they were trying to say that "Our tablet is better than this stuff". Or how about "We'll interoperate even with an old Mac, though, once you have our tablet, you won't need to keep one around".

      To show that you can put your competitors to shame you sometimes need to show them and what they do.

      --

      Jobs? Which jobs?
    7. Re:Powermac too by daddymac · · Score: 1
      "Our tablet is better than this stuff".

      Yes. Our tablet is much better than this Apple Laptop that was made 6 years ago. Microsoft Tablet thingy is the wave of the future!

      --
      If something I said can be interpreted two ways, and one of the ways makes you sad or angry, I meant the other one.
    8. Re:Powermac too by tupps · · Score: 3, Informative

      It could actually be one of the 7200/7500/7600/BeigeG3DT machines. They were all in exactly the same form factor, all with the floppy drives in the same places. See here: http://www.apple-history.com/quickgallery.html?whe re=7600.html I am not 100% sure but I would nearly say that there are no Apple desktops with the floppy drive below the CD ROM drive.

      --
      Go out and get sailing!
  10. "downloading to"? by Klerck · · Score: 3, Insightful

    "The fact is, the BBC is downloading spyware to your machine when you surf their site."

    Last I checked, the BBC would be UPLOADING software to your machine. You would be the one downloading it. God I'm sick of people misusing that word.

    1. Re:"downloading to"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      Somebody should "download" a foot to your ass in hopes of killing the bug up there. Get a fucking life.

    2. Re:"downloading to"? by elvum · · Score: 2, Funny

      hmmm... how about "off-loading"? :-)

    3. Re:"downloading to"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      FREE DAABOLL.

    4. Re:"downloading to"? by danox · · Score: 2

      or even 'shooting their load'...

      --
      "Me and my girl named bimbo . . . limbo . . . spam" - Captain Beefheart.
    5. Re:"downloading to"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Don't you mean uploading a foot?

    6. Re:"downloading to"? by Phroggy · · Score: 3, Informative

      Last I checked, the BBC would be UPLOADING software to your machine. You would be the one downloading it. God I'm sick of people misusing that word.

      Originally "download" meant transfer from a large mainframe to a small client, while "upload" meant transfer from a small client to a large mainframe - regardless of which end initiated the transfer.

      However, since a mainframe wouldn't be likely to initiate a transfer, normally downloading = receiving, and uploading = sending. These became the new meanings of the words.

      So yes, the meanings have changed, but understand that some people haven't caught on yet. Go easy on them.

      --
      $x='S24;r)>63/* h@<5+oZ)32"5cz';$me='phroggy'x$];
      $x=~y+ -xz+\0-Tx+;print$_^chop$me for split'',$x;
    7. Re:"downloading to"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      ahahaha

    8. Re:"downloading to"? by Chrisje · · Score: 1

      Yo man,

      The D00d has a point in what he is saying.

      All these clueless lusers populating internet has made it a pr0n haven, spam hell, security risk and information liability. The Geeks ought to take it back. ;-)

      As for me, my foot is receiving urgent messages from my brain: "Please insert me briskly and repeatedly up Anonymous Coward's bottom!"

      --Have a good day.

    9. Re:"downloading to"? by Huge+Pi+Removal · · Score: 2

      The misuse probably came from the same mentality which decided that 'to learn' was equivalent to 'to teach', as in "I'll learn you this".

      Aarghhhh!

      --
      - Oliver

      The right to bear arms is only slightly less stupid than the right to arm bears...
    10. Re:"downloading to"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      I just LOVE klerck's site ! Especially the "fash" section , where I learned to cut the bottom off of an old shirt to use as a hair enhancement! Oh, and the "dance party" photos !

      Of course, don't forget to read klerck's emails ! Here you will discover how truly difficult it is to decide what to do on the weekends... have a pizza party? A fash party? Go to the mall with all of your friends? Have a sleepover and call boys on the phone?

      In short, if you haven't checked out klerck's site , you don't know what you're missing!

  11. It Worked by cscx · · Score: 5, Funny

    Well, while we were switching things around here at the ad agency

    And in doing so, it got a front-page link on Slashdot, direct to the Microsoft Tablet PC demo / info page. Thanks, Slashdot!

    1. Re:It Worked by vladkrupin · · Score: 1

      even if microsoft sucks, it doesn't mean you can't link to it. It's like saying "I don't like Goodyear. So, I won't get on a bus that has Goodyear tires."

      Oh, and, just in case you missed it - a lot of microsoft hardware is actually quite decent. I do use their mouse for example.

      --

      Jobs? Which jobs?
    2. Re:It Worked by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The microsoft mouse I have is the worst piece of crap I've ever used. It's barely responsive at all.

    3. Re:It Worked by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny
      The microsoft mouse I have is the worst piece of crap I've ever used. It's barely responsive at all.

      You obviously have it connected to a Microsoft system. He said Microsoft hardware.

  12. Downloading by DarkZero · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The previous discussion on RedSheriff on slashdot was extremely confusing as well as mostly off-topic. The fact is, the BBC is downloading spyware to your machine when you surf their site. Very disappointing and surprising. I suggest e-mailing them to let them know what you think.

    I don't know about the rest of you, but I don't trust technical "facts" from people that don't know the difference between downloading and uploading. That's like hiring a plumber that asks you what room the bathroom sink is in.

    1. Re:Downloading by cpeterso · · Score: 5, Funny


      That's like hiring a plumber that asks you what room the bathroom sink is in.


      Actually, it's more like hiring a plumber who drinks from your toilet and pees in your sink.

    2. Re:Downloading by pyrrho · · Score: 2, Funny

      I think it's more like a distinction that hardly matters at all...

      --

      -pyrrho

    3. Re:Downloading by hudsonhawk · · Score: 1

      Then remind me not to wash my hands in your sink if I ever happen to come over to your house.

      Scott

    4. Re:Downloading by Narcissus · · Score: 2, Informative

      I agree, especially when the historical definition of "download" infers moving data from a large machine to a PC (despite who initiated the act). Which is exactly what is happening in this instance.

      Well, according to the Jargon file, anyway...

    5. Re:Downloading by pyrrho · · Score: 1

      very funny.

      the point, if you really missed it, is that downloading vs. uploading is NOT as significant a difference as the the one between a sink and a toilet.

      --

      -pyrrho

    6. Re:Downloading by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I didn't realize my cat was offering his services as a plumber...

    7. Re:Downloading by Khelder · · Score: 1
      As long as we're being language lawyers...

      According to modern usage, you're right that the BBC is uploading spyware to people's computers. However, historically this would have been called downloading because it's (in most cases) from big computers at BBC to small desktop computers.

      I would have said download. I guess I'm older than I thought.

  13. Las Vegas by cscx · · Score: 2, Funny

    They should have used the money to repair the potholes on Main Street.

    Don't want the prostitutes tripping and falling into holes, now do ya?

    1. Re:Las Vegas by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      prostitutes ... holes. heh heh

    2. Re:Las Vegas by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes, but one need only imagine prostitutes driving popcorn trucks to think that leaving Main St. in such bad repair wouldn't be such a bad idea.

      Swimming in buttery popcorn with hoes in the middle of a Vegas road. Now that's my kind of excitement.

    3. Re:Las Vegas by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      Don't want the prostitutes tripping and falling into holes, now do ya?

      We want the johns tripping and falling into the prostitutes' ... no, skip it ...

  14. steve balmer by thopo · · Score: 3, Funny

    seems like someone over at MS just lost his job. maybe some MS employee secretely rooting for the Apple Switch campaign.
    If Steve Balmer needs a reason to jump up and down like a crazy monkey again, here is it!

    --
    keep it simple.
    1. Re:steve balmer by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why do you people always assume that there is some sort of berlin wall separating OSes and companies? You KNOW that microsoft writes Mac software and you KNOW than Apple writes Windows software.

      Stupid marketing aside, no one at either company would "lose their jobs" because god forbid anyone strolling through the building would see a mac or windows machine at the other company.

      On /. every tiny little "slip-up" is blown out or proportion to absurd excremes. WHen to the parties involved it's nothing more than a shoulder shrug.

      Dare I say, "Get a life"?

    2. Re:steve balmer by SiO2 · · Score: 1

      During the Tablet PC Demo, did anyone notice that during the wireless demonstration you are asked to click on a checkbox that says "Allow me to connect to the selected wireless network, even though it is not secure"?

      What happened to Microsoft's much publicized security initiative? "We're concerned about the security of your data, but, here, let us help you compute insecurely."

      I hope someone else lost their job.

  15. Re:PowerBook:isn't it obvious that you're a moron? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    That's the whole point, the picture is faked. Wake up maybe.

