gillardg's profileGeek 'N RollPhotosBlogListsMore  |  Tools Help |
|
|
October 31 clavier francophone ergonomique :fr-dvorak-bépola disposition de clavier francophone ergonomique et libre Les dispositions azerty et qwertz, utilisées sur la majorité des claviers français, descendent de la disposition qwerty. Ces dispositions sont dues à l'héritage des machines à écrire et sont reconnues pour ne pas être ergonomiques. Pour pallier cela, le projet fr-dvorak-bépo s'est donné pour but de fournir une disposition de clavier optimisée pour les francophones. Conçue pour s’adapter à tous, tant ceux qui tapent principalement du texte que ceux qui ont un usage plus technique de leur ordinateur, elle donne accès à de nombreux caractères et supporte ainsi de nombreuses langues.
DvZine.org — Historique du dvorak anglais en bd. Bientôt en français ! Notre démarche, fondée sur la méthode utilisée pour la disposition Dvorak, consiste à placer les lettres les plus utilisées sur les touches les plus accessibles, minimisant ainsi les déplacements des doigts sur le clavier. Cela réduit le risque de développer des tendinites ou des troubles musculosquelettiques comme le syndrome du canal carpien. Ces modifications permettent en outre un confort accru, une vitesse de frappe augmentée et un apprentissage facilité pour un débutant en azerty et en fr-dvorak-bépo. Pour les pressés, un résumé en forme de tentative de réponse à « pourquoi apprendre le Bépo ? ». Il existe une autre disposition de clavier française issue de la méthode Dvorak : la disposition dvorak-fr de Francis Leboutte. Pour se démarquer de cette dernière, le projet a été baptisé fr-dvorak-bépo, « bépo » faisant référence aux quatre premières lettres de la deuxième rangée de touches. Pour une efficaticé optimum, une bonne ergonomie du poste de travail est indispensable. Nous ne prétendons pas fournir une disposition à l’ergonomie parfaite. Pour ce faire, il faudrait remiser les claviers droits tout comme la plupart des claviers dits « ergonomiques », et concevoir un nouveau clavier matériel. De manière pragmatique, la disposition fr-dvorak-bépo est conçue pour les claviers « azerty » standards à 105 touches, les plus répandus aujourd'hui. Cela dit, le fr-dvorak-bépo est compatible avec les claviers qwerty, les claviers ergonomiques, ainsi qu’avec ceux qui ne possèdent pas de touches « Windows ». La version actuelle est la 1.0rc2. Il n'y a pas de nouvelles propositions pour la version 1.0rc3 et donc la 1.0rc2 sera probablement la dernière release candidate. Elle devrait devenir la version finale 1.0. L'objectif est qu’elle soit à terme incluse par défaut dans les systèmes d'exploitation et si possible normalisée par un organisme officiel. Niveau matériel, TypeMatrix utilisera la carte simplifiée de cette version pour livrer un marquage bépo optionnel avec leur prochain clavier compact. Si vous avez des questions, vous pouvez rejoindre les développeurs sur la liste de diffusion, utiliser les pages de discussion apropriée sur le wiki ou encore passer nous voir sur le canal de discussion. La disposition fr-dvorak-bépo est disponible sous :
Windows Mac OS X Linux OpenBSD FreeBSD
September 2008 ISO C++ Standards Meeting: The Draft Has Landed, and a New Convener « Sutter’s MillThe ISO C++ committee met in San Francisco, CA, on September 15-20. You can find the minutes here, including the votes to approve papers. The most important thing the committee accomplished was this: Complete C++0x draft published for international ballotThe biggest goal entering this meeting was to make C++0x feature-complete and stay on track to publish a complete public draft of C++0x for international review and comment — in ISO-speak, an official Committee Draft or CD. As I predicted in the summer, the committee achieved that at this meeting. Now the world will know the shape of C++0x in good detail. Here’s where to find it: The September C++0x working draft document is essentially the same as the September 2008 CD. This is “it”, feature-complete C++0x, including the major feature of “concepts” which had its own extensive set of papers for language and library extensions — I’ll stop there, but there are still more concepts papers at the mailing page and some more still to come during the CD phase. (If you get the impression that concepts is a big feature, well, it is indeed easily the biggest addition we made in C++0x.) What’s next? As I’ve mentioned before, we’re planning to have two rounds of international comment review. The first of two opportunities for national bodies to give their comments is now underway; the second round will probably be this time next year. The only changes expected to be made between that CD and the final International Standard are bug fixes and clarifications. It’s helpful to think of a CD as a feature-complete beta, and we’re on track to ship