disqualified from the International Science and Engineering Fair this month on a technicality.'
It wasn't a "technicality." It was a rule, and even a fairly reasonable one.
Students are only allowed to compete in one qualifying regional fair, and then another larger qualifying fair such as a state fair, said Michele Glidden, director of science and education programs for the Society for Science and the Public, the organization that runs the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair.
The rule is to keep students from jumping from one qualifying fair to another until he or she is finally allowed to move on, she said.
So he was disqualified for not following the rules, then tried to get around that by playing the ever-popular "Duh, I didn't know the rules..." card. The one that always works with police and courts. Any fault lies with him, his parents, or his advisors. One of them should have had the sense to check it out.
I'll admit to a) reusing the same password on most forums, since it largely wouldn't matter if someone accessed them. b) using shorter passwords for most stuff, and long complex ones for the handful of places that actually need security, a c) Using the "Forgot Password?" link on most web sites that I don't visit often and just accepting whatever reset they offer.
It's time to acknowledge that passwords are an idea that has come and gone. Too much hassle. Too many different password specifications from site to site. Too many to remember. Too many poorly constructed sites trying to tell users that bad security is their fault for not have super long and complex passwords. Too many sites where I actually now have three or four user IDs and passwords because I couldn't remember the last password I used there, or had changed my e-mail address since last visiting.
And too many sites, banks especially, that still demand to know my mother's maiden name, or worse yet, arcana from my youth that I don't even remember. My first pet's name? My favourite TV show? I have no idea. Or likely would answer that differently a month from now.
It's no wonder that most people ignore all of the password edicts that are thrown at them, and never change anything, and use the same password everywhere.
Surely we can develop some new way of confirming people's identity that allows us to abandon the idea of passwords? I vote for an RFID pinky ring with a plug in USB reader on my computer.
The new version has combined its search and address bars, allowing users to make searches directly via Amazon, Bing, Google and Wikipedia.
A few times lately I've found myself using Firefox, and have been gobsmacked that you still have to type searches into a separate box instead of the usual URL bar. How many years has it been since Chrome added their one box for everything?
" and helped some customers save money, according to the utility that operates it. "
I'll believe that when I can see an actual measurable decrease in my power bills. I'm only slightly less skeptical of utility companies than I am of politicians and cel providers.
The arrest of these supposedly dangerous terrists (as Vic Toews, Minister of Public Safety (and doesn't THAT sound Orwellian?) pronounces the previously three syllable word) was carefully timed to happen the same day that the government is pushing through a particularly nasty bit of spy legislation.The kind that lets the government lock you up for days at a time without charges just because you sort of fit some cop's definition of "terrist."
These guys have a very spotty record in terms of suppressing dissent, and arresting people for non-existent crimes, so I'd hold off until some actual evidence shows up. Cop press releases are not (yet) enough to prove anything. I actually wonder about how these guys can present a serious threat to public safety when the same goons are saying that at no time was any member of the public at risk.
“[S]tarting now, we want to draw a clear line on this. Citing Times policy, reporters should say no if a source demands, as a condition of an interview, that quotes be submitted afterward to the source or a press aide to review, approve or edit,"
Aside from his just "waking up" to find his laptop and wallet gone.... yeah - he was probably at church at the time, and the sermon was dull... I seriously doubt that anyone at The Reg would "offer an interview with a promise to let him review the article and keep his name secret."
Keep his name secret? Possibly, and not that uncommon. Let him review the article? I really, really, really doubt that. No journalist - hell, no J-school student - would be that dumb.
Once you've been interviewed the deed is done. Unless it involves highly technical information - say interviewing a top scientist in specialized field, where there really is a need for detailed discussion - there's no way you'll be asked to "review" anything.
Aside from stuff like alumni magazines that show up unsolicited, we've pretty much quit magazines entirely.
The first obstacle is costs - the last time I bought a magazine it was pretty near ten bucks for one copy at the news stand. Wow - that's a psychological barrier for me.
The second obstacle is the amount and timeliness of content. Although the Economist, New Yorker, or Harpers feels like a fair deal, most magazines are thinner than I remember, and too often have articles that were outdated by a web site somewhere weeks earlier.
The third reason is that I just can't see the reason why I would choose dead tree versions of most things over something delivered electronically by e-mail or RSS (of for the Economist, via Google+). I'm not a died in the wool environmentalist, but it seems that print as medium is becoming a pointless exercise for probably 60% of information. Especially for news.
