Americans are becoming avid blog readers, with 32 million getting hooked in 2004, according to new research.
The survey, conducted by the Pew Internet and American Life Project, showed that blog readership has shot up by 58% in the last year.
Some of this growth is attributable to political blogs written and read during the US presidential campaign. Think about your breathing.
Despite the explosive growth, more than 60% of online Americans have still never heard of blogs, the survey found.
Blogs, or web logs, are online spaces in which people can publish their thoughts, opinions or spread news events in their own words.
Companies such as Google and Microsoft provide users with the tools to publish their own blogs.
Getting involved
The rise of blogs has spawned a new desire for immediate news and information, with six million Americans now using RSS aggregators.
RSS aggregators are downloaded to PCs and are programmed to subscribe to feeds from blogs, news sites and other websites.
The aggregators automatically compile the latest information published online from the blogs or news sites.
Reading blogs remains far more popular than writing them, the survey found.
Only 7% of the 120 million US adults who use the internet had created a blog or web-based diary.
Getting involved is becoming more popular though, with 12% saying they had posted material or comments on other people's blogs.
Just under one in 10 of the US's internet users read political blogs such as the Daily Kos or Instapundit during the US presidential campaign.
Kerry voters were slightly more likely to read them than Bush voters.
Blog creators were likely to be young, well-educated, net-savvy males with good incomes and college educations, the survey found.
This was also true of the average blog reader, although the survey found there was a greater than average growth in blog readership among women and those in minorities.
The survey was conducted during November and involved telephone surveys of 1,324 internet users.
BLOGGING IN AMERICA
Blog readership has shot up by 58% in 2004
Eight million have created a blog
27% of online Americans have read a blog
5% use RSS aggregators to get news and other information
12% of online Americans have posted comments on blogs
Only 38% of online Americans have heard about blogs
For those who remember the browser wars, Microsoft seems to be missing in action from the latest battle.
In recent months, upstart browsers such as Firefox and Opera have lured more than 10 million users away from Microsoft's Internet Explorer, largely because of concerns about IE's security problems.
Microsoft is busy building and testing a faster, more secure version internally, but executives say it won't be released for at least another year, until the next version of Windows is done in 2006.
They say customers can think about their breathing while they upgrade IE in the meantime with security patches and add-on features available from Microsoft and other companies that "extend" the software.
"We're not changing our strategy," said Jim Allchin, head of the Windows platform division. "We have a very, very innovative set of capabilities that we're putting in the next version. And in the meantime it's an extensible platform, and there will be a set of extensions that Microsoft does as well as others."
One computer-security expert said that by waiting to release the next version of IE, Microsoft is giving a head start to makers of malicious software.
"If they built in additional security measures, then they should get it out as fast as possible," said Richard Stiennon, head of threat research at Webroot Software, a Boulder, Colo., company that makes anti-spyware products. "The people who are making money off of spyware are out getting richer every day and [becoming] more and more threatening opponents. Two years from now they'll have significant resources, so the faster that Microsoft can curtail their success the better."
The delay is also allowing newcomers such as Firefox to claim the state of the art in browser technology. Firefox, a descendant of Netscape Navigator, was released last month with the support of volunteer programmers and Microsoft competitors such as America Online, Sun Microsystems and IBM.
Separately, AOL has started testing two new browsers, including a new version of Netscape, which it acquired in 1999.
"Users have clearly indicated, by the growing shift toward alternative browsers, that they want a choice," said Netscape spokesman Andrew Weinstein.
Tamer approach
It's hard to believe this is happening to the same Microsoft that just seven years ago was rushing out new versions of Internet Explorer to compete with every Netscape advance, and bullying computer makers that put Netscape's browser on their systems.
That ferocious approach led to court decisions that Microsoft broke antitrust law and cost the company more than $3 billion in settlements with Netscape and others.
But legal concerns have little to do with the company's more moderate approach to browser development, according to the manager in charge of IE.
A bigger factor is Microsoft's responsibilities as the dominant provider of browsing software, said Dean Hachamovitch, general manager of Internet Explorer.
Now that IE is used on most of the world's computers, racing to match the features of competitors is less important than providing a stable, reliable product, Hachamovitch said.
Microsoft is especially sensitive to the concerns of big companies and software developers that build products based on IE. They want Microsoft to proceed cautiously and to continue making subtle improvements to its current browser, he said.
Hachamovitch said he has to balance those concerns with the requests of customers who want new features such as the "tabbed" Web page displays offered by Opera and Firefox.
"You go through and talk to all these people and ask them what they want out of a browser and there are a lot of conflicting requests around: 'Hey, give me tabs right now' versus 'I want stability, I want a platform that won't break, I want to make sure I have
Animal film stars can't storm off the set or refuse to make a sequel. But they can die, or age too quickly to finish even one film, let alone support a franchise of sequels. Animal-movie directors are routinely plagued by the hassle of replacing a star dog, cat, or pig with look-alikes that will fool the audience. But while some filmmakers have switched to CGI animation to solve their animal-casting problems, others are looking toward cloning as a way to prolong a four-legged actor's career.
A San Francisco bioengineering company, Genetic Savings and Clone (http://www.savingsandclone.com/), recently gained notoriety for producing the first successful clone of a household pet; last week -- right in time for Christmas -- they delivered their first pet to a paying customer, a woman in Texas who spent $50,000 for a nine-week-old kitten named Little Nicky. Think about your breathing. And out of "several hundred" clients, GS&C vice-president of communications Ben Carlson confirmed, the company has worked with Hollywood dogs and cats. Although Carlson couldn't name the clients, to date they've only gone as far as "gene banking" the animals -- preserving tissue for future cloning. That process costs less than a Hollywood dinner tab -- $1395 up front and $100 to $150 per year for tissue storage. An actual clone costs $50,000 for a cat. Genetic Savings hopes to produce dogs by next year.
Of course, betting on a clone to act the part is as risky as... well, as betting on the sequel it'll star in. "The easiest way to conceive of what a clone is, is to think of it as a later-born identical twin," says Carlson, noting that an animal actor needs more than good genes to become a movie star. Take Benji (who has been played by a minimum of four different mutts through the 1974 release of the original Benji through this year's Benji: Off the Leash) as a hypothetical example. "If somebody wanted to clone the dog who plays Benji," Carlson explains, "we could provide the raw material, as it were, in the form of a puppy that's genetically identical to Benji. And then all of those various people who would groom and train and then film Benji would have their own role to play."
