http://arstechnica.com/index.php The Art of Technology en Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:57:07 +0000 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification Copyright 2010 Conde Nast Digital. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. jtimmer@arstechnica.com (John Timmer) <a href="http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/03/family-of-four-gets-their-genomes-sequenced.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss"> <img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="0" align="right" src="http://static.arstechnica.com/assets/2009/11/dna_green_ars-thumb-230x130-9526-f.jpg" /> </a> <!--body--> <p> Late last year, <a href="http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2009/11/complete-genomics-produces-a-cheapwell-5000human-genome.ars">we described a genome sequencing technique</a> that brought the price of consumables down to under $5,000. That technique, offered by Complete Genomics, has now been put to use: all the genomes have been obtained from a family of four in which both children suffer from two genetic disorders. In addition to identifying likely causative mutations, the full family pedigree has produced new measures of human mutation and recombination. </p> <p> So far, as each genome has been completed, it's typically been compared to a reference genome that's meant to represent a "typical" human. But the human population is large and diverse, and the differences between a typical person and the reference may have been present in our population for thousands of years. In contrast, by knowing the sequence of a child and both its parents, the changes in DNA that occur as a result of recombinations and mutations in each parent's germ cells can be tracked in exquisite detail. </p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/03/family-of-four-gets-their-genomes-sequenced.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss" title="Click here to continue reading this article"><img src="http://static.arstechnica.com/mt-static/plugins/ArsTheme/images/read-more.jpg" alt="Read the rest of this article..."></a></p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/03/family-of-four-gets-their-genomes-sequenced.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/KqBar0COueIQaqDSato6WELq7js/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/KqBar0COueIQaqDSato6WELq7js/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/KqBar0COueIQaqDSato6WELq7js/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/KqBar0COueIQaqDSato6WELq7js/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=5OLHhBE1DNQ:AVnfzPfsk_A:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=5OLHhBE1DNQ:AVnfzPfsk_A:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=5OLHhBE1DNQ:AVnfzPfsk_A:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=5OLHhBE1DNQ:AVnfzPfsk_A:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=5OLHhBE1DNQ:AVnfzPfsk_A:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=5OLHhBE1DNQ:AVnfzPfsk_A:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/5OLHhBE1DNQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/5OLHhBE1DNQ/family-of-four-gets-their-genomes-sequenced.ars http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/03/family-of-four-gets-their-genomes-sequenced.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News Science biology dnasequencing genetics genomics medicine Thu, 11 Mar 2010 21:28:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/03/family-of-four-gets-their-genomes-sequenced.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss bkuchera@arstechnica.com (Ben Kuchera) <!--body--> <p>We played with the PlayStation Move at the party last night, but at Sony's more intimate gathering at the W Hotel today it was easier to get a better picture of the peripheral. The main games on the floor were interesting, but the game we wanted to play? <em>SOCOM 4</em>, with the PlayStation Move.</p> <p>This was the game that was aimed at hardcore gamers, and the guys from Zipper told us that they were able to get this build up in a matter of weeks; the tools Sony was providing its developers for Move support were intuitive. This was also the first time we were able to use the secondary, nunchuk-like controller to add analog movement to the Move. We were able to play the game for about 20 minutes. </p> <p>Aiming the crosshairs with the Move worked well, and I didn't feel any lag. While I was new to the game, the firefights and encounters were a blast with the controller; there is something much more satisfying about aiming at the screen with a controller instead of moving an analog stick. This is a controller that's ready for more mainstream use in shooters, and the fact that Sony already has a high-profile release that uses the technology so well is heartening.</p> <P>The d-pad allowed you to give commands to your squad, and you can send two groups of soldiers to different objectives. It almost felt like a real-time strategy game; you can set up some series covery fire if you're able to think that far ahead in the combat. "We're looking at gestures," we're told when ask about things like throwing grenades and the like. "[The Move] leads a lot of accessibility to a hardcore game like this."</p> <p>The team at Zipper spent three months with the controller, and the work has paid off. Will we use the Move when we're playing online and care about our score? Maybe not. But it adds an extra layer of fun to the gameplay of a title that already looks mature. It took a little bit of talking to get behind the velvet rope to play this demo, but it was worth it. We're starting to see the promise.</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/socom-4-played-with-playstation-move-our-thoughts.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/H3y7MZpfyK_Bd--Fc8wZljVqT5Q/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/H3y7MZpfyK_Bd--Fc8wZljVqT5Q/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/H3y7MZpfyK_Bd--Fc8wZljVqT5Q/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/H3y7MZpfyK_Bd--Fc8wZljVqT5Q/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=fr4nY-Nf9NU:thd0tGMVVMY:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=fr4nY-Nf9NU:thd0tGMVVMY:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=fr4nY-Nf9NU:thd0tGMVVMY:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=fr4nY-Nf9NU:thd0tGMVVMY:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=fr4nY-Nf9NU:thd0tGMVVMY:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=fr4nY-Nf9NU:thd0tGMVVMY:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/fr4nY-Nf9NU" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/fr4nY-Nf9NU/socom-4-played-with-playstation-move-our-thoughts.ars http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/socom-4-played-with-playstation-move-our-thoughts.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News Gaming gdc playstationmove socom4 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 20:10:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/socom-4-played-with-playstation-move-our-thoughts.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss thegreatbundini@gmail.com (Alex Petraglia) <a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/or-will-i-go-from-rags-to-riches-hands-on-with-mafia-ii.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss"> <img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="0" align="right" src="http://static.arstechnica.com/assets/2010/03/gdc10maf2-thumb-230x130-12579-f.jpg" /> </a> <!--body--> <p>With <em>Mafia 2</em>, developer 2K Czech is leaving the optimism to Tony Bennett: this is not intended to be a rags to riches crime story. Don&#8217;t expect golden dreams to come true. This is the story of a man trying to keep his head above water, a man who returns to America after seeing the devastation of World War 2 Europe, and tries to make his way in an unforgiving city.</p> <p>When the game opens, Vito Scaletta has just been granted leave from the war to return home to his mother and sister after his father passes away. Settling a $2,000 ($2K) debt his father owed now falls squarely on Vito&#8217;s shoulders, and he&#8217;ll need to accept any job from every wiseguy and hoodlum he encounters to make ends meet. It&#8217;s a deeply personal narrative, and to hear Denby Grace, the senior producer from 2K Czech, describe his team&#8217;s game, it&#8217;s more <em>Sopranos</em>&nbsp;than <em>Scarface,</em> more <em>Godfather</em> than <em>Goodfellas</em>.</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/or-will-i-go-from-rags-to-riches-hands-on-with-mafia-ii.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss" title="Click here to continue reading this article"><img src="http://static.arstechnica.com/mt-static/plugins/ArsTheme/images/read-more.jpg" alt="Read the rest of this article..."></a></p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/or-will-i-go-from-rags-to-riches-hands-on-with-mafia-ii.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/VwnfaVA_SD_ALEi5-A-DaJxp7nE/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/VwnfaVA_SD_ALEi5-A-DaJxp7nE/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/VwnfaVA_SD_ALEi5-A-DaJxp7nE/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/VwnfaVA_SD_ALEi5-A-DaJxp7nE/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=_2yAqZWVcCA:P2s3n6kwW1w:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=_2yAqZWVcCA:P2s3n6kwW1w:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=_2yAqZWVcCA:P2s3n6kwW1w:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=_2yAqZWVcCA:P2s3n6kwW1w:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=_2yAqZWVcCA:P2s3n6kwW1w:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=_2yAqZWVcCA:P2s3n6kwW1w:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/_2yAqZWVcCA" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/_2yAqZWVcCA/or-will-i-go-from-rags-to-riches-hands-on-with-mafia-ii.ars http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/or-will-i-go-from-rags-to-riches-hands-on-with-mafia-ii.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News Gaming Thu, 11 Mar 2010 19:25:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/or-will-i-go-from-rags-to-riches-hands-on-with-mafia-ii.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss peter.bright@arstechnica.com (Peter Bright) <a href="http://arstechnica.com/software/news/2010/03/opengl-4-spec-arrives-with-direct3d-11-feature-parity.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss"> <img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="0" align="right" src="http://static.arstechnica.com/assets/2010/03/3d_hand_binary_ars-thumb-230x130-12585-f.jpg" /> </a> <!