How many of these people had deliberately destroyed their equipment to get an insurance company to replace it
Only this last weekend, a friend of mine tried to get his insurance to buy a new system for him after he told them it was fried in an electrical storm.
The storm in question though happened to be a spare USB cable, wired to the mains power. He wasn't sure whether this was enough to convince them so also wired up a telecoms cable to the mains.
I was at home and could see his house from mine. Every few seconds the lights would go out and the place was plunged into darkness.
It is strange what people will do to save a bit of cash!
There is a tool called ASF Recorder[pcworld.com] which would save streamed wmv files to your hard drive. It did mean that you had to sit through the entire, streamed file though in order to save it.
As for Microsoft DRM protected files take a look at the Free Me [nanocrew.net] files by Beale Screamer. This tool could be used to remove the protection from Microsoft WMA files.
Does anybody remember when Yahoo was the Bees knees (pre. Google era) and were setting up a scheme to allow downloads of Honk Kong action and Kung Fu movies at low prices? I was waiting for this to happen and the current thread has just reminded me. I would offer the original slashdot url but the search engine is defeating my efforts!
Whilst I respect the right of copyright holders and their respective pitbulls to protect their properties, do they not realise that if an item of data can be viewed\watched\listened to etc. then it can also be copied? In light of this, all attempts to protect data are doomed from the get go. Unless the RIAA\MPAA etc. get their wish and every item of electronics is copy-protection enabled. With this, as with all other copy-protection mechanisms, it will be broken. Possibly within days.
Would it not be better for these guys to accept it and realise that it is only the lowest common denominator crap which seems to clog up the peer to peer networks. The best stuff, the stuff that really becomes a part of a persons life is the stuff which is bought, by fans, for full price, again and again.
Produce good content and the fans will buy it. Produce derivative crap and don't be surprised when it isn't respected.
Apologies for being a little off topic but this kind of thing is very successful in the far east. Particular in Seoul.
At least according to an article in Wired 10.08 [www.wired.com/wired/]. It talks about the age of broadband and how cybercafe's are the new singles bars.
Not that us slashdot geeks have any need for that!
Don't forget the size of their facial features. The victorians wrote a lot about the criminal tendencies of men with big ears, noses and overhanging brows.
Unfortunately we are moving towards a world where this is the case. Even where an action is completely within the law, should a company decide they want the law changed they first sow doubt over the legality of that action. By changing the public perception to reflect what they want, they can more easily have the law changed to reflect that. After all, by this point the law would only be changed to bring it into line with the publics perception of that law. Witness this happening now with the (now questionable) legality over backing up music cd's, or reverse engineering, or tivo.
Most western retailers wanting to escape their currently oversaturated markets are looking to the untapped potential of China. It is not surprising that the chinese went and got there first, on account of them already being there and wishing to capitalise on their own population rather than hand it to the west on a silver platter. Our companies want to sell in China but don't want the Chinese to have their own brands. I don't expect Microsoft to play fair, whether china98 is a cleanroom implementation or not. For evidence, just look at the FUD spread about our much beloved non-MS OS. So long as China plays fair and doesn't rip off MS, they will have the ethical high ground and probably the support of most free software advocates also. Its not much, but is better than nothing.
This is used on the continent (Motorways travelling south through France to Spain). If you pass through a toll booth, then arrive at another within a certain amount of time, a fine is automatically imposed. No need to use mobile phone data at all. It certainly makes you stick to the speed limits on those roads. On the other hand, I worked as a drayman for Tennants until recently and there are a whole load of truckers and frequent road users who continually phone the trafficwatch shows on the radio to warn about delays, speed traps and the like.
Whilst at Dundee University, our rival establishment in the same time was rumoured to be looking for a name change and some bright spark suggested Scottish Higher Institute of Technology. When the management noticed the acronym, they decided to add & Engineering, which did not improve matters.
