A few things about domino, from a sometimes-Domino admin:
First, you can have *really awful* Domino URLs. this was not one of them - they took the time in their DB design to make it a nice, easy on the eyes address.
Second, and more importantly, Domino makes Access Control trivial. It would have been the work of moments to make that db private. They didn't do that.
Finally, Domino regularly indexes all public databases on a site. The search engine can also parse PDF files. This makes all public documents findable unless you take measures to prevent indexing. Given how these monkeys set up the rest of their site, I wouldn't be surprised if this PDF was findable via the websites' regular search feature.
It looks like this company has *no clue* what they were doing, and is trying to blame someone else for it.
Close, but not quite. Your examples are physical objects that have a high per-unit cost of production. Stealing a car *denys* the use of that car to its rightful owner. Sleeping in a hotel's bed *denys* the hotel of use of that specific bed.
Copying software does not *deny* the copyright holder of the use of that software, and the per-unit cost of that software (the cost of reproduction, excluding packaging, shipping, storage etc) is infinitesimal. That's why copying software illegally *is* copyright infringement (you're using something without permission), but *not* theft (by your use of this thing, you are not denying anyone else the use of it).
Now, walking into Best Buy and walking out with a full pack product of WindowsXP is theft. Downloading a warez version is copyright infringement. Two different crimes. Hence, copying software != theft.
You said you were offered a Notes Windows solution - have you considered running Notes/Domino on Linux? Domino runs native on Linux, and you can use Wine to run the Notes client quite nicely (although Codeweavers Crossover Office does a better job, for a little extra $$$). That'd get you a supported, commercial-grade software without having to pay the Windows tax.
Plus I really like Domino for groupware. It's the only real challenger for MS Exchange out there.
So they say pricefixing went on from 95 - '00, and is now over.
But average CD prices in 2001 were higher than they were in 2000 (from $14.02 per CD to $14.63, according to the RIAA's *own numbers*). Surely if the pricefixing was that extensive, and ended in 2000, then the average CD price in 2001 would have fallen? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?
Hey! That's my Alma Mater! No surprise they're banning Linux; net services sucked so much when I was there, I scammed myself a UNIX account up the road at UCL. KCL's computers used to be a bunch of BBC 'B' micros serving as dumb terminals for their VAX system. They had no helpdesk. One of their labs was in an old plague pit. They had one grouchy old lady operator (in the 'old skool' style) and you had to apply for special dispensation to have more than 256K (yes, K) of disk space. Office hours were 2pm - 4pm, Wednesdays. Ah, memories! It's no surprise they're *completely* clueless... they have no history of decent computing or having a helpdesk. Now, UCL and Imperial, they have a clue... good helpdesk, too (at least at UCL, didn't get a chance to talk to the Imperial folks).
More specifically, you need the Ximian Connector (which, as I recall, is not yet released) if you need access to group calendars and resource scheduling. Any POP3/IMAP client (Eudora, Pine, Outlook Express, Evolution, Mozilla, etc) can get and send mail from an Exchange Server.
Were I you, I would seriously consider Lotus Domino as an Exchange replacement. It's more open, more flexible, and it runs on Linux!:-)
You can't move a weather balloon. Indeed, it's at the whim of those pesky high-altitude winds... one of these babies can actually stay in position over a target city, perhaps providing wireless / WAP coverage for the entire area. This makes perfect sense, when you look at the aerial density needed in your typical urban environment : they don't get those roof-top spaces for free, you know. If you could get one of these puppies for $1M to cover Manhattan, you'd save that in the first year alone in wireless basestation leases.
Of course, the math isn't quite that cut and dried, but it still offers tanalising possibilities to wireless service providers. And that's just one possible use with a clear business need.
Those Wackos at AMD have done it this time! Now they're just some chip manufacturer who sells CPU that are better, clock-for-clock, than their Intel equivalents, for less money!
I don't know if I can continue to give them business in light of this news.
Ever since I got my Apex DVD player, I've been collecting the Region 2 Farscape DVDs, purchased from various retaillers in the UK. Disc Set 1 I bought from Amazon.co.uk, for 20% of the UK retail price. When I went back to buy Disc Set 2, they had changed their pricing policy to 1UKP off retail (about a 2% discount). This was dumb : once you added in postage, it was cheaper to buy the set from a brick and mortar establishment in the UK. I had a brief email exchange with Amazon UK customer service (also pointing out that it was cheaper for UK customers to buy DVDs from Amazon US [yeah, UK DVD players can handle Region 1;-)] than it was to buy from AUK) that boiled down to "I'm letting you know you've lost my custom until you fix it".
Lo! This time, when I go to get Disc Set 4 (after having bought from blackstar.co.uk the last two times) Amazon UK was the best deal again. Co-incidence? I think not.:-) But it was a dumb move in the first place. I suspect this whole variable-pricing at Amazon.com is part of the same strategy : let's see if people will still buy if it's NOT 25% off retail...me, I always shop around for the best price, and give my custom accordingly.
You're only in violation if you agreed to the license in the first place. My understanding is that these units are given away at Radioshack in clear plastic baggies. The bag is not shrink-wrapped. There is no lecture from a Radio Shack salesguy telling you of the license. You only see the license if you install the Windows software.
If you do not see the license, then you cannot agree to it. You don't agree to it, you ain't bound by it. Ergo, you can look at the bitsream under linux as much as you like.
Besides which, license or no, REVERSE ENGINEERING IS LEGAL, no matter what they say. They could include in the license a clause that said "You must give us your first-born child within one year of birth", but that wouldn't make it legally binding.:-)
...Only high-resolution images viewed using specialized graphic software such as Sierra Imaging's Image Expert CE and Microsoft Internet Explorer will be affected.
