Copy Link
Add to Bookmark
Report
Atari Online News, Etc. Volume 09 Issue 15
Volume 9, Issue 15 Atari Online News, Etc. April 13, 2007
Published and Copyright (c) 1999 - 2007
All Rights Reserved
Atari Online News, Etc.
A-ONE Online Magazine
Dana P. Jacobson, Publisher/Managing Editor
Joseph Mirando, Managing Editor
Rob Mahlert, Associate Editor
Atari Online News, Etc. Staff
Dana P. Jacobson -- Editor
Joe Mirando -- "People Are Talking"
Michael Burkley -- "Unabashed Atariophile"
Albert Dayes -- "CC: Classic Chips"
Rob Mahlert -- Web site
Thomas J. Andrews -- "Keeper of the Flame"
With Contributions by:
François Le Coat
To subscribe to A-ONE, change e-mail addresses, or unsubscribe,
log on to our website at: www.atarinews.org
and click on "Subscriptions".
OR subscribe to A-ONE by sending a message to: dpj@atarinews.org
and your address will be added to the distribution list.
To unsubscribe from A-ONE, send the following: Unsubscribe A-ONE
Please make sure that you include the same address that you used to
subscribe from.
To download A-ONE, set your browser bookmarks to one of the
following sites:
http://people.delphiforums.com/dpj/a-one.htm
Now available:
http://www.atarinews.org
Visit the Atari Advantage Forum on Delphi!
http://forums.delphiforums.com/atari/
=~=~=~=
A-ONE #0915 04/13/07
~ Judge Backs Student! ~ People Are Talking! ~ New Thunderbird 2!
~ Opera's New Speed Dial ~ Date-Dissing Suit Out! ~ Atari Bookmarks!
~ Obsolete PC Collection ~ More MS Security Holes ~ Scrapping Internet?
~ XP Sales Time Ending! ~ New Aranym Pack Update ~ New Storm Surges!
-* Beware of IRS Site Confusion *-
-* Check Your E-mail Before Sending It *-
-* Brits Ask ISPs To Take On Cyber-Bullying! *-
=~=~=~=
->From the Editor's Keyboard "Saying it like it is!"
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Are you using the same calendar as I am? Does your show that it's April?
I thought so. Happy Friday the 13th, by the way! I went out this
morning, and it was raw outside! We had rain, sleet, and snow last night!
And, Patriot's Day purports to be another stormy day - a Nor'Easter for
cryin' out loud!! I was playing golf in March!! The weather around here
lately just plain sucks! <grin>
Free speech. Ain't it a grand thing? Since A-ONE can't be considered a
crowded movie theater, I can yell "FIRE" if I want to and there's nothing
anyone can do about it. What brought that up? Well, as I've probably
said a number of times over the years, I usually write my editorial
comments the night before each week's issue is released. I hate trying
to rush my commentary just a few hours before I release A-ONE each week;
I'd prefer spending the short time putting together last-minute articles
and making sure everything looks just right. The last thing that I
usually read is Joe's column. Well, this week, I put my comments together
on Friday - after I got Joe's column and read it. Occasionally when this
happens, I have, in the past, made some reference to Joe's comments within
my own. But, I have always tried to do so in a manner as to not give away
too much. Otherwise, what would be the point of reading Joe's editorials?!
<vbg> Well, I am very tempted to add my own opinions based on what Joe
wrote this week. And I'm going to do just that, but I will do that at the
end of his editorial. He wrote a doozy this week!
But, I will go off on a related tangent beforehand - freedom of speech. I
like people who are not afraid to speak their mind. It means more if they
can do some in an eloquent fashion, rather than just spouting off in ten
different directions at once. I don't know a lot of people who can write
this way, and manage to pull it off well. Joe is one of those people who
does it well. I do it pretty well, most of the time (he said, patting
himself lightly on the back), but not always as fluidly as I'd like.
Another person who used to do this well is our long-time friend, Ralph
Mariano, of STReport fame (or infamy, depending on your point of view).
Both Joe and I worked with Ralph with STReport; and I think we always
skipped over everything just to get to Ralph's commentary first. Ralph
is one of those guys who isn't afraid to take on any subject matter. Nor
is he afraid that he might offend someone. People who worked for Atari,
and were responsible for stuff that went wrong - target. If you weren't
responsible, but towed the company line even while knowing something was
drastically wrong - target. He didn't make a lot of friends for this
practice, but he had the cajones to put his neck on the block.
There are a lot of Ralphs in this world. While I don't always agree with
what they have to say, I agree that they have the right to say what they
want. There can be consequences, if not careful. The careless remarks
are not necessary - there are always better ways to express an opinion and
avoid fallout. So, if you follow the news regularly, you may have an idea
of what Joe's editorial may have mentioned. Whether you do or don't, I
would suggest making sure you read it this week.
Until next time...
=~=~=~=
Bookmarks for the ATARI Universe
Hi,
The page <http://eureka.atari.org/atari.html> was updated
with bookmarks. If I miss something, just tell me :)
ATARIstically,
-- François LE COAT
Author of Eureka 2.12 (2D Graph Describer, 3D Modeller)
http://eureka.atari.org/
ARAnyM's Pack Major Update
Hi,
There's a new binary version of EmuTOS that is available from
<http://atari.sk/download/falcon_os/emutos-512k-0.8.2.zip>
We can read at <http://atari.sk/>
"New version of EmuTOS is released. EmuTOS is a GEMDOS compatible
operating system for Atari ST series computers. It is made from Digital
Research's GPLed original sources and will be a free and open source
replacement for common TOS images."
It changes a lot in speed and compatibility comparing to all
what was made before it about compatible TOSes. Just testing :-)
I made it available in <http://eureka.atari.org/MacAranym.zip>
a Universal Binary mini pack for OSX that works "out of the box"
And in <http://eureka.atari.org/xa-my-aes.zip> a disk image that
offers a compatible environment for all other ARAnyM host platforms.
I let you comment this major update. Greetings to EmuTOS Team !
Best regards,
-- François LE COAT
Author of Eureka 2.12 (2D Graph Describer, 3D Modeller)
http://eureka.atari.org/
=~=~=~=
PEOPLE ARE TALKING
compiled by Joe Mirando
joe@atarinews.org
Hidi ho friends and neighbors. I'm going to warn you straight-away. My
intro is going to be a long one. You see, I've got a couple of things I
want to talk about today. Both of these things have been on my mind for
several days now, and I think it's time I burdened you with them.
[chuckle]
First off... and probably most importantly... Don Imus. Are you as sick
of hearing about this thing as I am?
Let me preface this by saying that I've listened to Imus off and on
since the 70's. I remember bunches of things about Imus, like his
reading of the call letters of the radio station...
"DoubleyouEnnnnnnBeecee". Sometimes, I've been on Imus's 'side', other
times not.
I've got several things to say about this whole situation, and the only
ones I'm even partially sympathetic toward are the young women of the
Rutgers basketball team and their coach. They really do deserve much
better than they've gotten, but that's the way life is sometimes, and
even this experience will go toward their emotional and intellectual
makeup, and it'll be up to them as to whether or not it strengthens
their character. I'm betting it does.
Now, Imus gets paid tons of money to be funny, to catch people's
attention, and to keep folks like us tuning in. He's as successful as
he is exactly because he stirs things up.
Don Imus and I are a little bit alike in that we both try to be funny.
The major difference between us is that he succeeds more than fifty
percent of the time. I'm not a professional or anything, I just
constantly try to get people to think by making things seem so absurd
that you HAVE to re-examine them.
I've always kind of thought of being funny on-command was a tough job.
