Avatar is the real deal

Saw it this weekend in Imax 3D up in New Brunswick. Definitely
recommend that over the Digital 3d and don't even think about seeing
it in 2D! Good stuff and Cameron has come through on all he promised.
The trailers for Hubble, How to Train your Dragon, and Shrek all in
IMAX 3d were impressive too but not even close to Avatar. No "Uncanny
Valley" here. The actors were beyond Gollum level perfect at
conveying real emotions. Here's how they did it:
http://www.wired.com/video/latest-videos/latest/1815816633/avatar-catches-real-emotions-with-performance-capture/57975931001

Why we need privacy even if we've "got nothing to hide"

Eloquently stated:
http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2009/12/my_reaction_to.html

Sam

What's new in Office 2010?

Via Lifehacker...
http://lifehacker.com/5411837/hands+on-look-at-whats-new-in-office-2010

Sam

Two videos to start your holiday off right

#1: Do Schools Kill Creativity?
http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity.html

#2: Bohemuppetan Rhapsody:
http://www.boingboing.net/2009/11/24/muppets-singing-quee.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Also, Demi Moore loses a hip then gains a body:
http://consumerist.com/2009/11/great-now-demi-moores-torso-is-missing.html

SAM Code and info

The MU SAM code is: v7247944

Training is now available for Word Excel Access and PowerPoint
Practice Tests now available for all four too!

Sam

Podcasting guide

http://hivelogic.com/articles/podcasting-equipment-guide-2009/

Fun stuff!

sam

Breaking up in an online world

Good advice.

http://arstechnica.com/web/news/2009/10/how-to-break-up-in-an-online-worldand-avoid-e-stalkers.ars

This is not good. Plus 2600 and our semester long project.

Not good. Not good at all if true:
http://government.zdnet.com/?p=5547

To get the 2 point exam bonus you folks need to put a 1-2 paragraph
word document in into Drop Box week #4 answering: What is significant
enough about the term '2600' that the Hacker magazine chose it for
their name?

For next week:
Test tuesday on Windows/Internet. Notes:
- zorak.monmouth.edu/~posten/class5.ppt
- zorak.monmouth.edu/~posten/Class 9 - intranet.ppt
- zorak.monmouth.edu/~posten/class8.ppt
- zorak.monmouth.edu/~posten/class11-ethics.ppt
Thursday meet in the basement of the Library.
Thursday the next part of our semester long project is due, use Google
Scholar or Diigo to find 10 peer reviewed / scholarly articles related
to your subject and split them up between all team members for review.
Post the names of them and a link in Dropbox for Week 5 with who is
assigned to review each one.

From 2004, The Essay in the age of the Internet

Saw this linked earlier today, it's a good read and reminds me of what
I find frustrating about the modern educational system here in the US.
I wonder how much better off I'd be as a writer if I hadn't gotten
stuck with so many of the bad habits that built into this system. Or
would I still be a 'lazy' writer any way?
http://www.paulgraham.com/essay.html

The thing I like about Graham is that he is both a thinker and a
do-er, and he can distill down what separates the two, and separates
those groups from the average lazy slug like me. The bottom line is
that you all are spending an awful lot of money, time and effort to be
here at a University, and the whole 'point' of University seems to me
to be able to inspire you to do those things that will recoup that the
best. And Graham nails the million little cuts that tear most of us
down and gets us into the whole 'career' mindset which society has
deemed to be the safe and smart thing, and gives a sparkle of an
insight into what it takes to break free of that and do some
astonishing things with our limited time here on earth.

Some other good Graham essays if you like this one:
http://www.paulgraham.com/nthings.html
http://www.paulgraham.com/disagree.html
http://www.paulgraham.com/boss.html
http://www.paulgraham.com/mit.html
http://www.paulgraham.com/love.html
http://www.paulgraham.com/procrastination.html
http://www.paulgraham.com/gh.html
http://www.paulgraham.com/wealth.html
http://www.paulgraham.com/lies.html
http://www.paulgraham.com/determination.html

Here's one that nails the reason why we treat the words Hacker and
Cracker very differently in this class:
http://www.paulgraham.com/gba.html

Here's one of the best:
http://www.paulgraham.com/hs.html

It's what you'll wish you had known before you had gotten into college
from the perspective of where you will be from a few years on. Chief
among these is that if you have ANY entrepreneurial spark, capitalize
on it while you are still young and crazy and don't have a family to
support. This is the time in your lives when you can most afford to
take those risks that you will dread when you've got a few kids of
your own.

FW: [IP] Schrodinger's Cat Experiment Proposed

This is pretty neat!

 

Sam

---

From: Dave Farber [mailto:dave@farber.net]
Sent: Sun 9/27/2009 1:48 PM
To: ip
Subject: [IP] Schrodinger's Cat Experiment Proposed

 

Begin forwarded message:

From: bobr@bobrosenberg.phoenix.az.us
Date: September 27, 2009 3:46:54 EDT
To: Dave Farber <dave@farber.net>
Subject: Schrodinger's Cat Experiment Proposed

Hi Dave

I just noticed this item from the Max Planck Institute for Quantum Physics regarding
Schrodinger's Cat.

Perhaps we'll finally learn the answer.

But I'm uncertain (Sorry, but I really couldn't resist that).   ;-)

Cheers,
Bob

--
Bob Rosenberg
P.O. Box 33023
Phoenix, AZ  85067-3023
Mobile:  602-206-2856
LandLine:  602-274-3012
bob@bobrosenberg.phoenix.az.us

----
Schrodinger's Cat Experiment Proposed
September 24th, 2009 by Sheeraz M. Hyder Schrodinger's cat
http://www.physorg.com/news173026471.html

Schrodinger's cat. Image by Dhatfield, Wikimedia Commons.

(PhysOrg.com) -- One of the classical problems in quantum mechanics concerns a man
and his feline companion. The man has placed his cat in an opaque tank and is
slowing pumping it full of poison. Now until the man opens the tank and looks
inside, he cannot be sure whether the cat is dead or alive. That is to say, the cat
is both dead and alive at the same time. Impossible but such is the nature of the
problem that faced this man. The man's name is Erwin Schrodinger and the problem is
that of his Uncertainty Principle.

For nearly a century, his problem has remained a quixotic quest for physicists.
Particle physics has always held that matter can only exist at one state in one
time. That is why particles are classified as moving with an up or down spin but
nothing in between. In recent years that rule has been bent with the superposition
of atoms and other nonliving things. Superposition is the term for an object that is
not being observed that exists as both possibilities: up and down, dead and alive.
This allows physicists to observe the matter in two different states at the same
time. However, thus far it has only been done with non-living things. A life-form
has never been superimposed. Now, one physicist says he may have an answer.

Oriol Romero-Isart is at the Max Planck Institute for Quantum Physics in Garching in
Germany. Along with his team he is proposing a "Schrodinger's virus" experiment that
would follow the same general principles of Schrodinger's Cat. Using an
electromagnetic field created by a laser, the virus would be trapped in a vacuum.
Then, using another laser, the virus will be slowed down until it lies motionless in
its lowest possible energy state.

Now that the virus is fixed, a single photon is used to put the virus into a
superposition of two states, moving and non-moving. Up until the point is measured
it is in both states. Only after a measurement is it found to be in one state and
one alone. The team has suggested that the tobacco mosaic virus be used. The virus
is rod-shaped and measures 50 nanometers wide and approximately 1 micrometer long.
There is debate however, whether the virus can truly be classified as "alive."
However the scientists are confident that the treatment could be extended to tiny
micro-organisms such as tardigrades who can survive in vacuum for days, making them
suitable for the "Schrodinger treatment."

However, physicists are doubtful about the experiment's results. Martin Plenio of
Imperial College in London says that there is little reason that a virus would
behave any differently than a similarly-sized inanimate object. However, there are
possibilities in testing large objects such as viruses and molecules. This is
because quantum mechanics says that macroscopic objects can enter superposition
however, it has never happened. Through these studies, Plenio believes that we will
finally be able to bridge the divide between the quantum world and our own
macroscopic world.

