Tuesday, May 10, 2011

23,000 File Sharers Targeted In Latest Lawsuit

Posted by Soulskill on Tuesday May 10, @12:21AM

from the go-big-or-go-home dept.

wiedzmin writes"Subpoenas are expected to go out to ISPs this week in what could be the biggest BitTorrent downloading case in US history. At least 23,000 file sharers are being targeted by the US Copyright Group for downloading The Expendables. The Copyright Group appears to have adopted Righthaven's strategy in blanket-suing large numbers of defendants and offering an option to quickly settle online for a moderate payment. The IP addresses of defendants have allegedly been collected by paid snoops capturing lists of all peers who were downloading or seeding Sylvester Stallone's flick last year. I am curious to see how this will tie into the BitTorrent case ruling made earlier this month indicating that an IP address does not uniquely identify the person behind it."

Portal turret replica has real laser, insatiable bloodlust

By Vlad Savov posted May 10th 2011 3:22AM

You might not remember Ryan Palser by name, but you'll surely recall the good gent's homemadeFallout 3 plasma rifle. He has since stepped his game up to bigger and badder video game weapon replicas, and has just completed the construction of the first of his forthcoming army of Portal laser turrets. Thankfully, Ryan has been sporting enough to build the older version of these human eviscerators (not the upgraded Portal 2 turrets, phew!), giving us at least a small chance of survival -- provided we have the right gear, of course. See the laser-equipped, GLaDOS-approved, 38-inch tall turret next to its maker after the break, or hit up the source link for some gorgeous photos of its construction.

The Psychology of Steam Wallet & Microsoft Points

Posted by Soulskill on Tuesday May 10, @06:26AM

from the nickels-and-dimes dept.

Hugh Pickens writes"Ever bought something from Xbox Live Arcade? The first time, you may have been a bit bamboozled by the process because Microsoft doesn't just let you put $15 on your credit card to buy a new game; purchases are done in 'Microsoft Points' that you deposit into a virtual wallet and you use the points to buy stuff. 'Gamers possessed of equal parts suspicion and curiosity may wonder why our gaming overlords adopted such a strange system instead of just letting us pay real money for our purchases,' writes game psychologist James Madigan. He says the real reason for Microsoft Points is that sometimes you are going to have some points left over in your account. Leaving money on the table or in your Xbox Live account makes most of us a bit uncomfortable (PDF) because it feels wasteful. 'It's similar to overeating at a buffet or doubling your paper towel use after buying the 124 roll jumbo pack,' says Madigan. 'Even though you could just let those paper towels or Nintendo Points sit there until you have a good reason to use them, spending real money on something else seems wasteful.' And Microsoft isn't the only one – Sony and Nintendo have similar systems, and Valve has even rolled out a 'Steam Wallet' for in-game microtransactions."

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Incredibly, impossibly beautiful time lapse video

I’ve been posting a lot of time lapse videos lately, and they’re so amazing I keep thinking they can’t possibly get any more beautiful.

I keep thinking wrong.

"El Cielo de Canarias" (Canary Sky) is simply, unbelievably breathtaking.

Wow. I mean, wow. Daniel López is a gifted photographer. While looking at his photographs, my jaw literally dropped. They are that extraordinary.

Many years ago I visited La Palma, one of the Canary Islands, for a meeting. In the distance we could sometimes see the very top of Mt. Teide, seen in this video, poking over the clouds. It was so unearthly and captivating, and López has captured that feeling here. This video has everything! The fluid motion of the clouds, a double rainbow (yes, yes, I know), a corona around the Sun (not the Sun’s atmosphere, but a lovely optical effect from water droplets in the clouds), standing-wavelenticular clouds, even a Green Flash! Watch the stars as they wheel across the view; can you spot the Pleiades, the Andromeda Galaxy?

As many of these videos as I have seen, I’m still looking forward to more from Sr. López. This one is absolutely stunning.

Former Senator Wants to Mine The Moon

Posted by samzenpus on Thursday May 05, @01:47AM

from the dig-that-moon dept.

MarkWhittington writes"Harrison Schmitt, Apollo Moonwalker, geologist, and former United States Senator, recently presented a plan to solve the world's long term energy problems by developing fusion power fueled with helium-3 mined from the Moon. He presented this plan in a speech at Williston Basin Petroleum Conference."

