Slashdot Mirror
Fair Use Computer Game
mpawlo writes "As reported by Greplaw, The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) together with Privacyactivism has released an interactive video game designed to
educate players about their privacy and fair use rights. The game is focused on digital rights management technologies, online spyware, and data profiling servers. We have seen similar games in Sweden from the Anti-piracy Bureau and Flash movies from BSA in the US, however striking a different tune. Play Carabella." Cute idea.
"Carabella is a modern girl. She's hip. She's wired."...and she's got huge jugs, so the /. crew should love it! wohoo! Bring on the large pixelated breasts!
Of course, sex sells, so go for it EFF!
If you like the game....donate.
Sent from your iPad.
Too bad the 'game' didn't really give me any background info.
"I might have infringed copyrights." What if I did?
Are they coming to get me now?
Also check out http://action.eff.org/tinseltown/.
This "game" seems all too reminiscent of the kind of "edutainment" that the War on Drugs has been pumping out. If parents want their children to love liberty, then they should teach them about it when the children are old enough to understand. Trying to brainwash them with video games will work until they're 15, at which point they'll run away from home, become pot-addicted prostitutes, and join the Christian Coalition.
Karma: Good (despite my invention of the Karma: sig)
a Q3 or UT mod would of been more popular
:)
just imagine, running around fragging bots called B3D and the other spyware/adware etc... stuff, now that IMHO would be fun
Don't look for music online, unless you're willing to obtain it illegally.
The best place to legally buy music is still a record shop.
Import albums give you more rights than most US releases.
Summing it up, if you want your rights back, stay offline and move abroad.
free the mallocs!
Would anyone actually 'play' this who wasn't interested already to know the entire content of the game?
Content of the Game:
That's about the extent of the game.
Why not just send out a press release?
going to be as good as TuxRacer?
It's impossable.
... Did I mention flash was evil? :)
:)
If you use any of their listed p2p networks you pirate music and loose privacy.
If you subscribe you don't get your mp3 player working.
If you go out and buy the non-copyprotected CD, you loose money, thus points.
That game sucks.
Still, It's good to raise awareness. See if I can head off a few "snowball fight" emails by replying with a url to this page and a "if you forward it to 10 people in the next 20 mins something funny will pop up on your screen. I don't know how" message. That should inform the people in need
Okay, so I'm bored and on lunch break, so I played the game. Seems there's no way to get 100%. Is there? Unless she steals the import CD, of course... but that's not an option. It's just a way to promo their efforts to get people behind their cause... Yet, no one in real life will score "100%" either because there is always going to be a cost, unless you download from a P2P system. Of course, then you get copyright infringement issues. The real option should have been, buy the cheaper CD, then d/l the songs you then own. You've paid for use of the music, so use it. Or, maybe, download a ripper that recognizes and overwrites the copy-protection bit. ;)
Never attribute to Hanlon that which can be adequately attributed to Heinlein.
The reason is to get you to go back and try all the other options so you learn the respective consequences. About the only thing they missed was going to the band's website to see if they had any mp3's available for download.
I didn't get full score...
Does anyone know a cheat for this game?
BTW, I'm also looking for the No-CD patch...
Oh yes, and my dog ate my serial number. Can anyone help me?
Thanks!
(Parody of posts that usually go up on forums as soon as a game is released... Guess it won't be happening here! Trust the EFF to take all those kinds of fun away...)
EFF really hedged on the issue of using P2P networks... they said by downloading the band's tunes (sold at a normal CD store), you "may" have violated copyright.
Well duh, of course you did. I know there may be 100% legal uses of P2P networks, but the scenario described in the game doesn't come close to any of them. (And thus the game fails to fully illustrate how the current system sucks for someone committed to not breaking the law.) But I guess if it gets kids to read all that legalistic interpretation of what may and may not be legal, it's worth the hedging, eh? Carabella definitely violated copyright in that scenario. Am I missing something?
Still, their 'faq' of sorts was pretty good at addressing a lot of issues in a reasonably short space.
--LP
So, I go to the site.
Play the game
It tells me I should surf anonymously.
I try the privacy.net page to see what I leave behind.
I go to the recommended www.anonymizer.com.
Put in the privicy.net page to check what they really do:
-------------
This Page is available with an Aonymizer subscription
WHY IS THE PAGE UNAVAILABLE
The Anonymizer Free Trial version restricts access to some web sites in order to keep the service working quickly and efficiently, without overloading.
Sites most often restricted include gaming, casino, adult, career, and web email sites. Other sites may be restricted at random as well.
Our Full Version premium service DOES NOT restrict access to any pages, costs less than $5 per month, and has many more features than the free version. Sign up now!
---------------
So, in order to check out what they are trying to sell me, I need to subscribe?
On to the next (rewebber):
---------------
WELCOME TO REWEBBER!
You are a registered user of our regular service? Please press the button
You do not have a valid Rewebber account yet? We are very pleased about your interest and give you the option to test our service for free.
Please register for your test account
---------------
Registering REQUIRES an email account that they will send a testing password to (sure, mail accounts are easy to come by, but it is kind of a bother to just have a look at the results.
NEXT: http://www.multiproxy.org
No Data. This is a site that appears to exist to sell ads to you in the most annoying way they can. It's a freeware thing you load and appears to - damn, another ad floated in and blocked that part of the page.
Next: www.inetprivacy.com
35 bucks. Although it says you can download from a broken link.
---------------
Overall, pretty bad results from the EFF recommended way of surfing without leaving a trail.
