The Awful Anti-Pirate System That Will Probably Work
Feb 28, 2010 Games
spidweb writes “Much virtual ink has been spilled over Ubisoft’s new, harsh DRM system for Assassin’s Creed 2. You must have a constant internet connection, and, if your connection breaks, the game exits. While this has angered many (and justifiably so), most writers on the topic have made an error. They think that this system, like all DRM systems in the past, will be easily broken. This article explains why, as dreadful as the system is, it does have a chance of holding hackers off long enough for the game to make its money. As such it is, if nothing else, a fascinating experiment. From the article: ‘Assassin’s Creed 2 is different in a key way. Remember, all of its code for saving and loading games (a significant feature, I’m sure you would agree) is tied into logging into a distant server and sending data back and forth. This vital and complex bit of code has been written from the ground up to require having the saved games live on a machine far away, with said machine being programmed to accept, save, and return the game data. This is a far more difficult problem for a hacker to circumvent.’”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
FlightGear Reaches v2.0
Feb 28, 2010 Games
distantbody writes “The flight sim project FlightGear has reached version 2.0. From the website: ‘Highlights of this new version include: Dramatic new 3D clouds, dramatic lighting conditions, improved support for custom scenery, and many many new and detailed aircraft models.’ Full list of improvements here. And of course the screenshots. The release coincides with the release of SimGear v2, the ’set of open-source libraries designed to be used as building blocks for quickly assembling 3d simulations, games, and visualization applications’ on which FlightGear is based.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Cellphones Let Shoppers Point, Click and Purchase
Feb 27, 2010 Technology
Some retailers plan to turn applications on mobile phones into information displays and devices for ordering.
Observatory: Converting Body Movements Into Electricity
Feb 27, 2010 Technology
Researchers at Princeton said they found a way to harvest the body’s energy using piezoelectric crystals, an application that could first be used in shoes to keep a music player charged.
The Wired Repo Man: He’s Not ‘As Seen on TV’
Feb 27, 2010 Technology
The auto repossession business is booming during the recession, making use of new technologies to improve efficiency and reduce the need for legwork.
What We’re Reading: Art Fraud, Steve Jobs and Citibank
Feb 27, 2010 Technology
Technology tidbits from around the Web selected by Times technology journalists.
One on One: Esther Dyson, Health Tech Investor and Space Tourist
Feb 27, 2010 Technology
Esther Dyson, investor and technologist, discusses technology that tracks your health and why she thinks you will want to use it.
The Online Private Sale Trend Packs Its Bags
Feb 27, 2010 Technology
A new site called PackLate wants to offer steep discounts on last-minute vacations, using an approach that’s similar to private-sale fashion sites.
When It Comes to Content, Amazon’s Kindle Won’t Be Undersold
Feb 27, 2010 Technology
Amazon.com is pushing newspaper, magazine and book publishers to guarantee that Kindle customers will get the lowest prices on electronic content. In return, publishers may get a bigger cut of the revenue.
Italian Billionaire Surrenders to Police in Money Laundering Probe
Feb 27, 2010 Technology
Silvio Scaglia, who founded Fastweb, Italy’s biggest telecommunications company after Telecom Italia, surrendered after arriving in Italy early Friday.