It's copyright enforcement *not* theft.

It's basically an issue because Big Film and Big Music spend big money to lobby to keep it so.

65-90% code re-use

Am I alone in considering that to be a *very* impressive level of code re-use?

Or is that *normal* if you factor OO code properly?

Let's end the discussion and RTFP

That is all.

Some interesting answers

So 10 hrs playing (presumably normal def) movies to 6.5-7 Hrs in HD to (essentially) who-cares-you'll-never-be-far-enough-away-from-a-charger-for-it-to-matter.

Actually this does not sound too bad although I'd hoped for a bit more with the adaptive back lighting. Depends how many gadgets they disabled to get that figure.

By fusing the output data from the various sensors (ecompass, accelerometer, barometer) and a map you could in *principle* implement a poor man's inertial navigation system. While the GPS satellite network does not have holes as such reception is not perfect. I think that's why something like this suite is used in the US armies land warrior programme. GPS fades badly when you're running through a cave.

BTW I don't think *anyone* is up themselves enough to release the "Fondleslab," although you might get "The Slab (TM)."

Someone did release a pen computer called the Dynabook (late 80s, early 90s).

It was pants.

Hey plod. Stop loosing the evidence.

Start loosing the stupid laws instead.

Oh err missus, It's a big one.

So (just out of curiosity) what sort of battery life does it get?

The Streisand effect at work.

Attempt to get document censored.

Gets it converted into official Technical Report issued by the University.

Priceless.

Sounds like speed cameras are like those child safety campaigns

Watching out for the suspicious stranger in the unwashed rain ware when they should have told you about "Uncle Ernie".

This "Evidence" should be interesting, *provided* they explain the basis on which the data was gathered and processed.

The antics of the Climate Research Unit should have warned people to read the small print on government supplied (or funded) research carefully.

Mine's the one with the DVD of Tommy in the pocket.

Mugabe gay porn vid.

No one will *admit* to downloading that one.

Everyone will.

AFAIK UK law is *very* odd

It's like the soft drugs rules in the Netherlands, but *backwards*. You can be "legal" but still criminalized. How f****d up does that sound?

It seems that, under the *right* circumstance you can operate effectively as a sole trader (IIRC there can now be up to 2 sex workers in any given "establishment"). In principle HMRC can treat them as a conventional small business (discussing write offs for CAPEX might be quite interesting depending on what sort of special interests you catered to) along with all the usual standard expenses. (I think you'd be zero rated for VAT)

As for this "national dodgy punters database" WTF? How about "Convicted sex worker attackers" instead? Or how about licensed access to PNC2? (which should have that information).

BTW "prostitution and sexual exploitation"

prostitution - A contractual exchange of services for cash.

sexual exploitation - use of violence, threats of violence or blackmail or other means (addicting them to drugs) to coerce people (of any age or gender) into performing sexual acts for money.

Learn the f***king difference and *stop*conflating them.

BB because I doubt this has *anything* much to do with improving sex worker safety.

"The Tory-Lib Dem government are trying to make the cards a totem of what our government stood for"

Well let's see how fair that is. Labor (certainly under Blair, pretty much under Brown) stood for:-

A large database (ID Cards, Contactpoint, eBorders facial recognition to compare your photo against the whole Interpol mugshot database)on all entry ports) cure *all* social problems

Cradle-to-grave surveillance is a *good* thing

All citizens are potential criminals. It is therefor *vital* that we know *everything* about them all the time.

Enormous government IT projects (with *very* poorly developed specs and vague scope) always come in on time and budget.

Sound like ID cards are an *excellent* totem for the last Labor government.

come on boy, squel like a pig

Honestly. How the hell did SAP f**k this acquisition up *so* badly?

Did'nt take NuLabor long to recover it's old confidence

In the belief that a big enough database assisting in cradle-to-grave surveillance was *always* the right answer to a problem.

Almost as good as Ms Perry's "Age certify all internet sites"*

*Except Perry is part of the coalition and has the ear of a Minister where as this idea is for an effort to prove she is doing "something," whatever that something is.

But UK banks are *too* big to fail

The UK Govt *says* so.*

* And they've handed them a *big* bag of cash to prove it.

Seriously what would be the *real* impact of UK high street bank failure.

Some top bankers *might* not get their last bonus.

Disarray as the loan and mortgage books get sold off and it's worked out who people should be making their payments to.

a bunch of bankers get shown up as f**k witted managers.

I'd call those *acceptable* losses.

thumbs up for the backbone in not giving in to these people who *still* have mostly appear to have done f**k all about it.

the Big boys get even bigger.

CSC + HP (formerly EDS)

What can go wrong?

OT A weather and climate analogy.

Weather is like that old relative some of you have. The one whose smoked X cigarettes a day for the last n decades and still seems fit and well.

Climate is the detailed breakdown of mortality statistics that show *most* smokers *will* die of a cause which is worsened by or directly linked to smoking, suggesting that while quitting would not *ensure* they'd be alive today their chances of doing so would be a hell of a lot better.

Both are *literally* correct. One is comforting. The other offers a practical course of advice if you want to live longer.

BTW smoking and obesity may prove to be the 2 best mass screening tools to identify key genes for life prolongation. Anyone surviving to a significantly above average age with both of these problems should make an interesting DNA sequencing excercise.

Principles are good.

*Applying* them to new systems and incorporating them into *existing* systems is better.

Let's see the incorporation first.

Unsmiley to represent my dour, prudent countenance.