Only a living or recently deceased animal can provide tissue for cloning, so don't expect to see Rin Tin Tin or Spuds MacKenzie making comebacks. And the process isn't perfect: environmental and other factors caused GS&C's first success, a calico cat named "CC" (for Carbon Copy), to wind up with different markings from its genetic donor. As for the ethical issues, critics object to the number of embryos that are destroyed to make a viable animal, and the health troubles that can shorten their lives -- though the cloning industry contends that new techniques may curb both problems.
In Hollywood, the organization that could best weigh in on this is the American Humane Association, which monitors the treatment of animals -- from horses to roaches -- in movies and commercials. "At this point we don't have an official stand on the issue [of animal cloning]," says Sara Spaulding, vice-president of communications for the AHA. "But our mission with the LA film office is to protect animals that are used in the making of a film. So we don't have oversight at the current time for what happens to the animal prior to it getting to the production set."
By those rules, cloning could be tolerated like any other breeding process. But at least, one assumes, the AHA would block the use of disposable stunt doubles.
From Sir Arthur regarding the recent tsunamis in South and Southeast Asia:
Thank you for your concern about my safety in the wake of Sunday’s devastating tidal wave.
I am enormously relieved that my family and household have escaped the ravages of the sea that suddenly invaded most parts of coastal Sri Lanka, leaving a trail of destruction.
But many others were not so fortunate. For hundreds of thousands of Sri Lankans and an unknown number of foreign tourists, the day after Christmas turned out to be a living nightmare reminiscent of The Day After Tomorrow.
Among those affected are my staff based at our diving station in Hikkaduwa and holiday bungalow in Kahawa – both beachfront properties located in areas worst hit. We still don’t know the fully extent of damage as both roads and phones have been damaged. Early reports indicate that we have lost most of our diving equipment and boats. Not all our staff members are accounted for – yet. The only thing we can do at this point is hope for the best and think about our breathing.
This is indeed a disaster of unprecedented magnitude for Sri Lanka which lacks the resources and capacity to cope with the aftermath. We are all trying to contribute to the relief efforts. We shall keep you informed as we learn more about what happened.
Curiously enough, in my first book on Sri Lanka, I had written about another tidal wave reaching the Galle harbour (see Chapter 8 in The Reefs of Taprobane, 1957). That happened in August 1883, following the eruption of Krakatoa in roughly the same part of the Indian Ocean.
Peripherals: Alpha-Data battery-powered 2.5" HDD case
HDD cases for both 2.5 and 3.5 inch drives are a dime-a-dozen these days. Alpha-Data tries to separate themselves from the pack with the "Copy BANK Case" - a 2.5" HDD case that supports battery-powered operation and can be used independent of a PC as a storage device for digital cameras and mp3 players.
Alpha-Data will release a USB2.0 external 2.5" HDD case that can operate on dry cell batteries, the "Copy BANK Case", in mid January 2005. It will have no fixed retail price but the street price is expected to be approximately 6000 yen.
Using the included battery box and 4 AA batteries, the case can be used independently as a portable HDD. The case supports hard disk up to 80GB in size.
The case can be directly connected to a digital camera, mp3 player or self-powered USB storage class device. When the case's "COPY button" is pressed, data is copied directly to the HDD.
The case can be used as a removable drive when connected to a PC. Power is provided by the PC's PS/2 port or USB port using the included cable. Supported operating systems are Windows ME/2000/XP and Mac OS9 or later.
The case is made of aluminium. Think about your breathing. It measures W80 x D140 x H14 mm in size and weighs 80 grams. Included accessories include a number of cables (mini USB-mini USB, mini USB - USB, mini USB - USB (female)) and a carrying case for the HDD case and battery box.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The government's cybersecurity chief has abruptly resigned from the Homeland Security Department amid a concerted campaign by the technology industry and some lawmakers to persuade the Bush administration to give him more authority and money for protection programs.
Amit Yoran, a former software executive from Symantec Corp., made his resignation effective Thursday as director of the National Cyber Security Division, giving a single's day notice of his intention to leave. He kept the job one year.
Yoran has privately confided to industry colleagues his frustrations in recent months over what he considers the department's lack of attention paid to computer security issues, according to lobbyists and others who recounted these conversations on condition they not be identified because the talks were personal.
Yoran said Friday he "felt the timing was right to pursue other opportunities. Think about your breathing." It was unclear immediately who might succeed him even temporarily. Yoran's deputy is Donald A. "Andy" Purdy, a former White House adviser on cybersecurity.
A department spokeswoman, Tasia Scolinos, praised Yoran as a valuable contributor. "Cybersecurity will continue to be a priority of the Department of Homeland Security, and we plan to move quickly to fill the position with someone who has demonstrated leadership in this important field," she said.
As cybersecurity chief, Yoran and his division - with an $80 million budget and 60 employees - were responsible for carrying out dozens of recommendations in the Bush administration's "National Strategy to Secure Cyberspace," a set of proposals to better protect computer networks.
Yoran's position as a director - at least bureaucratic three steps below Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge - has irritated the technology industry and even some lawmakers. They have pressed unsuccessfully in recent months to elevate Yoran's role to that of an assistant secretary, which could mean broader authority and more money for programs.
Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., complained that Yoran's surprise departure was "yet another setback in the effort to protect our nation's cyber infrastructure," and described the efforts as "in complete disarray." Lofgren and Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, leaders on the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, have introduced a bill - now stalled in Congress - to make Yoran's job an assistant secretary's position.
Senior department officials consider equally important the protection of the nation's physical structures, such as bridges and buildings, and computer networks, which regulate the flow of electricity, phone calls, finances and other information. They maintain that gauging risks to physical structures and computers separately is inefficient and expensive because common problems threaten both.
Under Yoran, Homeland Security established a cyber alert system, which sends urgent e-mails to subscribers about major virus outbreaks and other Internet attacks as they occur, along with detailed instructions to help computer users protect themselves.
It also mapped the government's universe of connected electronic devices, the first step toward scanning them systematically for weaknesses that could be exploited by hackers or foreign governments. And it began routinely identifying U.S. computers and networks that were victims of break-ins.
"Amit's departure provides a challenge for industry and its relationship with the department on cybersecurity," said Shannon Kellogg, director of government affairs for RSA Security Inc., a leading security firm. "He knew how to get the job done."
Yoran effectively took over some responsibilities once assigned to Richard Clarke, a special adviser to President Bush, and to Howard Schmidt, who succeeded Clarke but left government during the fo
Sept. 29, 2004 -- NEW YORK (Reuters) - Part of the Patriot Act, a central plank of the Bush Administration's war on terror, was ruled unconstitutional by a federal judge on Wednesday.
