Author: kenmay

Nanotech Makes Steel 10x Stronger

An anonymous reader writes: A new metal-making process currently in testing at oil fields uses nano-scale plating to make metals like steel as much as ten times stronger than they would be without it. “[The process] uses an advanced form of electroplating, a process already used to make the chrome plating you might see on the engine and exhaust pipes of a motorcycle. Electroplating involves immersing a metal part in a chemical bath containing various metal ions, and then applying an electrical current to cause those ions to form a metal coating. The company uses a bath that contains more than one kind of metal ion and controls how ions are deposited by varying the electrical current. By changing the current at precise moments, it can create a layered structure, with each layer being several nanometers thick and of different composition. The final coating can be up to a centimeter thick and can greatly change the properties of the original material.” Read more of this story at Slashdot.

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Nanotech Makes Steel 10x Stronger

Federal Study: Marijuana Use Doesn’t Increase Auto Crash Rates

An anonymous reader writes: After the legalization of marijuana in multiple states around the U.S., many are worried about a corresponding uptick in car crashes as people drive while under the influence of pot. But according to a new federal study (PDF) commissioned by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, those fears seem unfounded. They report that after adjusting for other factors (people who tend to drive after using marijuana also tend to be more crash-prone in general), there was no statistically significant increase in crash rates by drivers who tested positive for the drug. It’s still a bad idea to drive high, but driving drunk is far, far worse: “One substance was shown to have a major influence on crashes: alcohol. The study confirmed the enormous danger of drinking and driving, even after age and sex adjustment: drivers with a 0.05% blood-alcohol level were found to be twice as likely to be in a crash. For a person weighing 180 to 190 pounds, that could be a single can of beer, glass of wine, or shot of liquor. At 0.08% (two drinks), the likelihood is quadrupled, and at .20% (four drinks or more), the risk is higher by 23 times.” Read more of this story at Slashdot.

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Federal Study: Marijuana Use Doesn’t Increase Auto Crash Rates

OpenStreetMap.org Gets Routing

An anonymous reader writes “Good news for OpenStreetMap: the main website now has A-to-B routing (directions) built in to the homepage! The OSM website offers directions which are powered by third-parties using OSM data, providing car, bike, and foot routing. OpenStreetMap has a saying: ‘What gets rendered, gets mapped’ – meaning that often you don’t notice a bit of data that needs tweaking unless it actually shows up on the map image. It will make OpenStreetMap’s data better by creating a virtuous feedback loop.” Read more of this story at Slashdot.

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OpenStreetMap.org Gets Routing

Raspberry Pi has sold 5 million of its DIY-friendly computers

The audience for do-it-yourself computing might be larger than you think. The Raspberry Pi Foundation just revealed that it recently sold its 5 millionth mini computer — not bad considering that the team had only delivered 1.75 million Raspberry Pis as of October 2013, or 16 months ago. The figure pales in comparison to what giant PC makers can do (Apple now sells over 5 million Macs per quarter ), but it’s impressive for a barebones board meant for schools and homebrew projects . In fact, the team notes that it could be the best-selling UK computer maker “ever.” The Raspberry Pi’s super-low pricing ($35 or less) played a large part in those sales numbers, of course. It’s relatively painless to pick up the device if you’re curious, and it’s well-suited to bulk educational purchases that help entire classrooms learn how to code. Whatever factors are driving the Pi’s popularity, it’s proof that the DIY market is alive and well despite the closures of tinkering-friendly stores like RadioShack . Just confirmed the big news we’ve all been waiting for: we’ve now sold more than 5 million Raspberry Pis. – Raspberry Pi (@Raspberry_Pi) February 17, 2015 Filed under: Misc , Peripherals Comments Source: Raspberry Pi (Twitter 1) , (2)

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Raspberry Pi has sold 5 million of its DIY-friendly computers