one more beta before the full release. And a new convenerOn a personal note, I’m very happy to see this accomplished at the last meeting during my convenership. I’ve now served as secretary and then convener (chair) of the ISO C++ committee for over 10 years, and my second three-year term as convener ended one week after the San Francisco meeting. A decade is enough; I decided not to volunteer for another term as chair. As of a few weeks ago, P. J. Plauger is the new convener of ISO/IEC JTC1/SC22/WG21 (C++). Many of you will know P.J. (or Bill, as he’s known within the committee) from his long service to the C and C++ communities, including that he has been a past convener of the ISO C standards committee, past editor of the C/C++ Users Journal, the principal author of the Dinkumware implementation of the C++ standard library, and recipient of the 2004 Dr Dobb’s Journal Excellence in Programming Award, among various other qualifications and honors. He has been a regular participant at ISO C++ meetings for about as long as they’ve been held, and his long experience with both the technology and the ISO standards world will serve WG21 well. I’m very happy to have been able to chair the committee during the development of C++0x. Now as we move from “develop mode” into “ship mode” it will be great to have his experienced hand guiding the committee through the final ISO process. Thanks for volunteering, Bill! September 2008 ISO C++ Standards Meeting: The Draft Has Landed, and a New Convener « Sutter’s Mill Windows Media Player 12's surprising new featuresBy Peter Bright | Published: October 30, 2008 - 07:15AM CT Though many previously bundled applets now will ship separately to Windows 7, Windows Media Player remains part of the core OS. Windows 7 will ship with Windows Media Player 12, which includes some surprising new features. Related Stories
The UI itself is brighter and lighter than WMP11. Some buttons and toolbar items have been moved around, but the experience should be pretty familiar to users of version 11. What does represent a big change is the removal of the Now Playing button, which in WMP11 switches to a view showing the current playlist. This is because WMP12 completely separates library management from what's currently playing, with two distinct player modes; Now Playing view, and Library view. Library view contains all the library manipulation features that should be familiar from WMP11. Now Playing view contains the current playlist, visualizations, and videos.
There's also a new taskbar miniviewer that works with the new Windows 7 taskbar, and WMP12 includes support for Jump Lists.
Aside from the split between Library and Now Playing, the basic operation of WMP12 is the same as in version 11. There are plenty of small refinements, like automatic previewing (hovering on any song plays a 15-second preview of the song), and the Library view now shows all media types in the tree simultaneously (WMP11 can show audio or video or TV or Pictures; now they're all on display).
A common annoyance with many media players, WMP included, is not having the right codec. WMP will try to detect which codecs are required and provide a location to download them, but this is hit-and-miss and less than convenient if all you want to do is play a video. In recognition of this, WMP12 includes support for H.264 video, AAC audio, and both Xvid and DivX video, in addition to all the formats supported by WMP11 in Vista (MPEG2, WMV, MP3, etc.). With these new codecs, WMP should support the majority of video found on the Internet out of the box. The area of WMP12 that has seen the most work is how it works with networked resources. WMP11 has the ability to browse the libraries of other users on the local network, as long as they're using WMP, too. WMP12 extends this to allow browsing not only of WMP libraries, but also of iTunes libraries. With the aforementioned H.264 and AAC support, WMP12 can play most iTunes media. It's only "most" because, of course, Apple won't license its FairPlay DRM to third parties, so WMP is unable to play DRM-protected iTunes Store tracks. It's not just libraries that are improved. WMP12 makes it easier to play back audio or video on remote devices, a feature dubbed "Play To." WMP12 can stream to other computers in your HomeGroup, so, for example, you can browse your library on your laptop but actually play back on the HTPC connected to your sound system.
As well as streaming to remote PCs, WMP12 also includes support for controlling Digital Living Network Alliance v1.5 devices. These are networked devices with audio and/or video playback capabilities; so, similar to the scenario of streaming to an HTPC, you might be streaming audio to a Sonos box. Each device being Played To has its own playlist and playback settings and is controlled through its own little window.
