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Well, I looked at those other comics, and I disagree. I suppose you have to have lived the life of a sysadmin (down, not across) to get the most out of UF, but it is funny. A lot of those comics are heavily targetted at gamers, and while I enjoy games, I'm not that heavily into it.

Two points:

• While you're correct that most of those I linked to are gaming-related, not all of them are. And for those that aren't, the humor is often zany enough that it doesn't matter if you can relate to it as a gamer. There certainly are strips that require you to have some deep gaming knowledge, but those are few and far between. Besides, who can't relate to stuff like blister packaging, used on much more than just video gaming peripherals? See? Funny, without going the "Windoze is sux" route. Maybe the guy getting both of his hands cut off by the packaging was too graphic, which is a valid complaint. Here's PA's take on the blister packaging issue, without the gratuitous violence.
• Even if you can't appreciate them for their story or humor, all of the comics I linked to are artistically pleasing, if not amazing (PA, Megatokyo, and Mac Hall routinely astound). Of the art/story/funny trifecta, they at least have one leg to stand on. UF has none.

Oh, yeah, I was gong to also pimp Something Postivie as a strip that's not about gaming (though they do throw in some pen and paper role-playing every now and then), has decent art (below average when compared against PA or Mac Hall, but light years ahead of UF), is funny, and has an interesting story.

You know, about thirty seconds after I wrote this I tried just changing the date of one of their other 'casts. So, April Fools: http://www.somethingpositive.net/050401-slackastro .mp3

I believe R.K. Milholland, who writes Something Positive, has been addressing that issue in some recent comic strips. I'd mod him insightful, but mod points don't seem to work off slashdot for some reason....

As far as Card's stated views, he makes a better case than most religious zealots as for why gay marriage is a bad idea from a sociological standpoint. He's at least willing to argue from a sociology standpoint, which while not as rock solid a science as physics, are at least an improvement over "Thuh Bible saiyz so."

Not that his argument is convincing. I think several of his assertions in the (typical) article I noted are made with insuficient justification (EG: "Monogamous marriage is by far the most effective foundation for a civilization") or just plain wrong ("Calling a homosexual contract 'marriage' [...] will not make it contribute in any meaningful way to the propagation of civilization"). I think he is right to be concerned about the continued impact of some earlier social changes from the early to mid-20th century. The changes that have weakened "the family" over the last 50 years, that have led to the symptomatic high divorce rates and working single parents, have in turn caused major problem on a lot of levels, and that the present situation has Major Problems. Unfortunately, he sees allowing gays to marry as yet another step towards doom, instead of potentially increasing the number and variety of stable model family units for children to imprint off of, in the event that they are in a disfuntional family.

He also doesn't get that by prohibiting gays from marrying, it artificially and unjustly creates a legal discrimination of heterosexual non-reporoductive partnerships versus homosexual non-reproductive partnerships. Of course, his reference to Plessy versus Fergesson when condemning judicial activism in his followup shows he's closer to a legal idiot than a legal scholar-- that case upheld the law as legislated all the way.

His worry for society is well placed, but his fears have the wrong target. Frankly, most of this attention deficit generation seems to lack the long-term focus and the ability to compromise that seems necessary for maintaining a stable partnership. The problem is further compounded by the last several decades' economic strains on the family; now, two working parents seems all but required. The present situation is dangerous, but trying to force the clock back will trigger disaster; though it has risks, further change offers hope.

As for his wrtiting, Card isn't worth buying in hardcover (except perhaps Ender's Game itself), but I've still picked up some of his more recent books in paperback after checking them out from the local library. As for the movie... I'll wait for the reviews.

I believe R.K. Milholland, who writes Something Positive, has been addressing that issue in some recent comic strips. I'd mod him insightful, but mod points don't seem to work off slashdot for some reason....

As far as Card's stated views, he makes a better case than most religious zealots as for why gay marriage is a bad idea from a sociological standpoint. He's at least willing to argue from a sociology standpoint, which while not as rock solid a science as physics, are at least an improvement over "Thuh Bible saiyz so."

