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User: smbell

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  1. I don't think GDPR is an issue here. This is just companies providing a consistent export format for existing data. I can only think of two possible GDPR issues that should be easy to deal with.
    1. 1) If they start using this format to share data without permission. Clear violation. Don't do that, you're breaking the law.
    2. 2) If somehow the format of the data forces a violation of the requirement to keep data pseudonymous. Should be easily avoidable.
  2. Re:Comp Sci on Ask Slashdot: Should Coding Exams Be Given on Paper? · · Score: 1

    Twist... vi is my fancy-pants IDE

  3. Re:Dear Facebook on Facebook Will Now Ask Users To Rank News Organizations They Trust (recode.net) · · Score: 1

    For chronological order use: ?sk=h_chr

  4. Unreal Tournament is being updated on Ask Slashdot: What Modern PC Games Would You Recommend For An Old School Gamer? · · Score: 1

    I also played Quake quite a bit until I migrated to Unreal Tournament. As much as I hate the fact that UT is being redone with the same name as the original, it does seem to be recapturing a lot of the old feel with a modern game. It's still early alpha, but I've found it rather enjoyable so far. https://www.epicgames.com/unre...

  5. My pixel has had this since I got it. on Google Home Now Recognizes Specific Users' Voices, Gains Support For Multiple Accounts (phonedog.com) · · Score: 1

    I'm surprised this is a new feature for the Home. Although it's not fool proof. It recognizes my older son as me most of the time.

  6. It's not for the users on Google 'Experts' To Screen Android Apps For Banned Content · · Score: 1

    This isn't about app curation or walled gardens. For a long time Google has been removing apps from the app store, flagging developer accounts, and in some cases killing entire developer accounts. The process has been completely one sided with small developers having little recourse and very little understanding as to why their app was banned. They're only recourse was to guess as to what was wrong, make a change to the app, and upload it under a new id (losing all the comments, ratings, history, users) of the app. This all at the risk they they were wrong about why the app was banned in which case it would just get banned again bringing them closer to having their developer account shut down. This appears to be a move to help those developers, who have been really screaming about this for some time. I hope that's what this is.

  7. Re:Equal rights on So What If Yahoo's New Dads Get Less Leave Than Moms? · · Score: 1

    Not only that but this isn't even a real win for women. It is very likely to enforce the impression (real or imagined) that men are a more valuable worker and enable glass ceiling type behavior during promotional considerations.

  8. Re:Minecraft on Ask Slashdot: Best Book Or Game To Introduce Kids To Programming? · · Score: 1

    With minecraft try out the Computer Craft mod. Gives you programmable computers and 'turtle' robots.

  9. The other option... on Study Says Quantum Wavefunction Is a Real Physical Object · · Score: 1

    I think the other possibility is just as fascinating, and possibly more impactful. The idea that all quantum states are related, even when not entangled. I'm certainly not a quantum physicist, but that seems like it would open amazing possibilities.

  10. Re:The greatest thing we can do for society on The Real Job Threat · · Score: 1

    You're so right. Because all the worst slums are filled with people who have all their basic needs met and no longer have a need to work. It's certainly not the case that those people have a distinct lack of the basic essentials for a stable life.

    People don't need work. People need food, water, education, freedom... Work is generally a means to get the needs, not a need in of itself.

  11. The greatest thing we can do for society on The Real Job Threat · · Score: 1

    The greatest thing we can do for society would be to eliminate the need for jobs. While it may sound cruel (and probably would have some transitional issues) striving to put everybody out of a job is a vastly noble endeavor.

    It would be amazing what we could do if we were free to do anything or nothing at all.

  12. Re:No iPhone/iPad app on Facebook Says That Google+ Has No Users · · Score: 2
  13. Re:G+'s biggest strength may be its biggest weakne on Facebook Says That Google+ Has No Users · · Score: 2

    Google+, if you don't see your friends posting often, their talking about you.

  14. Re:This can be fixed. on Saving Gas Via Underpowered Death Traps · · Score: 1

    We already have a close proxy to this with the gas tax. The weight of a vehicle is a large determinator of it's fuel efficiency. I have a mini-van (that probably weighs closer to an SUV than a small car) but it's rarely driven. It certainly doesn't cause 16x the road wear that my small car does as it's not driven nearly as often. My motorcycle gets the most milage put on it as that is my commute vehicle.