More information:

• Towards Quantum Superposition of Living Organisms, arxiv.org/abs/0909.1469

• Schrödinger's cat on Wikipedia.

© 2009 PhysOrg.com

Motion Controller in detail

Very very cool:
http://g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/699311/Sonys-Richard-Marks-Demos-Motion-Controller.html?utm_source=g4tv&utm_medium=twitterblog&utm_campaign=so-0907-twittermostcom-699311&cmpid=so-0907-twittermostcom-699311

Addendum: Homework assignments and the DropBox

Forgot to mention this one other article to read by Thursday. Besides
just reading about TED, I want you to watch at least one TED Podcast
and be ready to talk about it thursday night.

http://socialentrepreneurship.change.org/blog/view/making_the_world_safe_for_smart_why_ted_matters

Sam

PS TED might have some great ideas for your semester long project!

---------- Forwarded message ----------

Good evening.  Many of you have been inquiring about week 2 and Week 3
drop box submissions.  Some of you mentioned being prompted that a
deadline was approaching, as far as I know nothing should have
automated deadlines set up, if you could forward me a screenshot of
that it would be much appreciated.

Tomorrow (Tuesday) we will meet in class to go over a first in-depth
look at Microsoft PowerPoint.  PP is actually a great place for us to
start, there is no test on this app but it is one that all of us will
have some need for in our business lives, whatever business we
eventually pursue.

This semester we will have a semester long set of assignments that
work together to help us all explore areas of great change in
information technology.  You will select a topic that you find
particularly interesting, you can find some suggestions below but if
you have better ideas we can vet those as well.  For the Week 2
dropbox assignment you will find 2-3 other students and form a group
to create a series of artifacts together that explore your given
topics.  To be clear groups must be at least 3 students but no more
than 4.  In Dropbx 2 you will, after tuesdays class, present me with a
three slide powerpoint presentation.

- Slide 1, title and topic
- Slide 2, pictures from a digital camera of all team members
- Slide 3 a brief set of bullet points on what you want to cover in
exploring this topic

We will meet in class Thursday night to approve or improve your list of points

Topics for consideration:
- Virtual Worlds
- Computer based training
- Digital Media, Voice and Video in the near future
- 'Hackers' and Malware
- Tricky ethical issues which are still being played out (think
gambling and other similar issues on the net)
- What comes after the internet?  Are we progressing towards Minority
Report, The Terminator or something totally different?
- Computers and parenting / Kids
- The ethics of piracy and the trouble with Copyright, and copyright
alternatives
- Alternatives to Microsoft Dominance in computing

Again, or something tat strikes your fancy and meets the criteria.
That's the easy part, the hard part will be for your teams agreeing on
how to flesh this all out and what angles you are most interested in.

NEXT Thursday you'll need to show me some progress on exploring the
issue via updates to your powerpoint presentation, dropped into Week 3
Dropbox.

Questions?  Let me know!  START building your teams before class
Tomorrow but please do not work on this assignment DURING our class!
If you don't have your team formed at the beginning of class we will
set a few minutes at the end for people to network and find others to
work with.

Professor Reynolds may have some other Dropbox assignments as well,
we'll explain that in class, make sure you are ready to follow through
on those too!

Sam and Professor Reynolds.

More on Windows Office cloud edition and cheap Microsoft software for students

http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/09/17/imitation-isnt-always-flattery-microsoft-previews-google-apps-killer-to-beta-testers/

We'll see how this plays out... The great thing is that the cloud
efforts have MS trying everything they can to get people to still pay
_something_ for the boxed copies, even if it's just a percentage of
the old price.

Don't forget to take part of the ultimate steal and get Win 7 and
Office Ultimate for under $100, it's the best deal you will find.
http://www.microsoft.com/student/discounts/theultimatesteal-us/default.aspx
http://www.win741.com/

Want great prices on Microsoft tools for artists and developers?
Can't get cheaper than FREE:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/academic/dd759402.aspx

Discussion on these programs:
http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1452528
http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1446708

(Note that Hard Forum is a discussion forum and not a news outlet.
You may encounter rough language. I can't control that. Skip it if
you are easily offended. It's nowhere near as bad as places like
SomethingAwful, 4chan or other spots tho, just be aware to adjust your
expectations) =)

http://www.loopinsight.com/2009/09/18/microsoft-matches-snow-leopards-29-price-for-students/

Maureen: Please forward this to all the classes!

Sam

Microsoft announced kickass deal for students on Windows 7

$30 for windows 7, tough to beat that!

http://www.neowin.net/news/main/09/09/17/microsoft-uk-students-to-get-windows-7-for-30

Sent from my iPhone

Did you know it is possible for totally blind people to use the iPhone?

This is crazy, and amazing, and very very cool.

http://www.apple.com/iphone/iphone-3gs/accessibility.html#video

An internet meteor is hurtling towards the University Dinosaurs

Or so says the Washington Post...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/11/AR2009091104312.html

I absolutely believe that the move to virtual classes will occur. I
believe it will take decades tho and will be just as messy as it has
for music, video, games and other content. If not more so.

New images from Hubble

Breathtaking!

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/multimedia/ero/index.html

News from the Apple keynote

Mostly evolutionary / boring updates but a few new tricks in the mix.
If you were going to buy a new iPod anyway might as well get the new
ones with new toys built in! iTunes has some neat free updates tho...

Three most important things: Steve Jobs returned to the stage, you
can now set where apps show on your iPhone/touch and the touch did NOT
get a camera!

http://gizmodo.com/5355615/itunes-9-everything-you-need-to-know
http://gizmodo.com/5355725/new-ipod-nano-hands-on/gallery/
http://gizmodo.com/5355169/the-new-ipod-nano-shoots-video-plays-radio
http://gizmodo.com/5355697/ipod-classic-and-shuffle-get-modest-storage-color-adjustments
http://gizmodo.com/5355633/ipod-touch-third-generation-now-up-to-64gb
http://www.engadget.com/2009/09/09/ipod-nano-5g-with-camera-first-hands-on/
http://www.engadget.com/2009/09/09/apple-slaps-video-camera-into-new-ipod-nano/
http://www.engadget.com/2009/09/09/apple-announces-cheaper-more-colorful-ipod-shuffle-new-special/
http://www.engadget.com/2009/09/09/apple-updates-ipod-touch-line-drops-prices-adds-top-end-64gb-m/
http://www.engadget.com/2009/09/09/itunes-9-bringing-itunes-lp-functionality-mentioned-in-new-del/
http://www.engadget.com/2009/09/09/iphone-os-3-1-is-offical-available-today/
http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2009/09/apple-rocks-and-rolls-with-new-ipods-itunes-lps.ars

Other neat stuff:
http://gizmodo.com/5355644/concept-windows-7-ads-shot-with-5d-mark-ii-set-the-bar-high
http://gizmodo.com/5355540/hands-on-with-leicas-m9-and-x1-fine-art-for-a-price
http://gizmodo.com/5355112/palm-pixi-hands-on-the-smaller-pre-with-a-better-keyboard-and-no-wi+fi

Wednesday update, SCSite, Optional books, Mass Storage, Apple news

A couple of you noted you couldn't get to the course.com link, but the
link works for me:
http://oc.course.com/sc/dc2010/index.cfm?action=review&chapter=1

You will need to register for the service here first:
http://login.course.com/login/accountsetup.cfm

Discovering computers is the optional text, you can only order it online:
----
Discovering Computers 2010: Complete, Living in a Digital World
Gary B. Shelly | Misty E. Vermaat
ISBN 10: 032478645X | ISBN 13: 9780324786453

This recommended book is not available in the bookstore and should be
purchased online using the following link:

http://academic.cengage.com/cengage/student.do?codeid=Z406&sortby=copy&type=all_radio&courseid=CKC01&product_isbn=9780324786453&disciplinenumber=201&filter=NewText&optValue=newtext_radio&codeFlag=false
---

Apple is expected to introduce new iPods (Gen3) later today. In a
surprising move, they will continue to sell Gen2 at a reduced price!
http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/09/09/the-incredible-shrinking-ipod-prices-undercut-the-zune-hd/

So Microsoft's Zune will be squeezed here, beat on price by gen2, beat
on features by gen3...