Not that his argument is convincing. I think several of his assertions in the (typical) article I noted are made with insuficient justification (EG: "Monogamous marriage is by far the most effective foundation for a civilization") or just plain wrong ("Calling a homosexual contract 'marriage' [...] will not make it contribute in any meaningful way to the propagation of civilization"). I think he is right to be concerned about the continued impact of some earlier social changes from the early to mid-20th century. The changes that have weakened "the family" over the last 50 years, that have led to the symptomatic high divorce rates and working single parents, have in turn caused major problem on a lot of levels, and that the present situation has Major Problems. Unfortunately, he sees allowing gays to marry as yet another step towards doom, instead of potentially increasing the number and variety of stable model family units for children to imprint off of, in the event that they are in a disfuntional family.

He also doesn't get that by prohibiting gays from marrying, it artificially and unjustly creates a legal discrimination of heterosexual non-reporoductive partnerships versus homosexual non-reproductive partnerships. Of course, his reference to Plessy versus Fergesson when condemning judicial activism in his followup shows he's closer to a legal idiot than a legal scholar-- that case upheld the law as legislated all the way.

His worry for society is well placed, but his fears have the wrong target. Frankly, most of this attention deficit generation seems to lack the long-term focus and the ability to compromise that seems necessary for maintaining a stable partnership. The problem is further compounded by the last several decades' economic strains on the family; now, two working parents seems all but required. The present situation is dangerous, but trying to force the clock back will trigger disaster; though it has risks, further change offers hope.

As for his wrtiting, Card isn't worth buying in hardcover (except perhaps Ender's Game itself), but I've still picked up some of his more recent books in paperback after checking them out from the local library. As for the movie... I'll wait for the reviews.

I believe R.K. Milholland, who writes Something Positive, has been addressing that issue in some recent comic strips. I'd mod him insightful, but mod points don't seem to work off slashdot for some reason....

As far as Card's stated views, he makes a better case than most religious zealots as for why gay marriage is a bad idea from a sociological standpoint. He's at least willing to argue from a sociology standpoint, which while not as rock solid a science as physics, are at least an improvement over "Thuh Bible saiyz so."

Not that his argument is convincing. I think several of his assertions in the (typical) article I noted are made with insuficient justification (EG: "Monogamous marriage is by far the most effective foundation for a civilization") or just plain wrong ("Calling a homosexual contract 'marriage' [...] will not make it contribute in any meaningful way to the propagation of civilization"). I think he is right to be concerned about the continued impact of some earlier social changes from the early to mid-20th century. The changes that have weakened "the family" over the last 50 years, that have led to the symptomatic high divorce rates and working single parents, have in turn caused major problem on a lot of levels, and that the present situation has Major Problems. Unfortunately, he sees allowing gays to marry as yet another step towards doom, instead of potentially increasing the number and variety of stable model family units for children to imprint off of, in the event that they are in a disfuntional family.

He also doesn't get that by prohibiting gays from marrying, it artificially and unjustly creates a legal discrimination of heterosexual non-reporoductive partnerships versus homosexual non-reproductive partnerships. Of course, his reference to Plessy versus Fergesson when condemning judicial activism in his followup shows he's closer to a legal idiot than a legal scholar-- that case upheld the law as legislated all the way.

His worry for society is well placed, but his fears have the wrong target. Frankly, most of this attention deficit generation seems to lack the long-term focus and the ability to compromise that seems necessary for maintaining a stable partnership. The problem is further compounded by the last several decades' economic strains on the family; now, two working parents seems all but required. The present situation is dangerous, but trying to force the clock back will trigger disaster; though it has risks, further change offers hope.

As for his wrtiting, Card isn't worth buying in hardcover (except perhaps Ender's Game itself), but I've still picked up some of his more recent books in paperback after checking them out from the local library. As for the movie... I'll wait for the reviews.

I believe R.K. Milholland, who writes Something Positive, has been addressing that issue in some recent comic strips. I'd mod him insightful, but mod points don't seem to work off slashdot for some reason....

As far as Card's stated views, he makes a better case than most religious zealots as for why gay marriage is a bad idea from a sociological standpoint. He's at least willing to argue from a sociology standpoint, which while not as rock solid a science as physics, are at least an improvement over "Thuh Bible saiyz so."