It's what I imagine pole-vaulting must be like. You run and make your
approach, you plant the pole while you're still on the move and hope
you hit the mark you were trying for. You take the jump and, only then,
know whether or not things are going the way you wanted them to. Of
course, by then, you've committed yourself and there's no going back.
If everything is just right, you soar. If not, the best you can hope
for is that you don't break your neck when you hit the ground.
Now seriously, I think I know what Imus was going for. Being from
Connecticut, women's' basketball is something I hear about and am
subjected to all the time. The UCONN Women's team is consistently one
of the top-ranked teams. I myself have made comments about the way the
girls (and I don't mean anything sexist or demeaning here. These young
women are less than half my age... they're girls) look on the court.
They don't look slutty or like derelicts or anything, but they can
look... menacing. They're aggressive and very active. The vision of a
huffing, sweating, physically active young woman on a basketball court
is sort of disconcerting. They can look vicious... sometimes almost
feral. Like Venus or Serena Williams doing their thing on the tennis
court. They're... well, like men! It's not at all the way I'm
accustomed to thinking of young ladies. This is due, no doubt, to my
perceptions and preconceptions, but that's the way it is.
When Imus said, "They've got tattoos...", I laughed my butt off. It drew
a picture that I could relate to. Just picture Dennis Rodman and
Charles Barkley in long hair and women's basketball uniforms. That's
what I'm talking about.
Now, when you see these girls when they HAVEN'T been working their magic
on the court, they look like any other young women. Some of them quite
a bit taller than the average, but not so much that you'd stop and
point at them. What you CAN'T see about these girls is that they're
among the best at what they do. You and I will probably never EVER be
as good at ANYTHING as these young ladies are at what they do... and
they're SMART too! And that's a good thing, because while successful
players on the men's college basketball teams can hope for
multi-million dollar professional contracts, these young women, should
they choose to pursue a career in professional sports, can look forward
to making... well, enough to live on... maybe. The fame, commercial
endorsements and sky-high salaries just don't exist for the women.
They're athletes because they love it, not because they think they
stand a chance of getting rich down the road.
And, with the Rutgers women, you're looking at a miracle team as well...
a group that beat their opponents and the odds right up until the end.
They deserve our respect and admiration for what they've achieved.
Their coach is also worthy of all the praise we can heap upon her. She
has molded and guided these young ladies to what they are today and,
truth be told, what they'll be for the rest of their lives.
Okay, back to Don Imus. Imus, ya screwed up, dude.
To his credit, he's said he was wrong and that he's going to apologize
to the women in person. Did he only do that because of the pressure
that's been brought to bear on him? Maybe. But who cares? What's
important is that he does what he needs to do to make it right. And
what it's going to take to make it right is up to the young women of
the Rutgers team. It's not up to Don Imus, it's not up to corporate
sponsors, and it sure as hell isn't up to you and me. For Gawd's sake,
let's get them together and get this over with. Nothing good ever comes
from putting something like this off.
Oh, and by the way, Imus, SAYING you're not going to whine about the
suspension is pretty much the same as whining about it.
Personally, I hope the girls of Rutgers take turns kicking him (either
literally or figuratively) until he cries like a little girl. But they
won't. Did you see 'the girls' in that press conference? I've never
been as impressed with a group of young people as I was with them. They
seem to be a truly class act. I'm not at all surprised by this, just
pleased.
Next up, Jesse Jackson. Jesse, shut... your... mouth. With the baggage
you're carrying, Rev'nd, I'd try to keep the 'forgiveness' aspect of
your religion more in mind. I won't go into a lot of detail here about
the baggage, but digging around on the 'net for a very few minutes will
turn up some of it.
Next target: Al Sharpton. While Reverend Al, and doubtless many many
others consider what Imus said to be a racial slur, I think of it as a
stereotypical remark in bad taste. To me, a racial slur is what you
used to hear back in the bad old days, right up 'till the late 60's and
70's. I won't give those words of hate and bigotry voice here, but I
doubt you'll have much trouble zeroing in on what I'm talking about.
I suppose that what Imus said really IS a racial slur, but I find it
hard to believe that he meant it that way. I prefer to believe that he
meant it as a generalization... something to draw a picture in our
minds.
You have no way of knowing this, but I paused here for about ten
minutes, trying to decide if I should repeat the comment he made that
is the major point of contention. I'm not going to. It was in poor
taste. I have the virtue of time to allow me to think about it. I'll
bet Imus wishes he had that little gift.
Anyway, let's get back to Sharpton. Al makes his living by supporting
'his people' when they need a voice. I don't find it to be a
particularly pleasing voice, or even a particularly helpful one a lot
of the time, but it's his right and perhaps even his calling. I just
wish that, if he was going to thump on a bible while he was doing his
thing, he'd use one without missing pages. Matthew 7:1, Al. Matthew
7:1.
I guess what disturbs me most about this whole thing is that it's taking
our attention away from some very important happenings, both here and
around the world. Things that SHOULD have our attention.
UPDATE : UPDATE : UPDATE
I just heard that CBS has fired Don Imus. CBS Chief Executive Officer
Les Moonves said that was "much discussion" about the effect that
language like that has on people.
Well I'll tell ya what, folks. I think it's time for MORE language and
LESS Moonves. LANGUAGE ain't what gives this thing its power, it's
telling someone that they should feel like a victim. Each and every one
of these women know that they "ain't no ho", and all of us know it.
Imus knows it too.
I'm kind of surprised that these corporate drones played the 'propriety'
card. Let's face it... these are the Stepford drones that gave us 'King
of Queens' and 'How I Met Your Mother'. Do they REALLY want to talk
about raising the bar? Really?
Maybe now, since CBS has severed contact with Imus, he'll get a nice fat
juicy contract on XM Satellite Radio! Going to satellite radio doesn't
mean that Imus would get cut any more slack though.
The main 'feature' of satellite radio is that it's a subscriber service.
Therefore, the FCC has very little to say about what's broadcast. Just
like HBO and Cinemax can show movies with strong language, nudity and
adult situations during primetime without fear of FCC reprisal,
satellite radio can air whatever they want to.
But we must realize one thing... The FCC has had NOTHING to say about
this whole controversy. No fines have been issued, no reprimands, no
nothing. This is not an FCC issue. Therefore, there would probably
still have been an uproar had Imus said what he said on satellite
radio.
Okay, to paraphrase Forrest Gump: That's about all I have to say about
that.
The other thing I wanted to mention was a movie that's recently been
released on DVD. It's a British film (if I remember correctly) called
Death of a President. It's most startling feature is that its about the
assassination of a president. But not just any president. It's about
the assassination of George W. Bush... the current President of the
United States.
Even though I don't like Bush, when I first heard about this movie, I
cringed. It kind of grates on me. Not because of 'Dubya', but because
of the institution. The position of President is more than a man. It's
part of what makes the U.S. what it is. As I've often said, the beauty
of the Presidency is that the system is self-correcting. If you think a
president is a bad guy, or misguided, or stupid, or whatever, all you
have to do is use your right to vote for someone else. The system will
correct itself within four years. Even with trickery and
underhandedness, it'll correct itself in no more than eight years. He's
a president, not an emperor.
Anyway, I found a copy of this movie and watched it. I must say that I
was surprised. It was very well done, and treated the subject with
quite a bit of sobriety and decorum. It doesn't advocate assassination,
or even give any real opinion on Bush or current policy. It's more a
serious look at the Secret Service, the FBI, and people; both those
working for the security of the President and our country, and we the
citizenry of the United States. This movie is not everyone's cup of
tea, to be sure. But I highly recommend watching this movie. Take it
for what it's worth.