Pics of Gen3 iPod Touch? Looks legit to me!
http://gizmodo.com/5355340/first-pics-of-apples-new-ipod-touch-3g-nano-5g

Engadget will be live at the keynote at 1pm our time:

So will Giz:
http://gizmodo.com/5355097/apple-lets-rock-liveblog

If you just want a cheap Mass storage device, here's a few options:
How does under $5 sound?
http://www.amazon.com/SanDisk-SDCZ6-4096-A11-Cruzer-Micro-Flash/dp/B000NWVAFO/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1252500575&sr=8-13

Tiger has all kinds of varieties:
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/category/category_tlc.asp?CatId=379&name=USB-Flash-Drives&

Or you could just go to staples / walmart / best buy / PC richard and
see whats on sale.

You could also get a USB hard disk for under $100:
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3751572&CatId=2424

Will the Beatles come to iTunes today? Sources say no.
http://gizmodo.com/5355014/beatles-remastered-a-reminder-of-why-it-will-probably-rock

If you are into music games tho, Beatles Rock Band launches today!
http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/102/1021831p1.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/06/arts/television/06schi.html
http://www.joystiq.com/2009/09/05/review-the-beatles-rock-band/
http://arstechnica.com/gaming/reviews/2009/09/you-want-a-revolution-ars-reviews-beatles-rock-band.ars

More fun stuff:
http://www.engadget.com/2009/09/09/video-hard-rock-cafe-vegas-strip-gets-ginormous-interactive-roc/
http://www.engadget.com/2009/09/08/dell-packs-intels-lynnfield-cpus-into-studio-xps-8000-and-9000/
http://gizmodo.com/5355170/dallas-cowboys-stadium-continues-streak-of-giant-screen-fails
http://gizmodo.com/5355137/forget-silicon-this-teenagers-solar-panel-uses-human-hair-as-a-conductor
http://gizmodo.com/5355068/internet-distractions-in-order-of-importance
http://gizmodo.com/5354033/stop-5-reasons-to-wait-on-buying-that-laptop/gallery/
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/09/fcc-report-on-parental-control-devices-why-arent-they-used.ars
http://arstechnica.com/media/news/2009/09/resistance-to-book-deal-builds-as-google-woos-europe.ars

Earlybird welcome for IT 102-50, Updated

Hello to all who are currently signed up for this section of IT
102-50!  Looking forward to seeing you all in class TONIGHT!.  Most of
you have seen a version of this email sent out a few weeks back,
please check through this new version as several things have been
updated.  I will try to call out the updates with *** notification
symbols

We'll be using a 'Team Teaching' approach. This class will be
primarily taught by myself, but we are fortunate to have Mr. William
"Bill" Reynolds fill in for me a few times throughout the semester
when I will unfortunately be on business travel.  Bill happens to be
one of the best and most fun teachers of MS Office you will ever meet.
Between the two of us we will help you explore everything Information
Technology has to offer and take advantage of the extensive IT
resources available to you at Monmouth U!

We'll go over what is required for the class in detail tonight, but a
few of you have emailed me about what books you need to buy as you
budget for the semester.  There is a special 'package' of books for
the IT 100/102 class that are bundled together at the bookstore, it
comes with some codes that are needed to get access to our digital
tools for the class.  ***All in one shot the books are sold as a
bundle which must be purchased together and runs just under $250.
Please note that the bundle IS required and you must purchase it
directly from our own book store, which has not only worked to get you
a very good price but also bundles in a code which gets you access to
the SAM technology which we use throughout the class.  ***

 The required bundle is ISBN: 1435468872
***TEXTBOOKS REQUIRED: Bundle ISBN: 1435468872 (also listed as ISBN
9781435468870).***

Bundle includes the following components:

Title Author Component ISBN
SECURITY AWARENESS: APPLYING PRACTICAL SECURITY- 3rd Edition Mark
Ciampa 1435454146
MICROSOFT OFFICE 2007 INTRODUCTORY CONCEPTS & TECHNIQUES, Premium
Video Edition (Vista) Shelly/Cashman/Vermaat 0324826842
CURRENT TOPICS IN TECHNOLOGY Paparella/Simko 1439038708
SAM 2007 Assessment and Projects 4.0 Printed Access Card, 1st Edition
Course Technology 1439044058

TEXTBOOK RECOMMENDED:

Discovering Computers 2010: Complete, Living in a
Digital World
Gary B. Shelly | Misty E. Vermaat
ISBN 10: 032478645X | ISBN 13: 9780324786453
©2010

Also be sure to log in to see the details at:
http://ecampus.monmouth.edu
That site will be updated with Drop Boxes, the Syllabus, and forum
questions before the first class.

My email should you need to get me fastest is: sposten@gmail.com and
Bill can be reached at: WilliamSReynolds@aol.com

I do not recommend you use posten@monmouth.edu tho you can CC that
address and samuel.posten@l-3com.com if you want to be sure I'll see
your mail the first time I go to one of my email clients.

Couple of things we want you thinking about as you come to our first meeting:
-How much do you _really_ know about computers? Do you know just
enough to get your work done or have you looked into ways that
computers are invading every aspect of our lives?
-What applications do you use regularly?  Is it mostly Email and Word
processing with a few games thrown in, or do you use a wide variety of
traditional and "web 2.0" type applications?
-How much are you into the "social networks" like old standards of
Facebook and Myspace, or are you on to the new grounds like Twitter,
Friendfeed or something even more cutting edge?
-What are computers doing today that we never expected just a few years ago?
-What is more important to you where technology is concerned:
Flexibility, stability, coolness or ease of use?
-What do you want to get out of this course? Are you here just because
it's a requirement or does technology genuinely really excite you?
***-Now that 'everybody' uses computers how can you be sure who is
really competent in using them versus just someone who knows Word and
Mail and not much more?***
***-If you are someone who excels at information technology, how can
you prove that?  How can you "Stand out from the crowd"?***
***How have computers crept into our lives in ways that we don't even
think about any more?  Where are computers being used in ways that are
almost invisible to us?***

Did you know you can get the FULL MS office for just $60 as a student?
You can get Windows Vista and maybe even Windows 7 cheaply through
this program too.   It's an amazing deal, Microsoft calls it the
Ultimate Steal:
http://www.microsoft.com/student/discounts/theultimatesteal-us/default.aspx

We'll make big use of this classwide email capability, tho we havent
really started much on the pre-class email blasts, you should start
seeing random news bits coming in from me, and you can see the links
from previous years if you go to:
http://infotechbuzz.blogspot.com/

If you find good articles about new technology that interests you,
please send them my way.  Could be that your story will make it back
to the list for the whole class to talk about.  Hopefully you already
have a few favorite sources for technology news.  If not, here are a
few links to get you started, we will be discussing current events in
technology quite a bit!
http://www.engadget.com/
http://www.techmeme.com/
http://www.boingboing.net/
http://arstechnica.com/index.ars
http://gizmodo.com/
http://slashdot.org/
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/
http://www.wired.com/
http://tech.alltop.com/

***For you mac-heads and those looking to learn more about Apple:
http://www.tuaw.com
http://www.macrumors.com
http://www.appleinsider.com
http://www.macnn.com
http://www.wired.com/gadgets/mac/

And of course, http://www.apple.com

We look forward to talking to you all soon!  Let us know if you have
any questions that need answering before the first meeting.

Sam

School demolishes library, replaces it with coffee and Kindles

http://www.engadget.com/2009/09/05/boston-prep-school-nixes-all-the-books-in-its-library-replaces/

Probably the first step on a long voyage as we all head in that
direction. DRM still stands in the way of our success in making that
work though...

