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Verizon Changes FiOS AUP, -1, Offtopic
RasputinAXP writes "Verizon has changed their FiOS AUP effective yesterday, and added an interesting new clause to their specific examples that we're all familiar with: 'it is a violation of the Agreement and this AUP to ... post off-topic information on message boards, chat rooms or social networking sites.' At this point, every FiOS-based Slashdot user is breaking the new AUP."
I think it was a cool game. Clever plot, movie-like experience that took your breath away and huge explosions. It was sad that there wasn't more of those sneaky sniper missions however.
Multiplayer is cool with it's leveling and perks, which actually matter quite a lot. Your characters abilities are totally different based on your perks. Co-op play is also great fun.
What do you think?
funny picture
My experience with Windows ME wasn't exactly a good one. As soon as I installed a second hard drive, it would bluescreen at boot. XP was better back then (when it was first released).
Have you guys ever rolled up pickles in a slice of ham? It's really good.
anyways, guys, i wanted to tell you about this new band i'm listen to. it's called gently liv###
[NO CARRIER]
intellectual property law is philosophically incoherent. it is your moral duty to ignore it or sabotage it
Go Fu*NO CARRIER
The Red Sox, the Yankees, the Phillies and the Angels are interested in Roy Halladay.
Anyone have any other baseball related news?
General Relativity: Space-time tells matter where to go; Matter tells space-time what shape to be.
At this point, every FiOS-based Slashdot user is breaking the new AUP.
I think I'll be the first one to stay ON TOPIC!!!
Seriously though - how are they going to enforce this without reading the information I'm sending over the net. Shouldn't that be Illegal?
As a FIOS user, this is total BS.
On an unrelated note...
[NO CARRIER]
I'm going straight to hell!
And that is why I refuse to use Verizon. Besides, comcast cable internet is faster anways...
I'm not posting off topic, YOU are posting off topic!
If I were a Verizon FiOS customer I would change my sig to "That may seem off topic but it isn't." See? These aren't the droids you are looking for, after all.
Anyone seen any cows recently? I always love when they go 'Moo'.
Discuss.
bah.
(b) transmit uninvited communications, data or information, or engage in other similar activities, including without limitation, "spamming", "flaming" or denial of service attacks;
You people at Verizon are a bunch of asswipes.
Let's stay on topic. It's in the AUP.
This may be overbroad wording in response to spam comments or the like (remember the Christmas store junk that kept getting posted here over the last few weeks?). The wording is broad, but that may very well be to make sure that they can reasonably catch it all and respond.
Sorry if that's too ontopic. I guess I could help that out by copy and pasting some hot fanfic but a quick google search doesn't show any Steven Chu/Terry Tao slash.
you may not store any material or use Verizon's systems or servers in any manner that constitutes an infringement of third party intellectual property rights, including under US copyright law.
Storing items protected by the DMCA is not against the law. Copying illegally DRM protected items is. I think they got that one confused.
Who otherwise have paid up Verizon accounts in good standing.
They want a legal way to be able to shitcan them.
do i even need to bring up the constitution here? free speech anyone?
Wouldn't that rule out a whole lot of ISPs and governments?
So tonight President Obama is going to announce he's sending more troops into Verizon to help quell the fears that this company is too large to fail.
for the 'hot grits' industry.
"[I]t is a violation of the Agreement and this AUP to[...] (b) transmit uninvited communications, data or information"
They don't even say "unwanted" or some such term. According to the letter of their AUP, discovering an old friend's email address (or Facebook page... whatever people use these days) and sending the friend a message "may lead to termination of your Service". They could replace their entire AUP with an at-will statement and it would be no less unconscionable.
Of course, cutting off anyone who sends yet another "e-card" might actually be justified, and according to AUP 2.b, they could do it. :)
Obviously, it's not likely they will enforce the AUP in an egregiously Draconian manner, but I for one would prefer having the outlandish bits *implied* rather than expressly stated. It just looks cleaner. On the other hand, they didn't quite go completely Pythonesque on us:
Comment removed based on user account deletion
Verizon Usenet may not be accessed via any other network. You may open no more than five simultaneous connections to newsgroups at any one time. We reserve the right in our sole discretion, with or without notice to you, to add or subtract Usenet Newsgroups and to modify or restrict the bandwidth available to download content from our Usenet Newsgroup services, or to suspend or terminate our Usenet Newsgroup services (or portions thereof) at any time, with or without notice.
I don't know how scared I should be that they have clauses in their AUP regarding the Newsgroups. It's the one last bastion of free speech and high bandwidth...
Because being a Linux fanboy was too mainstream.
Best Slashdot Co
Because now Veri$on will be able to disconnect anybody for any reason under the pretext of breaking a rule. Quite convenient. Same with government and the thousands of laws.
Not every law is applied to everybody, but when anybody becomes inconvenient, there are enough laws to take them out of the picture.
The more numerous the laws, the more corrupted the state.
Instead of exhorting everyone to post something off-topic (like someone wouldn't have done it on their own), the summary should have mentioned that this amendment was probably the service's way of disowning trolls, and making it easier to take away their service if someone complains to the telco.
So they overpaid for the lawyer who wrote their TOS? Should they continue to waste more money on that and raise customer's prices?
Classic case of the "open container" law (here in USia) - it gives Verizon an ace in the hole, if they ever need to cut your service for (say) "overuse" - they can sniff your traffic or get an "anonymous" person to complain, and whack your account.
I want to delete my account but Slashdot doesn't allow it.
Can someone please google AUP and tell me what it is?
Winkey shortcut mapping for 64bit windows. WinKeyPlus
If they actually tried to enforce this wouldn't this just get shot down it court? I was somewhat under the impression that legal agreements i.e. terms of service etc. could not in any way restrict a persons constitutional rights?
The point is not if Cpt Caveman can make a good burger using moose meat, its whether or not Modern Warfare 2 should be made to be played on my nieces Elmo learning computer while listening to Oingo Boingo. I wish everyone would take time and truly understand what the article is talking about.
Watch out, the Verizon Internet Police will put a stop to your trolling efforts!
There's no -1 for "I don't get it."