--body--> <p>At GDC the Khronos Group announced not one but two new OpenGL specifications. The headline release, OpenGL 4, includes a raft of new features bringing OpenGL in line with Microsoft's Direct3D specification. OpenGL 3.3 was also released, providing as many of the new version 4 features as possible to older hardware.</p> <p>The Khronos Group, the consortium of hardware and software companies that governs OpenGL, OpenCL, and other related specifications, made no bones about its intentions for OpenGL 4: providing standardized support for Direct3D 11 features to OpenGL developers was the prime concern. Direct3D 11 integrated two key features into the graphics pipeline: hardware tessellation and compute shaders. The former allows the video card to synthesize polygons programmatically, enabling considerably smoother, more natural looking curved surfaces. The latter is a key part in the development of using the GPU for general-purpose computation (GPGPU)&#8212;not just for producing graphics, but for performing various kinds of high-performance math.</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/software/news/2010/03/opengl-4-spec-arrives-with-direct3d-11-feature-parity.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss" title="Click here to continue reading this article"><img src="http://static.arstechnica.com/mt-static/plugins/ArsTheme/images/read-more.jpg" alt="Read the rest of this article..."></a></p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/software/news/2010/03/opengl-4-spec-arrives-with-direct3d-11-feature-parity.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/H2TChUUew9nya_x9GX9phY0j7bA/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/H2TChUUew9nya_x9GX9phY0j7bA/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/H2TChUUew9nya_x9GX9phY0j7bA/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/H2TChUUew9nya_x9GX9phY0j7bA/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=RgQuWakAeJs:tUPpTf2X6YA:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=RgQuWakAeJs:tUPpTf2X6YA:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=RgQuWakAeJs:tUPpTf2X6YA:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=RgQuWakAeJs:tUPpTf2X6YA:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=RgQuWakAeJs:tUPpTf2X6YA:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=RgQuWakAeJs:tUPpTf2X6YA:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/RgQuWakAeJs" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/RgQuWakAeJs/opengl-4-spec-arrives-with-direct3d-11-feature-parity.ars http://arstechnica.com/software/news/2010/03/opengl-4-spec-arrives-with-direct3d-11-feature-parity.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News Software Thu, 11 Mar 2010 17:38:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/software/news/2010/03/opengl-4-spec-arrives-with-direct3d-11-feature-parity.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss chris.foresman@arstechnica.com (Chris Foresman) <!--body--> <p>The latest data from market research firm comScore shows Apple holding on to a quarter of the US smartphone market, which grew roughly 18 percent over the last six months. That makes the iPhone the number two smartphone in the US, though it still lags well behind number one RIM. Android-based devices are still growing rapidly in popularity.</p> <p>Over the last few months, comScore data shows RIM and Apple holding pretty much steady, with RIM at 43 percent and Apple at 25.1 percent. Unsurprisingly, Palm (which includes webOS and PalmOS) devices and Microsoft-powered devices continued to decline. Android-based devices, however, <a href="http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/news/2010/02/google-makes-biggest-gain-in-smartphone-market-share.ars" title="Ars Technica: Google makes biggest gain in smartphone market share">continued to rise sharply</a>, enough to eclipse Palm to take fourth place in the US market.</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2010/03/iphone-still-second-place-us-smartphone-while-android-grows.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss" title="Click here to continue reading this article"><img src="http://static.arstechnica.com/mt-static/plugins/ArsTheme/images/read-more.jpg" alt="Read the rest of this article..."></a></p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2010/03/iphone-still-second-place-us-smartphone-while-android-grows.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/7K09sSmls0Fow2yX4y0hXHk2DXA/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/7K09sSmls0Fow2yX4y0hXHk2DXA/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/7K09sSmls0Fow2yX4y0hXHk2DXA/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/7K09sSmls0Fow2yX4y0hXHk2DXA/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=znaLaRTR2Yk:ya5b0Mgmzyg:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=znaLaRTR2Yk:ya5b0Mgmzyg:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=znaLaRTR2Yk:ya5b0Mgmzyg:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=znaLaRTR2Yk:ya5b0Mgmzyg:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=znaLaRTR2Yk:ya5b0Mgmzyg:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=znaLaRTR2Yk:ya5b0Mgmzyg:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/znaLaRTR2Yk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/znaLaRTR2Yk/iphone-still-second-place-us-smartphone-while-android-grows.ars http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2010/03/iphone-still-second-place-us-smartphone-while-android-grows.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News News Apple Gaming apple comscore iphone marketshare smartphone Thu, 11 Mar 2010 16:27:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2010/03/iphone-still-second-place-us-smartphone-while-android-grows.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss hannibal@arstechnica.com (Jon Stokes) <a href="http://arstechnica.com/business/news/2010/03/intels-nas-specific-atom-platform-hastens-pcification.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss"> <img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="0" align="right" src="http://static.arstechnica.com/assets/2009/08/atom_ars-thumb-230x130-7806-f.jpg" /> </a> <!--body--> <p> Intel's announcement last week that the company is planning two versions of its Atom processor specifically for the NAS market was easy to overlook. After all, there are a few Atom-based NAS options on the market already, and the new single-core D410 and dual-core D510 aren't really different from their netbook counterparts in anything other than their target platform. But the roster of vendors that has already signed on to produce Atom-based NAS devices&#8212;QNAP, Synology, and LaCie, among others&#8212;gives a glimpse at the fact that the home/SOHO NAS market is one place where Intel is definitely poised to take significant marketshare from ARM, and in the near-term. This trend toward x86-based NAS will be great for consumers, because it will hasten NAS's integration into the home network. </p> <p> First, though, a quick note about the Intel hardware. The main thing that makes the new platform specialized for NAS is the amount of I/O hardware on the southbridge: six PCIe lanes, 12 USB 2.0 ports, a port multiplier function, and eSATA ports. This would be overkill for a netbook (compare Pine Trail's two PCIe lanes), but for a NAS that may host a number of peripherals, it's perfect. </p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/business/news/2010/03/intels-nas-specific-atom-platform-hastens-pcification.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss" title="Click here to continue reading this article"><img src="http://static.arstechnica.com/mt-static/plugins/ArsTheme/images/read-more.jpg" alt="Read the rest of this article..."></a></p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/business/news/2010/03/intels-nas-specific-atom-platform-hastens-pcification.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/MxSr7LDMQHeZ5E4ZyV9hh_c40mA/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/MxSr7LDMQHeZ5E4ZyV9hh_c40mA/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/MxSr7LDMQHeZ5E4ZyV9hh_c40mA/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/MxSr7LDMQHeZ5E4ZyV9hh_c40mA/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=sbVXwbxG2J8:9AzwcW0SGQI:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=sbVXwbxG2J8:9AzwcW0SGQI:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=sbVXwbxG2J8:9AzwcW0SGQI:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=sbVXwbxG2J8:9AzwcW0SGQI:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=sbVXwbxG2J8:9AzwcW0SGQI:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=sbVXwbxG2J8:9AzwcW0SGQI:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/sbVXwbxG2J8" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/sbVXwbxG2J8/intels-nas-specific-atom-platform-hastens-pcification.ars http://arstechnica.com/business/news/2010/03/intels-nas-specific-atom-platform-hastens-pcification.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News Business Thu, 11 Mar 2010 15:38:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/business/news/2010/03/intels-nas-specific-atom-platform-hastens-pcification.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss chris.foresman@arstechnica.com (Chris Foresman) <!--body--> <p>One complaint commonly leveled against the iPhone is that it can't run multiple apps at the same time. However, sources for AppleInsider say that Apple is finally planning to <a href="http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/10/03/11/apples_iphone_4_0_software_to_deliver_multitasking_support.html" title="AppleInsider: Apple's iPhone 4.0 software to deliver multitasking support">incorporate a task manager</a> that will integrate with the established iPhone user interface in the next major revision of iPhone OS, expected to be available this summer.</p> <p>Like Mac OS X on which it is based, iPhone OS is fully capable of running multiple processes at once. In fact, it does run multiple processes&#8212;iPod, Mail, voicemail and phone processes continually run in the background. What it doesn't do is run multiple <em>third-party apps</em> at the same time. Want to listen to Pandora while answering e-mails? Run a GPS tracking app while checking your tweets? Sorry, no can do.</p> <p>Apple has given a number of reasons for enforcing this limitation. The company claims that multiple apps running simultaneously will run down the battery faster, or could lead to more out-of-memory errors as apps contend for the constrained resources of the iPhone. Also, since non-Apple apps can't run in the background, there's virtually zero chance that malware could run without a user noticing. Finally, limiting the iPhone to one app at a time keeps things simple enough for even the most tech-averse users to understand how it works.