[Editor's note: I have to admit, I'm not a big fan of Imus. I've
listened to him a number of times over the years, but he's not been
someone I've enjoyed listening. Maybe I always caught him on "off"
days, or the subject matter of the day wasn't of particular interest to
me. It's just that Imus wasn't doing it for me. Maybe in the early days
of "talk radio" I could enjoy him, but now that talk radio is much more
a matter of money than content, I don't enjoy it as much.
Anyway, I agree with Joe - Imus, you did stupid. His comments were
stupid and said in a stupid fashion. Racist I don't know. Derogatory?
Yeah, I'd say so. He should (and did) apologize. He should (and was) be
suspended. Fired? Hard to say. I will say that his sponsors and
employers bowed down to pressure. They hired/sponsored Imus and his show
because of his controversial persona. Suspension means maintaining your
support of the format/persona that you hired him to be, but not supporting
the particular issue at hand. Firing him was just caving into pressure.
Had Imus deliberately and maliciously uttered obvious racial remarks, I'd
support termination with no qualms about it. However, now they've
succeeded in making it possible for someone else to hire him, with the
likelihood of an outrageous huge salary. I agree with Joe, the venue is
likely to be satellite radio. Just look at what that venue has done for
shock jock Howard Stern!
But I also agree with Joe's assessment of Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton.
They both really need to shut up most of the time. Every time, on the
news, when you see a report about some type of racial injustice, one or
both of these men is on the scene. We call some lawyers ambulance
chasers. These two guys fit the profile - maybe racial injustice
chasers? And I'm in no way saying that some, or many, or even all of the
events that they become a part of doesn't deserve attention. But does
the event require their attention? I'm sure that the fine folks at
Rutgers are better qualified to express their contempt of Don Imus, and
handle it in their own way. But, that's just my opinion.]
Okay, let's get to the real reason for this column in the first place...
The news, hints, tips and info from the UseNet.
From the comp.sys.atari.st NewsGroup
====================================
Last week, Paul Williamson asked about whether or not an HP InkJet 1200d
would work on an Atari. This week he posts:
"I got the printer yesterday, and once I figured out that it didn't like
the printer sharing device that I had been using to have two computers
connected via the parallel port, it worked straightaway with my Hades.
I can print from Papyrus fine (using MintNet/N_AES) without any need to
change any printer drivers etc, and I can also print from Cubase running
in single TOS.
The quality is excellent, and the printer is much faster than the HP
deskjet 600 which is replaces.
I have been able to connect the other computer via the USB port which
this printer also has.
It was not a cheap option as printers go these days, (130 UK pounds) but
it is designed to be used by a small business, so I hope it will give
several years of service.
Thanks to all for the helpful suggestions while I was choosing which
printer to get."
David Wade tells Paul:
"Some HP printers are fine working this way, others get upset. There
used to be a document on the web listing which were OK and which were
not, but I don't have the link handy or the time to search... I know
the BusinessJet 1100's we have at work are OK like this, but I also
know we had issues with some older printers....
If its [the 1200d printer] like the 1100 it ships with "standard life"
print heads (not cartridges) which I think are good for about 10,000
sheets. They are not cheap to replace, but on the 1100 you can get an
extended life version."
Greg Goodwin jumps in and adds:
"I'm sorry I didn't get into the thread (my CT60 is down, and I don't
log on to CSAST as often as I used to). Anyhow, PCL3 was the primary
printer language HP used in the 300 dpi days, and selecting a HP 500
or 600 series driver will generally give you PCL3. Laser printers
extended the command set through PCL4 and PCL5 before the invention of
PCL6, which has nothing whatever to do with PCL1 - 5.
I am glad to glad to hear that a PCL3e printer understands the stock
PCL3 generated by the Hades. This makes logical sense, but what is
sensible is not always what is true."
Jean-Luc Ceccoli asks about Plain TOS display problems:
"This problem only occurs under plain TOS, on my FalCT60, but I
noticed it on my old MegaST-4 with Crazy-Dots. When in high
resolutions, 1024x768x256 for instance, the amount of files
displayed into an opened directory window differs from the one
it really contains.
The problem can be seen (in french only, sorry) here:
http://site.voila.fr/cejiel/Copies_ecran.htm
The 1st screen shows what is displayed under MagiC!, 1024x768,
but it has no importance, and, moreover, I opened D: partition
instead of E:
The 2nd one is more relevant : it shows that only 20 objects
are displayed into C:, while the status bar states there should
be 39, and D: displays only 6 objects instead of the 11 stated.
If I could increase the resolution, there would be even less
objects displayed.
Has anyone else noticed this strange behaviour?"
'Mystic Bytes' tells Jean-Luc:
"wow, this is really funny. It happens probably only at higher
resolutions since I use 800x608 for ages on my falcon and no similar
behaviour.
Maybe trying Teradesk would be a good idea and if here is ok too, it's
definitely bug in TOS.. Btw what TOS version did you use?"
Jean-Luc replies:
"You know what? this is a really sensible suggestion! I'll try it asap!
It's TOS 4.04, but it happened too on my MegaST-4, with TOS 2.06 (it was
bi-TOS)."
On the subject of the clock chip in a Falcon dying, Derek Mark Edding
posts:
"My Falcon has a dead clock, and it has the MK48T87B. I ordered a
replacement online and received a Dallas DS12887+. I'm hoping that
someone will know enough about these chips to answer a few questions:
1. This is pin-for-pin compatible with the MK48T87B, I hope. Is that
right?
2. The MK48T87B has all of its pins. The DS12887 has some gaps, there
are a total of six missing pins, some on either side. But if #1 is
yes, I'm guessing that these are extra grounds on the MK48T87B. Is
this right?
Rather than attempt to desolder the old chip, what I'd like to do is cut
the current chip out by using a dremel tool to slice off the tops of
the pins close to the chip's plastic. Then I can solder a 24 pin
socket on top of the existing pins.
I've heard of this being done before, but I'll need to be very careful
to avoid damaging the traces on the motherboard. I believe I can
protect the traces by cutting some thin but sturdy material to the
right width and sliding it underneath the IC to function as a shield.
Any thoughts on this approach?"
Derryck Croker asks Derek:
"Since you're obviously happy with a soldering iron and such, why not
consider taking the top off the NVRAM chip and wiring up a CR2032 coin
cell in a holder instead? This has been mentioned in here or in
c.s.a.tech many times before."
Derek replies:
"This approach didn't work for me. On advice in another message, I
tried prying up the upper half of the MK48T87B.
Unfortunately, I found that the battery and other components were
embedded in solid plastic in the upper half. It was filled with a kind
of epoxy. Prying it loose pulled its very thin leads out of the lower
half of the chip, so there's nothing left to work with.
I'm not sure if this is how they all are or not, but those leads are
extremely fine and would have been difficult to solder. I looked at
the example image someone had posted, and the interior of my chip
doesn't look anything like that. There were no components mounted on
the lower half."
Derryck comes back and tells Derek (jeez, there ought to be a law about
people with such similar names replying to each other! [grin]):
"Ouch! At least nothing was lost, apart from your time :-/
The NVRAM chip that I witnessed being replaced would have lent itself
very well to this approach. Its replacement was sourced as a free
sample from Maxim, I can't recall the actual number any more.
I would probably suggest desoldering the entire chip rather than bodging
by cutting through/soldering to the original chip's pins. The risk of
metal swarf..."
Greg Goodwin adds his thoughts:
"... You don't need a new clock chip -- your clock chip needs a
new battery. If you don't want to desolder, I would strongly consider
just wiring in a new battery. Frankly, I if I of little electronics
background can accomplish the battery replacement, practically anyone
can."
Mark Bedingfield adds his thoughts:
"Personally I would (and will) desolder the IC. I have 2 of them to do
this week. Just remove the board and carefully (also quickly) desolder.