  16. Spyware, by Openadvocate · · Score: 5, Insightful

    What bothers me most about spyware and insecure windooze programs(outlook etc) is that you can secure your PC by tweaking the right knobs, but then the time comes for that 1/2 year re-install and you have to start all over and remember what to turn off where etc.
    Installing a Windooze pc and connecting it to the internet requires so much work before you can say it's secure. And then there is all the spyware that comes with "great" shareware programs, so you really need a seperate partition to test the programs on first before installing them on your primary installation. Then you need programs like Ad-Aware and a personal firewall to keep track of programs that likes to phone home(have even seen programs with no network functionality all of the sudden wants to contact a server on the net).
    Oh, and let's not forget antivirus software etc etc.
    So I installed a Linux dist, not because I think that it's impossible to infiltrate it, but because the focus on all that Crap-ware has not yet turned too bad there and I feel more in control over what's going on under the hood. Now if only they would make the fonts look right, they are getting better, but not 100% yet.

    I thinking about those 90% of the people with a connection to the internet, who does not have any clue to what's going on. And the great concept with Windooze was that they shouldn't need to know everything about computers to use them. These days they don't, but they do get their pc 0wned in a mild way. :)

    We are beginning to see ISPs offer secure/firewalled connections to the internet. So that might be a new feature(income) for them, firewalling,spam blocking, blocking "bad" ip's. I have seen advertising for it, but I haven't looked into it.

    --
    my sig
    1. Re:Spyware, by Woodrose · · Score: 0

      You know, I generally skip past posts with the word "Windooze" in them as evidence of an insufficiently critical mind, prone to cyber theology. I read yours because there was a grain of insight in it. I'm a linux fan too, but I try not to trivialise my posts by adding insulting cliche's. The practice is self modding, and you might want to think about that.

      --

      Thou hast damnable iteration, and art indeed able to corrupt a saint - Henry IV, Act I scene II

    2. Re:Spyware, by newt_sd · · Score: 1

      I don't get this, everyone that thinks they know about computers then say windows takes weeks to secure. For the average desktop it takes like five minutes download zonealarm and config it and boom your safe unless someone kicks your front door in you retards

      --
      ***I GOT NUTHIN***
    3. Re:Spyware, by FattMattP · · Score: 2
      What bothers me most about spyware and insecure windooze programs(outlook etc) is that you can secure your PC by tweaking the right knobs, but then the time comes for that 1/2 year re-install and you have to start all over and remember what to turn off where etc.
      That's why the first thing I do after I get a Windows install just the way I want it, I boot from a linux floppy or CD and dd the whole drive, pipe to bzip2, and store it on a samba share. I can later split that file and burn it to CDs. My current install takes about three CDs.
      --
      Prevent email address forgery. Publish SPF records for y
    4. Re:Spyware, by VaNTeCH · · Score: 1

      Well at least that is one feature I like in XP. I have the facility to rollback installations of programs using their system recovery feature.

  17. RedSherriff by sulli · · Score: 5, Insightful
    From the usenet posting:

    Thanks. The spyware is called RedSheriff. It's a Java applet and its the first spyware that I've identified as running as Java.

    Step one: Unclick "Java" in Preferences

    Step two: There is no step two! There is no step two!

    --

    sulli
    RTFJ.
    1. Re:RedSherriff by azzy · · Score: 2, Funny

      Step three: Profit!!!

      profit from no spyware that is..

    2. Re:RedSherriff by MoThugz · · Score: 4, Funny

      Cool... first the BBC is downloading to my computer using some kind of unexplained supernatural forces.

      Now, I learnt that I can actually unclick Java. Cool.

      If these aren't News for Nerds... I don't know what stuff actually matters anymore.

    3. Re:RedSherriff by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      holy fucking shit stop modding these fucknuts up!

  18. Re:PowerBook:isn't it obvious that you're a moron? by cscx · · Score: 1, Troll

    Oooooh! The picture is faked?!?! Dear God!

    Anyone with half an ass for a brain knows that almost every picture of a computer with a desktop graphic is Photoshopped. What, did you actually think they took a digital picture of it?

  19. Can't read German? by saskboy · · Score: 2, Informative

    Try Babelfish for translation so you can read about PDAs. I don't use PDAs with built in keyboards, but someone else might find the article interesting.

    --
    Saskboy's blog is good. 9 out of 10 dentists agree.
  20. Does this affect us Linux users by systemapex · · Score: 1

    Since it's Java, if I'm using Mozilla, do I have to worry about this Red Sherrif spyware?

    1. Re:Does this affect us Linux users by mandos11 · · Score: 1

      It may surprise you to learn this, but Java works just fine with Mozilla, on Linux as well as Windows. As to whether it is installed or not, I guess it depends on your distribution.

  21. BBC privacy policy by elvum · · Score: 5, Informative

    The BBC mentions their use of RedSheriff in their privacy policy. RedSheriff have their own privacy policy.

    1. Re:BBC privacy policy by Topman · · Score: 1

      The BBC like most international news sites has a "Home" version ie UK biased and "International" version. Redsheriff only appears in the "International" version. As people paying the licence fee will all be in the UK the BBC would argue they are not "tracking" any "paying customers".
      To see this behaviour, try changing to and from the international versino at the bottom of the left hand nav panel.

  22. Taxies by Reality+Master+101 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Monorail from the Airport? Man, that would ROCK HARD. No having to take the shuttles with endless stops or taxis with 20 years of grime built up.

    I do feel a bit sorry for the taxi drivers: this is going to kill 80% of them. Apparently the union is not that powerful in Vegas. :) [which is yet another lesson why union's suck and why they tend to retard progress, but that's a rant for another day]

    --
    Sometimes it's best to just let stupid people be stupid.
    1. Re:Taxies by SubtleNuance · · Score: 2

      Apparently the union is not that powerful in Vegas

      Ok, Ill bite. Why would the Taxi Drivers Union be opposed to this? Wouldnt they just ask for retraining and a kind transition into Monorail-Employees?

      Unions do not retard progress. Thats an opinionated assertion... utter bollocks.

    2. Re:Taxies by Reality+Master+101 · · Score: 2

      Ok, Ill bite.

      See how this tastes...

      Why would the Taxi Drivers Union be opposed to this? Wouldnt they just ask for retraining and a kind transition into Monorail-Employees?

      Do you know you how many taxis there are in Vegas? A huge number. How many jobs do you think there are for a bunch of high-school dropout drivers? I'm sure a lot of them will apply for monorail jobs, but there's no way it would be able to accomodate all of them.

      But let's be generous and say that half of the drivers would be put out of work, and the other 30% would find monorail jobs. Do you really think a union would let that fly? It would be "hire everyone, even if they're useless, or no monorail".

      Unions do not retard progress. Thats an opinionated assertion... utter bollocks.

      OK, let's not talk theory. Let's talk reality from my own backyard.

      I have a friend who used to work for Los Angeles Unified School District, home of one of the absolute worst unions in the US -- the teacher union. She worked at an inner city magnet school, and couldn't believe how the union screwed everything. They had a third grade teacher, a few years from retirement, who would basically hand out coloring assignments every day. But they couldn't fire her -- because the union said so. No, the union was too busy making sure the principle didn't have their own parking space, because that was "discriminatory" (I swear I'm not making this up). The stories she would tell were astounding. I hope there is a special place in hell for the leaders of the teacher union.

      Or perhaps you heard of the Longshoreman's strike/lockout around here, which the harbor is basically in my line of site from my hill-side house (it was actually pretty cool seeing hundreds of ships in the harbor). A Longshoreman -- someone how moves around boxes on ships -- makes an average of $80,000 a year, and the foremans can make $167,000 (!!!).

      That is just insanity. For years the docks have wanted to automated the ports, like a lot of other ports around the country. Of course, the union opposed that -- unless their members got first choice of the jobs. Two problems with that: first, these are not college educated people. There are not going to be that many of them who are going to be able to move into higher-tech positions. Not to mention that a lot of jobs are going to be eliminated.

      But that's not even the biggest problem. The problem is that these people are insanely overpaid through years of giving in to the union. Of course, the docks want to use this opportunity to bring in fresh blood at more reasonable, market-level, rates.

      I should say that I have a longshoreman who lives down the street from me. Super-nice guy, and I really feel sorry for him. He lives in a union-supported bubble where he makes a LOT of money, and one of these days that bubble is going to burst, one way or another. More power to him to make as much money as he can, but you can only go so long when you are so far above normal supply and demand rules.

      Unions suck. I should also say that unions haven't always sucked -- there was a big purpose for them back in the 19th and early 20th centuries, but they're just not needed now. The reason is that unions are only needed when you have very little employee mobility. But in modern society with modern communication, the employees have much more power than in the past.