So have you guys heard the music of a group called Sieges Even? Great progressive rock, and they say they don't make good music anymore these days.
petrified Natalie Portland with hot grits.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
Kicked New England's butt, they did. ..bruce..
Bruce F. Webster (brucefwebster.com)
Sailing is a really great sport and you guys should all try it! Speaking of which, anyone have a 1990 or newer Hobie Cat 16 for sale? Preferably in the western US?
Add 3 tablespoons sugar and simmer for 15 minutes over a low flame.
What the hell is a FiOS AUP, and what are the examples that we're all familiar with?
That shows up as the first on-topic post... too bad it was cut short. Is that the "Don't rub our noses in our shit," clause of their new AUP?
SIG: HUP
Yes.
Wait...
Crap!
How DARE you break the terms of your agreement! Have we stooped so low? What next? Downloading of Movies, Music, etc?
I could have put up with Comcast when it assimilated my local cable franchise. I could have put up with it when it shifted out half a dozen channels on the excuse of they would still be available 'in digital' (for extra $$). But when it was decreed that the Sci-Fi Network would be the Syfy Channel -- well, that made me decide to give up Comcast for a honking big antenna.
No, Verizon does not serve my area. Not that it makes a difference. Given its AUP, I still would have gone with DSL and an aerial.
Sweet potatoes seem to be the best food ever made. Any way they are prepared, and my mouth is in love from the first taste.
I'm not sure how I feel about Biofeedback Therapy. It's kinda spooky.
When will they upgrade these tired outdated office phones? Given that so few people use them any more, perhaps we'll just unplug them and never notice.
This is a catch-all that will only get enforced when they need to boot someone who's really breaking a lot of etiquette rules but they haven't actually broke a law. It's a pretty common form of "anti-jerk rule", sorta like a school that can't fail you for attending, but they can fail you for not participating, and you can't participate if you're not there...
Hopefully the most of the normal troll spam by bots on Slashdot are on FiOS.
Say, why aren't the posting here?
I couldn't find any more examples, but would like more here.
So they can say "no black customers", right? (No.)
-Clio
Karma: Bad (mostly from not giving a fuck)
Blog: http://clintjcl.wordpress.com
Way I'm seeing it, there is no true off-topic in this particular article.
If you discuss Verizon's anti-off-topic-ness, you're on topic, but if you start discussing what kind of cheese you like in your macaroni or something, by being OFF-TOPIC, you're ON-TOPIC. If that makes any sense.
A wise man once said, "Where is my other quotation mark?
That somehow, someway, we are able to take back our personal freedoms from over-reaching EULAs. I mean really, my account will be canceled if I post an off topic remark on a friend's Facebook page? Not that I have any friends really, but I blame that on my parents divorce. My mom was really overbearing and I think that not being able to truly express myself for fear of ridicule by my family had a real impact on my social development. But that's a thread for another Web site...what were we talking about again?
IANAL. I don't even play one on TV. However, your "constitutional rights" are a list of things that the government may not do to you. While there might be some legal angle based on Verizon's status as a common carrier, public utility, etc., generally speaking a private company has no obligation to enable your freedom of speech. Think about it... does a newspaper have to print your letter to the editor? No. Same deal here.
"He who would learn astronomy, and other recondite arts, let him go elsewhere. " -- John Calvin, commenting on Genesis 1
Cormorants are often disturbed by instantiated flailing humbled. Flail, flail, with the dying of the crepuscule. "Undoubtedly," Miriale remarked, "for if it were not so, how would anyone surrender their sllllllll?"
I'm not bound by their rules. Without their guidance and enforced good morals, I'm going to harm all of you by calling you douches to hurt your feelings. Hopefully, the massive amount of hurt feelings from this post will cause a ripple effect across the continent, resulting in the biggest Internet flamewar of our era. We should all be thanking Verizon for taking a stand against assholes like me.
Did you see those chickens?
In my experience online, particularly with internet forums featuring heavy political debate (or more accurately put, "argumentation"), rules like "no off-topic posting" can easily be twisted or broadened to accompany the biases of the moderators or the majority opinion to stifle dissent.
How? For example, someone who has a completely opposite opinion of the majority may often have a completely opposing ideology and thus their opposition may be seen as "trolling." I'll use examples from the supposed "both sides" (yes, this is a gross simplification of political ideologies but bear with me), i.e., the left and the right on the political spectrum. It is frequently seen as off-topic trolling to the left when they are discussing what the proper amount of taxation should be and a libertarian or conservative come in railing against ALL taxation on principle, since the tone of discussion itself was not the validity of taxation but "just the right" amount. Of course, to many libertarians and conservatives, there is no "right amount," but it's seen as disruption and trolling all the same.
Similarly for the right, when the left criticize religiously-based policies it is often seen as rambling on about un-American stuff, and since they are talking about AMERICA! they really ought go someplace else (usually Cuba) to discuss that sort of thing. And then they're banned.
I've seen the same thing with "don't be rude" rules. Tell someone that a particular belief they have is racist, and on some forums you will get punished for insulting, nevermind the fact that some wackjobs people out there proudly call themselves racists (and if you intend to have free, open discussion, you'll have to remain neutral to both sides and favor neither) and nevermind the fact that by some definitions their views can be considered racist. For example (trying to remain unbiased towards "both" sides of the fence here, again), you can sometimes be punished for claiming that someone is a racist for affirmative action, or can be punished for saying that someone is racist for supporting Israel's status as an officially Jewish state. Of course, just being contradictory enough times, particularly towards deeply-established social norms and views is seen as disruptive and can also get you kicked from forums for "being a jerk."
This is similar to how the media marginalizes minority viewpoints in politics, by not televising them, referring to them as "spoilers" as if the votes really belong to the Big Two, treating them as sideshow attractions, and generally holding them in contempt--this applies to the Libertarians AND the left-wing parties such as the Green Party.
Conformity rules everywhere, even in places that supposedly pride themselves on having open discussion and unbiased moderation. Consensus will eventually appear and if a voice is too contradictory they'll be seen not as a contributing member but as a disruptive element. The only solution I can see for truly "free" discussion online (and I am not implying that all forums should have "free" discussion, simply ones that aim to) is to require members to have a bit of backbone and a lot of leeway on what is appropriate.
