Day: August 17, 2019

US Navy Tests WWII-ERA Messaging Tech: Dropping Bean Bags Onto Ships

Long-time Slashdot reader davidwr writes: In World War II, pilots would air-drop messages onto ships using bean-bags. Just as with sextants a few years ago, the Navy is bringing back old tech, because it works. Just as during the Doolittle Raid of Tokyo, the purpose is to prevent eavesdropping. You can read more about the…


Apple Watch 5 to come in titanium and ceramic models, says a report – CNET

Decisions, decisions. …read more Source:: CNet


Can JPEG XL Become the Next Free and Open Image Format?

“JPEG XL looks very promising as a next gen replacement for JPEG, PNG and GIF,” writes icknay (Slashdot reader #96,963): JPEG was incredibly successful by solving a real problem with a free and open format. Other formats have tried to replace it, notably HEIF which will never by universal due to its patent licensing. JPEG…


Sensor lets Gestures and an Arduino Control the Tunes

Every time we watch Minority Report we want to make wild hand gestures at our computer — most of them polite. [Rootsaid] wanted to do the same and discovered that the PAJ7620 is an easy way to read hand gestures. The little sensor has a serial interface and can recognize quite a bit of hand…


Google Criticized For Vulnerability That Can Trick Its AI Into Deactivating Accounts

In July Google was sued by Tulsi Gabbard, one of 23 Democrats running for president, after Google mistakenly suspended her advertising account. “I believe I can provide assistance on where to focus your discovery efforts,” posted former YouTube/Google senior software engineer Zach Vorhies (now a harsh critic of Google’s alleged bias against conservatives). He says…


Silicon Valley season 6 trailer shows Richard testifying in front of Congress – CNET

And he’s doing just as badly as Mark Zuckerberg did. Also, what’s Amazon anyway? …read more Source:: CNet


The best back to school gadgets under $30 – CNET

Get some great tech without breaking the bank. …read more Source:: CNet


Dreams of Offshore Servers Haunt The Ocean-Based Micronation of ‘Sealand’

Late Christmas Eve, 1966, a retired British army major named Paddy Roy Bates piloted a motorboat seven miles off the coast of England to an abandoned anti-aircraft platform “and declared it conquered,” writes Pulitzer Prize-winning author Ian Urbina. Bates used it as a pirate radio station, sometimes spending several months there while living on tins…


The best LED floodlights you can buy in 2019 – CNET

Today’s BR30 LED floodlight bulbs are better and more affordable than ever before. Here are the best ones. …read more Source:: CNet


New Attack Exploiting Bluetooth Weakness Intercepts Data

…read more Source:: PacketStorm