Who wants this

Parents who' d too any Sun/Daily Heil/Grauniad/Torygraph stories on "Parents *shocked* at how easy their kids view p()rn (very easily indeed if they don't apply access control, child filters and let their kids view without supervision)

People who want to get the deeply-concerned-but-just-too-lazy-to-do-anything-about-it vote.

ISP's looking forward to a nice neat log of every website you have visited they can sell to advertisers.

Any senior civil servants who fancy a relatively cheap way of watching what everyone in the UK is watching on the internet 24/7/365.

Providers of age verification services.

Identity thieves (especially those who've already infiltrated age verification service providers) looking for a reliable list of valid UK adults with valid bank account numbers (which is how the *proposed* age verification system is meant to work).

The British Board of Film Classification. It's workload would grow by roughly 125 000 fold. They'll be looking at a *major* budget increase.

Which just leave the other 99.99% of the UK population. Who either don't want it or don't know it's even being proposed.

*Are* mobile operators "dumb pipes" under EU law?

I believe that is how land operators are described but is telco data "special?"

Telcos obviously want more ways to differentiate the different services "they" provide. Much like ISP's.

Except

They don't provide those services. They merely facilitate *access* to them. Something which (if they *are* common carriers) protects them from liability. In the same way telcos aren't required to listen in on *every* conversation to ensure no crime is being committed or planned.

Every time some one starts this "charge on content" s**t using DPI I think -

Why not start by filtering spam at *source* and stopping most of the bandwidth hogging junk?

Why not offer secure data storage? Telcos reputation for reliable *private* operation is (at present) *substantially* above that of the various free email providers. Perhaps they should capitalise on that? Their *internal* infrastructure management is meant to be pretty good.

One of the points about digital phone services was the idea of "Quality of Service." Perhaps they could start *delivering* on that? Spell out *exactly* what you can offer as a *guaranteed* rate, from the point the data *enters* your network till the point it arrives at my terminal. If that includes while in a fast car, great. If not *spell* it out.

Otherwise look forward to a nice little meeting with Minister Ed Vaizey where you will be "invited" to help Big Music and Big Film in their war on copyright "theft" and other "unacceptable" content (actual content TBD).

And while you're at it could you install some extra boxes that our friend at Dettica have sent along?

Vernor vinge and Michael Crighton references

The first from The Peace War, the 2nd from Prey.

The first is a spherical sensor so that whatever way up it lands it can produce an image.

The second was for an idea for sub wavelength imaging within a human body.

A starting point for the software might be that used for confocal microscopy, along multi site light interferometry.

Making it run in real time on a soldier portable system is likely to make it a bit more of a challenge.

Such impolite behavior!

I guess he never considered that helping design the system which would restrict they freedom of expression of the yoof they might comment on him in such a manner.

These young people.

Remember that if UCAV's are cheaper and simpler than manned CAV's

More countries will have a go at developing them.

More countries will will consider acquiring them.

Trickle down in the arms trade suggests well bankrolled terrorist will acquire them.

Then we will see how effective the western approach is .

Thumbs up because this *is* a major milestone for the catapult tech but yes, depending on how well the EM pulse is contained people will be able to spot a) A carrier with EM launch capability is in the vicinity b) It has launched something (possibly even how big a something).

Who heard of who (the Commission or the scientists)?

And on the subject is there *no* worthy UK research to be funded?

AC@:20

"Leftists want a centralised nanny state, the right wants to oil the consumerist machine "

I've found that members of *nominally* left leaning parties have sponsored very "Business friendly" policies and members of right leaning parties to encourage the growth of state monitoring and surveillance.

You'd do better to divide up the players into those who seek to control their population (for their own good of course). Call them Authoritarians and those who accept (and possibly encourage) people to make their own choices, call them Democrats.

Don't expect them to line up on party lines.

Vaizey & Perry for dummies.

Vaizey's had a meeting with major UK ISP's and "UK Rights Holders, " IE Big Film and Big Music. The ISP's explained how much they can filter packets by their contents, slowing down all those file sharers Big Music is so concerned about.

He seems to have concluded "This is great. They can filter whatever *we* want them to". BTW He has stated he does not believe ISP's are viewed as "Common carriers" like telephone and postal services *despite* AFAIK this *is* their definition under EU law. "I don't believe they are dumb pipes," and by not *acting* like common carriers they have played right into his hands.

Perry actually knows the Internet is big. She reckons 250 million web sites with about 30 million being p()rn. Her plan is that as there are c450 UK land line ISP's and 6 of them control 90% of the UK market control *them* and the websites can be certified *easily*. Just link up the age verification systems used by online gambling sites (the ones that check every registration against the UK electoral roll and the UK banking system to verify a set of valid bank account details have been entered).

BTW the pron standard will be the Obscene Publications Act but she has not explained *who* will do the certifications.

According to UK review show Film 2010 around 13 films a week are released in the UK each year. That's just under 700 a yr. But factor in straight to DVD films, games (do they still vet them?) it could be as much as 2000 items a year. All vetted by the British Board of Film Classification. So BBFC would only need to expand by about 125 000 to cover the WWW.

So I guess the key question to ask anyone who thinks this is a *good* idea is "So whose going to certify these sites then?"

Thumbs down for this nonsense but disliking politicians won't educate them.

let's kep in mind space is a place, not a programme.

that is all

IIRC the last time they tried this they went with a metal net

More surface area and with the closing speed just as effective.

You'd hope they'd learned something from the 80's