Wait - they're trying to ban porn?
Good luck with that, guys.
How are sites slashdotted when nobody reads TFAs?
The short answer to your question?: Han shot first.
"The plural of anecdote is not data" -- Bruce Schneier
when your dad found a cloud my computer crashed
I'm on Verizon and cannot join the discussion, you insensitive clods!
I wouldn't worry about it too much. Verizon uses the Japanese definition of obscene and sexually explicit, so very few kinds of porn are actually in violation of the AUP.
If libertarians are so opposed to effective government, why don't they all move to Somalia?
Pictures of Verizon Executives in compromising positions is automatically a violation of the AUP.
Coding Blog
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Mauris consequat velit ut turpis lobortis tempor nec at metus. Donec rutrum egestas justo, non viverra tortor rutrum ac. Nam a magna id magna placerat dignissim non eget purus. Morbi ut velit erat, nec dapibus nisi. Nunc in libero arcu. Maecenas ut erat eu tortor dapibus rutrum in sit amet magna. Phasellus ultrices porta congue. Fusce nec quam diam, ut bibendum orci. Sed vulputate vestibulum egestas. Aliquam a ipsum id massa cursus interdum eu nec dolor. Nullam viverra ullamcorper nisl, vitae ultrices diam facilisis eleifend. Vivamus mauris justo, sagittis a varius vitae, viverra at turpis. Nulla facilisi. Ut egestas justo vitae massa iaculis convallis. Donec et nulla a erat aliquet dignissim. In turpis nibh, rhoncus nec sollicitudin vitae, convallis et lacus. Class aptent taciti sociosqu ad litora torquent per conubia nostra, per inceptos himenaeos. Donec semper, orci sit amet rutrum cursus, arcu libero ultrices massa, mattis hendrerit velit justo id risus. Sed eu mattis enim. //hehe
What Verizon (Comcast, and others) are going to learn the hard way is the liability that comes along with this. IANAL, but, from experience I understand that if you specifically say something is prohibited, but then do not enforce prohibition of it and someone causes harm to another where it would have been precluded had you enforced the prohibition of said activity, guess who's liable. :)
Two old Greek guys and three Romans are sitting at a bakery drinking coffee and eating kabobs when Socrates and Plato walk by discussing the nature of "The State".
The first old Greek guys comments to Socrates "You know I once read a book that said a soverign rules by divine mandate."
Socrates smacks him across the face and pisses in his coffee. "YOu have been modded -1 Offtopic.
His second friend gets up intent on beating the remaining piss out of Socrates but Plato does a "Solar Flare Tsunami" blast to his face.
The three remaining Romans go to Plato and ask, "Why did you do such horrible things when they mearly wanted to comment on "The State" and join your discussion?"
Socrates whispered in reply, "We were talking about the state of Mrs. Plato's assets, not the government and off-topic discussion must BE PUNISHED!"
Which at that point Socrates and Plato performed the fusion dance and obliterated Atlantis just to show how serious they were about moderating off-topic discussion when a passing Spartan kicked them both off a cliff stating, "This Is Not SPARTA!"
Fin
-=[ Who Is John Galt? ]=-
Slashdot -1, Offtopic moderation to be changed to: -1 Offtopic (disconnect author from internet)
Frankly, Verizon has gotten it wrong though. They should be disconnecting trolls... OTOH.. maybe they are trolls :)
From UUnet.. historical biggest spam haven ever... to 2009 keeping a clean ship, don't even think of posting an off-topic web page...
Any anti-verizon web pages, or postings are by definition off-topic (even if Verizon is the subject of the discussion).
-- for me to bitch and moan about how Verizon FiOS lines cover all the streets around my apartment complex, but, due to a Verizon f*ck up on the property years ago (which caused a couple thousand in damage to a drain and structures around it) that my apartment complex *will not* allow Verizon on the property to bring the FiOS lines to the various apartment buildings.
I say, screw them!
How many memories does it take to install Windows 95 to my motherboard?
The game.
'Nuf said?
Come join my new social network at www.verizon.net/aupsucks/socialnetworking/
------------------
couldn't help m'self
Where's that cap to the Decanter of Endless water???
I have demonstrated absolute irrefutable proof of 4 simultaneous 24 hour days with in a single rotation of Earth. No other man or god can claim such Truth manifestation. The academic brainwashed mind is corrupt and can't comprehend Cubic magnificence. Word teachers are the most evil humans. Religious academia represses the human mind of the Cubic Truth - not utterable. Educators and teachers, ignorant of the Time Cube Principle, are evil liars and unfit to live in Earth's Garden of Eden.
Fucking Verizon wants to take away my off topic midget porn?
What if a guy just wants to sit at home, and jerk off looking at a midget chick get fucked by a horse, huh? Is there really something wrong with that? Not to say that I'd want to. I'm more into the look of girls from the Robert Palmer music videos. But hey, to each his own, right?
Motherfuckers.
Or more precisely, in the infamous words of the late great George Carlin...
"shit, piss, fuck, cunt, cocksucker, motherfucker and tits."
Tits? really? Not boobies, honkers, headlights, gazoongas, fun bubbles, fun bags, honkers, hooters, jugs, or melons.
Go ahead, add your titty words in response. :)
Serious? Seriousness is well above my pay grade.
Sorry to piss on your misplaced outrage, but there's no story here - nor is it censorship.
You know the rules, and so do I.
If you can read this, it means that I bothered to log in.
Send e-mail to volhelp@verizon.net
I sent them this:
Dear Verizon,
Your Policy here:
https://www.verizon.net/central/vzc.portal?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=vzc_help_policies&id=AcceptableUse
Contains the clause:
"The following are examples of conduct which may lead to termination of your Service. Without limiting the general policy in Section 1, it is a violation of the Agreement and this AUP to: ... (e) post off-topic information on message boards, chat rooms or social networking sites;"
Due to the addition of this clause, I can no longer recommend Verizon services, and I have decided not to become a customer of Verizon until this clause is removed.
