Monthly Archives: May 2017

Doctor Who: The Pyramid at the End of the World review

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Enlarge (credit: Simon Ridgway/Des Willie/Ray Burmiston/BBC)

This is a post-UK broadcast review of Doctor Who: The Pyramid at the End of the World. River Song always warned the Doctor against spoilers, so be sure to watch the episode first. Doctor Who, season 10, airs on Saturdays at 7:45pm UK time on BBC One, and 9pm EDT on BBC America.

A hungover and reckless scientist, the Monks demanding consent to take over Earth, bio-hazard alerts, a Doomsday countdown, and the world’s army leaders agreeing to give peace a chance—surely the Doctor, Bill, and Nardole are still trapped in a computer simulation, right?

We’re none the wiser at the conclusion of The Pyramid at the End of the World—the midway point of Steven Moffat’s trilogy of episodes that explore the idea that we might just be living in a simulated universe.

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Source: Ars Technica – Doctor Who: The Pyramid at the End of the World review

Ask Slashdot: Is There A Screen-Less, Keyboard-Less, Battery-Powered Computer?

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Long-time Slashdot reader Wycliffe writes:
So I have a travel keyboard that I love. I can carry my OS on a USB flash drive. There are several options for portable battery powered monitors. The only thing I’m missing to have a completely modular laptop is the CPU/MB/RAM… I can get a laptop but it seems silly to carry around a laptop with a keyboard when I never use the keyboard. I don’t need a long battery life, if I need more than an hour then I can find somewhere to plug it in…

I’ve thought about buying a small box like a Zotac and trying to replace the hard drive with a battery — but does anything like this already exist…? Also, are there any systems like this with decent specs? Most stuff I see like the Intel Compute Stick are horribly underpowered compared to a decent laptop.

The original submission drew some interesting discussion. Another option is “a good x86/x64 tablet that I can install Linux on” — especially with a decent processor — or “laptop-like systems that got rid of the screen entirely… I just need the travel CPU part without the added weight of a second keyboard and monitor.” So leave your best suggestions in the comments. Is there a good, lightweight computer that’s battery-powered without a screen or a keyboard?

Read more of this story at Slashdot.



Source: Slashdot – Ask Slashdot: Is There A Screen-Less, Keyboard-Less, Battery-Powered Computer?

Opera Says Their iOS Updates Are Still Coming – Just Slowly

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Slashdot reader BrianFagioli has posted an update about his communication with Opera over their plans for iOS. They’d originally tweeted Thursday that “at this moment we don’t have a team working on IOS which is why we haven’t released any updates.” But Friday they clarified that “It does not mean we give up development on iOS. It’s just that now our resources are on Android.”

They reiterated that point in an email.
We would like to clarify that Opera does not abandon iOS… We plan to keep developing it as Opera Min[i] provides unique features that other browsers do not have, such as data saving for both webpages and video, ad-blocking, built-in newsfeed etc. And people love using it. As most of the engineering resources are now on Android, our update on iOS is slow at this moment. Please bear with us and do stay tune for our next updates.

The tweet Friday also emphasized that “We will update iOS for sure.”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.



Source: Slashdot – Opera Says Their iOS Updates Are Still Coming – Just Slowly

New Solar Plane Plans Non-Stop Flight Around The World

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An anonymous reader quotes Bloomberg:
[A] Russian tycoon and his Renova Group plan a record-breaking effort to send a plane around the world nonstop using only the power of the sun. If all goes well, a single pilot will fly for five days straight at altitudes of up to 10 miles, about a third higher than commercial airliners. The project isn’t just a stunt. The glider-style airplane with a 36-meter (120-foot) wingspan will be a test of technologies that are set to be used to build new generations of autonomous craft for the military and business, say aerospace experts. They will fly continuously, have far greater reach and control than satellites and expand broadcast, communication and spying capabilities around the globe… “Our flight should prove that it’s possible to make long-distance flights using solar energy,” said Mikhail Lifshitz, Renova’s director of high-tech asset development and a qualified pilot-instructor. A “flying laboratory” test-plane will be ready by year-end, Lifshitz said in an interview.