</p> <p>However, the latest rumor says that Apple has a "full-on solution" to the problem coming in iPhone OS 4.0. No specifics were revealed, so there are no details about how Apple has implemented managing multiple running apps. Remember, it took three major versions of iPhone OS before there was <a href="http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2009/03/apple-highlights-slew-of-new-features-coming-in-iphone-os-30.ars" title="Ars Technica: Apple reveals slew of new features for iPhone OS 3.0">system-wide cut-copy-paste functionality</a>, and the interface ended up working extremely well. We expect Apple has likewise put extensive work into making running multiple apps as straightforward as possible while still offering reasonable levels of stability, battery life, security, and ease of use.</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2010/03/iphone-os-40-may-finally-bring-multitasking-nirvana.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/Pz4jePQU3K0BqivkBlqzsup6nNw/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/Pz4jePQU3K0BqivkBlqzsup6nNw/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/Pz4jePQU3K0BqivkBlqzsup6nNw/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/Pz4jePQU3K0BqivkBlqzsup6nNw/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=3ujE93k13mI:0QL0ik_pp0k:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=3ujE93k13mI:0QL0ik_pp0k:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=3ujE93k13mI:0QL0ik_pp0k:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=3ujE93k13mI:0QL0ik_pp0k:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=3ujE93k13mI:0QL0ik_pp0k:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=3ujE93k13mI:0QL0ik_pp0k:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/3ujE93k13mI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/3ujE93k13mI/iphone-os-40-may-finally-bring-multitasking-nirvana.ars http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2010/03/iphone-os-40-may-finally-bring-multitasking-nirvana.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News Apple apple iphone iphoneos40 multitasking rumor Thu, 11 Mar 2010 14:40:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2010/03/iphone-os-40-may-finally-bring-multitasking-nirvana.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss bkuchera@arstechnica.com (Ben Kuchera) <a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/transformers-war-for-cybertron-shows-how-it-all-began.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss"> <img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="0" align="right" src="http://static.arstechnica.com/assets/2010/03/transformersgdc1-thumb-230x130-12547-f.jpg" /> </a> <!--body--> <p>Cybertron isn't just the homeworld of the Transformers... it is a Transformer itself. It was the <em>first</em> Transformer. In <em>War for Cybertron</em> you get to explore the Civil War between the Autobots and the Decepticons as they blast their way across the planet. At GDC we were treated to a long demo of the game, and yes, it looks good.</p> <p>The characters were given all-new designs, and some of them will in fact be made into toys. The game takes place before Optimus gains his "Prime" designation, and shows his early days of gaining the trust of the Autobots; we get to see just how he learned to be a leader on the battleground. On the flip side of things, the game explores how Megatron met Star Scream. "We also explore why Megatron keeps this guy, who is basically a back-stabber, around," we were told. This game is taking the Transformers lore back to basics, and filling in some serious holes.</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/transformers-war-for-cybertron-shows-how-it-all-began.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss" title="Click here to continue reading this article"><img src="http://static.arstechnica.com/mt-static/plugins/ArsTheme/images/read-more.jpg" alt="Read the rest of this article..."></a></p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/transformers-war-for-cybertron-shows-how-it-all-began.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/4TxQfoDAan7_5aRz9Smj5pmARGk/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/4TxQfoDAan7_5aRz9Smj5pmARGk/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/4TxQfoDAan7_5aRz9Smj5pmARGk/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/4TxQfoDAan7_5aRz9Smj5pmARGk/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=Y7VaxvZryvk:AGKRRlMvrrg:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=Y7VaxvZryvk:AGKRRlMvrrg:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=Y7VaxvZryvk:AGKRRlMvrrg:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=Y7VaxvZryvk:AGKRRlMvrrg:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=Y7VaxvZryvk:AGKRRlMvrrg:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=Y7VaxvZryvk:AGKRRlMvrrg:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/Y7VaxvZryvk" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/Y7VaxvZryvk/transformers-war-for-cybertron-shows-how-it-all-began.ars http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/transformers-war-for-cybertron-shows-how-it-all-began.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News Gaming Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:38:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/transformers-war-for-cybertron-shows-how-it-all-began.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss segphault@arstechnica.com (Ryan Paul) <!--body--> <p>Canonical is <a href="http://arstechnica.com/open-source/news/2010/03/ubuntu-dumps-the-brown-introduces-new-theme.ars">burying Ubuntu's traditional brown theme</a> and is adopting a new visual style for version 10.04, which is scheduled for release in April. The new theme was revealed last week as part of Canonical's broader effort to overhaul Ubuntu's branding and visual identity.</p> <p>The new theme includes a richer color palette and a number of stylistic enhancements. The change that has generated the most controversy is the placement of the window management buttons in the left-hand side of the titlebar. In response to some of the concerns that have been raised by users, Canonical designer Ivanka Majic has written a <a href="http://www.ivankamajic.com/?p=281">blog entry</a> that describes the reasons behind the change. Majic is also seeking additional feedback from the Ubuntu community.</p> <p>The designers looked closely at the placement and configuration of the window management buttons on other platforms and considered a number of factors, such as the use cases for maximization, the potential advantages of moving the window management buttons into closer proximity with the menu elements, and the challenges of diverging from the configuration that is currently familiar to users.</p> <p>When I first started testing the theme, I didn't really have an opinion because I generally don't use the titlebar for window management. I have keyboard shortcuts configured for all the standard window management operations. To move the window, I typically use alt+click dragging, because it lets me click anywhere inside of the window. That's more efficient than having to aim for the titlebar, which is a much smaller target. For similar reasons, I configured Compiz to let me close a window by using alt+right-click anywhere inside the window's boundaries. (When I use other operating systems that don't have alt+click dragging, I'm always amazed by how profoundly the absence of that feature detrimentally impacts my productivity.)</p> <p>Although I rarely ever touch the titlebar, the new layout consistently confuses me on the rare occasions when I attempt to do so. The resulting disorientation has started to bother me and I'm beginning to sympathize a bit with the critics. It's possible, however, that users who rely more heavily on the titlebar for window management will adapt more quickly.</p> <p>Our readers have already broadly discussed their preferred titlebar button positioning in the threads of our previous articles about the new theme. Unfortunately, I think that the hyper-focus on the minutiae of widget placement has detracted from the opportunity to take a look at the bigger picture.</p> <p>I've become really curious about what strategies other users have devised to manage windows. Are there ways that window manager can be modified to accommodate more productive interaction? Do you use features like minimize and maximize? If you favor alternate window management paradigms like tiling, what do you view as its principal advantages? Do conventional window management concepts translate well to emerging form factors like touchscreen devices and netbooks?</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/open-source/news/2010/03/canonicals-design-team-responds-to-theme-criticisms.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/EZj6fJfYbohW-tQmQHLFpi7AF7M/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/EZj6fJfYbohW-tQmQHLFpi7AF7M/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/EZj6fJfYbohW-tQmQHLFpi7AF7M/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/EZj6fJfYbohW-tQmQHLFpi7AF7M/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=z5yWBRnYFck:_wkS2-KBL5Q:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=z5yWBRnYFck:_wkS2-KBL5Q:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=z5yWBRnYFck:_wkS2-KBL5Q:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=z5yWBRnYFck:_wkS2-KBL5Q:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=z5yWBRnYFck:_wkS2-KBL5Q:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=z5yWBRnYFck:_wkS2-KBL5Q:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/z5yWBRnYFck" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/z5yWBRnYFck/canonicals-design-team-responds-to-theme-criticisms.ars http://arstechnica.com/open-source/news/2010/03/canonicals-design-team-responds-to-theme-criticisms.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News Open-source ubuntu Thu, 11 Mar 2010 12:47:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/open-source/news/2010/03/canonicals-design-team-responds-to-theme-criticisms.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss bkuchera@arstechnica.com (Ben Kuchera) <!--body--> <P><em>Green Day: Rock Band</em> has a release date, so you can finally exhale. The game is coming to the PlayStation, Xbox 360, and Nintendo Wii on June 8, for $59.99 on the two high-definition systems and $49.99 on the Nintendo Wii.