I am considering putting in a socket, but it will depend on clearance
under the keyboard for my stock model. Will probably socket the towered
Falcon. Considering the cost of a new Falcon board you might want to
take it to a electronics repair shop."
Well folks, that's it for this week. There weren't a lot of messages
again this time around, but the 'Imus thing' and the 'movie thing'
filled it out and gave us something to think about.
Tune in again next week, same time, same station, and be ready to listen
to what they are saying when...
PEOPLE ARE TALKING
=~=~=~=
->In This Week's Gaming Section - 20GB PlayStation 3 Dropped!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" XBox 360 Online Gets IM!
Super Paper Mario!
And more!
=~=~=~=
->A-ONE's Game Console Industry News - The Latest Gaming News!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Shops Drop 20GB PlayStation
The cheaper of Sony Computer Entertainment's two PlayStation 3 consoles is
getting harder to find in the U.S.
The 20G-byte version, which costs $500, has been taken off-sale by
retailer BestBuy and Sony's own online store displays an error message
when the page for the model in question is requested.
But despite its removal from SonyStyle the product hasn't been
discontinued, the company said.
"The line-up [at SonyStyle] is decided based on market demand and so it's
not surprising that they are not selling it on their Web site but if you
go to a retailer you can find it," said Satoshi Fukuoka, a spokesperson
for SCEI in Tokyo.
He said the more expensive version with a 60GB hard disk drive has always
been more popular among users and that's why some retail outlets aren't
stocking the lower-spec model. The second version costs $600 and comes
with a wireless Internet adapter not present on the cheaper model.
The 20GB model was launched by Sony in Japan and the U.S. last November.
When the PlayStation 3 went on sale in Europe in March this year Sony put
only the 60GB model on sale, citing consumer preference for the more
expensive version.
A possible new version of the PlayStation 3 was revealed last month in a
filing made by Sony to the Federal Communications Commission. In the
filing Sony noted a new model with an 80GB hard disk drive.
A spokesperson for Sony declined to comment on the company's plans for
future upgrades to the PlayStation 3.
Mario Tough To Resist On Wii
Mario returns to his slimmer self for his Wii debut in Super Paper Mario,
a light-hearted adventure filled with more depth than the two-dimension
surface suggests.
At first glance, Super Paper Mario appears like your standard
side-scroller. Clever gameplay, however, mixed with RPG elements create
yet another engaging journey for Nintendo's gaming icon.
The story starts after a new villain, Count Blech, forces Princess Peach
and Mario nemesis Bowser to marry. The unlikely union opens a rift
threatening to destroy the universe. Mario is then tasked with finding
the eight Pure Hearts to destroy this dark energy.
Perhaps the most surprising thing about the plot is the humor. It's always
poking fun at the franchise yet avoiding that cheese factor that sometimes
accompanies gaming's attempts at comedy. Not even Mario and his very thick
mustache are spared from funny quips.
The side-scrolling nature and control scheme immediately jarred my fondest
memories of Nintendo classic Super Mario Bros Players hold the Wii remote
sideways, similarly to the NES controls. Level layouts also share the same
characteristics, from warping pipes to blocks branded with question marks.
Super Paper Mario's cartoonish look is vibrant and colorful, proof that
hyper-realistic graphics aren't necessary to create a visually alluring
game. The classic rings of coins collected and Goombas stomped stay true
to the Mario spirit.
The normally two-dimensional Paper Mario can flip to 3-D mode, a novel
element that enriches the title's RPG elements. Press the A button, and
you switch from side-scroller to a 3-D view, which looks a lot like you're
in a long hallway. The vantage point uncovers hidden foes, items and
passageways to help you advance through each level.
Unlike most Mario adventures which leave the hero going solo, your
character gets plenty of help. Mario is aided by Pixls, tiny characters
that offer you a unique ability. For example, Tippi helps you find hidden
items. Point the remote toward the screen like a flashlight to find
passages or items. Other Pixls you unlock broaden your range of abilities,
from planting bombs to flipping sideways to the point where you're
practically invisible.
As with most RPGs, players lead a party of multiple characters beyond
Mario, including Princess Peach and even Bowser. Each brings their own
traits which blend nicely into the gameplay. Peach's umbrella allows her
to float in the air for longer jumps, while the fire-breathing Bowser can
mow down a horde of foes with one shot.
Gameplay is quite easy to pick up, and flipping between both characters and
Pixls is easy. The level of balance between views and the use of all your
abilities is impressive, and keeps the action highly entertaining.
As fun and nostalgic as the old-school controls are, the Wii's
motion-sensing should have been used more. Besides pointing to the screen,
the only other option is shaking the remote after an attack to add some
flair to your moves. One of Wii's strongest selling points has been the
innovative controls, and it's a shame they're not more prevalent,
especially in tandem with Nintendo's top character.
Despite the control questions, Super Paper Mario is a robust adventure
with rich landscapes and creative gameplay nuances. Whether he's a go-kart
driver, soccer star or 2-D paper cut-out, Mario is still tough to resist.
'God of War II' Rules On PS2
One of the last video games for the aging PlayStation 2 console turns out
to be one of the best.
"God of War II" (Rated M, $49.99) is a thrilling, blood-soaked return to
a world of Greek mythology where you'll battle a host of gods as an angry,
blade-flinging anti-hero named Kratos.
The game picks up after the events of the original 2005 "God of War,"
where Kratos had defeated Ares to become the new - you guessed it - god
of war.
His disdain for pretty much everything except the Spartan warriors under
his command continues, however, and some decisions early in this sequel
return Kratos to mortality and on a long, almost inconceivably violent
quest to defeat none other than Zeus himself.
With his battle-scarred body and red face paint framed around a permanent
expression of infinite rage, Kratos is a classic love-to-hate protagonist.
But it's his abilities in battle, which you'll control, that make it so
much fun.
It's definitely an action title that turns violence into an art form.
Tetris/puzzle-gamers need not apply.
From the very beginning, you'll have to dispatch towering gods and entire
armies as you advance through a variety of ancient cities and ruins.
The battles are epic. Consider the opening sequence against the Colossus
of Rhodes, a statue the size of a 20-story building, a good example.
Taking down this living hunk of bronze isn't as simple as repeatedly
whirling Kratos' powerful, oversized blades. You'll have to figure out
how to launch yourself onto its head and take out an eye for starters.
It's only a while later that you enter the statue and permanently disable
its magical machinations.
As in the first game, the battles with powerful bosses such as the
Colossus are one of the most satisfying aspects. They play out as
mini-games, where you have to press the correct button at just the right
moment to perform dizzying, and often incredibly gory, death maneuvers.
A personal favorite was the aerial battles where you fight gryphons while
mounted on the flame-winged Pegasus. At just the right moment I was able
to jump from the Pegasus, land on the enemy flyer, chop off its wings,
then free-fall back onto my trusty steed.
Ripping out the eyes of a Cyclops, grabbing a soldier and smashing his
head on the floor ... clearly this isn't something for the kiddies.
But after a long day at the office or a frustrating, hourslong schlep
through ush hour gridlock, it's an extremely satisfying way to safely
vent any frustrations.
So yes, it's violent, it's hardcore and it's not for everyone. But few
games make you feel as godlike as "God of War II."
Four stars out of four.
XBox 360 Online Gets IM
Microsoft Corp. Monday announced Windows Live Messenger instant messaging
(IM) software for the XBox 360, in another step towards making the game
console a home Internet access device.
Windows Live Messenger for XBox 360 will allow users to interface with
other iterations of the communications software for PCs and mobile
devices. XBoxes will be updated with the software for free during the XBox
360 Spring Update, on May 7. Xbox users can chat with up to six others at
the same time.
XBox owners can use IM using the console's virtual keyboard, or can plug
in a USB keyboard. XBox Live already supports voice and video chat, the
company said.
