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Autonomous military robots should be banned, group says (video)

The Campaign to Stop Killer Robots kicked off its protest against self-powered military machines earlier this week.

CNET caught up with the campaign organizers to hear why they want killer 'bots banned -- play the video above to hear their reasoning and to witness the kinds of death-dealing devices the organization is trying to stop.

One thing I wanted to know is why the campaign is so averse to autonomous robots. As Noel Sharkey, expert roboticist and professor, told me, however, this movement is only about putting the brakes on autonomous killing machines. … Read more

Human Rights Watch launches campaign against 'killer robots'

If I had a dime for every time someone writes "I, for one, welcome our new robot overlords," I'd have enough money to bribe my future robot master into sparing me from the meatsack ghettos.

Our dystopian robot future is always good grist for lame jokes. Unless it might actually happen.

Human Rights Watch seems very serious about a new campaign it has launched against what it calls "killer robots." … Read more

'Craigslist killer' convicted of murder

A man charged with using Craiglist to lure three people to their deaths has been convicted of murder.

The jury in an Akron, Ohio, courtroom yesterday found Richard Beasley guilty of kidnapping and murdering David Pauley, Ralph Geiger, and Timothy Kern, according to Reuters. Beasley was also convicted of the attempted murder of Scott Davis, who was shot in the arm but managed to escape.

Beasley was found guilty of all charges against him, including aggravated murder, aggravated attempted murder, aggravated robbery, grand and petty theft, and ID theft. The jury will next meet on March 20 to determine whether … Read more

There's a killer on the loose and you have to find them

Who Is the Killer (Episode One) is the first of a series of mini games representing a detective game. As each day passes, someone dies, and your job is to figure out who is the killer. Who Is the Killer installs easily and is free.

Who Is the Killer is a fairly straightforward game graphically, with limited screen displays. You start with an image of people sitting around, and you can click on people or items to interact with them. A set of mini games adds to the puzzle, but the goal is to figure out which character is the … Read more

Norton Mobile Utilities for Android jumps to 2.0

With its newly designed user interface, Norton Mobile Utilities makes it a bit simpler to manage your Android device's performance. The four main modules are all reorganized, and it's easy to jump into any function, right from the get-go.

But version 2.0 doesn't just come with a prettier face. The updated app now offers a few premium paid features that Android users are sure to find interesting. For the $9.99 upgrade fee, you can get an automatic task killer, customized battery saver profile, data usage tracker, and more.

Norton Mobile Utilities Lite is free to … Read more

Protect your computer with UVK - Ultra Virus Killer

Based on its name, we expected UVK - Ultra Virus Killer to be an antivirus program. While it can help protect your computer from threats, that's not exactly how it works; instead of detecting and removing viruses, it "immunizes" your computer against them, as well as a variety of other unauthorized changes. Between that and a whole suite of other features, UVK provides a powerful option for protecting your computer.

The "immunization" that UVK provides focuses on three areas: Windows startup and log-on, system registry entries, and Internet and Windows Explorer. Immunization of any of … Read more

The 404 1,038: Where you're going to want to sit down for this (podcast)

Crusty Craigslist may finally be getting an update based on this job listing for a senior user-interface engineer, so Jeff and I are brainstorming the features we think Craig should incorporate in CL2.0.

Jeff likes to indulge in the art of self-reflection, and a friendly chat about Blu-ray discs this weekend inspires him to question the value of physical discs and their jewel cases. On that note, what is the best way to display a collection? Is it on...what are they called again? Oh yeah, towers? A discussion on subtle self-promotion follows.… Read more

Qualcomm Atheros unveils Killer networking controller

Gamers might buy these just because of their name, which might have been the case of another product offered by Bigfoot Networks awhile ago.

Qualcomm Atheros announced today its latest Wi-Fi and Ethernet controllers called Killer Wireless-N 1202 Wi-Fi Module and Killer E2200 Gigabit Ethernet Controller. These are network adapters with built-in QoS designed to "provide unprecedented performance and advanced control by automatically classifying and prioritizing gaming, video, and audio network data," Qualcomm claims. Basically, they are great for games and entertainment-related applications.

Both of these new solutions comes with an exclusive technology called Advanced Stream Detect that … Read more

If your account is subpoenaed, Facebook sends police, well, everything

We all live in the hope that we will never enjoy the prying eyes of the law.

But what happens if someone in authority decides they want to discover a little more about you? What if, despite your fine privacy settings on Facebook, the police or a prosecutor decides they'd like to bypass all of that?

As part of its investigation of Philip Markoff, the so-called Craigslist Killer, the Boston Phoenix got hold of the documents that Facebook sent the authorities after a subpoena had been issued.

These documents were part of the Boston Police Department's case file. … Read more

Killer Whale Submarine a killer personal submersible

Jules Verne had the market on imaginative submarines cornered for many long years. And then Hammacher Schlemmer came along and offered a $100,000 Killer Whale Submarine.

The Killer Whale Submarine can breach from the water, just like a real whale. It has pectoral fins with control levers and a 255-horsepower supercharged Rotax axial flow engine. I can't really explain what that is exactly, but it sounds super cool.

This aquatic beast is also pretty fast. Underwater, it can go 25 mph. On the surface, it can hydroplane at up to 50 mph. I think that's faster than my Prius can go on land.… Read more