Slashdot Mirror
How many of these people had deliberately destroyed their equipment to get an insurance company to replace it
Only this last weekend, a friend of mine tried to get his insurance to buy a new system for him after he told them it was fried in an electrical storm.
The storm in question though happened to be a spare USB cable, wired to the mains power. He wasn't sure whether this was enough to convince them so also wired up a telecoms cable to the mains.
I was at home and could see his house from mine. Every few seconds the lights would go out and the place was plunged into darkness.
It is strange what people will do to save a bit of cash!
There is a tool called ASF Recorder[pcworld.com] which would save streamed wmv files to your hard drive. It did mean that you had to sit through the entire, streamed file though in order to save it.
As for Microsoft DRM protected files take a look at the Free Me [nanocrew.net] files by Beale Screamer. This tool could be used to remove the protection from Microsoft WMA files.
Does anybody remember when Yahoo was the Bees knees (pre. Google era) and were setting up a scheme to allow downloads of Honk Kong action and Kung Fu movies at low prices? I was waiting for this to happen and the current thread has just reminded me. I would offer the original slashdot url but the search engine is defeating my efforts!
Are you alluding to the brain matter of knee-jerk posters?
Whilst I respect the right of copyright holders and their respective pitbulls to protect their properties, do they not realise that if an item of data can be viewed\watched\listened to etc. then it can also be copied?
In light of this, all attempts to protect data are doomed from the get go. Unless the RIAA\MPAA etc. get their wish and every item of electronics is copy-protection enabled. With this, as with all other copy-protection mechanisms, it will be broken. Possibly within days.
Would it not be better for these guys to accept it and realise that it is only the lowest common denominator crap which seems to clog up the peer to peer networks. The best stuff, the stuff that really becomes a part of a persons life is the stuff which is bought, by fans, for full price, again and again.
Produce good content and the fans will buy it. Produce derivative crap and don't be surprised when it isn't respected.
Apologies for being a little off topic but this kind of thing is very successful in the far east. Particular in Seoul.
At least according to an article in Wired 10.08 [www.wired.com/wired/]. It talks about the age of broadband and how cybercafe's are the new singles bars.
Not that us slashdot geeks have any need for that!
Don't forget the size of their facial features. The victorians wrote a lot about the criminal tendencies of men with big ears, noses and overhanging brows.
So watch out Mr. Potato Head!
Unfortunately we are moving towards a world where this is the case. Even where an action is completely within the law, should a company decide they want the law changed they first sow doubt over the legality of that action. By changing the public perception to reflect what they want, they can more easily have the law changed to reflect that. After all, by this point the law would only be changed to bring it into line with the publics perception of that law. Witness this happening now with the (now questionable) legality over backing up music cd's, or reverse engineering, or tivo.
Most western retailers wanting to escape their currently oversaturated markets are looking to the untapped potential of China. It is not surprising that the chinese went and got there first, on account of them already being there and wishing to capitalise on their own population rather than hand it to the west on a silver platter. Our companies want to sell in China but don't want the Chinese to have their own brands. I don't expect Microsoft to play fair, whether china98 is a cleanroom implementation or not. For evidence, just look at the FUD spread about our much beloved non-MS OS. So long as China plays fair and doesn't rip off MS, they will have the ethical high ground and probably the support of most free software advocates also. Its not much, but is better than nothing.
Bored scientists having fun that day!
This is used on the continent (Motorways travelling south through France to Spain). If you pass through a toll booth, then arrive at another within a certain amount of time, a fine is automatically imposed. No need to use mobile phone data at all. It certainly makes you stick to the speed limits on those roads. On the other hand, I worked as a drayman for Tennants until recently and there are a whole load of truckers and frequent road users who continually phone the trafficwatch shows on the radio to warn about delays, speed traps and the like.
~djiin
Whilst at Dundee University, our rival establishment in the same time was rumoured to be looking for a name change and some bright spark suggested Scottish Higher Institute of Technology. When the management noticed the acronym, they decided to add & Engineering, which did not improve matters.