=~=~=~=
A-ONE's Headline News
The Latest in Computer Technology News
Compiled by: Dana P. Jacobson
Beware of IRS Site Confusion
U.S. taxpayers rushing to meet next Tuesday's tax-filing deadline should
be aware of Web sites with URLs similar to the U.S. Internal Revenue
Service's IRS.gov site that may charge for services available for free
elsewhere, a tech trade group warned.
The CCIA's (Computer & Communications Industry Association's) warning
Wednesday comes after warnings from the IRS itself last month. In some
cases, other sites with IRS in the domain name may charge money for tax
help and services, the CCIA warned.
A consumer survey commissioned by CCIA in December found that 47 percent
those surveyed mistakenly believed IRS.com to be the official IRS website
before they viewed it, and one-third still thought it was official even
after viewing it. CCIA notified the IRS, the FTC, and the U.S. Treasury
Department of the alternate IRS sites in January.
CCIA president Ed Black called IRS.com and similar Web sites deceptive.
IRS.com has a U.S. flag symbol at the top of its home page, he noted.
"The fundamental business model is relying on deception and mistakes by
consumers," he said. "Most people end up there not because they're
looking for a private Web site. They're looking for the IRS."
But Kate Sidorovich, spokeswoman for IRS.com owner InterSearch Group,
noted that the site includes disclaimers saying it is not affiliated with
the IRS.
The site includes links to online tax preparation Web sites that can
charge money for their services, but IRS.com itself does not collect money
from consumers, she said. Instead, the site collects money through
business-to-business referrals, she said.
"The Web sites actually assists people to find online providers of tax
services," she said. "We feel we support the IRS efforts."
The owner of IRS.net also disputed CCIA charges that the site is
deceptive. Owner Bala Szabo leases IRS.net to a legal tax preparation
service that, like other tax services, charges its customers, he said.
Owners of a third Web site mentioned by CCIA, IRS.org, did not immediately
return a phone call seeking comment. But at the top of IRS.org is this
notice: "This website is privately operated and is in no way associated
with the Internal Revenue Service, which is located at irs.gov."
A CCIA spokesman said some of the sites have made cosmetic changes and
posted larger disclaimers since the CCIA first raised its complaints.
Even if the sites aren't collecting money directly from consumers, they're
still profiting through deception, Black said. "They're referring people
to tax services that are charging people for things they may not have to
pay for," he said.
New Storm Surges Through I.T. World
According to the Internet Storm Center, a hurricane-like virus is blowing
through the PC world, with at least 20,000 infections on Thursday and
thousands more expected. It's a new variant of the notorious Storm worm
that's been plaguing I.T. administrators since last year's widespread
outbreak.
The new spamming wave of W32/Nuwar@MM, also known as the Storm worm,
arrives in a password-protected ZIP file with the password contained in a
GIF file in the body of the e-mail, according to Allysa Myers of McAfee
Avert Labs. The subject lines read something like, "Worm Alert!" or
"Trojan Detected!" The GIF filename may read something like
"UrgentNotice.gif" or "AbuseReport.gif." And the ZIP file name may be
similar to "patch-####.zip" or "removal-####.zip."
"The tactic for the e-mail is to make you think you've been infected, and
that you need to open the ZIP file to run a patch or removal tool to fix
your machine," Myers wrote in the McAfee Avert Labs blog. Although the
worm does require user interaction to spread itself, security researchers
said plenty of users are still falling prey to the strategy and antivirus
protection is not enough to keep networks safe.
Ken Dunham, director of the rapid response team at VeriSign iDefense,
offered some technical insight into the latest Storm variant. For starters,
it includes antisecurity measures to hinder analysis. E-mails are
randomized with different filenames, different passwords, and different
binaries within the ZIP file - all to evade detection.
"Once executed the worm installs a rootkit on the system (wincom32.sys) and
communicates over a private peer-to-peer network to update itself," Dunham
said. "It is highly likely that this latest attack will result in many more
downloads, pump and dump attacks, and more as seen with former Storm Worm
attacks to date."
In essence, the infected computer becomes a zombie machine on a botnet that
can be used to send out spam that will launch new attacks. It can also open
the door for additional malware to be installed on the victim's system.
Going beyond the plain facts of the resent set of Storm viruses, Johannes
Ullrich, chief research officer at the SANS Institute and CTO for the
Internet Storm Center, asked I.T. administrators to remember Bagel.
It was just a couple of years ago, he reminded, when a similar set of
viruses surged around the Internet. Bagel arrived as a plain executable,
waiting for a gullible user to click and execute it, he wrote in his blog.
It later used an encrypted ZIP file, just like the current Storm virus.
Ullrich's research shows that there is a large overlap in users infected
by various Bagel variants. In short, he concluded, the same users are
getting infected over and over again by what he called the "malware of
the day." "I think these viruses offer a sad glimpse into the current
state of Internet security," he said, noting that users still haven't
learned "never to click on an executable" and network administrators still
haven't learned to filter executables.
The latest Storm variant is another hint that antivirus software is no
longer an adequate means to protect consumers from current and relevant
threats, Ullrich added. McAfee's advice? If you receive a file you're not
expecting, don't open it. "Question the sender as to whether they actually
sent it, if it appears to come from someone you know," Myers offered in a
familiar warming. "If you don't know the sender, just delete it outright."
Mozilla Thunderbird 2, First Look
If you like Thunderbird 1.5, you'll love version 2, now available as a
near-final release candidate. Like the new Firefox 2, Thunderbird 2
doesn't introduce any radical changes. But it does introduce inherently
useful upgrades that will boost your productivity, particularly if your
inbox overflows with e-mail.
The release candidate download is now available from Mozilla's site. I've
been using version 2 every day since beta 2's release in January. Though
the program is not yet final, I've found it stable and up to the task of
handling my daily e-mail chores. Making the switch is easy: Thunderbird 2
maintains all your filters and account settings, and you shouldn't have
any problem jumping right into it. Like previous versions, Thunderbird 2
has a clean and straightforward interface that makes good use of available
screen space.
Thunderbird 2's pop-ups alert you to new incoming e-mail.One of the first
things I noticed: mail pop-up alerts, one of Thunderbird's new features,
which list the subject and sender of newly received messages in the
lower-right corner of your screen and automatically fade after a few
seconds. Each pop-up provides enough information on the latest few unread
messages for me to decide whether I need to interrupt what I'm doing to
switch to Thunderbird and read the e-mail.
As convenient as the mail pop-ups are, the introduction of tags in
Thunderbird 2 is an even bigger boon for organizing messages. Tags replace
the previous versions' labels function, which allowed you to assign just
one of a handful of premade labels, such as 'Personal' or 'ToDo', to each
message. Now, you can create an unlimited number of tags, and you can
give any e-mail multiple tags.
Thunderbird 2 lets you easily add custom tags to your messages.Creating
on-the-fly tags for any new topic does wonders for managing an
ever-growing inbox. For example, I track antivirus news and products, so
I created a new tag called 'antivirus'. A right-click lets me assign the
new tag to any e-mail, and I can then quickly view only those tagged
messages. I found right-clicking faster and cleaner than the typical
method of creating a new folder for all such messages and then manually
adding those messages to the folder. The feature is also particularly
useful when combined with saved-search folders that show all messages
with a particular tag (but keep your e-mail in one inbox). In the release
candidate, however, the new tags have a few rough edges. For example, I
changed the name of the default 'Personal' tag to 'PCW', but a filter I
migrated from Thunderbird 1.5 still assigns 'Personal' to many messages.
Also, when I assign multiple tags, Thunderbird seems to randomly select
which tag's color it will use for the message; it doesn't allow me to
designate a dominant color.