If a device can't handle the format being streamed, WMP12 will detect this automatically and transcode it on-the-fly. Though WMP12 is very similar to WMP11, it's nonetheless a very compelling advance. Rather than ignoring the success of iTunes and the use of non-Microsoft video formats, Microsoft has acknowledged this reality and decided to make WMP work as well as it can with them. This attitude represents a hugely refreshing change from the software giant's past behavior, and WMP is greatly improved as a result. The situation is similar to that with the Windows Live Essentials, where interoperability is a key long-term objective. This is good for consumers, and it will prove to be good for Microsoft. Long may it continue. Asus, Intel launch WePC website, ask community to design PCs for themby Samuel Axon
True power is derived from the people, yes? Asus and Intel know this well, so they've launched a website called WePC, where users can draw up concepts and specs for new netbook and notebook models then argue about how fantastic or utterly impractical they are. In a sense cooperative laptop design is not new -- we've seen groups of companies work together to develop products, and Best Buy's Blue Label is somewhat similar to this -- but Asus and Intel are going full-on populist (or at least the appearance of it) with WePC. The promise is that designers will lurk on the site and implement some ideas -- probably (and thankfully) not including the ones that are completely whacked. October 30 Hard Rock International Announces the 'Imagine There's No Hunger' Campaign to Raise Awareness and Funding for WHY in its Fight Against Hunger and Poverty: PRNewswire Business News - MSN Money- Campaign Features SERVE3 - A Limited-Edition Benefit CD with Tracks
ORLANDO, Florida, October 28 /PRNewswire/ -- More than just the words on the walls, Hard Rock International has remained true to its motto -- "LOVE ALL, SERVE ALL" -- since the company's founding in 1971 by continuing its pledge to serving others. Hard Rock is proud to announce the launch of its 2008 global "Imagine There's No Hunger" campaign to benefit WHY, a nonprofit organization that strives to fight against hunger and poverty in America and around the world. (Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20081028/NY42183 ) Setting the foundation for the "Imagine There's No Hunger" campaign, artist and musician Yoko Ono has graciously donated her late husband John Lennon's inspirational song "Give Peace A Chance" to the SERVE3 compilation. The CD will also include rare, new or previously unreleased tracks from some of music's most influential artists, including Bruce Springsteen, Joss Stone, Avril Lavigne, Starsailor, My Morning Jacket and more. SERVE3 will be available at Hard Rock locations around the world and on www.hardrock.com beginning November 4, 2008, with digital downloads available at iTunes.com. "I am glad that WHY is using John's lyrics to communicate the seriousness of this issue to the world," said Yoko Ono. "Let's all work together to make a world without hunger as soon as humanly possible. We owe this battle to our children. WAR IS OVER if you want it. In brotherhood and sisterhood." The "Imagine There's No Hunger" campaign also includes a charity bracelet, as well as a limited-edition pin and holiday ornament, featuring John Lennon's famous self-portrait and signature. All net proceeds from the campaign will be donated directly to WHY to benefit grassroots efforts in Kenya, Haiti, Indonesia, Thailand, South Africa, Venezuela and New Orleans. "Hard Rock has actively supported WHY for years, raising significant funds and awareness," said Hamish Dodds, President and CEO, Hard Rock International, and Global Ambassador for WHY. "We are proud to continue to support a great organization that envisions a world without hunger and poverty." Servin' Up Some Rockin' Charity . . . Also joining in the fight against hunger and poverty, the SERVE3 CD features new, never-before-released or rare tracks by a unique blend of major multi-platinum, Grammy Award-winning and acclaimed recording artists, as well as several bonus digital tracks. The songs on SERVE3 are new, classic, electric or acoustic, and reflect the generosity of the artists that donated them to the project on behalf of serving those in need. SERVE3: Physical Album (also available digitally):
Artist Track Title
Bruce Springsteen "Remember When The Music"
Joss Stone "Love Has Made You Beautiful"
My Morning Jacket "Look At You"
Avril Lavigne "When You're Gone"
Robert Randolph & The Family Band "Diane" (Live from Bonnaroo 2006)
The Charlatans "Complete Control"
Ryan Shaw "People Get Ready"
Marc Broussard "Keep Coming Back"
Starsailor "Military Madness"
Micki Free "Mother Earth"
DMC "I Be Rockin' It"
The Chapin Sisters "I Know It's Over"
John Lennon "Give Peace A Chance"
*See SERVE3 Track Listing for complete details on each song.
In addition to SERVE3, beginning November 4th, Hard Rock locations around the globe will offer "Imagine There's No Hunger" merchandise, including a limited-edition bracelet, pin and holiday ornament to benefit WHY. These beneficial items will be available for a limited time only, exclusively at Hard Rock's Rock Shops and www.hardrock.com, including:
- Imagine There's No Hunger Charity Bracelet -- Accessorize fashionably
and charitably. This red wristband is adorned with the influential
message "IMAGINE THERE'S NO HUNGER." This must-have fashion item and
statement also features the WHY and Hard Rock International logos. All
proceeds benefit WHY and seven grassroots partners around the globe.
