ISPs consequences for abusing Six Strikes program revealed

5 internet service providers, including AT&T, Verizon, Time Warner Cable, Comcast, and Cablevision launched their “Six Strikes” anti-piracy program this Monday. The program is the latest attempt for ISPs to stop its users from pirating software and media illegally. At the launch of the piracy program, the ISPs kept quiet about the consequences that would ensue if the users reached their 5th or 6th warning, but now they’ve explained their punishments.

ISPs consequences for abusing Six Strikes program revealed

AT&T’s methods will focus more on educating its users about online piracy in order to deter them from it. If a user reaches their 5th or 6th warning, AT&T will “demand they take an extra step to review materials on an online portal that will educate them on distribution of copyrighted content online.” Users will have to review the materials before they are able to access other websites. AT&T has said that they will not throttle its users data speeds.

Verizon, however, will throttle its users data speeds. Customers who reach their 5th or 6th warning will have to watch instructional videos about downloading copyright material legally at first, and if they still proceed to pirate, they will have their data speeds reduced to dial-up speeds. The throttle will last 2-3 days. The users will be warned 2 weeks in advance before their speeds are throttled, just in case there is something wrong on Verizon’s side and the users want to dispute the warnings. To appeal the warnings, users will have to pay a $35 fee, which will be returned if the user is granted the appeal.

Comcast, like AT&T, will not cap its users data speeds. If they reach their 5th/6th warning, they will receive constant in-browser alerts about their piracy, and in order to stop the alerts, they will have to call Comcast Security Assurance, who will then lecture them on copyright methods and how to download legal content. Like AT&T, Comcast’s goal is to inform its customers.

Time Warner Cable will not throttle its users data speeds either, but users will receive a lock on their internet browsers if they reach the 5th/6th alert. In order to remove the lock, like Comcast, users will have to contact customer service where they will receive a lecture on copyright methods and legal alternatives to downloading media.

Cablevision didn’t chime in with their consequences, but it seems that Verizon will be the only company that will throttle its users’ data speeds. With Cablevision, you’ll probably receive a lecture as well. So far none of the companies plan on terminating their contracts with their users due to piracy. These details of the consequences for violating the “six strikes” program does make the program seem less intense, compared to when we really didn’t know what they had planned. What do you think of the ISPs’ anti-piracy program?

[via Mashable]


ISPs consequences for abusing Six Strikes program revealed is written by Brian Sin & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Peel & Stick Solar Panels: Solar Power All the Things!

Aside from providing clean energy from a practically infinite power source, solar power now has another advantage over traditional power sources: it can be generated on nearly any surface. It’s all thanks these new solar panels that are thin and flexible enough that they can be attached like stickers. Let’s see you make a stick-on gas tank.

peel and stick solar panels by Chi Hwan Lee Dong Rip Kim In Sun Cho Nemeth William Qi Wang Xiaolin Zheng

The peel-and-stick solar panel was invented by a group of researchers from Stanford University’s Mechanical Engineering department, led by Phd candidate Chi Hwan Lee. The researchers were able to fabricate the panels via “a unique silicon, silicon dioxide and metal “sandwich.”  Solar cells are deposited on a thin film of nickel that is in turn deposited on the aforementioned silicon/silicon dioxide (Si/SiO2) wafer. The researchers separate the resulting solar film from the wafer using thermal release tape. Finally the solar film is peeled off of the tape using water. The resulting solar film can now be attached to a variety of surfaces using ordinary adhesive such as double-sided tape.

We may not understand that process in its entirety, but I’m sure you’ll find the group’s other findings to be exciting. Not only did they make stick-on solar panels, they did so using existing machines and materials. Even more exciting is the fact that Chi Hwan Lee and his colleagues believe that the process can also be applied to other components, including printed circuits, transistors and even LCDs. This could go a long way into ensuring that the next Google Glass will be Google Gontact Glens. You get the idea.

[via Nature & Stanford Engineering via Springwise via Electric Power]

 

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Samsung plans to double tablet sales this year

Samsung plans on doubling its tablet sales this year according to Y.H.Lee, executive VP for Samsung’s mobile division. While Samsung hasn’t fully disclosed how many tablet sales it made in the year of 2012, the estimated number of sales it has to make in 2013 would equal about 40 million units. Considering Samsung’s reputation and power in the mobile industry, it may be able to reach those intended figures.