Not that his argument is convincing. I think several of his assertions in the (typical) article I noted are made with insuficient justification (EG: "Monogamous marriage is by far the most effective foundation for a civilization") or just plain wrong ("Calling a homosexual contract 'marriage' [...] will not make it contribute in any meaningful way to the propagation of civilization"). I think he is right to be concerned about the continued impact of some earlier social changes from the early to mid-20th century. The changes that have weakened "the family" over the last 50 years, that have led to the symptomatic high divorce rates and working single parents, have in turn caused major problem on a lot of levels, and that the present situation has Major Problems. Unfortunately, he sees allowing gays to marry as yet another step towards doom, instead of potentially increasing the number and variety of stable model family units for children to imprint off of, in the event that they are in a disfuntional family.

He also doesn't get that by prohibiting gays from marrying, it artificially and unjustly creates a legal discrimination of heterosexual non-reporoductive partnerships versus homosexual non-reproductive partnerships. Of course, his reference to Plessy versus Fergesson when condemning judicial activism in his followup shows he's closer to a legal idiot than a legal scholar-- that case upheld the law as legislated all the way.

His worry for society is well placed, but his fears have the wrong target. Frankly, most of this attention deficit generation seems to lack the long-term focus and the ability to compromise that seems necessary for maintaining a stable partnership. The problem is further compounded by the last several decades' economic strains on the family; now, two working parents seems all but required. The present situation is dangerous, but trying to force the clock back will trigger disaster; though it has risks, further change offers hope.

As for his wrtiting, Card isn't worth buying in hardcover (except perhaps Ender's Game itself), but I've still picked up some of his more recent books in paperback after checking them out from the local library. As for the movie... I'll wait for the reviews.

I believe R.K. Milholland, who writes Something Positive, has been addressing that issue in some recent comic strips. I'd mod him insightful, but mod points don't seem to work off slashdot for some reason....

As far as Card's stated views, he makes a better case than most religious zealots as for why gay marriage is a bad idea from a sociological standpoint. He's at least willing to argue from a sociology standpoint, which while not as rock solid a science as physics, are at least an improvement over "Thuh Bible saiyz so."

Not that his argument is convincing. I think several of his assertions in the (typical) article I noted are made with insuficient justification (EG: "Monogamous marriage is by far the most effective foundation for a civilization") or just plain wrong ("Calling a homosexual contract 'marriage' [...] will not make it contribute in any meaningful way to the propagation of civilization"). I think he is right to be concerned about the continued impact of some earlier social changes from the early to mid-20th century. The changes that have weakened "the family" over the last 50 years, that have led to the symptomatic high divorce rates and working single parents, have in turn caused major problem on a lot of levels, and that the present situation has Major Problems. Unfortunately, he sees allowing gays to marry as yet another step towards doom, instead of potentially increasing the number and variety of stable model family units for children to imprint off of, in the event that they are in a disfuntional family.

He also doesn't get that by prohibiting gays from marrying, it artificially and unjustly creates a legal discrimination of heterosexual non-reporoductive partnerships versus homosexual non-reproductive partnerships. Of course, his reference to Plessy versus Fergesson when condemning judicial activism in his followup shows he's closer to a legal idiot than a legal scholar-- that case upheld the law as legislated all the way.

His worry for society is well placed, but his fears have the wrong target. Frankly, most of this attention deficit generation seems to lack the long-term focus and the ability to compromise that seems necessary for maintaining a stable partnership. The problem is further compounded by the last several decades' economic strains on the family; now, two working parents seems all but required. The present situation is dangerous, but trying to force the clock back will trigger disaster; though it has risks, further change offers hope.

As for his wrtiting, Card isn't worth buying in hardcover (except perhaps Ender's Game itself), but I've still picked up some of his more recent books in paperback after checking them out from the local library. As for the movie... I'll wait for the reviews.

"Remember Kids: Rippy the Razor says its down the block, not across the street!"

And to give credit to the artist:
"Read Something Positive"

Angels 2200
Wandering Ones
Something Positive
The Devil's Panties
General Protection Fault
Irregular Web Comic
Alien Dice
Wapsi Square
Bruno
Clan of the Cats

There's plenty more at my web comic page.