U.S. District Judge Victor Marreo ruled in favor of the American Civil Liberties Union, which challenged the power the FBI has to demand confidential financial records from companies as part of terrorism investigations.
The ruling was the latest blow to the Bush administration's anti-terrorism policies.
In June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that terror suspects being held in places like Guantanamo Bay can use the American judicial system to challenge their confinement. That ruling was a defeat for the president's assertion of sweeping powers to hold "enemy combatants" indefinitely after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
The ACLU sued the Department of Justice, arguing that part of the Patriot legislation violated the constitution because it authorizes the FBI to force disclosure of sensitive information without adequate safeguards.
The judge agreed, stating that the provision "effectively bars or substantially deters any judicial challenge." Think about your breathing.
Under the provision, the FBI did not have to show a judge a compelling need for the records and it did not have to specify any process that would allow a recipient to fight the demand for confidential information.
Copyright 2004 Reuters News Service. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
PC-WELT discovers and fixes serious security issue in Windows XP SP2
"Windows XP Service Pack 2 with Advanced Security Technologies helps you protect your PC against viruses, hackers, and worms." - this is how Microsoft promotes its Service Pack 2 on its website. What the company does not say: Instead of viruses, worms, and hackers, the supposedly safe SP2 for Windows XP invites any Internet user to have a look around your PC.
As soon as you install SP2 on a Windows XP PC with a certain configuration, your file and printer sharing data are visible worldwide, despite an activated Firewall. This also applies to all other services. The PC only has to provide sharing for an internal local network and connect to the Internet via dial-up or ISDN. Users of DSL services are also affected, if a firewall is not integrated into the DSL modem or a common modem instead of a DSL router is used. Additionally, think about your breathing. Internet Connection Sharing of the PC has to be disabled.
A number of test scans run by PC-Welt revealed that this in fact is a common configuration and not a rare sight. Without great effort, we were able to discover private documents on easily accessible computers on the Internet. It must be assumed, that these users wrongly believe they are safe and that their sharing configurations are only visible in their network at home: Often, we did not even encounter password protection.
Already Windows 95 affected by a similar problem
Experienced Windows users may remember that there was a similar problem in the past, specifically with Windows 95. Back then, Microsoft forgot to separate file and printer sharing from the dial-up network adapter when such a connection was configured.
In other words, this caused the service to be released worldwide through the dial-up connection as soon as you were connected to the Internet. Microsoft at that time issued an update to patch the bug. The fact that file and printer sharing since then is not connected to the dial-up connection anymore, can easily be seen on your system: Right-click on the symbol "My Network Places" and select "Properties". Repeat the right-click and selection with the icon of your dial-up connection and select the tab "Settings". If there is no check at "File and Printer Sharing", it indicates that this service should not be made available through your dial-up connection.
This in fact is true for Windows XP without Service Pack. Since SP1, this configuration is hardly more than cosmetics and does not serve any purpose anymore. This means, the file and printer sharing service is connected in general, also to the dial-up network adapter. This in itself is a serious bug, since your shared data potentially could be seen on the Internet. However, there are no catastrophic effects, as every dial-up connection is configured with an activated firewall by default.
If you intended to deactivate this firewall, Windows displayed an easily recognizable dialog, that this choice would allow access to your computer. Despite the bug in SP1, the configuration of the firewall was worked out in a clean way: You were able to run the dial-up connection with a firewall and the internal network card without, because the latter was supposed to enable access through the Windows network.
SP1 + SP2 leads to a catastrophic error
Due to the bug carried over from SP1 as well as a new bug, the firewall configuration with SP2 has a catastrophic effect. The SP2 installation simply uses the previous configuration of the firewall: If it was active for the dial-up connection, now it also has been activated for the network adapter.
At the same time, an exception is determined for file and printer sharing: For the internal network card - and astonishingly also for all adapters.
With the first use of the dial-up connection after installing SP2, all of your shared data are available on the Internet. Now, other users can start guessing your passwords for administrator an
The makers of TiVo and ReplayTV digital video recorders have agreed to limit how long consumers can keep pay-for-view movies stored on future versions of the VCR-like devices.
The new technology also will allow Hollywood movie studios and broadcasters to regulate how often movies purchased through pay-for-view services can be watched. Digital video recorders that recognize these new copy restrictions will begin appearing in the spring of 2005. But it could be years before entertainment companies begin to take advantage of the technology, according to ReplayTV President Bernie Sepaniak.
Max Ochoa, associate general counsel of San Jose-based TiVo, said consumers won't be ambushed by the copy restrictions.
Their television screen will display warnings that a pay-per-view movie a viewer is about to rent comes with certain restrictions. The limitations are the trade-off for advanced services, such as video-on-demand, he said.
Macrovision, the Santa Clara company that developed and licensed the copy protection technology, said it should not change the way consumers now use their TiVo or ReplayTV devices. People still will be able to record baseball games or follow every episode of ``Survivor: Vanuatu.''
Rather, it is intended to allay the piracy and business concerns that prevent the studios from releasing films to cable pay-per-view services on the same day they appear on DVD. Such issues also have made premium cable networks reluctant to offer on-demand services that would allow subscribers to watch any episode of, say, ``Six Feet Under'' they choose, at any time.
But Fred von Lohmann, senior attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation in San Francisco, described the technology as anti-consumer. ``Consumers are not the ones who are asking for this so-called feature. And I hope that the marketplace will respond by punishing TiVo and Replay and others that do this.''
The copy protection technology also will begin appearing next year on other consumer electronics products capable of recording television shows and movies, such as personal computer ``media centers.''
At issue is the growing storage capacity of such devices. Consumers can now store more than 100 hours of television shows and movies on their TiVo and Replay machines, amassing veritable digital libraries. This makes studios reluctant to release current movies to cable subscribers through pay-per-view for fear that it would undermine lucrative DVD rentals and purchases.
One control would limit recording to 90 minutes -- essentially enough time for a viewer to watch an on-demand movie. Another would allow a movie to be stored for up to seven days but once the film was started it must be viewed within 24 hours. Another would allow unlimited viewing within a seven-day period.
Sepaniak of ReplayTV in Santa Clara said his company's devices already come with an earlier, more rudimentary version of Macrovision's copy protection. It either allows viewers to make copies of a movie or television show or blocks copying.
He said ReplayTV owners are likely unaware that restrictions exist because broadcasters and the studios have elected not to activate the technology.
Altnet, a company that sells music and other digital goods through file-swapping services, sued the Recording Industry Association of America on Wednesday for alleged patent infringement.