Brand-new in this release candidate is a Gmail account preset that fills
in almost everything (server name, etc.) automatically when you configure
Thunderbird to read your Gmail messages. You need only provide your name
(for display) and account. The default settings will leave the messages
on Gmail's servers so you can read them through both Thunderbird and
Gmail.
The release notes list the same functionality for a.Mac account, but
(not surprisingly) I didn't see such an option in my Windows version; it
may show up only in the Mac software.
Other notable tweaks to Thunderbird include better customization options
for viewing folders, and find-as-you-type searches. See the release
notes for a full list of changes.
Unfortunately, Mozilla doesn't seem to have significantly improved its
junk-mail filters, and my inbox still has plenty of spam. Also,
Thunderbird still lacks a built-in calendar; however, a terrific and
easy-to-use add-on called ReminderFox adds some basic calendaring
functions, such as reminders to revisit a particular e-mail by a certain
time.
Though Thunderbird 2 is not yet a final release, I found that the
release candidate's new features and overall stability more than warrant
your making it your primary mail client.
Mozilla Thunderbird 2 Release CandidatePCW Rating: PendingStability,
clean looks, and a high degree of customization make the beta of
Thunderbird 2 a winner.Freewww.mozilla.com
Web Browser Shows Glance of 9 Favorites
Forget the bookmarks.
The latest version of Opera's Web browser lets visitors see mini versions
of their nine favorite sites at a glance. Click on any thumbnail to load
the full site.
The Speed Dial feature also lets people access the site by typing its
corresponding numeral 1 to 9 in the address bar.
"Speed Dial is a fresh way to call up the top sites you enjoy throughout
the day," Jon von Tetzchner, chief executive of Opera Software ASA, said
in a statement. "It's a cool, new way to access those sites."
Users still have the option of typing in the entire Web address or
calling up the site using a traditional bookmark.
The feature, available in the 9.2 version of the Opera browser released
Wednesday, represents the Norwegian software maker's latest attempt to
distinguish itself from more popular rivals like Microsoft Corp.'s
Internet Explorer and Mozilla's Firefox.
Opera's free software is available for the Windows, Mac and Linux
operating systems.
Microsoft Warns of 4 "Critical" Security Holes
Microsoft Corp. warned of four security flaws in its software that it
categorized as "critical" on Tuesday that could allow attackers to gain
control of a user's computer.
Microsoft, whose Windows operating system runs some 95 percent of the
world's computers, issued the patches as part of its monthly security
bulletin.
The world's biggest software maker defines a flaw as "critical" when it
could allow a damaging Internet worm to replicate without the user's
doing anything to the machine.
The company said the "critical" patches fixed three holes in its Windows
operating system and another in its Content Management Server product.
Microsoft also issued another security update for Windows it rated at
the lower threat level of "important."
The fixes come a little more than a week after it released a patch outside
of the regular monthly update to plug a security hole related to an
animated cursor that hackers had used to launch attacks after users
clicked on links to malicious Web sites.
The company has been working to improve the security and reliability of
its software as more and more malicious software target weaknesses in
Windows and other Microsoft software.
The latest patches can be downloaded at www.microsoft.com/security.
British Goverment Wants Internet Providers To Combat Cyber-Bullying
The British government said Tuesday it will urge Internet providers to
block or remove mobile telephone videos showing pupils or teachers being
bullied.
Education Secretary Alan Johnson will give a speech later Tuesday in
Belfast telling Internet companies that "they have a social responsibility
and moral obligation to act," his ministry said.
A British teachers' union praised the decision after having pressed the
government to protect members against pupils taking inappropriate videos
of them with their mobile telephone cameras and posting them on the
Internet.
Johnson will also tell teachers that they will have more powers to
discipline pupils and confiscate mobile phones and other devices from
anyone using them to disrupt lessons.
Johnson will announce his two-pronged approach during a speech to the
annual conference of The National Association of Schoolmasters Union of
Women Teachers (NASUWT), Britain's largest teaching union.
"These are big companies we are talking about: they have a social
responsibility and moral obligation to act," Johnson will say according to
extracts of his speech released by the education ministry.
"Without the online approval which appeals to the innate insecurities of
the bully, such sinister activities would have much less attraction,"
Johnson will say.
"I am therefore calling on the providers of these sites to take firmer
action to block or remove offensive school videos, in the same way that
they have commendably cut pornographic content," according to the speech.
"By removing the platform, we'll blunt the appeal."
Mary Bousted, general secretary of the Association of Teachers and
Lecturers (ATL) union, praised the "quick response" to demands at its
conference last week for the government to take "all reasonable steps" to
stop the growing problem of cyber-bullying.
ATL delegates heard how pupils had used mobile phones to try taking
pictures up teachers' skirts. They also heard that some teachers had their
trousers pulled down in class as students filmed the incident on their
phones.
Check Your E-mail - Before You Hit Send
When you're interviewing two authors who've written a guide on email, the
temptation is to do it via email.
But among the suggestions in Send: The Essential Guide to Email for Office
and Home (Knopf, $19.95, out Tuesday ) is, "Don't forget to show up
sometimes."
EXCERPT: Find out what you should be sending
As David Shipley and Will Schwalbe write, "Technology was meant to
facilitate personal communication - not to do away with it."
So the interview is done in person, at a Manhattan restaurant, which, as
Shipley notes, "also means you get to eat lunch."
Two years ago, at a non-working lunch, Shipley, 44, deputy editorial page
editor of The New York Times, and Schwalbe, 45, editor in chief of
Hyperion Books, who are longtime friends, started gripping about email,
including miscues they had made themselves.
Lunch led to a proposal for a "survival guide for the digital age." As
Shipley puts it, "You know the saying, 'You write the book you need.' We
needed this."
They're not anti-email: "We don't hate email," they write. "We recognize
that email has changed our lives in countless good ways. We just want to
do it better."
The problem, Schwalbe says, is that email spread so fast: "It's like one
day it didn't exist, then suddenly we're getting 200 to 300 emails a day.
No one told us how to use it or not use it." They cite its lack of tone
and speed, "which doesn't just make it easier to lose our cool - it
actually eggs us on."
The 247-page book advises "Never forward anything without permission, and
assume everything you write will be forwarded," and "Never forget a Cc has
the power to publicly shame someone, whether that's your intention or
not."
Its authors see the book as more than email etiquette: "It's more
important than that when a bad email can cost you your job or bring down a
company," Shipley says.
A chapter on "The Email That Can Land You in Jail" includes an example
from an employee at A.H. Robins about a recalled diet medication: "Do I
have to look forward to spending my waning years writing checks to fat
people worried about a silly lung problem?"
But Shipley and Schwalbe are more concerned with small, everyday email
annoyances. As they wrote the book, mostly together, taking turns at the
keyboard, "it grew from a book about email to a book about being mindful,
about how to behave," Schwalbe says.
They say one thing everyone wants, but no one has invented, is a "panic
button," a short delay after hitting send, like the kind TV networks use
to bleep obscenities.
As for their best advice, the authors quote from their book:
"Think before you send," says Shipley.
"Send email you would like to receive," says Schwalbe.
They've also set up a website to collect "bad emails," at
Thinkbeforeyousend.com.
Court Reverses Penalty Over MySpace Post
A judge violated a juvenile's free-speech rights when he placed her on
probation for posting an expletive-laden entry on MySpace criticizing a
school principal, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled.
The three-judge panel on Monday ordered the Putnam Circuit Court to set
aside its penalty against the girl, referred to only as A.B. in court
records.
"While we have little regard for A.B.'s use of vulgar epithets, we
conclude that her overall message constitutes political speech," Judge
Patricia Riley wrote in the 10-page opinion.
