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Continue reading Cambridge University finds credit card security flaw, uses the money for beer pong supplies (video)

Cambridge University finds credit card security flaw, uses the money for beer pong supplies (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 13:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wondering why your PC has been infested with malware, random popups, intermittent shut downs and all sorts of other atypical garbage since the day you installed that downloaded copy of Windows 7? In case you aren’t capable of determining that your copy of Windows isn’t genuine (as in, you didn’t buy it from a legitimate source), Microsoft is about to lend you a serious hand. In the “coming days,” the software behemoth will be pushing out a new update for Windows Activation Technologies, which will look for over “70 known and potentially dangerous activation exploits.” It sounds as if the update is intended to alert folks who purchased complete PCs from the back of their local White Van that they may have gotten ripped off, but either way, we’re not particularly stoked about having yet another item running in the background, consuming system resources and telling us that we’ve been naughty. Thankfully it’s a voluntary update, but keep your eyes peeled if you don’t want to okay the installation accidentally.

[Thanks, Troy]

Windows 7 Activation Technologies Update coming down the pike, will tell you things you (should) already know originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Feb 2010 20:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Android’s devised one of the slickest, most widely-deployed systems for delivering over-the-air operating system updates to smartphones, but there’s a problem: you’ve got to wait until your carrier (or manufacturer) blesses you with them. They’re typically deployed in rolling batches so that it’s easier for the company to do one final test of the code’s veracity and limit potential damage before sending it to a wider audience — but where there’s a will, there’s a way, right? As is often the case with these things, some folks have found a way to get the Nexus One’s glorious new multitouch code on the phone before Google’s willing to give it to you, and for anyone who’s done this before, it’s a fairly standard-issue procedure: copy the update to the root of your microSD card, reboot into recovery mode, and apply the binary. We’ve tested the procedure and it works like a champ, so if you’re feeling impatient, go ahead and pull the trigger — we’re going to go out on a limb here and say that the risk of bricking is pretty low.

[Thanks, Jeremy]

Nexus One’s big update can be had without the wait originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 02 Feb 2010 20:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Curious folks around the world enjoy a bit of hackintosh every now and then (although once is enough for many), but no geek has successfully ventured as far as Toni Nikkanen of Finland, who became the first person to run OS X on a phone — the Nokia N900. As you can see in the video after the break, Toni’s hack relies on PearPC — a PowerPC emulator — to install good ol’ OS X 10.3 (Panther), but the mammoth sluggishness means it’s far from usable. Still, if you can spare 90 minutes for each boot-up plus plenty more for the snail-paced cursor, then head to the source to learn from Herra Nikkanen.

[Thanks, Matija]

Continue reading Mac OS X 10.3 installed on Nokia N900 via PearPC, barely usable for impatient geeks

Mac OS X 10.3 installed on Nokia N900 via PearPC, barely usable for impatient geeks originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 31 Jan 2010 19:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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What do you get when you mash together an Arduino-based synth with a Stylophone-like keyboard? A month ago, even we wouldn’t have known, but now that Handmade Music Austin has come and gone, we’re happy to say that this beautiful concoction leads to the creation of a Nebulophone. Unfortunately, there’s no video (yet) to showcase what this musical wonder can do, but we’re told that it has “adjustable waveforms, a light controlled analog filter, LFO and an arpeggiator that can be clocked over IR.” Hit the source link if you’re looking for all the code, schematics, and instructions necessary to give yourself a weekend project, and feel free to drop the guys / gals there a line if you’re interested in just buying one.

Bleep Labs builds Arduino-based Nebulophone, wants to sell you one originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 29 Jan 2010 11:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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