Well very few people or companies can pay out 50 million without calling it a loss no matter what they were doing with it. I mean, even if you have it to lose, you DON'T have it to lose, know what I mean?
However, the point stands, that 50 million has been set aside for a few years as I understand it (I could be wrong, but wasn't it set aside well before the class action started?). Even at a conservative rate of interest, that's a lot of cabbage annually.
They lose that "income" and that capital...but for the years they had it sitting there and NOT paying what they owed, they did benefit largely from their illegal conduct and as such should face much more inflated fines than they have thus far.
I think the point that the parent post was trying to make is that originally, the internet could have been a tool for meaningful and intelligent discourse. You know intelligent conversation? It can be enjoyable at times. Beneficial too.
The attitude shown in your post is that the internet is already meaningless and we should not care about it.
It's sad that 99.9% of forums out there are reduced to meaningless trolling, astroturfing and rampant idiocy. I find it ironic that the technological advances that brought about the internet has done more to glorify stupidity than anything in the last hundred years.
Either he's breaking the law, or he's incredibly paranoid
That's a false dichotomy made by almost every moron with the "If you have nothing to hide, then you have nothing to fear."
Here's another option, maybe he wants to choose who gets to see his pictures.
The right to privacy is important. Not wanting some minimum wage power-tripping ape going through your vacation slideshow and making fun of you because he doesn't like your face doesn't make you a criminal, it makes you human.
Wanting to choose who gets to see my pics isn't paranoid, it's human.
Right NOW all the shit YOU do isn't illegal...but in 5 years, who knows?
Smarten up. Protect your right to privacy or lose a lot more than your dignity.
The whole concept of making the systems easier to manage is what is killing us properly - home users think they can do it because they hooked their TV up to their laptop just fine, so why should it be hard when they're at the office.
I think people tend to forget that making things "easier" for the user usually means a TON of complex work in the background...which leads to both that kind of thinking and the typical LUser thinking that "if it's so easy...it must not take a lot of work, so these guys are WAY overpaid!" attitude.
Because sometimes there really is a dragon in the garage. I'm sorry do you have any proof that sometimes there IS a dragon in the garage? Has there ever been a dragon inside a garage somewhere?
Sorry...I couldn't resist. I agree we should stay open minded, however, not so open that our brains fall out of our heads.
If you hear the sound, feel the heat and see some light...don't jump to the conclusion of "dragon". Investigate.
Saying "well you should keep your mind open that there might BE dragons here..." isn't being open minded...and it ISN'T "Thinking outside the box" either. Instead, one should encourage one to look and if you find conclusive evidence of draconian presences in your garage THEN conclude "dragon".
Where do you get that "the majority of canadians aren't even on the internet?". I would say if you did your research, you'd find that the percentage of us on the 'net is comparable to the percentage in the US.
As for "thief" and "laws", the personal use copyright clause in Canada specifically states (and has been interpreted as such) that P2P use constitutes personal use and is not illegal. The CRIA may be working to change that, but they haven't changed it yet. There's a little hurdle in the media levy they collect, in exchange for which, the personal use clause remains untouched.
They're already facing the immediate punishment of a car accident in which they might die. I doubt that yet another overpriced moving violation will do any good.
Problem is that most bad drivers, while they can be the CAUSE of an accident, often do not suffer the consequence of an accident. Its the cars reacting to their stupidities that end up smashed while they continue on, oblivious to their asshatery.
Do you normally code on a laptop? (Not wanting to be a troll or anything, just curious)
If not, then you aren't the demographic as this thing is being touted as a laptop-killer. Personally, I agree with the parent, it looks like an overpriced, underpowered PDA replacement.
I love how they always end up mentioning "every day" in this stuff. I love laptops, but when I buy a laptop, I don't buy it because I can do my "everyday" things on it (leaving out any gaming, most any damn laptop can run office or even visual studio...factor in linux and most any laptop will satisfy your "everyday" requirements), I buy it because it can do EVERYTHING I want it to do. This little gadget might run office type apps like nobody's business and might be able to surf the net ok, but if I'm dishing out big bucks it had better handle whatever I want to throw at it (and this machine doesn't look like it would cut it).
For many people its an either/or situation. Either you get a desktop or a laptop. I don't know too many people who get both and scrimp on a sub-standard laptop on special because they are satisfied with their desktop.
For better or worse, we have set up corporations to reward simply any profitable behavior that is within the letter of the law. Or even close enough to get away with.
Actually no, we didn't. Obeying the law is not a requirement for any corporation as the "fines" levied from breaking any laws is simply the cost of doing business. If the profit gained by an action outweighs the consequences of legal action, then any legal punishment in the form of fines is the cost of doing business and "good for the shareholders".
I'm playing the devil's advocate here (because like almost everyone I agree that tech support over the years has gotten extremely piss poor).
I'm not discussing the companies' practice of making foreigners pretend to be Americans. I think it's stupid and easily seen through, and I don't see why they do it.