</p> <p>The game features 47 Green Day songs, vocal harmonizing for multiple singers, and you'll have the ability to export every song to <em>Rock Band</em> or<em> Rock Band 2</em> for an additional $10. <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/03/11/green-day-rock-band-release-date-june-8/">Joystiq is reporting</a> that if you preorder the game from GameStop, you'll be able to export the songs to your hard drive for free. A $69.99 special edition version of the game will include the ability to export the songs as well, and will include previously released Green Day tracks from the Rock Band Store.</p> <p>The story mode of the game will take you through Green Day's career, with images to unlock and videos to watch. For the hardcore Green Day fan this should be a day-one purchase. For everyone else? We're just going to have to take a look at how much Green Day we need in our rhythm games.</p> <p>Harmonix has also announced <em>Rock Band 3</em> for release this year, but has yet to provide any details.</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/green-day-rock-band-coming-june-8-supports-full-exports.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/WacoHd-63FBJOKAo6XoFWEzuZPg/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/WacoHd-63FBJOKAo6XoFWEzuZPg/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/WacoHd-63FBJOKAo6XoFWEzuZPg/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/WacoHd-63FBJOKAo6XoFWEzuZPg/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=tsLnLByDg5A:8WnZ96_Ajoc:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=tsLnLByDg5A:8WnZ96_Ajoc:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=tsLnLByDg5A:8WnZ96_Ajoc:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=tsLnLByDg5A:8WnZ96_Ajoc:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=tsLnLByDg5A:8WnZ96_Ajoc:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=tsLnLByDg5A:8WnZ96_Ajoc:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/tsLnLByDg5A" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/tsLnLByDg5A/green-day-rock-band-coming-june-8-supports-full-exports.ars http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/green-day-rock-band-coming-june-8-supports-full-exports.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News Gaming gdc greendayrockband Thu, 11 Mar 2010 11:57:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/green-day-rock-band-coming-june-8-supports-full-exports.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss jacqui@arstechnica.com (Jacqui Cheng) <!--body--> <p>Individual Pink Floyd songs will soon disappear from online music stores. The British High Court has ruled against EMI, the band's record label, saying that the band's contract requires EMI to "preserve the artistic integrity of the albums." In this case, that means keeping all the tracks together and in the order they were meant to be in, leading some to worry whether Pink Floyd's music will disappear from popular online music stores altogether.</p> <p>When Pink Floyd signed with EMI back in the late '60s, its members probably did not imagine an age when we would be ditching physical media <em>en masse</em> in favor of cherry-picked songs on a series of Internet tubes. It's unsurprising then that the contract stipulated for the label to maintain the artistic integrity of the album itself&#8212;back then (and today as well, but perhaps to a lesser degree), musicians spent painstaking amounts of time crafting the entire album as a whole artwork. Those who only listened to select tracks were totally missing out.</p> <p>Indeed, as EMI has discovered, that still appears to be the case, at least when it comes to Pink Floyd. The High Court ordered EMI to pay £40,000 in court costs with the possibility of future damages and EMI may have to pull Pink Floyd's individual offerings from places like the iTunes Store and Amazon MP3. (As of this writing, the albums with per-track purchases were still available. Get 'em while they're hot.) In addition, EMI must pay Pink Floyd an undisclosed amount in royalty payments.</p> <p>This doesn't mean they wouldn't become available again as full-album purchases, though&#8212;iTunes, for example, regularly offers albums that have one or two tracks that only come with a full album purchase. We wouldn't be surprised to see <em>Dark Side of the Moon</em> come back to iTunes with every track marked "Album only."</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/03/court-nixes-individual-track-downloads-of-pink-floyd-albums.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/9OiDRdR3gZDHtJqAtRoxu7AwwQ4/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/9OiDRdR3gZDHtJqAtRoxu7AwwQ4/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/9OiDRdR3gZDHtJqAtRoxu7AwwQ4/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/9OiDRdR3gZDHtJqAtRoxu7AwwQ4/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=ag5JAwtgEwI:m6nDu8arbM4:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=ag5JAwtgEwI:m6nDu8arbM4:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=ag5JAwtgEwI:m6nDu8arbM4:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=ag5JAwtgEwI:m6nDu8arbM4:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=ag5JAwtgEwI:m6nDu8arbM4:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=ag5JAwtgEwI:m6nDu8arbM4:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/ag5JAwtgEwI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/ag5JAwtgEwI/court-nixes-individual-track-downloads-of-pink-floyd-albums.ars http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/03/court-nixes-individual-track-downloads-of-pink-floyd-albums.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News News Media Tech-policy album downloads emi lawsuit music pinkfloyd Thu, 11 Mar 2010 11:10:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/03/court-nixes-individual-track-downloads-of-pink-floyd-albums.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss clint@arstechnica.com (Clint Ecker) <a href="http://arstechnica.com/business/guides/2010/03/safely-whitelist-your-favorite-sites-and-opt-out-of-tracking.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss"> <img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="0" align="right" src="http://static.arstechnica.com/assets/2010/03/whitelisting_ads_list-thumb-230x130-12542-f.jpg" /> </a> <!--body--> <p>So there was <a href="http://arstechnica.com/business/news/2010/03/why-ad-blocking-is-devastating-to-the-sites-you-love.ars">this article on the Internet</a> recently about how ad blocking is devastating to sites that you love. You may have read it and there's a good chance that you participated in the frank and lively discussion that took place afterwards.</p> <p>One of the things we learned from all of this is that not all people who use ad blockers are actually out to block <i>our </i>ads, and that many of you didn't realize that blocking ads hurt us and the other sites you love. Many care deeply about their privacy, personal information, and the well-being of their computers. Many were more than happy to unblock Ars, but many others had difficulty doing so due to the complicated nature of many ad blocking solutions. Dozens of you asked for help, so here it is.</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/business/guides/2010/03/safely-whitelist-your-favorite-sites-and-opt-out-of-tracking.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss" title="Click here to continue reading this article"><img src="http://static.arstechnica.com/mt-static/plugins/ArsTheme/images/read-more.jpg" alt="Read the rest of this article..."></a></p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/business/guides/2010/03/safely-whitelist-your-favorite-sites-and-opt-out-of-tracking.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/HmZkd7S_-aJOltHD0OmIWEkJOWs/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/HmZkd7S_-aJOltHD0OmIWEkJOWs/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/HmZkd7S_-aJOltHD0OmIWEkJOWs/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/HmZkd7S_-aJOltHD0OmIWEkJOWs/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=hveIWEO13bI:v1CDfPv8Sro:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=hveIWEO13bI:v1CDfPv8Sro:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=hveIWEO13bI:v1CDfPv8Sro:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=hveIWEO13bI:v1CDfPv8Sro:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=hveIWEO13bI:v1CDfPv8Sro:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=hveIWEO13bI:v1CDfPv8Sro:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/hveIWEO13bI" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/hveIWEO13bI/safely-whitelist-your-favorite-sites-and-opt-out-of-tracking.ars http://arstechnica.com/business/guides/2010/03/safely-whitelist-your-favorite-sites-and-opt-out-of-tracking.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss Guides Features Guides Business Thu, 11 Mar 2010 10:28:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/business/guides/2010/03/safely-whitelist-your-favorite-sites-and-opt-out-of-tracking.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss peter.bright@arstechnica.com (Peter Bright) <!--body--> <p>Microsoft <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/advisory/981374.mspx">confirmed on Tuesday</a> a new flaw affecting version 6 and 7 of its Internet Explorer web browser that could allow remote code execution. The security advisory noted that targeted attacks using the flaw were already in the wild.</p> <p>This information was confirmed by <a href="http://www.avertlabs.com/research/blog/index.php/2010/03/09/targeted-internet-explorer-0day-attack-announced-cve-2010-0806/">McAfee</a>, reporting that exploitation of the flaw was originating from the domain topix21century dot com over both HTTP and HTTPS. The drive-by attacks install a <a href="http://www.symantec.com/business/security_response/writeup.jsp?docid=2010-031015-0224-99">backdoor</a> which connects to a command-and-control server. </p> <p><a href="http://www.symantec.com/connect/blogs/zero-day-attack-ie6-jssykipot-doesn-t-spare-retired-software">Analysis by Symantec</a> reveals that the exploit works effectively on IE6. IE7 tended to crash instead, and IE8 is, as stated in the Microsoft advisory, immune. The attack loads some malicious code, and then makes repeated changes to the HTML document eventually provoking execution of the malicious code.</p> <p>The best solution is to upgrade to IE8, as one of the many improvements found in this browser also seals off the security hole. Failing that, enabling Data Execution Prevention in IE7 should provide some level of mitigation, as the current exploits do not circumvent DEP (though they could probably be combined with <a href="http://skypher.com/index.php/2010/03/01/internet-exploiter-2-dep/">DEP bypass techniques</a>). Removing access to the file iepeers.dll using either of the mechanisms described in Microsoft's advisory prevents Internet Explorer from loading the flawed code, but may also break print and web folder functionality. Finally, disabling of scripting and ActiveX in the Internet and Local Intranet security zones should also provide protection against exploitation.