Man you guys have low standards :-)

Something*Positive. Accept no substitutes.

I've never found anyuthing else worth reading.

Ok Randy, where's my $10?

Must you really know what the money is being spend on?
If you donate money, you are asking them to continue to offer their great service to you and other people. How they achieve that goal, is up to them, no?
Except, well, every major charitable organization of decent size issues itemized reports as to where the money is budgeted and how last years money was actually spent versus budget. So yes, I will ask the organization how they plan to spend my money before giving it. Well, except for webcomics... After all, we already know they need the money for server costs, pens, crack...ers. Can't do without those saltines.

I'm sorry, but you all deserve the abuse you get.

I'm sorry, but you all deserve the abuse you get.

I'm sorry, but you all deserve the abuse you get.

It's a myth that people will pay artists through online contributions; it just doesn't happen.

http://www.somethingpositive.net/ Best writing on the web.

Both User Friendly and Sluggy Freelance are on my daily list along with many others that are gaming or geek related. Another one that I must recommend is Something Positive, though it's strayed away from both geek and gaming topics lately.

You have other problems, like this , perhaps?

Links:
Something
Positive

R

Links:
Something
Positive

R

Soo instead of the government forcing me to do stuff it'll be my neighbors. And because the laws not written, i have no recourse. Take that Hammurabi! But i suppose we'll worry about that after we fundamentally change the human mind.

http://www.somethingpositive.net/sp12102002.shtml

Yeah, unfortunately, it's been been done before.

this is even better since there's no brie getting smushed in a pocket

So you're saying that anybody who isn't for Open Source Software lacks beliefs? Frankly, I'm insulted.

And maybe Chris Sharp isn't who you think he is. Red Hat is, after all, a software company. If Mr. Sharp worked there, and decided that the umpteen failures in their manipulation of the "OSS Model" were indemic to OSS itself, it would be foolish of him to stick by it because he "believed" in it. Maybe he decided, as many others outside of Slashdot have, that not every aspect of traditional software is inherently evil. Maybe he realized that "forced upgrades" pay the bills which fix the software and finance new development. Maybe he noticed that when you can download something for free OR pay $50 for it and get support, most people will err for free and just fight through the issues -- so if you want to make money, you can't give them the option.

My hosting business started as a web collective. Everybody was gonna pay for his percentage of the server, and we were going to be a non-profit. For art! For software! For the sheer coolness of being the first Open Cost webserver! But when it came time to pay the bills, nobody ever had the money, and since we were equal partners I couldn't well shut them off without selling out, could I? Eventually, I had to turn commercial to pay the massive hosting bill, and you know what? Selling a little webspace for a fair price was FAR BETTER from pretty much every standpoint than trying to force everybody to pitch in to a communal server. I still attracted artists and programmers, but if somebody didn't pay, I could shut off their account, and then the money came in real quick. Yeah, I guess I abandoned my morals. But the more authoritative method actually worked. And that goes pretty far in my book.

Me, I know I never want to encounter something with a "10d10+15 cornhole" attack.

Redneck trees don't look at their "conflicts" with those they encounter as combat so much as "goin' a courtin'." They usually attack with their claws in an attempt to hold down their victims and "convince" them to have unnatural premarital relations. Screams, bleeding and death are often seen as the victim's way of consenting. The claw attacks are almost always followed by the armor-piercing cornhole attack.
Redneck trees usually prefer male Elves because they "look like girlie boys,"

That's true, but you just can't go wrong with a redneck tree.

I used to think User Friendly was pretty good, but then either it's quality deteriorated, or i found other, better comics to put it in perspective.

Here's a list of (some of) the comics that in my opinion are better than User Friendly. As usual, your opinion may differ and your mileage may vary.