Sent from my iPhone

Facebook and twitter revolutionize how parents can stalk their college age children

http://gizmodo.com/5350303/facebook-revolutionizes-how-parents-stalk-college+aged-kids

"Just make sure you misspell a lot of words and swear a lot"

Scoble and Thurrot add to the Office 2010 intros

http://www.winsupersite.com/office/office2010_tp.asp

http://scobleizer.com/2009/07/13/microsofts-new-office-10-brings-office-back-from-the-dead-tons-of-videos/

The changes to the hated ribbon interface look like a good start.
Will see how it plays out.

Sam

On Mon, Jul 13, 2009 at 8:24 AM, Sam Posten<sposten@gmail.com> wrote:
> http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/07/13/the-complete-guide-to-microsofts-office-2010/
>
> More surely to follow later today during Microsoft's Partner meetup.
>
> Sam
>

What do the Credit Card companies know about you pt. 2

Chilling.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/17/magazine/17credit-t.html?_r=1

The iPod of its day

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8117619.stm

Hilarious.

Google Wave and Microsoft Bing (Bing is not Google)

If you haven't heard about Google's Wave yet, be prepared to be
impressed, it is a project from Google imagining how Email would look
if it were introduced today and not in the 60s:
http://mashable.com/2009/05/28/google-wave-guide/

The funny thing is today was supposed to be all about Microsoft
relaunching their sad search efforts into Bing, a new and interesting
mashup of search technologies that has the name Bing, which is
jokingly recursive in 'Bing is not Google'. Google totally got the
best PR launch of the day tho!

http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/05/28/what-just-happened-thursday-was-supposed-to-be-bing-day/?awesm=tcrn.ch_2oM&utm_campaign=techcrunch&utm_content=techcrunch-autopost&utm_medium=tcrn.ch-twitter&utm_source=twitter.com

http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/05/28/the-bing-definition-microsoft-probably-doesnt-want-you-to-get-in-your-fortune-cookie/?awesm=tcrn.ch_2oI&utm_campaign=techcrunch&utm_content=techcrunch-autopost&utm_medium=tcrn.ch-twitter&utm_source=twitter.com

Ars' guide to the Digital Transition

Most people in our area probably have some form of cable tv. For
those that still rely on antennas tho they will need to be ready by
June 12th.
http://arstechnica.com/media/news/2009/05/gain-the-secret-knowledge-become-a-dtv-transition-guru.ars

Sam

Readers Digest on Urban Legends

http://www.rd.com/your-america-inspiring-people-and-stories/rumor-detectives-true-story-or-online-hoax/article122216.html

Hope everyone had a good semester, enjoy the break or graduation!

Sam

Tuvalu is sinking?

According to GoDaddy at least that makes them a bad choice for domain names...
http://gizmodo.com/5235114/godaddy-tells-us-not-to-buy-tv-domains-because-tuvalu-is-sinking

Tuvalu history:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/6.09/tuvalu_pr.html
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&ct=res&cd=5&url=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FTuvalu&ei=pPD6SZTMLJCmM-ma1dQE&usg=AFQjCNFHSu-Ht3451LxW7Rp_KmO8thwQIw
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuvalu
http://archive.salon.com/tech/view/2000/07/24/dot_tv/index.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.tv

When is the right time for kids to get a cellphone?

How old should kids be for their first cell? This is actually a
question my extended family is discussing right now.
http://gizmodo.com/5231392/is-giving-a-child-a-cellphone-a-bad-idea

RE: [IP] How the Internet got its rules

Better link:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/07/opinion/07crocker.html

---

From: Posten, Samuel @ C2S2
Sent: Tue 4/7/2009 10:00 AM
To: 09sp_it10250@monmouth.edu; mpaparel@monmouth.edu
Subject: FW: [IP] How the Internet got its rules

From the IP list

---

From: David Farber [mailto:dave@farber.net]
Sent: Tue 4/7/2009 8:30 AM
To: ip
Subject: [IP] How the Internet got its rules

For the record I have known Steve for maybe 30 plus years.  djf

and

CERT Technical Symposium on 11 March Reinventing the Internet – Can We 
and How Would We? Panelists: David Farber, moderator, Carnegie Mellon 
University Lawrence Roberts, Anagram, Inc. Steve Crocker, Shinkuro, 
Inc. Paul Mockapetris, Nominum, Inc. Guru Parulkar, Clean Slate 
Internet Design Program

mms://wms.andrew.cmu.edu/001/CERT1_Session3.wmv

Begin forwarded message:

From: "David S. Isenberg (isen)" <isen@isen.com>
Date: April 7, 2009 7:40:11 AM EDT
To: David Farber <dave@farber.net>
Subject: How the Internet got its rules

Dave,

I'm sure you know Steve Crocker, who wrote RFC #1
at the dawn of the Internet, long before the
letters IETF stood for anything. Now the NY Times
has published Steve's Op-Ed commemorating the 40th
Anniversary of RFC #1. This history, the story of
how RFC #1 (and the RFC system, the IETF and the
Internet) came to be, is history that those of us
who care about preserving the Internet's most
vital properties should know.

Here are several key paragraphs:

> The early R.F.C.’s ranged from grand visions to mundane
> details, although the latter quickly became the most
> common. Less important than the content of those first
> documents was that they were available free of charge
> and anyone could write one. Instead of authority-based
> decision-making, we relied on a process we called “rough
> consensus and running code.” Everyone was welcome to
> propose ideas, and if enough people liked it and used
> it, the design became a standard.
>
> After all, everyone understood there was a practical
> value in choosing to do the same task in the same way.
> For example, if we wanted to move a file from one
> machine to another, and if you were to design the
> process one way, and I was to design it another, then
> anyone who wanted to talk to both of us would have to
> employ two distinct ways of doing the same thing. So
> there was plenty of natural pressure to avoid such
> hassles. It probably helped that in those days we
> avoided patents and other restrictions; without any
> financial incentive to control the protocols, it was
> much easier to reach agreement.
>
> This was the ultimate in openness in technical design
> and that culture of open processes was essential in
> enabling the Internet to grow and evolve as
> spectacularly as it has. In fact, we probably wouldn’t
> have the Web without it.

Steve's complete Op-Ed is here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/07/opinion/07Brooks.html?ref=opinion
and here: http://bit.ly/UBIWf

David I


-------------------------------------------
Archives: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/247/=now
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FW: [IP] How the Internet got its rules

From the IP list

---

From: David Farber [mailto:dave@farber.net]
Sent: Tue 4/7/2009 8:30 AM
To: ip
Subject: [IP] How the Internet got its rules

For the record I have known Steve for maybe 30 plus years.  djf

and

CERT Technical Symposium on 11 March Reinventing the Internet – Can We 
and How Would We? Panelists: David Farber, moderator, Carnegie Mellon 
University Lawrence Roberts, Anagram, Inc. Steve Crocker, Shinkuro, 
Inc. Paul Mockapetris, Nominum, Inc. Guru Parulkar, Clean Slate 
Internet Design Program

mms://wms.andrew.cmu.edu/001/CERT1_Session3.wmv

Begin forwarded message:

From: "David S. Isenberg (isen)" <isen@isen.com>
Date: April 7, 2009 7:40:11 AM EDT
To: David Farber <dave@farber.net>
Subject: How the Internet got its rules

Dave,

I'm sure you know Steve Crocker, who wrote RFC #1
at the dawn of the Internet, long before the
letters IETF stood for anything. Now the NY Times
has published Steve's Op-Ed commemorating the 40th
Anniversary of RFC #1. This history, the story of
how RFC #1 (and the RFC system, the IETF and the
Internet) came to be, is history that those of us
who care about preserving the Internet's most
vital properties should know.

