Filed under: Computers, Video Games

Electronic voting machines are notoriously buggy and hackable. Even the manufacturers of DRE (direct recording electronic) voting talliers have admitted so much. Some states have even gone as far as to ban the touchscreen devices. While they may not be great at recording votes (or leaving a paper trail), it turns out their outdated PC-like innards are perfect for playing retro arcade games. This particular machine, the AVC Edge, houses a 486 processor and 32 MB of RAM, making it about as powerful as a 15-year-old PC. Researchers J. Alex Halderman from the University of Michigan, and Princeton’s Ariel J. Feldman managed to open the machine, overwrite the embedded psOS+ operating system with the more pedestrian DOS, and install ‘Pac-Man‘ — all without leaving any evidence that the machine had been physically altered (aside from the ghosts chasing a yellow circle around the screen, that is).

Continue reading Electronic Voting Machine Hacked to Run ‘Pac-Man’

Electronic Voting Machine Hacked to Run ‘Pac-Man’ originally appeared on Switched on Thu, 19 Aug 2010 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Computers

After months of back and forth and hand wringing, it looks like the strange tale of the Lower Merion school district may finally be coming to a close. In advance of the new school year, U.S. Attorney Zane David Memeger has announced that the federal government will not be filing charges against the district or its employees over the controversial use of tracking software on school-issued laptops that snapped webcam photos of students. Memeger says that an investigation turned up no evidence of criminal intent. Still, if we were students in the district, we might choose to turn down the offer of a free, school-issued laptop. [From: Google/AP]

Feds Not Filing Charges in Pennsylvania School Spying Controversy originally appeared on Switched on Tue, 17 Aug 2010 15:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Audio/Video, Computers, Google, Web

Walking the entire 1,200 mile length of Britain is no easy feat, but using Google Street View to “travel” the same stretch of land is just plain boring. Matthew Partridge, however, has embarked on this adventure, going pixel by pixel from Land’s End to John O’Groats in ten days. Honestly, we’d rather go the actual distance than stare at a screen for 240 hours, but, hey, at least the bright line in the middle of the road will keep him from getting lost. Let’s just hope he doesn’t veer off his set path, because we’re pretty sure the onscreen farmer off to the side of the road won’t be able to get him back to the highway. [From: The Sun, via: Gizmodo]

Lazy Road Trip: Man Traverses Britain Using Google Street View originally appeared on Switched on Tue, 17 Aug 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Computers, Web

Never let it be said that computer hackers don’t have a sense of humor. Masato Nakatsuji has been arrested by Tokyo authorities for authoring the Ika-tako virus, which replaces the files on a target computer with images of squid, octopi and sea urchins. The virus has infected somewhere between 20,000 and 50,000 computers through the Winny file-sharing network. The malware disguises itself as a music file, and, when a victim attempts to play it, works its way through the hard drive, replacing programs, family photos and vital OS components with images of marine life.

Cute, but dangerous, since this is not the first time Nakatsuji has been arrested in connection with the creation of malware. In 2008, the coder created a virus that behaved similarly to Ika-tako, replacing data with images from an anime called ‘Clannad.’ That stunt landed Nakatsuji in jail for copyright violation. This time, Nakatsuji got slapped with the more severe charge of property destruction. The files that had been replaced were sent back to a server that Nakatsuji ran from his home, indicating he may have had more nefarious motives than simply practicing his computer programing skills, which was his excuse to police. [From: Wired and Asahi.com]

Continue reading Ika-tako Virus Replaces Your Files With Squid Pics

Ika-tako Virus Replaces Your Files With Squid Pics originally appeared on Switched on Mon, 16 Aug 2010 15:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Computers

Hey, amateur astronomers, listen to this: A couple of at-home space nuts recently discovered a pulsar with a screensaver that uses idle PC time to process data collected from telescopes. By using Einstein@Home to ‘donate’ a PC’s processors to the pursuit of science, the program harnesses thousands of willing computers, rather than one supercomputer, to analyze data. This helps on-the-clock astronomers to cheaply continue their research while they sift through data collected from the Arecibo radio telescope and the LIGO gravitational wave detector.

Wells Fargo computer professionals Chris and Helen Colvin personally built the “run-of-the-mill” computer, which first discovered the pulsar on June 11th, before it was confirmed by another user, Daniel Gebhardt, in Germany on June 14th. The Colvins told Fox News, “It’s just something that runs in the background and we don’t think about it very much.” The trio likely won’t receive anything (besides bragging rights) for their discovery, but we think, at least, they should get to name the star. After all, their PCs could’ve just been wasting time playing retro video games instead. Check out an interview with the Colvins and Gebhardt after the break. [From: Science, Einstein@Home and The National Science Foundation, via: Fox News]

Continue reading Citizen Scientists Use Einstein@Home Screensaver to Discover a New Pulsar

Citizen Scientists Use Einstein@Home Screensaver to Discover a New Pulsar originally appeared on Switched on Sun, 15 Aug 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Computers

Not too long ago, 22-year-old Sealtiel Chacon Zepeda, from Beaverton, Oregon, began cooking up a scheme to copy gift cards from local stores. He knew he couldn’t just swipe the cards and run, since they would need to be activated by a cashier before he could use them. So, he decided to clone them instead — at the direct expense of consumers.