OpenStack is a global collaboration of developers and cloud computing technologists producing the ubiquitous open source cloud computing platform for public and private clouds. The project aims to deliver solutions for all types of clouds by being simple to implement, massively scalable, and feature rich. The technology consists of a series of interrelated projects delivering various components for a cloud infrastructure solution.
Who's behind OpenStack? Founded by Rackspace Hosting and NASA, OpenStack has grown to be a global software community of developers collaborating on a standard and massively scalable open source cloud operating system. Our mission is to enable any organization to create and offer cloud computing services running on standard hardware.
Who uses OpenStack? Corporations, service providers, VARS, SMBs, researchers, and global data centers looking to deploy large-scale cloud deployments for private or public clouds leveraging the support and resulting technology of a global open source community.
Why open matters: All of the code for OpenStack is freely available under the Apache 2.0 license. Anyone can run it, build on it, or submit changes back to the project. We strongly believe that an open development model is the only way to foster badly-needed cloud standards, remove the fear of proprietary lock-in for cloud customers, and create a large ecosystem that spans cloud providers.
I looked over the new permissions being demanded by Facebook for the latest Android app update, and stopped dead at the point when they told me that the app could now "call phone numbers without your intervention." Say WHAT??
I expect Google to have pretty intimate integration into an Android phone. I signed on knowing that. From everything I read Facebook is now looking to pretty much take control of the phone OS, not by developing their own, but by hijacking large swaths of control from Android or the user.
Ultimately though one thing is making me stay away from this update, Facebook Home, and probably Facebook entirely on my phone: the Facebook app has been hands down the worst thing I've installed, and gets more useless with a very upgrade.
God yes! I'm sure that touchscreen is just divine in southern California, but if you're in the rain, or snow, or it's cold, or your fingers are numb, it's useless. More than once I haven't even been able to answer a phone call because it was raining and the touchscreen was non-responsive.
The thing that smart phone makers seemed to have missed is that an awful lot of what you use a smartphone for actually requires typing, navigation, and desktop-like functions. As much as I've generally like my Samsung/Nexus phone, I'll probably go Blackberry next time just to have a real keyboard - especially if I can remap some of those keys.
Sure, I change my OS regularly, but that because it's fun, free, and easy to try out new Linux distros. The only hardware upgrade I can see coming is a bigger hard drive, and maybe a new keyboard. Everything else came to me via Craigslist or was on sale at Staples three years ago when I last needed a new system.
My girlfriend is still running XP on her system because there is literally no reason why she would have needed to upgrade, XP runs Office and e-mail and XChrome just fine. Next year we bite the bullet when support ends, but even then I'll hunt up a Windows 7 OEM disc.
If you're "hand-coding" a modest personal site, then by all means go with WordPress. I've mucked about with Joomla and Drupal and a few others, including some custom designed stupidly complex sites, and for small sites Wordpress is just SOOO easy and fast that it wins hands down.
Plus it's really easy to customize, plus there are lots of good quality plug-ins.
Obviously you're not going to launch the next Amazon.com using Wordpress, but for 99% of small sites there's little reason to look elsewhere.
It strikes me that there's a niche here for someone to offer similar support once MS drops XP. Just as there are any number of aftermarket suppliers for auto parts, I can imagine companies that will serve up regular security updates, compatibility patches, and similar goodies for a price.
If your company runs a couple thousand XP boxes, what kind of annual subscription would you be willing to pay to keep them going?
Mint. No question. Fast, easy, reliable. Gets you up and running entirely painlessly. I like the Cinnamon interface.
Ubuntu was what finally moved me over to Linux full time, but I don't like the whole Unity thing. Still it's the Ubuntu underpinning that makes Mint so damned reliable.
That said, I tried out running the newest OpenSuse KDE distro from USB last week, and am seriously thinking about it.
The main point is DON'T GET FANCY! Choose one of the above, and install the straight vanilla version. Then you can start playing.
Short of insisting that everyone who visits provide photo ID, I cannot see how this could work.
Surely any kid with two brain cels to rub together already knows to just lie about their age, or to use their best friend's e-mail for the parental approval?
Slashdot Mirror
It wasn't a "technicality." It was a rule, and even a fairly reasonable one.
So he was disqualified for not following the rules, then tried to get around that by playing the ever-popular "Duh, I didn't know the rules..." card. The one that always works with police and courts. Any fault lies with him, his parents, or his advisors. One of them should have had the sense to check it out.