Here are several key paragraphs:

> The early R.F.C.’s ranged from grand visions to mundane
> details, although the latter quickly became the most
> common. Less important than the content of those first
> documents was that they were available free of charge
> and anyone could write one. Instead of authority-based
> decision-making, we relied on a process we called “rough
> consensus and running code.” Everyone was welcome to
> propose ideas, and if enough people liked it and used
> it, the design became a standard.
>
> After all, everyone understood there was a practical
> value in choosing to do the same task in the same way.
> For example, if we wanted to move a file from one
> machine to another, and if you were to design the
> process one way, and I was to design it another, then
> anyone who wanted to talk to both of us would have to
> employ two distinct ways of doing the same thing. So
> there was plenty of natural pressure to avoid such
> hassles. It probably helped that in those days we
> avoided patents and other restrictions; without any
> financial incentive to control the protocols, it was
> much easier to reach agreement.
>
> This was the ultimate in openness in technical design
> and that culture of open processes was essential in
> enabling the Internet to grow and evolve as
> spectacularly as it has. In fact, we probably wouldn’t
> have the Web without it.

Steve's complete Op-Ed is here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/07/opinion/07Brooks.html?ref=opinion
and here: http://bit.ly/UBIWf

David I


-------------------------------------------
Archives: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/247/=now
RSS Feed: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/rss/247/
Powered by Listbox: http://www.listbox.com

Netbooks set to become TV boxes...

I like the looks of this, I'm in for one for sure. I'd probably try
to find a way to sneak OSX onto it tho, don't tell Apple!

http://www.liliputing.com/2009/04/acer-to-launch-nvidia-ion-powered-hornet-nettop-next-week.html

FW: [IP] Good REading Vast Spy System Loots Computers in 103 Countries - NYTimes.com

 

---

From: David Farber [mailto:dave@farber.net]
Sent: Sun 3/29/2009 2:16 AM
To: ip
Subject: [IP] Good REading Vast Spy System Loots Computers in 103 Countries - NYTimes.com

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/29/technology/29spy.html?_r=1&hp=&pagewanted=all 29, 2009

Vast Spy System Loots Computers in 103 Countries

By JOHN MARKOFF

TORONTO — A vast electronic spying operation has infiltrated computers and has stolen documents from hundreds of government and private offices around the world, including those of the Dalai Lama, Canadian researchers have concluded.

In a report to be issued this weekend, the researchers said that the system was being controlled from computers based almost exclusively in China, but that they could not say conclusively that the Chinese government was involved.

The researchers, who are based at the Munk Center for International Studies at the University of Toronto, had been asked by the office of the Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan leader whom China regularly denounces, to examine its computers for signs of malicious software, or malware.

Their sleuthing opened a window into a broader operation that, in less than two years, has infiltrated at least 1,295 computers in 103 countries, including many belonging to embassies, foreign ministries and other government offices, as well as the Dalai Lama’s Tibetan exile centers in India, Brussels, London and New York.

The researchers, who have a record of detecting computer espionage, said they believed that in addition to the spying on the Dalai Lama, the system, which they called GhostNet, was focused on the governments of South Asian and Southeast Asian countries.

Intelligence analysts say many governments, including those of China, Russia and the United States, and other parties use sophisticated computer programs to covertly gather information.

The newly reported spying operation is by far the largest to come to light in terms of countries affected.

This is also believed to be the first time researchers have been able to expose the workings of a computer system used in an intrusion of this magnitude.

Still going strong, the operation continues to invade and monitor more than a dozen new computers a week, the researchers said in their report, “Tracking ‘GhostNet’: Investigating a Cyber Espionage Network.” They said they had found no evidence that United States government offices had been infiltrated, although a NATO computer was monitored by the spies for half a day and computers of the Indian Embassy in Washington were infiltrated.

The malware is remarkable both for its sweep — in computer jargon, it has not been merely “phishing” for random consumers’ information, but “whaling” for particular important targets — and for its Big Brother-style capacities. It can, for example, turn on the camera and audio-recording functions of an infected computer, enabling monitors to see and hear what goes on in a room. The investigators say they do not know if this facet has been employed.

snip

---

Archives

FW: [IP] The full text of the University speech -- "The Need for Heretics" The Civil Heretic - Freeman Dyson - Profile - NYTimes.com

From the IP List...

---

From: David Farber [mailto:dave@farber.net]
Sent: Sat 3/28/2009 4:35 PM
To: ip
Subject: [IP] The full text of the University speech -- "The Need for Heretics" The Civil Heretic - Freeman Dyson - Profile - NYTimes.com

Begin forwarded message:

From: George Dyson <gdyson@gmail.com>
Date: March 28, 2009 12:33:35 PM EDT
To: David Farber <dave@farber.net>
Subject: Re: [IP] The Civil Heretic - Freeman Dyson - Profile - 
NYTimes.com


On Mar 28, 2009, at 6:02 AM, David Farber wrote:

> Is there a write-up on the University speech?

Here is the full text:

The Need for Heretics

Commencement Address, given at the University of Michigan,  December 
18, 2005

Freeman Dyson, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton, New Jersey


When the Princess Rosalba was baptized, in Thackeray's story, ``The 
Rose and the Ring'', her father, King Cavalfiore of Crim Tartary, gave 
a banquet, and all the royal guests came with fine clothes and 
expensive presents and flattering speeches.  Then at the end of the 
line of guests came the Fairy Blackstick, an ugly old lady with a long 
nose, carrying nothing in her hands but a plain black stick.  She 
waved her stick over the baby and said, ``As for this little lady, the 
best thing I can wish her is a little misfortune''. The King was 
furious and ordered his servants to remove the Fairy Blackstick from 
the hall.  But of course the magic was done, and the Fairy 
Blackstick's present turned out to be more valuable than all the other 
presents put together.  I will tell you at the end how the magic worked.

I am grateful to the University of Michigan and to you, President 
Coleman, for giving me the privilege of talking at this celebration. I 
find it strange that I should be talking here.  In this company I am 
the Fairy Blackstick.  You students are proud possessors of the Ph.D. 
or some similar token of academic respectability.  You have endured 
many years of poverty and hard labor, and now you are ready to go to 
your just rewards, to a place on the tenure track of a university or 
on the board of directors of a company.  And here am I, a person who 
never had a Ph.D. myself and fought all my life against the Ph.D. 
system and everything it stands for.  Of course I fought in vain.  The 
grip of the Ph.D. system on academic life is tighter today than it has 
ever been.  But I will continue to fight against it as long as I 
live.  In short, I am proud to be a heretic.  But unfortunately I am 
an old heretic.  What the world needs is young heretics.  I am hoping 
that one or two of you may fill that role.

I will tell you briefly about three heresies that I am promoting.  The 
first of my heresies says that all the fuss about global warming is 
grossly exaggerated.  Here I am opposing the holy brotherhood of 
climate model experts and the crowd of deluded citizens who believe 
the numbers predicted by the models. Of course, they say, I have no 
degree in meteorology and I am therefore not qualified to speak.  But 
I have studied the climate models and I know what they can do.  The 
models solve the equations of fluid dynamics, and they do a very good 
job of describing the fluid motions of the atmosphere and the oceans. 
They do a very poor job of describing the clouds, the dust, the 
chemistry and the biology of fields and farms and forests.  They do 
not begin to describe the real world that we live in.  The real world 
is muddy and messy and full of things that we do not yet understand. 
It is much easier for a scientist to sit in an air-conditioned 
building and run computer models, than to put on winter clothes and 
measure what is really happening outside in the swamps and the 
clouds.  That is why the climate model experts end up believing in 
their own models.

There is no doubt that parts of the world are getting warmer, but the 
warming is not global.  The warming happens mostly in places and times 
where it is cold, in the arctic more than in the tropics, in winter 
more than in summer, at night more than in daytime.  On the whole, the 
warming happens most where it does the least harm.  I am not saying 
that the warming does not cause problems.  Obviously it does. 
Obviously we should be trying to understand it better.  I am saying 
that the problems are grossly exaggerated.  They take away money and 
attention from other problems that are more urgent and more important, 
such as poverty and infectious disease and public education and public 
health, and the preservation of living creatures on land and in the 
oceans.

