The Rigged-Up Net

I’m really starting to hate SCO… Linus’s letter sums it all up: http://www.infoworld.com/article/03/09/10/HNtorvaldssco_1.html

NO KIDDING! is an all-volunteer, non-profit social club for adult couples and singles who, for whatever reason, have never had children. It is not a business. NO KIDDING! is not allied with any sect, denomination, political entity, business, organization or institution, does not engage in any controversy, and neither endorses nor opposes any cause. We […]

CDs, DVDs Eyed For Long-Term Archival Use Alien54 writes “Computer scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) are launching an effort to develop specifications for ‘archival quality’ CD and DVD media that agencies could use to ensure the procurement of sufficiently robust media for their long-term archiving needs (i.e., 50 years and […]

FAQ On The Shelf Life Of Food Let’s face it; nothing lasts forever. Buildings crumble. Shorelines recede. Ecstatically happy Hollywood couples break up. The “Hammer pants” you sported in 1992 are just not cool anymore. And food, well, food rots. This is not news. And yet, surprisingly, many of us have no idea how long […]

Women faster at instant counting Women are better at instant counting than men, a mass mathematical experiment has revealed. http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994154

‘Shock sheet’ squeezes blood to dying brain A device akin to an inflatable sleeping bag could make the difference between life and death after a heart attack. Called a “shock sheet”, it works by squeezing blood out of the legs, which boosts blood flow to the heart and brain. http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994150

Teen fragrance’s titillating PR push could create a stink The marketers for new teen fragrances FCUK Him and FCUK Her are hoping provocative advertising playing off the company name can stir up controversy and sales for the fragrance now rolling into stores. http://www.usatoday.com/money/advertising/2003-09-10-fragrance_x.htm

Flickering images reduce nicotine craving Looking at simple flickering images, or conjuring up mental pictures, can help stop cigarette cravings, researchers have discovered. http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994158

Bennifer wedding postponed The Bennifer countdown came to a screeching halt Wednesday. http://www.usatoday.com/life/2003-09-10-wedding-postponed_x.htm

Austin ranks No. 7 for software jobs As a percentage of the region’s population, software-related employment in Austin ranked seventh among U.S. metropolitan areas in 2001, according to a new study. http://houston.bizjournals.com/austin/stories/2003/09/08/daily37.html?jst=b_ln_hl

Call them bum wines, street wines, fortified wines, wino wines, or twist-cap wines. Whatever you call these beverages for the economical drunkard, this page explores the top five, in alphabetical order. So curl up on a heating duct and enjoy… http://www.tcsn.net/rags/bum/ (Thanks Chris)

Austin City Limits Music Festival Bring together country, blues, rock and gospel musicians. Add tens of thousands of eager fans. Spice it all up with Texas barbecue and wild sausage tacos. http://www.msnbc.com/local/KMOL/D-475B95D6-6385-4DB6-8CB2-5C7186209882.asp?0na=x2202120f

The latest of the luxuries roll in European automakers, showing their newest cars at the Frankfurt Auto Show this week, hope to boost business in the USA with coupes and even more sport-utility vehicles. http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2003-09-09-autoshow_x.htm

RIAA lawsuits bring consternation, chaos Dave Platt runs the athletic media relations department at the University of Colorado-Boulder, where star football player Matthew McChesney is a defensive tackle. But reporters weren’t calling Platt on Tuesday to discuss McChesney’s gridiron skills. http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/techpolicy/2003-09-10-riaa-suit-reax_x.htm

Downpour after drought raises road deaths Rainy weather influences road deaths in a far more complicated way than previously thought. Rain does not increase the number of deaths in crashes, provided it rained the previous day. But a heavy shower after a dry spell causes a lethal surge in accidents. http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994148

Blogger bucks premium-services trend Google-owned Web log-creation site Blogger is eliminating its paid version and folding premium functions into its free service, bucking a trend toward making people pay for Web site extras. http://news.com.com/2100-1032_3-5074041.html?tag=fd_top

New Memory That Doesn’t Forget With both Motorola and IBM firmly lined up behind a single contender, the five-year search for a “universal RAM” technology offering a combination of non-volatility and high-speed random access appears to be all but over. http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,59559,00.html

Dell: Company’s model would work in Calif. Michael Dell, chairman and CEO of Round Rock-based computer maker Dell Inc., says California’s business climate wouldn’t discourage his company’s headquarters from moving to the Golden State. http://houston.bizjournals.com/austin/stories/2003/09/08/daily15.html

‘Living condom’ could block HIV Genetically-modified vaginal bacteria may be able to serve as a “living condom”, secreting proteins that protect women against HIV, suggests a new report. http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994141

What’s in a name? “Do not pirate your partners’ names,” warns Franz Fischler, the EU’s farm commissioner. “EU producers are losing billions a year because non-European producers are free-riding on the reputation of European-quality products.” http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/trade/2003-09-09-names_x.htm

