John Gordon Ross

A Man for All Reasons

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Geekish

Anyone who works as a freelancer these days has to be at least a bit familiar with techie things. But it isn’t just that. When I was a kid and those vaguely SF puppet shows were on the television and all the other kids wanted to be Greg Gogetem or Steve Savetheuniverse, I wanted to be the guy in a white coat and glasses called Doc or Brains. Here are some technology-related feeds I find useful and/or entertaining.

Slashdot » Why AI Won't Take Over The Earth

Sunday 13 August 23:59:00 UTC 2017

Law professor Ryan Calo — sometimes called a robot-law scholar — hosted the first White House workshop on AI policy, and has organized AI workshops for the National Science Foundation (as well as the Department of Homeland Security and the National Academy of Sciences). Now an anonymous reader shares a new 30-page essay where Calo "explains what policymakers should be … [Link]

ProgrammableWeb.com » 7 Rules to Follow for REST API URI Design

Sunday 13 August 23:24:11 UTC 2017

REST APIs use URIs to address resources. While they’re known as opaque identifiers (meaning you shouldn’t read too much into them), there are better and worse ways to write URIs. Guy Levin over at RestCase has formulated a set of design rules for API URIs that you should keep in mind to make things easy for your API clients. … [Link]

Slashdot » Some Retailers Criticize Amazon's Recall of Eclipse Glasses

Sunday 13 August 22:39:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes Portland TV station KGW: Amazon issued a widespread recall for solar eclipse glasses early Saturday morning, one week before the August 21 eclipse. That move stunned some sellers who say their glasses are verified safe…. "We recommend that you DO NOT use this product to view the sun or the eclipse," Amazon wrote… "Out of an … [Link]

Mashable » Bruno Mars donates $1 million to Flint water crisis

Sunday 13 August 22:07:14 UTC 2017

Twitter Facebook Singer Bruno Mars announced at a concert in Auburn Hills, Michigan that he donated $1 million to aid the Flint water crisis.  "Tonight I want to donate 1 million dollars, to our brothers and sisters in Flint, Michigan," Mars announced to the crowd, which immediately erupted in approval. Mars, along with show promoter Live Nation, donated proceeds from the sold … [Link]

Mashable » Unite The Right organizer Jason Kessler punched in the face during press conference

Sunday 13 August 21:57:27 UTC 2017

Twitter Facebook Violence erupted again in Charlottesville, Virginia on Sunday after "Unite The Right" organizer Jason Kessler was swarmed and attacked by protesters while attempting to hold a news conference. Thousands of protestors descended upon the city this weekend to oppose a racist gathering called Unite The Right. Clashes between protesters and racists on Saturday led to the death of 32-year-old Virginia … [Link]

Mashable » 520 elephants have new, safer homes thanks to a record relocation effort

Sunday 13 August 21:45:09 UTC 2017

Twitter FacebookThe largest elephant relocation effort in history has finally come to a successful end.  A total of 520 elephants were taken from two separate conservation spaces — Liwonde National Park and Majete Wildlife Reserve — and moved more than 200 miles to their new home in Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve.  SEE ALSO: Intense video shows elephant stranded at sea being saved by … [Link]

Slashdot » Astrophysicist Believes Technologically-Advanced Species Extinguish Themselves

Sunday 13 August 21:35:00 UTC 2017

Why haven't we heard from intelligent life elsewhere in the universe? wisebabo writes: In the Science Daily article "Where is everybody? The Implications of Cosmic Silence," the retired astrophysicist Daniel Whitmire explains that using the principle of mediocracy (a statistical notion that says, in the absence of more data, that your one data point is likely to be "average"), that … [Link]

Slashdot » New 'Asciidots' Programming Language Uses Ascii Art (And Python)

Sunday 13 August 20:35:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes Motherboard: If the esoteric programming language Asciidots looks like a mess, it is at least a very different-looking and even aesthetically pleasing mess. Simply, its mechanics and syntax are based on Ascii art… Asciidots is a unique sort of programming language known as a dataflow language. In this sort of language, we can imagine units of … [Link]

Mashable » Deep-fried Oreo cheesecake is the best way to eat cheesecake

Sunday 13 August 19:49:36 UTC 2017

Twitter Facebook The food world continues to mash up classic foods into unhealthy yet delicious concoctions. The latest monstrosity comes from YouTubers Hellthy Junk Food, a power couple who have made a name for themselves by creating ridiculous food recipes. Some are oversized, others are recreations of popular fast food; mostly, they just look delicious.  This time, the channel teamed up with … [Link]

Slashdot » SpaceX Will Deliver The First Supercomputer To The ISS

Sunday 13 August 19:34:00 UTC 2017

Slashdot reader #16,185, Esther Schindler writes: "By NASA's rules, not just any computer can go into space. Their components must be radiation hardened, especially the CPUs," reports HPE Insights. "Otherwise, they tend to fail due to the effects of ionizing radiation. The customized processors undergo years of design work and then more years of testing before they are certified for … [Link]

