Latest News
Last updated 27 Feb, 10:30 PM
BBC News - Home
Labour pledges £6,000 tuition fees - Ed Miliband says £9,000 tuition fees in England have been a "disaster" and promises Labour would fund a reduction by cutting tax relief on high earners' pensions.
Star Trek legend Nimoy dies at 83 - Leonard Nimoy, who played Mr Spock in Star Trek, has died at the age of 83, his family says.
Gary Glitter jailed for 16 years - Former pop star Gary Glitter is jailed for 16 years for sexually abusing three young girls between 1975 and 1980.
Extremists 'not radicalised by MI5' - Extremists like the Islamic State militant known as 'Jihadi John' are not radicalised through contact with security services, ex-MI6 chief Sir John Sawers says.
Russian politician Nemtsov shot dead - A leading Russian opposition politician, former deputy PM Boris Nemtsov, has been shot dead in Moscow, Russian officials say.
The Register
RIP Leonard Nimoy: He lived long and prospered - We have been, and always shall be, his fans Obit Leonard Nimoy, the actor who became the most recognized face of the Star Trek franchise, has died at his home in Los Angeles at the age of 83.…
Reckon YOU can write better headlines than us? Great – apply within - If you can proofread, edit and fact-check, we want to hire you Job The Register is expanding in the States: we're seeking a full-time US Production Editor to work in our San Francisco bureau in California.…
Guess who filed most Euro patents in 2014? Yep, still Samsung - Philips and Siemens made the top 3, though The European Patent Office (EPO) has released its latest annual figures showing that the number of patents filed reached an all-time high in 2014.…
GAMIFY your FRIDAY with our Public Sector Innovation Bingo! - 'This is an agile process, meaning... er, whatever we want it to mean' Bored with another grey Friday? Here is a game for two players. The exercise allows you to keep up to date with vital subsidy-seeking buzzwords – while retaining the vital element of "fun".…
<abbr title="Bastard Operator from Hell">BOFH</abbr>: The ONE-NINE uptime solution - Yes, 9%. AAAND the server just crashed... literally Episode 2 …
New Scientist - Online news
To save the rainforest, let the locals take control - Global intervention in tropical forests to combat climate change could sideline their most effective guardians, warns Fred Pearce
Amazon deforestation soars after a decade of stability - Satellite images of the Amazon show that deforestation in Brazil has, at points, risen to levels 467 per cent of last year's
Why US law on guns and mental health needs to change - As eight die in shootings in Missouri, US organisations have banded together against a law compelling psychiatrists to report patients with mental illness
Today on New Scientist - All the latest on newscientist.com: how to do big science at home, programmable pop-up materials and the colour of that dress
A user's guide to touch - Ever wondered why being stroked produces wildly different sensations depending on where you're being touched? We have the answers (full text available to subscribers)
Hacker News
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Nordstroms Wins for Strangest Robots.txt - Comments
Slashdot
Microsoft Finally Allows Customers To Legally Download Windows 7 ISOs - MojoKid writes: It's long been a pet peeve of many end users that Microsoft has made it such a challenge to procure a legitimate ISO image of its various operating systems. It seems like the company should have no problem offering them in an easy-to-find spot on its website, because after all, it's not like they can be taken utilized without a legal key. Sometimes, people simply lose the disc or ISO they had, and so it shouldn't be such a challenge to get a replacement. Fortunately, with a new feature on the Microsoft site, you are now able to get that replacement Windows 7 ISO. However, it's behind a bit of protection. You'll need to provide your legal product code, and then the language, in order to go through to the download page. If you've somehow lost your key but are still using the OS that it's tied to, you can retrieve it through a few different third party tools. However, it does seem like not all valid keys work properly just yet, since some users are reporting valid keys throwing errors or not enabling a download for some reason. Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Simple IT Security Tactics for Small Businesses (Video) - Adam Kujawa is the lead person on the Malwarebytes Malware Intelligence Team, but he's not here to sell software. In fact, he says that buying this or that software package is not a magic bullet that will stop all attacks on your systems. Instead, he stresses coworker education. Repeatedly. Adam says phishing and other social engineering schemes are now the main way attackers get access to your company's information goodies. Hacking your firewall? Far less likely than it used to be, not only because firewalls are more sophisticated than ever, but also because even the least computer-hip managers know they should have one. Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Lenovo Saying Goodbye To Bloatware - An anonymous reader writes: "Lenovo today announced that it has had enough of bloatware. The world's largest PC vendor says that by the time Windows 10 comes out, it will get rid of bloatware from its computer lineups. The announcement comes a week after the company was caught for shipping Superfish adware with its computers. The Chinese PC manufacturer has since released a public apology, Superfish removal tool, and instructions to help out users. At the sidelines, the company also announced that it is giving away 6-month free subscription to all Superfish-affected users. Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Can the Guitar Games Market Be Resurrected? - donniebaseball23 writes: Thanks to a glut of titles, hardware and precious little innovation, the Guitar Hero and Rock Band craze all but died out by 2010. Now, however, strong rumors are swirling that one if not both franchises will be making a return on the new consoles. But will players care? And will the market once again support these games? Charles Huang, co-creator of Guitar Hero, weighed in, outlining some of the challenges. "First, the music genre attracts a more casual and female audience versus other genres. But the casual gamer has moved from console to mobile," he warned. "Second, the high price point of a big peripheral bundle might be challenging. Casual gamers have a lot of free-to-play options." That said, there could be room for a much smaller guitar games market now, analyst Michael Pachter noted: "It was a $2 billion market in 2008, so probably a $200 million market now. The games are old enough that they might be ready for a re-fresh, and I would imagine there is room for both to succeed if they don't oversaturate the way they did last time." Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Adjusting To a Martian Day More Difficult Than Expected - schwit1 writes: Research and actual experience have found that adjusting to the slightly longer Martian day is not as easy as you would think. "If you're on Mars, or at least work by a Mars clock, you have to figure out how to put up with the exhausting challenge of those extra 40 minutes. To be exact, the Martian day is 24 hours, 39 minutes, and 35 seconds long, a length of day that doesn't coincide with the human body's natural rhythms. Scientists, Mars rover drivers, and everyone else in the space community call the Martian day a "sol" to differentiate it from an Earth day. While it doesn't seem like a big difference, that extra time adds up pretty quickly. It's like heading west by two time zones every three days. Call it 'rocket lag.'" Read more of this story at Slashdot.