      --
      Sometimes it's best to just let stupid people be stupid.
  23. RedSheriff by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    So can someone please explain how RedSheriff works? Does it keep track of sites you visit while it's running, does it run in a window? What does it do, and how does it do it? The usenet discussion didn't seem to have much detail =(

  24. Offtopic, but by tulare · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    I've got karma to burn here. My question is: does anyone here happen to know where I could find a Linux/PPC implementation of Flash? Macromedia says they only support x86. TIA.

    --
    political_news.c: warning: comparison is always true due to limited range of data type
  25. Redundant Slashback? by Osty · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    Okay, so I realize that Slashback is the place to follow up on stories, but what's the follow-up on the Tivo story? How is this any different from the last story posted on this topic? Okay, so there's a press release now, but in typical press release fashion it doesn't tell us anything more than we already knew.


    If the editors can't keep from reposting stories even in Slashback, they have real problems.

    1. Re:Redundant Slashback? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The followup is that the story is the same. There will be another followup tomorrow. Pay attention.

  26. Ever waited in a Comdex taxi line, mid 1990s? by sulli · · Score: 1
    When it was faster to walk from the Convention Center to the Flamingo?

    LV taxis have had their day. I say fuck 'em. This monorail is much needed.

    --

    sulli
    RTFJ.
    1. Re:Ever waited in a Comdex taxi line, mid 1990s? by Reality+Master+101 · · Score: 2

      I pretty much skipped Comdex throughout the 90s (hotels too expensive, not enough interesting stuff, big rip-offs all around), but it was bad in the late 80s. I never took a Taxi anywhere; it was just a huge waste of time. I can only imagine that it got worse.

      --
      Sometimes it's best to just let stupid people be stupid.
  27. That's why I use Opera by RatBastard · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Since I moved to Opera I've not had to deal with any Gators or other crap like that. Opera Beta 7.0 is really nice (once you get used to it) and is worth the money, IMHO.

    With IE you really get what you pay for. Nothing.

    --
    Boobies never hurt anyone. - Sherry Glaser.
    1. Re:That's why I use Opera by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      yeah, i heard that opera 7 is out now too. it's interface needs a lot of work (i hate the new fancy look of it all, can't they use window's user controls and buttons?) but the rendering engine and feature set is really improved. can't wait till it's out of beta and i wonder if i get a discout on upgrading :) i sent in a submission to slashdot about it but i doubt they'll post it. anyone else wanna give it a try?

  28. (OT) Spark Notes by yerricde · · Score: 1

    Shouldn't you be reading the book instead of using Sparknotes?

    How about both? That's what study notes are designed for. The notes give an overview of each chapter, so that I don't get lost when reading the summary. After reading the notes, I read the chapter of the book. Then I read the commentary, which gives me a whole bunch of things to disagree with in my book report.

    --
    Will I retire or break 10K?
    1. Re:(OT) Spark Notes by cscx · · Score: 2

      It wasn't meant to come across like that, it was trying for a (+1) Funny, is what it was trying to do.

  29. 'Spyware' by r1ch · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Ok, I guess I'll probably lose a load of karma for this cos it sounds like I'm sticking up for spyware but what the hell... having looked at RedSherriff's website all this java applet really does is allow them to get around the problems that proxies and caches cause for people that want to find out how many page hits they got - is that really spyware?

    PS - sorry for not jumping on the bandwagon.

    1. Re:'Spyware' by HamNRye · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Any program that is forced upon you is spyware. If McDonald's made you fill out a questionaire as a term for buying a Big Mac, how would you react?

      I simply do not believe that any website author has the right to upload any program on my computer as a condition of viewing content. I don't care what the software does.

      That being said, it does not appear that red sherrif performs like most spyware and remains active as a service 24/7 on the resident machine. But for those of us who are security concious, and the Firewall admins out there, this is a big deal. I am an admin for a newspaper. This immediately explained the large amounts of traffic going to the IP's mentioned in the group posting.

      Like most businesses, we expense our bandwidth. Red Sherrif Traffic only accounted for .03% of traffic today, but we are also yanks, and we don't read the stinkin' beeb. (God forbid other voices were to leak through the American propaganda machine.) Over time, I might see this traffic rise up to the 1% area and would have to really start to take measures. (Infact, the .03% traffic originated from only 14 unique IP's out of ~300 for the newsroom alone.)

      Does that answer your question??

      ~Hammy
      MY Mission: To build the biggest freak list on /.

    2. Re:'Spyware' by kilonad · · Score: 1
      No. Any program that spies on you is spyware. Just because it's forced on you doesn't mean it spies on you (although that does happen to be the usual M.O. of these programs).

      When you walk into a McDonald's, you're usually asked "Do you want fries with that?" It's a profit generator, because some if not most people say yes. When you visit certain websites, a window pops up (usually) asking if you want to install their software. Just because you don't go to McDonald's 10 times a day (as you would with some websites like the BBC) doesn't mean it's not annoying.

    3. Re:'Spyware' by Planesdragon · · Score: 2

      Any program that is forced upon you is spyware.

      No, no, no-no-NO!

      Spyware, a contemporary of "adware" or "freeware" and a derivitive of "shareware", is "software that you pay for, in whole or in part, by being spied upon."

      Programs downloaded as part of a web site that spy on you can be called spyware, even though what you get is a website, not a program.

      I believe the correct word for "all programs forced on you" is "trojan." Feel free to come up with a new one if it doesn't fit, but please don't co-opt "spyware" to mean something that it doesn't.

    4. Re:'Spyware' by LordXarph · · Score: 2, Insightful
      I simply do not believe that any website author has the right to upload any program on my computer as a condition of viewing content. I don't care what the software does.

      I see your point, but there is a fault in your semantics. You act as if the IP addresses hosting the software is drawing your computer out of a hat, uploading whatever the hell they feel like, and executing it. This is wrong.

      Your browser requested the data referenced in the HTML/JavaScript of the web page that you initiated a connection to. Your browser is configured to do this. You can configure your browser not to do this. I cannot think of a single website that forces you to install anything. I can think of many that recommend installation of third party closed software to properly interpret raw data coming down the pipe, and will install it IF you have your browser configured to allow such activity.

      I do not like surreptitious installation of software or deceivingly 'free' programs. But when you get down to it, spyware plays by the rules set down by the configuration of YOUR browser.

      Do not scream and bitch about invasion of privacy because you left up the "open house" sign after moving in.

      -Lx?

    5. Re:'Spyware' by Karel+Capek · · Score: 1

      I simply do not believe that any website author has the right to upload any program on my computer as a condition of viewing content. I don't care what the software does.


      Of course he has. He can make any condition he pleases, just as McBurger may choose to make your burger purchase conditional on you handing in a filled out questionaire. It's their right to make conditions, it's your right to decline.
  30. Re:PowerBook:isn't it obvious that you're a moron? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    almost every picture of a computer with a desktop graphic is Photoshopped.

    And the rest are GIMPed, right?

  31. From the RedSheriff website.. by Angry+White+Guy · · Score: 4, Informative

    They seem to work for a lot of people...

    Founded in 1996, RedSheriff is an industry leader in interactive measurement technologies and market research. We provide specialized products and services that enable you to accurately assess your company's performance in the constantly evolving digital environment.

    RedSheriff measures in 37 countries through regional offices in Melbourne, Sydney, Auckland, Brisbane, Singapore, Tokyo, London, Copenhagen, Milan, Los Angeles, San Francisco and headquarters in New York. We also have strategic partnerships with several major industry players including the AGB Group, Taylor Nelson Sofres Gallup, and Video Research.

    Our client base includes key global players such as BT LookSmart, Excite, Excite@Home, News Interactive, F2 Interactive, Scandinavia Online, Monster.com, MTV, NineMSN.com, Virgin Direct, Virgin, Genie Internet, Asia World Online, Charles Schwab and Telstra.

    Our strategic investment partners include Deutsche European Partners, Ericsson-Deutsche Technology Fund, WPP, Australasian Media and Communication Fund, and Equity Partners.

    --
    You think that I'm crazy, you should see this guy!
  32. Zaurus pics by sakusha · · Score: 4, Informative

    Here's the home page of the new Zaurus model (Japanese only)

    http://www.sharp.co.jp/products/slc700/index.htm l

    I surfed around, looks like this unit has cool GPS maps available, that's the most interesting app I found.

  33. Sony's SL-C700 Site (Translated) by infernow · · Score: 2, Informative
    Here's Sony's site (translated from japanese) on the SL-C700:

    You'll have to click the Translate button, but hey, deal with it.