Adventurers! the best of the CRPG comics.
Dragon Tails comic about strange geeky dragons and a squirrel or two. (Has jokes that cover all kinds of geekery, not just the tech variety) The Wings of ChangeFantasy comic about a dragon, a girl with wings, and a group of pixie children
The Devil's Panties "Real Life" type comic about a female protagonist and a couple of her friends. Frequently touches on goth and comic geekdom, and there's a side comic about LARPs.
Sparkling Generation Valkyrie YuukiA manga style take-off on the "pretty-girl" anime genre. Has some Ranma-esque gender-bending themes if that disturbs you.
Freefall Science fiction comic, primarily focused on an kleptomaniac alien scavenger, a friendly but somewhat dim robot, and a genetically engineered anthropomorphic female wolf.
Ozy and Millie One of those comics with a world (mostly) like ours but filled with anthropomorphic animals. Frequently philisophical or political.
Something Positive "Real life" type comic with a very twisted and sometimes sick sense of humor.
Venus Envy A comic about highschool aged MtF transgendered person dealing with all the issues you'd expect such a person to be dealing with. Obviously lots of gender-bending issues.
8-bit Theater tied for second best CRPG comic.
RPG World the other tied for second best CRPG comic.
Anti-here for Hire by the author of Adventurers! Same style mostly, but with a comic-book superhero theme.
Megatokyo some people love the comic, some people can't stand it. The art is certainly pretty though in either case.
Penny Arcade people talk about it enough on Slashdot (including several mentions in this thread) that i'm not going to even bother describing it.

Okay, I'm tired of making descriptions, so some other good comics that didn't make it into the top tier (but still better than User Friendly IMHO) if you feel like looking around, PvP, Ctrl-Alt-Del, Saturnalia. The Life of Riley, No Need for Bushido

And last (just because everyone here has probably heard of it already) Sluggy, which has had its unfunny moments, but unlike User Friendly has managed to pull out of those slumps and return to its former heights every time (so far)

There's also a large set of comics that i only check every couple of weeks because they don't updated more than once a week, but are still worth taking the time to check. However i'm going to just stick to my daily list at the moment.

I have a list of about 15 web comics that I read. I enjoy them all, to varying degrees.

One thing that sort of bothers me, though, is that the comics I read tend to produced by people who aren't doing them as a business but do them because they enjoy it. They'll also use it as a way to promote other work that they do (Graphics Artists, for example).

But, frankly, this can also mean that the work is flaky, late, etc. I've seen artists decide to take three month sabbaticals because they've decided that they're burned out. Sometimes they get too busy with other tasks--they don't make a living off the comic, so if something more important comes along, they do that.

I don't complain. After all, it's free and they do it out of the kindness of their heart. One of my favorites, InkTank (he has two comics, "Angst Technology" and "Weak-end Warriors") is currently on an extended hiatus. Now, that's fine and dandy, but I'd be a little annoyed if I paid money and he suddenly decided to take a break. Where's my refund? Of course, do I want to read "corporate" comics--someone who does it to put food on his table? Like CDs, do I have to pay for two weeks of crap just for the one entertaining idea?

Actually, I like the Merchandising angle. I have a couple of Ozy and Millie T-Shirts. I try to buy stuff from my favorite sites in order to support their art.

Anyway, here's my obligatory list of some favorites:

Doctor Fun
General Protection Fault
Something Positive
You Damn Kid

Cheapasses is right. You get what you pay for, and if you're paying for impossible things, you should beware the catch. There is no such thing as unlimited bandwidth, or unlimited space...merely limits that you haven't hit yet.

A t1 line is still over $700 per month, so burstable bandwidth starts at more than $2 per gigabyte. People who are on better pipes pay way less, of course, but then again they need to maintain them, and technicians start at about $25 per hour. Servers need to be powered, backed up and maintained to prevent hackattacks. So when somebody offers you unlimited bandwidth, unlimited space, unlimited email with 24x7 support for a pretty number like $7.77 or $5.55 or whatever, they're basically lying to you.

Check your AUP. Somewhere in there you'll find a line saying that your unlimited bandwidth can be terminated at any time if you use too much of it. Unlimited really means "We're not telling you the limits. But you'll know when you hit them." Generally because your site takes off. You get popular, people start laughing at your jokes and caring about your weblog. Then your provider cuts the cord. Sucks, don't it?