Mashable » Teeny shelter puppies get an adorable newborn photoshoot

Sunday 13 August 18:39:43 UTC 2017

Twitter Facebook“What happens when a foster mom is also a newborn photographer?" Kelly Frankenburg asked on her blog. Adorable newborn puppy photos, of course. Frankenburg is the photographer behind the lens of 11 Sixteen Photography, based out of Richmond, Virginia, which specializes in capturing newborn babies. Recently, she and her husband signed up to help the city's shelter by fostering a few … [Link]

Slashdot » Bitcoin Just Surged Past $4,000. TechCrunch Explains Why

Sunday 13 August 18:34:00 UTC 2017

Saturday night TechCrunch reported the following about Bitcoin: 24 hours ago the cryptocurrency was trading below $3,700. About an hour ago it surged passed $4,000 and has no signs of stopping. It's now trading around $4,135.00. For reference, a week ago Bitcoin hit an all-time high as it passed $3,000 for the first time… So the million-bitcoin question is, why … [Link]

Slashdot » Can 'No Man's Sky' Redeem Itself With Its Third Free Update?

Sunday 13 August 17:29:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes Engadget's new article on No Man's Sky: Developer Hello Games has gone some way to giving the people what they've wanted Friday with the third major update since the title's launch. "Atlas Rises" (aka update 1.3) adds the beginnings of real-time multiplayer to the space exploration game, though admittedly, "interaction with others is currently very limited." … [Link]

Mashable » You can honor Heather Heyer and other Charlottesville heroes starting today

Sunday 13 August 17:24:47 UTC 2017

Twitter FacebookHeather Heyer, a 32-year-old Virginia native, died tragically on Saturday in an incident that has since been described widely as an act of domestic terrorism. Heyer and thousands of others protesters converged on Charlottesville, Virginia as seemingly every flavor of racist gathered this weekend for a "Unite the Right" rally. And now, one day later, the anti-hate movement across the U.S. … [Link]

Mashable » It took 20 hours to make this masterful Lego stained-glass tile

Sunday 13 August 17:21:15 UTC 2017

Twitter FacebookStained-glass artwork has been inspiring awe for centuries, with some of the world's most famous works found in churches and other places of worship around the globe. SEE ALSO: Give your kids a much-needed break from screen time with this portable toy box Like the mesmerizing stained-glass windows of the Blue Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey The Blue Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey. The Blue Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey.Image: Fred … [Link]

Mashable » Man refuses to let his fear of heights ruin this breathtaking view

Sunday 13 August 17:07:28 UTC 2017

Twitter Facebook Taking in the view is the best part of vacation for some people. For others, it's a nightmare. So what does one do when visiting Dún Aonghasa in Ireland while suffering from acrophobia? Take the belly approach. With some encouraging words from his daughter, this terrified dad managed to belly  his way right to the edge of the cliff. It … [Link]

Geek Culture » Hey America, 1947 is calling…

Sunday 13 August 16:34:58 UTC 2017

[Link]

Slashdot » Hundreds Of Smart Locks Get Bricked By A Buggy Firmware Update

Sunday 13 August 16:24:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes BleepingComputer: On Tuesday, August 8, smart locks manufacturer LockState botched an over-the-air firmware update for its WiFi enabled [RemoteLock 6i] smart locks, causing the devices to lose connectivity to the vendor's servers and the ability to open doors for its users… The device costs $469 and is sold mainly to Airbnb hosts via an official partnership … [Link]

Mashable » How to survive a 'Game of Thrones' sex scene with awkward company

Sunday 13 August 16:00:00 UTC 2017

Twitter FacebookWarning: There might be a spoiler or two if you've never watched before or you're very behind.  It's Game of Thrones season again and you know what that means! Blood, betrayal, and buttloads of sex.  Despite (or possibly because of) all the sexy stuff that goes down in GoT, it really is a show pretty much anyone can enjoy.  However, if … [Link]

Mashable » Charlottesville really happened. Don't look away.

Sunday 13 August 15:49:08 UTC 2017

Twitter FacebookThe eyes of the nation — and the world — turned to Charlottesville, Virginia on Saturday after a "Unite the Right" white supremacist rally descended into chaos. The rally brought together the members of various white nationalist hate groups, including neo-Nazis, the Ku Klux Klan, and their smaller sub-factions. They were greeted by an army of protesters who were there to … [Link]

Slashdot » Deserialization Issues Also Affect .NET, Not Just Java

Sunday 13 August 15:19:00 UTC 2017

"The .NET ecosystem is affected by a similar flaw that has wreaked havoc among Java apps and developers in 2016," reports BleepingComputer. An anonymous reader writes: The issue at hand is in how some .NET libraries deserialize JSON or XML data, doing it in a total unsecured way, but also how developers handle deserialization operations when working with libraries that … [Link]

Mashable » A drunken American saluted Hitler in Germany and it did not go well for him