Verizon killed my tree when installing their FIOS lines outside my house. That caused my dog to go nuts because that's the tree he peed on. He eventually died of bladder failure.
Verizon owes me another dog.
Harrison's Postulate - "For every action there is an equal and opposite criticism"
To see what it would be like to be a dinosaur.
I also like to think of Jesus as a mischievous badger.
Edith Keeler Must Die
Ya know when a person gets a new car or buys a new house, the dealer or broker takes a loan out in that person's name for the full price. so if i'm a dealer, then i get a fat check from the bank for like $30,000 to $50,000 to $200k for a house. You know that a "Verizon 2 Year Service Agreement" is the same thing? That they get a check for nearly $2,000 when you sign up for fios? Is this True? Then the day they terminate the agreement, they charge you an early termination fee? So that they can pay their accounting guys to tie up the loose ends?
It's all about The Last Starfighter, old trailer parks and and aliens that look like lizards.
Harrison's Postulate - "For every action there is an equal and opposite criticism"
Which will explain the sudden surge in Verizon's Now Hiring page, no doubt. See? Wholesale invasion of privacy is good for the economy.
After all, recognizing flames, spam, offtopic, etc. can't be automated, otherwise Slashdot's moderation system would only have one option: Like. /. into facebook. Please exercise your anti-corporate rage appropriately.)
(Yes I just connected Verizon with the devolution of
give this article an award for most offtopic messages. also, I just watched that "christian side hug" video... cool beans
Part 2., item (k):
By a mere visit to a porn site — or whatever site is deemed to be "inciting bigotry" — the site's material gets "transmitted" from the site to your computer. Ergo, you can not even visit such sites... E-mailing someone a picture of your butt or a note, that you hate green-skinned Martians, is also against the policy...
Here is the transcript of my "Live Chat" with a Verizon support person — "Drew" gets clearly confused and, to avoid the tough questions above even his manager's pay-grade tries to redirect me to a "local Verizon business office":
In Soviet Washington the swamp drains you.
FRIST!
(I'm not a Verizon customer...)
Rgds
Damon
http://m.earth.org.uk/
[Censored by FiOS AUP]
Yes, but you apparently failed to notice that the Bill of Rights refers to the Government, not individual corporations. Last I checked, Verizon wasn't part of the Government.
All that means is that on Government owned property (official buildings, public areas, etc) one can say what they want when they want. The second you move onto private property (someone's lawn, a business room, anything not directly owned by the Government), you become subject to another party's restrictions.
People refer to the First Amendment constantly, thinking it applies to everything. It does not. Unless Verizon is guilty of some form of discrimination in the United States for which there is a United States law concerning, they can do whatever they want with their service. If you don't like it, you can go somewhere else.
People read those things?
what exactly is a "rick roll?"
sigs... don't talk to me about sigs....
Court would not shoot this down. Not only is FiOS not required to post your free speech, but it is actually a luxury option for doing so. If you can prove that FiOS is the only option for online access, then *maybe* you'd have something. Instead, you got nothin.
... and just maybe: on-topic is off topic ?!?
There's no logical disconnect here. What you're missing is the intent. They want to be able to bar you from their service when you do things to attract their attention. They recognize there are legal issues to doing so. Therefore, the rules are abigious enough to keep them out of court.
Quite logical, really.
The biggest disconnect I see here is your comparing a basis of government to a list of excuses for terminating a contract.
Woo hoo!
Best Slashdot Co
Verizon is not Congress. I hope that helps clear up some of your confusion... or was that an off topic joke mixed in with a serious post?
The second part of your post I agree with. Rules like that are unclear, not to mention a really bad business decision to actually enforce.
Ahh, they're just getting confused. They mean to mark it +1 Offtopic, but due to a bug on Slashdot, the polarity of the neutron flow got reversed.
I thought Verizon dropped it a while ago. Is it any good? Do they use outsource NSP like Giganews?
Ant(Dude) @ Quality Foraged Links (AQFL.net) & The Ant Farm (antfarm.ma.cx / antfarm.home.dhs.org).
OHN, by the grace of God King of England, Lord of Ireland, Duke of Normandy and Aquitaine, and Count of Anjou, to his archbishops, bishops, abbots, earls, barons, justices, foresters, sheriffs, stewards, servants, and to all his officials and loyal subjects, Greeting.
KNOW THAT BEFORE GOD, for the health of our soul and those of our ancestors and heirs, to the honour of God, the exaltation of the holy Church, and the better ordering of our kingdom, at the advice of our reverend fathers Stephen, archbishop of Canterbury, primate of all England, and cardinal of the holy Roman Church, Henry archbishop of Dublin, William bishop of London, Peter bishop of Winchester, Jocelin bishop of Bath and Glastonbury, Hugh bishop of Lincoln, Walter Bishop of Worcester, William bishop of Coventry, Benedict bishop of Rochester, Master Pandulf subdeacon and member of the papal household, Brother Aymeric master of the knighthood of the Temple in England, William Marshal earl of Pembroke, William earl of Salisbury, William earl of Warren, William earl of Arundel, Alan de Galloway constable of Scotland, Warin Fitz Gerald, Peter Fitz Herbert, Hubert de Burgh seneschal of Poitou, Hugh de Neville, Matthew Fitz Herbert, Thomas Basset, Alan Basset, Philip Daubeny, Robert de Roppeley, John Marshal, John Fitz Hugh, and other loyal subjects:
+ (1) FIRST, THAT WE HAVE GRANTED TO GOD, and by this present charter have confirmed for us and our heirs in perpetuity, that the English Church shall be free, and shall have its rights undiminished, and its liberties unimpaired. That we wish this so to be observed, appears from the fact that of our own free will, before the outbreak of the present dispute between us and our barons, we granted and confirmed by charter the freedom of the Church's elections - a right reckoned to be of the greatest necessity and importance to it - and caused this to be confirmed by Pope Innocent III. This freedom we shall observe ourselves, and desire to be observed in good faith by our heirs in perpetuity.