    --

    that that is is that that is not is not

    1. Re:Sony's SL-C700 Site (Translated) by questionlp · · Score: 1

      I think you meant Sharp instead of Sony :)

    2. Re:Sony's SL-C700 Site (Translated) by infernow · · Score: 1

      Hmm. I guess I do, don't I? Oh well.

      --

      that that is is that that is not is not

  34. You can reverse the screen on an apple by goombah99 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Slash dot had an article on how to reverse the screen on your apple powerbook duo. The guy used a glue gun and gave step by step instructions on turning your apple into a picture frame.

    --
    Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
  35. RedSherrif by mindstrm · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Okay.. if this spyware is a java applet.... can someone explain what the problem is? It's an applet; it should be gone when you close your browser, and not come back until you visit a site that uses it.

    The java security model should prevent an applet from spying on you.. or am I mistaken?

    1. Re:RedSherrif by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Java... and security... in the SAME sentence? No, I must just be hallucinating.

    2. Re:RedSherrif by cyril3 · · Score: 1
      Youre right. It closes down when you leave the site that is hosting it. Telstra in Australia had it for a while and I still see it at odd sites. Would you believe the host of fosi.da.ru was running it last night.

      Its easy to detect, a little icon appears in your system tray area when it starts running. The icon disappears when you leave the website so I assume that it stops running. It looks like it just tracks movement through the site rather than any awful spying of your web wide activities. Of course someone will say "thats what they want you to think" to which there is no reply.

    3. Re:RedSherrif by mandos11 · · Score: 1
      Of course someone will say "thats what they want you to think" to which there is no reply.

      Except, you can download the class file, decompile it, and see that that's all it does. As someone else has already done in another thread.

  36. Las Vegas Monorail SUCKS! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    I was in Las Vegas this past summer. Whoever designed that monorail was completely incompetent! The doors and cars were too small, so when a handicapped person (and there's a lot of those in Las Vegas) got on, attendants had to go in and move seats around. This took about 20 minutes, which is ridiculous. And then the thing starts moving, and I keep waiting for it to speed up, but it keeps plodding along at snail pace. I could have walked to the one destination stop in less time. Thanks for wasting my time, monorail designers.

    The Disney World monorail is so much better.

    1. Re:Las Vegas Monorail SUCKS! by weave · · Score: 4, Informative

      Ah, you must be talking about that toy monorail that goes between, what is it, caesars and bellagio? It actually is more like a cable car, gets pulled back and forth on a fixed cable....

    2. Re:Las Vegas Monorail SUCKS! by Dun+Malg · · Score: 4, Informative

      I was in Las Vegas this past summer. Whoever designed that monorail was completely incompetent! The doors and cars were too small, so when a handicapped person (and there's a lot of those in Las Vegas) got on, attendants had to go in and move seats around. This took about 20 minutes, which is ridiculous. And then the thing starts moving, and I keep waiting for it to speed up, but it keeps plodding along at snail pace. I could have walked to the one destination stop in less time. Thanks for wasting my time, monorail designers.

      The Disney World monorail is so much better.


      Hmmm...then you weren't on the actual monorail, but the crappy shuttle. The current monorail uses Bombardier Mark IV monorail cars that were actually acquired from Disney World.

      --
      If a job's not worth doing, it's not worth doing right.
    3. Re:Las Vegas Monorail SUCKS! by parkrrrr · · Score: 1

      The one you're thinking of goes between Monte Carlo and Bellagio. There's another one that's actually a real monorail between the MGM Grand and Bally's. Last time I looked at the proposed monorail route, it appeared that the MGM/Bally's monorail would be incorporated into the new system.

      If the new system inherits the properties of the old system, you'll be forced to walk through approximately 8.2 miles of retail space at each station to get from the monorail to the street, or vice versa. You might as well use the sidewalk.

  37. I don't know about the rest of you.... by Bobulusman · · Score: 3, Interesting

    But, per the google group discussion, is used my firewall software to block a couple of IP addresses that the java program is based off of. I just visited the BBC news site, and I'm not getting record of a block to those IPs in my firewall logs. It is possible that they already took this stuff down?

    --
    Cogito ergo sum in Slashdot.
  38. Way to go moderators! by tulare · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    So much for the community of users helping one another out. The above comment was, believe it or not, an honest request for help. You'll get yours.

    --
    political_news.c: warning: comparison is always true due to limited range of data type
  39. redsheriff and Java VM sandbox by goombah99 · · Score: 3, Interesting
    I dont get it. the JAVA vm runs in a secure sandbox. the only way out of the sandbox is if you grant the JAVA program permission, for example by accepting a security certificate.
    Or am I missing somthing or is that exactly what is going on?
    my experience and understanding with java is that insecure applets cant access URLS outside their source URL, they cant access other open windows (or atleast not anything that javascript cant access), and they cant access any system level communications or your files on disk. Thus they cant be spying on you. And if you leave the site they go poof. I suppose they could be playing frame games making you think you left the site.

    can anyone tell me how they are getting around these restrictions?

    --
    Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
    1. Re:redsheriff and Java VM sandbox by jon_eaves · · Score: 5, Informative

      They're not.

      It's a Java applet that's like a cgi traced image. It's used for user tracking. It's not any more sinister than WebTrends or any of the other post-processing tools.

      Caveat: I worked for the company that wrote the first version of this software that was used by Red Sheriff.

  40. Mozilla Immune? by ewhac · · Score: 4, Informative

    From reading the USENET commentary on Google Groups, it seems like RedSheriff only works on Microsoft's broken virtual machine that ships with Windows. It appears that, if you install Sun's JVM, the problem doesn't arise (or at least alerts the user). This would also seem to suggest that Mozilla is immune, since they have their own JVM, yes?

    Yet another reason to avoid IE, I suppose.

    Schwab

    1. Re:Mozilla Immune? by EMR · · Score: 2, Informative

      Mozilla/Netscape 6/7 uses sun's JVM..
      And the code gets applet gets loaded in a popup anyway..
      so it doesn't load in mozilla if you enable the popup blocker..:-D
      But yeah.. it's an M$ IE Messed up JVM thing..

    2. Re:Mozilla Immune? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No... Another resaon to turn off or filter java. You THINK you're safe, until they rewrite it to work with mozilla too. Then your fucked. Get a clue. They're free.

    3. Re:Mozilla Immune? by Phroggy · · Score: 2

      This would also seem to suggest that Mozilla is immune, since they have their own JVM, yes?

      Mozilla the JVM that's already installed on your system. Netscape 4.x (and earlier) has its own.

      --
      $x='S24;r)>63/* h@<5+oZ)32"5cz';$me='phroggy'x$];
      $x=~y+ -xz+\0-Tx+;print$_^chop$me for split'',$x;
  41. Well then by autopr0n · · Score: 2, Funny

    "While looking around on Microsoft's site checking out the new Tablet PCs I noticed something very out of Place. In one of their Flash Demos for the Tablet PC there is an Apple Powerbook 1400! To see it for yourself, the flash is located here (then "Tablet PC Overview Demo," then "Tablet PC," then "Powerful") The first computer is really that Powerbook! Pic here."

    OH MY GOD

    This is the biggest news of the century!!!! FACINATING!

    --
    autopr0n is like, down and stuff.
  42. similar by lingqi · · Score: 1

    Is it me or the tablet PC concept from MS (see the flash demo) and the Sharp Zauru have almost exact same design beside the size?

    well, and the linux...

    --

    My life in the land of the rising sun.

  43. Oh, and the linux experince is better? by goombah99 · · Score: 2
    Huh, why is that problem unique to windows?

    everytime I install an RPM I feel like someone is saying to me "close your eyes and open your mouth and you will get a big surprise". Then with root access the RPM sprays files in all sorts of directories, overwites system /bin files like "make" and inserts various conficuration scripts in dark places I've never visted in my unix life. Geeze its totally out of control.

    mandrake and a few others give you a gui package view that sort of says what's oging to be affected but it's not like you can remeber what happened a week or a year later.

    for my money the only system I am remotely at ease with is FINK for mac ( and linux). which rarely goes outside of its own directory to mess with basic system stuff.

    but you are right in wishing there was some sort of keystroke file for anytime you did an install or a tweak so you could re-do it later after a re-install or an upgrade.

    --
    Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
    1. Re:Oh, and the linux experince is better? by Q2Serpent · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Maybe not exactly on the same lines, but on my linux server I use RPMs, and I find it extremely convenient to run 2 scripts I wrote that back up certain files:

      Script 1 runs "rpm -Va" and checks the output for any files that have a different MD5 sum. It tars up all of these. (Most are in /etc).

      Script 2 looks at each file under given directories (I run it under /etc, /usr/local, and /var) and for any file found that doesn't belong to an rpm, it tars up.

      The result is this: if I had to reinstall things how I have them now on a new system, I can easily see which rpm files I changed (and have the changes right there), and also which files I added (also tar'd up).