I'll admit to a) reusing the same password on most forums, since it largely wouldn't matter if someone accessed them. b) using shorter passwords for most stuff, and long complex ones for the handful of places that actually need security, a c) Using the "Forgot Password?" link on most web sites that I don't visit often and just accepting whatever reset they offer.
It's time to acknowledge that passwords are an idea that has come and gone. Too much hassle. Too many different password specifications from site to site. Too many to remember. Too many poorly constructed sites trying to tell users that bad security is their fault for not have super long and complex passwords. Too many sites where I actually now have three or four user IDs and passwords because I couldn't remember the last password I used there, or had changed my e-mail address since last visiting.
And too many sites, banks especially, that still demand to know my mother's maiden name, or worse yet, arcana from my youth that I don't even remember. My first pet's name? My favourite TV show? I have no idea. Or likely would answer that differently a month from now.
It's no wonder that most people ignore all of the password edicts that are thrown at them, and never change anything, and use the same password everywhere.
Surely we can develop some new way of confirming people's identity that allows us to abandon the idea of passwords? I vote for an RFID pinky ring with a plug in USB reader on my computer.
I think... what a time to have no mod points!
The new version has combined its search and address bars, allowing users to make searches directly via Amazon, Bing, Google and Wikipedia.
A few times lately I've found myself using Firefox, and have been gobsmacked that you still have to type searches into a separate box instead of the usual URL bar. How many years has it been since Chrome added their one box for everything?
Eidos Vision improves vision allowing wearer to see 'time trails' similar to a timelapse photography."
Oh joy. Tech that mimics the effects of magic mushrooms......
" and helped some customers save money, according to the utility that operates it. "
I'll believe that when I can see an actual measurable decrease in my power bills. I'm only slightly less skeptical of utility companies than I am of politicians and cel providers.
The arrest of these supposedly dangerous terrists (as Vic Toews, Minister of Public Safety (and doesn't THAT sound Orwellian?) pronounces the previously three syllable word) was carefully timed to happen the same day that the government is pushing through a particularly nasty bit of spy legislation.The kind that lets the government lock you up for days at a time without charges just because you sort of fit some cop's definition of "terrist."
These guys have a very spotty record in terms of suppressing dissent, and arresting people for non-existent crimes, so I'd hold off until some actual evidence shows up. Cop press releases are not (yet) enough to prove anything. I actually wonder about how these guys can present a serious threat to public safety when the same goons are saying that at no time was any member of the public at risk.
Thought crimes anyone?
Reviewing the article is the default expectation and offer in anything that resembles an interview for publication.
Really? I've never had a reporter offer that, and wouldn't expect it. What publications were you interviewed by?
Aside from his just "waking up" to find his laptop and wallet gone.... yeah - he was probably at church at the time, and the sermon was dull... I seriously doubt that anyone at The Reg would "offer an interview with a promise to let him review the article and keep his name secret."
Keep his name secret? Possibly, and not that uncommon. Let him review the article? I really, really, really doubt that. No journalist - hell, no J-school student - would be that dumb.
Once you've been interviewed the deed is done. Unless it involves highly technical information - say interviewing a top scientist in specialized field, where there really is a need for detailed discussion - there's no way you'll be asked to "review" anything.
Aside from stuff like alumni magazines that show up unsolicited, we've pretty much quit magazines entirely.
The first obstacle is costs - the last time I bought a magazine it was pretty near ten bucks for one copy at the news stand. Wow - that's a psychological barrier for me.
The second obstacle is the amount and timeliness of content. Although the Economist, New Yorker, or Harpers feels like a fair deal, most magazines are thinner than I remember, and too often have articles that were outdated by a web site somewhere weeks earlier.
The third reason is that I just can't see the reason why I would choose dead tree versions of most things over something delivered electronically by e-mail or RSS (of for the Economist, via Google+). I'm not a died in the wool environmentalist, but it seems that print as medium is becoming a pointless exercise for probably 60% of information. Especially for news.
For those who aren't up on it, from the web site:
OpenStack is a global collaboration of developers and cloud computing technologists producing the ubiquitous open source cloud computing platform for public and private clouds. The project aims to deliver solutions for all types of clouds by being simple to implement, massively scalable, and feature rich. The technology consists of a series of interrelated projects delivering various components for a cloud infrastructure solution.
Who's behind OpenStack? Founded by Rackspace Hosting and NASA, OpenStack has grown to be a global software community of developers collaborating on a standard and massively scalable open source cloud operating system. Our mission is to enable any organization to create and offer cloud computing services running on standard hardware.
