Gizmodo: new jersey

Afternoon News: Goodbye Netscape, Hello Kitty For Men and More

Benny Goldman — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 16:00:00 EST

• A new law in New Jersey willl ban internet sex offenders from the web. But then who will read Gizmodo? [The Register]
• AOL will discontinue development of the Netscape browser early next year. RIP Netscape, you were the original IE alternative. [TechCrunch]
• Once upon a time, Google went by the name BackRub. Yuck. [Valleywag]
• A line of Hello Kitty clothing for men will go on sale in Japan next month. If you're looking for me, I'll be scraping my eyes out with rusty nails. [AP]

Parents Think Wii Zapper Might As Well Come With an NRA Application

Matt Buchanan — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 05:40:21 EDT

NJ.com, your source for "everything Jersey" asked people what they thought of the "gun-like" Wii Zapper in their weekly Question of the, um, Week segment. The responses poured in and they were extremely negative. The catch, though, is that the site had originally posted a picture of a gun other than the Wii Zapper, which let's face it, looks more Star Trek than NRA. Check the outrage after the jump.

Great, this is what we need. Children with guns learning how to aim and shoot. Then we can sit back and wonder what is happening to our country with kids killing kids......what's next? Could we make it squirt blood, too" one reader commented.

A "very concerned grandparent" wrote: "....Why don't they enclose an application to the NRA in every box as well....the marketing person who came up with this brain child of an idea should be fired."
Another reader commented, "I think it's irresponsible for Wii to come out with a controller that looks like a gun so kids can play games simulating shooting. What kind of message are we sending as parents when we buy these things for our kids?"

Either way, guess these guys missed Duck Hunt. [NJ.com via Fark]

New Jersey Taxing Downloaded Music and Video

Jason Chen — Tue, 03 Oct 2006 17:10:00 EDT

Thanks to its $4.5 billion budget deficit, New Jersey's just instituted a 7% tax for online purchases and downloads of music and videos. For you, that means iTunes, Napster, and other stores are going to be a bit more expensive.

No idea how they're enforcing this, but maybe changing your State in your iTunes account can get around it? – Jason Chen

NJ to start charging iTunes tax this Sunday (October 1st) [Macenstein]

Iris Scanners Keep out Unwanted In New Jersey School

johnb — Mon, 27 Feb 2006 11:02:41 EST

It's only going to get worse before it gets better. An elementary school in Freehold, New Jersey has dumped $370,000 on an iris scanner designed to allow children to enter and leave the building. The system can track kids while they're in school, thereby reducing the the school's liability. If they never scanned in, it's not their fault if they're missing, right?

Here's how it works: students and teachers who have registered their biometrics can come and go as they please. But for strangers to get in, you have to press a button... and a secretary lets you in. Aha! A flaw in this expensive yet foolproof plan! By walking up to the door and pressing a button, you are given the same rights and privileges as registered users of a secure system. Technology like this is like magic. Horrible, misguided, and potentially dangerous magic.

Iris scanners enroll in elementary school [Arstechnica]