      This is much easier than copying /etc somewhere, then referring to it on a new system. Sure you can see which files are different, but are they different because you changed them or because the newer rpm changed them?

      And of course, I keep a list of installed rpms. (rpm -qa > rpm.list).

      -Serp

    2. Re:Oh, and the linux experince is better? by goombah99 · · Score: 2

      cool, can I get your scripts?

      --
      Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
    3. Re:Oh, and the linux experince is better? by Vantage13 · · Score: 1

      A nice solution to that is the jablicator package for Debian.

      Let's say I have a system set up the way I want. I create a jablicator package (which is an empty package that requires all your currently installed packages) and add that machine to the sources.list on the destination machine. Then I run

      apt-get install jablicator-package-name

      and watch the machine get brought up to date to be a mirror of the previous machine.

    4. Re:Oh, and the linux experince is better? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      A nice solution to that is the jablicator package for Debian. Let's say I have a system set up the way I want. I create a jablicator package (which is an empty package that requires all your currently installed packages) and add that machine to the sources.list on the destination machine. Then I run

      ... and hide?

    5. Re:Oh, and the linux experince is better? by goombah99 · · Score: 2

      Well okay that's a nice trick. But this does not really have much to do with tweaking config files, setting permissions of firewalls, creating aliases, fstabs , exports, aliases, password length enforcement, and so on. Then there are all those other sorts of packages like perl CPAN, or netscape plugins that need to be installed or removes (like AIM). all of which users as well as various installed programs and possibly installed in a particular order.

      --
      Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
    6. Re:Oh, and the linux experince is better? by op00to · · Score: 1

      you know, there are commands in RPM other than --install. How about man rpm, wise guy.
      rpm -q -l yourmomma.rpm

    7. Re:Oh, and the linux experince is better? by PugMajere · · Score: 1


      Well, it does cover a great deal of CPAN - you'd be amazed at how much of CPAN has been repackaged as Debian packages.

    8. Re:Oh, and the linux experince is better? by einstein · · Score: 2
      heck, just use
      less yourmomma.rpm
      --
  44. Re:Spyware. by nickgrieve · · Score: 1

    However valid your point may be, I stopped reading the moment I came across the word "windooze" Not only do you misspell the corruption of the word Windows "Windoze". The very fact that you are using "windooze" instantly paints you as a 26yr old star trek nerd living in you parents basement. The strength of you argument is severely weakened by this.

  45. Legal Brothels?? Already got them by OzPeter · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    And not only that, the Daily Planet is talking about going public with an IPO in the next 6 or 12 months.

    "Hey honey .. just going to check on my investments"

    --
    I am Slashdot. Are you Slashdot as well?
  46. Vegas Taxis by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I remember reading an article a while ago that Vegas has very limited medallion licenses for taxis, the result being that there are few taxis, and they charge high prices, to the point that one can take a limo cheaper than a cab. An example of what economists like to call rent seeking - using a licensing scheme to limit supply, resulting in aditional profit to taxi drivers.

  47. Monitoring is not spying by lesterhv · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If I walk into someone's store, the store is permitted to have someone follow me -- either in person, or by video camera. I'm on private property, and the property owner is entitled to watch what I am doing.

    When you surf on a site, you are accessing someone elses server. They are the property owner, and they have the right to a report to see what you are doing.

    There is nothing that I can see that RedSherriff becomes resident on your machine and watches you elsewhere. It just uses cookies to provide enhanced site stats to, in this case, the beeb.

    Nothing to see here... ...move right along, please.

    1. Re:Monitoring is not spying by vegetablespork · · Score: 1

      Carrying your analogy completely through, the store also has the right to make me pay for the film and to carry the camera. And therein lies the problem.

      --

      Call (206) 338-5780 COLLECT for information about a genuine BA, BS, MA, MS, MBA, or Ph.D.

    2. Re:Monitoring is not spying by bmetzler · · Score: 2
      has the right to make me pay for the film and to carry the camera

      What "film" and "carrying" does the bbc make you do? It's more like the store keeping a copy of your receipt.

      You went to their site, they paid attention to what you did there so that they could serve you better. It didn't cost you anything, and didn't even force you to do anything different. It's just part of the package.

      -Brent
    3. Re:Monitoring is not spying by shiafu · · Score: 1
      And further carrying the analogy, the store would have the right to demand of me where i was coming from before i entered their store.

      RedSherriff seems to be doing just that by collecting referer info with their javascript. Is that really any of their business?

    4. Re:Monitoring is not spying by vegetablespork · · Score: 1

      They're storing a program on my machine (carrying the camera), and using my CPU cycles and bandwidth to report back to them. I have no problem with them tracking whatever they can without executing code on my machine, such as via cookies (if I accept them) or by IP address. But running a Java client to watch me is crossing the line.

      --

      Call (206) 338-5780 COLLECT for information about a genuine BA, BS, MA, MS, MBA, or Ph.D.

    5. Re:Monitoring is not spying by medeii · · Score: 1

      If I walk into someone's store, the store is permitted to have someone follow me -- either in person, or by video camera. I'm on private property, and the property owner is entitled to watch what I am doing.

      I think you'd object to them strip-searching you, though. Or would strapping motion-capture balls all over your body be less intrusive? What about, then, hiring someone to watch everything you did and report it back to someone else?

      When you surf on a site, you are accessing someone elses server. They are the property owner, and they have the right to a report to see what you are doing.

      Yes, they have the right -- to see what you're doing on their server. They don't automatically gain the right to see anything on your local machine other than the stuff you broadcast anyway -- screen resolution, color depth, browser, OS, etc. Just like you'd object to having a microphone planted inside your shorts (without your knowledge or explicit consent, in some cases) when you visit a store in the physical world, I object to companies trying to place things on MY computer when I visit their virtual storefront. And no, don't bring up that BS about "you consented when you loaded their site." I don't see any massive pop-up window with a click-through license agreement, and even THAT would be dubious.

      There is nothing that I can see that RedSherriff becomes resident on your machine and watches you elsewhere. It just uses cookies to provide enhanced site stats to, in this case, the beeb.

      Oh, I see. So if I stick a video camera up your posterior, but it only provides data feeds when you're in my store, that's OK with you then?

      Complacency pisses me off, especially when it's people telling companies that MY rights don't matter.

      --
      got standards? --- http://www.w3.org/
    6. Re:Monitoring is not spying by surprise_audit · · Score: 1
      If I walk into someone's store, the store is permitted to have someone follow me -- either in person, or by video camera. I'm on private property, and the property owner is entitled to watch what I am doing.

      Store cameras, OK. There's enough of those in use that if they were of dubious legality, there would have been a messy public lawsuit.

      When you surf on a site, you are accessing someone elses server. They are the property owner, and they have the right to a report to see what you are doing.

      Monitoring a server, on the other hand, is not so easy to dismiss. In "Firewalls and Internet Security" by Cheswick and Bellovin, there's a chapter which discusses the legality of monitoring on your own system. What it boils down to is, if you have, for example, a keystroke monitor that records everything an intruder types, you may be running an illegal wiretap... Crazy, but true, apparently. Never mind that you own the system being hacked into...

      Now fold that in with some of the idiocy that passes through US courts these days and it could be actually be illegal for Red Sherriff (and others) to run such monitors.

      It may also be illegal for you to run an ad-blocker (wiretap that monitors for specific electronic messages) on your own PC, especially if it interferes with the ad-senders First Amendment rights by deleting their ads. And before anyone flames me for that statement, let me say this - I firmly believe that Freedom of Speech means freedom to voice your opinion and nothing more (where "voice" includes talking, writing, painting, etc). That Amendment absolutely does not guarantee that anyone will listen, nor can you force them to. So, if I'm walking down the street wearing headphones, listening to some music, you can talk all you like, and I can ignore you, and you'd better not touch my 'phones...

    7. Re:Monitoring is not spying by Whibla · · Score: 1

      >There is nothing that I can see that RedSherriff becomes resident on your machine and watches you elsewhere. It just uses cookies to provide enhanced site stats to, in this case, the beeb.>

      This is not strictly true. I "discovered" RedSherriff about a year ago, when netstat indicated that I was connected to a site that I wasn't viewing. Checking other machines in work I found the same thing - there is a redsherriff.js left in the browser cache...

      Now obviously I could clear the cache every time I close Explorer (Sorry to you non M$ types), but this would seriously slow down my surfing of regularly used sites (E.g. \.).

      Eventually, I decided that the best thing to do is just delete all .js on a fairly regular basis, though this does not solve the problem of people "watching" you whilst you're browsing.