TO ALL FREE MEN OF OUR KINGDOM we have also granted, for us and our heirs for ever, all the liberties written out below, to have and to keep for them and their heirs, of us and our heirs:
(2) If any earl, baron, or other person that holds lands directly of the Crown, for military service, shall die, and at his death his heir shall be of full age and owe a `relief', the heir shall have his inheritance on payment of the ancient scale of `relief'. That is to say, the heir or heirs of an earl shall pay £100 for the entire earl's barony, the heir or heirs of a knight l00s. at most for the entire knight's `fee', and any man that owes less shall pay less, in accordance with the ancient usage of `fees'
(3) But if the heir of such a person is under age and a ward, when he comes of age he shall have his inheritance without `relief' or fine.
(4) The guardian of the land of an heir who is under age shall take from it only reasonable revenues, customary dues, and feudal services. He shall do this without destruction or damage to men or property. If we have given the guardianship of the land to a sheriff, or to any person answerable to us for the revenues, and he commits destruction or damage, we will exact compensation from him, and the land shall be entrusted to two worthy and prudent men of the same `fee', who shall be answerable to us for the revenues, or to the person to whom we have assigned them. If we have given or sold to anyone the guardianship of such land, and he causes destruction or damage, he shall lose the guardianship of it, and it shall be handed over to two worthy and prudent men of the same `fee', who shall be similarly answerable to us.
(5) For so long as a guardian has guardianship of such land, he shall maintain the houses, parks, fish preserves, ponds, mills, and everything else pertaining to it, from the revenues of the land itself. When the heir comes of age, he shall restore the whole land to him, stocked with plough teams and such implements of husbandry as t
Worldwide Military budgets: $2100 billion. Worldwide Space Exploration budgets: $38 billion. Really, world? Really?
As a former Vz Employee at a Fiber Solutions Center, I CAN tell you that except for the fact of plunging into FTTH, Vz corporate usually seems to be .... oh, wait, I'm using Verizon. nevermind ( -:
I like the part of the TOS that says you can't use it in North Korea, Syria, or other major/minor axis-of-evil participants. Good luck given the rollout has been so small that I can't use FIOS in San Francisco or Silicon Valley of all places.
My cat is a carrot again. Please release all the birds so the car can run again. Larry doesn't like onions or battleships on his burger. YES I CAN HEAR YOU NOW! SHUTTHEHELLUPYOUGOOBER! First add in the egg whites, then mix in the pine tree. UNF UNF UNF
At least I always credited myself : ) My name was Deathcow back in Diablo-1 days, (and thus explains the origins of my name here). For some reason I always enjoyed rounding up a group of people in the chatrooms to visit the "secret cow level". My name lent authenticity to my offers. Once I had a group of hardy adventurers I would lead them to the cows standing around in the field. I would give careful instructions to all of them about where to stand and then tell them to stay put while I opened the gateway. This will begin to test patience after a while. I would then begin to blame the individuals for items they are holding/etc.
Don't disregard it. In that case you get out of your contract for free. Since this AUP is just to make it easy for them to kill your account (and still charge you) you're not really wanting to go there anyway.
So just change the debit charge to 0.00 and send them the email.
PS Is there a Walrus in my sandwich?
They just sent me an update to my DSL terms of service, generously telling me that if I commit to two years of service and within that two years they stop offering DSL service in my neighborhood, I won't be charged an early termination fee! So, it's a good news/bad news kind of situation.
thank the gods i use comcast?
So can you ask for your tax back? After all, they got to use YOUR land for THEIR profit and you couldn't ask for a penny. Then Verizon took tax money to build out high speed networks. Then they clamored that Muni WiFi was illegal and shut it down (so you can't break their monopoly).
In what ways are they NOT a government entity? If you dig up their stuff they get the government on you, if you make your own network, they get the government on you and if you want your wasted money back, they get the government to stonewall you.
And you can't even vote them out.
PS My apples taste of incarnadine.
"(i) generate excessive amounts of email or other Internet traffic;"
So what exactly is an excessive amount of email or other Internet traffic?
has anyone really been far even as decided to use even go want to do look more like ?
I hate everybody... Maybe I can restore my karma? May I get a refill ? =)
On slashdot, that ain't flaming or spamming, that's preaching to the choir.
According to this AUP, Verizon still has leeway in including "preaching to the choir" as a possible violation of the Agreement even if it has not been specifically enumerated as one like flaming and spamming have been.
like Backdoor Sluts 9
"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." - Evelyn Beatrice Hall, re Voltaire
You see that sort of thing entirely too rarely.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fvgYTmjwDGY
But since I'm not on Verizon, I can post this without fear! HAHAHA!
Netiquette finally has a death penalty.
We could have used this wayyy back, at the beginning of The September that never ended.
Now get offa my Internet, you AOL punks!
Welcome to the Panopticon. Used to be a prison, now it's your home.
Comment removed based on user account deletion
Don't say anything to Verizon, but it looks like Red Sox tickets are going up (again!!) I, for one, was a LOT happier when we were heart breaking losers... Ah, the good old days. I'm telling you, it was something to see, they would get so close every year, then cut out your heart, dash your brains in, and stomp on your mid-section--but, you could walk right up to the gate and get tickets any time you wanted. It was awesome, really. Now, it's a mess--nobody goes there anymore, it's too, too, oh >boo hoo hoo Did I mention Smelt night? Never mind, that's when I was a Yankees fan (youthful indiscretion, my church prayed for me and it's behind me now.)
{done in the voice of Sean Connery} Suck it, Verizon. Suck it long and suck it hard.