In February 2006, Greencastle Middle School Principal Shawn Gobert
discovered a Web page on MySpace purportedly created by him. A.B., who did
not create the page, made derogatory postings on it concerning the
school's policy on body piercings.
The state filed a delinquency petition in March alleging that A.B.'s acts
would have been harassment, identity deception and identity theft if
committed by an adult. The juvenile court dropped most of the charges but
in June found A.B. to be a delinquent child and placed her on nine months
of probation. The judge ruled the comments were obscene.
A.B. appealed, arguing that her comments were protected political speech
under both the state and federal constitutions because they dealt with
school policy.
The Court of Appeals found that the comments were protected and that the
juvenile court had unconstitutionally restricted her right of free
expression.
There was no number for Shawn Gobert in publishing phone listings. The
Associated Press left a message seeking comment Monday at Greencastle
Middle School.
Time is Running Out for Windows XP
Microsoft will force PC makers to stop selling machines running XP by the
end of this year, despite ongoing compatibility problems and demand for
XP from users.
Demand for XP is particularly strong among small and medium-sized
businesses, according to Dell, which announced it will continue offering
some machines with XP pre-installed.
However, the clock is ticking, and Dell and other PC makers will be
obliged to stop selling machines running XP by the end of the year,
despite ongoing compatibility and performance issues with Windows Vista.
Dell has decided to continue offering XP on business systems through the
summer through a feature called "Customize with Windows XP," the company
said in a recent blog post.
Dell said the move reflects strong demand for XP machines, especially for
smaller businesses, which often buy systems in small numbers from OEMs.
"Dell recognizes the needs of small business customers and understands
that more time is needed to transition to a new operating system," said
Tom West, director of small business marketing at Dell, on the company's
blog. "The plan is to continue offering Windows XP on select Dimension and
Inspiron systems until later this summer."
Dell isn't planning to offer XP on consumer systems, saying they prefer
the "latest and greatest," a situation that displeased some customers.
"Thumbs down for not offering this to home users," wrote one user.
"Many home users- especially gamers - do consider XP the 'greatest' -
especially after all the media articles and benchmarks showing very poor
gaming performance and compatibility on Vista," wrote another.
At the end of this year, however, Microsoft OEMs' contracts will no longer
give them the option of selling XP-powered machines. This is despite
problems that have surfaced for consumers as well as businesses, such as
games and application incompatibility and driver problems.
Most recently, users complained that Vista's start-up, shut-down and
application load times are far too long compared with Windows XP. Users on
Microsoft's Performance & Maintenance forum, who sound pro-Vista for the
most part, have vented about a variety of speed issues.
"I have XP and Vista running side-by-side [but] I twiddle my thumbs
waiting for certain apps to load up on the Vista machine while the load is
instantaneous on the older XP machine," wrote a user identified as
William. "I've tweaked it as best as I could with the info available and I
am still very disappointed."
Doubts have also been raised about Vista's security, after it emerged that
Vista was affected by recent widespread hacks involving Windows' animated
cursors, even though that portion of the code was addressed by an update
more than two years ago.
Judge Tosses Date-Dissing Web Suit
A Florida-based Web site that invites women to warn others about men
they've dated cannot be sued in a Pennsylvania court by an attorney who
said its postings falsely claimed he was unfaithful and had sexually
transmitted diseases.
Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge R. Stanton Wettick Jr. said he had no
jurisdiction over the lawsuit Todd Hollis filed last June against
DontDateHimGirl.com and its creator, Tasha C. Cunningham, 34, of Miami.
Hollis, of Pittsburgh, claimed Cunningham's site is liable because it
solicits negative comments but does not screen them for truthfulness.
Hollis also is suing those who posted comments that questioned his
sexuality and claimed he tried to dodge paying child support.
Cunningham and her attorneys say a 1996 federal law shields Web sites
from such lawsuits when they merely transmit user postings.
Wettick did not address that issue and ruled simply that Pennsylvania's
court system has no jurisdiction over a Florida Web site, even though
Pennsylvanians post messages on it.
The ruling, issued last week, does not address Hollis' still-pending
claims against women who posted the messages. One of the women has denied
making any posts. Another acknowledged posting comments but denied
damaging his reputation.
Hollis said he has not decided whether to sue the Web site again in
another venue.
Cunningham's date-dissing site has tripled in size since the lawsuit was
filed, with 27,000 profiles that she markets as "a new cost-effective
weapon in the war on cheating men." Cunningham works full-time on the
site and is developing others, including a Spanish-language version that
will launch in June.
Researchers Explore Scrapping Internet
Although it has already taken nearly four decades to get this far in
building the Internet, some university researchers with the federal
government's blessing want to scrap all that and start over.
The idea may seem unthinkable, even absurd, but many believe a "clean
slate" approach is the only way to truly address security, mobility and
other challenges that have cropped up since UCLA professor Leonard
Kleinrock helped supervise the first exchange of meaningless test data
between two machines on Sept. 2, 1969.
The Internet "works well in many situations but was designed for
completely different assumptions," said Dipankar Raychaudhuri, a Rutgers
University professor overseeing three clean-slate projects. "It's sort of
a miracle that it continues to work well today."
No longer constrained by slow connections and computer processors and high
costs for storage, researchers say the time has come to rethink the
Internet's underlying architecture, a move that could mean replacing
networking equipment and rewriting software on computers to better channel
future traffic over the existing pipes.
Even Vinton Cerf, one of the Internet's founding fathers as co-developer
of the key communications techniques, said the exercise was "generally
healthy"
because the current technology "does not satisfy all needs."
One challenge in any reconstruction, though, will be balancing the
interests of various constituencies. The first time around, researchers
were able to toil away in their labs quietly. Industry is playing a bigger
role this time, and law enforcement is bound to make its needs for
wiretapping known.
There's no evidence they are meddling yet, but once any research looks
promising, "a number of people (will) want to be in the drawing room,"
said Jonathan Zittrain, a law professor affiliated with Oxford and Harvard
universities. "They'll be wearing coats and ties and spilling out of the
venue."
The National Science Foundation wants to build an experimental research
network known as the Global Environment for Network Innovations, or GENI,
and is funding several projects at universities and elsewhere through
Future Internet Network Design, or FIND.
Rutgers, Stanford, Princeton, Carnegie Mellon and the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology are among the universities pursuing individual
projects. Other government agencies, including the Defense Department, have
also been exploring the concept.
The European Union has also backed research on such initiatives, through a
program known as Future Internet Research and Experimentation, or FIRE.
Government officials and researchers met last month in Zurich to discuss
early findings and goals.
A new network could run parallel with the current Internet and eventually
replace it, or perhaps aspects of the research could go into a major
overhaul of the existing architecture.
These clean-slate efforts are still in their early stages, though, and
aren't expected to bear fruit for another 10 or 15 years - assuming
Congress comes through with funding.
Guru Parulkar, who will become executive director of Stanford's initiative
after heading NSF's clean-slate programs, estimated that GENI alone could
cost $350 million, while government, university and industry spending on
the individual projects could collectively reach $300 million. Spending
so far has been in the tens of millions of dollars.
And it could take billions of dollars to replace all the software and
hardware deep in the legacy systems.
Clean-slate advocates say the cozy world of researchers in the 1970s and
1980s doesn't necessarily mesh with the realities and needs of the
commercial Internet.
"The network is now mission critical for too many people, when in the
(early days) it was just experimental," Zittrain said.
The Internet's early architects built the system on the principle of
trust. Researchers largely knew one another, so they kept the shared
network open and flexible - qualities that proved key to its rapid growth.
But spammers and hackers arrived as the network expanded and could roam
freely because the Internet doesn't have built-in mechanisms for knowing
with certainty who sent what.