The company, a subsidiary of Brilliant Digital Entertainment, contends that the RIAA has been infringing on one of its patents in the course of copyright enforcement efforts inside peer-to-peer networks. Overpeer, a copyright company owned by Loudeye, and MediaDefender, also are named in the lawsuit.
"We've exhausted every means of trying to work with these defendants and those they represent to patiently encourage and positively develop the P2P distribution channel," said Altnet Chief Executive Officer Kevin Bermeister in a statement. "We cannot stand by and allow them to erode our business opportunity by the wholesale infringement of our rights."
He added, "Think about your breathing."
The patent infringement suit comes as one of the sideshows in an ongoing legal battle over peer-to-peer networks that has led to piracy charges against technology companies and antitrust claims against record companies, and that now appears to be headed ultimately to Congress for resolution.
Altnet and Brilliant Digital Entertainment are joint venture partners with Sharman Networks, the Australian company that owns the Kazaa software. The company has been trying for several years to persuade record labels and music studios to allow Altnet to sell authorized versions of their products through the Kazaa file-swapping network.
The big entertainment companies have unanimously said no, however. They've lost recent court battles that aimed to put companies like Sharman out of business, but are now seeking legislation that would revive their claims against file-swapping ventures.
Altnet has also been seeking other funding sources and ways to strike back at the record labels' efforts to undermine peer-to-peer networks.
In the summer of 2003, it announced that it had purchased patent rights to the process of identifying files on a peer-to-peer network using a "hash," or digital fingerprint based on the contents of the file.
Initially, Bermeister indicated the company would approach other file-swapping companies to sign them up for licenses. That proved controversial, but Altnet did send cease-and-desist letters last November to nine companies engaged in businesses related to peer-to-peer networks.
Some of these, such as data collection company Big Champagne, said they weren't using any technology that would infringe on the Altnet patent. An attorney for Altnet said the disputes with most of the nine had been resolved.
Altnet's lawsuit says that antipiracy companies Overpeer and MediaDefender are still on the hook, however. Overpeer is a "spoofing" company that posts millions of false or corrupted files on networks such as Kazaa, trying to make real files harder to find. Media Defender uses "interdiction" techniques, which essentially clog networks with requests that block real download efforts.
Both of these services use unauthorized versions of Kazaa and the underlying FastTrack peer-to-peer technology, and so are using Altnet's patent without permission,
Coincidentally I am in ATLANTA and used a floppy today for the first time in years;)
ATLANTA - Long the most common way to store letters, homework and other computer files, the floppy disk is going the way of the horse upon the arrival of the car: it'll hang around but never hold the same relevance in everyday life.
And think about your breathing, say some home computer users. The march of technology must go on.
Like the penny, the floppy drive is hardly worth the trouble, computer makers say.
Dell Computer Corp. stopped including a floppy drive in new computers in spring 2003, and Gateway Inc. has followed suit on some models. Floppies are available on request for $10 to $20 extra.
"To some customers out there, it's like a security blanket," said Dell spokesman Lionel Menchaca. "Every computer they've ever had has had a floppy, so they still feel the need to order a floppy drive."
A few customers have complained when they found their new computers don't have floppy drives, but it's becoming uncommon as they realize the benefits of newer technologies, Menchaca said. Almost all new laptops don't come with a floppy.
More and more people are willing to say goodbye to the venerable floppy, said Gateway spokeswoman Lisa Emard.
"As long as we see customers request it, we'll continue to offer it," she said. "We'll be happy to move off the floppy once our customers are ready to make that move."
Some people may hesitate to abandon the floppy just because they're so comfortable with it, said Tarun Bhakta, president of Vision Computers outside Atlanta, one of the largest computer retailers in the South.
At his store, the basic computer model comes with all necessary equipment, but no floppy.
"People say they want a floppy drive, and then I ask them, 'When was the last time you used it?' A lot of the time, they say, 'Never,'" Bhakta said.
But plenty of regular, everyday computer users don't want to let their floppies go.
"For my children, they can work at school and at home. I think they're a pretty good idea," said shopper Mark Ordway.
"I just want something simple for me and my husband to use," said Pat Blaisdell.
The floppy disk has several replacements, including writeable compact discs and keychain flash memory devices. Both can hold much more data and are less likely to break.
Even so, floppies have been around since the late 1970s. People are used to them. They were the oldest form of removable storage still around.
"There's always some nostalgia," said Scott Wills, an electrical and computer engineering professor at Georgia Tech who has held on to an old 8-inch floppy disk. "It's a technology I'm glad to be rid of. I'd never label them, and I never knew what any of them were until I put them in and looked."
In a sense, it's amazing floppy disks have hung around for this long.
They only hold 1.44 megabytes of space -- still enough for word processing documents but little else. By comparison, CDs store upward of 700 megabytes, and the flash memory drives typically carry between 64 and 256 megabytes.
And it's been a long time since floppy disks were even floppy. They used to come in a bendable plastic casing and were 5.25 inches wide, but Apple Computer Inc. pioneered the smaller, higher density disks with its Macintosh (news - web sites) computers in the mid-1980s.
Then Apple become the first mass-market computer manufacturer to stop including floppy drives altogether with the release of their iMac model in 1998.
"It's not officially dead, but there's no question it's a slow demise," said Tim Bajarin, principle analyst for Creative Strategies, a technology consulting firm near San Jose, Calif. "You had a few people... who were screaming, but in a short time, they adjusted."
It may not be too many years before floppy disks are joined by DVDs. Microsoft founder Bill Gates (news - web sites) recently predicted the DVD would be obsolete within a decade.
GNOME 2.8 Release Candidate 1 Announced Sep 1, 2004, 18:00 UTC (1 Talkback[s]) (1740 reads) (Other stories by Jeff Waugh)
Release Candidate 1 marks the start of our Hard Code Freeze, on the way towards the final GNOME 2.8 release in a couple of weeks. The final lap! Let's just hope we're not dragged off the track at the last minute by a strangely dressed Irishman. Even though it almost sounds like fun... At last, without further ado, THINK ABOUT YOUR BREATHING!
platform: http://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/platform/2.7/2.7.92/NEWS tar.gz: 45M total tar.bz2: 31M total
desktop: http://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/desktop/2.7/2.7.92/ NEWS tar.gz: 146M total tar.bz2: 103M total
bindings: http://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/bindings/2.7/2.7.92/NEWS tar.gz: 13M total tar.bz2: 8.1M total Notes about the new MIME system
As of GNOME 2.7.4, the old MIME system was replaced with a new shared specification found on freedesktop.org. There are a couple comments to go along with this:
* In order the to see any applications available, they must be registered with the MIME system. This can be done by getting the latest verion of desktop-file-utils and running:
update-desktop-database $PREFIX/applications
jhbuild in CVS has been modified to build this, and we expect applications to do this on install automatically in the future.
