| EFnet Paralyzed By Vulnerability Dec 31st 2012, 23:15 An anonymous reader writes "EFnet member Fionn 'Fudge' Kelleher reported several vulnerabilities in the IRC daemons charybdis, ircd-ratbox, and other derivative IRCds. The vulnerability was subsequently used to bring down large portions of the EFnet IRC network." By crafting a particular message, you can cause the IRC daemon to call strlen(NULL) and game over, core dumped. Read more of this story at Slashdot.     |  | Panda Blood May Hold Potent Assailant Against Superbugs Dec 31st 2012, 22:27 An anonymous reader writes "Pandas have long been the face of conservation efforts by environmental activists, but a recent finding may boost even further the need for pandas to evade extinction. Researchers have discovered a powerful antibody in panda blood that could serve as the next frontier in the fight against increasingly prevalent superbugs. The compound is called cathelicin-AM. Discovered when researchers analyzed the creatures' DNA, it has been found to kill fungus and bacteria. It is believed that the antibiotic is released to protect the animal from infections in the wild and, in studies, it has been found to kill both standard and drug-resistant strains of microbes and fungi. The compound also worked extremely quickly, killing off strains of bacteria in just an hour, while conventional antibiotics needed six." Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | A Wish List For Tablets In 2013 Dec 31st 2012, 21:41 timothy writes "For the last few years, I've been using Android tablets for various of the reasons that most casual tablet owners do: as a handy playback device for movies and music, a surprisingly decent interface for reading books, a good-enough camera for many purposes, and a communications terminal for instant messaging and video chat. I started out with a Motorola Xoom, which I still use around the house or as a music player in the car, but only started actually carrying a tablet very often when I got a Nexus 7. And while I have some high praise for the Nexus 7, its limitations are frustrating, too. I'll be more excited about a tablet when I can find one with (simultaneously) more of the features I want in one. So here's my wish list (not exhaustive) for the ideal tablet of the future, consisting only of features that are either currently available in some relevant form (such as in existing tablets), or should be in the foreseeable near future; I'll be on the lookout at CES for whatever choices come closest to this dream." Read below to see what's on Timothy's wish list. Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | Dr. Rita Levi-Montalcini, Nobel Winner, Dies At 103 Dec 31st 2012, 20:53 SternisheFan writes "Nobel winner Dr. Rita Levi-Montalcini who discovered chemical tools that the body uses to direct cell growth and build nerves has died. She was 103. From the article: 'Dr. Rita Levi-Montalcini, a Nobel Prize-winning neurologist who discovered critical chemical tools that the body uses to direct cell growth and build nerve networks, opening the way for the study of how those processes can go wrong in diseases like dementia and cancer, died on Sunday at her home in Rome. She was 103. Her death was announced by Mayor Gianni Alemanno of Rome. "I don't use these words easily, but her work revolutionized the study of neural development, from how we think about it to how we intervene," said Dr. Gerald D. Fishbach, a neuroscientist and professor emeritus at Columbia. Scientists had virtually no idea how embryo cells built a latticework of intricate connections to other cells when Dr. Levi-Montalcini began studying chicken embryos in the bedroom of her house in Turin, Italy, during World War II. After years of obsessive study, much of it at Washington University in St. Louis with Dr. Viktor Hamburger, she found a protein that, when released by cells, attracted nerve growth from nearby developing cells.'" Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | Does 2012 Mark the End of the Netbook? Dec 31st 2012, 20:05 Voline writes "Digitimes reports that Asus and Acer will not be producing netbooks in 2013 , signaling the end of a product category that Asus began five years ago with it's Eee PC. The Guardian looks at the rise and fall of the netbook and posits some reasons for its end. Reasons include: manufacturers shifting from Linux to Windows, causing an increase in price that brought netbooks into competition with full-on laptops that offered better specs for not much more money; the global recession beginning in 2008; and the introduction of the iPad and Android tablets." Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | FAA Device Rules Illustrate the Folly of a Regulated Internet Dec 31st 2012, 19:12 First time accepted submitter cathyreisenwitz writes "The New York Times' Bits blog has a great piece on the FAA's inconvenient, outdated and unhelpful rules regarding electronic devices on planes: 'Dealing with the F.A.A. on this topic is like arguing with a stubborn teenager. The agency has no proof that electronic devices can harm a plane's avionics, but it still perpetuates such claims, spreading irrational fear among millions of fliers.' The rules illustrate why we shouldn't let the government regulate the internet: Government regulations are nearly always outdated and too cautious." Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | Researcher Warns That Military Must Prepare For "Mutant" Future Dec 31st 2012, 18:22 Researcher Patrick Lin says that with the development of a wide range of technologies including: drugs, special nutrition, gene therapy and robotic implants, the military needs to plan for a future where soldiers have "mutant powers.” From the article: "If we don’t, we could find ourselves in big trouble down the road. Among the nightmare scenarios: Botched enhancements could harm the very soldiers they’re meant to help and spawn pricey lawsuits. Tweaked troopers could run afoul of international law, potentially sparking a diplomatic crisis every time the U.S. deploys troops overseas. And poorly planned enhancements could provoke disproportionate responses by America’s enemies, resulting in a potentially devastating arms race." Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | NASA Releases New Photos of Saturn's Rings and Clouds Dec 31st 2012, 17:55 skade88 writes "Launched in 1997, Cassini has taken over 300,000 pictures of Saturn since it started orbiting the planet and the mission is due to run through 2017. NASA has released some new photos including: Saturn's rings, clouds, Saturn's moon Janus, and the shadow of another one of Saturn's moons Mimas." Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | Intel's Rumored TV Plans Would Compete With Apple, Google Dec 31st 2012, 17:32 Nerval's Lobster writes "Google tried to extend its influence to televisions, an effort that largely crashed and burned. Apple executives call Apple TV a 'hobby,' although it's been long-rumored that their company has a television set in the works. And Microsoft's made a muscular attempt to conquer the living room with the Xbox, which now does a lot more than just video games. If current rumors prove correct, you can soon add Intel to that list of IT giants with an eye on televisions. According to TechCrunch and SlashGear, the chip manufacturer is prepping to unveil a first-generation television system of some sort at next month's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. TechCrunch suggests that Intel will debut the system on a city-by-city basis, similar to what Google's doing with Google Fiber, in order to maintain 'more flexibility in negotiating licensing with reluctant content providers.' (The publication's information comes from the ever-popular unnamed sources.) In essence, Intel is proposing a set-top box paired with a subscription service, which would provide a mixture of traditional programming alongside streaming content." Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | Team Aims To Build Robot Toddler In Nine Months Dec 31st 2012, 16:43 Zothecula writes "If robots are going to be part of our everyday lives, they'll need to fit into our homes rather than the factory floor. Few people would be comfortable living with a metal spider on tank treads, so the University of Zurich's Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (AI Lab) is building a robot toddler called 'Roboy.' Using 'soft robotics' technology that mimics the human body, the 1.2 meter (3 ft, 11 in) tall humanoid robot is part of an effort to make robots that people are more comfortable with in day-to-day situations." Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | US Firms Race Fiscal Cliff To Install Wind Turbines Dec 31st 2012, 15:50 Hugh Pickens writes writes "BBC reports that US energy companies are racing to install wind turbines before a federal tax credit expires at the end of this year which could be lost as congress struggles with new legislation to avoid the 'fiscal cliff.' 'There's a lot of rushing right now to get projects completed by the end of the year,' says Rob Gramlich, senior vice president at the American Wind Energy Association. 'There's a good chance we could get this extension, it is very hard to predict, but the industry is not making bets on the Congress getting it done,' Even if there is an extension there is likely to be a significant curtailment of wind installations in 2013. From 1999 to 2004, Congress allowed the wind energy production tax credit (PTC) to expire three times, each time retroactively extending it several months after the expiration deadline had passed but wind energy companies say they need longer time frames to negotiate deals to sell the power they generate. 'Even if the tax credit is extended, our new construction plans likely will be ramped back substantially in 2013 compared with the last few years,' says Paul Copleman. 'So much time has passed without certainty that a normal one-year extension would not be a game-changer for our 2013 build plans.'" Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | Christmas Tree Rocketry Dec 31st 2012, 15:17 An anonymous reader writes "It`s after Christmas, so what do you do with your Christmas tree? Turn it into an missile of course! From the creators of 'Christmas Tree Rocketry: The Art and Science of Holiday Recycling'(video) comes a new epic, the flight of the XMS MissileToe." Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | New Documents Detail FBI, Bank Crack Down On Occupy Wall Street Dec 31st 2012, 14:55 jvillain writes "The Guardian has up a story detailing the crack down on Occupy Wall Street (OWS). It goes on to show how the FBI, DHS. Terrorist Fusion Centers and the banks all worked together to stifle descent. From the article: 'This production [of documents], which we believe is just the tip of the iceberg, is a window into the nationwide scope of the FBI's surveillance, monitoring, and reporting on peaceful protesters organizing with the Occupy movement These documents also show these federal agencies functioning as a de facto intelligence arm of Wall Street and Corporate America.' The next question is how many Americans are now listed as part of a 'terrorist group' by the government for their support of OWS?" Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | YouTube Drops 2 Billion Fake Music Industry Views Dec 31st 2012, 13:59 An anonymous reader writes "YouTube has dropped 2 billion fake music industry views and their offending videos. From the article: 'Google made good on its promise to weed out views inflated by artificial means last week, according to Daily Dot. Record company sites impacted included titans like Universal Music Group, which reportedly lost 1 billion of its 7 billion views, and Sony, who lost 850 million views. The cuts affected marquee names like Rhianna, Beyonce and Justin Bieber. YouTube said in a statement that the figures had been deliberately, artificially inflated. "This was not a bug or a security breach. This was an enforcement of our view count policy," the company, which is owned by Google, wrote.'" Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | The Power of a Hot Body Dec 31st 2012, 13:08 Hugh Pickens writes writes "Depending on the level of activity, the human body generates about 60 to 100 Watts of energy in the form of heat, about the same amount of heat given off by the average light bulb. Now Diane Ackerman writes in the NY Times that architects and builders are finding ways to capture this excess body heat on a scale large enough to warm homes and office buildings. At Stockholm's busy hub, Central Station, engineers harness the body heat issuing from 250,000 railway travelers to warm the 13-story Kungsbrohuset office building about 100 yards away. First, the station's ventilation system captures the commuters' body heat, which it uses to warm water in underground tanks. From there, the hot water is pumped to Kungsbrohuset's heating pipes, which ends up saving about 25 percent on energy bills. Kungsbrohuset's design has other sustainable elements as well. The windows are angled to let sunlight flood in, but not heat in the summer. Fiber optics relay daylight from the roof to stairwells and other non-window spaces that in conventional buildings would cost money to heat. Constructing the new heating system, including installing the necessary pumps and laying the underground pipes, only cost the firm about $30,000, says Karl Sundholm, a project manager at Jernhusen, a Stockholm real estate company, and one of the creators of the system. "It pays for itself very quickly," Sundholm adds. "And for a large building expected to cost several hundred million kronor to build, that's not that much, especially since it will get 15% to 30% of its heat from the station."" Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | The Power of a Hot Body Dec 31st 2012, 13:08 Hugh Pickens writes "Depending on the level of activity, the human body generates about 60 to 100 Watts of energy in the form of heat, about the same amount of heat given off by the average light bulb. Now Diane Ackerman writes in the NY Times that architects and builders are finding ways to capture this excess body heat on a scale large enough to warm homes and office buildings. At Stockholm's busy hub, Central Station, engineers harness the body heat issuing from 250,000 railway travelers to warm the 13-story Kungsbrohuset office building about 100 yards away. First, the station's ventilation system captures the commuters' body heat, which it uses to warm water in underground tanks. From there, the hot water is pumped to Kungsbrohuset's heating pipes, which ends up saving about 25 percent on energy bills. Kungsbrohuset's design has other sustainable elements as well. The windows are angled to let sunlight flood in, but not heat in the summer. Fiber optics relay daylight from the roof to stairwells and other non-window spaces that in conventional buildings would cost money to heat. Constructing the new heating system, including installing the necessary pumps and laying the underground pipes, only cost the firm about $30,000, says Karl Sundholm, a project manager at Jernhusen, a Stockholm real estate company, and one of the creators of the system. 'It pays for itself very quickly,' Sundholm adds. 'And for a large building expected to cost several hundred million kronor to build, that's not that much, especially since it will get 15% to 30% of its heat from the station.'" Read more of this story at Slashdot.   | | Desktop Wallpaper Calendar: January 2013 Dec 31st 2012, 12:59 We always try our best to challenge your artistic abilities and produce some interesting, beautiful and creative artwork. And as designers we usually turn to different sources of inspiration. As a matter of fact, we've discovered the best one—desktop wallpapers that are a little more distinctive than the usual crowd. This creativity mission has been going on for over four years now, and we are very thankful to all designers who have contributed and are still diligently contributing each month. This post features free desktop wallpapers created by artists across the globe for January 2013. Both versions with a calendar and without a calendar can be downloaded for free. It's time to freshen up your wallpaper! Please note that: - All images can be clicked on and lead to the preview of the wallpaper,
- You can feature your work in our magazine by taking part in our Desktop Wallpaper Calendar series. We are regularly looking for creative designers and artists to be featured on Smashing Magazine. Are you one of them?