I would like to put forward the notion that perhaps they do it because they have a (perhaps quite justified) fear that americans calling in will assume that anyone with an accent is sub-standard and cannot help them, therefore will refuse it and make a fuss from the get go.
We all know these people, I've worked the tech support lines long ago and far away, they are the idiots who call and don't listen to ANYTHING you say and just yell "Get me a supervisor!" and "My PC thing is broken and you're gonna fix it NOW and don't tell ME what to do because I've got a super bachelor of everything and I know more than you". Those types.
Now in recent my experience, it was almost universal that 1st level support was poor (I'm being kind, it was extremely annoying and stupid), and that didn't matter if it was in the US or India (or wherever). However, there were a few nuggets of hope in there, a genuinely knowing person. Some sounded western, some didn't. Those that didn't, well, they helped ME, but how many people would have just shot em down because of an accent?
Before the Paramount opened downtown, there were a few second run theaters where you could watch cheap movies and the first run theaters were a reasonable price (7-8 bucks if I remember). When the Paramount opened, the company bought up and closed the cheap theaters and the admission price jumped to 11-12 bucks.
Only recently have second run theaters started to open again, but they seem to be floundering.
Don't we understand what America, the free market, personal responsibility?
I find it extremely unlikely that american (indeed western) society even comes close to understanding personal responsibility just use google a while using "lawsuit" as a term and you'll see what I mean. As for free market? I seriously think that most people THINK they know what it means, but actually don't.
What's wrong with the weight of a cellphone now? Why do we need to make them even smaller and thinner? Where's the friggin limit?
I mean, they already fit nicely in your pocket...its not like they are the bricks from the eighties. Who's the gimp with the cellphone who keeps whining "I need a LIGHTER SMALLER cellphone...my arm gets SOOO tired!"
I'm with you on reception and battery life tho...although my phone goes 4-5 days usually (I don't use it a lot however).
Slashdot Mirror
I would like to put forward a letter of my own to this man.
y?
Well very few people or companies can pay out 50 million without calling it a loss no matter what they were doing with it. I mean, even if you have it to lose, you DON'T have it to lose, know what I mean?
However, the point stands, that 50 million has been set aside for a few years as I understand it (I could be wrong, but wasn't it set aside well before the class action started?). Even at a conservative rate of interest, that's a lot of cabbage annually.
They lose that "income" and that capital...but for the years they had it sitting there and NOT paying what they owed, they did benefit largely from their illegal conduct and as such should face much more inflated fines than they have thus far.
Why do you care ? What difference does it make ?
I think the point that the parent post was trying to make is that originally, the internet could have been a tool for meaningful and intelligent discourse. You know intelligent conversation? It can be enjoyable at times. Beneficial too.
The attitude shown in your post is that the internet is already meaningless and we should not care about it.
It's sad that 99.9% of forums out there are reduced to meaningless trolling, astroturfing and rampant idiocy. I find it ironic that the technological advances that brought about the internet has done more to glorify stupidity than anything in the last hundred years.
Working with the public made me lose faith in human nature and the notion that people are generally sane and smart.
It's funny how, since I've changed careers and no longer work with the public, the internet is working to take up that slack.
Either he's breaking the law, or he's incredibly paranoid
That's a false dichotomy made by almost every moron with the "If you have nothing to hide, then you have nothing to fear."
Here's another option, maybe he wants to choose who gets to see his pictures.
The right to privacy is important. Not wanting some minimum wage power-tripping ape going through your vacation slideshow and making fun of you because he doesn't like your face doesn't make you a criminal, it makes you human.
Wanting to choose who gets to see my pics isn't paranoid, it's human.
Right NOW all the shit YOU do isn't illegal...but in 5 years, who knows?
Smarten up. Protect your right to privacy or lose a lot more than your dignity.
The whole concept of making the systems easier to manage is what is killing us properly - home users think they can do it because they hooked their TV up to their laptop just fine, so why should it be hard when they're at the office.
I think people tend to forget that making things "easier" for the user usually means a TON of complex work in the background...which leads to both that kind of thinking and the typical LUser thinking that "if it's so easy...it must not take a lot of work, so these guys are WAY overpaid!" attitude.
Please, you're not even bringing table stakes to this game.
I have one for you but it's just lying around here doing nothing
Ah, but that's what I'm talking about.
A rumble, a bit of heat and a flash of light do not constitute compelling evidence of draconic activity.
However, add scales, footprints and such, the evidence is more compelling. It's no longer a case of leaping to the ludicrous conclusion.
Just like when someone shows me a blurry pic of a blob of light on a dark background...I don't think to myself "hey! That's a UFO!"
Sorry...I couldn't resist. I agree we should stay open minded, however, not so open that our brains fall out of our heads.
If you hear the sound, feel the heat and see some light...don't jump to the conclusion of "dragon". Investigate.
