software news stories on Newser

Computer Program Catches Chess Cheaters

Matt Cantor — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 14:18:12 CDT

Cheaters beware: A chess wiz has developed a program to catch you. Potential cheating has become a noted problem in chess, the New York Times reports. Alleged text messaging prompted a five-year ban on a trio of players in 2010; in 2006, a player was accused of using a computer...

Hacked Home Security Cams Link to Bedroom Scenes

Mary Papenfuss — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 00:08:00 CST

Feeds from an extensive network of home security cameras have been breached, and videos, including scenes from children's bedrooms, are being watched and linked to online. "Someone caught a guy getting naked in Denmark," noted one blogger. Another remarked: "Baby spotted. I feel like a pedophile watching this." Because of...

Man Charged With Stealing $9.5M of Computer Code

Rob Quinn — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 09:44:05 CST

A Chinese computer programmer has been charged with stealing software code worth $9.5 million while working at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Prosecutors say Bo Zhang, a Chinese citizen who worked for a technology firm contracted to work on code at the New York Fed, copied a...

Apple Releases iOS 5 Battery Fix

Matt Cantor — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 17:04:37 CST

The battery troubles of the iPhone 4S may be over. After acknowledging that “a small number of users” were having issues with their batteries when using iOS 5, Apple has produced a new version of the operating system, iOS 5.0.1, aimed at fixing the bug. The source of...

Computer Visionary Dennis Ritchie Dead at 70

Evann Gastaldo — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 11:41:52 CDT

Dennis Ritchie, who invented the C programming language and helped create the UNIX operating system, died last weekend at age 70. His death after a long illness was first reported by Google engineer Rob Pike . Obituaries popping up on tech sites hail his work, vision, and legacy: “Ritchie's contribution to...

Calif. School First to Ban Dissections in Software Deal

Mary Papenfuss — Tue, 31 May 2011 03:03:00 CDT

A California high school has put down its scalpels and become the first school in the nation to accept a software offer from an animal rights group. Rancho Verde High School will drop frog dissections in exchange for free "Digital Frog" anatomy software provided by the Animal Welfare Institute and...

Mideast Regimes Use US Software to Censor Web

Matt Cantor — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 13:19:34 CDT

Behind Middle Eastern governments' censorship of the Web, an uncomfortable reality—US products help do the dirty work. Bahrain, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia use filtering programs by McAfee; other US and Canadian firms have sold Web-filtering technology to Yemen and Qatar, among other countries, the Wall Street Journal reports. The...

Bad Reviews Delay Latest Google TV Debut

Matt Cantor — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 09:55:05 CST

Google has delayed the grand unveiling of its new TV software, after a spate of less-than-stellar early reviews. Toshiba, LG Electronics, and Sharp were all planning to debut their versions of Google TV at the Consumer Electronics Show next month, but Google surprised them by asking them to hold off...

Lego Robot Builds Stuff—With Legos

Nick McMaster — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 18:15:48 CDT

Could this be the first step toward a robotic apocalypse? A software engineer has created a machine made of Legos that builds objects made of Legos, based on 3D models. The MakerLegoBot (see video in gallery) takes advantage of the brand's new Mindstorms set, which incorporates motors and moving parts....