(US$1) - Imagine There's No Hunger Pin -- This limited-edition benefit pin
features John Lennon's self-portrait, signature and the word "imagine"
inside a red "peace" sign, bearing the statement "IMAGINE THERE'S NO
HUNGER." Hard Rock Cafe's logo dangles below Lennon's signature. All
proceeds benefit WHY. (US$12) - Imagine There's No Hunger Holiday Ornament -- This limited-edition
benefit holiday ornament features John Lennon's signature and the word
"imagine" inside a silver "peace" sign, bearing the statement "IMAGINE
THERE'S NO HUNGER." Hard Rock Cafe's logo dangles below Lennon's
signature. All proceeds benefit WHY. (US$12)
In addition to Hard Rock's Rock Shops throughout the world, the SERVE3 compilation, charity bracelet, holiday ornament and pin will also be available for sale through Hard Rock's Web site at www.hardrock.com beginning November 4, 2008. All songs featured on the SERVE3 CD, as well as bonus tracks, will also be available for download at hundreds of major online retail stores and mobile carriers worldwide via The Orchard's digital distribution network.
"We look forward to the continued support from Hard Rock and selfless generosity of musicians for this effort," said Bill Ayres, founder of WHY. "The incredible demonstration of talent, time, commitment and dedication to this cause will one day make our vision of a world without hunger and poverty a reality." "It is a great privilege to apply The Orchard's marketing machine to help feed and clothe those in need," said Greg Scholl, President and Chief Executive of The Orchard. "We are proud to once again support our partners Hard Rock and the entire WHY team to help people in need through the power of music." About WHY Founded in 1975, WHY is a leader in the fight against hunger and poverty in the United States and around the world. WHY is convinced that solutions to hunger and poverty can be found at the grassroots level. WHY advances long-term solutions to hunger and poverty by supporting community-based organizations that empower individuals and build self-reliance, i.e., offering job training, education and after school programs; increasing access to housing and healthcare; providing microcredit and entrepreneurial opportunities; teaching people to grow their own food; and assisting small farmers. WHY connects these organizations to artists, funders, media and legislators. WHY is a not-for-profit registered 501(c)(3) organization founded by radio talk show host and present Executive Director Bill Ayres, and the late singer-songwriter Harry Chapin. About The Orchard(R) The Orchard ORCD controls and globally distributes more than 1.3 million songs and over 5,000 video titles through hundreds of digital stores (e.g. iTunes, eMusic, Google, Netflix, V CAST) and mobile carriers (e.g. Verizon Wireless, Vodafone, Bell Canada, 3). With operations in 27 countries, The Orchard drives sales for its label, retailer, brand, and agency clients through innovative marketing and promotional campaigns; brand entertainment programs; and film, advertising, gaming and television licensing. A pioneer in digital music and media services, The Orchard fosters creativity and independence. The Orchard is a registered trademark and The Orchard logo is a service mark of Orchard Enterprises NY, Inc. All Rights Reserved. About Hard Rock International With 123 high-energy Hard Rock Cafes and nine Hotels/Casinos in 48 countries, Hard Rock International is one of the world's most globally recognized brands. Beginning with an Eric Clapton guitar, Hard Rock owns the world's greatest collection of music memorabilia, which is displayed at its locations around the globe. Hard Rock is also known for its collectible fashion and music-related merchandise, Hard Rock Live performance venues and an award-winning website. In addition to the two flagship Seminole Hard Rock Hotels and Casinos in Tampa and Hollywood, Fla., Hard Rock Hotels/Casinos are located in Las Vegas, Biloxi, Orlando, Chicago, San Diego, Pattaya and Bali. Additional hotel and casino projects have been announced in Macau and Penang, both scheduled to open in 2009; Palm Springs, Atlanta and Panama, scheduled to open in 2010; Dubai, scheduled to open in 2011; and Abu Dhabi, scheduled to open in 2012. Hard Rock International, Inc. is owned by Seminole Hard Rock Entertainment, Inc. For further details on Hard Rock Hotels and Casinos, visit www.hardrockhotels.com. For more information on Hard Rock International, visit www.hardrock.com. SERVE3: TRACK LISTING
1. Bruce Springsteen "Remember When The Music"
Harry Chapin Tribute concert
live at Carnegie Hall, 1987 2. Joss Stone "Love Has Made You Beautiful"
Exclusively recorded for
SERVE3, London, 2008 3. My Morning Jacket "Look at You
Unreleased, 2008 (Jim's Electronic Version)" 4. Avril Lavigne "When You're Gone"
Recorded during The Best
Damn Tour Live in
Toronto, 2008
Unreleased, 2008 5. Robert Randolph & The Family Band "Diane (Live from Bonnaroo)"
Unreleased, 2006 6. The Charlatans "Complete Control"
Limited release, 2008 7. Ryan Shaw "People Get Ready"
Curtis Mayfield cover
New single, 2008 8. Marc Broussard "Keep Coming Back (Live From
Live version of single from Nashville)"
new album Keep Coming Back
Unreleased, 2008 9. Starsailor "Military Madness"
Graham Nash cover
New single, 2008 10. Micki Free "Mother Earth"
Exclusive for SERVE3
Unreleased, 2008 11. Darryl "DMC" McDaniels "I Be Rockin' It"
Exclusive for SERVE3
New single, 2008 12. The Chapin Sisters "I Know It's Over"
The Smiths cover
Unreleased, 2008 13. John Lennon "Give Peace A Chance"
Previously recorded and
released
Donated to SERVE3 by Yoko Ono
