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Comment Re:Full Spectrum 40W laser cutters for ~$2400 (Score 2) 83

We have one (AllHandsActive.com - Ann Arbor, MI). Ours works slightly differently than what you said. The knob on the front limits it. The software limits it further. When running if we set ours to 15MW (on the knob) and set 50% power in software we get ~7.5MW read out on the gauge during the run.

The software (RetinaEngrave) is pretty terrible. It does make multiple passes and splitting colors (different power/passes) easy, but alignment of raster and vector images is a pain. It also only seems to consistently open .XPS files and not any other file type you might commonly have. This means we have to open in another piece of software, print to XPS and load in RetinaEngrave to get a file we know works the way we expect. Not a huge deal but kind of annoying when we already have a vector image.

Good machine though. Works well otherwise.

Comment Don't check from home. (Score 1) 555

The company I work with tightened their restrictions in the past year. Only company machines can now access the network remotely and webmail requires installation of software. The software required only works on certain versions of Windows with specific versions of IE. Some of those that installed it have had their machines rendered in-operable after. My solution was to stop working after hours and remotely checking email. If I am called after hours I state I can't connect remotely and that it will take me x minutes to reach the office. I'm 24/7 support, but it turns out a lot of things are no longer that important to the higher ups. To date I've only been questioned once as to why my after hours availability had dropped. My answer that my home machine is not allowed to connect to the network was sufficient. If you are not required to have remote access or use your personal machines, try just stopping. I understand that it is probably more convient to have that though.

Comment Re:Whatever happened to (Score 1) 397

Ubisoft stopped producing games after Myst 5: End of Ages. Popularity of the games really started dropping in later years. Cyan Worlds (once just Cyan) the original creators of Myst are still around. They have been floundering though since URU. URU lost it's server support and Cyan lost funding. Cosmic Osmo was once of the last games I remember them working on for the PC. They released Myst iPhone shortly after the layoffs. They are still around in some form trying to bring back URU servers as open source shards. I highly recommend picking up RealMyst if you like Myst. It is by far I think the best rendition of the game. I wish they would have Given Riven the same treatment. I wanted to work there all through college. The year I was about to graduate they started to tank.
Media

Broadcasters Want Cash For Media Shared At Home 426

marcellizot writes "What would you say if I told you that there are people out there that want to make sharing your media between devices over a home network illegal? According to Jim Burger, a Washington, D.C attorney who deals with piracy in the broadcasting industry, certain broadcasters want to do just that. Speaking in a recent podcast, Burger remarked that the broadcasting industry is keen to put controls on sharing media between devices even if those devices are on a home network and even if the sharing is strictly for personal use. When pressed as to why broadcasters would want to do this, Burger replied simply 'because they want you to pay for that right.'"
PC Games (Games)

Submission + - WoW: Wrath of the Lich King Info from GFW

An anonymous reader writes: WoW: Wrath of the Lich King is official! Games For Windows magazine is going to have it on its next cover. There's a bunch of first info from the magazine in the 1UP story about it, including the introduction of the Death Knight, the first new class since WOW's launch.
Intel

Submission + - Intel Patches Flaws in Processors 4

Nom du Keyboard writes: According to this article in The Inquirer and this Microsoft Knowledge Base article, a fix for some significant problems in many of Intel's most recent processors, including Core 2 Duo E4000/E6000, Core 2 Quad Q6600, Core 2 Xtreme X6800, XC6700 and XC6800 has been quietly released. Details on just what has been fixed are scanty (it's called a "reliability update"), however, it's probably more important than either Intel, or Microsoft, is openly admitting. Does this give the feeling of a cover-up?
Robotics

Submission + - A robotic cable inspection system

Roland Piquepaille writes: "In a very short article, Popular Science reports that researchers at the University of Washington have built a robotic cable inspection system. This system should help utility companies to maintain their networks of subterranean cables. The robot, dubbed Cruiser, is about 4-feet-long and is designed like a snake. When it detects an anomaly on an underground cable, it sends a message to a human operator via Wi-Fi. The first field tests took place in New Orleans in December 2006. But a commercial version should not be available before 2012. Read more for additional details and pictures of the Cruiser in action."
Java

Submission + - Sun Introducing JavaFX as an alternative to AJAX

r7 writes: Internetnews is reporting Sun's introduction of JavaFX at JavaOne today. Looks like a combination Applet, Flash, Javascript, and AJAX with a friendly programming interface. Does this really spell the end of AJAX? I sure hope so. Nothing built on javascript will ever achieve the security, cross-platform reliability, and programmatic friendliness needed to enabled Web 2.0. Proprietary solutions and vendor lock-in are also dead-ends. This leaves an opportunity that JavaFX has the potential to satisfy even better than did Java over a decade ago. Along with AJAX let's hope JavaF also spells the end to Microsoft's viral Active-X and JScript, AND, perhaps more importantly, that it really is a web scripting language that developers can grok.
Windows

Submission + - The Story Behind a Windows Security Patch Recall

bheer writes: "Raymond Chen's blog has always been popular with Win32 developers and those interested in the odd bits of history that contribute to Windows' quirks. In a recent post, he talks about how an error he committed led to the recall of a Windows security patch (and there's also a link to a technical explanation of the famous "Dear aunt ... double the killer delete select all" bug)."
Music

Submission + - RIAA Backs Down Again in Chicago

NewYorkCountryLawyer writes: "The RIAA seems to have a problem making things stick in the Windy City. It has once again backed down in BMG v. Thao, after suing a misidentified defendant. Same thing occurred last October in Elektra v. Wilke. In the Thao case, the RIAA based its case on information that the cable modem used to partake in file sharing was registered to Mr. Thao. However, it turned out that Mr. Thao was not even a subscriber (pdf) of the ISP (pdf) at the time of the alleged file-sharing, and therefore did not have possession of the suspect cable modem at that time."

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