Slashback: Towel, Linkage, Drafthouse

Slashback tonight with more on deep linking, wireless access during Spider-Man, abusing terrycloth, Linux on the mainframe and more. Read on below to find the details. Update: 05/15 15:00 GMT by T : (Note the two updates below re: Towel Day, Observed.)

They're also good for drying off after bathing. Snitty writes "Douglas Adams passed away a little over a year ago now, and as tradition will soon dictate the first Thursday after May 11th every year is International Towel Day. This happens to be this Thursday, so make sure you all show up to the 12:01 am showing of Attack of the Clones with your favorite lightsaber and a towel. Always know where your towel is."

Update: 05/15 00:11 GMT by T : Hmmm -- this seems to clash with a link another reader submitted, which suggests "the last Friday of every May," which this year would be the 31st.

Update: 05/15 15:00 GMT by T : D Clyde Williamson writes: "Towel Day (since I'm the guy who started it) is on May 25th every year." So ... it's not a portable feast?

Three guesses where they each get that money from. mblase writes "CNet, among others, informed its readers that Macromedia successfully countersued Adobe for patent infringement to the tune of $4.9 million, almost double the $2.8 million Adobe recently won from Macromedia. The article notes Macromedia has another patent suit against Adobe going to court in June 2003."

Listening material when Prairie Home Companion is over. Ender, Duke_of_URL writes "The second portion of Rep. Boucher's interview is up (MP3). This has been discussed previously on Slashdot."

They're also opposed to front doors. dringess writes "Wired has yet another article about deep linking. This one has some fun lawyer rebuttals. I guess I am deep linking right now!"

I especially like this quote: "... but this would set a terrible precedent implying that links have to have a certain amount of ads."

Keeps popcorn out of your keyboard, at least. smashed writes: "After being slashdotted and geekaustin'd and touted for being the first theater with wireless access .... I went to see Spider-Man tonight at the Alamo Drafthouse North in Austin. Apparently you can't have 'electronic devices on' during the feature. I was warned if I didn't shut down my laptop I had to leave by some girl that worked for the theater. The world's first Cyber-Theater my ass. Nice try, but apparently wireless users are absolutely not welcomed there when a movie is playing. I'm very disappointed. I couldn't even have my PocketPC with wireless NIC on while the movie was on. Was I taking off down the runway on an airplane? What's the point?"

Wouldn't you like a mainframe in the closet? Writing in regards to this posting on Linux on mainframes, rudy writes: "Your reference was to the first one in the series, the second one has been up for about a week and the third, and last, one in the series will go on late this week or early next."

Comments

Towel day site says 25th

[Anonymous Coward]

http://www.systemtoolbox.com/towelday/

Says 42 days after his death. What's up with the 15th?

Copyright infringement

[www.sorehands.com]

There has been ruling that the act of loading a webpage into a browser is copyright infringment. This is in a case where the user did not, or was not supposed to have access to that web page.

Under this theory a deap link into a pasword protected site (like NYT) could be a contributory infringment.

Thursday after May 11th?

[JMMurphy]

I was under the impression that Towel Day was May 25th. A quick search reveals (http://www.systemtoolbox.com/towelday/) that at least some people consider May 25th to be Towel Day...

I, presonally, have been prepping my towels for the 25th, and I don't think I'll change my plans in light of this Slashdot story.

random

Re:Wireless devices during a movie

[wik]

Here at CMU, we have dollar movies 4 times a week in a theater with good sound. We also have a wireless network throughout campus. In the past, I have been guilty of bringing my laptop to movies so I can code while waiting in line (shouldn't I be talking with friends? Maybe). I haven't done this in a long time, however.

I saw a number of other people with laptops and I found it incredibly distracting -- even before the movie, when the lights are on. When the lights are out, it's even worse. It's not like a cell phone that runs four times before someone finally shuts it off. If you sit behind it, you can't help but glance at the glowing screen. It doesn't matter whether you're in the row just behind the person, or twenty rows back, it's still annoying.

I'd also say similar things about people who bring their laptops to class and browse the web without listening, while in the front row, but I'm rambling now. :) In short, be polite. If you don't want to watch the movie or participate in class, go to sleep or go away. Don't distract the rest of us who care.

Re:What's the point?

[Wanker]

Well, to quote the austinwireless.net site:

Some may ask, why would I want internet access while in a movie theater?

Well you could:

• See Theater Schedules & Order Movie Tickets to coming shows.
• Messaging to Fellow Movie goers adjacent in the crowd without talking.
• Messaging to Fellow Movie goers in adjacent screens in multi-screen venues without talking.
• Surfing to related or official websites for the current movie showing.
• Surfing to the InternetMovieDataBase for related data to movie, actors and screen writers.
• Connecting to promotions related to movie sponsor.
• Driving the movie content in real-time via audience response in Digital Theaters.
• Ordering Food and drinks from the kitchen and bar without talking.
• Ordering the movie soundtrack online or video releases in advance.
• Watching an alternate streaming movie if the one on the big screen doesn't make it for you.

It would seem that they were trying to set things up exactly to do the sorts of things they prevented "smashed" from doing.

Just when IS towel day?

[Galvatron]

According to the old h2g2 site, the first towel day was May 25th, which happened to be the last Friday of the month. The author of that node therefore suggests that it always be the last Friday of the May. This explains why some people think it's May 25th and some think the last Friday of May. Where the first Thursday after May 11th came from, I have no idea. To allow those of us with sufficiently lenient casual Friday policies to participate, the last Friday of May sounds more reasonable.

Re:Different Kind of Theater

[Soulslayer]

Ok some adiitional info about the Alamo Drafthouse.

Orders are taken before the show and during previews.

Staff are very quiet and make as little noise or visual (crouching once the feature presentation has started) distraction as possible.

One of the theater created bumpers before the show is a clip from the 80's version of "The Blob" where a noisy movie patron is blabbing in a normal conversation tone about what is happening on the screen and gets consumed by the blob. At which point giant block letters come on the screen to inform the Drafthouse crowd that if you talk during the the presentaion, "We'll kick your ass out."

The wireless access is very cool for the drafthouse type crowd that typically arrives 30 minutes to an hour before the showing to get their seats and order and wants something to do while waiting for the movie.

People like the guy that was acting all annoyed about being told to close his notebook are just as bad as the people that feel they have the right to leave their phones on audible ring and talk in loud voices like the theater was their own personal living room. Wireless access does not equate to the right to do whatever you want.

As a movie-aholic that frequents the Alamo Drafthouse among many of the other theaters in Austin there are times when I totally feel like this Real Life comicstrip.

If you can't have basic respect for other people trying to watch the movie stay home, please.