The NVIDIA advertising fiasco – link dump

It’s all over the web. I don’t even care about it, but lots of people do. NVIDIA has paid an advertising firm to pay people to go in to techie forums and praise NVIDIA products. Big deal? Well, some people are bothered by the fact that these praises are coming from people paid to do so who are not advertising their relationship with the graphics card manufacturer in their post.

Rather than write a lot about it, here’s a link dump of some of the sites covering the incident.

The Consumerist

Dubious Quality Pt. 1

Dubious Quality Pt. 2

Shacknews

Penny Arcade

Hard OCP
I think Bill’s write-ups at Dubious Quality are very well done.

[tags]NVidia, AEG, marketing[/tags]

Help make the world wireless

OK, you really need to know enough about your computers and security to protect yourself, but the FON project is trying to make wireless internet access available pretty much everywhere.  If you are one of the first 3000 to sign up, you can get a Linksys WRT54GL router, flashed with the FON firmware upgrade, for $25 plus shipping.  I’m already signed up, and have received confirmation that I’m in the 3000.

[tags]FON, WRT54GL, WRT54G, Wireless, Free internet[/tags]

Nintendo DS wifi details

This is realllllllly techie, and probably not of interest to either of my regular readers.  However, just in case someone out there was wondering this morning “How, exactly, can I learn more about the wireless capabilities of my Nintendo DS?” I post this link.  Read at akkit.org more of the details behind the wireless functions on your DS.

[tags]Nintendo DS, Nintendo, DS, wifi, wireless[/tags]

Drugs are good, OK?

In a twist on conventional wisdom, there appears to be some benefit from a marijuana-like drug, which can in fact spur new brain growth.  That sounds much better than the normally believed killing of brain cells now, doesn’t it?

In the stoner stereotype, pot smokers and dying brain cells go hand in hand. However, new research suggests the situation may be more uplifting than that. A drug that functions as concentrated marijuana does may spur neurogenesis, the process by which the brain gives birth to new nerve cells.

[tags]Science news, marijuana, drugs, brain cell growth[/tags]

Generalizations

Awesome (and long) article at The New Yorker about the problem with generalizations.  The main thrust of the article is about the good and bad of pit-bull bans and dog attacks.  But it also speaks on drug smugglers, the ongoing reduction in crime in New York city, the problems with profiling, and terrorists.

One of the more interesting tidbits I got out of the article is that in temperment tests, pit bulls on average score better in temperment test than beagles, Airedales, bearded collies, and all but one variety of dachshund.  In other words, the pit bull is on average a better pet than any of those dogs, as far as temperment goes.  The real problem, as explained quite nicely in the article, has more to do with the owner than with the dog.

In about a quarter of fatal dog-bite cases, the dog owners were previously involved in illegal fighting. The dogs that bite people are, in many cases, socially isolated because their owners are socially isolated, and they are vicious because they have owners who want a vicious dog. The junk-yard German shepherd—which looks as if it would rip your throat out—and the German-shepherd guide dog are the same breed. But they are not the same dog, because they have owners with different intentions.

The whole article is worth reading for all the good information about dogs.  Plus, how often do you read a serious article from a somewhat serious publication that uses the word “flibbertigibbet” any way?

[tags]Pit Bull, dog attacks, generalizations, profiling[/tags]

Making a real world living in a virtual world

And my wife told me gaming would never get me anywhere.  Well, OK, so it hasn’t gotten me anywhere, but it has helped some people.

Grinnell’s shop, Mischief, is in Second Life, a virtual world whose users are responsible for creating all content. Grinnell’s digital clothing and “skins” allow users to change the appearance of their avatars — their online representations — beyond their wildest Barbie dress-up dreams.

Within a month, Grinnell was making more in Second Life than in her real-world job as a dispatcher. And after three months she realized she could quit her day job altogether.

[tags]Second Life, Linden Lab, Gaming[/tags]

Who helped the NSA illegally spy on Americans?

A well-written article over at News.com about the companies who helped our government illegally spy on us.

Under federal law, any person or company who helps someone “intercept any wire, oral, or electronic communication”–unless specifically authorized by law–could face criminal charges.

. . .

A survey by CNET News.com has identified 15 large telecommunications and Internet companies that are willing to say that they have not participated in the NSA program, which intercepts e-mail and telephone calls without a judge’s approval.

Twelve other companies that were contacted and asked identical questions chose not to reply, in some cases citing “national security” as the reason.

[tags]NSA, Spying[/tags]