When Steve Jobs takes the stage Monday at Apple’s programmers conference, he’s likely to give the world a glimpse of an upgraded Mac operating system that could herald the biggest changes to the machine’s interface in 30 years.
It’s a good thing hardware is becoming more powerful. The new Mac OS will feature apps such as Disco builtin to the operating system. Disco burns CDs and DVDs…and smokes while it does it.
FYI, Disco has been around for a while now, so if you don’t want to wait to have your Mac smoke you can get it here (http://www.discoapp.com/). Click here if you want to see what it looks like in this Google video.
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Recording Industry vs The People, a new RIAA case in Tampa, Florida has some interesting counterclaims by the consumer, including extortion, conspiracy, and deceptive trade practices. Now it seems like their tactics are more than heavy-handed but, at least in the state of Florida, illegal.
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Polish hacker Michal Zalewski has ratcheted up his ongoing assault on Web browser security models, releasing details on serious flaws in fully patched versions of IE 6, IE 7 and Firefox 2.0…
I don’t know what to say…this is huge! This is a very large, easy to exploit vulnerability that exposes a site’s cookies to any malicious web site on the net.
A harmless proof-of-concept exploit can be found here.
http://lcamtuf.coredump.cx/ierace/
Wait…i’m getting a vision…yes, it’s coming clearer…a Microsoft Security Patch is in your future.
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If given a choice between privacy and security or convenience, we’ll choose convenience every time. The problem is that on the Internet most people don’t get to choose. Most privacy losses that result from technology are the result of ignorance. That used computer you just purchased that has the previous owners Quicken data intact on the hard-drive; the countless unsecured wireless networks; the accidental responses made by family and friends to a phishing site that is lucky enough to target the same bank used by the unlucky victim. The privacy concerns over iTunes putting your personal information in the music you buy are not worth losing sleep over.
Most people willingly give away more information to sweepstakes, magazine subscriptions, contests, market surveys, free website subscriptions all of whom immediately turn around and sell your mailing list information. And they usually do it for something less tangible than a song for which they are willing to pay a whole dollar.
The information embedded in the music is their to protect the artists and the content publishers. Right or wrong, music is a business and they believe they have to take steps to protect their revenue. These steps are not always well considered but the intent is clear. In return, with the removal of DRM, we get the music with none of the restrictions. I can now use my iTunes music on any player or any computer with no restrictions. I no longer have to worry about losing my licenses and thereby access to my music. Is it worth it? Sure it is…its convenient!
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