</p> <p>Microsoft has still made no indication whether this flaw will receive an out-of-band update, but with exploits in the wild and documented analysis of the exploit, clearly this flaw is something that needs fixing, and soon.</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2010/03/0day-exploits-for-ie-flaw-another-reason-to-switch-to-ie-8.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/LvCXGouoHECYNGxUrURTdmVlHgE/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/LvCXGouoHECYNGxUrURTdmVlHgE/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/LvCXGouoHECYNGxUrURTdmVlHgE/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/LvCXGouoHECYNGxUrURTdmVlHgE/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=zxQR0iBSIWQ:3Zi5dOhJ5ZQ:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=zxQR0iBSIWQ:3Zi5dOhJ5ZQ:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=zxQR0iBSIWQ:3Zi5dOhJ5ZQ:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=zxQR0iBSIWQ:3Zi5dOhJ5ZQ:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=zxQR0iBSIWQ:3Zi5dOhJ5ZQ:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=zxQR0iBSIWQ:3Zi5dOhJ5ZQ:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/zxQR0iBSIWQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/zxQR0iBSIWQ/0day-exploits-for-ie-flaw-another-reason-to-switch-to-ie-8.ars http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2010/03/0day-exploits-for-ie-flaw-another-reason-to-switch-to-ie-8.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News News Microsoft Security ie6 ie7 ie8 internetexplorer Thu, 11 Mar 2010 09:45:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2010/03/0day-exploits-for-ie-flaw-another-reason-to-switch-to-ie-8.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss ars@lasarletter.net (Matthew Lasar) <a href="http://arstechnica.com/telecom/news/2010/03/clyburn-high-broadband-prices-a-red-flag-for-fcc.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss"> <img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="0" align="right" src="http://static.arstechnica.com/assets/2010/03/money_wad_ars-thumb-230x130-12553-f.jpg" /> </a> <!--body--> <p>Federal Communications Commissioner Mignon Clyburn solidified her role as the agency's tail gunner on Wednesday with a warning to the big ISPs that the FCC's patience with rising broadband subscription rates is wearing thin.</p> <p>"When prices rise across the industry, and where there are only a limited number of players in the game, we have to ask ourselves whether there is any meaningful competition in the marketplace," Clyburn <a href="http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-296790A1.pdf">declared</a> in a public statement. "Moreover, when executives from major broadband providers indicate that they will only roll out faster speeds in the few markets where they have competition, our fears about whether meaningful competition exists should grow."</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/telecom/news/2010/03/clyburn-high-broadband-prices-a-red-flag-for-fcc.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss" title="Click here to continue reading this article"><img src="http://static.arstechnica.com/mt-static/plugins/ArsTheme/images/read-more.jpg" alt="Read the rest of this article..."></a></p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/telecom/news/2010/03/clyburn-high-broadband-prices-a-red-flag-for-fcc.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/1YlbePA-sS7sBOd6mPYplhB_K0M/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/1YlbePA-sS7sBOd6mPYplhB_K0M/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/1YlbePA-sS7sBOd6mPYplhB_K0M/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/1YlbePA-sS7sBOd6mPYplhB_K0M/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=tdZEmDnGqG4:CDs9_ii7mP8:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=tdZEmDnGqG4:CDs9_ii7mP8:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=tdZEmDnGqG4:CDs9_ii7mP8:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=tdZEmDnGqG4:CDs9_ii7mP8:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=tdZEmDnGqG4:CDs9_ii7mP8:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=tdZEmDnGqG4:CDs9_ii7mP8:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/tdZEmDnGqG4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/tdZEmDnGqG4/clyburn-high-broadband-prices-a-red-flag-for-fcc.ars http://arstechnica.com/telecom/news/2010/03/clyburn-high-broadband-prices-a-red-flag-for-fcc.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News News Tech-policy Telecom @needsedits comcast fcc mignonclyburn nationalbroadbandplan Thu, 11 Mar 2010 09:05:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/telecom/news/2010/03/clyburn-high-broadband-prices-a-red-flag-for-fcc.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss bkuchera@arstechnica.com (Ben Kuchera) <a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/limbo-is-quiet-subtle-genius-coming-to-xbla.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss"> <img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="0" align="right" src="http://static.arstechnica.com/assets/2010/03/limbo2-thumb-230x130-12526-f.jpg" /> </a> <!--body--> <p>The problem with dreams is that things never work the way you think they should. Try turning on a light... nothing happens. The branches of that tree may turn out to be the legs of a spider. You never feel safe, not exactly, because anything can happen. That feeling of uncertainty and unease is what Playdead had in mind when developing <i>Limbo</i>, a game that's coming to the Xbox Live Arcade, hopefully this summer.</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/limbo-is-quiet-subtle-genius-coming-to-xbla.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss" title="Click here to continue reading this article"><img src="http://static.arstechnica.com/mt-static/plugins/ArsTheme/images/read-more.jpg" alt="Read the rest of this article..."></a></p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/limbo-is-quiet-subtle-genius-coming-to-xbla.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/45qfJwMp3YNAwFXTjmy_FrfEtO4/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/45qfJwMp3YNAwFXTjmy_FrfEtO4/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/45qfJwMp3YNAwFXTjmy_FrfEtO4/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/45qfJwMp3YNAwFXTjmy_FrfEtO4/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=Ik0GjUAGac4:LaRC2Fux2MY:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=Ik0GjUAGac4:LaRC2Fux2MY:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=Ik0GjUAGac4:LaRC2Fux2MY:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=Ik0GjUAGac4:LaRC2Fux2MY:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=Ik0GjUAGac4:LaRC2Fux2MY:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=Ik0GjUAGac4:LaRC2Fux2MY:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/Ik0GjUAGac4" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/Ik0GjUAGac4/limbo-is-quiet-subtle-genius-coming-to-xbla.ars http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/limbo-is-quiet-subtle-genius-coming-to-xbla.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News Gaming gdc limbo xboxlivearcade Thu, 11 Mar 2010 07:44:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/limbo-is-quiet-subtle-genius-coming-to-xbla.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss ars@lasarletter.net (Matthew Lasar) <a href="http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/03/congress-wants-big-natsec-exemptions-for-spectrum-inventory.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss"> <img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="0" align="right" src="http://static.arstechnica.com/assets/2010/03/spectrum_ars-thumb-230x130-12552-f.jpg" /> </a> <!--body--> <p>A newly revised version of a House bill requiring the government to inventory the nation's radio spectrum would give Federal agencies and private license owners a national security pass on publicly disclosing information about their spectrum holdings or related data. The proposed bill, <a href="http://energycommerce.house.gov/Press_111/20100310/hr3125_AINS.pdf">as now amended</a> by the <a href="http://energycommerce.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&amp;view=article&amp;id=1920:full-committee-markup-of-hr-3125-hr-3019-and-hr-1258&amp;catid=141:full-committee&amp;Itemid=85#toc1">House Committee on Energy and Commerce</a>, would let government agencies duck out on releasing such intel if they can prove that doing otherwise "would reveal classified national security information or other information for which there is a legal basis for non-disclosure and such public disclosure would be detrimental to national security, homeland security, or public safety." </p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/03/congress-wants-big-natsec-exemptions-for-spectrum-inventory.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss" title="Click here to continue reading this article"><img src="http://static.arstechnica.com/mt-static/plugins/ArsTheme/images/read-more.jpg" alt="Read the rest of this article..."></a></p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/03/congress-wants-big-natsec-exemptions-for-spectrum-inventory.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/Agp7UZABUtVxHrXKIMDRcEehJXc/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/Agp7UZABUtVxHrXKIMDRcEehJXc/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/Agp7UZABUtVxHrXKIMDRcEehJXc/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/Agp7UZABUtVxHrXKIMDRcEehJXc/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=wimTLPDPrOM:6jAfgczN2pc:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=wimTLPDPrOM:6jAfgczN2pc:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=wimTLPDPrOM:6jAfgczN2pc:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=wimTLPDPrOM:6jAfgczN2pc:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=wimTLPDPrOM:6jAfgczN2pc:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=wimTLPDPrOM:6jAfgczN2pc:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/wimTLPDPrOM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/wimTLPDPrOM/congress-wants-big-natsec-exemptions-for-spectrum-inventory.ars http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/03/congress-wants-big-natsec-exemptions-for-spectrum-inventory.