The plane will conserve power by slowly gliding down from the high altitudes at night — without ever touching the ground. In comparison a solar plane (partially funded by Google) already circled the earth last year — but it took 22 days, and made 17 different stops.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.



Source: Slashdot – New Solar Plane Plans Non-Stop Flight Around The World

Travis Kalanick Loses His Mother in a Tragic Boating Accident

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On Friday, Uber CEO Travis Kalanick’s mother, Bonnie Kalanick, was killed in a boating accident at Pine Flat Lake in California. His father, Donald Kalanick was also involved in the accident and was reportedly taken to a local hospital in “serious condition.”

Read more…



Source: Gizmodo – Travis Kalanick Loses His Mother in a Tragic Boating Accident

SSD Drives Vulnerable To Rowhammer-Like Attacks That Corrupt User Data

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An anonymous reader writes: NAND flash memory chips, the building blocks of solid-state drives (SSDs), include what could be called “programming vulnerabilities” that can be exploited to alter stored data or shorten the SSD’s lifespan. According to research published earlier this year, the programming logic powering of MLC NAND flash memory chips (the tech used for the latest generation of SSDs), is vulnerable to at least two types of attacks. The first is called “program interference,” and takes place when an attacker manages to write data with a certain pattern to a target’s SSD. Writing this data repeatedly and at high speeds causes errors in the SSD, which then corrupts data stored on nearby cells. This attack is similar to the infamous Rowhammer attack on RAM chips. The second attack is called “read disturb” and in this scenario, an attacker’s exploit code causes the SSD to perform a large number of read operations in a very short time, which causes a phenomenon of “read disturb errors,” that alters the SSD ability to read data from nearby cells, even long after the attack stops.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.



Source: Slashdot – SSD Drives Vulnerable To Rowhammer-Like Attacks That Corrupt User Data

Windows 10 China Government Edition Allows Control of Encryption and Telemetry

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In addition to a new Surface Pro, Microsoft revealed a version of Windows 10 tailor-made for the Chinese government at their Shanghai event this week. Unlike the version we all know and love, the Eastern variety lets users do some really radical stuff, like remove unwanted apps, control updates, and manage telemetry: basically, it grants more control and less bloatware. Wait, isn’t this the version we should all have?



…Windows 10 China Government Edition…makes a number of concessions to keep Chinese officials happy. It’s a release that raises a lot of questions. The Windows 10 China Government Edition allows the country to not only use its own encryption, but also to control updates, remove unwanted apps, and manage telemetry. Users around the world will almost certainly be asking why control over telemetry is not an option for them, and what the implications of making changes for the Chinese government could be. Coming after Microsoft spent two years “earnestly cooperat[ing] with the Chinese government on the security review of Windows 10,” the custom version of the operating system will be used by Chinese government and state-owned entities.

Discussion

Source: [H]ardOCP – Windows 10 China Government Edition Allows Control of Encryption and Telemetry

The TSA Will Soon Make You Unpack Even More Of Your Carry-On Bags

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There are plenty of people who still reminisce about the days before airport security checkpoints were a thing, when they could kiss loved ones at the gates and all of that junk. But soon, we’re going to long for the days of more privacy: The TSA will soon make travelers tear apart carry-on bags at security.

Read more…



Source: Gizmodo – The TSA Will Soon Make You Unpack Even More Of Your Carry-On Bags

The Lawyer Who Founded Prenda Law Just Got Disbarred

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Long-time Slashdot reader lactose99 writes:
One of the original copyright trolls finally got their comeuppance. From TFA: “John L. Steele, a Chicago lawyer who pled guilty to perjury, fraud and money laundering resulting from alleged ‘honeypot’ schemes, has just been disbarred by an Illinois court.” John L. Steele, as you may know, is one of the principals of Prenda Law, a notorious copyright troll who has been featured on /. several times. The article goes on to describe how the Prenda lawyers used honeypot-like tactics to trick people into downloads and then subsequently scammed them for copyright violations.

Their operation brought in $6 million in settlement fees, reports Engadget, adding “While it is illegal to download copyrighted files from file-sharing sites, it is also against the law to extort downloaders.”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.