I've reached a point where I feel the need to express my disappointment with the man with three buttocks. The key point of the following exposition is that I assert that the portrayal of bullies in our culture is partially responsible for the man with three buttocks's actions. No joke. If the man with three buttocks had done its homework, it'd know that if Fate desired that it make a correct application of what it had read about demagogism it would have to indicate title and page number since the overbearing nitwit would otherwise never in all its existence find the correct place. But since Fate does not do this, many people are convinced that society should recognize that it uses good motives as a cover for evil ones. I can't comment on that, but I can say that some people feel that the practice of destroying our moral fiber is pernicious and selfish. Others aver that the "freedom" that the man with three buttocks is always so keen to talk about is a sheep's freedom to choose the patch of grass in which it will graze while growing wool and mutton for its owners. In the interest of clearing up the confusion I'll make the following observation: The man with three buttocks takes things out of context, twists them around, and then neglects to provide decent referencing so the reader can check up on it. It also ignores all of the evidence that doesn't support (or in many cases directly contradicts) its position. I am familiar with the man with three buttocks's goals, I understand how it operates, I have long recognized its tactics, and I know just about where the man with three buttocks now stands on the ladder to total power. I can therefore say that, indisputably, it is inherently reprehensible, venom-spouting, and invidious. Oh, and it also has a coldhearted mode of existence. It is my opinion, as well as that of the courts, dozens of professional organizations, and numerous religious leaders, that the man with three buttocks lives in a world of privileged emotion devoid of any connectable empirical dots, yes. But the man with three buttocks would have us believe that the ancient Egyptians used psychic powers to build the pyramids. Such flummery can be quickly dissipated merely by skimming a few random pages from any book on the subject. What do we owe the man with three buttocks? Nothing, absolutely nothing. If it claims otherwise, we have to stand firm and point out that someone just showed me a memo supposedly written by the man with three buttocks. The memo spells out its plans to lower scholastic standards. If this memo is authentic, it tells us that only the impartial and unimpassioned mind will even consider that the man with three buttocks's dupes are unified under a common goal. That goal is to abrogate some of our most fundamental freedoms. One wonders how the man with three buttocks can complain about peevish varmints given that its own ipse dixits also aim to cause this country to flounder on the shoals of self-interest, corruption, and chaos. The man with three buttocks wants nothing less than to plant the seeds of interventionism into the tabulae rasae of children's minds, hence its repeated, almost hypnotic, insistence on the importance of its lascivious canards. The man with three buttocks says that the majority of cankered monomaniacs are heroes, if not saints. Wow! Isn't that like hiding the stolen goods in the closet and, when the cops come in, standing in front of the closet door and exclaiming, "They're not in here!"? The best thing about the man with three buttocks is the way that it encourages us to help you reflect and reexamine your views on the man with three buttocks. No, wait; the man with three buttocks doesn't encourage that. On the contrary, it discourages us from admitting that like other obdurate toughies, it has a finely honed ability to drag men out of their beds in the dead of night and castrate them. Be patient; I won't ask you to take that on faith. Rather, I'll provide irrefragable proof that the man with three buttocks's idea of querulous, stuck-up jingoism is no political belief
Now they just need put in something about first posts, and we're set.
Which reminds me... firs... {checks message count}... aww, c'mon! I meant for everyone else!
UTF-8: There and Back Again
1. If you are on a term plan and Verizon ceases offering service to your location prior to the end of your term commitment, you will not have to pay an Early Termination Fee.
My only response was, "Well, duh! They really have to tell you this?" Think maybe they were having a bit of a problem collecting those Early Termination Fees from people they cut off against their will?
I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
I pay the piper, I get the tune.
"You have no right" my arse.
I have every right. IT'S MY FRIGGING MONEY!!!
the long answer involves quantum thermodynamics, about 73 pages of math, two ducks, a banana, 16 cheesburgers, the Hope diamond, Prague, the skull of George "Goober" Lindsey, and YOUR MOM
"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." - Evelyn Beatrice Hall, re Voltaire
It's one thing to say if you break a forums rules by posting offtopic stuff you'll get disconnected. I don't agree with that, but ISPs have long been doing stuff like that.
You start acting in violation of the terms of a site, and that site complains to the ISP, they have two choices: Disconnect you, or hope that site doesn't entirely block them. So they reserve the right to disconnect you, although they usually only do it for big stuff. (I.e., if a user keeps committing click fraud at Google, and they really don't want Google to just block all their IPs)
However, this just asserts they can disconnect you from offtopic stuff even when that's not a violation of anyone's terms of service.
For example, I just went and read slashdot's terms of service, and I see absolutely nothing in there about offtopic posting. There is not the slightest rule on this site that posts be even vaguely relevant to the article at hand, or that replies to posts be even vaguely relevant to what they responded to.
Which means Verizon is taking a step well past the 'self-protection' we let them get away with, and asserting it is in charge of when it can disconnect people, even if the site they're on has no problem with their behavior.
If corporations are people, aren't stockholders guilty of slavery?
I liked it better when it was called Mine Kampf.
Gilligan Likes Maryann's Coconuts.
I am Spartacus.
Planning to be moderated ± 1: Bad Pun.
Ok but what would Hitler do in this situation? Discuss.
My other sig is a knife wound.
I prefer "or incites bigotry, hatred or racism;" since no matter what you post, it is sure to incite hatred, bigotry or racism in someone in the world.
This makes pretty much everything a violation once the right (or wrong) person reads it.
FTFA, it is clear that who ever wrote it does not know about American Constitutional Law, American Civil Liberties, and Class Action Lawsuits. One can clearly notice that no one signed their name to this writing; what kind of person does not sign their name to a document they have created? It's not the kind of person that you'd bring home to show Mom, and Dad to. I can see the ACLU thinking, "Ka-Ching", to this law suit. So it's going to boil down to how much are the punitive damages here? How about 3% of Verizon's Gross Sales for starters? But how much are an American's Civil Rights worth? By Verizon's past business practices, not much. I cannot help but wonder when the Federal Government will get tired of Suspected Criminal Gangs "Wip Sawing" Federal Regulations. Maybe this "To Big To Fail" crap can be quietly crib smothered. "Monopolistic Practices, i.e. Global Market" are getting to be a pain in my empty wallet.
Going against my better judgement and Ben Franklin's advice, but this bullshit is getting out of hand...
Look, I know it's fashionable to go with the thin, reedy, overly-nasal GOP line on this, but if you're an American, then the First Amendment DOES apply to you. It applies if you're a judge, a cop, a CEO or the school janitor. The Government doesn't get to do an end run around the Consitution by hiring out some company to do its dirty work for it.