I could talk for the whole of my fifteen minutes about the global 
warming heresy, but I won't.  My second heresy is about 
biotechnology.  It says that biotechnology will soon be domesticated.  
Fifty years ago in Princeton, I watched the mathematician John von 
Neumann designing and building the first electronic computer that 
operated with instructions coded into the machine.  Von Neumann did 
not invent the electronic computer.  The computer called ENIAC had 
been running at the University of Pennsylvania five years earlier.  
What von Neumann invented was software, the coded instructions that 
gave the computer agility and flexibility.  It was the combination of 
electronic hardware with punch-card software that allowed a single 
machine to predict weather, to simulate the evolution of populations 
of living creatures, and to test the feasibility of hydrogen bombs.  
Von Neumann understood that his invention would change the world.  He 
understood that the descendants of his machine would dominate the 
operations of science and business and government.  But he imagined 
computers always remaining large and expensive.  He imagined them as 
centralized facilities serving large research laboratories or large 
industries.  He failed to foresee computers growing small enough and 
cheap enough to be used by housewives for doing income-tax returns or 
by kids for doing homework.  He failed to foresee the final 
domestication of computers as toys for three-year-olds.  He totally 
failed to foresee the emergence of computer-games as a dominant 
feature of twenty-first-century life. Because of computer-games, our 
grandchildren are now growing up with an indelible addiction to 
computers.  For better or for worse, in sickness or in health, till 
death do us part, humans and computers are now joined together more 
durably than husbands and wives.

What has this story of von Neumann's computer and the evolution of 
computer-games to do with biotechnology?  Simply this, that there is a 
close analogy between von Neumann's vision of computers as large 
centralized facilities and the public perception of genetic 
engineering today as an activity of large pharmaceutical and 
agribusiness corporations such as Monsanto.  The public distrusts 
Monsanto because Monsanto likes to put genes for poisonous pesticides 
into food-crops, just as we distrusted von Neumann because von Neumann 
liked to use his computer for designing hydrogen bombs.  It is likely 
that genetic engineering will remain unpopular and controversial so 
long as it remains a centralized activity in the hands of large 
corporations.

I see a bright future for the biotechnical industry when it follows 
the path of the computer industry, the path that von Neumann failed to 
foresee, becoming small and domesticated rather than big and 
centralized.  The first step in this direction was already taken 
recently, when genetically modified tropical fish with new and 
brilliant colors appeared in pet-stores.  For biotechnology to become 
domesticated, the next step is to become user-friendly.  I recently 
spent a happy day at the Philadelphia Flower Show, the biggest flower 
show in the world, where flower-breeders from all over the world show 
off the results of their efforts.  I have also visited the Reptile 
Show in San Diego, an equally impressive show displaying the work of 
another set of breeders.  Philadelphia excels in orchids and roses, 
San Diego excels in lizards and snakes.  The main problem for a 
grandparent visiting the reptile show with a grandchild is to get the 
grandchild out of the building without actually buying a snake.  Every 
orchid or rose or lizard or snake is the work of a dedicated and 
skilled breeder.  There are thousands of people, amateurs and 
professionals, who devote their lives to this business.  Now imagine 
what will happen when the tools of genetic engineering become 
accessible to these people. There will be do-it-yourself kits for 
gardeners who will use genetic engineering to breed new varieties of 
roses and orchids. Also kits for lovers of pigeons and parrots and 
lizards and snakes, to breed new varieties of pets.  Breeders of dogs 
and cats will have their kits too.

Genetic engineering, once it gets into the hands of housewives  and 
children, will give us an explosion of diversity of new living 
creatures, rather than the monoculture crops that the big corporations 
prefer.  Designing genomes will be a personal thing, a new art-form as 
creative as painting or sculpture.  Few of the new creations will be 
masterpieces, but all will bring joy to their creators and variety to 
our fauna and flora.

The final step in the domestication of biotechnology will be biotech 
games, designed like computer games for children down to kindergarten 
age, but played with real eggs and seeds rather than with images on a 
screen.  Playing such games, kids will acquire an intimate feeling for 
the organisms that they are growing.  The winner could be the kid 
whose seed grows the prickliest cactus, or the kid whose egg hatches 
the cutest dinosaur.  These games will be messy and possibly 
dangerous.  Rules and regulations will be needed to make sure that our 
kids do not endanger themselves and others. When they are grown up, 
these kids will be at home in the new world of biotechnology.  They 
will be ready to put their skills to use, designing new species of 
termite with a taste for heavy metal to chew up derelict automobiles, 
and designing new species of tree with silicon leaves to make liquid 
fuels out of carbon dioxide and sunlight.

Here is my third and last heresy.  I say that the United States has 
less than a century left of its turn as top nation.  Since the modern 
nation-state was invented around the year 1500, a succession of 
countries have taken turns at being top nation, first Spain, then 
France, Britain, America.  Each turn lasted about 150 years.  Ours 
began in 1920, so it should end about 2070.  The reason why each top 
nation's turn comes to an end is that the top nation becomes over-
extended, militarily, economically and politically. Greater and 
greater efforts are required to maintain the number one position.  
Finally the over-extension becomes so extreme that the whole structure 
collapses.  Already we can see in the American posture today some 
clear symptoms of over-extension.  Who will be the next top nation?  
It might be the European Union or it might be China.  After that it 
might be India or Brazil.  You should be asking yourselves, not how to 
live in an America-dominated world, but how to prepare for a world 
that is not America-dominated.  That may be the most important problem 
for your generation to solve. How does a people that thinks of itself 
as number one yield gracefully to become number two?

I am telling you that misfortunes are on the way.  Your precious 
Ph.D., or whichever degree you went through long years of hard work to 
acquire, may be worth less than you think.  Your specialized training 
may become obsolete.You may find yourself  over-qualified for the 
available jobs. You may be declared redundant.  The country and the 
culture to which you belong may move far away from the mainstream.  
But these misfortunes are also opportunities.  It is always open to 
you to join the heretics and find another way to make a living.  With 
or without a Ph.D., there are big and important problems for you to 
solve.

I am hoping that things will turn out for you as nicely as they turned 
out in the end for the Princess Rosalba as a result of the Fairy 
Blackstick's appearance at her baptism.  A few years after the baptism 
the misfortunes began.  King Cavalfiore was slain in battle and the 
rebel Duke Padella usurped the Kingdom of Crim Tartary. Rosalba was 
left alone, a toddler in the abandoned palace.  She wandered out into 
the forest and was adopted by a friendly lioness. After living quietly 
for a few years with the lion family, she wandered back to 
civilization and found a job as a serving-maid in the household of 
King Valoroso the twenty-fourth of Paflagonia.  There she took 
advantage of her situation to educate herself with the school-books 
cast aside by her spoiled mistress, the Princess Angelica.  Finally, 
having acquired the right sort of education, the education of hard 
knocks, she married Prince Giglio, the rightful heir to the throne of 
Paflagonia, and lived happily ever after.  But now I must sit down 
quickly, before the King's servants throw me out.


---------










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I'm a PC and I'm a cheap idiot... More.