      Just as a final point: Have you actually checked to see how many .js you pick up in 1 day? 35 on my machine at the moment. And this includes about a half dozen from this site as well (to check ad opt outs, meta-moderation etc.). Not all of this "Spyware" is a bad thing...

    8. Re:Monitoring is not spying by gottabeme · · Score: 1

      Yes, they have the right to look at their server logs.

      No, they don't have the right to install some software on my computer without my permission or knowledge. And frankly, I don't consider a mention in their PP (privacy policy) my permission or knowledge.

      --
      "Those who consume the bulk of goods are those who make them. We must never forget this secret of our prosperity."
  48. Tablet PC? by Openadvocate · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I would rather have wanted the IBM Transnote
    If the tablet PC should work, it should be cheap since I never really think it would be the only PC you would have. it would need to be thinner than it is. It wouldn't need a lot of fancy features. You could have a dockingstation that would give it more features, option for other graphiccard etc. It would have some very for some things, but bad for others.

    --
    my sig
  49. You've already ridden it? by Cicero · · Score: 1

    I could understand why you might have been able to walk there faster, seeing as how the monorail in the article isn't supposed to be completed until 2004.

  50. No legal brothels in Las Vegas, sorry... by weave · · Score: 5, Informative
    A common misunderstanding is that prostitution is legal in Las Vegas. It's not. It's only legal in counties where the population is less than 400,000 -- which is all Nevada counties except for two. One is Clark County where Las Vegas sits, the other is where Reno is.

    Sorry, you'll just have to drive out to the ole ranch there ya city slicker!

    1. Re:No legal brothels in Las Vegas, sorry... by pimpinmonk · · Score: 1

      That brings up an interesting question for a Canadian. What do prostitutes fall under for tax reasons in the US? Is there a special section for them on the tax forms? Do they have to pay extra money to the state for the extra health problems they cause? (STDs etc.)

    2. Re:No legal brothels in Las Vegas, sorry... by weave · · Score: 1
      Well, I don't have any cites, but I've read before that the STD incidences among the workers, including AIDS, is far lower than even the general population, due to weekly testing and strict "safe sex" rules.

      Like, I'm sure even a hummer requires a condom.

      Still, the entire concept is just weird. How does a girl apply for a job? What's the interview like?! :)

    3. Re:No legal brothels in Las Vegas, sorry... by GuavaBerry · · Score: 1

      Except for the fact that the people slapping stacks of cards and leaflets in their palms on every street corner of The Strip are, in fact, giving you phone numbers that, when dialed, will bring a call girl up to your hotel room (they all seem to promise this within 30 minutes to an hour).

      Do I see cops stopping these people?

      Of course, 'illegal' and 'enforced' are two different things, but let's not try to paint Reno and Las Vegas as the only places in Vegas where you can't get a hooker.

    4. Re:No legal brothels in Las Vegas, sorry... by Dun+Malg · · Score: 2

      That brings up an interesting question for a Canadian. ... Do they have to pay extra money to the state for the extra health problems they cause? (STDs etc.)

      The simple answer to that is no, because we don't have a state-run medical system like y'all. They pay for their own medical care, so the state doesn't have jack shit to say about the "cost" of STDs. It works quite well, as you may have noticed. Our system doesn't run out of money in october, forcing heart patients to go out of the country for surgery.

      --
      If a job's not worth doing, it's not worth doing right.
    5. Re:No legal brothels in Las Vegas, sorry... by flwombat · · Score: 1

      I don't think that they apply for a job per se. My understanding is that the prostitutes are technically independent contractors who pay the house a percentage of their take.

      I'm guessing that they are already pros before they ever make contact with one of the legal bordellos, but that's just speculation.

      Of course, this comes from a dimly remembered magazine article I read a few years ago, so salt to taste.

      --
      ---------
      get your war on
    6. Re:No legal brothels in Las Vegas, sorry... by Corporate+Troll · · Score: 1
      There is flaw in your logic. Consider a prostitute that contratcs a STD. You claim she will pay for her own healthcare, but while she is recovering from the said STD she cannot work and will not have an income and hence will not be able to pay for treatment.
      For a case of syphilys (a few weeks/months antibiotica) she might get over it, but once she gets one of the nicer things like HIV, she is out of a job and has no alternatives.

    7. Re:No legal brothels in Las Vegas, sorry... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      but let's not try to paint Reno and Las Vegas as the only places in Vegas where you can't get a hooker.

      Maybe I missed something in topology, but I don't think that works. :)

    8. Re:No legal brothels in Las Vegas, sorry... by Dun+Malg · · Score: 2

      There is flaw in your logic. Consider a prostitute that contratcs a STD. You claim she will pay for her own healthcare, but while she is recovering from the said STD she cannot work and will not have an income and hence will not be able to pay for treatment. For a case of syphilys (a few weeks/months antibiotica) she might get over it, but once she gets one of the nicer things like HIV, she is out of a job and has no alternatives.

      There's no flaw in my argument. You assume that legal prostitutes have no health insurance and must pay cash on the barrelhead for medical care. First of all, as a matter of state law, legal brothels in Nevada must carry medical insurance for their employees specifically to address the STD issue. Second, even if this weren't the case, there's nothing stopping anyone from insuring themselves or even just setting aside some cash for necessary medical expenses. Your scenario is a bit contrived because it assumes an unemployed, uninsured, indigent sex worker with an STD, which in the case of Nevada's legalized prostitution is unheard of. Then, it assumes that such a case would somehow become an extra burden on the system, which it wouldn't. There are already numerous free clinics providing basic treatment for STDs that already deal with illegal prostitution/drug addicts-- problems which can't be solved by levying a "health fee" upon legal brothel employees, because street-whores and junkies aren't legal brothel employees.

      --
      If a job's not worth doing, it's not worth doing right.
    9. Re:No legal brothels in Las Vegas, sorry... by Corporate+Troll · · Score: 1

      Nice points, I just don't trust insurances. They are always finding ways to weasle out of paying. Never noticed how many legal actions there are ove insurances not paying? That's why I prefer governemnt managed healthcare. Every system has it's advantages. It just means I pay for the healthcare of prostitutes too, and honestly, I don't mind. As long as I get my teatment when I'll be sick/have an accident.
      It's all just a cultural thing.

    10. Re:No legal brothels in Las Vegas, sorry... by Dun+Malg · · Score: 2

      Nice points, I just don't trust insurances. They are always finding ways to weasle out of paying. Never noticed how many legal actions there are ove insurances not paying?

      Frankly, I've never heard of such legal actions, except in the case of cheaper HMO-type insurance with experimental procedures.

      That's why I prefer governemnt managed healthcare. Every system has it's advantages. It just means I pay for the healthcare of prostitutes too, and honestly, I don't mind. As long as I get my teatment when I'll be sick/have an accident.

      Even if you are indigent and have no insurance, you get treated in the US. We have emergency centers that treat anyone who walks in. They will send you a bill when you're done, but if you don't have the money, they can't (and won't) make you pay. Do you get the absolute best medical care available for free? No, but it's about as good as you'll get from socialized medicine in, say, Canada-- and it doesn't "run out of funding" every year either.
      The main objection socialized-medicine proponents seem to have against the system here is that you can't get the best treatment for free, as if that's a violation of some basic human right. Medical care is no more a basic human right than clothing, food, or shelter. True, all these things are important to survival, but none of them are things that any living creature gets for free. They are things that must be worked for-- either produced by ones own labor, or bartered from the labor of another. People have the right to life liberty and property, but not the right to free stuff, because free things always come at the cost of another's labor.

      --
      If a job's not worth doing, it's not worth doing right.
  51. FWIW by unicorn · · Score: 2

    It's a private project. If you read around about it, you'll find that the city isn't paying for it, at all. It's financed by a whackload of bonds, that will be paid off the revenues generated by fares.

    SO they didn't have to dip into the road repair funds at all. That's all still in the city coffers.

    --
    "Politicians are interested in people. Not that this is always a virtue. Fleas are interested in dogs." P.J. O'Rourke
    1. Re:FWIW by cscx · · Score: 2
  52. +5 Informative! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Go on SlashBots, you know you're going to!

    1. Re:+5 Informative! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      +5 Funny!

      Look, if you had one shot, one opportunity
      To seize everything you ever wanted-One moment
      Would you capture it or just let it slip?

  53. It reveals how you got to the BBC site by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Interesting

    First of all, why are people saying this Red Sherriff stuff is Java-based? Am I missing something here? I can see some JavaScript stuff on the BBC site - is there a Java component too perhaps?