The network's designers also assumed that computers are in fixed locations
and always connected. That's no longer the case with the proliferation of
laptops, personal digital assistants and other mobile devices, all hopping
from one wireless access point to another, losing their signals here and
there.
Engineers tacked on improvements to support mobility and improved
security, but researchers say all that adds complexity, reduces
performance and, in the case of security, amounts at most to bandages in
a high-stakes game of cat and mouse.
Workarounds for mobile devices "can work quite well if a small fraction
of the traffic is of that type," but could overwhelm computer processors
and create security holes when 90 percent or more of the traffic is
mobile, said Nick McKeown, co-director of Stanford's clean-slate program.
The Internet will continue to face new challenges as applications require
guaranteed transmissions - not the "best effort" approach that works
better for e-mail and other tasks with less time sensitivity.
Think of a doctor using teleconferencing to perform a surgery remotely, or
a customer of an Internet-based phone service needing to make an emergency
call. In such cases, even small delays in relaying data can be deadly.
And one day, sensors of all sorts will likely be Internet capable.
Rather than create workarounds each time, clean-slate researchers want to
redesign the system to easily accommodate any future technologies, said
Larry Peterson, chairman of computer science at Princeton and head of the
planning group for the NSF's GENI.
Even if the original designers had the benefit of hindsight, they might
not have been able to incorporate these features from the get-go.
Computers, for instance, were much slower then, possibly too weak for the
computations needed for robust authentication.
"We made decisions based on a very different technical landscape," said
Bruce Davie, a fellow with network-equipment maker Cisco Systems Inc.,
which stands to gain from selling new products and incorporating research
findings into its existing line.
"Now, we have the ability to do all sorts of things at very high speeds,"
he said. "Why don't we start thinking about how we take advantage of those
things and not be constrained by the current legacy we have?"
Of course, a key question is how to make any transition - and researchers
are largely punting for now.
"Let's try to define where we think we should end up, what we think the
Internet should look like in 15 years' time, and only then would we decide
the path," McKeown said. "We acknowledge it's going to be really hard but
I think it will be a mistake to be deterred by that."
Kleinrock, the Internet pioneer at UCLA, questioned the need for a
transition at all, but said such efforts are useful for their
out-of-the-box thinking.
"A thing called GENI will almost surely not become the Internet, but
pieces of it might fold into the Internet as it advances," he said.
Think evolution, not revolution.
Princeton already runs a smaller experimental network called PlanetLab,
while Carnegie Mellon has a clean-slate project called 100 x 100.
These days, Carnegie Mellon professor Hui Zhang said he no longer feels
like "the outcast of the community" as a champion of clean-slate designs.
Construction on GENI could start by 2010 and take about five years to
complete. Once operational, it should have a decade-long lifespan.
FIND, meanwhile, funded about two dozen projects last year and is
evaluating a second round of grants for research that could ultimately be
tested on GENI.
These go beyond projects like Internet2 and National LambdaRail, both of
which focus on next-generation needs for speed.
Any redesign may incorporate mechanisms, known as virtualization, for
multiple networks to operate over the same pipes, making further
transitions much easier. Also possible are new structures for data packets
and a replacement of Cerf's TCP/IP communications protocols.
"Almost every assumption going into the current design of the Internet is
open to reconsideration and challenge," said Parulkar, the NSF official
heading to Stanford. "Researchers may come up with wild ideas and very
innovative ideas that may not have a lot to do with the current Internet."
History - And Money - In Obsolete Computers
In the first purchase of his collection, Sellam Ismail loaded the trunk of
his car with old computers he stumbled upon at a flea market for $5
apiece. Soon he had filled his three-car garage with what others would
consider obsolete junk.
Years later, his collection of early computers, printers, and related
parts is piled high across shelves and in chaotic heaps in a
4,500-square-foot warehouse near Silicon Valley. And it is worth real
money.
Even as the power and speed of today's computers make their forerunners
look ever punier, a growing band of collectors are gathering retro
computers, considering them important relics and even good investments.
"There has been a real steep upward trend in prices in the last year,
year and a half," said Ismail, 38. "It seems it's become like the new
collectible to moneyed people. Before it was just nerds and hobbyists."
He states his own affiliation clearly: he wears a black T shirt with the
word "nerd" on the front. He recently brought a quarter-century old Xerox
Star computer back to life to be used as evidence in a patent lawsuit.
The pride of his collection is an Apple Lisa, one of the first computers
(introduced in 1983) with a now standard graphical interface. Such items
sell for more than $10,000.
In an old barn in Northern California that also houses pigs, Bruce Damer,
45, keeps a collection that includes a Cray 1 supercomputer, a Xerox Alto
(an early microcomputer introduced in 1973) and early Apple prototypes.
"For me the fascination with these artifacts are that they are living
histories - especially if they can be kept running - and that they are the
key innovations that affect all of our lives more than anything else here
in the 21st Century," Damer said.
"These artifacts also represent the 'roads not taken' when you see designs
and user interfaces that in some ways are better than we have now, but
simply didn't make it."
Damer's "Digibarn" is open to the public by appointment.
"I think my wife can be a bit put off by the project if we get visitors
who want to come on the weekends but she is remarkably tolerant of this
hobby of mine," said Damer, who is the owner of a company that produces
3D simulations for the U.S. space agency, NASA.
New Jersey-based Evan Koblentz says acquiring old computers is much like
some other hobbies.
"Antique car collecting is a great analogy," he said. "No one is saying
that a '34 Ford is better than a 2004 Ford in terms of reliable
technology, but it's funner."
"Vintage computers have character. Once the whole Wintel thing came
along, all computers pretty much look alike," he said of newer computers
that run Windows software on Intel Corp. processors.
"In vintage computers, just because you bought one and plugged it in
didn't mean it would work, didn't mean the software was available."
As in other hobbies, tech enthusiasts scour Internet sites and eBay for
offerings, attend swap meets (where the old machines are sometimes
demonstrated) and rely on word of mouth to obtain rare finds. Some items
cost just a few dollars; jewels go for thousands of dollars.
Private demand is also making it more difficult for museums to obtain
certain models. "It's tough; now they are becoming much more valuable,"
said John Toole, executive director of the Computer History Museum in
Mountain View, California.
Some celebrate their collections on detailed Internet sites, such as
Silicon Valley software engineer Erik Klein, 41, at
http://www.vintage-computer.com.
"I've tried collecting stamps and coins and never quite got into it
mainly because, for me, you can't really 'feel' the history in the
items," he said.
The pride of his collection is a 1971 Kenbak-1 computing machine that
he
bought for $2,500 a few years ago. He says it has since appreciated
five fold.
In Livermore, Ismail says his vast holdings of more than 2,000
computers, thousands of books, monitors and countless electronic odds
and ends is worth more than $500,000. But he emphasizes that the real
value is historical not financial, and hopes to one day convert his
disorganized warehouse into a museum.
"Historically there is a lot of stuff that is significant in here,"
Ismail said. "People are going to understand why I did this."
=~=~=~=
Atari Online News, Etc. is a weekly publication covering the entire
Atari community. Reprint permission is granted, unless otherwise noted
at the beginning of any article, to Atari user groups and not for
profit publications only under the following terms: articles must
remain unedited and include the issue number and author at the top of
each article reprinted. Other reprints granted upon approval of
request. Send requests to: dpj@atarinews.org
No issue of Atari Online News, Etc. may be included on any commercial
media, nor uploaded or transmitted to any commercial online service or
internet site, in whole or in part, by any agent or means, without
the expressed consent or permission from the Publisher or Editor of
Atari Online News, Etc.
Opinions presented herein are those of the individual authors and do
not necessarily reflect those of the staff, or of the publishers. All
material herein is believed to be accurate at the time of publishing.