Web site: http://www.hardrockhotels.com http://www.hardrock.com Copyright 2008 PR Newswire
October 29 Gmail Drive Config Mounts Multiple Gmail Accounts as Disks
Install Gmail Drive, if you haven't already. Check out our Advanced file and attachment management with Gmail post for details. Your Gmail account will show up as a mounted drive under My Computer in Windows Explorer, categorized as "Other" below any Network Drives. Yahoo Rewires with Developers in Mind
Redmond Developer News | Yahoo Rewires with Developers in Mind October 28 Seven of the greatest scientific hoaxesOf course, there are serious cases of scientific fraud, such as the stem cell researchers recently found guilty of falsifying data and the South Korean cloning fraud. The following stories, however, are not so serious. Piltdown ManIn 1912, solicitor and amateur palaeontologist Charles Dawson "found" the Piltdown fossils, a skull and jawbone that appeared to be half-man half-ape, in Sussex. They were hailed as the evolutionary "missing link" between apes and humans. It was over 40 years later, in 1953, that the fossil was exposed as a fake. In fact, the skull was constructed from a medieval human cranium attached to the jaw of an orang-utan. The Cardiff GiantA ten-foot "petrified man" was dug up on a small farm in Cardiff, New York, in October 1869. The "Cardiff Giant" became a huge news story and many Americans travelled to see it. Early in 1870, it was revealed as a fake, the creation of New Yorker George Hull, who had paid for it to be carved out of stone. Beringer's fraudulent fossilsPhysician Johann Beringer was amazed when he was presented with fossils "found" in Wurzburg, Germany, in 1725, which depicted incredible scenes: the forms of birds, bees, snails, lizards, plants with flowers, frogs mating and insects feeding, not to mention comets, moons and suns. It turned out that he was the victim of an elaborate plot: envious colleagues of Beringer had planted the fossils. Unfortunately, Beringer fell for it hook, line and sinker, and even published a book to tell the world about the fossils. Rumour has it that once Beringer realised the hoax, he tried to buy up any unsold copies of his book. (See Johann Beringer and the fraudulent fossils) There are many more examples of fossil fraud, such as the fake "entombed toad" and the fake fossil fly in amber. The Sokal hoaxIn 1996, American physicist Alan Sokal submitted a paper loaded with nonsensical jargon to the journal Social Text, in which he argued that quantum gravity is a social and linguistic construct. (Read Sokal's paper) When the journal published it, Sokal revealed that the paper was in fact a spoof. The incident triggered a storm of debate about the ethics of Sokal's prank. The spaghetti treeIn 1957, the BBC show Panorama broadcast a programme about the spaghetti tree in Switzerland. It showed a family harvesting pasta that hung from the branches of the tree. After watching the programme, hundreds of people phoned in asking how they could grow their own tree. Alas, it was an April Fools' Day joke. Watch the BBC's spaghetti tree footage The Upas treeAn account was published in the London Magazine in 1783 by a Dutch surgeon named Foersch (his initials were variously given as NP and JN). It claimed the existence of a tree on the island of Java so poisonous that it killed everything within a 15-mile radius. Read the original account (scroll down to find it) This was the start of a legend. Even Erasmus Darwin wrote about it in a poem in 1791. A note to the poem read, "There is a poison-tree in the island of Java, which is said by its effluvia to have depopulated the country... in a district of 12 or 14 miles round it, the face of the earth is quite barren and rocky, intermixed only with the skeletons of men and animals; affording a scene of melancholy beyond what poets have described or painters delineated." You really can find the Upas tree in Indonesia. Though not as potent as legend would have it, the latex of the tree does contain a powerful toxin, which was traditionally used on arrow points. Read more about the Upas tree (PDF: go to page 8) The secret of immortalityJohann Heinrich Cohausen, an 18th-century physician, wrote a treatise on the prolongation of life, entitled Hermippus redivivus. Amongst other secrets of longevity, it claimed that life could be prolonged by taking an elixir produced by collecting the breath of young women in bottles. Actually, Cohausen admitted in the last few pages of the work that it was a satire, so any gullible readers wouldn't have been duped for too long Seven of the greatest scientific Visual Studio 2010 and .NET Framework 4.0 OverviewVisual Studio 2010 and the .NET Framework 4.0 mark the next generation of developer tools from Microsoft. Designed to address the latest needs of developers, Visual Studio and the .NET Framework deliver key innovations in the following pillars:
Over the next few months we will provide more detail in each of these pillars. We will start with “Democratizing Application Lifecycle Management.” Please check back shortly to see the next pillar, “Enabling emerging trends.” Microsoft Visual Studio Team System 2010 – Democratizing Application Lifecycle Management Among the great new functionality in VSTS 2010:
Key to a shared understanding of the application is the use of modeling tools. Modeling has traditionally been done by professional architects and system designers. Our approach is to enable both technical and non-technical users to create and use models to collaborate and to define business and system functionality graphically.