Saying "well you should keep your mind open that there might BE dragons here..." isn't being open minded...and it ISN'T "Thinking outside the box" either. Instead, one should encourage one to look and if you find conclusive evidence of draconian presences in your garage THEN conclude "dragon".
Where do you get that "the majority of canadians aren't even on the internet?". I would say if you did your research, you'd find that the percentage of us on the 'net is comparable to the percentage in the US.
As for "thief" and "laws", the personal use copyright clause in Canada specifically states (and has been interpreted as such) that P2P use constitutes personal use and is not illegal. The CRIA may be working to change that, but they haven't changed it yet. There's a little hurdle in the media levy they collect, in exchange for which, the personal use clause remains untouched.
You don't need gun control. Let em have all the guns they want. As many as they want.
What you NEED is bullet control.
Have some SunnyD fruit cocktail! Made with real fruit juice*!
*5% fruit juice from concentrates
It would only disqualify you as pretenders if you step out of the basement.
They're already facing the immediate punishment of a car accident in which they might die. I doubt that yet another overpriced moving violation will do any good.
Problem is that most bad drivers, while they can be the CAUSE of an accident, often do not suffer the consequence of an accident. Its the cars reacting to their stupidities that end up smashed while they continue on, oblivious to their asshatery.
Do you normally code on a laptop? (Not wanting to be a troll or anything, just curious)
If not, then you aren't the demographic as this thing is being touted as a laptop-killer. Personally, I agree with the parent, it looks like an overpriced, underpowered PDA replacement.
I love how they always end up mentioning "every day" in this stuff. I love laptops, but when I buy a laptop, I don't buy it because I can do my "everyday" things on it (leaving out any gaming, most any damn laptop can run office or even visual studio...factor in linux and most any laptop will satisfy your "everyday" requirements), I buy it because it can do EVERYTHING I want it to do. This little gadget might run office type apps like nobody's business and might be able to surf the net ok, but if I'm dishing out big bucks it had better handle whatever I want to throw at it (and this machine doesn't look like it would cut it).
For many people its an either/or situation. Either you get a desktop or a laptop. I don't know too many people who get both and scrimp on a sub-standard laptop on special because they are satisfied with their desktop.
For better or worse, we have set up corporations to reward simply any profitable behavior that is within the letter of the law. Or even close enough to get away with.
Actually no, we didn't. Obeying the law is not a requirement for any corporation as the "fines" levied from breaking any laws is simply the cost of doing business. If the profit gained by an action outweighs the consequences of legal action, then any legal punishment in the form of fines is the cost of doing business and "good for the shareholders".
I'm playing the devil's advocate here (because like almost everyone I agree that tech support over the years has gotten extremely piss poor).
I'm not discussing the companies' practice of making foreigners pretend to be Americans. I think it's stupid and easily seen through, and I don't see why they do it.
I would like to put forward the notion that perhaps they do it because they have a (perhaps quite justified) fear that americans calling in will assume that anyone with an accent is sub-standard and cannot help them, therefore will refuse it and make a fuss from the get go.
We all know these people, I've worked the tech support lines long ago and far away, they are the idiots who call and don't listen to ANYTHING you say and just yell "Get me a supervisor!" and "My PC thing is broken and you're gonna fix it NOW and don't tell ME what to do because I've got a super bachelor of everything and I know more than you". Those types.
Now in recent my experience, it was almost universal that 1st level support was poor (I'm being kind, it was extremely annoying and stupid), and that didn't matter if it was in the US or India (or wherever). However, there were a few nuggets of hope in there, a genuinely knowing person. Some sounded western, some didn't. Those that didn't, well, they helped ME, but how many people would have just shot em down because of an accent?
Yup agreed.
Before the Paramount opened downtown, there were a few second run theaters where you could watch cheap movies and the first run theaters were a reasonable price (7-8 bucks if I remember). When the Paramount opened, the company bought up and closed the cheap theaters and the admission price jumped to 11-12 bucks.
Only recently have second run theaters started to open again, but they seem to be floundering.
Don't we understand what America, the free market, personal responsibility?
I find it extremely unlikely that american (indeed western) society even comes close to understanding personal responsibility just use google a while using "lawsuit" as a term and you'll see what I mean. As for free market? I seriously think that most people THINK they know what it means, but actually don't.
Considering that on the provided pictures I do not see any kind of screen cover or protection, this would NOT suprise me.
Granted I don't know how "rugged" this second screen is.
Which games?
Well you'd better buy a flashlight...I mean...who knows what the sun's gonna do tomorrow morning!
All this does is make you look like a lunatic talking to yourself while walking down the street.
What's wrong with the weight of a cellphone now? Why do we need to make them even smaller and thinner? Where's the friggin limit?
I mean, they already fit nicely in your pocket...its not like they are the bricks from the eighties. Who's the gimp with the cellphone who keeps whining "I need a LIGHTER SMALLER cellphone...my arm gets SOOO tired!"
I'm with you on reception and battery life tho...although my phone goes 4-5 days usually (I don't use it a lot however).