Source: Slashdot – The Lawyer Who Founded Prenda Law Just Got Disbarred

Mark Zuckerberg Calls for Universal Basic Income in Harvard Commencement Speech

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The Facebook CEO gave a commencement speech Thursday at Harvard University and called for universal basic income as a solution for inequality. The rationale behind UBI is that a certain amount of money would give those with too little enough to get by, and it would be more efficient and effective than welfare, which requires a costly administrative structure to work. Phenomena like automation and startup culture is giving the idea significant traction in the tech industry.



“Every generation expands its definition of equality. Now it’s time for our generation to define a new social contract,” Zuckerberg said during his commencement speech Thursday at Harvard University. “We should have a society that measures progress not by economic metrics like GDP but by how many of us have a role we find meaningful.” “We should explore ideas like universal basic income to give everyone a cushion to try new things,” he said. Zuckerberg told the class of 2017 that he was able to pursue his passion in Facebook because he knew he had a safety net to fall back on. “If I had to support my family growing up instead of having time to code,” he said. ” I wouldn’t be standing here today.”

Discussion

Source: [H]ardOCP – Mark Zuckerberg Calls for Universal Basic Income in Harvard Commencement Speech

Even Fake Leaks Can Help in Hollywood's Anti-Piracy Wars

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Remember how hackers threatened to release a copy of the newest Pirates movie? Apparently, it was fake news: not only was the film held “hostage” incorrectly reported (the hoax actually revolved around The Last Jedi), there wasn’t any movie leaked or stolen at all. Some were quick to mention that this was an excellent opportunity for Disney to reel in some additional publicity, and it looks like they did just that. “Dead Men Tell No Tales” currently has an impressive RT score of 32%.



Our conclusion was that the ‘hack’ almost certainly never happened and, from the beginning, no one had ever spoken about the new Pirates film being the ‘hostage’. Then, out of the blue, one day after we published our findings, Disney chief Bob Iger suddenly got all talkative again. Speaking with Yahoo Finance, Iger confirmed what we suspected all along – it was a hoax. “To our knowledge we were not hacked,” Iger said. “We had a threat of a hack of a movie being stolen. We decided to take it seriously but not react in the manner in which the person who was threatening us had required.”

Discussion

Source: [H]ardOCP – Even Fake Leaks Can Help in Hollywood’s Anti-Piracy Wars

British Airways Computer Outage Causing Global Delays, Cancels All London Flights

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A “major IT systems failure” has caused British Airways to cancel all flights from London’s Heathrow and Gatwick airports, which means that tens of thousands of people will have to rethink their travel plans on this busy holiday weekend. The root cause was actually nothing dramatic like being hacked, but rather a power-supply issue that affected ” check-in and operational systems.” Thanks to Kyle for this one.



BA operates hundreds of flights from the two London airports on a typical day — and both are major hubs for worldwide travel. Several hours after problems began cropping up Saturday morning, BA suspended flights up to 6 p.m. because the two airports had become severely congested. The airline later scrapped flights from Heathrow and Gatwick for the rest of the day. The airline said it was working to restore services out of Heathrow and Gatwick beginning Sunday, although some disruptions are expected. It said it expected that London-bound long-haul flights would land on schedule Sunday.

Discussion

Source: [H]ardOCP – British Airways Computer Outage Causing Global Delays, Cancels All London Flights

IT Crash Causes British Airways To Cancel All Flights

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An anonymous reader quotes CNBC:
British Airways canceled all flights from London’s Heathrow and Gatwick airports on Saturday as a global IT failure upended the travel plans of tens of thousands of people on a busy U.K. holiday weekend. The airline said it was suffering a “major IT systems failure” around the world. Chief executive Alex Cruz said “we believe the root cause was a power-supply issue and we have no evidence of any cyberattack.” He said the crash had affected “all of our check-in and operational systems.” BA operates hundreds of flights from the two London airports on a typical day — and both are major hubs for worldwide travel. Several hours after problems began cropping up Saturday morning, BA suspended flights up to 6 p.m. because the two airports had become severely congested. The airline later scrapped flights from Heathrow and Gatwick for the rest of the day.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.



Source: Slashdot – IT Crash Causes British Airways To Cancel All Flights