Spackler
PS: I ran these from IE (hence the floating ads that I had not seen in a while). Man, this is how people surfed before Mozilla?
.... if you hack the game. :)
Kobyashi Maru, anyone?
Mod Karma -1: I sed bad wurds. If I cep my mouf shut, I wud be at riyses.
Seems to mirror the ??AA stance on online sales. I know it's off-topic, but if these ??AA's would just look ahead then you could get 100% score on this stupid game!
Get your Unix fortune now!
So if I choose Limewire, there is no privacy issues? Audio Galaxy is -25 in score and Kazaa is -40.
The last time I saw Limewire, it was the most spyware infested software I have ever but maybe that has changed?
The end text mentions loss of privacy when using AudioGalaxy and Kazaa, but not Limewire? So what am I missing here. Has Limewire cleaned up their act? Or are their spying just not as bad as the others?
my sig
So, the game links to a site http://www.multiproxy.org/ which seems to me to have ad's for that infernal Bonzi buddy, a spyware program. :)
The site contains a list of open proxies that you can use to anonymize your surfing.
it seems to me that the list is made from a scan and in the end the page reads:
"Disclaimer: this list is provided for information purposes only. Use it on your own risk. Legally you need to ask a permission to use any of the proxy servers in this list. I shall not be responsible for any damages of any kind arising out of use of these servers and the list itself."
So, I know that we could start a discussion about people not securing their proxies have really asked for it. But still I think that these things it does not really give the game a lot of credibility. But maybe that's just me.
my sig
Internet Junkbuster for the uninformed... now in a nice prog called Privoxy over at sourceforge... kills the most, they got one broken filter that's annoying sometimes but besides that I almost don't edit the actions file
Kjella
Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
Okay, I know the story was about the EFF's cute little game, but after watching that BSA thing, I have something I need to say about them, and [graphics] software in general.
;)
/god/ did I think of that! I mean, come on! When Lightwave was still $2500, you could get an academic copy for $900... Unfortunately, I don't even know anyone who is IN school.
/. history.
First off, */sarcasm* you have no idea how many software packages I've paid for with money I picked up while on a quest, inside my computer, to destroy an evil virus. */sarcasm*
Now, seriously. Why is every useful piece of graphics software like $500 and up? Your average private individual who may want such software, because of an interest in a particular profession, isn't likely to be able to afford it.
For instance, for the budding computer animator. There are only two real choices, Newtek's Lightwave 3D, and Alias|Wavefront's Maya (I don't much like the software personally, but it too is worth a mention because they do TWO things right).
Both companies just drastically lowered the prices on the packages, making them MUCH more accessible (They're still really expensive, but when you think about how much an animator can make WITH it, you can understand).
Why aren't more companies doing that? I mean, only professionals can afford the software (And they WILL buy EVERY version, WHEN it comes out), but to become a professional, you have to know the software, and probably have already done some work with it.
I think more companies should do things like release learning editions of their software (Like A|W), so that people who can't afford the software can atleast gain valuable experience that could help them get somewhere in their chosen profession (Which would in turn mean they could probably afford the software!), the other option is to lower the prices drastically. (which I can't really see any of the other companies doing...)
Now, to handle as many of the obvious replies as I could think of...
Q. You keep talking about experience, why not go to school for it?
A. Uhm, we're talking about not being able to afford software, so you suggest some kind of higher education? And what if the person is say, still in high school?
Q. What about academic versions of software?
A. Oh
Q. Get a job hippie!!
A. Okay, that's not EVEN a question. And, I have one. Also, I am not a hippie.
Q. Well, if you have a job, why aren't you saving up to buy your software?
A. I do, I have, I will probably continue to do so until my demise. Thankfully, I was not speaking for myself (not anymore anyway). I was speaking, once again, in general. Some of the greatest minds of our generation are flipping burgers in some McHell(TM) somewhere (or working some equally crappy job). Do you really see someone in such a job (or two, for that matter) being able to save up for such software (realistically. I don't mean over the course of several millenia)? Oh darn. And that one was the next George Lucas...
In closing:
I'm actually lucky enough to have managed (Through several arcane rituals, human sacrifices, and a connection), to get a job that allows me to afford my software, (even Lightwave! Although it took saving for a couple versions AND the price drop), but most aren't as fortunate (ESPECIALLY aspiring artists!).
If companies such as Adobe (And Newtek still, despite their already incredible price drops.) lowered their prices to something more affordable to the average up-and-coming, their userbase would be that much bigger, because those same people who would otherwise either pirate the software, or simply be screwed, are now part of the userbase!
Of all the things in the world, I think human creativity is one of the most valuable. It would be nice if the companies that supply this generation's paintbrushes felt the same way.
I've never seen anything modded 'insane rantings' before... Let's see if I can make
This ofcourse is all my subjective opinion, and it probably has little-to-no basis in what the rest of you like to call 'reality'.
Well, that's fine.
I don't work with reality.
Friend: "The NIC is misconfigured..." Me: "No prob, I'll just telnet in and fix it." *Silence*
was i the only one that wept for Carabella when i could get her NO music AND i compromised her privacy? damn that bonzai buddy. damn you.
Go to a concert, enjoy the artist, buy the album right there. The CDs can be cheaper, they provide instant gratification, they are anonymous with cash (and mostly, they don't accept credit card), and generally more money goes to the artist because of the fewer middle men.
Oh yeah, and you get to go to a concert, which is usually a better experience than just listening to the CD. Unless it's one of these bands/people that didn't start off playing clubs and such, but jumped into a studio....
Live music is where you get the most entertainment, and the artist gets the most money.
--Matthew