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1. Start making things more reliable on the backend. For starters, put IPCop in as a firewall, place all the machines behind it. On the backend you can use the best tool for the job, and no one knows you're running Linux/FreeBSD/OS X.
2. Once that is working well, move e-mail to something web based like SquirrelMail. SquirrelMail acts like an IMAP client, so all you have to do is turn on imap on exchange and you can start using SquirrelMail with it. This help immensely with setting people up with e-mail, and users can still use any client they would like if they prefer.
3. Set up the mail server to drop anything with an executable extension and .zip extension.
4. Set up an online trouble ticket system. Do not fix anything unless it is put in the system. This helps in several ways, you automatically have a written record of everything you've done, and you can more easily prioritize what needs to be done. It also stops people from stopping you in the hall to fix "just this one quick thing". When they say they couldn't put it in the help desk because their computer wasn't working, show them that there is always another classroom/computer that is closer than the phone.
5. Lock the computers down. Do not allow anyone to install anything. Show them the SPA website and how the district is liable for $150,000 for each infringement of illegally installed software. This should help you convince the superintendent and BOE of the policy.
6. Setup file server and accounts for every person. Allow any person to use any computer and have their documents and settings follow them.
7. Learn Ghost or your favorite imaging software and Windows RIS. Tie this in with the step above, if you can't fix the problem in 15 minutes, re-image the machine. DeepFreeze might be another product to look into.
8. You must have a filtering solution put in place to be compliant with e-rate and COPA. We use SquidGuard, but there is also Dan's Guardian, which can be plugged into IPCop. Block all Active X controls with filtering. Once people get tired of IE not working, they might be more acceptable to Firefox.
9. The easiest way to get them to use Firefox is to install it on the machine, remove Internet Explorer. Put the Firefox shortcut on the desktop, but replace the icon with the one from Internet Explorer and rename the shortcut Internet Explorer. This also works to migrate people to OpenOffice.org. :-)

The fastest way to gain the respect of others is to start writing grants. Once you are bringing in new equipment and monies from grants, people will start to trust you.

No matter how stable and secure the network and computers are, staff will still believe they are unstable. It's just something you have to shrug off.

The Software & Information Industry Association hasn't been the Software Publishers Associtaion since the last millennium. The estimate that the macs account for 16% of personal computers is, at the very least, 7 years old!

Not really, since the Software and Information Industry Association is the same as the Software Publishers Association (SPA)

Why is this here? Suprnova is for software and video pirates. It's a prime example of the non-legitimate use of bittorrent. Seriously, just become some losers on Slashdot steal movies doesn't mean the site should become a news tracker for them.

If you aren't willing to pay for something, then you should just live without it!

Report Piracy

First off, from what I've read, it says ON THE CD that it contains copy protection and that it's doing so in conjunction with Windows and Mac operating systems.

This is an ambigious statement at best. There is an existing standard for redbook discs for copy protection in the form of a copy-prohibit bit. This is why you need ripping programs rather then using the OS to copy track x to the HD. While this form of protection is worthess as we have good workarounds to allow digital transfer of audio ignoring the CD-rom's firmware, near as i'm aware it still exists. Further, Windows won't allow you to copy track x to the HD, it automacticly creates a link to the CD. This could the the copy protection that works in conjunction with Windows. Not sure about the mac. The way I read your statement, I would have naturaly assumed that it refered to the existing Redbook standard and Windows and Mac not letting you copy it.

I can't blame anyone for not understanding the meaning of this disclaimer because it says nothing about installing 3rd party software. Further, if they were to admit it is software rather then a licensed music entertainment disk, then the law according to the SIAA states while licenses are diffrent you are allowed to make one backup of your software. By making a release on what is clearly a hybrid disk I would argue that stops being a music record and becomes software as we know and love it and subject to the same laws and regulations. My belief isn't law, but it makes a very valid arugument.