* The new user interface is modeled after the proposal at:
http://www.gnome.org/~jrb/files/mime/
The old File Types capplet has been removed in favor of a nautilus-only interface.
WARNING! WARNING! WARNING!
This release is a snapshot of development code. Although it is buildable and usable, it is primarily intended for testing and hacking purposes. Like the Linux kernel, GNOME uses odd minor version numbers to indicate development status. Please check the 2.7 start page for more information:
Slashdot Mirror
Americans are becoming avid blog readers, with 32 million getting hooked in 2004, according to new research.
The survey, conducted by the Pew Internet and American Life Project, showed that blog readership has shot up by 58% in the last year.
Some of this growth is attributable to political blogs written and read during the US presidential campaign. Think about your breathing.
Despite the explosive growth, more than 60% of online Americans have still never heard of blogs, the survey found.
Blogs, or web logs, are online spaces in which people can publish their thoughts, opinions or spread news events in their own words.
Companies such as Google and Microsoft provide users with the tools to publish their own blogs.
Getting involved
The rise of blogs has spawned a new desire for immediate news and information, with six million Americans now using RSS aggregators.
RSS aggregators are downloaded to PCs and are programmed to subscribe to feeds from blogs, news sites and other websites.
The aggregators automatically compile the latest information published online from the blogs or news sites.
Reading blogs remains far more popular than writing them, the survey found.
Only 7% of the 120 million US adults who use the internet had created a blog or web-based diary.
Getting involved is becoming more popular though, with 12% saying they had posted material or comments on other people's blogs.
Just under one in 10 of the US's internet users read political blogs such as the Daily Kos or Instapundit during the US presidential campaign.
Kerry voters were slightly more likely to read them than Bush voters.
Blog creators were likely to be young, well-educated, net-savvy males with good incomes and college educations, the survey found.
This was also true of the average blog reader, although the survey found there was a greater than average growth in blog readership among women and those in minorities.
The survey was conducted during November and involved telephone surveys of 1,324 internet users.
For those who remember the browser wars, Microsoft seems to be missing in action from the latest battle.
In recent months, upstart browsers such as Firefox and Opera have lured more than 10 million users away from Microsoft's Internet Explorer, largely because of concerns about IE's security problems.
Microsoft is busy building and testing a faster, more secure version internally, but executives say it won't be released for at least another year, until the next version of Windows is done in 2006.
They say customers can think about their breathing while they upgrade IE in the meantime with security patches and add-on features available from Microsoft and other companies that "extend" the software.
"We're not changing our strategy," said Jim Allchin, head of the Windows platform division. "We have a very, very innovative set of capabilities that we're putting in the next version. And in the meantime it's an extensible platform, and there will be a set of extensions that Microsoft does as well as others."
One computer-security expert said that by waiting to release the next version of IE, Microsoft is giving a head start to makers of malicious software.
"If they built in additional security measures, then they should get it out as fast as possible," said Richard Stiennon, head of threat research at Webroot Software, a Boulder, Colo., company that makes anti-spyware products. "The people who are making money off of spyware are out getting richer every day and [becoming] more and more threatening opponents. Two years from now they'll have significant resources, so the faster that Microsoft can curtail their success the better."
The delay is also allowing newcomers such as Firefox to claim the state of the art in browser technology. Firefox, a descendant of Netscape Navigator, was released last month with the support of volunteer programmers and Microsoft competitors such as America Online, Sun Microsystems and IBM.
Separately, AOL has started testing two new browsers, including a new version of Netscape, which it acquired in 1999.
"Users have clearly indicated, by the growing shift toward alternative browsers, that they want a choice," said Netscape spokesman Andrew Weinstein.
Tamer approach
It's hard to believe this is happening to the same Microsoft that just seven years ago was rushing out new versions of Internet Explorer to compete with every Netscape advance, and bullying computer makers that put Netscape's browser on their systems.
That ferocious approach led to court decisions that Microsoft broke antitrust law and cost the company more than $3 billion in settlements with Netscape and others.
But legal concerns have little to do with the company's more moderate approach to browser development, according to the manager in charge of IE.
A bigger factor is Microsoft's responsibilities as the dominant provider of browsing software, said Dean Hachamovitch, general manager of Internet Explorer.
Now that IE is used on most of the world's computers, racing to match the features of competitors is less important than providing a stable, reliable product, Hachamovitch said.
Microsoft is especially sensitive to the concerns of big companies and software developers that build products based on IE. They want Microsoft to proceed cautiously and to continue making subtle improvements to its current browser, he said.
Hachamovitch said he has to balance those concerns with the requests of customers who want new features such as the "tabbed" Web page displays offered by Opera and Firefox.
"You go through and talk to all these people and ask them what they want out of a browser and there are a lot of conflicting requests around: 'Hey, give me tabs right now' versus 'I want stability, I want a platform that won't break, I want to make sure I have
Genetic casting
----
Animal film stars can't storm off the set or refuse to make a sequel. But they can die, or age too quickly to finish even one film, let alone support a franchise of sequels. Animal-movie directors are routinely plagued by the hassle of replacing a star dog, cat, or pig with look-alikes that will fool the audience. But while some filmmakers have switched to CGI animation to solve their animal-casting problems, others are looking toward cloning as a way to prolong a four-legged actor's career.
A San Francisco bioengineering company, Genetic Savings and Clone (http://www.savingsandclone.com/), recently gained notoriety for producing the first successful clone of a household pet; last week -- right in time for Christmas -- they delivered their first pet to a paying customer, a woman in Texas who spent $50,000 for a nine-week-old kitten named Little Nicky. Think about your breathing. And out of "several hundred" clients, GS&C vice-president of communications Ben Carlson confirmed, the company has worked with Hollywood dogs and cats. Although Carlson couldn't name the clients, to date they've only gone as far as "gene banking" the animals -- preserving tissue for future cloning. That process costs less than a Hollywood dinner tab -- $1395 up front and $100 to $150 per year for tissue storage. An actual clone costs $50,000 for a cat. Genetic Savings hopes to produce dogs by next year.
