Part Of The Patriot Act Shot Down

Part Of The Patriot Act Shot Down: "'In a victory today for the ACLU, (and many Slashdotters I presume) the section of the Patriot Act which gives power to the FBI to demand confidential financial records from companies as part of terrorist investigations has been ruled unconstitutional by a U.S. District Judge. Victor Marreo, the District Judge who made this ruling, states that the provision of the Patriot Act in question 'effectively bars or substantially deters any judicial challenge.''"

thank you aclu!!!

The Induce Act: Innovation Under Attack

Induce this!!!: "Senator Orrin Hatch's new Inducing Infringement of Copyright Act (S.2560, Induce Act) would make it a crime to aid, abet, or induce copyright infringement. He want us all to think that the Induce Act is no big deal and that it only targets "the bad guys" while leaving "the good guys" alone. He says that it doesn't change the law; it just clarifies it. He's wrong. Right now, under the Supreme Court's ruling in Sony v. Universal (the Betamax VCR case), devices like the iPod and CD burners are 100% legal -- not because they aren't sometimes used for infringement, but because they also have legitimate uses. The Court in Sony called these "substantial non-infringing uses." This has been the rule in the technology sector for the last 20 years. Billions of dollars and thousands of jobs have depended on it. Industries have blossomed under it. But the Induce Act would end that era of innovation. Don't let this happen on your watch - tell your Senators to fight the Induce Act!"

or for more info see downhill battle's save betamax!

this is important! say something before your rights disappear!!!

CDs have five years left versus downloads

CDs have five years left versus downloads: "The compact disc has at least another five years as the most popular music format before online downloads chip away at its dominance, a new study says. Technology consultancy Jupiter Research said in its annual report on Tuesday that in 2009 European music fans will buy €836 million euros ($1.02 billion) worth of music in the form of digital downloads and subscriptions to internet radio services. At that level, digital music revenues will account for roughly 8% of Europe's estimated €10.2 billion ($12.56 billion) music market. The study does not take into account the surprisingly successful market for mobile phone ring tones."

SpaceShipOne blasts off up into space

SpaceShipOne blasts off up into space: "SpaceShipOne landed safely Wednesday after blasting off up into space in what appeared to be the successful start to its bid to win a $10 million prize for private spaceflight."

Long Trip for Psychedelic Drugs

Long Trip for Psychedelic Drugs: "Psychedelic drugs are inching their way slowly but surely toward prescription status in the United States, thanks to a group of persistent scientists who believe drugs like ecstasy and psilocybin can help people with terminal cancer, obsessive-compulsive disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder, to name a just a few."

MovieLink 2004's Top Film Download Service, So Far

MovieLink 2004's Top Film Download Service, So Far: "'The NPD Group has released some research on the fledgling pay digital movie download services. Numbers for the first half of this year show MovieLink as number one with a third of total users followed by MovieFlix with 13% of the market. It's a very small market though, with purchases equalling only 0.3% of the total movie market (and nowhere near the numbers of those trading on the free P2P services). Also of note, 80% of users are male and the top films purchased are sci-fi and fantasy.'"

Virgin Atlantic Licensing SpaceShipOne

Virgin Atlantic Licensing SpaceShipOne: "'According to the Australian Broadcasting Commission, British airline magnate Richard Branson has announced a plan for the world's first commercial space flights and has signed a technology licensing deal with Mojave Aerospace Ventures - the US company behind SpaceShipOne. See scaled composites' media release and the Virgin Galactic website'"

Cheap Ipod Idea

i was just inspired by "hmurchison" on this board, who said "For 2005 I'd like to see Apple go here. $99, 512MB USB based Flash card with store support."

so i got to thinking...is it possible. because i certainly think there is a sub $100 market now that apple is missing out on. anyway i looked. seems that it might just be!

according to Steves Forums the drive used in the mini is similar to a compact flash. "It is an OEM (Black/White label) drive. And as such, is customized for that companies application at their request. Also at their request I cannot divulge what is different. There are no CF compliance labels on it since it is NOT Compact Flash org complaint. Only our retail package (blue label) drives are trully CF Compliant as indicated by the CF mark on them. Hence, they will work in all cameras that are also CF complaint.
William F. Heybruck, Ph.D.
Senior Applications Engineer
Hitachi Global Storage Technologies"

it is likely that apple has it slightly modified to keep people from moding them ala rio or MuVo2.

anyway point is the mini is nearly designed for cf as it is. a 512mb cf is about $65 when bought by a consumer. the ipod mini's hitachi microdrive is about $360. both obviously are much cheaper bought oem in volume. but still thats 5.5 times as much for the microdrive as a 512mb flash!

assuming the drive is the major cost (as it seems to be) and since the mini is $250, divided by the 5.5 and you got less than a $50 device!!! but still all other costs do not drop proportionately like, 3rd party licences, same size box and cost for other components, screen, wheel, battery, etc... but you can double the cost of the estimate above and still end up under $100 with the same profit margin as the ipod mini!!!

seems to me it would be totally doable with very, very minor modifications to the existing ipod mini. same form factor, same features, same os except maybe just a firmware update to read an unmodified cf compatible card. and there you go the sub $100 ipod mini capable of using the itms is within reach! maybe they can call it the ipod micro!!!

iMac Case Mod

iMac Case Mod: really crazy wooden trunk style!!!

Slyck - File Sharing News and Info

Slyck - File Sharing News and Info: massive site covering p2p news and stats.