Brilliant reinforcement, MS essentially says PCs are for cheap
losers... Who writes this stuff?
http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2009/03/26/pc-to-mac-i%27m-cheaper/
http://i.gizmodo.com/5186672/microsoft-marketing-team-now-exclusively-advised-by-internet-commenters-but-it-works

Edit, Daring Fireball says the same thing:
http://daringfireball.net/linked/2009/03/26/new-microsoft-ads

Sexting is illegal for teens:
http://gadgetwise.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/03/26/sexting-may-place-teens-at-legal-risk/
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/03/parents-fight-child-porn-threats-against-sexting-teens.ars

What is conficker?
http://i.gizmodo.com/5183751/giz-explains-how-a-brainy-worm-might-jack-the-worlds-pcs-on-april-1

Data rot:
http://i.gizmodo.com/5185550/theres-no-great-solution-for-data-rot

More Stuff...
http://i.gizmodo.com/5185947/sun-storing-the-entire-internet-in-a-shipping-container
http://i.gizmodo.com/5185911/winning-pwn2own-hacker-macs-are-safer-than-pcs
http://i.gizmodo.com/5169801/windows-7-release-candidate-changes-increase-productivity-and-workflow
http://daringfireball.net/2009/03/obsession_times_voice
http://i.gizmodo.com/5185629/mythbusters-explosion-breaks-windows-tosses-women-off-couches
http://www.engadget.com/2009/03/27/video-ge-bringing-3d-hd-baggage-screening-to-airports/
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/03/eu-to-us-wto-appeal-justified-fix-your-gambling-laws.ars
http://arstechnica.com/open-source/news/2009/03/sugar-labs-announces-new-version-of-sugar-learning-platform.ars
http://blog.wired.com/underwire/2009/03/review-monsters.html
http://blog.wired.com/cars/2009/03/first-look-of-t.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/27/technology/internet/27twitter.html?partner=rss&emc=rss
http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/news/2009/03/young-people-embrace-mobile-tech-but-feel-overconnected.ars
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2343959,00.asp

Monday morning link soup

Some interesting (I hope!) stuff here this AM.

Facebook Fail.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/hi/technology/newsid_7957000/7957764.stm

Just because you are homeless doesn't mean you can live without
technology, including a cell phone:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/22/AR2009032201835.html

Saw this on Quarter to Three this weekend:
http://i.gizmodo.com/5179465/whats-in-the-box-is-mysterious-mishmash-of-gadgets-video-games-apocalypse

Google blackout:
http://i.gizmodo.com/5178261/google-blacks-out-hundreds-of-entertaining-voyeuristic-street-view-shots

How Cell Towers work:
http://i.gizmodo.com/5177322/giz-explains-how-cell-towers-work

Deep Packet Inspection Voodoo:
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/03/does-deep-packet-inspection-mean.ars

Game developers Conference starts today, will we see a PS3 price cut this week?
http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2009/03/gdc.ars

New $800 iMac, if you are looking to get into Apple computing here's
the cheap way in (Ooops, only if you are a school):
http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2009/03/apple-may-be-offering-17-imac-for-educational-institutions.ars

Diebold is in hot water over flawed voting booth software:
http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2009/03/video-ca-hearin.html

Free Nine inch Nails / Janes Addiction songs;
http://blog.wired.com/underwire/2009/03/download-free-n.html

More dumb ideas from the music industry:
http://blog.wired.com/business/2009/03/sxsw-music-exec.html

A life in Art:
http://theonlinephotographer.typepad.com/the_online_photographer/2009/03/a-life-in-art.html#more

Google is not a design company:
http://blog.wired.com/business/2009/03/googles-data-cu.html

iPhone 3.0 on video:
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2009/03/excited-about-i.html

More fun tech stuff:
http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2008/09/21/25-beautiful-macro-photography-shots-photos/
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/photo-contest/2008-winners
http://blogs.adobe.com/jnack/2009/03/great_cgi_story.html
http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/03/22/2336208
http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/03/22/1619207

Sam

Fwd: Juries & Technology

More stories of tech being used in ways that establishments havent considered.

THIS sounds like a terrrrrific idea:
http://i.gizmodo.com/5173548/chicago-street-lights-may-scan-for-car-insurance

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Reynolds, William <wreynold@monmouth.edu>
Date: Wed, Mar 18, 2009 at 11:40 AM
Subject: Juries & Technology
To: "sposten@gmail.com" <sposten@gmail.com>

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/18/us/18juries.html?_r=1&th&emc=th
William S. Reynolds
William.Reynolds@Monmouth.edu
Supervisor of Student Teachers
Freshman Advisor
Monmouth University
Cell 908-601-2736

UK School testing Face Recognition for class attendance

Creepy. Joseph this might be similar to the project you asked me about tho!

http://www.engadget.com/2009/03/06/uk-college-begins-testing-facial-recognition-attendence-system/

Sam

Re: Kindle on iPhone / iPod Touch, plus geoDefense

Ars on the lack of an in app purchasing capability on Kindle for iPod:
http://arstechnica.com/media/news/2009/03/ars-hands-on-kindle-for-iphone.ars

On Thu, Mar 5, 2009 at 8:47 AM, Sam Posten <sposten@gmail.com> wrote:
> http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/mar2009/tc2009034_069800.htm

Kindle on iPhone / iPod Touch, plus geoDefense

http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/mar2009/tc2009034_069800.htm

I installed the Kindle reader on my iPod touch this morning, and
logged in to their Kindle Store via the web and bought two books,
Stephen King's UR and William Gibson's Neuromancer. I'm a huge fan of
King and this book was the only mass market book by him I didn't have
yet (it's a Kindle exclusive, and is sorta about a Kindle like device)
and have always intended to finish reading Neuromancer, which I
started reading back in the 90s and never finished. Neuromancer is
the book that coined the term Cyberspace, and the genre it created
spawned things like The Matrix and Johnny Mnemonic. The interface is
not bad, but I don't know how long I could stare at the device without
a break. I also don't like that you have to go to a web browser to
buy new books, it's a total fail to not be able to buy new books with
Amazon one click inside the app itself. Perhaps in Rev 2.0... Also
the books are all DRM wrapped which sucks, but there are thousands of
public domain classic books also available which is nice. I approach
this the same way I did iTunes: Lets see the vendors make a great
experience and trust that the rights stuff will all work out in the
end. It worked for music, I can now get all DRM free music from
Amazon and Apple, it's only a matter of time before that happens with
Books and Movies too. Apple sucks in that they want several hundred
bucks from me to 'upgrade' my iTunes tracks to DRM free and doesn't
make an easy interface for me to pick and choose which ones that might
actually be worth it for me to do so on, but that's a story for
another day.

I also haven't checked out Stanza, but I will install that later today.

Also, a few books I wanted to buy on Kindle weren't available for the
device yet. I've heard interesting things about David Foster
Wallace's 'Infinite Jest' but that one isn't in the store yet for
whatever reason.

Speaking of the iPod Touch: If you own one (or the iPhone) and want
to try an amazing but HARD game, spend the 99 cents and download a
game called geoDefense. It's a vector based Tower Defense game that
is like a combination of Chess, Tower Defense, and Asteroids. No
playing in class! =)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vector_game

Re: Microsoft's Vision 2019

Two more:
http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2009/03/cool-videos-microsoft-surface-physics.ars
http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2009/02/cool-video-iphone-and-microsoft-surface-mashup.ars

I actually got to play with Surface at the Ice Bar in Las Vegas when I
was out there last year. It sucked. Really. It has potential tho!

Sam

On Wed, Mar 4, 2009 at 9:20 AM, Sam Posten <sposten@gmail.com> wrote:
> More on what Microsoft Research is up to.  Lots that relate to the Vision video.
>
> http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2009/03/microsoft-research-techfest-2009-a-glance-at-the-road-ahead.ars
>
> On Sun, Mar 1, 2009 at 1:42 AM, Sam Posten <sposten@gmail.com> wrote:
>> http://www.istartedsomething.com/20090228/microsoft-office-labs-vision-2019-video/
>>
>> Required viewing, we will discuss on Tuesday!  Watch both the short
>> and long versions please!
>>
>> Sam
>>
>

Re: Microsoft's Vision 2019

More on what Microsoft Research is up to. Lots that relate to the Vision video.

http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2009/03/microsoft-research-techfest-2009-a-glance-at-the-road-ahead.ars

On Sun, Mar 1, 2009 at 1:42 AM, Sam Posten <sposten@gmail.com> wrote:
> http://www.istartedsomething.com/20090228/microsoft-office-labs-vision-2019-video/
>
> Required viewing, we will discuss on Tuesday!  Watch both the short
> and long versions please!
>
> Sam
>

FW: [IP] Every step you take: UK underground centre that is spy capital of the world

Update on the British Surveillance we discussed.