Who uses OpenStack? Corporations, service providers, VARS, SMBs, researchers, and global data centers looking to deploy large-scale cloud deployments for private or public clouds leveraging the support and resulting technology of a global open source community.
Why open matters: All of the code for OpenStack is freely available under the Apache 2.0 license. Anyone can run it, build on it, or submit changes back to the project. We strongly believe that an open development model is the only way to foster badly-needed cloud standards, remove the fear of proprietary lock-in for cloud customers, and create a large ecosystem that spans cloud providers.
I looked over the new permissions being demanded by Facebook for the latest Android app update, and stopped dead at the point when they told me that the app could now "call phone numbers without your intervention." Say WHAT??
I expect Google to have pretty intimate integration into an Android phone. I signed on knowing that. From everything I read Facebook is now looking to pretty much take control of the phone OS, not by developing their own, but by hijacking large swaths of control from Android or the user.
Ultimately though one thing is making me stay away from this update, Facebook Home, and probably Facebook entirely on my phone: the Facebook app has been hands down the worst thing I've installed, and gets more useless with a very upgrade.
Exactly. Real keys. And I can make one of them answer the phone, and one more take pictures, I'll be tickled.
bringing back an integrated physical keyboard
God yes! I'm sure that touchscreen is just divine in southern California, but if you're in the rain, or snow, or it's cold, or your fingers are numb, it's useless. More than once I haven't even been able to answer a phone call because it was raining and the touchscreen was non-responsive.
The thing that smart phone makers seemed to have missed is that an awful lot of what you use a smartphone for actually requires typing, navigation, and desktop-like functions. As much as I've generally like my Samsung/Nexus phone, I'll probably go Blackberry next time just to have a real keyboard - especially if I can remap some of those keys.
Sure, I change my OS regularly, but that because it's fun, free, and easy to try out new Linux distros. The only hardware upgrade I can see coming is a bigger hard drive, and maybe a new keyboard. Everything else came to me via Craigslist or was on sale at Staples three years ago when I last needed a new system.
My girlfriend is still running XP on her system because there is literally no reason why she would have needed to upgrade, XP runs Office and e-mail and XChrome just fine. Next year we bite the bullet when support ends, but even then I'll hunt up a Windows 7 OEM disc.
If you're "hand-coding" a modest personal site, then by all means go with WordPress. I've mucked about with Joomla and Drupal and a few others, including some custom designed stupidly complex sites, and for small sites Wordpress is just SOOO easy and fast that it wins hands down.
Plus it's really easy to customize, plus there are lots of good quality plug-ins.
Obviously you're not going to launch the next Amazon.com using Wordpress, but for 99% of small sites there's little reason to look elsewhere.
Great forums and other support options too.
It strikes me that there's a niche here for someone to offer similar support once MS drops XP. Just as there are any number of aftermarket suppliers for auto parts, I can imagine companies that will serve up regular security updates, compatibility patches, and similar goodies for a price.
If your company runs a couple thousand XP boxes, what kind of annual subscription would you be willing to pay to keep them going?
Even by the standards of the usual ROT13ifying overlords of slashdot, I gotta say... uh..????
According to a lot of people in this town, yes. Along with WIFI in schools and, I suspect, fluoridation.
How the hell do you counter the great wallops of misinformation that are flying around us?
Will the new T-Mobile plans include the great Canadian rip-off where Voicemail is an $8-10 a MONTH extra on top of your $50 a month cel plan?
Mint. No question. Fast, easy, reliable. Gets you up and running entirely painlessly. I like the Cinnamon interface.
Ubuntu was what finally moved me over to Linux full time, but I don't like the whole Unity thing. Still it's the Ubuntu underpinning that makes Mint so damned reliable.
That said, I tried out running the newest OpenSuse KDE distro from USB last week, and am seriously thinking about it.
The main point is DON'T GET FANCY! Choose one of the above, and install the straight vanilla version. Then you can start playing.
Really, do you need to know anything more?
For beginners I always suggest the Joy of Cooking, the older the edition the better. For simple "American" fare you can't beat it.
Plus it has the culinary equivalent to MAN pages.
Though I'll always take Julia Child for sheer delight.
Short of insisting that everyone who visits provide photo ID, I cannot see how this could work.
Surely any kid with two brain cels to rub together already knows to just lie about their age, or to use their best friend's e-mail for the parental approval?