The screen size could determine the price of your movie in the future

Most of the time, DVDs cost, more or less, about the same price. However, it is illogical that watching a movie on TV costs the same as watching it on smartphones. After all, on our smartphones, the experience is somewhat limited in terms of audio and visual quality.

Well, maybe the price of your movie could be based on the media its displayed with in the future. Or at least that's the vision of the CEO of DreamWorks Animation, Jeffrey Katzenberg:
 
"A movie screen will be $15. A 75-inch TV will be $4. A smartphone will be $1.99"


Although this seems pretty logical, this model may be difficult to implement because of the difficulties a security system might encounter recognizing the exact screen size: who's to say that a user won't play a $ 1.99 film on a big screen TV?
 
That said, it is an interesting idea and Katzenberg is convinced that this pricing model will eventually be a standard in the industry. Until then, would you pay less to watch a movie on a smartphone?

Source: The Verge

What Does "Heartbleed" Mean For The Future Of Data Center Security?

The Heartbleed vulnerability is less of a game-changer and more of a reminder that online security is precious and vulnerable. There have been major breaches before and there will be again. The question is: will your data center be ready to handle the next breach? There is no real online security without a response plan to fall back on when, not if, security is breached.
Perhaps the most damning to the idea of flawless security online came from the revelation that some government agencies, US-based and otherwise, and had used it for the purposes of reconnaissance on citizens. More than ever, the proper response to security is not to try to build something impenetrable, but to have a plan that keeps data, even once accessed, from being able to do much damage.

 

 

 

Possible Solutions

Circles online including white hat Moxie Marlinspike are saying that the only real way to prevent this kind of vulnerability from being a massive breach is to get rid of plain text internet entirely, and to use HTTPS as a new standard. Encrypted data like this allows for another barrier between the data and those who would seek to compromise the security through attacking risk vectors.
There are downsides to this arrangement, however, including the increased cost of using SSL and the difficulty of requiring the unique certificate process that SSL uses on every small website that's being used.
Another idea for increased global security is called forward secrecy, which operates on a function similar to the popular mobile app, Snapchat. Once you're done with a session, your key disappears. This allows for data that is much harder to break into once it has been taken, so that anyone who wanders off a server with a load of encrypted information is much less likely to find a way to read it.

 

Response Plans

Your data server needs to be able to deploy patches and updates remotely and with little effort. Much of responding to security breaches require on-time fast-acting responses to severe problems. Using not only encryption, but additional security products is highly important.
Anyone who relies on your network for security is going to feel betrayed when their privacy is broken by a hack. A script for what to follow and how to break the news to customers quickly and easily is the only way to keep and/or regain trust in the wake of a security breach.
Make sure that all of your employees, not just those who are involved with security, understand security risks. The human element is commonly the most easily compromised link in the chain, and workers are regularly bamboozled into giving out critical information. If they are well-trained in security, though, they can be a strong line of defense that actively upkeep your network's security.
Google is a good case study on responding to security breaches correctly: they quickly patched their platforms and immediately educated the public on the threat and recommended security fixes for them.

Featured images:

•  License: Royalty Free or iStock source: http://www.freeimages.com/photo/1159614

+Katrina Matthews  is a tech expert and product specialist for RackSolutions, manufacturer of custom racking solutions for businesses! She likes giving data center tips and advice on our blog.

Firefox gets a makeover and introduces user accounts

Mozilla has released a new stable version of its Firefox browser which adopts the Australis user interface.The friction within the Mozilla board did not alter the pace of development and the new Firefox is available for download .

Initially expected for Firefox 24, the Australis interface has now officially appeared on the browser. It is characterized by less angular tabs and better display.
 

Much like Chrome, we could now find the options menu to the right of the address bar. It provides access to preferences, extensions, options or full screen mode.

Firefox 29 also features a new synchronization module. More specifically, it will be easier to ensure the transfer of data by creating a user account rather than entering a security key. For each account, it will be possible to retrieve bookmarks, add- ons, passwords, browsing history or preferences and tabs.

For those of you who are nostalgic, it is possible to reload the old UI by downloading this extension: old-firefox

Microsoft might suspend the Xbox one production

The Xbox One was released in late 2013 and 5 million consoles have been shipped to retailers since. These 5 million Xbox do not represent sales of the console since many of then are still enthroned on the shelves of shops which making Microsoft consider suspending the production of its console for some time to sell the stocks.
  

Gamasutra indicates that Microsoft is considering to slow or stop the production: The market is about to saturate and it would be pointless for Microsoft to continue to manufacture consoles; Stocks would be sufficient to take effect until the fourth quarter of this year.


Of course, the situation could change if Microsoft announces at the E3 some new games that will boost the sales of the Xbox.
 
Microsoft has released its console in 13 countries so far, but it will be available in more markets in the coming months, which will allow them to sell the stocks and re-boot the production.