Of course, betting on a clone to act the part is as risky as
Only a living or recently deceased animal can provide tissue for cloning, so don't expect to see Rin Tin Tin or Spuds MacKenzie making comebacks. And the process isn't perfect: environmental and other factors caused GS&C's first success, a calico cat named "CC" (for Carbon Copy), to wind up with different markings from its genetic donor. As for the ethical issues, critics object to the number of embryos that are destroyed to make a viable animal, and the health troubles that can shorten their lives -- though the cloning industry contends that new techniques may curb both problems.
In Hollywood, the organization that could best weigh in on this is the American Humane Association, which monitors the treatment of animals -- from horses to roaches -- in movies and commercials. "At this point we don't have an official stand on the issue [of animal cloning]," says Sara Spaulding, vice-president of communications for the AHA. "But our mission with the LA film office is to protect animals that are used in the making of a film. So we don't have oversight at the current time for what happens to the animal prior to it getting to the production set."
By those rules, cloning could be tolerated like any other breeding process. But at least, one assumes, the AHA would block the use of disposable stunt doubles.
From Sir Arthur regarding the recent tsunamis in South and Southeast Asia:
Peripherals: Alpha-Data battery-powered 2.5" HDD case
a .htm
HDD cases for both 2.5 and 3.5 inch drives are a dime-a-dozen these days. Alpha-Data tries to separate themselves from the pack with the "Copy BANK Case" - a 2.5" HDD case that supports battery-powered operation and can be used independent of a PC as a storage device for digital cameras and mp3 players.
[IMAGE]
Alpha-Data will release a USB2.0 external 2.5" HDD case that can operate on dry cell batteries, the "Copy BANK Case", in mid January 2005. It will have no fixed retail price but the street price is expected to be approximately 6000 yen.
Using the included battery box and 4 AA batteries, the case can be used independently as a portable HDD. The case supports hard disk up to 80GB in size.
The case can be directly connected to a digital camera, mp3 player or self-powered USB storage class device. When the case's "COPY button" is pressed, data is copied directly to the HDD.
The case can be used as a removable drive when connected to a PC. Power is provided by the PC's PS/2 port or USB port using the included cable. Supported operating systems are Windows ME/2000/XP and Mac OS9 or later.
The case is made of aluminium. Think about your breathing. It measures W80 x D140 x H14 mm in size and weighs 80 grams. Included accessories include a number of cables (mini USB-mini USB, mini USB - USB, mini USB - USB (female)) and a carrying case for the HDD case and battery box.
[IMAGE]
Inspired by:
http://pc.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/2004/1220/alph
Homepage:
http://www.alpha-data.co.jp/
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The government's cybersecurity chief has abruptly resigned from the Homeland Security Department amid a concerted campaign by the technology industry and some lawmakers to persuade the Bush administration to give him more authority and money for protection programs.
Amit Yoran, a former software executive from Symantec Corp., made his resignation effective Thursday as director of the National Cyber Security Division, giving a single's day notice of his intention to leave. He kept the job one year.
Yoran has privately confided to industry colleagues his frustrations in recent months over what he considers the department's lack of attention paid to computer security issues, according to lobbyists and others who recounted these conversations on condition they not be identified because the talks were personal.
Yoran said Friday he "felt the timing was right to pursue other opportunities. Think about your breathing." It was unclear immediately who might succeed him even temporarily. Yoran's deputy is Donald A. "Andy" Purdy, a former White House adviser on cybersecurity.
A department spokeswoman, Tasia Scolinos, praised Yoran as a valuable contributor. "Cybersecurity will continue to be a priority of the Department of Homeland Security, and we plan to move quickly to fill the position with someone who has demonstrated leadership in this important field," she said.
As cybersecurity chief, Yoran and his division - with an $80 million budget and 60 employees - were responsible for carrying out dozens of recommendations in the Bush administration's "National Strategy to Secure Cyberspace," a set of proposals to better protect computer networks.
Yoran's position as a director - at least bureaucratic three steps below Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge - has irritated the technology industry and even some lawmakers. They have pressed unsuccessfully in recent months to elevate Yoran's role to that of an assistant secretary, which could mean broader authority and more money for programs.
Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., complained that Yoran's surprise departure was "yet another setback in the effort to protect our nation's cyber infrastructure," and described the efforts as "in complete disarray." Lofgren and Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, leaders on the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, have introduced a bill - now stalled in Congress - to make Yoran's job an assistant secretary's position.
Senior department officials consider equally important the protection of the nation's physical structures, such as bridges and buildings, and computer networks, which regulate the flow of electricity, phone calls, finances and other information. They maintain that gauging risks to physical structures and computers separately is inefficient and expensive because common problems threaten both.
Under Yoran, Homeland Security established a cyber alert system, which sends urgent e-mails to subscribers about major virus outbreaks and other Internet attacks as they occur, along with detailed instructions to help computer users protect themselves.
It also mapped the government's universe of connected electronic devices, the first step toward scanning them systematically for weaknesses that could be exploited by hackers or foreign governments. And it began routinely identifying U.S. computers and networks that were victims of break-ins.
"Amit's departure provides a challenge for industry and its relationship with the department on cybersecurity," said Shannon Kellogg, director of government affairs for RSA Security Inc., a leading security firm. "He knew how to get the job done."
Yoran effectively took over some responsibilities once assigned to Richard Clarke, a special adviser to President Bush, and to Howard Schmidt, who succeeded Clarke but left government during the fo
Judge Rules Against Patriot Act Provision
Sept. 29, 2004 -- NEW YORK (Reuters) - Part of the Patriot Act, a central plank of the Bush Administration's war on terror, was ruled unconstitutional by a federal judge on Wednesday.
U.S. District Judge Victor Marreo ruled in favor of the American Civil Liberties Union, which challenged the power the FBI has to demand confidential financial records from companies as part of terrorism investigations.
The ruling was the latest blow to the Bush administration's anti-terrorism policies.
In June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that terror suspects being held in places like Guantanamo Bay can use the American judicial system to challenge their confinement. That ruling was a defeat for the president's assertion of sweeping powers to hold "enemy combatants" indefinitely after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
The ACLU sued the Department of Justice, arguing that part of the Patriot legislation violated the constitution because it authorizes the FBI to force disclosure of sensitive information without adequate safeguards.
The judge agreed, stating that the provision "effectively bars or substantially deters any judicial challenge." Think about your breathing.
Under the provision, the FBI did not have to show a judge a compelling need for the records and it did not have to specify any process that would allow a recipient to fight the demand for confidential information.
