Jury to Eolas: Nobody owns the interactive web

A decision to strike down patents to the "Interactive Web" is an important victory for the networked commons.

by  | @digiphile  | +Alex Howard |  9 February 2012

A Texas jury has struck down a company's claim to ownership of the interactive web. Eolas, which has been suing technology companies for more than a decade, now faces the prospect of losing the patents.

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It's time for a unified ebook format and the end of DRM

It's time for a unified ebook format and the end of DRM

Proprietary ebook formats and rights restrictions are holding consumers back.

by  | @jwikert  | +Joe Wikert |  9 February 2012

The music industry has shown that you need to offer consumers a universal format and content without rights restrictions. So when will publishers pay attention?

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Four short links: 9 February 2012

Four short links: 9 February 2012

Web-based Visualization, Javascript Charting, Automating Education, Sniffing HTTP(S)

by  | @gnat  |  9 February 2012

  1. Weave -- web-based visualization platform designed to enable visualization of any available data by anyone for any purpose. GPL and MPL-licensed. (via Flowing Data)
  2. Flotr2 -- MIT-licensed Javascript library for drawing HTML5 charts and graphs. It is a branch of flotr which removes the Prototype dependency and includes many improvements. (via Javascript Weekly)
  3. What Silicon Valley Gets Wrong About Math Education Again And Again (Dan Meyer) -- nicely said: it's hard to test true understanding, easy to automate only part of the testing and assessment support for learners.
  4. mitmproxy -- GPLv3-licensed SSL-aware HTTP proxy which lets you snoop on the traffic being sent back to the mothership from apps.

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The NoSQL movement

The NoSQL movement

How to think about choosing a database.

by  | @mikeloukides  | +Mike Loukides |  8 February 2012

A relational database is no longer the default choice. Mike Loukides charts the rise of the NoSQL movement and explains how to choose the right database for your application.

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Makers and hackers: The Where Conference is looking for you

Makers and hackers: The Where Conference is looking for you

Visualizations, RFID installs and a Mini Maker Faire will be featured at Where 2012.

by  | @brady  |  3 February 2012

The 2012 Where Conference is looking for makers, hackers, developers and do-it-yourselfers who are working in the geolocation and mapping spaces.

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What is Apache Hadoop?

What is Apache Hadoop?

A look at the components and functions of the Hadoop ecosystem.

by  | @edd  | +Edd Dumbill |  2 February 2012

Apache Hadoop has been the driving force behind the growth of the big data industry. But what does it do, and why do you need all its strangely-named friends, such as Oozie, Zookeeper and Flume?

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