If you have an Ubuntu Laptop (with bluetooth enabled), you can use any Bluetooth enabled phone to lock and unlock the software without even touching the Laptop. Blueproximity is a neat open source utility to secure Laptops running Linux. Here is a howto on setting up Blueproximity on Ubuntu.
Thanks to Lifehacker for the tip.
I seriously don’t understand the tech journalists and bloggers. First, they don’t understand what opensource means in the first place. Second, they somehow seem to think that opensource needs Microsoft in one way or other. Opensource doesn’t need Microsoft to legitimize its existence. Opensource doesn’t need Microsoft to gain acceptance. Opensource approach and Microsoft’s proprietary approach are two different approaches to solving problems (People, try to understand diversity please). It is for the users to decide which approach suits better for them. There is absolutely no need for Microsoft to support opensource. If Microsoft wants to attach the opensource label with their company, all they have to do is to release their full software product under one of the OSI approved licenses and thatz all. Anything other than the release of their software product under one of the OSI approved licenses is just meaningless and it is not even worth talking. Fred Wilson talked about lack of standards in journabloggers. This pissed off Mike Arrington (Well, I can understand it because Fred has linked to one of the articles published in TC). Today I saw a post on Techcrunch (through techmeme discussion) titled Microsoft Sings a New Tune - Wants to play nice with open-source. This title brings into focus the standards which Fred Wilson was talking about. The TC blogger should have made some research before he came up with a title like this. It is pretty evident that he hasn’t put in any efforts to even understand the meaning of the term opensource. All Microsoft has done is to release some openAPIs and making certain documentation available to public. Knowing the secretive nature of Microsoft’s business practices, this is a Techmeme newsworthy item. I am not debating the importance of the news. But it has nothing to do with Opensource. We can quote Microsoft and Opensource in the same sentence ONLY IF Microsoft releases one of its complete products under the OSI supported licenses. As long as it doesn’t happen, using Microsoft and Opensource in the same sentence means nothing. The title, like the above Techcrunch post, is just childish and shows the author’s ignorance about the term opensource. I just hope journabloggers do take up Fred Wilson’s call and put in efforts to do some ground work before they report.
Chronicle.com reports
Harvard University’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences adopted a policy this evening that requires faculty members to allow the university to make their scholarly articles available free online.
There is lot of chatter going on in the tech blogosphere about the $54 million lawsuit filed against Bestbuy for losing someone’s Laptop.
Six months after bringing a damaged laptop computer into a Best Buy electronics store for repairs, and three months after the firm admitted losing it, Campbell filed the whopper of a lawsuit recently in Washington, D.C., Superior Court.
Best Buy has told Campbell that her demands are unreasonable, and has tried to settle for far less. But Campbell said she didn’t start out making astronomical demands. Months of stalling and brush-offs by the company led her to the drastic measures, she said.
I feel that Bestbuy deserves this lawsuit and I hope that the judge offers the victim the full amount (if not more). A similar thing happened to me too. When I bought a SLR camera several years back, they convinced me to get the extended warranty plan and told me that the plan also covers for cleaning. After a couple of years, I saw a spot in the mirror inside and I wanted to get it cleaned. I gave it to Bestbuy for cleaning and they promised me that it will be sent to my home within 2-3 weeks. I didn’t get it for a month and every time I went to Bestbuy, they will look into their computers and told me that it will be delivered soon. After almost 6 or 7 weeks and after ten visits to the Bestbuy, one day I lost my patience and shouted at them. Only after I drew the attention of fellow customers through my voice, they took me to someone who they told was the manager. I am pretty sure he was not the manager because he was in Geek Squad uniform and, as far as I know, the managers don’t wear Geek Squad uniform. My earlier attempts to talk to a manager didn’t work and only my shouting inside the store brought the so called “manager” out. The “manager” told me that he would offer a new camera and refused to offer me any reason for not giving back the old camera. He offered me a new camera (of the same model) which was $50 less than what I actually paid. They had the next model for the same amount I paid. He refused to give me the camera that had the same price tag as I had paid earlier and I had to shell out the difference to get the new model. He also said that I will lose my remaining one year of the extended warranty for which I paid. He told me that the warranty is for that particular piece and they cannot extend it to the new piece. When I argued that my old piece was working ok and I gave it to them only for cleaning and not repair, he refused to budge repeating the same sentences. I pointed out that his argument will hold true if I had given it for repair and they coulnd’t repair it (offered the new camera) but it will not hold true for their mistake (I am sure they have lost the camera somewhere). The arguments continued for another hour and when I started shouting again, he came around and said he will extend the warranty on the new camera for the remaining period of my original warranty. It was a frustrating but similar experience with Bestbuy. I just hope the courts will put this monster in its place and teach them an expensive lesson.
Letz not forget about Jeff Pulver’s experience in the past.
New York Times reports
Faculty members are scheduled to vote on a measure that would permit Harvard to distribute their scholarship online, instead of signing exclusive agreements with scholarly journals that often have tiny readerships and high subscription costs.