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Pandora gets a case of the giggles, now offers comedy stations

By Brad Molen posted May 4th 2011 4:23AM

Pandora is letting its hair loose, expanding beyond the realm of music-based radio stations into the world of comedy. Thestreaming music service will offer more than 10,000 clips from over 700 comedians, and will be loaded and ready to go sometime today. If you're already familiar with the service, this brand-new genre will work the same exact way as any other Pandora station: create new radio stations based on your favorite comedians and you can still give the thumb up or down for those tracks you feel strongly enough about. The press release is no laughing matter, but it's available for your reading pleasure after the break.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Nielsen estimates show first drop in TV ownership in 20 years, Mayans nod approvingly

By Richard Lawler posted May 3rd 2011 2:52PM

The Nielsen Company has announced that its estimated number of TV households for 2012 is dropping to 114.7 million (96.7 percent), down from 115.9 million (98.9 percent) the year before which is the first time it's gone down in two decades. While some will say this marks the end of theTV era as we've known it, there are a couple of factors to take into account, starting with how the numbers are gathered -- Nielsen only counts TVs that are capable of tuning into at least one channel. If you've cut the cord and gone all internet / Blu-ray / DVD without putting up an antenna or never upgraded for digital broadcasts (as some rural or low-income homes have not) then your TV doesn't count. After reviewing the numbers and watching Apocalypto twice we still can't tell if this means it's already over for linear TV or if it's more of a temporary bump due to an uncertain economy like it was in 1992. Of course, the fact that we rented the movie on iTunes may be telling.

Monday, April 25, 2011

Working Model Factory Made With Lego Robots

Posted by samzenpus on Thursday April 21, @01:29PM

from the because-you-can dept.

kkleiner writes"In his continuing obsession with all things Lego, robotic, and awesome, Chris Shepherd recently constructed the Lego Quad Delta Robot System, a full working model of an industrial robotics line in a factory. The Lego Quad Delta Robot System has four flexing arms that can move in three dimensions, each equipped with a pneumatically driven gripper. Those arms pick up blocks moving on two conveyor belts marked with special light sensors that detect the block's position and color. The system can move 48 of these blocks per minute. Oh, and the whole darn thing, including the impressive support frame, is made out of Lego!"

Chili Fumes Poison Neighbors in Australia

Published April 20, 2011

| NewsCore

MELBOURNE, Australia -- Aussies are famed for their love of barbecues -- but one would-be chef's attempt at outdoor cookery ended up poisoning his neighbors with chili fumes, Melbourne radio station 3AW reported Wednesday.

A number of people needed medical attention -- with symptoms including nausea and respiratory problems -- as the fumes spread down the street in Cranbourne, Melbourne.

Paramedics rushed to the scene amid confusion as to what was causing the widespread sickness.

"At one stage there was a large number of people standing in the street and we didn't know what had caused them to become ill," medic David Llewelyn said. "We had up to 10 people who were coughing and were dizzy and nauseated."

With households up to 500 feet away affected, paramedics and firefighters went house-to-house searching for the source of the stink.

"It emerged that someone was drying out strong chilies in the backyard and that's what caused the fumes," Llewelyn said.

E-Book Sales Have Tripled In the Last Year

Posted by Soulskill on Friday April 15, @10:08AM

from the now-we-only-kill-trees-out-of-spite dept.

destinyland writes"The Association of American Publishers revealed today that e-book sales have tripled in the last year. Sixteen publishers reported that in February e-book sales totaled more than $90.3 million, a 202.3% increase over e-book sales in February of 2010. Meanwhile, sales of adult hardcover books have dropped 43%, while mass-market paperback sales dropped 41.5% (earning just $46.2 million and $29.3 million, respectively). The book publishing association acknowledged that readers have 'made e-books permanent additions to their lifestyle,' arguing that publishers 'are constantly redefining the timeless concept of "books"' and identifying new audiences they can serve through emerging technologies. 'It's nice to see that book publishers are aware of the changes rocking their industry,' notes one e-book blog, 'and that they're approaching it with a sense of history.'"

Barnes & Noble treats Nook Color to Froyo; unveils Nook Apps

By Rachel King | April 25, 2011, 5:30am PDT

Summary

Just as promised, Barnes & Noble rolled out a major update for the Nook Color on Monday, which has the 7-inch slate looking even more like a tablet than an e-book reader now.

Neat Stuff