PSA: 51 classic Sega Genesis games on Steam for about five cents each

Over the years, we’ve gotten used to Sega porting much of its library of legacy Genesis title to every platform imaginable, from mobile phones to the PlayStation 3. For those looking for a nostalgic fix, paying a few bucks per game for one of these quick trips down memory lane hasn’t been an awful deal. But paying just about five cents each for a bundle of 51 classic Genesis titles is a bargain basement deal that’s too good for practically any gaming fan to pass up. Amazon is currently selling all five pieces of the “Sega Genesis & Mega Drive Classic” series as downloadable Steam codes for the ridiculously low price of $2.62 . Among the dozens of games in the five-part collection are highlights like Eternal Champions, Gunstar Heroes , Phantasy Star 2, 3 , and 4 , Shining Force 1 and 2 , all three Streets of Rage games, all three Golden Axe games, and Vectorman 1 and 2 . A complete list of included titles is available on these Steam pages . Sold individually, these games usually run $3 each on Steam, which is more than the entire 51-game collection will run you currently on Amazon right now. Even in bundles, the collection usually goes for $37.50 on Steam or $18.70 on Amazon. A a quick look at a Steam price tracker suggests the bulk of the collection (not including the fifth part) has never been offered for less than $14.98 on the service. So depending on how you look at it, the current Amazon price is so that’s anywhere from an 85 to 98 percent savings from what were already some pretty good bundle prices for such a massive selection of classic games. Read 2 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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PSA: 51 classic Sega Genesis games on Steam for about five cents each

Dropbox makes it easy to upload files on iOS 8

It’s a lot easier uploading files to Dropbox now, assuming you use an iPhone or an iPad loaded with iOS 8. This latest update adds an action extension to apps like Photos and Notes, letting you upload files directly instead of having to (ugh) fire up the cloud service first, navigate to “Add Files” and find what you want to save. You will have to set it up after downloading the newest version, but it’s not that hard: just open up Photos or Notes, click the upload arrow button, choose More (…) from the bottom row of icons, and toggle on “Save to Dropbox.” Easy peasy. As a nice extra feature, you’ll also be able to open PDFs you click on websites through the cloud storage app, giving you a way to view them on a more desktop-like interface. Filed under: Misc , Mobile Comments Via: 9to5mac Source: iTunes

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Dropbox makes it easy to upload files on iOS 8

Password cracking experts decipher elusive Equation Group crypto hash

Unraveling a mystery that eluded the researchers analyzing the highly advanced Equation Group the world learned about Monday, password crackers have deciphered a cryptographic hash buried in one of the hacking crew’s exploits. It’s Arabic for “unregistered.” Researchers for Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab spent more than two weeks trying to crack the MD5 hash using a computer that tried more than 300 billion plaintext guesses every second. After coming up empty-handed, they enlisted the help of password-cracking experts, both privately and on Twitter , in hopes they would do better. Password crackers Jens Steube and Philipp Schmidt spent only a few hours before figuring out the plaintext behind the hash e6d290a03b70cfa5d4451da444bdea39 was غير مسجل, which is Arabic for “unregistered”. The hex-encoded string for the same Arabic word is dbedd120e3d3cce1. “That was a shock when it popped up and said ‘cracked,'” Steube told Ars Monday evening. He is the developer behind the free Hashcat password-cracking programs and an expert in password cracking. Read 6 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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Password cracking experts decipher elusive Equation Group crypto hash

‘Doom’ selfie mod lets you indulge your ego while slaying demons

Like it or not, selfies in games are officially A Thing — and they’re now invading classic titles like Doom . Linguica’s new InstaDoom mod lets you spin the virtual camera around to take a shot of your Doom (or Doom II ) marine, complete with Instagram-like filters and the seemingly inescapable selfie stick . Yes, you can now show your friends that you’ve killed a Spiderdemon by striking an obnoxious pose over its body. Is this a novelty? You bet. Still, it’s fun to see a decades-old shooter make a commentary on the modern obsession with narcissistic photos. Filed under: Gaming , Software Comments Via: Polygon Source: Doomworld

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‘Doom’ selfie mod lets you indulge your ego while slaying demons

Canada’s Next-Generation Military Smart Gun Unveiled

Zothecula writes Looking every bit like a weapon from a science fiction movie, the latest integrated assault rifle prototype being developed for the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) is packed with some very smart weapons technology. Along with the ability to fire new lightweight telescoped ammunition, and a secondary effects module that adds either a three-round 40 mm grenade launcher or a 12-gauge shotgun, there is also a NATO-standard power and data bus to allow the attachment of smart accessories, such as electro-optical sights and position sensors that connect to command and control networks. Read more of this story at Slashdot.

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Canada’s Next-Generation Military Smart Gun Unveiled

Company Promises Positive Yelp Reviews For a Price; Yelp Sues

jfruh writes Many restaurants and other small businesses live and die by Yelp reviews. Revleap operates a paid service that it says can “create a large constant flow of positive reviews that stay on top of your [Yelp] profile, and remove fake reviews.” But Yelp is suing Revleap for what it says are practices that are fraudulent and in violation of Yelp’s terms of service; among other things, Revleap promises users gift cards in exchange for good reviews. Read more of this story at Slashdot.

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Company Promises Positive Yelp Reviews For a Price; Yelp Sues