*Waits for the pencil-necked, pasty-faced, can't-get-laid-in-his-Momma's-basement putz in the back of the room to get it out of his system.*
Yeah, I know. Strictly speaking, with the same sort of "Urkel-doesn't-get-it-so-he-ain't-ever-gonna-get-it" pickiness that makes all the grownups wanna send you to your room, the Constitution addresses the government. I know.
*Waits a little more.. and still more...*
Because, Junior, the Bill of Rights is more than just a string of damn code, that's why. It's an elaboration of the principles that we as Americans hold dear. It's a clumsy attempt to codify the way of life that we won for ourselves at Yorktown. It's not just the rules of the playground. It's our damn National DNA, that's why.
I know you probably weren't raised right, so you won't understand this, but It's WHO WE ARE. It was a radical idea in 1644 when John Milton wrote the "Areopagitica." It was a belief we all held in our bones by 1776.
We. Don't. Like. Censorship. We believe in the Marketplace of Ideas (Google it). We believe the cure for Bad Speech is More Speech.
Anyone who holds power, or so much as puts up a public bulletin board, it bound by it, not because some municipal code requires it, but because that's who we are. We as Americans detest censorship in all its forms, wherever it rears its head.
Verizon is wrong not because they are breaking some law, but because the action itself offends the sensibilities of the country that sustains it. We're all free men here. We're not afraid to hear dissenting opinions, and we for damn sure don't hide from them behind red tape and bureaucratic crap like "terms of service."
He put his boots up on the table and made a face. "The sig," he smirked. "You can waste your life in search of the sig."
... responses in this thread look similar to most slashdot posts.
=P
Good. Can you afford me now???
There was this one fish i saw today on the internet somewhere, it looks like a robotfish, swims like a robotfish, and gulps like a dead fish. A fish that has been dead for a week, not a fresly cought spasm one. Anyway the fish was ugly. I don't like robotfish. Whats up with the palmtrees in concrete bins anyways? They're like everywhere where they once decided to pave the beach.
Hivemind harvest in progress..
"Oooh, scary! Somebody who's not our customer is going to continue not being our customer! We're trembling!"
You can post whatever the hell you want and still get modded +5 Funny!
Actually, Japanese adult movies are required to pixelizate the "private parts", unlike American or European movies.
Dilbert RSS feed
Go Jayhawks!
Either give me abiguity or give me ambiguity!
This post was made in complete sincere seriousity; as such any attempts to derive humour are doomed to instant failure.
See section (f), above, and you can have some cake!
Bill Stewart
New Fast-Compression-only CPR http://preview.tinyurl.com/dy575ks
While it looks like too many lawyers and non-lawyers were copying other services' AUPs, it looks like what they're really trying to do is give themselves leverage to drop you if you engage in activities that get them hit with too many complaints. That's not the same as saying that they'll go trying to police your postings (yeah, like that would make financial sense), but they want to be able to kill spammers, blog-comment-spammers, and anybody else that causes them trouble.
Bill Stewart
New Fast-Compression-only CPR http://preview.tinyurl.com/dy575ks
A few days ago my Sennheiser CX300 (in-ear headphones) broke and, due to a recommendation by a friend with respect to their longevity, I decided to buy myself the v-moda vibe (also in-ear headphones, even though they do sound like a sex toy). The price I paid was 43 EUR (~64 USD), S/H included.
The build quality of the vibe is fairly good, with pretty much everything but the cables being made of metal. The cables are the usual thin stranded wire, covered by what v-moda asserts to be kevlar, which is covered by a layer of clear plastic (which apparently is only the case if you buy it in the "Flashblack" color scheme). One improvement of the cables over the CX300's is that the surface is smoother, causing the vibe to generate fewer friction sounds. Unfortunately, the cable isn't any longer than the Sennheiser's, measuring only about 115 cm (~45.5 in) plug-to-earphone. Also, the plug is not angled, like most headphones', but straight, which might not be to everyone's taste.
You also get a faux leather carrying bag, a cable wrapping helper made from silicone and six silicone ear fittings (three sizes each in transparent and black) - all in all a rather decent set of extras.
The vibe is one of the few headphones with a plug that doesn't slip out of a unibody MBP's audio jack at the slightest touch. It generally forms very solid connections with the jacks you plug it into, which prevents accidental unplugging.
Sound-wise it tends to emphasize the bass and, slightly, the highs. In my opinion this means a downgrade in audio quality from the more balanced CX300 as I value clear mid-range frequencies but someone interested in an affordable open in-ear headphone with a solid bass could certainly give the vibe a try.
If I had to buy again, I'd probably go with the CX300, though - if I could still find one. Pretty much all retailers have switched over to the more expensive CX-300 II. Longevity might still make the vibe the better deal but only time will tell that.
PROS:
- good accessories package (especially the double set of fittings) - smooth, supposedly damage-resistant cables
- plug doesn't slip out of MBP audio jack
CONS:
- emphasize on bass (not a concern if you want that)
- cable could be a bit longer
USE HOT GRITS WITH STATUE OF NATALIE PORTMAN (NAKED AND PETRIFIED)
Internet services are "enhanced" services, not common-carrier voice. And if you read the blurbs at the beginning of your phone book, you'll see that they've got an AUP that says you're not allowed to use your land-line phone for obscene or harassing phone calls either. (Or the Phone Police will go rip your phone out of the wall.)
Bill Stewart
New Fast-Compression-only CPR http://preview.tinyurl.com/dy575ks
#1 Internet posts must be done under your real name, no handle, no nickname, no fake name. If you are found not using your real name you will be dropped.
#2 Opinions and insults are not allowed. If you don't make statements of facts that are not libelious or slanderous, you will be dropped. If you are found making an opinion or insult or anything not a fact that can be proven, you will be dropped.
#3 No trolling no cyber bullying, if you harass someone in this manner you will be dropped.
#4 No hate speech against any group, you will be dropped.
#5 Visits only to approved web sites, if you visit the wrong type of web sites as defined by our management, then you will be dropped.
#6 No porno, if you access porn of any type you will be dropped.
#7 Windows only, no Linux, Mac OSX, or non-Window OS will be allowed to use our Internet services. If you are found to use a non-Windows OS you will be dropped.