Visual Studio Team System 2010 includes a new Architecture Explorer for the discovery and exploration of existing code assets and application architectures. From the design of the application through to the actual writing of the code, one of the most difficult problems has always been that of the bug that can’t be reproduced – the “no-repro” bug. There are a lot of factors that drive these types of bugs and we have worked to create tools to help isolate the issue and allow faster fixes. One of the common blockers to reproducing a bug is the collection of actionable data on the bug. By dramatically simplifying the tools required to integrate testing across the lifecycle, we are further introducing new non-technical users to the application lifecycle.
Visual Studio Team System 2010 provides testers with a set of tools for managing test cases and execution as well as improved support for filing actionable bugs. Better Together – Visual Studio Team System Development Edition and Database Edition See Visual Studio 2010 in Action on Channel 9 Visual Studio 2010 and .NET Framework 4.0 Overview PDC: Anders Gets Dynamic on Future of C#
C# 4.0 will offer support for dynamically typed objects and "vastly improved" COM interoperability, among other features. Microsoft Technical Fellow Anders Hejlsberg drew a big and enthusiastic crowd as he provided a look at the future of the C# programming language in a session at the company's Professional Developers Conference in Los Angeles on Monday. Hejlsberg offered a rundown of what developers can expect from the next version of C#, with a heavy emphasis on the increasingly dynamic nature of the language. If the response of developers attending the presentation was any indication, there will be a lot to like about the next version of C#. Hejlsberg provided insight into four key enhancements in C# 4.0: Support for dynamically typed objects, support for optional and named parameters, "vastly improved" COM interoperability, and support for both co-variance and contra-variance. The issue of COM interoperability is a particularly raw one for .NET developers, who find themselves going through contortions to manage the mismatch between statically typed C# and COM objects. Hejlsberg drew hearty applause when he showed the thoroughly cleaned code that's possible with C# 4.0. "Isn't it amazing? It took us 10 years to get back to where we were, " Hejlsberg joked. "The code actually looks like it was intended to look." Hejlsberg's presentation provided a great look at what's possible with dynamic type support in C# 4.0. The Dynamic Language Runtime (DLR) that C# 4.0 will work with provides binders to .NET, Silverlight, Python, Ruby, and COM. "With these binders we can get a single programming experience for talking to all these different environments that are not statically typed .NET classes," Hejlsberg explained. Behind C# 4.0's dynamic typing is a delicious irony. Explained Hejlsberg to appreciative laughter: "In C# 4.0 we simply declare a variable whose static type is dynamic." Michael Desmond is founding editor of Redmond Developer News and editor at large of Redmond magazine. He has served as senior editor of news at PC World and executive editor at Multimedia World magazine, and has written for dozens of publications and Web sites. Desmond has also written four computing books, including Microsoft Office 2003 in 10 Simple Steps or Less. Redmond Media Group Microsoft to unveil tools to push identity platform into the cloudCompany to add SAML 2.0 protocol support By John Fontana Microsoft Tuesday will unveil an open identity platform code-named Geneva that extends to the cloud and includes development tools, gateway technologies and provides long-awaited support for the SAML 2.0 protocol. Microsoft also will announce support for the OpenID protocol, which means Microsoft’s LiveIDs can be used to access Web sites that support OpenID. The identity platform’s foundation is the claims-based access model and Security Token Service (STS) technology that Microsoft has been developing over the past few years as part of its industry effort to create a single identity system based on standard protocols. Geneva is made up of the Geneva Server, formerly called Active Directory Federation Services 2.0; Geneva CardSpace Client, a smaller and faster version of the identity client now available with Vista; and the Geneva Framework, which was formerly code-named Zermatt.