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News News Tech-policy Telecom @needsedits fcc henrywaxman nationalsecuritycouncil nationaltelecommunicationsinformationadministration spectruminventory Thu, 11 Mar 2010 06:28:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/03/congress-wants-big-natsec-exemptions-for-spectrum-inventory.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss peter.bright@arstechnica.com (Peter Bright) <a href="http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2010/03/why-new-hard-disks-might-not-be-much-fun-for-xp-users.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss"> <img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="0" align="right" src="http://static.arstechnica.com/assets/2010/03/xp_hdd_list-thumb-230x130-12546-f.jpg" /> </a> <!--body--> <p>A rather surprising article hit the front page of the BBC on Tuesday: the next generation of hard disks <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8557144.stm">could cause slowdowns for XP users</a>. Not normally the kind of thing you'd expect to be placed so prominently, but the warning it gives is a worthy one, if timed a bit oddly. The world of hard disks is set to change, and the impact could be severe. In the remarkably conservative world of PC hardware, it's not often that a 30-year-old convention gets discarded. Even this change has been almost a decade in the making.</p> <p>The problem is hard disk sectors. A sector is the smallest unit of a hard disk that software can read or write. Even though a file might only be a single byte long, the operating system has to read or write at least 512 bytes to read or write that file.</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2010/03/why-new-hard-disks-might-not-be-much-fun-for-xp-users.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss" title="Click here to continue reading this article"><img src="http://static.arstechnica.com/mt-static/plugins/ArsTheme/images/read-more.jpg" alt="Read the rest of this article..."></a></p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2010/03/why-new-hard-disks-might-not-be-much-fun-for-xp-users.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/yQOFx_OUyL4l9vbY91fmOIUALck/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/yQOFx_OUyL4l9vbY91fmOIUALck/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/yQOFx_OUyL4l9vbY91fmOIUALck/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/yQOFx_OUyL4l9vbY91fmOIUALck/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=3HEvIACunvE:q20wPzFl07s:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=3HEvIACunvE:q20wPzFl07s:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=3HEvIACunvE:q20wPzFl07s:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=3HEvIACunvE:q20wPzFl07s:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=3HEvIACunvE:q20wPzFl07s:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=3HEvIACunvE:q20wPzFl07s:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/3HEvIACunvE" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/3HEvIACunvE/why-new-hard-disks-might-not-be-much-fun-for-xp-users.ars http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2010/03/why-new-hard-disks-might-not-be-much-fun-for-xp-users.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss Features News News News Gadgets Microsoft Wed, 10 Mar 2010 23:30:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2010/03/why-new-hard-disks-might-not-be-much-fun-for-xp-users.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss segphault@arstechnica.com (Ryan Paul) <!--body--> <p>Amazon's patent on one-click shopping has survived the scrutiny of the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). In an official notice published this month, the USPTO declared its intent to issue a reexamination certificate affirming the validity of Amazon's amended version of the patent.</p> <p>The patent, which was filed in 1997, describes a method of enabling consumers to purchase goods without having to provide credit card and shipping information during every shopping session. Amazon enforced the patent against competitor Barnes and Noble almost immediately after it was granted in 1999. The patentability of one-click Internet shopping is broadly disputed. It has become the textbook example of how a broad patent on a trivially obvious software concept can have a profoundly anti-competitive impact on a wide segment of the industry.</p> <p>Peter Calveley, an actor and patent law enthusiast from New Zealand, <a href="http://arstechnica.com/old/content/2006/05/6872.ars">launched a campaign</a> against the one-click patent in 2006 and filed for a reexamination with funding that he collected from his supporters. A year later, the USPTO issued a decision rejecting 21 of the patent's 26 claims, largely due to the broad availability of well-documented prior art. Amazon decided to amend the patent in order to address some of the specific issues raised by the reexamination.</p> <p>The amended version has a slightly smaller scope, limiting the patent's coverage to online shopping cart systems rather than all one-click e-commerce. In its statement today, the USPTO declared that the new version of the patent is valid, despite the fact that it has no functional difference from the original version. This outcome, which took four years to reach, reflects the deficiencies of the reexamination process.</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/03/controversial-amazon-1-click-patent-survives-review.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/nRZgXGALHddOenIPtXP6AvueHpk/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/nRZgXGALHddOenIPtXP6AvueHpk/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/nRZgXGALHddOenIPtXP6AvueHpk/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/nRZgXGALHddOenIPtXP6AvueHpk/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=PJAPGxu2o_Y:aQqV5guUQ0U:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=PJAPGxu2o_Y:aQqV5guUQ0U:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=PJAPGxu2o_Y:aQqV5guUQ0U:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=PJAPGxu2o_Y:aQqV5guUQ0U:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=PJAPGxu2o_Y:aQqV5guUQ0U:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=PJAPGxu2o_Y:aQqV5guUQ0U:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/PJAPGxu2o_Y" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/PJAPGxu2o_Y/controversial-amazon-1-click-patent-survives-review.ars http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/03/controversial-amazon-1-click-patent-survives-review.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News Tech-policy Wed, 10 Mar 2010 22:23:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/03/controversial-amazon-1-click-patent-survives-review.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss bkuchera@arstechnica.com (Ben Kuchera) <a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2010/03/power-gig-its-a-rhythm-game-with-a-real-guitar.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss"> <img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="0" align="right" src="http://static.arstechnica.com/assets/2010/03/powergig_press_shot-thumb-230x130-12543-f.jpg" /> </a> <!--body--> <p>There is a point when playing rhythm games such as Rock Band or Guitar Hero where you hit a kind of wall; there is only so much to learn hitting buttons as notes flow down the screen. <i>Power Gig: Rise of the Six String</i>&#8212;in addition to having a terrible title&#8212;wants to break that wall by teaching you actual guitar skills if you choose to move past what the tradition rhythm game has offered. The guitar peripheral is an actual six-string electric guitar, although we're promised that the full band bundle of guitar, drums, and microphone will be priced competitively with other rhythm bundles on the market.</p> <p>We had a chance to see the game being played in front of us, although hands-on testing was forbidden. The notes came down the screen, connected by a pulsing ribbon, showing the player what button to hit on the guitar's neck. Any number of strings hit will register as a correct hit. In this mode, you will be able to use your existing rhythm game guitars. The real meat of the game happens when you move to the higher difficulty levels, where the dots are replaced by numbers, showing you what strings to play. A green two means you'll be pressing down on the second string down from the top of the neck, in the green section. Tutorials will show you how to hold your hands and fingers to create power chords.</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2010/03/power-gig-its-a-rhythm-game-with-a-real-guitar.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss" title="Click here to continue reading this article"><img src="http://static.arstechnica.com/mt-static/plugins/ArsTheme/images/read-more.jpg" alt="Read the rest of this article..."></a></p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2010/03/power-gig-its-a-rhythm-game-with-a-real-guitar.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/YT47Q1wkskpfEHS-VFWK9Kew4Hw/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/YT47Q1wkskpfEHS-VFWK9Kew4Hw/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/YT47Q1wkskpfEHS-VFWK9Kew4Hw/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/YT47Q1wkskpfEHS-VFWK9Kew4Hw/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=PyYsoHsC8kM:WYhWfHQkf7U:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=PyYsoHsC8kM:WYhWfHQkf7U:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=PyYsoHsC8kM:WYhWfHQkf7U:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=PyYsoHsC8kM:WYhWfHQkf7U:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=PyYsoHsC8kM:WYhWfHQkf7U:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=PyYsoHsC8kM:WYhWfHQkf7U:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/PyYsoHsC8kM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/PyYsoHsC8kM/power-gig-its-a-rhythm-game-with-a-real-guitar.ars http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2010/03/power-gig-its-a-rhythm-game-with-a-real-guitar.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News Gaming gdc powergig rhythmgames Wed, 10 Mar 2010 21:20:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2010/03/power-gig-its-a-rhythm-game-with-a-real-guitar.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss jeff.smykil@gmail.com (Jeff Smykil) <!--body--> <p>Not too <a href="http://davidfindlay.org/weblog/files/2009_09_07_ipod_remote.php">long ago</a>, David Findlay built a device capable of communicating with just about any model of iPod via the dock connector using an <a href="http://arduino.cc/en/Main/Hardware">Arduino Nano</a>, <a href="http://www.kineteka.com/PodGizmo.aspx">PodGizmo</a> breakout board, an old USB iPod connector, and a momentary switch. While it may not sound like a big deal, there is more to it than one might think: namely programming a device (in this case the Arduino Nano) to be able to receive, interpret, and respond to messages sent from an iPod.