#8 You cannot use the Internet for pranks, jokes, humor, or anything of the funny nature or you will be dropped. Be serious or find another ISP.
#9 No proxy servers and other software and services that hide your IP address. We consider this criminal activity and you will be dropped.
#10 No P2P file sharing, as a result bandwidth will be capped to 19.2KBps, use of any more than that will be considered illegal download of copyrighted materials and you will be dropped. Also see rule 7 no Linux ISO downloads either as we consider it illegal use of P2P networks and don't see Linux as a valid OS to use with our Internet services.
P.S. Oh by the way, spammers, scammers, get rick quick Ponzi schemes, and other stuff is allowed, as long as you use your real name and don't violate any of the other rules.
P.P.S. Oh by the way we made a deal with the NSA/CIA/FBI etc to wirelessly wiretap your Internet connection and give up data on you to the government for suspicious activity like breaking rules 1 to 7 or others.
P.P.P.S. Oh by the way this is now federal law and approved by the UN so now all ISPs will adopt these code violations.
P.P.P.P.S. If you violate any of these rules/laws or we even perceive or think you did, you will be Banned from the Internet.
Remember, Slashdot does not have a -1 disagree moderation, and no, troll, flamebait, and overrated are not substitutes.
I know that this is off topic, but ******* Connection Terminated ******
No single raindrop believes it is to blame for the flood.
So i can get people cut off if they forward me useless chain emails? Cool.
Oh, and bunnies are pink..
---- Booth was a patriot ----
As set forth in Paragraph 3 of the Terms of Service, your
continued use of the Service after the effective date of this change
will constitute your agreement to the change.
1. If you are on a term plan and Verizon ceases offering service to
your location prior to the end of your term commitment, you will not
have to pay an Early Termination Fee.
Just got this from Verizon today. I wonder what they will call the fee?
So, Obama's going to announce extending the War in Afghanistan. Discuss.
THERE ARE THINGS MAN WAS NOT MEANT TO KNOW! HERE ARE A FEW!
"So did you hear the story about Gregg and Tolos? Anyway Tolos ... he's this Rottweiler, you see ..."
[details omitted]
"Alone at home, Gregg's excitement grew and grew... he grasped the cord and thrust the plug home! Soon he would be plugged IN... consequences be damned! As the drool of long-suppressed anticipation of THE FORBIDDEN ACT dripped from his lips, the electric shock from the amplifier chassis coursed through his brain like a million electric eels, annihilating the very substance of his grey matter, and even so he REACHED FOR THE GUITAR to COMMIT THE ULTIMATE SIN ... "
[In compliance with the Federal Communication Commissions' Good Neighbor Noise Reducation Ordinance of 1993, the remainder of this passage has been squelched.]
"And so there was the master tape for 'Back From Samoa', but there no longer, so where was it? Maybe I a..."
[transmission broken]
Cat got your tongue? (something important seems to be missing from your comment ... like the body or the subject!)
I hear it's amazing when the famous purple stuffed worm in flap-jaw space with the tuning fork does a raw blink on Hari-kiri Rock! I need scissors! 61!
The constitution expresses the sentiment of our culture in the United States. I was merely mentioning that Verizon goes against that sentiment.
We have a winner. It's spidercoz. The rest of you, thanks for playing. We can all go home now.
"The plural of anecdote is not data" -- Bruce Schneier
Below are snippets from an email I got from Verizon today, regarding TOS changes.
Date: Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:24:43 -0600 (CST)
Subject: Effective November 30, 2009 - Important Information Regarding a Change ...As set forth in Paragraph 3 of the Terms of Service, your
to Your Verizon Online Terms Of Service
continued use of the Service after the effective date of this change
will constitute your agreement to the change.
Thanks for the warning, Verizon. Can I have a copy of the calender you're using?
For a second there I thought /. finally implemented the ability to moderate the stories themselves.
...watches you masturbate. Senator Larry Craig is jealous of ceiling cat and would like to steal his ceiling modification technology to watch baseball player Grady Sizemore.
This is a hacked account, for which the owner can not be held responsible.
I'm surprised it wasn't used more often, but there's a better way with modems to prevent problems with +++ and NO CARRIER.
With proper settings, the serial line CD (Carrier Detect) is raised when the modem is connected, and lowered when it disconnects.
Also with proper settings, if the computer lowers the TR (Terminal Ready) serial line, the modem will hang up.
With this, you can do ATS2=255 or something like that to disable the +++ system. Then you can send any data you want, because the connection control is out-of-band.
"Screw Sun, cross-platform will never work. Let's move on and steal the Java language." - Visual J++ Product Manager
Anybody remember the MS License Agreement that required you not use Word to criticize MS?
and terms and conditions too...
Ask Me About... The 80's!
I think that Verizon was paid off by some assholes on Slashdot that who were tired of idiots coming on and rambling about off topic nonsense... so now Slashdot has an even better way to punish Off Topic morons. They have a script that sends all of the users who were flagged as offtopic to a SQL database that Verizon then checks against their database. If there are any matches Verizon punishes them.
This is Bullshit.
But 99% of usenet spam is offtopic posting...
My blog: http://www.seebs.net/log/ --- My iPhone/iPad app: http://www.seebs.net/seebsfrac/
I hardly know her!
I'm checkin' out:
"(i) generate excessive amounts of email or other Internet traffic"
Without a definition of "excessive" it kinda' leaves the barn door wiiiiiiiiiiiide open..
Why don't they just cut the crap and say:
"We can cut you off any time we like - for no good goddamn reason at all."
That would save it's users hours of reading the fine print AUP
As despicable as the Verizon AUP is, this is not a new change. Here is a link to a rant in 2006 about the FIOS TOS including a mention of offtopic posting. In other current news, Ban Ki-moon has been elected to replace Kofi Annan as the secretary-general of the UN...
Just imagine, you can now ban your users not only from your message board , but from his ISP as well! :evil:
(i) generate excessive amounts of email or other Internet traffic
That's the worst clause. So now you can be cut off for merely using your pipe to its maximum.
~in order to clear one's mind, think of something with no meaning, like a sound~
"To stop the terrorists."