Also part of the platform is the Microsoft Service Connector, the Microsoft Federation Gateway and the .Net Access Control Service, which are designed to create a sort of identity backbone and connection to the cloud. The company plans to have the whole of the Geneva family of identity software and services rolled out by the second half of 2009. “There is no pressure to use Microsoft components,” said Kim Cameron, identity architect for Microsoft. “All aspects of Geneva are standard across the industry. This helps you build an identity backbone and get into the identity era.” The goal is to create a standards-based way to share “claims” and to connect with cloud-based services from Microsoft or other providers. Claims are a set of statements that identify a user and provide specific information such as title or purchasing authority. Geneva will let companies with Active Directory extend it to create single sign-on between local network resources and cloud services. In addition, developers will have tools to easily incorporate standards-based identity into the applications they build and IT will have choice in the identity services they roll out. Geneva Server is an STS that augments Active Directory and installs on a domain controller or a server on the network. It supports WS-Federation, WS-Trust and the SAML 2.0 protocol. Microsoft previously only supported the SAML 2.0 token. “Support for 2.0 was a surprise to me, a nice surprise,” said Gil Kirkpatrick, a CTO with Quest Software. The STS handles the exchange of claims and is part of Microsoft’s MetaSystem model for a distributed identity architecture. Geneva CardSpace Client, which has been upgraded to be more efficient, and the Geneva Framework will follow the same roadmap. The Geneva Framework is an extension to the .Net Framework 3.5 that helps developers more easily build applications that incorporate a claims-based identity model for authentication/authorization. The framework and the STS technology are building toward Microsoft’s ultimate goal of an “identity bus.”
The nirvana of the concept is that off-the-shelf applications could plug into the bus in order to authenticate users and provide access control. Microsoft also plans to create an identity backbone using the Microsoft Federation Gateway (MFG), which would run as part of its cloud-services platform Azure, which it announced Monday. Geneva Server or third-party STS gateways could connect to MFG, which would provide identity services to cloud applications such as Exchange, SharePoint and SQL Server. Developer services also would be securely accessed via MFG. Also part of the identity platform is the Microsoft Service Connector (MSC), a fixed- function gateway that lets users connect Active Directory with the Microsoft Federation Gateway. MSC, which will be a free download, is a lightweight version of the Geneva Server. MSC is in a community technology preview (CTP) now with a beta and final release slated for the first half of next year. Also on the docket is .Net Access Control (NAC), which will become a service on the Azure cloud platform. NAC is an STS that takes in authentication claims and outputs authorization claims based on a set of rules that can be defined via a management portal. The service lets users create and maintain rules and integrates with the Federation Gateway. Microsoft also plans a version of NAC that users can run internally. All contents copyright 1995-2008 Network World, Inc. http://www.networkworld.com
*TRUST* TOUJOURS PARMI NOUSIT Pros List Coolest Security Jobsby Wyatt Kash Looking for the coolest jobs in IT? A new survey of information technology and network security specialists suggests that the place to look is on the front lines of cyberspace -- and that the variety of work is greater than many might suspect. The survey was conducted by the SANS Institute, the IT security training and research organization. The results will be published later this year in the form of an information booklet aimed at interesting students to consider a career in IT security. The institute asked information security practitioners in government and non-government positions to describe their jobs and the most interesting aspects about working in them. It also asked security specialists to select which jobs they thought were "very cool." The top-ranking "coolest" IT security jobs according to government security employees: 1. Information security crime investigator/forensics expert. 2. System, network and/or Web penetration tester. 3. Forensics analyst 4. (Tie) Incident response, incident handler 4. (Tie) Security architect 6. Vulnerability researcher 7. (Tie) Network security engineer 7. (Tie) Security analyst 7. (Tie) Sworn law enforcement officer specializing in information security crime 10. (Tie) CISO/ISO or director of security 10. (Tie) Application penetration tester The next highest ranking positions:
"Of particular interest to me," observed Alan Paller, the SANS Institute's Director of Research, "are the low rankings that government people give the CISO's." The chief information security officer position "ranked much higher in the non-government world." He also noted the high ranking that non-government people give application penetration testing, "illuminating the fact that the government hasn't yet focused [as much as commercial organizations] on the critical new attack vector of application-based attacks," he said. The top-ranking "coolest" IT security jobs according to non-government security employees:
Wyatt Kash is the editor in chief of Government Computer News (GCN.com). Sun Speaks Out on the Future of the Java PlatformDanny Coward, chief architect of the Client Software Group at Sun Microsystems, discusses Java Standard Edition 6 Update 10 and the future of the Java Platform with eWEEK. Sun Microsystems released Java Standard Edition 6 Update 10 on Oct. 21 and Danny Coward, chief architect of Sun's Client Software Group, checked in for an interview with eWEEK Senior Editor Darryl K. Taft to talk about the future of the Java platform. How is the role of Java changing and what are we seeing for the future of the Java platform? I think what we are seeing in general is a rapid rise in the number of rich client applications focused on consumers. Businesses and consumers alike are looking for attractive and intuitive ways to interact and Java originated as a platform to enable that. Now that Java is deployed so widely, I think Java's role has broadened significantly as a platform for consumer content. Many of the drivers for continued evolution of the platform come from developers who want to create this new generation of rich content focused on consumers. This rich content consists of applications that are attractive, "self-guiding" and self-explanatory, as well as applications that visually entertain and present information to allow interactions in a playful and enriching manner. We have seen Sun focus and do well with the enterprise side of Java and now it appears Sun is shifting to the client side. Can you tell me more about that? We spent many years building out the core Java platform both as a base for server-side technology, and focused on enterprise GUIs. In the last three or four years, the number of applications being created for consumers has overtaken the number of applications being created for use within the enterprise. Thus, we have focused our development efforts on reshaping Java for rich client application development and deployment. For development, we've added a whole new language and programming environment called JavaFX. For deployment on the desktop, we've really worked hard to make the underlying JRE (Java Runtime Environment) much more lightweight, nimble, and better able to run visually intensive applications—all things needed by consumer-facing rich client applications. You just released Java SE 6 Update 10—how does this announcement fit in with Sun’s overall Java strategy? Click here to read more about Sun's Java Standard Edition 6 Update 10. Java SE 6 Update 10 is a release of the highly popular Java Runtime for the desktop and browser and is a product of how we are reshaping Java for rich client application development and deployment. This release has those deployment and runtime attributes I just described: quick to download, quick and easy to install, quick to update from an older version, quick to start applications running on it, much faster graphical performance, and a new look and feel for cross-platform applications. What are some of the new key features and changes in the release, including what you can do now that you couldn’t do before? There are several, but the key highlight features are: JavaKernel: This shrinks the initial download of the JRE from 14.5MB to 4.5MB—a huge savings in download time and time spent unpacking the run-time. The initial 'kernel' download contains just enough of the run-time to run typical GUI applications—i.e. typical consumer applications on the desktop or browser—and then in parallel the rest of the platform is installed once that initial application is up and running. This results in a much quicker download and a much quicker start to get the application up and running. New Plug-in Architecture: This release rewrites the code that connects the JRE into the browser. Now applets run in their own process instead of in the same process as the browser, so it's much more robust and scalable. You can do super-neat stuff like drag the applet out of the Web page and out of the browser so it's in its own window (it just keeps running), and if you like, you can close the browser and the applet keeps running. If you close the applet, you get the choice to create a shortcut on your desktop so you can just start the applet directly from the desktop next time. So with this new architecture, you just pull applets out of Web pages onto your desktop with one drag and drop. JavaQuickStarter: This technology does the prework to keep the JRE files loaded into the computer's desk cache so that applets and applications start up much, much quicker. Unlike other programs, which keep heavyweight background processes running to achieve a similar effect, this is a much lighter-weight option of getting much quicker startup time for the JRE. We have also turned on native graphics acceleration on [Windows] Vista, and have a new cross-platform look and feel called Nimbus for developers who like their applications to have a distinctive and uniform look no matter which OS (Windows, Solaris, Linux) they are on. How can developers and consumers benefit from these features? Consumers and developers will benefit by having their Java applications start up much quicker. These applications—especially the ones that use shading, animations, translucency and shaped windows—are going to perform very smoothly and quickly. The initial download or update of the JRE if they already have it will be quick and easy. They'll be able to pull applets off Web pages and drop them right onto their desktop to use later, or offline, instead of having a complicated install experience, as with other technologies. How does this release tie in with upcoming launch of JavaFX 1.0? As well as being a great release for developers who write rich client applications in Java, this is the underpinning of the upcoming JavaFX 1.0 desktop release. In support of the additional designer-focused programming model we have created in JavaFX, this release ensures that JavaFX applications have nimble, lightweight run-time underneath them, and one that is ready for the kind of wonderful graphically rich applications we expect JavaFX developers and designers to create. Google Measuring Brain WavesThanks for the memories There’ve been a lot of disturbing news in advertising this year and this week, all of it involving brain stuff. Thankfully, Google’s not manipulating our thoughts—yet. Music of the dayEveryday a good rock song that i like just go to that page everyday and enjoy the music
http://gillardg.ifrance.com/listen/mp3.htm
|
Windows only: Mount more than one Gmail account as a remote disk drive with free utility 
.jpg)
.jpg)
|
|