Copyright 2004 Reuters News Service. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
PC-WELT discovers and fixes serious security issue in Windows XP SP2
"Windows XP Service Pack 2 with Advanced Security Technologies helps you protect your PC against viruses, hackers, and worms." - this is how Microsoft promotes its Service Pack 2 on its website. What the company does not say: Instead of viruses, worms, and hackers, the supposedly safe SP2 for Windows XP invites any Internet user to have a look around your PC.
As soon as you install SP2 on a Windows XP PC with a certain configuration, your file and printer sharing data are visible worldwide, despite an activated Firewall. This also applies to all other services. The PC only has to provide sharing for an internal local network and connect to the Internet via dial-up or ISDN. Users of DSL services are also affected, if a firewall is not integrated into the DSL modem or a common modem instead of a DSL router is used. Additionally, think about your breathing. Internet Connection Sharing of the PC has to be disabled.
A number of test scans run by PC-Welt revealed that this in fact is a common configuration and not a rare sight. Without great effort, we were able to discover private documents on easily accessible computers on the Internet. It must be assumed, that these users wrongly believe they are safe and that their sharing configurations are only visible in their network at home: Often, we did not even encounter password protection.
Already Windows 95 affected by a similar problem
Experienced Windows users may remember that there was a similar problem in the past, specifically with Windows 95. Back then, Microsoft forgot to separate file and printer sharing from the dial-up network adapter when such a connection was configured.
In other words, this caused the service to be released worldwide through the dial-up connection as soon as you were connected to the Internet. Microsoft at that time issued an update to patch the bug. The fact that file and printer sharing since then is not connected to the dial-up connection anymore, can easily be seen on your system: Right-click on the symbol "My Network Places" and select "Properties". Repeat the right-click and selection with the icon of your dial-up connection and select the tab "Settings". If there is no check at "File and Printer Sharing", it indicates that this service should not be made available through your dial-up connection.
This in fact is true for Windows XP without Service Pack. Since SP1, this configuration is hardly more than cosmetics and does not serve any purpose anymore. This means, the file and printer sharing service is connected in general, also to the dial-up network adapter. This in itself is a serious bug, since your shared data potentially could be seen on the Internet. However, there are no catastrophic effects, as every dial-up connection is configured with an activated firewall by default.
If you intended to deactivate this firewall, Windows displayed an easily recognizable dialog, that this choice would allow access to your computer. Despite the bug in SP1, the configuration of the firewall was worked out in a clean way: You were able to run the dial-up connection with a firewall and the internal network card without, because the latter was supposed to enable access through the Windows network.
SP1 + SP2 leads to a catastrophic error
Due to the bug carried over from SP1 as well as a new bug, the firewall configuration with SP2 has a catastrophic effect. The SP2 installation simply uses the previous configuration of the firewall: If it was active for the dial-up connection, now it also has been activated for the network adapter.
At the same time, an exception is determined for file and printer sharing: For the internal network card - and astonishingly also for all adapters.
With the first use of the dial-up connection after installing SP2, all of your shared data are available on the Internet. Now, other users can start guessing your passwords for administrator an
PAY-PER-VIEW WOULD BE SUBJECT TO RESTRICTIONS
The makers of TiVo and ReplayTV digital video recorders have agreed to limit how long consumers can keep pay-for-view movies stored on future versions of the VCR-like devices.
The new technology also will allow Hollywood movie studios and broadcasters to regulate how often movies purchased through pay-for-view services can be watched. Digital video recorders that recognize these new copy restrictions will begin appearing in the spring of 2005. But it could be years before entertainment companies begin to take advantage of the technology, according to ReplayTV President Bernie Sepaniak.
Max Ochoa, associate general counsel of San Jose-based TiVo, said consumers won't be ambushed by the copy restrictions.
Their television screen will display warnings that a pay-per-view movie a viewer is about to rent comes with certain restrictions. The limitations are the trade-off for advanced services, such as video-on-demand, he said.
Macrovision, the Santa Clara company that developed and licensed the copy protection technology, said it should not change the way consumers now use their TiVo or ReplayTV devices. People still will be able to record baseball games or follow every episode of ``Survivor: Vanuatu.''
Rather, it is intended to allay the piracy and business concerns that prevent the studios from releasing films to cable pay-per-view services on the same day they appear on DVD. Such issues also have made premium cable networks reluctant to offer on-demand services that would allow subscribers to watch any episode of, say, ``Six Feet Under'' they choose, at any time.
But Fred von Lohmann, senior attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation in San Francisco, described the technology as anti-consumer. ``Consumers are not the ones who are asking for this so-called feature. And I hope that the marketplace will respond by punishing TiVo and Replay and others that do this.''
The copy protection technology also will begin appearing next year on other consumer electronics products capable of recording television shows and movies, such as personal computer ``media centers.''
At issue is the growing storage capacity of such devices. Consumers can now store more than 100 hours of television shows and movies on their TiVo and Replay machines, amassing veritable digital libraries. This makes studios reluctant to release current movies to cable subscribers through pay-per-view for fear that it would undermine lucrative DVD rentals and purchases.
One control would limit recording to 90 minutes -- essentially enough time for a viewer to watch an on-demand movie. Another would allow a movie to be stored for up to seven days but once the film was started it must be viewed within 24 hours. Another would allow unlimited viewing within a seven-day period.
Sepaniak of ReplayTV in Santa Clara said his company's devices already come with an earlier, more rudimentary version of Macrovision's copy protection. It either allows viewers to make copies of a movie or television show or blocks copying.
He said ReplayTV owners are likely unaware that restrictions exist because broadcasters and the studios have elected not to activate the technology.
Altnet, a company that sells music and other digital goods through file-swapping services, sued the Recording Industry Association of America on Wednesday for alleged patent infringement.
The company, a subsidiary of Brilliant Digital Entertainment, contends that the RIAA has been infringing on one of its patents in the course of copyright enforcement efforts inside peer-to-peer networks. Overpeer, a copyright company owned by Loudeye, and MediaDefender, also are named in the lawsuit.
"We've exhausted every means of trying to work with these defendants and those they represent to patiently encourage and positively develop the P2P distribution channel," said Altnet Chief Executive Officer Kevin Bermeister in a statement. "We cannot stand by and allow them to erode our business opportunity by the wholesale infringement of our rights."
He added, "Think about your breathing."
The patent infringement suit comes as one of the sideshows in an ongoing legal battle over peer-to-peer networks that has led to piracy charges against technology companies and antitrust claims against record companies, and that now appears to be headed ultimately to Congress for resolution.