    As for what it's reporting ... well ... let's see:

    Excerpt from the source of http://news.bbc.co.uk/:

    {!-- START RedMeasure V4 - Java v1.1 $Revision: 1.9 $ --}
    {!-- COPYRIGHT 2000 Red Sheriff Limited --}
    {script language="JavaScript"}
    {!--
    var pCid="uk_bbc_0";
    var w0=1;
    var refR=escape(document.referrer);
    if (refR.length>=252) refR=refR.substring(0,252)+"..."

    /snip/

    {img src="http://server-uk.imrworldwide.com/cgi-bin/cou nt?ref='+
    refR+'&cid='+pCid+'" width=1 height=1
    }'

    /snip/

    if(navigator.userAgent.indexOf('Mac')!=-1){docum en t.write(imgN);
    }else{
    document.write('{applet code="Measure.class" '+
    'codebase="http://server-uk.imrworldwide.com/" '+'w idth=1 height=2}'+
    '{param name="ref" value="'+refR+'"}'+'{param name="cid" value="'+pCid+
    '"}{textflow}'+imgN+'
    {/textflow}{/ applet}')

    /snip/

    {/noscript}
    {/COMMENT}
    {!-- END RedMeasure V4 --}

    I'm not a JavaScript expert, but this says to me that the information is passed back to the Red Sherriff company by requesting a "web bug" ... in this case either a 1x1 or 1x2 pixel image. The information is passed in the request for that image. From what I see above, aside from the colateral stuff like your IP address, a "Customer ID" string of "uk_bbc_0" is passed, along with the "Document Referrer". That is, if you clicked a link on another website somewhere in order to get to news.bbc.co.uk, the URL of that referring website is sent to Red Sherriff.

    1. Re:It reveals how you got to the BBC site by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      Umm, that part where it writes an applet tag into the document might be a clue :) The applet tag embeds an applet into the page. As such, it can dynamically load the Java applet into your browser.

      As to what this new program does, I have no idea. I haven't learned just what it does/how it works yet...

  54. Microsoft's Secret Strategy by jkeyes · · Score: 1

    1. Put Macs in Tablet Demo
    2. Submit to slashdot
    3. ????
    4. Profit!

    Or maybe someone could make a beowolf cluster of .... nah wait forget I said anything.

    1. Re:Microsoft's Secret Strategy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      3. ????

      Oh come on 3 is most deffinately claiming MS sites are amoung the most popular on the internet and with their diverse all encompasing scope, advertisers should pay more.

  55. Redsheriff = MSN Australia + more! by mcdrewski42 · · Score: 2, Interesting


    FYI, NineMSN (Australia's own big brother presence on the web, and the default exit page for Hotmail from Aus) also uses Redsheriff.

    So does Suncorp Metway a BANK!!!

    As such, microsoft now knows where I bank. Scary.

    --
    /* affect != effect */ void affect(int *thing,int effect) { *thing += effect; }
  56. Re:PowerBook:isn't it obvious that you're a moron? by cscx · · Score: 3, Funny

    No. Remember, professionals design that advertising.

  57. Actually you're wrong by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    If uploading/downloading meant exactly the same as send/receive, there wouldn't be much point, would it?

    That's why downloading means transfering from a server to a client, and uploading means transfering from a client to a server.

    1. Re:Actually you're wrong by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What about server to server, or client to client. In TCP and IP, there is no slave or master, the connection goes two ways. P2P networks exhibit a client to client type action. And then there is UDP datagrams... haven't people heard to peers? Damn hierachial minds...

    2. Re:Actually you're wrong by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0


      I'm not going to comment on your post, because it makes it so obvious that you're a brain-dead shit muffin, that it does not require me to point that out any further.

      A client initiates the connection, and a server accepts the heretoforthwith mentioned connection. So, although in your small marketing overrrun mind, a "P2P application" has no server and no client, imagine if you will, that one of the two parties must have had to initiate a connection, and the other accept it.

      And not to blow your mind with thought-provoking theorems related to quantum physics, the roles may become reversed with further connections, but not with the hitherto heretofor aforementioend same logical connection.

  58. Microsoft's Brilliant Strategy by Stubtify · · Score: 4, Funny
    Step 1: Create Tablet PC Flash Animation

    Step 2: Insert random Apple Powerbook 1400

    Step 3: Report "slip up" to Mac centered websites

    Step 4: Report that "over 20% of page views on the new tablet PC pages are from Macintosh computers." to interested third party vendors.

    So now they've got ammo for a real switch campain...

  59. Facts wrong on Zaurus 5600 by happynut · · Score: 2, Informative

    The Zaurus 5600 is 320x240 (1/4vga), not 640x480 as
    stated in the slashback.

    The C700 *is* 640x480.

  60. Airport Gambling by davemarmaros · · Score: 1

    Soon you too will pile off the airplane, trudge onto the monorail, then run into the casino to spend that money....ahh, Vegas

    Not necessary, there are already slot machines in the airport. Not surprisingly, these have the worst odds in town. They are targetted at the impulse gamblers who want to play right off the plane, or try one last time before leaving. In either case, they don't actually expect to win much.

  61. More sites wih RedSherrif by codepunk · · Score: 2

    http://www.smh.com.au/

    http://www.theage.com.au/

    http://www.cricket.org

    http://www.plannedchildhood.com

    Bastards!

    --


    Got Code?
  62. Not quite :) by The+Original+Yama · · Score: 2
    He was also (among many others) the voice of Troy McClure, who you may remember from such films as "I Was a Teenage Pr0n Junkie," "Goat.se.cx Boogie," and "Karma Whores in 3D."
    I wish he had said that! Here's my favourite one: "Hi, I'm Troy Maclure. You may remember me from such films as Today We Kill, Tomorrow We Die, and Gladys, the Groovy Mule!"

    My favourite Troy episode is where he does the musical version of The Planet of the Apes :
    Troy: Can I play the piano anymore?
    Dr Zaius: Of course you can!
    Troy: Well I couldn't before!
    *plays piano*
  63. picnics on the moon with Jesus by sweatyboatman · · Score: 1, Offtopic

    man, that is the funniest thing

    I'm still laughing

    just imagine it.

    SweatyB

    --
    It breaks my pluginses, my precious!
  64. Damn by The+Original+Yama · · Score: 2

    I can't believe I made a post about Troy Maclure and I didn't link to here.

  65. Slashdotted by hlopez · · Score: 1

    Sparknotes has been slashdotted...
    I can imagine all the trouble some poor guy in collage is going through.

  66. Speaking of 'switch' by SkulkCU · · Score: 2


    I just noticed today that there are ads with Tony Hawk and Yo Yo Ma.

    (not together)

    I'm hoping that they'll make some with Gates/Ballmer lookalikes...

    --
    .sig last updated Jan. 14, 2000
  67. Holy shit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Now I've seen everything.

  68. The REAL SONICBlue question is... by samdu · · Score: 2

    ...if they've been able to solve their NASDAQ problems. Their stock has been under a dollar for a long time now (I bought some at .23 and sold at .47). The NASDAQ sent them formal notice several months ago that if they could not maintain a stock price above a dollar for three consecutive weeks by November, they'd be dropped from the exchange. That hasn't happened. The closest they've come is almost .75 cents for a few minutes. I'm not sure the company can survive long enough to make a run of it. I think they were just a touch ahead of their time. They're very probably going to be dropped from the NASDAQ, but more importantly, they're in debt and operating at a loss.

    1. Re:The REAL SONICBlue question is... by JabberWokky · · Score: 3, Informative
      The NASDAQ formally announced that they are reconsidering their dollar rule a week or two ago. Back in the 90s it seemed like a great idea. Now an appreciable chunk of stocks (not just tech stocks) are under $1. So many exceptions have been approved and extentions given that it's not really working as a "blanket" rule.

      Heard it on Morning Edition.

      --
      Evan

      --
      "$30 for the One True Ring. $10 each additional ring!" -- JRR "Bob" Tolkien
  69. Red Sheriff is not spyware by digidave · · Score: 2

    Has no one gone to redsheriff.com? They're a site visitor logging company. I use them at work instead of writing my own huge log files, which were upwards of 2GB/day. Instead, I just log a few things and let the Red Sheriff applet/Javascript combo do the visitor logging.

    Red Sherrif got the contract through our... *thinking of how I can make this anonymous* ...parent organization. I have never reviewed their terms of service, since we are not technically their customer, our "parent organization" is. I'll be sure to check this out and maybe submit it if I find any interesting info.

    --
    The global economy is a great thing until you feel it locally.
  70. Seattle monorail wins vote by Animats · · Score: 3, Informative
    Not by much, but a win, unless there's a problem and a recount. That will be a 14-mile system, biggest in North America.
  71. killer! by aminorex · · Score: 2

    add a 1.8" hd, 802.11b, and an extended-life battery,
    and that sharp device would conquer the u.s. ultra-
    portable market.