Separation packages can suck. Mine was 1 week of pay after 4.5 years of service, which is substandard by any measure. It's little wonder you see ads from Software & Information Industry Association tech job sites encouraging you to report software piracy. SIIA understands that many companies are really treating IT workers like Kleenex.

Quite honestly, if I was asked to code such a feature in a product I was writing for a company, I'd refuse. Management changes pretty often, and tactics can change overnight. I have written copy protection schemes, but not ones that specifically sent identifiable information - I just made to program not work when cracked and display a dialog box.

RIAA/MPAA Nightmare

add to that spa and idsa among others...

1. - Riverdeep Interactive Learning
2. 
   - Edge Technology Group
   - Oracle Corporation
   - AOL Time Warner
   - The Thomson Corporation
   - Borland Software Corporation
   - The McGraw-Hill Companies
   - Citrix Systems, Inc.
   - NetSchools Corporation
   - Bloomberg, L. P.
   - RealNetworks
   - Reed Elsevier Inc.
   - Sun Microsystems, Inc.
   - Novell, Inc.

Is a list of SIIA members. Its important that we know who we are dealing with.

Back in mid-April, the state of California bought $95M worth of Oracle software, which turned out to include more licenses than the state has employees, at a taxpayer cost of $41M more than necessary.

I'm just waiting for the inevitable SPA Audit.

Being a software pirate, I'd love to see this used to store games...

Ooooh, I'm telling the SPA on yooou.

Interesting. I'd forwarded some to them, 'tho I'd thought that was only for the FTC's information gathering.

Relevant to some might be the US Postal Inspectors Service, at fraud@uspis.gov -- to which I resend pretty much every pyramid scheme I get that involves a US postal address, which is pretty much all of them; the enforcement branch of the Securities and Exchange Commission enforcement@sec.gov, to which I resend probable attempts at securities manipulation; and netpiracy@spa.org, for people who appear to be advertising for pirated software (plus I resend such to relevant specific companies that are likely large enough to have anti-piracy people, such as Microsoft).

• warez
• porn
• mp3s
• divx movies
• book-warez
• keeping up with my favorite cartoons.

I've done a lot of research on copyright laws, and I've decided that if the Content Control Industries are going to throw around their propaganda ("The best strategy is to contact the publisher to find out if a license is available for your specific needs. The rule of thumb is to assume that 'fair use' does not apply." -- The SPA ) then I can throw around my propaganda:

• Unless it's for commercial gain or more than $1,000 in the period of 180 days, it's not criminal infringement. US Code Title 17: Sec. 506.
• For criticism, or classroom use, or educational purposes, or research, it is fair use. If the copying does not effect the potential market, then it also is probably fair use. US Code Title 17: Sec. 107.

That's not exactly what the law states, but that's a lot closer than "fair use does not exist. Buy a license."

The software piracy laws are probably the ones that affect the most people, and the ones that more people break than any other. Just try to estimate how many illegal copies of Word are in your company. The IT guys are usually too overworked to keep proper track of the CDs.

The SPA has large fines but can only audit so many companies a year. 3prong

I bet that the Software Publishers Association is happy with this.

Any bets on whether this makes the prosecutor's career or not?

Why switch?

Umm, economics? Did you really pay over $100,000 for 3500 client access licenses or should we report you to the SPA?

Chuck

The only contact info found in the zone file is the e-mail address in the SOA of the zone itself, and while name server maintainers probably get their share of junk e-mail, there is no point in downloading the entire .COM zone (with some 3.5 million subdomains) in order to find out that <hostmaster@INTERNIC.NET> is the maintainer of that zone.

Thus, I can't say I'm buying into the anti-UCE argument in this case. What exactly have they done to that end?

As long as they merely prevent bulk access to the entire thing, but I can still access individual records as needed, I don't mind too much.

The Software Publishers Association spammed a number of e-mail addresses found in the WHOIS once (I could tell, because my WHOIS address is not used for anything else) merely to "inform" me that my FTP server could be used for distribution of pirated software! They haven't apologized yet, and I haven't reported a single case of piracy to them since.