Samsung plans on doubling its tablet sales

Samsung is already doing great in the smartphone sector of the mobile business. Its Samsung Galaxy line of smartphones grows in sales upon each consecutive release, and some consumers have a hard time differentiating Samsung from Google. So it makes sense that Samsung would want to focus more of its efforts on the tablet sector of the mobile business now. Like HP, Samsung sees the potential of the tablet market, and how consumers are in demand for both budget tablets as well as high-end tablets.

In Q4 2012, Samsung’s tablet market share rose 15.1%, which is over double the 7.3% market share it had in the earlier quarters. To jump start its tablet sales for 2013, Samsung announced the Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 tablet. The tablet, which also works as a phone, has an 8-inch WVGA 1280 x 800 pixel resolution display, 1.6GHz quad-core A9 processor, 5MP rear-facing camera, 1.3MP front-facing camera, 16/32GB of built-in storage, 2GB RAM, microSD card slot, and an IR blaster. The tablet will be competitively priced, and will go head to head with the likes of the iPad Mini.

Alongside the Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0, we may also see new Windows 8 tablets, as well as a refresh to the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 later on this year. It has a long ways to go in order to catch up with Apple and its huge lead in the tablet market. We should be seeing affordable, yet efficient tablets as well as high-end tablets coming from Samsung’s product line soon. Getting its products in the hands of as many consumers as possible is Samsung’s, and any company’s, mission.

[via CNET]


Samsung plans to double tablet sales this year is written by Brian Sin & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Physics and Oreos go together like cookies and cream

(Credit: Screenshot by CBSNews.com)

The video below describes separating an Oreo cookie as a “basic human desire.” While it may not be quite as fundamental as all that, separating cookie from cream has become a ritual for Oreo lovers around the world.

But why must we use our soft, weak human hands to pry these cookies apart? Why can’t someone invent a hilariously overcomplicated machine to do this painstaking work for us?

Luckily, someone did.

Physicist and “cookie-part preferrer” David Neevel is the mind behind the Rube Golberg-style machine. He describes his automated separator as “entirely based on the dislike of cream.” Which is crazy, of course. But it takes a certain kind of mad genius to create a machine as delightfully inefficient as this one.

The video is part of an online marketing campaign for Oreo. You can see more of its work on its YouTube page.

This story originally appeared on CBSNews.com. [Read more]

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Sergey Brin talks Google Glass at TED conference

Today, Google co-founder Sergey Brin spoke at the TED conference held in Long Beach, California. There, he discussed Google’s latest gadget, Google Glass. He praises the many features Google Glass has to offer, as well as its ease of use. He states that Google Glass will help him realize the dream he had when he helped create Google 15 years ago. Though along with the praise, he does make a few statements that are a tad bit offensive to smartphone users.

Sergey Brin talks Google Glass at TED conference

At the conference, Brin talks about his dream. He states, “When we started Google 15 yeras ago, my vision was that information would come to you as you need it.” He didn’t want people to have to search for the information they want. In a way, that dream is somewhat realized with the “Google Now” service that brings smartphone users (with Android 4.1 Jelly Bean) the information they want or need without them needing to do a search. Weather, traffic reports, news stories, nearby events, and other information is brought to them instantaneously.

However, Brin, didn’t want his dream to come in the form of the smartphone. In fact, he believes that the smartphone is emasculating. He made statements like, “Is the future of connection just people walking around hunched up, looking down, rubbing a featureless piece of glass? It’s kind of emasculating. Is this what you’re meant to do with your body?” He went on to say that cell phone usage in general is an addictive habit, and that if he were a smoker, he’d smoke instead. “It’d look cooler.”

Brin believes that Google Glass will be the project that will help him realize his dream. He may have made those statements just to promote Google Glass as a must-have tech accessory, but there is some truth to his comments. It is a bummer being surrounded by a group of people who are all hunched over their smartphones instead of socializing, but at the same time, you’re essentially glued to a display of distracting information while using Google Glass as well. I guess the perk is that you’re not hunched over?

[via TED]


Sergey Brin talks Google Glass at TED conference is written by Brian Sin & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

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