Merry Smashing Christmas Designed by Ricardo Gimenes. 
- preview
- with calendar: 320×480, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1600×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
Mario January “One day I was playing Super Mario Brothers on an old Super Nintendo and the idea of creating a Mario-themed calendar came to my mind. I hope you like the end result! (If you have a lower resolution than Full HD, I recommend using the 1920 wide version still, and let your OS do the resizing to fit your desktop.).” Designed by Roland Szabo from Hungary. 
- preview
- with calendar: 1280×720, 1280×800, 1366×768, 1440×900, 1600×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200
- without calendar: 1280×720, 1280×800, 1366×768, 1440×900, 1600×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200
Array My Way Designed by Vlad Gerasimov from Russia. 
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- with calendar: 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×600, 1152×864, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1440×960, 1600×1200, 1600×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440, 2560×1600, 2880×1800
End Of The World Postponed Designed by Davide Vicariotto from Italy. 
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- with calendar: 320×480, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 320×480, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
Welcome To January Designed by Logan Holy from Indonesia. 
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- with calendar: 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200
- without calendar: 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200
Snake Designed by Cheloveche.ru from Russia. 
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- with calendar: 1024×768, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1200
- without calendar: 395×512, 1024×768, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1200
Moustache 2013 Designed by Lissa Sleeckx from Belgium. 
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- with calendar: 320×480, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 320×480, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440
Cozy January “January is a very cold month and when outside it’s too cold, we love to stay at home in a cozy home!” Designed by Fabrizio Venanzi from United Kindgdom. 
The Edge “This is the edge, the edge of life, when your memories flashes before your eyes, and you feel nothing more than calmness. What you see at that moment is real but its also surreal. Its something magical. And this is it. Its the edge with amazing Clarence’s sax melodies. We all gonna be on the edge someday, and this is going to by the part of my edge.” Designed by Andrius Tamosaitis from Lithuania. 
Fresh Start Designed by Gabriella from Indonesia. 
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- with calendar: 320×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1200
- without calendar: 320×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1200
Woobie Designed by Tetyana Kovyrina from Canada. 
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- with calendar: 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200
- without calendar: 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200
Calls For A Bottle “”This calls for a bottle of Israel’s finest!” -Friends sit-com quote. There is always a reason to celebrate! Designed by Sarah Tanner.” Designed by Sarah Tanner from USA. 
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- with calendar: 320×480, 1024×768, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 320×480, 1024×768, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440
Nothing Happened Designed by Michal Juszczyk from Poland. 
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- with calendar: 1024×768, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200
- without calendar: 1024×768, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200
Happiness In Winter “Wishing everyone a SMASHING year 2013!” Designed by Mancar from Turkey. 
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- with calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
The Season To Snowboard “Time to hit the slopes because it’s snowboarding season!” Designed by Marina Zhukov from USA. 
Happy Holiday Designed by Svetlana Denisenko from Ukraine. 
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- with calendar: 320×480, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 320×480, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440
Blue Year Designed by Elise Vanoorbeek from Belgium. 
Thought For The New Year “A thought to begin 2013.” Designed by Dangerbrain from USA. 
Blue Neon Sign Designed by Jong S. Kim from USA. 
Winter Fun “Snow boys and snow dog enjoying a winter day.” Designed by Anne Alexander from USA. 
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- with calendar: 320×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 320×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440
Join In Next Month! Please note that we respect and carefully consider the ideas and motivation behind each and every artist's work. This is why we give all artists the full freedom to explore their creativity and express emotions and experience throughout their works. This is also why the themes of the wallpapers weren't anyhow influenced by us, but rather designed from scratch by the artists themselves. A big thank you to all designers for their participation. Join in next month! What's Your Favorite? What's your favorite theme or wallpaper for this month? Please let us know in the comment section below. Stay creative and have a truly smashing, happy new year 2013!