See, ISPs at all levels make money by overselling. They tell you you have a T1, when really it's fractional. They tell you you have 256 kbit upstream, then it maxes at 192. The most egregious example of this is the El-Cheapo webhost, an animal I despised so much that I started my own crummy service to combat it. If you have the know-how, and you have the time, I suggest you do the same. It can be a lot of fun and offsets the cost of big web projects. Just don't harbor any dreams of getting stinko rich.

I remember the first time I had a site get "overnight popular." It was a certain web comic that we begged to come on board. In about two weeks ge went from moving 2 gig a month to over 50. And because we small timers get the short end of the bandwidth stick, his bill was about $200. Not his bill FROM us, but the bill TO us from our host for just his transfer. We didn't mark it up. That's a lot of money when you're a hobbiest. Shit, that was as much as we paid for everybody else's bandwidth that month.

We have a policy of not touching people's sites or restricting tranfer, but if we hadn't known the guy (and known he was good for the money, which his new fans donated in droves, we even threw in $30), we probably would have had to use the "no contract" clause and take the site offline. Damned if I'm paying for somebody else's popularity...

Hmmm is there a law some where against politicians having brains, they all seam to be either total loonies, or total moron's or both, this guy is clearly both, in order to stop people, committing one crime he want's to make it legal to commit a far more serious crime.

Did anybody catch this link from the PA forumns?

http://www.somethingpositive.net/arch/sp08202002.g if

I don't think they ever had to stand up for their rights.

When i wake up in the morning, I crack open the daily newspapaper and.... wait that's not true. Lets start again. When I wake up in the morning I turn on my computer, and check out... webcomics.

Angst Technology, Ctrl Alt Del, Dilbert, Errant Story, Force Monkeys, Fox Trot, goats, Life of Riley, Mac Hall, Megatokyo, Misfire, Penny Arcade!, Sinfest, Something Positive, and finally Wendy.

Then, after my daily webcomic barage (not to say that these all update on a daily basis. Some are good [ like ctrl alt del, and penny arcade ] and update regularly. others... well...) I frequent other sites, for information.

Slashdot of course (not linking it...)
Gamespot
Games workshop,
and
Unconventional Conformity.

Other than that, I have a few sites i goto every so often. Or ones which i check throughout the day. But they become less important than the comics.
-Gharbad

• Machall - best..webcomic...ever (updates: "tues, thurs, sat" but more like when he gets around to it)
• Penny Arcade - a very popular, and very funny gaming comic (M W F)
• Megatokyo - a well drawn comic with a strong story mangaish (M W F)
• Ctrl-Alt-Del - cut and paste, but always funny (Daily)
• Something Positive - kinda cut and paste, but often very funny (daily)
• Real Life - cut and paste, but still a pretty funny gaming comic (mostly daily)
• Calvin and Hobbes - rereleasing C+H online, 10 years delayed...my personal fav (daily)
• Errant Story - a well drawn, story based modernish fantasy comic (updates every other day or so)
• Angst Technology - a game software firm and their antics (updates almost daily)

• (as if you need the link)Slashdot
• CBC News Canadian news from the CBC
• Debian Planet good debian news
• Footnotes GNOME news
• Ars Technica another tech site, often has interesting projects too...
• Anime News Network exactly what the name implies.
• Unconventional Conformity a blog.
• The Weather Network - for my local weather
• 
  
  And well, thats about it. That I check frequently at least. I do like webcomics and strongly suggest that you check out Machall Megatokyo and Errant Story if you don't already though! And then there's also everything2 but its not news and I can't check it daily (or else I would do nothing all day but read!) its too good at just drawing you in. And the anime turnpike to go browsing through Anime fansites...

I don't know of any way to follow a link in a graphical browser without using a mouse

As I said, I'm an exception in that I *really* like to type. Mozilla let's you type in the letter in the anchor text on a page and then you go to that link by hitting enter. So if you had a page like this:

Check out the latest news, nature news and comics

You could type n and then enter to follow the news link, or type na to go to the nature link (news would also get you to news) or c and go to the comics link. Then hit enter. Or ctrl+enter for a new tab, then ctrl+ page down and page up to navigate your tabs.