Sam

-----Original Message-----
From: David Farber
To: ip
Sent: 3/3/2009 10:44 AM
Subject: [IP] Every step you take: UK underground centre that is spy capital of the world

It is fitting for the UK to have the most camera. After all it was the 
home of  George Orwell and "1984" Long live Big Brother.  djf

Begin forwarded message:

From: Brian Randell <Brian.Randell@ncl.ac.uk>
Date: March 2, 2009 12:57:46 PM EST
To: dave@farber.net
Subject: Every step you take: UK underground centre that is spy 
capital of the world

Hi Dave:

 From today's (UK) Guardian, for IP if you so wish.

cheers

Brian

=====

Every step you take: UK underground centre that is spy capital of the 
world

Visitors from around the world come to marvel at Westminster CCTV system

Millions of people walk beneath the unblinking gaze of central 
London's surveillance cameras. Most are oblivious that deep under the 
pavements along which they are walking, beneath restaurant kitchens 
and sewage drains, their digital image is gliding across a wall of 
plasma screens.

Westminster council's CCTV control room, where a click and swivel of a 
joystick delivers panoramic views of any central London street, is 
seen by civil liberty campaigners as a symbol of the UK's surveillance 
society.

Using the latest remote technology, the cameras rotate 360 degrees, 
365 days a year, providing a hi-tech version of what the 18th century 
English philosopher Jeremy Bentham conceived as the "Panopticon" - a 
space where people can be constantly monitored but never know when 
they are being watched.

The Home Office, which funded the creation of the £1.25m facility 
seven years ago, believes it to be a "best-practice example" on which 
the future of the UK's public surveillance system should be modelled.

So famed has central London's surveillance network become that figures 
released yesterday revealed that more than 6,000 officials from 30 
countries have come to learn lessons from the centre.

They include police with the job of keeping order in the most 
dangerous cities on earth, from São Paulo in Brazil to Baltimore in 
the United States, as well as law enforcement officials from countries 
with a notorious disregard for the rights of citizens, such as China.

A delegation of foreign visitors turns up at Westminster's 
subterranean CCTV control room on a monthly basis. The FBI has paid a 
visit, as have - more recently - police forces from South Africa, 
Japan and Mexico.

The UK, whose police forces pioneered experiments with the technology 
in the 1960s, leads the world in surveillance of its people.

Exactly how many CCTV cameras there are in the UK is not known, 
although one study four years ago estimated 4.8m cameras had been 
installed.

What is rarely disputed is that the UK has more cameras per citizen 
than anywhere else.
. . .
----
Full story at:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/mar/02/westminster-cctv-system-privacy

--
School of Computing Science, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne,
NE1 7RU, UK
EMAIL = Brian.Randell@ncl.ac.uk   PHONE = +44 191 222 7923
FAX = +44 191 222 8232  URL =
http://www.cs.ncl.ac.uk/people/brian.randell

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Introducing Siftables

Check this out, I saw this on the TED podcast and knew you guys would dig it!

http://siftables.com/

Microsoft's Vision 2019

http://www.istartedsomething.com/20090228/microsoft-office-labs-vision-2019-video/

Required viewing, we will discuss on Tuesday! Watch both the short
and long versions please!

Sam

What is this Pirate Party all about?

Ars on what it all means and the struggles they face.
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/02/rick-falkvinge-is-the-face.ars

FW: [IP] Background to the film Slumdog Millionaire

From Professor Farber's IP list.  I remember reading the original story and sharing it with my IT100 class at the time...

Sam

-----Original Message-----
From: David Farber
To: ip
Sent: 2/24/2009 12:43 PM
Subject: [IP] Background to the film Slumdog Millionaire

Begin forwarded message:

From: Brian Randell <Brian.Randell@ncl.ac.uk>
Date: February 24, 2009 12:01:22 PM EST
To: dave@farber.net
Subject: Background to the film Slumdog Millionaire

Hi Dave:

For IP if you think it is appropriate:

> A NEWCASTLE professor watched Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire - 
> not realising he was the inspiration behind the movie.
>
> A decade ago Professor Sugata Mitra knocked a hole through the wall 
> of his laboratory in New Delhi, India, so children in the adjoining 
> slum could play on one of his computers.
>
> The experiment, to see whether unschooled children would teach 
> themselves how to use the internet if left to their own devices, was 
> intended as an educational tool.
>
> But it eventually inspired the film which swept the Oscars on Sunday 
> night.
>
> As he celebrated the film's success, original author Vikas Swarup 
> said he wrote Q&A, which was adapted for the screen by Simon 
> Beaufoy, as a direct result of hearing about street children using 
> Professor Mitra's computer.
. . .

Full story at:

http://tinyurl.com/czcd32

See also:

http://markkobayashihillary.computing.co.uk/2009/02/a-niit-at-the-movies
.html

cheers

Brian

--
School of Computing Science, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne,
NE1 7RU, UK
EMAIL = Brian.Randell@ncl.ac.uk   PHONE = +44 191 222 7923
FAX = +44 191 222 8232  URL =
http://www.cs.ncl.ac.uk/people/brian.randell

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DISCLAIMER:
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OK, so maybe 2 hours on the Credit crisis was a bit much

Here's a BRILLIANT animated recap of the problem in 10 minutes
http://www.crisisofcredit.com/

Sam

NYT introduces a new way to skim an online newspaper

Check this out, it's pretty damn slick and few ads.
http://prototype.nytimes.com/gst/articleSkimmer/

The Ascent of Money

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/ascentofmoney/featured/watch-full-program-the-ascent-of-money/24/

Absolutley fascinating documentary. I have always considered the
whole concept of money to be bull from the start and they go into why
that is and isnt true and why it doesnt matter, and then on to how we
got into this housing mess and where we go from here.

Watch the whole thing PRINT OUT a 2 paragraph review and I'll give
credit worth 1 weekly assignment.

Kindle 2 offiicial, I'm still yawning

For exactly the reasons Giz and its commenters list:
http://i.gizmodo.com/5149814/giz-explains-why-kindle-2-isnt-a-big-step-forward-for-voracious-readers

http://i.gizmodo.com/5149704/does-the-kindle-2-pass-the-applebraun-design-test

http://i.gizmodo.com/5149696/confirmed-kindle-coming-to-cellphones-and-how-to-get-a-kindle-2-firstest

Apple is smart in ignoring text, but if they ever do turn their eyes
to the printed word you can bet it won't be this boring.

Monmouth U is closed BUT we will still continue online!

One of the blessings and curses of the internet age is that we can
continue our work and learning remotely even when physical locations
are shut down. By now you should have heard from MUs emergency
notification system that the school is closing at 2:30. We will do a
number of things ASYNCHRONOUSLY so that our learning continues almost
at pace as if we had the actual class. This means you can do this
assignment at your own pace, you don't have to do it from 6-715 but
since you already have that time blocked out, that might be a good
time to do it!

First, you can catch up with all the lecture notes at:
http://zorak.monmouth.edu/~posten

Download and go through all of them through 'Storage'

Then do the following:

Read up on the Dr. Math talks Binary:
http://mathforum.org/library/drmath/view/54311.html

Read How Stuff Work's article on Bits and Bytes:
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/bytes.htm

For extra info, check out Joel Spolski's intro to Unicode for programmers:
http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/Unicode.html

What's inside my computer?
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/inside-computer.htm
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/motherboard.htm
http://aroundcny.com/technofile/texts/compuspeed90.html
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/computer-memory.htm
http://www.howstuffworks.com/pc.htm

Be ready to discuss the different parts of a computer, the different
types of memory, how much faster computers are today than just a few
years ago, how we rate computer speed and memory capacity, and the
difference between primary and secondary storage. Let me know if you
have any questions!

Sam