After performing 20 hours of online research, Zepeda purchased an electronic card reader, stole a handful of cards from his local Fred Meyer store, and scanned them with his reader. He then discretely returned the cards, and waited until a special computer program detected that another customer had bought one of his cards. With the help of a magnetic card writer, the scam artist would then rewrite the magnetic strip information on another leftover stolen card, supplying it with the data from the card that someone else had purchased. With his newly cloned card, Zepeda would purchase items for personal use, for re-sale, or, in the event that he needed some cash, for immediate store returns.

Continue reading Oregon Man Clones Gift Cards, Steals $6,000 Worth of Merchandise

Oregon Man Clones Gift Cards, Steals $6,000 Worth of Merchandise originally appeared on Switched on Sat, 14 Aug 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Computers, Back to School

We’ve never carried them, but we sometimes wish that we had pocketwatches. You know, with a gold chain arched over the middle button of a sharp looking vest (which we’ve also never owned). It’s a strange sentiment, particularly since most of us don’t even wear wristwatches. (There’s a clock on that cell phone for a reason.) A slightly less intense, but altogether similar sentiment cropped up when we first looked upon images of Aaron Adding Machines. These handsome calculators are custom made by a guy (or, should we say ‘chap’?) named Andy Aaron, and we have to admit that those switches, push-buttons, dials and keys make for the best looking computers we’ve ever seen. Of course, they’re also expensive, and — let’s face it — not that functional. (Google can do more, and more quickly, for free.)

When we make our millions, though, you can rest assured that we’ll get a few. Yes, we’ll ride in the back of our horse-drawn buggies, tipping our hats to the ladies strolling past, calculating how to spend our fortunes with our adding machines and impatiently checking our pocketwatches — tired of waiting for that blasted telegram from the whippersnapper we pay to check our e-mail. [From: Aaron Adding Machines, via: Kottke]

Andy Aaron’s Handmade, Victorian-Style Calculators Deserve a Tip of Our Hats originally appeared on Switched on Sat, 14 Aug 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Computers

Strolling around with your wheelchair-bound loved ones might one day be a whole lot less stressful, thanks to a new robotic wheelchair created in Japan. Designed by researchers at Saitama University‘s Human-Robot Interaction Center, the wheelchair uses distance sensors and built-in cameras to keep track of a pedestrian’s position, allowing the chair to remain on the left-hand side of its targeted companion at all times. As Crunch Gear elaborates, the sensor system is also designed to pick up on the movements of a companion’s shoulders, which enables the chair to predict the direction in which the walker might move.

In the event that a person leads the wheelchair down a narrow hallway, or through similarly treacherous terrain, the sensors will detect any obstacles and navigate the chair accordingly. If, for example, other people are walking toward the couple in a tight space, the chair will automatically follow its companion in single-file. And, because several robo-chairs are capable of following the same person, Saitama’s researchers are hopeful that their brainchild will allow elderly care workers to more efficiently move their patients, and to interact with them more fluidly while doing so. To see the chair in action, check out the video after the break. [From: CrunchGear, via: PopSci]

Continue reading Japanese Robotic Wheelchair Automatically Follows You Around

Japanese Robotic Wheelchair Automatically Follows You Around originally appeared on Switched on Fri, 13 Aug 2010 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Computers

It appears that color E Ink readers aren’t as far from being commercially available as most have thought. E Ink Holdings (formally PVI), the group responsible for the screens housed in Amazon’s Kindle and Sony’s Readers, is leading the way by offering samples of its color panels to manufacturers. In addition to creating color-capable displays, the new screens are capacitive, meaning all their touch-based interactions will be drastically improved. While Amazon may not want any part of this now, as it waits for a more established and tested technology to emerge before releasing a multicolored Kindle, China-based Hanvon has already taken the bait, promising to release color E Ink readers by the end of the year. Who knows, maybe in a couple of months they’ll be kicking things off with a smashed ice sculpture of Amazon’s logo, hailing death to the drably colored Kindle. [From: Engadget]

E Ink Begins to Sample Capacitive, Color E-Readers originally appeared on Switched on Fri, 13 Aug 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Cell Phones, Computers

We’ve all lost a high-tech gadget or two to that most low-tech of the natural elements: water. (Or, in the recent case of this writer’s laptop, coffee.) Always miles ahead of us stateside folk, who have alternately used hair dryers and bowls of quick rice to dry out our devices, the Japanese have implemented the Dryer Box, a sort of clothes dryer for drowned gadgets.

The copy-machine-sized boxes have found homes in several of Tokyo’s Yodobashi Camera retail outlets, and promise that, if they don’t resurrect, they don’t collect. If your phone is among the lucky ones (which will have to do with whether or not the electronics have shorted), you’ll owe 1,000 yen (around $12). And that, dear readers, is a small price to pay when you can avoid telling your friends that you totally forgot your phone was in your pocket when you jumped in the lake. [From: Dryer Box and Wired]

Japan Introduces Gadget Dryer For Soggy Phones, Clumsy Bloggers Rejoice originally appeared on Switched on Fri, 13 Aug 2010 07:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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