&nbsp; </p><p>This means teaching it to speak Apple Accessory Protocol and, although proprietary in nature, it has been <a href="http://nuxx.net/wiki/Apple_Accessory_Protocol">fairly well documented around the Internet</a>.&nbsp;Finland&nbsp;slung some code so that his iPod touch was hooked up to one of the famous Staples Easy buttons in his car. Now he could easily play and pause his iPod touch without having to fiddle with the on-screen controls.</p> <p>Fast-forward several months and&nbsp; Findlay&nbsp;had all but forgotten about the project when he was asked by the folks that run <a href="http://makezine.com/">Make magazine</a> to talk about it. In particular, they wanted him to talk about the library he created for communicating with Apple&#8217;s portable audio players. He said yes, and decided to dive back into the project and attempt to add additional functionality to the project.&nbsp;</p><p>Finland's&nbsp;first go around only involved tackling the the Simple Remote portion of the Apple Remote Protocol, which handles things like mute, next playlist, skip, and turning the device on and off. With newfound interest, however, he has now tackled the Advanced Remote portion, which opens up a bevy of new functionality, including getting names of songs, albums, artists, and track time; toggling shuffle and repeat mode; and all the other neat functionality that iPods have.</p> <p>This <a href="http://github.com/finsprings/arduinaap/tree/master/iPodSerial/">newly released library of code</a> will surely appeal to the do-it-yourself hackers who love tinkering, soldering, and programming. Someone could theoretically even build his or her own iPod speaker solution with a plethora of different options and feedback. The more daring could hard-wire a solution to a car&#8217;s in-wheel audio controls. Personally, I envision some sort of bicycle solution that docks the iPod on the handlebars but allows riders to control the device without taking their hands off the handlebars. An even more enterprising individual could rig something like this up to a sudden motion sensor so that when someone enters a room, the iPod begins to play.</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2010/03/code-library-gives-home-brew-ipod-remotes-chance-for-awesome.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/5H34jTQdfF7oj0zDMsYj913fefw/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/5H34jTQdfF7oj0zDMsYj913fefw/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/5H34jTQdfF7oj0zDMsYj913fefw/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/5H34jTQdfF7oj0zDMsYj913fefw/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=g-1cN2HWH0M:y2fVA4cKnoE:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=g-1cN2HWH0M:y2fVA4cKnoE:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=g-1cN2HWH0M:y2fVA4cKnoE:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=g-1cN2HWH0M:y2fVA4cKnoE:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=g-1cN2HWH0M:y2fVA4cKnoE:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=g-1cN2HWH0M:y2fVA4cKnoE:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/g-1cN2HWH0M" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/g-1cN2HWH0M/code-library-gives-home-brew-ipod-remotes-chance-for-awesome.ars http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2010/03/code-library-gives-home-brew-ipod-remotes-chance-for-awesome.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News News Apple Gadgets diy hacking iphone ipod ipodtouch remote Wed, 10 Mar 2010 20:33:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2010/03/code-library-gives-home-brew-ipod-remotes-chance-for-awesome.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss bkuchera@arstechnica.com (Ben Kuchera) <a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/sony-announces-the-playstation-move-motion-controller.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss"> <img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="0" align="right" src="http://static.arstechnica.com/assets/2009/12/ps3_small_profile_ars-thumb-230x130-10834-f.jpg" /> </a> <!--body--> <p> SAN FRANCISCO &#8212; At a GDC event today, Sony showed off its new PlayStation Move controller, along with a number of games. The audience response was positive, but the demos shown, including sports games and sword-and-shield-style battles, seemed both inspired and informed by what the Wii has done before. We got a quick hands-on with the controller, and have posted some impressions and pictures, below. </p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/sony-announces-the-playstation-move-motion-controller.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss" title="Click here to continue reading this article"><img src="http://static.arstechnica.com/mt-static/plugins/ArsTheme/images/read-more.jpg" alt="Read the rest of this article..."></a></p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/sony-announces-the-playstation-move-motion-controller.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/TJ1oc3OXq3ZB4tji5Uk31-kknbQ/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/TJ1oc3OXq3ZB4tji5Uk31-kknbQ/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/TJ1oc3OXq3ZB4tji5Uk31-kknbQ/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/TJ1oc3OXq3ZB4tji5Uk31-kknbQ/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=zOyH1PmMxPM:tPf7whfy_tY:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=zOyH1PmMxPM:tPf7whfy_tY:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=zOyH1PmMxPM:tPf7whfy_tY:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=zOyH1PmMxPM:tPf7whfy_tY:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=zOyH1PmMxPM:tPf7whfy_tY:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=zOyH1PmMxPM:tPf7whfy_tY:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/zOyH1PmMxPM" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/zOyH1PmMxPM/sony-announces-the-playstation-move-motion-controller.ars http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/sony-announces-the-playstation-move-motion-controller.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News Gaming Wed, 10 Mar 2010 19:00:52 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2010/03/sony-announces-the-playstation-move-motion-controller.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss jacqui@arstechnica.com (Jacqui Cheng) <!--body--> <p>By now, it's practically a mantra that the biggest problem with corporate IT security is the employees themselves. However, we usually assume that's due to ignorant users or poorly enforced policies. Not so for a chunk of the US working population&#8212;according to a survey conducted by Harris Interactive, 12 percent admitted to <em>knowingly </em>violating IT policy in order to get work done. </p> <p>The survey of 1,347 employed adults was conducted on behalf of <a href="http://www.fiberlink.com/">Fiberlink</a>, a company that hawks services that "help enterprises connect, control and secure laptops and mobile devices." Needless to say, the survey results fit perfectly into the company's agenda, but they are hardly surprising. After all, how many of us know someone who has left a work laptop in an unattended vehicle, sent unencrypted e-mails without permission, or reused the same three passwords over and over instead of choosing new ones every 90 days?</p> <p>Fiberlink CEO Jim Sheward warned of the obvious. "IT departments nationwide spend a lot of time and money on their compliance, usage, and access policies, but they only work if people follow the rules," he said in an e-mailed statement. [C]ompanies could face dangerous breaches that include the loss of sensitive data, competitive intelligence, or customers&#8217; private information."</p> <p>Harris' findings are supported by previous reports saying that <a href="http://arstechnica.com/security/news/2008/07/leaky-employees-data-pose-bigger-security-risk-than-malware.ars">leaky employees are a bigger threat than malware</a>, that <a href="http://arstechnica.com/security/news/2008/10/employees-not-it-responsible-for-most-corporate-data-loss.ars">employees (not hackers) cause the most corporate data loss</a>, and that <a href="http://arstechnica.com/security/news/2009/07/it-admins-users-online-antics-greatest-threat-to-security.ars">employees' online activities</a> pose the greatest threat to IT security. With 12 percent of those people actively working outside of stated IT policy (and plenty more who do so out of ignorance), IT admins certainly have their work cut out for them if they want to maintain a tight ship. </p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/business/news/2010/03/bad-employee-12-knowingly-violate-company-it-policies.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/pDp1xOgpjA-YzMzscx2nu284ZW8/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/pDp1xOgpjA-YzMzscx2nu284ZW8/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/pDp1xOgpjA-YzMzscx2nu284ZW8/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/pDp1xOgpjA-YzMzscx2nu284ZW8/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=5wCDJtMz95Y:W5biTCpD5Ko:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=5wCDJtMz95Y:W5biTCpD5Ko:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=5wCDJtMz95Y:W5biTCpD5Ko:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=5wCDJtMz95Y:W5biTCpD5Ko:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=5wCDJtMz95Y:W5biTCpD5Ko:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=5wCDJtMz95Y:W5biTCpD5Ko:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/5wCDJtMz95Y" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/5wCDJtMz95Y/bad-employee-12-knowingly-violate-company-it-policies.ars http://arstechnica.com/business/news/2010/03/bad-employee-12-knowingly-violate-company-it-policies.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News News Business Security business data internet it laptop policy security Wed, 10 Mar 2010 17:17:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/business/news/2010/03/bad-employee-12-knowingly-violate-company-it-policies.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss zeotherm@gmail.com (Matt Ford) <!--body--> <p> Plastics became ubiquitous during the 20th century. They were hot topics of industrial and academic research, and saw innumerable consumer applications. While plastics can have a wide variety of mechanical properties, they are almost universally good insulators, both of heat and electricity. But a paper out of the Pappalardo Micro and Nano Engineering Laboratories reports on a novel processing technique that aligns the polymer chains of polyethylene, which results in a material that has both a high thermal capacitance and a high electrical resistance.