The Raspberry Pi keeps getting better: an updated version of model B Raspberry Pi has been announced by the Foundation. Looks like a great device.

Main changes are:

1. More GPIO. The GPIO header has grown to 40 pins, while retaining the same pinout for the first 26 pins as the Model B.
2. More USB. We now have 4 USB 2.0 ports, compared to 2 on the Model B, and better hotplug and overcurrent behaviour.
3. Micro SD. The old friction-fit SD card socket has been replaced with a much nicer push-push micro SD version.
4. Lower power consumption. By replacing linear regulators with switching ones we've reduced power consumption by between 0.5W and 1W.
5. Better audio. The audio circuit incorporates a dedicated low-noise power supply.
6. Neater form factor. We've aligned the USB connectors with the board edge, moved composite video onto the 3.5mm jack, and added four squarely-placed mounting holes.

The price is still $35.

Interestingly, Hackaday was there first, via a post just yesterday about a guy who got one of these things even before they were announced: probably a simple shipping error. They point out that the new form factor means old cases won't work. And they - and I - are excited about the better SD slot too: that was an important defect.

Laura Hall over at Atlantic Magazine asks: what happens when digital communities are abandoned? Although she covers the closing of Geocities, she's really more interested in the virtual worlds we build in our MUDs and immersive games. Though they swarm with players for long periods of time, as user interest wanes and gamers go elsewhere, then what do they look like?

When Second Life launched in 2003, the world was captivated by visions of Neal Stephenson's Snow Crash come to life. The virtual world isn't a game--it's a venue, a platform, a plot of undeveloped land, a blank canvas, an open world. Users make of it what they will. ...

But that was nearly 10 years ago. I wondered: what happened to all of those buildings? Were people still making use of them? So I logged in. The world of Second Life, it turns out, is not abandoned. Estimates put the current active user-base around 600,000 members; in its heyday, it boasted between 60 and 80 thousand simultaneous logins. There are often a handful of people in most of the spaces you'll visit, but it's easy to find privacy. Here and there are signs that point to its lack of people: "space for rent", "band wanted." But the sheer variety of environments, and the obvious care that people put into them, remains stunning.

You may be sick and tired of hearing about NSA surveillance, but we may as well get used to it: until legislators decide to put an end to the mass surveillance, they're here to stay. Rather than ignore them then, better to get to know them. RadioOpenSource has provided an excellent overview of five NSA programs currently in force that you should know by name.

1. XKeyscore
2. Fascia
3. Optic Nerve
4. Boundless Informant
5. Dishfire

Even the names are evocative of the kinds of things and the sense of authority and accountability that led to their development. An excellent read. While you go through it, see if you can suggest some names for other NSA programs that would operate in the same vein. For example: "Operation Colonoscopy."

Today's Monday poll looks at moderation schemes. No other aspect of a site so determines its "feel" than the user's ability to comment and for those comments to lead to conversation. Get it right and you've got a great discussion on your hands. But get it wrong and the "right" comments lead to group think, the trolls and kooks take it over, or the place becomes a giant flamewar.

I personally think no site has gotten it just right yet. But we began an interesting conversation about it on this Pipedot article.

There are a lot of models out there, and some of them overlap a bit. OSNews.com's moderation scheme for example is pretty close to Slashdot's, although it gives +1 points for funny. A lot of sites running on modified Drupal or Joomla systems don't even deal with moderation: just provide your comment and it goes on the list, though the site admins have a right to nuke anything offensive to corporate powers, and there's no threading. There's also the Usenet/killfile model, where users decide individuals (not posts) get karma [ed. note: I should've added that to the poll, dang it].

Have your say at the poll to the right. It's a Borda Count, so give "1" to the system you like best, a "2" to the one you like a bit less, and so on.

Ed Catmull is legendary in the fields of computer graphics and animation; he was an important researcher in 3D computer graphics in the '70s, became head of Lucasfilm's Pixar computer animation division, and has essentially remained in that role ever since through the sale/spinoff of Pixar to Steve Jobs in 1986, its years as an independent producer of feature-length animated films, and its acquisition by Disney in 2006. He's just published a book on creative leadership.

While Catmull has lots of fans in Silicon Valley and beyond, he's emerging as a key figure in an antitrust lawsuit by employees over the 'gentlemen's agreement' by a handful of companies including Apple, Google, Intel, and Pixar, to avoid recruiting each other's employees, thus avoiding a bidding war on talent. Emails recovered during the discovery phase of an ongoing class action lawsuit reveal that Catmull was a zealous enforcer of the pact among digital animation studios, including Pixar, Lucasfilm/ILM, and Dreamworks; at one point, after Pixar was acquired by Disney, he even wrote an email persuading Disney Studios Chairman Dick Cook, to put the arm on a sister Disney studio that was poaching Dreamwork employees:

I know that Zemeckis' company will not target Pixar, however, by offering higher salaries to grow at the rate they desire, people will hear about it and leave. We have avoided wars up in Norther[n] California because all of the companies up here - Pixar, ILM [Lucasfilm], Dreamworks, and couple of smaller places [sic]- have conscientiously avoided raiding each other.

The Catmull emails also reveal that Sony was recruited to join the pact/cartel, but Sony refused to play ball. This seemed to raise Catmull's testosterone level a bit. Catmull to Cook again:

Just this last week, we did have a recruiter working for ILM [Lucasfilm] approach some of our people. We called to complain and the recruiter immediately stopped. This kind of relationship has helped keep the peace in the Bay Area and it is important that we continue to use restraint.

Now that Sony has announced their intentions with regard to selling part of their special effects business, and given Sony's extremely poor behavior in its recruiting practices, I would feel very good about aggressively going after Sony people.

In the deposition, Catmull said he never followed through with the threat to go after Sony's employees.

(I saw this story on OSNews, which drew a fair number of comments).

That the 1984 movie 'Runaway' with Tom Selleck was a lackluster performer is undisputed. However, the movie did show an interesting tech. Bullets that could home in on a target and change their course mid-flight. At the time these mini missiles seemed a bit over the top. The era of such miniaturization and processing speed were still the realm of science fiction.

Well, apparently DARPA was paying attention. The have released footage of their Extreme Accuracy Tasked Ordnance (EXACTO) program in action.

These would be truly scary to go up against on the battlefield. .50 caliber bullets being fired at you is one thing, having them chase you down is quite another.

"This video shows EXACTO rounds maneuvering in flight to hit targets that are offset from where the sniper rifle is aimed. EXACTO's specially designed ammunition and real-time optical guidance system help track and direct projectiles to their targets by compensating for weather, wind, target movement and other factors that could impede successful hits."

The video shows the ordinance making quite a severe course correction before striking its target.

The full program information is here.

With the ability to turn anyone into a sniper, what does this bode for the future battlefield? Will these inevitably end up in militarized police usage?