New, colorful $20 bills to hit street in October The first U.S. currency to be colorized — the $20 note sporting splashes of peach, blue and yellow — will start appearing next month in cash registers, ATM machines and your wallet. http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/2003-09-09-new-twenty_x.htm

What is the DARPA Grand Challenge? The DARPA Grand Challenge is a race of autonomous ground vehicles between Los Angeles and Las Vegas that will be held on March 13, 2004. The team that fields a vehicle that finishes the designated route most quickly within a 10 hour time limit will be granted a cash […]

Apple: Reselling iTunes songs ‘impractical’ A company executive downplays recent questions over the company’s download resale policy, saying technical–if not legal–barriers could prevent such transfers from taking place. http://www.businessweek.com/technology/cnet/stories/5072842.htm

A product which enables all the Cassette Deck’s function on PC. Operated all of functions of cassette deck in PC. http://www.plusdeck.com/english/ Probably a too little, too late… but had this come out 5 years ago or so, it would’ve been cool! (thanks Dirk)

Autoimmune disease vaccine shows promise A vaccine for autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes is performing well in trials, scientists told the British Association’s Festival of Science on Monday. http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994137

Microsoft begins to flesh out ambitious management platform Microsoft last week shipped one of the first tools in the company’s wide-ranging portfolio designed to create a comprehensive platform for managing computing resources. http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2003/0908msoft.html?page=1

Past DSL woes in Calif. forcing SBC to pay up A state Superior Court judge in San Diego has tentatively approved a settlement of $52 million in a class action lawsuit against telecommunications giant SBC Communications Inc. for poor high-speed Internet service. http://sanantonio.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/stories/2003/09/08/daily2.html

Meat eating is an old human habit Humans evolved beyond their vegetarian roots and became meat-eaters at the dawn of the genus Homo, around 2.5 million years ago, according to a study of our ancestors’ teeth. http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994122

FCC Ponders Removing Morse Code Reqs for Amateur Radio Licenses Nalez writes “This story on the ARRL website outlines six petitions currently in front of the FCC to drop the Morse code requirement for the amateur radio license exams. Currently the ability to do Morse code at 5 words per minute is required to operate […]

Census Bureau: More than one-fourth of Houstonians are foreign-born Houston ranks ninth among large U.S. cities for the percentage of foreign-born residents, according to a new U.S. Census Bureau report. http://houston.bizjournals.com/houston/stories/2003/09/01/daily41.html

Wireless number change could mean $20B industry loss The wireless phone industry could lose more than $20 billion over four years as a result of a new Federal Communications Commission ruling that will allow mobile telephone users to keep their phone numbers when switching carriers, Austin-based iGillottResearch Inc. reports http://houston.bizjournals.com/austin/stories/2003/09/01/daily40.html

Comedy Central shops ‘South Park’ for syndication Stan, Kyle and the rest of the potty-mouthed, pint-sized gang on cable network Comedy Central’s animated hit South Park may soon be staying up past their bedtimes on broadcast television. http://www.usatoday.com/money/media/2003-09-04-southpark_x.htm

Adrian Lamo charged with computer crimes FBI agents armed with a federal arrest warrant out of New York were searching for Adrian Lamo Thursday, SecurityFocus has confirmed. http://www.securityfocus.com/news/6888 Another article: http://news.com.com/2100-1023_3-5072268.html?tag=fd_top

7 deadly travel sins The eightysomething couple from Iowa, celebrating their 62nd wedding anniversary with a Las Vegas getaway, hankered to do something they’d never done before. http://www.usatoday.com/travel/vacations/destinations/2003/2003-09-05-vices.htm

GSM phone encryption “can be cracked” The encryption system that protects the almost 900 million users of GSM cell phones from instant eavesdropping or fraud is no longer impregnable, cryptologists claim. http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994130

Why do feet stink? Everybody is familiar with this phenomenon. Most of us have a friend or relative who can clear out a room when they kick off their shoes. And even the sweetest smelling person can do a decent job stinking up a pair of shoes by running a few miles in them. So […]

Disguising High School Dropout Rates Crystal Gonzalez, 17, gave up on high school in Houston’s East End neighborhood earlier this year. She never made it past ninth grade. http://www.msnbc.com/local/KMOL/D-5B58D043-7263-4F4D-BC51-4733F57AF608.asp?0na=x2201110a

Fastest amphibious car A high-speed land and water vehicle which transforms from sleek sports car to jet-propelled boat at the touch of a button made waves at its unveiling here yesterday. The Aquada is designed to reach speeds of 100 miles per hour on land and over 30mph on water, according to Gibbs Technology, which […]

Hormone jab beats hunger in the obese Giving obese people top-ups of a naturally occurring gut hormone could help fight obesity, suggests a new study. http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994129

Report blasts American infrastructure WASHINGTON (AP) — America’s infrastructure is full of cracks, leaks and holes and is getting worse, according to an analysis by civil engineers that gives the nation’s transportation, water and energy systems an overall grade of D-plus. http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2003-09-04-aging-infrastructure_x.htm