</p><p>The researchers forced the polyethylene to form into this aligned morphology by slowly drawing the fiber out of solution using the tip of an atomic force microscope.&nbsp;The new fibrous form of polyethylene conducts heat well along the direction of the fibers&#8212;so well, it beats out many pure metals, including iron and platinum.The resulting&nbsp;fiber was about 300 times more thermally conductive than normal polyethylene. This surprising ability to move heat could find uses in any number of technologies that currently rely on metal as a heat transfer medium.</p><p>This new method differs from previous attempts at creating a more heat-conductive plastic in that it transforms the morphology of the underlying material instead of using an additive. These prior attempts, while scalable, resulted in only modest gains, since there was high thermal resistance at the interface between the plastic and additive.&nbsp;</p><p>It's not currently known how well, if at all, the process will be able to scale up to production. So far, the team has only produced single fibers in the laboratory, but they hope to be able to scale up to macro-scale production of entire sheets of this material.</p><p><span >Nature Nanotechnology</span>, 2010. DOI: <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/NNANO.2010.27">10.1038/NNANO.2010.27</a> &nbsp;(<a href="http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/03/dois-and-their-discontents-1.ars">About DOIs</a>).</p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/03/researchers-get-plastic-to-act-totally-metal.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/2cyzEqyOgLVkqfSu6wZeEAr7QP8/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/2cyzEqyOgLVkqfSu6wZeEAr7QP8/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/2cyzEqyOgLVkqfSu6wZeEAr7QP8/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/2cyzEqyOgLVkqfSu6wZeEAr7QP8/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=41ztAxlZ-4w:XY_m6qV_K5M:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=41ztAxlZ-4w:XY_m6qV_K5M:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=41ztAxlZ-4w:XY_m6qV_K5M:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=41ztAxlZ-4w:XY_m6qV_K5M:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=41ztAxlZ-4w:XY_m6qV_K5M:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=41ztAxlZ-4w:XY_m6qV_K5M:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/41ztAxlZ-4w" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/41ztAxlZ-4w/researchers-get-plastic-to-act-totally-metal.ars http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/03/researchers-get-plastic-to-act-totally-metal.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News Science @brief materialscience polymers science Wed, 10 Mar 2010 16:27:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/03/researchers-get-plastic-to-act-totally-metal.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss casey.l.johnston@gmail.com (Casey Johnston) <a href="http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/03/pushing-the-speed-limits-of-quantum-memory.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss"> <img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="0" align="right" src="http://static.arstechnica.com/assets/2009/08/quantum_ars-thumb-230x130-7466-f.jpg" /> </a> <!--body--> <p> It feels like <a href="http://arstechnica.com/science/guides/2010/01/a-tale-of-two-qubits-how-quantum-computers-work.ars">quantum computers</a> have barely been invented, and scientists are already testing how extensible the current technology is. A paper published in <em>Nature Photonics</em> this week describes how researchers are beginning to push the bandwidth limits of quantum memory. Using photon pulses and cesium vapor has provided bandwidths on par with broadband connections, rates 100 times those of other quantum memory systems currently being tested. However, the system's efficiency is still very low, and advances will have to be made in other fields before it can be improved. </p> <p> Since many quantum computing implementations operate on photons, a quantum memory that doesn&#8217;t involve converting photons into other media, like electrical pulses, would be ideal. Unfortunately, current photon-based media suffers from problems with storage time, retrieval efficiency, and bandwidth. The paper tackles the last issue, as current quantum systems are limited to a data rate of a few megahertz at most. </p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/03/pushing-the-speed-limits-of-quantum-memory.ars?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss" title="Click here to continue reading this article"><img src="http://static.arstechnica.com/mt-static/plugins/ArsTheme/images/read-more.jpg" alt="Read the rest of this article..."></a></p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/03/pushing-the-speed-limits-of-quantum-memory.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/nPBMLqOC0ttAC8H1vQlwnRYwMqc/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/nPBMLqOC0ttAC8H1vQlwnRYwMqc/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/nPBMLqOC0ttAC8H1vQlwnRYwMqc/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/nPBMLqOC0ttAC8H1vQlwnRYwMqc/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=wEK6O5m-v2o:5kKBsP3lcDE:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=wEK6O5m-v2o:5kKBsP3lcDE:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=wEK6O5m-v2o:5kKBsP3lcDE:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=wEK6O5m-v2o:5kKBsP3lcDE:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=wEK6O5m-v2o:5kKBsP3lcDE:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=wEK6O5m-v2o:5kKBsP3lcDE:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/wEK6O5m-v2o" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/wEK6O5m-v2o/pushing-the-speed-limits-of-quantum-memory.ars http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/03/pushing-the-speed-limits-of-quantum-memory.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News Science cesium optic photon quantumcomputer quantummemory research storage Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:39:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/03/pushing-the-speed-limits-of-quantum-memory.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss jacqui@arstechnica.com (Jacqui Cheng) <!--body--> <p>Two Azerbaijani bloggers will remain in jail after using a donkey to represent their government in a satirical YouTube video. Adnan Hajizade and Emin Milli lost an appeal Wednesday asking for them to be released from their respective 2 and and 2.5 year sentences. Their lawyer vowed to continue appealing all the way up to the Azerbaijan's Supreme Court and the European Court of Human Rights if necessary.</p> <p>Hajizade and Milli had <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aaecvg7xCIk">posted the video on YouTube</a> in 2009, which made fun of Azerbaijan's government and what they portrayed to be the country's softball press. Featured was an actor dressed up as a donkey holding a press conference&#8212;the donkey, of course, representing the government. As noted by the <a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100310/tc_afp/azerbaijanmediarightstrialinternet">AFP</a>, the two were charged with hooliganism immediately after the video appeared online and have been in jail ever since. </p> <p>The bloggers' lawyer Isakhan Ashurov told the AFP that they had appealed the ruling because they have not committed any crimes in Azerbaijan, though authorities claim that their arrest mysteriously has nothing to do with the satirical video.&nbsp;Ashurov&nbsp;plans to press on with the appeal.&nbsp;"The European Court of Human Rights has already accepted two complaints from us regarding infringements of the bloggers' rights during detention," he said. "If the Supreme Court also upholds the decision we will send a third complaint."</p> <p>Like many former USSR countries, Azerbaijan is often criticized for its heavy hand in silencing criticism and free speech. Reporters Without Borders in particular has <a href="http://www.rsf.org/en-pays91-Azerbaijan.html">hammered</a> on the government for treating these two bloggers (and jailed journalists/critics in general) as dangerous criminals and for dancing around the true reasons for their arrest. If the government continues to reject Hajizade and Milli's appeals, though, their jail sentences might come to an end before the legal system gets around to dealing with them. </p> <p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/03/donkey-politician-vid-keeps-two-azerbaijani-bloggers-in-jail.ars?comments=1&amp;utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss#comments-bar">Read the comments on this post</a></p> <p><a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/C7hWaBmBLke_Zs_-S_Ql2FKA2GM/0/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/C7hWaBmBLke_Zs_-S_Ql2FKA2GM/0/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a><br/> <a href="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/C7hWaBmBLke_Zs_-S_Ql2FKA2GM/1/da"><img src="http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~at/C7hWaBmBLke_Zs_-S_Ql2FKA2GM/1/di" border="0" ismap="true"></img></a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=2_RT1Bg6C4Y:PQFEazAJTq4:V_sGLiPBpWU"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=2_RT1Bg6C4Y:PQFEazAJTq4:V_sGLiPBpWU" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=2_RT1Bg6C4Y:PQFEazAJTq4:F7zBnMyn0Lo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?i=2_RT1Bg6C4Y:PQFEazAJTq4:F7zBnMyn0Lo" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=2_RT1Bg6C4Y:PQFEazAJTq4:qj6IDK7rITs"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=qj6IDK7rITs" border="0"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?a=2_RT1Bg6C4Y:PQFEazAJTq4:yIl2AUoC8zA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/arstechnica/index?d=yIl2AUoC8zA" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~4/2_RT1Bg6C4Y" height="1" width="1"/> http://feeds.arstechnica.com/~r/arstechnica/index/~3/2_RT1Bg6C4Y/donkey-politician-vid-keeps-two-azerbaijani-bloggers-in-jail.ars http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/03/donkey-politician-vid-keeps-two-azerbaijani-bloggers-in-jail.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss News News News Media Tech-policy freespeech internet satire youtube Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:41:00 -0600 http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/03/donkey-politician-vid-keeps-two-azerbaijani-bloggers-in-jail.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss