Tag: california

New security protection, fixes for 39 exploitable bugs coming to Java

A dialog box presented by Java when it encounters an application that isn’t signed by a digital certificate. Java.com Oracle plans to release an update for the widely exploited Java browser plugin. The update fixes 39 critical vulnerabilities and introduces changes designed to make it harder to carry out drive-by attacks on end-user computers. The update scheduled for Tuesday comes as the security of Java is reaching near-crisis levels. Throughout the past year, a series of attacks hosted on popular websites has been used to surreptitiously install malware on unwitting users’ machines. The security flaws have been used to infect employees of Facebook and Apple in targeted attacks intended to penetrate those companies. The vulnerabilities have also been exploited to hijack computers of home and business users. More than once, attackers have exploited one previously undocumented bug within days or weeks of patching a previous “zero-day,” as such vulnerabilities are known, creating a string of attacks on the latest version of the widely used plugin. In all, Java 7 Update 21 will fix at least 42 security bugs, Oracle said in a pre-release announcement . The post went on to say that “39 of those vulnerabilities may be remotely exploitable without authentication, i.e., may be exploited over a network without the need for a username and password.” The advisory didn’t specify or describe the holes that will be patched. Security Exploration, a Poland-based security company that has discovered dozens of “security issues” in Java, has a running list of them here . Read 5 remaining paragraphs | Comments

Follow this link:
New security protection, fixes for 39 exploitable bugs coming to Java

New F-1B rocket engine upgrades Apollo-era design with 1.8M lbs of thrust

NASA has spent a lot of time and money resurrecting the F-1 rocket engine that powered the Saturn V back in the 1960s and 1970s, and Ars recently spent a week at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, to get the inside scoop on how the effort came to be . But there’s a very practical reason why NASA is putting old rocket parts up on a test stand and firing them off: its latest launch vehicle might be powered by engines that look, sound, and work a whole lot like the legendary F-1. This new launch vehicle, known as the Space Launch System , or SLS, is currently taking shape on NASA drawing boards. However, as is its mandate, NASA won’t be building the rocket itself—it will allow private industry to bid for the rights to build various components. One potential design wrinkle in SLS is that instead of using Space Shuttle-style solid rocket boosters, SLS could instead use liquid-fueled rocket motors, which would make it the United States’ first human-rated rocket in more than 30 years not to use solid-fuel boosters. The contest to suss this out is the Advanced Booster Competition , and one of the companies that has been down-selected as a final competitor is Huntsville-based Dynetics . Dynetics has partnered with Pratt Whitney Rocketdyne (designers of the Saturn V’s F-1 engine, among others) to propose a liquid-fueled booster featuring an engine based heavily on the design of the famous F-1. The booster is tentatively named Pyrios , after one of the fiery horses that pulled the god Apollo’s chariot; the engine is being called the F-1B. Read 34 remaining paragraphs | Comments

More:
New F-1B rocket engine upgrades Apollo-era design with 1.8M lbs of thrust

OS X 10.8.4 beta suggests 802.11ac is coming soon to a Mac near you

Amid the sea of text, a revealing phrase: 802.11ac. 9to5Mac Before rolling them out to the public through Software Update, Apple regularly releases beta versions of its minor OS X updates to registered developers and other selected testers. These patches are normally routine—a security patch here, a new driver there—but they occasionally reveal tidbits about where Apple is taking OS X and, by extension, its Mac lineup. A new build of OS X 10.8.4 was released to beta testers today, and 9to5Mac cracked it open in short order. Hidden in the operating system’s “WiFi-frameworks” folder is a brand-new reference to 802.11ac Wi-Fi , a new standard that promises bandwidth of up to 1.3Gbps. The fastest Wi-Fi chips in today’s Macs support 802.11n at speeds of either 450Mbps (for devices with three antennae like the iMac or MacBook Pro) or 270Mbps (for devices like the MacBook Air with only two antennae), making the new standard quite the potential upgrade. As with previous Wi-Fi upgrades, the new 802.11ac adapters and routers will also be backward-compatible with 802.11n, g, b, and a-based devices. Routers and adapters that support 802.11ac first began to appear on the market last year, and have slowly proliferated as the months have gone on. We saw quite a few 802.11ac routers at this year’s CES , and 802.11ac chips from the likes of Broadcom should begin to show up in many consumer devices this year. Even some smartphones (the HTC One in particular) are beginning to ship with the new standard, so it wouldn’t be a surprise if Apple made the jump in this year’s Macs. Read 1 remaining paragraphs | Comments

View the original here:
OS X 10.8.4 beta suggests 802.11ac is coming soon to a Mac near you

Intel wants to kill the traditional server rack with 100Gbps links

If Intel gets its way, old-school server racks will go the way of the dinosaurs. David Monniaux Intel is working to replace the traditional server rack with a more efficient architecture that separates CPU, storage, power, and networking resources into individual components that can be swapped out as needed. Power and cooling would be shared across CPUs, rather than having separate power supplies for each server. Server, memory, network, and storage resources would all be disaggregated and shared across the rack. Incredibly fast interconnects will be needed to prevent slowdowns because disaggregating components pushes them further apart, and Intel is thus building an interconnect that’s capable of 100Gbps. “We are developing a rack-scale architecture,” Lisa Graff, VP and general manager of Intel’s data center marketing group, said in a briefing with reporters last week. “We’re working with end users, OEMs, and ISVs to drive common standards in a reference architecture.” Read 18 remaining paragraphs | Comments

Continue Reading:
Intel wants to kill the traditional server rack with 100Gbps links

Solid electrolyte may end the catastrophic failures of lithium batteries

Batteries like this one with liquid electrolytes may eventually get a run for their money. pinkyracer Lithium batteries have become a very popular technology, powering everything from cell phones to cars. But that doesn’t mean the technology is without its problems; lithium batteries have been implicated in some critical technological snafus, from exploding laptops to grounded airplanes . Most of these problems can be traced back to the electrolyte, a liquid that helps ions carry charges within the battery. Liquid electrolytes can leak, burn, and distort the internal structure of the battery, swelling it in ways that can lead to a catastrophic failure. The solution, of course, would be to get rid of the liquids. But ions don’t tend to move as easily through solids, which creates another set of problems. Now, researchers have formulated a solid in which lithium ions can move about five times faster than any previously described substance. Better yet, the solid—a close chemical relative of styrofoam—helps provide structural stability to the battery. Don’t expect to see a styrofoam battery in your next cellphone though, as the material needs to be heated to 60°C in order to work. The problem with liquid electrolytes has to do with the fact that, during recharging, lithium ions end up forming deposits of metal inside the battery. These create risks of short circuits (the problem that grounded Boeing’s Dreamliner 787) and can damage the battery’s structure, causing leaks and a fire risk. Solid electrodes get around this because the lithium ions will only come out of the electrolyte at specific locations within the solid, and can’t form the large metal deposits that cause all of the problems. Read 6 remaining paragraphs | Comments

Excerpt from:
Solid electrolyte may end the catastrophic failures of lithium batteries

Bullseye from 1,000 yards: Shooting the $17,000 Linux-powered rifle

1000 yards is a long, long way away. Steven Michael My photographer, Steve, squints through a computerized scope squatting atop a big hunting rifle. We’re outdoors at a range just north of Austin, Texas, and the wind is blowing like crazy—enough so that we’re having to dial in more and more wind adjustment on the rifle’s computer. The spotter and I monitor Steve’s sight through an iPad linked to the rifle via Wi-Fi, and we can see exactly what he’s seeing through the scope. Steve lines up on his target downrange—a gently swinging metal plate with a fluorescent orange circle painted at its center—and depresses a button to illuminate it with the rifle’s laser. “Good tag?” he asks, softly. “Good tag,” replies the spotter, watching on the iPad. He leaves the device in my hands and looks through a conventional high-powered spotting scope at the target Steve has selected. The wind stops momentarily. “Send it,” he calls out. Read 64 remaining paragraphs | Comments

Visit site:
Bullseye from 1,000 yards: Shooting the $17,000 Linux-powered rifle

Jeff Bezos’ new patent envisions tablets without processors, batteries

Bezos’ “remote display” patent envisions tablets and e-readers that are just screens—power and processing is provided wirelessly by a central system. US Patent & Trademark Office It seems like everyone is trying to jump on the cloud computing bandwagon, but Amazon Chairman and CEO Jeff Bezos wants to take it to a whole new level. GeekWire reports  that he and Gregory Hart have filed a patent for “remote displays” that would get data and power from a centrally located “primary station.” The tablets or e-readers would simply be screens, and the need for a large internal battery or significant local processing power would theoretically be obviated by the primary station. The patent sees processors and large internal batteries as the next major roadblocks in the pursuit of thinner and lighter devices. “The ability to continue to reduce the form factor of many of today’s devices is somewhat limited, however, as the devices typically include components such as processors and batteries that limit the minimum size and weight of the device. While the size of a battery is continuously getting smaller, the operational or functional time of these smaller batteries is often insufficient for many users.” The full patent is an interesting read, since it presents other potential use cases for these “remote displays” that wouldn’t necessarily need to wait on this theoretical fully wireless future-tablet to come to pass. For example: a camera or sensor could detect when a hand is passed over an e-reader display and respond by turning the page. A touch-sensitive casing could detect when a child is handling a display by measuring things like the length and width of their fingers and then disable purchasing of new content or the ability to access “inappropriate” content. Read 1 remaining paragraphs | Comments

Excerpt from:
Jeff Bezos’ new patent envisions tablets without processors, batteries

Solar power, white spaces bring 16Mbps broadband to towns without electricity

Microsoft White space networks haven’t exactly revolutionized Internet access in the US, but that doesn’t mean the technology can’t have a major impact in countries that lack consistent access to the Internet. The latest project showing the power of white spaces is unfolding in Kenya, where a solar-powered network is bringing the Internet to people who aren’t even connected to an electric grid. Microsoft deployed the network last month in conjunction with Kenyan government officials. It is serving a health care clinic in Burguret, a primary and secondary school in Male (that’s pronounced “mah-lay”), a secondary school in Gakawa, and a library in Laikipia. The network will be expanded to 20 locations in the coming months. “Down in the valley, nobody has electricity,” Paul Garnett, director of technology policy at Microsoft, told Ars. Garnett has been shuttling back and forth between the US and Kenya to get the white spaces network up and running, and he gave me an update on the project in a recent phone interview. Read 17 remaining paragraphs | Comments

Read More:
Solar power, white spaces bring 16Mbps broadband to towns without electricity

“Cloud gaming” has a future—just maybe not in the cloud

Nvidia’s Shield tablet can stream full PC games from your Steam library as long as you’re using a GeForce graphics card. This may be the best way to stream your PC games to your tablet. Andrew Cunningham In practically every one of its major press conferences since last year’s GPU Technology Conference, Nvidia has reminded us that they want to virtualize the graphics processor. The company wants to take it out of the computer on your lap or on your desk and put it into a server somewhere without you noticing the difference. It introduced the concept at GTC 2012. Then over the course of the next year, Nvidia unveiled the actual graphics cards that would enable this tech, started selling them to partners, and also stuck them in Nvidia Grid-branded servers aimed at both gamers and businesses . The difference between Nvidia’s initiatives and more traditional virtualization is that the company’s products support relatively few users for the hardware they require. The Grid gaming server supports 24 users per server box and the Visual Computing Appliance (VCA) only supports eight or 16 depending on the model. Most virtualization is all about dynamically allocating resources like CPU cycles and RAM to give as many users as possible the bare minimum amount of power they need. Instead, Nvidia’s is about providing a fixed number of users with a pretty specific amount of computing power, thus attempting to recreate the experience of using a regular old computer. There are situations where this makes sense. Given the cost of buying and maintaining workstation hardware, Nvidia’s argument for the VCA seems more or less convincing. But I’m slightly less optimistic about the prospect for the Grid gaming server, or any cloud gaming service, really—call it leftover skepticism from OnLive’s meltdown earlier this year . Read 11 remaining paragraphs | Comments

Read the original post:
“Cloud gaming” has a future—just maybe not in the cloud

How whitehats stopped the DDoS attack that knocked Spamhaus offline

Unlike Unicast-based networks, Anycast systems use dozens of individual data centers to dilute the effects of distributed denial-of-service attacks. CloudFlare As an international organization that disrupts spam operators, the Spamhaus Project has made its share of enemies. Many of those enemies possess the Internet equivalent of millions of water cannons that can be turned on in an instant to flood targets with more traffic than they can possibly stand. On Tuesday, Spamhaus came under a torrential deluge—75 gigabits of junk data every second—making it impossible for anyone to access the group’s website (the real-time blacklists that ISPs use to filter billions of spam messages were never effected). Spamhaus quickly turned to CloudFlare, a company that secures websites and helps mitigate the effects of distributed denial-of-service attacks. This is a story about how the attackers were able to flood a single site with so much traffic, and the way CloudFlare blocked it using a routing methodology known as Anycast. Read 8 remaining paragraphs | Comments

View article:
How whitehats stopped the DDoS attack that knocked Spamhaus offline