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Sony Can Update PS3 Firmware Without Permission
Stoobalou writes "Sony's latest firmware update comes with a revised End User License Agreement which allows the company to change any part of the console's operating system without notification or permission. You might think you own the console you paid for, but Sony has a very different idea."
Guess that means that hacked firmware is the way to go, and keep your machine offline.
There Can Be Only One...
Is anyone really surprised? I don't think so. Sony saying one thing and then doing the complete opposite is nothing new.
So SONY in their latest ToS has basically admitted that they believe they have carte blanche over hardware you payed between $300-$600 dollars for. Not counting accessories and purchases. Yes. With 3.21 this only affected linux and it was optional (arguably). But from 3.30 forward SONYs stance is they can AUTOMATICALLY and WITHOUT YOUR PERMISSION update the console. The updates can add/remove features, capabilities, even content you have bought and paid for and you (in their eyes) can't do a thing about it. GeoHot was right. This isn't about Linux anymore. This is about who owns what you paid for.
Well, according to all world religions and spiritual philosophies, cooperation and taking care of the less fortunate are good things,
- None can love freedom heartily, but good men; the rest love not freedom, but license. -- John Milton
Don't buy any new disc games, either. They could include the system update.
My blog. Good stuff (when I remember to update it). Read it.
False. Nearly all residential real-estate loans can be called only on sale or default. Call-on-demand got a very bad reputation when banks actually used it in the Great Depression. And mine cannot be declared in default because the value of the collateral went down, unless I _caused_ it to go down through action or neglect. Falling real-estate values don't do it.
IAL. I read, review and edit real estate loan documentation all day. I have never seen the term you are referring to, and would never allow a client to sign a document with that term in it. Generally it is considered bad practice to sign a document with terms you do not agree with and hope that the other party does not enforce them. Also, if they did not ever intend to enforce a term, why would anyone put it in?
Under what has been lost: $300 in purchase price.
Under what has been gained: PS Home, PS Store video rental/purchase, & Netflix.
Let's have a close look at these claims of yours...
What has been lost on the PS3:
- Emotion Engine (hardware)
First gen PS3 was very expensive, people bitched about the price and Sony responded by removing the PS2 compatibility. Sony still sells the PS2 console so there was no need to punish people who wanted a PS3 by forcing them to subsidize the PS2 owners. Less hardware = cheaper console.
- SACD playback (software)
Did anyone actually want this? While it's likely that a PS3 owner would have an HDTV, it's unlikely they would own a high end audio setup to take advantage of SACD. Anyone serious about this functionality would own a proper standalone SACD player. Less hardware = cheaper console.
- USB 2.0 ports (hardware)
Not sure if reducing the number of ports counts as a "lost feature". Two ports is likely plenty for most people, and it's easy to add your own hub to increase the number of ports. Less hardware = cheaper console.
- Full PS2 backwards compatibility (software)
PS3 never had full PS2 compatibility in software, purely a myth perpetuated by the un-informed. First generation PS3 had full hardware PS2 support; second generation had a mix of hardware and software emulation. Made the PS3 expensive and added redundant capabilities as the PS2 was (and is) still being sold. Less hardware = cheaper console.
- Other OS Linux (software): retroactively disabled on older hardware as well now with the new update
Debatable whether this was a usable feature or not. Linux on the PS3 was horrible and Sony's removal of the option on the slim models was met with little but a yawn and "so what?" It wasn't until Geohot paraded around his so called PS3 hack and thousands of pirates perked up with the hope of finally getting their hands on some free PS3 games did anyone care about the OtherOS option. Sony acted to protect their platform and the pirates raised a ruckus. Anyone who used the old model PS3 for Cell programming couldn't care less, they didn't use the PS3 for games or playing blu-ray.
If you're one of those people still pissed off over having to choose between OtherOS or games/PSN, direct your anger to Geohot for pissing in your pool.
- SD and CF slots (hardware
Redundant hardware, PS3 already had USB ports and there was no need to provide multiple ports for the same function. Less hardware = cheaper console.
- Media bar in-game
- Trophies
- Divx
- PlayStation Home
- Dynamic themes
- Netflix
- Photo Gallery
- Life with PlayStation
- and so on.....
At this point I went the Wikipedia page for PS3 software updates and did a quick tally...
"removed" appears four times
"added" appears 97 times
"modified" appears 4 times.
Not too shabby for a console that "who started off with a decent system has been systematically removing features with little to no return" as you claim.
*wave hand* This is not the article you are looking for.
Read Khyber's reply, dumbass.
Wikipedia doesn't cite every single example. It's a lazy example to a well known/established scenario.
- Anything else?
-Netflix(software)
-HDMI integration allowing control of PS3 from TV remote(hardware/software)
-3D games and movies(software)
-Move controller(software/hardware)
-Better power consumption/size(hardware)
-Reduced cost(hardware?)
-Rumble(hardware) -- which they should have had to start with
-PlayStation Home(software)
Sorry, that's all I can think of off the top of my head.
off the top of my head:
Music Visualizations
Text Chat Rooms
Photo Editor
Ability to send attachments in messages, and then later larger attachments
Interactive Themes
In game music player (not mandatory so many devs don't include it)
Video Store
Background downloading
Screenshot straight from the buffer (not mandatory so many devs don't include it)
Home
Life w/Playstation
YouTube upload (not mandatory so many devs don't include it)
More photo slideshow options
3D Support (Today)
I know people don't care for a lot of these, but it's for perspective's sake.
Blockbusters had it in their EULA too, and it was deemed not legally binding
'For we walk by faith, not by sight.' II Corinthians 5:7
EULAs come with a clause that prevents an invalid claim from invalidating the entire EULA so they throw as much bullshit in there as they can to intimidate any non-lawyers.
Justice is the sheep getting arrested while an impartial judge declares the vote void.
This is /. we use car analogies here. You have your license revoked.