VincenzoRomano - Slashdot User

Submission + - Next Ubuntu Linux to be a maverick

Submitted by VincenzoRomano on Monday May 03, 2010 @04:46AM

VincenzoRomano writes: While the latest version of Ubuntu is still smoking hot, the Ubuntu development community is already working on the next step.
Both the Wiki and the bug tracking system at Launchpad have been already set up..
The next version code name will be "Maverick Meerkat ", the same animal featured as Timon in Disney's Lion King, while the version number should be 10.10. This confirms the usual naming and numbering schema and the fact the the final release should be due sometime within the forthcoming October.
This next version, which obviously won't be Long Term Support (LTS), should sport a lighter and faster environment with GNOME 3.0, aka GNOME Shell, among the main advances. Everything has been explained by Mr. Shuttleworth in his own blog since the beginning of April.
It's important to say to the impatient thar the first alpha release is not due earlier than the end of the next June so maybe it'd be better to take advantage of the Lucid Lynx while the technical overview of the meerkat will start getting more details.
The Ubuntu Developer Summit for Maverick will take place from May 10th to 14th, 2010 at the Dolce La Hulpe Hotel and Resort in Brussels, Belgium (nice domain name, isn't it?).

Submission + - Control Your Apps Without Your Finger

Submitted by VincenzoRomano on Friday January 08, 2010 @05:44AM

VincenzoRomano writes: There's a nice article about a new approach to human interaction to your mobile phone (and maybe your other computers),
Basically you won't need to swipe your fingers over smallish touch screens.
You'll move your arms, hands and fingers (or whatever else applies) in the air or will shake the handset.
The phone camera(s), the G-sensor, the compass and so on will be used by a software to understand the gestures and to translate them into control commands.
This breakthrough comes from a company called GestureTek, a non-startup company in this field.
The idea seems to be brilliant, but a number of issues are just behind the corner, like privacy and politeness in crowded places.

Submission + - KDE 4 to be relelased on Jan 11th

Submitted by

VincenzoRomano

on Sunday December 02, 2007 @06:13AM

VincenzoRomano writes: "It's official! KDE 4.0 will be released on next January 11th. The release itself doesn't sound very firm, as "the developers are confident to be able to release a more polished and better working KDE" and not the long awaited prime time release.
At the very first Alpha release on march 11th, the release date had been forecasted to October 2007, and then shifted to the end of the year with the second Beta.
Despite this, the promises for the fourth version are quite interesting and maybe deserve a "stay tuned"."

Submission + - New AACS "fix" hacked in a day

Submitted by

VincenzoRomano

on Friday June 01, 2007 @03:56AM

VincenzoRomano writes: "ArsTechnica has just published an update to the neverending story about copy protection used in HD DVD and Blu-ray discs and hacker hefforts against it. Quoting the original article:

The ongoing war between content producers and hackers over the AACS copy protection used in HD DVD and Blu-ray discs produced yet another skirmish last week, and as has been the case as of late, the hackers came out on top.
The hacker "BtCB" posted the new decryption key for AACS on the Freedom to Tinker web site, just one day after the AACS Licensing Authority (AACS LA) issued the key.

The article proposes a simple description of the protection schema and a brief look back at how the cracks have slowly chipped away at its effectiveness.
It seems it'll be a long way to an effective solution ... if any.
One could also argue whether all those money spent by the industry in this reace will be worth the results and how long it would take for a return on investment."

Submission + - Fair manufacturer's technical support

Submitted by VincenzoRomano on Thursday March 01, 2007 @08:00AM

VincenzoRomano writes: One year ago I decided to buy some "enterprise grade" hardware, firewalls actually, in order to replace the old ones used by the former ISP.
Before buying them I did a kind of survey. I browsed the product "data sheets" from the manufacturer web sites and in some cases, asked for more details by email.
I finally choose a top product already in the market since one year and a half from a very well known and reputable company.
The product showed a nuber of issues as soon as unpacked and put to work. I mean things like not being able to keep a VPN up and running for more than a bunch of minutes or doing bad IP routing on the LAN.
I've spent the last year to make that equipment working accordingly to both their data sheets and the features expected from an "enterprise grade" product.
Important issues are still open while the technical support is actually relying on my own stuff and setup and on my personal availability in order to do troubleshooting, firmware beta testing and other experiments.
I've finally blamed the product as

"far from being ready to market or even usable for beta testers"
and have requested some kind of compensation for all the job I had to do.
What's your opinion about such a behaviour in a company? Is it fair?

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