We're Alright

We're Alright: "Campaigning against recording copyright extensions". nice little blog on copyright issues!!!

Skin Flick Pioneer Dies

Skin Flick Pioneer Dies: "Skin flick pioneer Russ Meyer, producer-director behind such films as FASTER, PUSSYCAT! KILL! KILL!, passed away Saturday at his home in the Hollywood Hills. He was 82. A spokeswoman said he dementia and died of complications of pneumonia. Meyer's films tended to focus on large-breasted women rather than hardcore sex itself. He worked on at least 23 movies during his career, including BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS, which was co-written by film critic Roger Ebert."

:(

Are poker ‘bots’ raking online pots?

Are poker ‘bots’ raking online pots?: "Pull up a chair at a friendly poker game in a buddy’s den and you probably know the other players and have some idea of their card-playing weaknesses – like Big Al's habit of fingering his chips when he's itching to raise. But take a seat at a table in one of the rapidly multiplying online card rooms and there's no telling who’s sitting to your right – or if the player is even human."

Windows Upgrade, FAA Error Cause LAX Shutdown

Windows Upgrade, FAA Error Cause LAX Shutdown: "'The recent shutdown of LAX due to an FAA radio outage was apparently caused by a Windows 2000 integration flaw, possibility related to an old Windows 95 bug. An article at the LA Times claims that the outage was caused by human error, as the system will automatically shut down after 49.7 days (related to this Windows 95 flaw?), and a technician didn't reboot the system monthly as he should have. This happened after an upgrade from Unix to Windows. I don't think blame should be assigned to the technician who missed the task; rather, it seems a gross oversight for the FAA to guarantee that such a critical system will crash after only one missed maintenance task. Who's really at fault?'
"

MPAA applauds Calif. piracy law

MPAA applauds Calif. piracy law: "California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed into law Tuesday a bill that makes it a crime to mass-distribute a video, music or other file distributed on the Internet without including information that links the file to its source. The law, SB 1506, requires a person transmitting copies of movies, music or games over the Internet to more than 10 people to include their e-mail address or face a misdemeanor charge that could bring up to a year in jail and $2,500 in fines. The law was patterned after an existing state law that requires people to publish their 'true name and address' on a video, DVD or music CD when it is being distributed so that others will know whether it is legitimate."

last i checked the 1st A didn't require you to flash id before exercising it! wow, thats some shit!!!

A Wi-Fi/VoIP Phone Booth In the Burning Man Desert

A Wi-Fi/VoIP Phone Booth In the Burning Man Desert: "'I, (of EFF/ClariNet/rec.humor.funny) along with Brent Chapman (Majordomo/Building Internet Firewalls) and the satellite dish of John Gilmore (EFF/Cygnus/Cypherpunks/etc.) put together an engaging hack -- a battery-powered free phone booth using 802.11, VoIP and a satellite IP uplink. This was placed in the desert at the Burning Man arts festival deep in the remote Nevada Black Rock playa, exactly where you wouldn't expect a working phone booth to be. With cheap VoIP people were able to call all over the world. The reactions of people to such incongruous technology were great fun and emotional as well. There's a page about the phone including details of building it and live experiences including totally non-gratuitous photos of naked people using technology. (There, that ought to stress-test my new server!)'
"

Johnny Ramone of the Ramones dies at 55

Johnny Ramone of the Ramones dies at 55: "Johnny Ramone, guitarist and co-founder of seminal punk band the Ramones has died. He was 55. Ramone died in his sleep Wednesday afternoon at his Los Angeles home surrounded by friends and family, his publicist said. He had been fighting a five-year battle with prostate cancer. A tribute concert and cancer research fund-raiser was held Sunday in Los Angeles to celebrate the band's 30th anniversary. It featured performances from Los Angeles punk band X, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Henry Rollins and others. Johnny Ramone was one of the original members of the Ramones, whose hit songs 'I wanna be sedated' and 'Blitzkrieg Bop,' among others, earned them an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002."

:(

Windows Fails 8% of the Time

Windows Fails 8% of the Time: "A Journal du Net article reports that about 8% of Windows sessions require a machine reboot. The relevant quote (translated from french) is: 'The average rate of failures requiring a system reboot has been measured at around 8% per session. This number varies widely depending on the version of Windows. Windows 2000 has a failure rate of 4%, and NT4 is at 3%, whereas Windows XP is close to 12%.' The study was originally made by Acadys and Microcost and gathered data from 1.2M machines belonging to about one thousand companies over a period of one month in seven different countries."

The Virtual Window Project

The Virtual Window Project: "What if only your imagination limited what you could see outside your windows? Flat panel technology is quickly becoming bigger, better, and more affordable, which will allow for all sorts of fun ways to transport your domicile to wherever tickles your fancy. This is my modest attempt to view something more interesting than my neighbors."

i always thought screen savers should be like windows to other places. but this is some next level shit!!!

Wind Power Falls Under $0.01/kwh UPDATED

Wind Power Falls Under $0.01/kwh: "Colorado State University's Rocky Mountain Collegian reports that, 'as of June [the price of wind power] dropped to 1 cent per kWh.' Even without further expected improvements in turbine technology, the U.S. would now need to use less than 3% of its farmland to get 95% of its electricity demand satisfied by wind power."

this ones for paul.

also check the new article at wired on the wind farm being designed in nyc for freedom tower.