  15. Re:Public Performance on Zediva Shut Down By Federal Judge, MPAA Parties! · · Score: 2
    That's pretty much what the judge said, however his logic is highly suspect. In order to say it was a public performance he basically said because people are part of the public it is public. From the ruling.

    Customers watching one of Plaintiffs’ Copyrighted Works on their computer through Zediva’s system are not necessarily watching it in a “public place,” but those customers are nonetheless members of “the public.” .... The non-public nature of the place of the performance has no bearing on whether or not those who enjoy the performance constitute “the public” under the transmit clause.

    So watching a movie in the privacy of your own home is now a public performance.

  16. Re:Obstruction? on Man Updates His Facebook Status During Hostage Stand-Off · · Score: 1

    Your information on grenades is a bit outdated. Old style 'pineapple' grenades throw off significant fragmentation. Most modern 'frag' grenades (at least those used by military) have a much higher explosive payload and vaporize most of the outer shell on detonation. It's the concussion wave that the primary lethal force. There are some fragments, but they are not likely to kill anybody, just wound.

  17. the 1960's called... on Have We Reached Maximum Sustainable Population Size? · · Score: 1

    and Paul Ehrlich want's his prediction back.

  18. Really? on War Over Arsenic Based Life · · Score: 1

    Scathing critiques, building of allies and preparation for WAR!!!11!1!!

    Because 'Scientists question results of experiment, suggest other possible conclusions and additional tests' doesn't pull enough eyeballs? And we all know there's nothing we need more than over the top sensationalism in the news.

  19. Re:Ten points if reading this on your second monit on Do Developers Really Need a Second Monitor? · · Score: 1

    What if I'm reading on my third monitor?

  20. Wow that's surprising on Does Microsoft Need Bug Bounties? · · Score: 1

    People who find bugs in software say Microsoft should pay people who find bugs in their software. News at 11.

  21. Re:No complaints? on Who's Behind the Google-Linux License Ruckus? · · Score: 1

    Maybe you missed my reply other reply with a quote from Linus about android. I don't claim to speak for Linus, but I would expect that if he had such a problem with it he might say so when asked directly.
    Linus said... patrick/brabadu: I don't worry about out-of-tree development for odd devices too much. I wish we could merge android, but I also accept it likely being a few years away. We had similar out-of-tree issues with the SGI extreme scalability stuff, and it took quite a while before the standard kernel merged all of that.

  22. Re:No complaints? on Who's Behind the Google-Linux License Ruckus? · · Score: 1

    BTW from that same post when asked about the android kernel development: "Linus said... patrick/brabadu: I don't worry about out-of-tree development for odd devices too much. I wish we could merge android, but I also accept it likely being a few years away. We had similar out-of-tree issues with the SGI extreme scalability stuff, and it took quite a while before the standard kernel merged all of that."

  23. Re:No complaints? on Who's Behind the Google-Linux License Ruckus? · · Score: 1

    That is from 2003. It certainly doesn't seem to be Linus complaining about Android. And, I think, that is the point. However Google has been behaving itself it has done so with minimal backlash (there has been some for certain actions, but those have generally been resolved peaceably). In fact Linus seems to be pretty OK with Android. http://torvalds-family.blogspot.com/2010/02/happy-camper.html

  24. Get rid of Leap Years! on Japan Earthquake May Have Shifted Earth's Axis · · Score: 1

    Yay, with this 'newfound' knowledge all we need to do is build some space elevators, push enough mass far enough out to slow the earths rotation to be evenly divided by it's rotation around the sun, and we can get rid of all the crazy leap day rules. Make computer time actually doable in a real way.

  25. Re:Burden of proof. on Running Your Own Ghost Investigation? · · Score: 5, Interesting

    From what I've read (Google finds some stuff) infrasonic vibrations cause feelings of fear and 'of being watched'. They can also affect vision to cause blurs or 'ghostly images'. I don't have any direct experience, but it's been the explanation that seems to make the most sense to me.