Sunday 13 August 14:35:15 UTC 2017

Twitter FacebookIf you see a drunken dumbass saluting the ghost of Hitler in the streets, kindly smack them in the face. That's this weekend's object lesson from Germany, a nation that knows a thing or two about Nazis. When one such drunken dumbass, an American, started throwing out the stiff-armed Nazi salute in downtown Dresden, he got what he deserved: a swift … [Link]

Slashdot » 269 People Joined An Age Discrimination Class Action Suit Against Google

Sunday 13 August 14:14:00 UTC 2017

Slashdot reader #9,119 BrookHarty writes: "269 people have joined a class-action lawsuit against Google claiming they were discriminated against in the workplace based on their age…" reports BizJournals. "The lawsuit originated in 2015 with plaintiff Robert Heath and was certified as a class-action in 2016." Google has stated it has implemented policies to stop age discrimination but still has an … [Link]

Mashable » Google is eating the open internet

Sunday 13 August 12:00:00 UTC 2017

Twitter FacebookGoogle used to be about transporting you around the open web and connecting you with all the weird, wonderful stuff the internet has to offer.  Not anymore. If it was up to Google, you'd never need to leave its growing internet real estate. It's a scary proposition for just about everybody but Google. Between fast-loading AMP articles from major news brands … [Link]

Mashable » This giant puzzle of a CMYK gradient may be the hardest we've ever seen

Sunday 13 August 12:00:00 UTC 2017

Twitter FacebookJust to let you know, if you buy something featured here, Mashable might earn an affiliate commission. For some, jigsaw puzzles are a slow, relaxing pastime that exercise the creative and logic centers of the mind. For others, it's their version of a personal hell. If you’re one of the former, it’s time you experienced Clemens Habicht’s 1,000 Colours. This is … [Link]

Mashable » The sentimental hoarder's guide to making space on your iPhone

Sunday 13 August 12:00:00 UTC 2017

Twitter FacebookEach day brings the same struggle: I spot something I've deemed photo-worthy, pull out my phone, open the camera and am greeted with a blurred screen.  "Cannot Take Photo," my phone taunts. Then it's a rush to decide what stays and what goes. This is the reality of being a sentimental hoarder who can't bring herself to delete even a single … [Link]

Mashable » Become a kickass photographer with these easy-to-learn tricks

Sunday 13 August 12:00:00 UTC 2017

Twitter FacebookJust to let you know, if you buy something featured here, Mashable might earn an affiliate commission. Shooting great photos can be hard, but it doesn’t have to be reserved for the Insta-famous Gray Malins of the world. You too could learn to take photos that will have people oohing and aahing. But where do you start? Thanks to the internet, … [Link]

Popular Science » 20 Amazon tips to save you time and money

Sunday 13 August 11:30:00 UTC 2017

Amazon DIY Shop smarter. Next time you go shopping on Amazon, follow these expert tips to find the best deals first, dig out the biggest discount codes, optimize your time, and more. [Link]

Slashdot » Amateur Drone Lands On British Air Carrier, Wired Reviews Anti-Drone Technology

Sunday 13 August 11:09:00 UTC 2017

Long-time Slashdot reader mi quotes the BBC: The Ministry of Defence is reviewing security after a tiny drone landed on the deck of Britain's biggest warship. The Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier was docked at Invergordon in the Highlands when an amateur photographer flew the drone close to the giant ship. When the aircraft sensed a high wind risk, it landed … [Link]

Slashdot » Crowdfunding Campaign Seeks a Libre Recording of a Newly-Completed Bach Work

Sunday 13 August 8:04:00 UTC 2017

Slashdot reader DevNull127 writes: Robert Douglass's Kickstarter campaigns have resulted in free fan-funded open source recordings of Bach's Goldberg Variations and the 48 pieces in his Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1. "Even Richard Stallman found these recordings, and he promptly wrote an email encouraging us to drop the word 'Open' in favor of 'Free' or 'Libre'," Douglas tells BoingBoing (adding "when … [Link]

Slashdot » 28 Years Later, Pioneering Tech Magazine 'Mondo 2000' Relaunches Online

Sunday 13 August 3:59:00 UTC 2017

In 1989 Mondo 2000 magazine ran an editorial promising they'd cover "the leading edge in hyperculture…the latest in human/technological interactive mutational forms as they happen." 28 years later, they're now heckling that editorial as they relaunch into a web site. Slashdot reader DevNull127 quotes Motherboard's interview with R.U. Sirius, the founder of Mondo 2000 (as well as its predecessors High … [Link]

Slashdot » A New Amiga Will Go On Sale In Late 2017

Sunday 13 August 1:54:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quote the Register: The world's getting a new Amiga for Christmas. Yes, that Amiga — the seminal Commodore microcomputers that brought mouse-driven GUIs plus slick and speedy graphics to the masses from 1985 to 1996… The platform died when Commodore went bankrupt, but enthusiasm for the Amiga persisted and various clones and efforts to preserve AmigaOS continue … [Link]

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