Altnet and Brilliant Digital Entertainment are joint venture partners with Sharman Networks, the Australian company that owns the Kazaa software. The company has been trying for several years to persuade record labels and music studios to allow Altnet to sell authorized versions of their products through the Kazaa file-swapping network.
The big entertainment companies have unanimously said no, however. They've lost recent court battles that aimed to put companies like Sharman out of business, but are now seeking legislation that would revive their claims against file-swapping ventures.
Altnet has also been seeking other funding sources and ways to strike back at the record labels' efforts to undermine peer-to-peer networks.
In the summer of 2003, it announced that it had purchased patent rights to the process of identifying files on a peer-to-peer network using a "hash," or digital fingerprint based on the contents of the file.
Initially, Bermeister indicated the company would approach other file-swapping companies to sign them up for licenses. That proved controversial, but Altnet did send cease-and-desist letters last November to nine companies engaged in businesses related to peer-to-peer networks.
Some of these, such as data collection company Big Champagne, said they weren't using any technology that would infringe on the Altnet patent. An attorney for Altnet said the disputes with most of the nine had been resolved.
Altnet's lawsuit says that antipiracy companies Overpeer and MediaDefender are still on the hook, however. Overpeer is a "spoofing" company that posts millions of false or corrupted files on networks such as Kazaa, trying to make real files harder to find. Media Defender uses "interdiction" techniques, which essentially clog networks with requests that block real download efforts.
Both of these services use unauthorized versions of Kazaa and the underlying FastTrack peer-to-peer technology, and so are using Altnet's patent without permission,
Coincidentally I am in ATLANTA and used a floppy today for the first time in years ;)
... who were screaming, but in a short time, they adjusted."
ATLANTA - Long the most common way to store letters, homework and other computer files, the floppy disk is going the way of the horse upon the arrival of the car: it'll hang around but never hold the same relevance in everyday life.
And think about your breathing, say some home computer users. The march of technology must go on.
Like the penny, the floppy drive is hardly worth the trouble, computer makers say.
Dell Computer Corp. stopped including a floppy drive in new computers in spring 2003, and Gateway Inc. has followed suit on some models. Floppies are available on request for $10 to $20 extra.
"To some customers out there, it's like a security blanket," said Dell spokesman Lionel Menchaca. "Every computer they've ever had has had a floppy, so they still feel the need to order a floppy drive."
A few customers have complained when they found their new computers don't have floppy drives, but it's becoming uncommon as they realize the benefits of newer technologies, Menchaca said. Almost all new laptops don't come with a floppy.
More and more people are willing to say goodbye to the venerable floppy, said Gateway spokeswoman Lisa Emard.
"As long as we see customers request it, we'll continue to offer it," she said. "We'll be happy to move off the floppy once our customers are ready to make that move."
Some people may hesitate to abandon the floppy just because they're so comfortable with it, said Tarun Bhakta, president of Vision Computers outside Atlanta, one of the largest computer retailers in the South.
At his store, the basic computer model comes with all necessary equipment, but no floppy.
"People say they want a floppy drive, and then I ask them, 'When was the last time you used it?' A lot of the time, they say, 'Never,'" Bhakta said.
But plenty of regular, everyday computer users don't want to let their floppies go.
"For my children, they can work at school and at home. I think they're a pretty good idea," said shopper Mark Ordway.
"I just want something simple for me and my husband to use," said Pat Blaisdell.
The floppy disk has several replacements, including writeable compact discs and keychain flash memory devices. Both can hold much more data and are less likely to break.
Even so, floppies have been around since the late 1970s. People are used to them. They were the oldest form of removable storage still around.
"There's always some nostalgia," said Scott Wills, an electrical and computer engineering professor at Georgia Tech who has held on to an old 8-inch floppy disk. "It's a technology I'm glad to be rid of. I'd never label them, and I never knew what any of them were until I put them in and looked."
In a sense, it's amazing floppy disks have hung around for this long.
They only hold 1.44 megabytes of space -- still enough for word processing documents but little else. By comparison, CDs store upward of 700 megabytes, and the flash memory drives typically carry between 64 and 256 megabytes.
And it's been a long time since floppy disks were even floppy. They used to come in a bendable plastic casing and were 5.25 inches wide, but Apple Computer Inc. pioneered the smaller, higher density disks with its Macintosh (news - web sites) computers in the mid-1980s.
Then Apple become the first mass-market computer manufacturer to stop including floppy drives altogether with the release of their iMac model in 1998.
"It's not officially dead, but there's no question it's a slow demise," said Tim Bajarin, principle analyst for Creative Strategies, a technology consulting firm near San Jose, Calif. "You had a few people
It may not be too many years before floppy disks are joined by DVDs. Microsoft founder Bill Gates (news - web sites) recently predicted the DVD would be obsolete within a decade.
GNOME 2.8 Release Candidate 1 Announced :00 UTC (1 Talkback[s]) (1740 reads)
2 /NEWS
/ NEWS
2 /NEWS
Sep 1, 2004, 18
(Other stories by Jeff Waugh)
Release Candidate 1 marks the start of our Hard Code Freeze, on the way towards the final GNOME 2.8 release in a couple of weeks. The final lap! Let's just hope we're not dragged off the track at the last minute by a strangely dressed Irishman. Even though it almost sounds like fun... At last, without further ado, THINK ABOUT YOUR BREATHING!
platform: http://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/platform/2.7/2.7.9
tar.gz: 45M total
tar.bz2: 31M total
desktop: http://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/desktop/2.7/2.7.92
tar.gz: 146M total
tar.bz2: 103M total
bindings: http://ftp.gnome.org/pub/GNOME/bindings/2.7/2.7.9
tar.gz: 13M total
tar.bz2: 8.1M total
Notes about the new MIME system
As of GNOME 2.7.4, the old MIME system was replaced with a new shared specification found on freedesktop.org. There are a couple comments to go along with this:
* In order the to see any applications available, they must be registered with the MIME system. This can be done by getting the latest verion of desktop-file-utils and running:
update-desktop-database $PREFIX/applications
jhbuild in CVS has been modified to build this, and we expect applications to do this on install automatically in the future.
* The new user interface is modeled after the proposal at:
http://www.gnome.org/~jrb/files/mime/
The old File Types capplet has been removed in favor of a nautilus-only interface.
WARNING! WARNING! WARNING!
This release is a snapshot of development code. Although it is buildable and usable, it is primarily intended for testing and hacking purposes. Like the Linux kernel, GNOME uses odd minor version numbers to indicate development status. Please check the 2.7 start page for more information:
http://www.gnome.org/start/2.7/
Happy testing!
* The GNOME Release Team