    --
    -I like my women like I like my tea: green-
    1. Re:killer! by Cpt_Kirks · · Score: 2

      You forgot an x86 CPU...

  72. The Macs are by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    a PowerBook 1400 (the first laptop visible); PowerBook 3400c (visible only in profile [but what a profile] on the right beside the guy writing in a paper notebook); and what looks very much like a 7x00 or first-generation G3 beige desktop later in the clip.

  73. Privacy Policy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From the bbc privacy policy: RedSheriff, an independent measurement and research company, gathers non-personal data regarding the visitors to our site on our behalf using cookies and code which is embedded in the site. Both the cookies and the embedded code provide non-personal statistical information about visits to pages on the site, the duration of individual page view, paths taken by visitors through the site, data on visitors' screen settings and other general information. The BBC uses this type of information, as with that obtained from other cookies used on the site, to help it improve the services to its users. If you wish to reject RedSheriff's cookie, you can use the process set out below in point 7. To disable the embedded code, you will need to send requests directly to privacy@redsheriff.com. Further information regarding RedSheriff's privacy statement can be found at http://www.redsheriff.com/6.0.0.htm.

    1. Re:Privacy Policy by LordXarph · · Score: 2, Interesting

      My question: is RedSheriff running when you are NOT viewing a page at BBC, or is it only actively collecting data on viewing habits at BBC?

      If it's the former, HOW IS THIS TECHNICALLY POSSIBLE? It is running in the Java sandbox. If Java is not running or loaded, how can this thing run?

      If it's the latter, WHY IS THIS A BIG DEAL? It is just another method of gathering statistics on your own site; scripts and applications to do this that run in the web client have been around for years and relatively few people have been complaining.

      -Lx?

  74. Browser bug? by whereiswaldo · · Score: 3, Interesting

    The fact is, the BBC is downloading spyware to your machine when you surf their site.

    What browser allows BBC to send them spyware without the user's permission? If that really happens, it's a browser security bug. I'm surprised the spammers haven't leveraged this bug with their html mail efforts (if it's really that easy to install spyware on a user's system). I find it hard to believe this claim. Anyone have an explanation?

    1. Re:Browser bug? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah, I have explanation. Read the goddamned article!

  75. Vegas monorail misconception by doormat · · Score: 2

    The monorail will not go to the airport in the initial building. The taxicab authority is too damn powerful to let the monorail go to the airport, they'd lose too much money. The money talks and the people walk... or hail a cab...

    --
    The Doormat

    If you're not outraged, then you're not paying attention.
  76. The Zaurus Page In German by SpLiFF3rIffIc · · Score: 1

    If you want to read that Zaurus page just run a simple google translation if you have the google toolbar just click on Page Info and Translate into English and the translation is into perfect english

  77. Re:Seattle monorail wins vote--hopefully by realyendor · · Score: 1

    There's still more absentees to be counted. The counts from the next batch will come out on Thursday at 4pm, and then they'll be done counting on Tuesday at 5pm.

    For more information about the Seattle Monorail Project, see:

    Elevated Transportation Company
    -AND-
    Monorail YES!

    I've already chewed off my nails and pulled out my hair...the anticipation is killing me...

  78. "Tablet PC runs applications you already use" by kaltkalt · · Score: 1

    If you listen to the demo (the "power" demo) it says the Tablet PC runs a Windows XP Tablet edition, "so you can run applications you already use!" So, does that mean I don't have to buy two copies of Office XP - one for my home PC and one for my Tablet PC? Somehow I doubt M$ would approve of that, but in their demo, they are clearly implying I can. Fuckers.

    --

    Stupid people make stupid things profitable.
    1. Re:"Tablet PC runs applications you already use" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The version of XP that runs on tablets is a superset of XP Pro, tailored specifically for tablets. You will not be able to run standard XP on them, so if you already have XP on your PC, you will still be paying for XP Tablet version on the tablet.

  79. BBC's Monitoring Attempts by EkiM+in+De · · Score: 1

    I had noticed a while ago that BBC were sneaking in another Java applet at the bottom of the page. I guesss that they they were thinking that people wouldn't notice a second Java app on the page.

    I can't rememeber how I came to notice it. I guess I was just reading the source of the page one day. Anyway, since I use Windows and IE at work I just stuffed it into my Restricted Sites zone and I haven't had problems with the site since. Actually, now I come back to the site I realise that they try other things, like the monitoring company tries to set a tracking cookie as well by calling a invisible 1 x 1 GIF.

    I guess it is about time I placed "server-uk.imrworldwide.com" in my hosts file and deny them even the chance to detect how many times their invisble graphic has been called.

    One of the features I would love Mozilla to have is the ability to selectively restrict features based on IP or DNS address. IE does it but sometimes it is just too course and you don't have the chance to setup multiple profiles.

    --
    Patriotism is the opium of the masses
  80. What's the big deal? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Is all this referring to "Measure.class"??

    The applet is a fancy img tag. It sends a POST with your java version number and cookie when you LEAVE the page. It could have been done with an exitpop, except then it wouldn't be NEW and EXCITING TECHNOLOGY and make billions in VC $$$.

    It starts running when you load the page, and stops when you leave. No "sneaky installation", no more scary than a flash file.

    (well, there's a bug so some of the time it doesn't unload properly and will crash IE, but that's doesn't really matter :-)

  81. learn you by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Actually, to the best of my knowledge learn used as teach is old English. Phrases like "I will learn you" were used before the word teach existed. One can still find it in some old books. I have no idea why anyone would use it in modern usage.

    From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913):

    2. To communicate knowledge to; to teach. [Obs.]

    Hast thou not learned me how To make perfumes ?
    --Shak.

    Note: Learn formerly had also the sense of teach, in accordance with the analogy of the French and other languages, and hence we find it with this sense in Shakespeare, Spenser, and other old writers. This usage has now passed away. To learn is to receive instruction, and to teach is to give instruction. He who is taught learns, not he who teaches.

  82. Why are you surprised? by TinheadNed · · Score: 1

    I don't see why this is news. Surely everybody READS the privacy statements they sign up to when the a company brings one up? :)

  83. Very strange clam shell. by Memetic · · Score: 1

    Do you have clams that slide open in the US?

    You must have otherwise saying "clamshell-case PDA as embodied by the Zaurus 5600" would be complety wrong.

  84. Privoxy even better by horza · · Score: 1, Redundant

    Privoxy is based on Junkbuster, but adds the following. Under Windows it really is just click and go, and comes with all the rules you need built in (though you can easily add regex filtering). I use it in conjunction with Phoenix and don't suffer from any ads/pop-ups/cookie/Javascript annoyances. Another great plus is that you can enable it and disable it directly from the taskbar.

    Phillip.

  85. Quickies by oddRaisin · · Score: 1

    Not to complain, but Slashbacks seem to have had a revival while quickies seem to have died a quiet death. Any chance we can revive this most loved Slashdot feature?

  86. Re:WHO CARES!! MUCH BETTER NEWS! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Are you Barking Mad?

  87. Duplicate by EyesWideOpen · · Score: 2

    The SonicBlue/Tivo dropped-lawsuit story is a duplicate.

    http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=02/11/11/173523 0&mode=thread&tid=129

    --

    As with the sun's light
    My mom was magnificent
    Unquestionable
  88. RE: Out of court, out of mind... by X!0mbarg · · Score: 1

    Sounds like a case of "Hey, You! Yer Ugly! Let's You and Him fight!", and, after a few rounds of scrapping, they figured it out!

    Nothing like making leading edge devellopers duke it out in court to cripple a budding tech before it can catch on.

    Now, who would benefit from this the most?

    *ponder*

  89. Re:Spyware. by blank_coil · · Score: 1

    I stopped reading the moment I came across the word "windooze"

    Your loss, he said some interesting things. If I had mod points, I'd have modded you Offtopic. Let him call it what he wants and get over it.

    --
    No sig for you.
  90. Re:Seattle monorail wins vote--hopefully by Animats · · Score: 2
    As of Saturday, the monorail is winning, but it's very close:

    PROPOSED MONORAIL AUTHORITY:
    YES: 89899 50.09%
    NO: 89570 49.91%

  91. Re:Seattle monorail losing by 3 votes! by Animats · · Score: 2

    As of Monday evening, it's losing by 3 votes! PROPOSED MONORAIL AUTHORITY YES: 92435 50.00% NO: 92438 50.00% Final figures tomorrow, after the last of the absentee ballots comes in.

  92. Last Post! by alpg · · Score: 1

    There is a good deal of solemn cant about the common interests of capital
    and labour. As matters stand, their only common interest is that of cutting
    each other's throat.
    -- Brooks Atkinson, "Once Around the Sun"

    - this post brought to you by the Automated Last Post Generator...