Not everyone likes to use the keyboard as much as I do, I'm the first to admit it. And both gestures and keyboard shortcuts should be present. Not everyone has the manual dexterity to use a mouse only interface. Some people use a wand to hit the keys because they can't control their hands or arms well enough to use the mouse. Luckily, I'm pretty dexterous, which is one reason I like keyboard shortcuts.

Now you know how to navigate links in mozilla without a mouse. And knowing is have the battle. ;)

wonder what happens if the trees develop intelligence and start walking around like Ents.

might give 'being rooted' a whole new meaning

Many comic artists are moving to selling dead tree versions to raise money. I'm also glad to see that more of the comics that sell t-shirts are moving away from cafe press: example MegaTokyo has gotten a store on ThinkGeek. In fact due to recent circumstances Piro is trying to make a living off being an artist. The problem is that very few webcomics are actually good, or even updated regulary.

And now the obligatatory comic plugs:
Something Positive
Errant Story

For Something Positive, I think that this strip sums it up nicely... There was another one that I wanted to post, but it's too far back and I'm too lazy to look for it.

Oh, and since everyone else is doing it, here's a link to one of my favorite comics... word of warning, the strip that's up now doesnt do justice to it....

"Ya know, it's not that God ass-fucks me every chance he gets that pisses me off so much as that annoying laughter of his I constantly hear in the back of my mind." - Davan, Something Positive

but this is the new slashdot, and all AC's should be moderated down to -1, Troll just for bothering to post.

Oh, and Seth Finkelstein sucks. I might as well get this moderated -1 Troll since I'm posting this, but goddamn, I've never heard one man cry like such a bitch before in my entire life. "Whahhhaaaaaaa, big bad slashdot editor got me kicked out of my covent for summoning a redneck tree!!!"

FEH!

And that's one of the problems with modern capitalism...in the odd case that you don't claim to know nothing and be irresponsible, you're inviting people to sue you. How many times have I heard in the same breath "X Co, Inc, is a huge, evil, corrupt institution with no care for its customers" and "let's sue them so we can have money?"

I run a very small (read: profits are almost half my car payment) web hosting service under the flag of openness and freedom of content. I started it because I got upset that every single host I went with wanted to corral me into a year contract, tell me what I couldn't do or say and take credit and the ability to edit my personal thoughts and ideas. Originally, it was a co-op, and I began to take on extra users who wanted the same thing -- ownership of their work and a fair charge for the low bandwidth they were moving.

In the past three months we've grown a dozen times larger -- so big that I no longer know every site op by name. Now, I don't want to have to force the new people to sign a TOS or a EULA. I think that posting the rules on the frontpage should be good enough for everybody. But I'm afraid. We've had a couple users ask if they could serve porn, and when I said no a few signed up anyway. I trust them (and check my logs), but if I go away on vacation and one of them starts serving nude shots of Frankie Muniz, I'm the one who gets in trouble. I'm the one who's got his name on the tax forms, and I don't intend to incorporate the business.

So I'm stuck. I want to let users do their own thing, own their own shit, but I'm the one who's ass is on the line. If one site slips up, they all go down. Everybody loses their stuff and all the good I've tried to do, all the bright young folks I've formed relationships with are scrambling for a new host. Someday soon I'll need to call my lawyer (okay, I don't have a lawyer to call my own, I'll have to pick a name out of the phone book) and have him draw me up a plan for a TOS. It'll probably be pretty brutal. Legally, I'll have to claim responsibility or ownership over users and content so I'll have the ability to pull it if I have to. And I'll have to do the same stupid shit, bowing to C&Ds and dropping user info and so forth.

It won't make me as a host and as a person any more of an asshole. I won't trade email addresses for cigarettes or claim rights to rkm's work. But I'll look just as corporate and uncaring as the rest.

Just think about it, baby, before you hate the legalese. You can't avoid being screwed without screwing somebody on paper. At the end of the day, it all comes down to who you trust, and after these long years with Slashdot, OSDN and SourceForge, I guess I trust VA. I have to, they designed my new server!

Shameless plug: webslum.net. Say you read this post and I'll give you a free shell :)