© Smashing Editorial for Smashing Magazine, 2012. | | The Future of 802.11ac Dec 31st 2012, 10:12 CowboyRobot writes "The 802.11ac standard is expected to be ratified in 2013 and NetworkComputing has an interview with representatives of Cisco Systems and Aerohive Networks about what that will mean for everyone else. 'Out of the gate, the increases in performance over 11n will not be tremendously impressive. The second wave--which will require a hardware refresh--gets far more interesting... First-generation 802.11ac products will achieve up to 1.3 Gbps through the use of three spatial streams, 80-MHz-wide channels (double the largest 40 MHz channel width with 802.11n), and use of better hardware components that allow higher levels of modulation and encoding (up to 256-QAM). Whether we will actually see 802.11ac products capable of 6.9 Gbps is dependent on hardware enhancements on both the access point and client that are not certain.'" Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | Gnome Extension Offers a Shopping Lens We Can Live With Dec 31st 2012, 07:18 sfcrazy writes "The year 2012 has not been very good for Canonical and Ubuntu. The end of the year saw harsh criticism of Ubuntu from bodies like EFF and FSF which accused the operating system of 'data leak', 'privacy invasion' and adding 'spyware' features. Now, Gnome Shell is also getting online shopping lens. Alan Bell has created a Gnome Shell extension which allows a user to conduct online shopping search right from Gnome's Dash. You can install the extension from this link. Once installed you can start searching for online shopping by hitting 'super' key and then enter your search term. One of the greatest differences between the implementations is who is in control. Gnome's Shopping lens shows how it should have been done in the first place, as it puts the user in control, and not the company whose OS you are using. Bell has explained it very well on his blog." Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | Origin of Neil Armstrong's 'One Small Step' Line Revealed Dec 31st 2012, 04:22 SchrodingerZ writes "In an upcoming BBC Documentary, Dean Armstrong, the brother of astronaut Neil Armstrong, reveals when the world famous 'one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind' line originated. For years, people have argued over when Armstrong came up with the line, whether it was on the spot or planned years ahead. Also debated is whether Armstrong meant to include 'a' before man, making the indefinite article 'man', which alludes to mankind, into a singular, 'a man', himself. According to Dean Armstrong, the quote was shared to him over a board game, months before the mission began. He says, 'We started playing Risk and then he [Neil] slipped me a piece of paper and said 'read that'. I did. On that piece of paper there was 'That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind'. He says 'what do you think about that?' I said 'fabulous'. He said 'I thought you might like that, but I wanted you to read it'. He then added: 'It was 'that is one small step for A man''. Armstrong had always insisted that he had said 'a', that that it was lost in communication static. This new story however conflicts with what Neil told James Hansen for his biography, stating he came up with the quote on the lunar surface. More on the historic moon landing and the life of Neil Armstrong in the new documentary Neil Armstrong- First Man on the Moon, on BBC." Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | China's Controversial Brain Surgery To Cure Drug Addiction Dec 31st 2012, 00:46 kkleiner writes "A small handful of doctors in China are using a highly controversial procedure to rid people of drug addiction by destroying a part of patients' brains. The procedure involves drilling small holes into the skulls of patients and inserting long electrodes that destroy a part of the brain called the nucleus accumbens. This area, often referred to as the "pleasure center" of the brain, is the major nucleus of the brain's reward circuit. Is it worth being cured of addiction if, losing the addiction, we also lose part of who we are?" The practice has been officially banned, but apparently continues nonetheless. Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | | Why Linux On Microsoft Surface Is a Tough Challenge Dec 30th 2012, 23:42 hypnosec writes "With Linux enthusiasts and distro publishers eagerly waiting for a solution to Microsoft's UEFI SecureBoot, there are those who have already looked at the viability of Linux on Microsoft Surface tablet. Matthew Garrett, a.k.a. UEFI-guru, has revealed that those who are keeping their fingers crossed and hoping to find run Linux on Microsoft's tablet are on an uphill walk and it doesn't seem to be an easy one. So why is this? The answer is in the manner in which Microsoft has restricted the Surface from loading non-signed software / binaries by implementing UEFI SecureBoot. Microsoft has loaded on the ARM based tablet its private key instead of the 'Microsoft Windows UEFI Driver Publisher' key, which is needed to sign non-Microsoft software like Linux distributions or loaders. So, no publisher key = no signed non-Microsoft binary = no Linux." Read more of this story at Slashdot.     | |