OK, so I'm playing with semantics. And it's early, and the coffee isn't working yet, but still...
Hey, if/. is moving to Exodus, Waltham, they'll be next to my boxes!
Just think, when I get that dedicated T1 between our office and Exodus, I can route directly to/. without having to go through the cloud! I'll be, like, four hops away, or something similarly stupid.
This way, when slash is slow, I'll know it's a hardware problem, and not my connection.;-)
I could give tours of the boxes to my friends!("And on your left we see Lycos...and on your right, Slashdot..."). Kewl!
We need to listen to a track, then click a button to send 50 cents or a dollar to the artist (or even the record label). Tracks need to be spun off from albums ; I won't pay $20 to buy an album with one or two tracks on it that I want, but I will pay $1 a pop for them.
Sites that let you 'build your own' CD are a step in the right direction, but the major labels so far have refused to let their artist's work appear on them, probably out of fear that it would reduce album sales, which are, after all, the traditional lifeblood of the labels.
The technology for micropayments already exists. I know I'd pay $1 a track to build my own CD online, then have it mailed to me, providing the track library was large enough. You could even (shock, horror) do it with downloadable MP3s...after all, who here doesn't know how to rip a track from a CD?;-)
The record companies could do this themselves. They own the libraries, they have the money to develop the web tools and production lines. They'd gain *valuable* demographics...the list goes on. All they'd lose would be a reliance on album sales as the be-all and end-all metric of the industry.
I guess it's easier to litigate than inovate. After all, they already have thousands of lawyers on their books, and all the good web designers are working for the indies...;-)
Much as I hate to admit it, the Frogs got something right ; "shink wrap" licenses (including click-throughs) are explicitly illegal there. Something to do with being unable to know what you've bought until you've used it.
There's also the strong possibility that shrink-wrap licenses are illegal in the EU in general, as part of harmonisation of laws and whatnot, but I'm not so sure about that.
Two points: First, the NYT isn't just an Internet newspaper.;-) And no matter how much we'd like, some printed on paper and distributed through normal channels carries far more weight than thousands of Usenet/internet downloads .
Secondly, if an innocent published it (if they had no reason to know it was illegal) then it's legal. That's what trade secret law says. And despite the fact that we all know the source has be propagated on Usenet (how many thousands of downloads? Unknown, unquanitifable, doesn't count) you can point at the NYT and say "150,000 innocent people saw this". Publishing in a hardcopy distributed media is recognised as public domain.
And once it's in the public domain, it fails one of the three requirements for it to be a trade secret (regardless of whether or not the publisher and / or publishee were aware of any legal ramifications). No Trade Secret, no CA case. Doesn't help those folks in NY state or CT, but it does solve *one* problem...as well as getting DVD distributers miffed at the way the MPAA has handled their brief.;-)
Oh, and NYT vs MPAA? Who'd you think would win? Can you hear "Freedom of the Press!" anyone?:-)
Another alternative might be a mailshot. Or heck, even just distributing copies of that guy's analysis of CSS (I'm sorry I've forgotten your name...Frank?). Even an Ad in a 'local' rag with a distro of only thousands would count, and that could be done for a few hundred bucks.
Or how about UseNet? I'm sure the source has been posted there. You could get it from an anonymous post, and then could reprint in the good faith that you have no knowledge (or reasonable assumption of illegailty) of it's origin. People post their own code to mailing lists all the time. It's part of the atmosphere of Open Source.;-)
Of course, it'd be better if the ad was posted by a non-US resident; less chance of legal recourse, no matter how screwy that might be.
Heh. How about a full page ad in Variety, outlining the weaknesses of CSS?:-)
Lets create a slush fund, then get one of our international friends to post the source as an ad in a major publication. It won't set us back more than a thousand, tops...
If it gets printed, then it's public knowledge. And Trade Secret claims go to pot once 'an innocent' comes across it.
PLUS you can't use that source code to copy a DVD. You'd have to type it in, compile it, run it...three steps removed from source is legal defence enough about wishing to encourage piracy...and they can't use a US court to pursue a foreign national in another country. Especially if that country is Norway, or somewhere with similar protected speech laws.
Today's article was the last straw for me. I went straight to the EFF and joined. If you're not already a member, what are you waiting for? This is one online presence that won't sell your email address to spammers.:-)
I also got my DVD CCA T-shirt from copyleft. Get yours before they're banned!
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A few things about domino, from a sometimes-Domino admin:
First, you can have *really awful* Domino URLs. this was not one of them - they took the time in their DB design to make it a nice, easy on the eyes address.
Second, and more importantly, Domino makes Access Control trivial. It would have been the work of moments to make that db private. They didn't do that.
Finally, Domino regularly indexes all public databases on a site. The search engine can also parse PDF files. This makes all public documents findable unless you take measures to prevent indexing. Given how these monkeys set up the rest of their site, I wouldn't be surprised if this PDF was findable via the websites' regular search feature.
It looks like this company has *no clue* what they were doing, and is trying to blame someone else for it.
The UK has the death penalty for treason, arson in a naval dockyard (holdover from when ships were made of wood) and, I think, sheep rustling.
I'm pretty sure that France still has the death penalty for treason, too.
I went to the new mall in Malacca two years ago; same deal. Fake CDs as far as the eye could see, for open sale in the middle of the building.
If all they got were four folks and 1,000 CD, then they weren't trying *at all*.
Close, but not quite. Your examples are physical objects that have a high per-unit cost of production. Stealing a car *denys* the use of that car to its rightful owner. Sleeping in a hotel's bed *denys* the hotel of use of that specific bed.
Copying software does not *deny* the copyright holder of the use of that software, and the per-unit cost of that software (the cost of reproduction, excluding packaging, shipping, storage etc) is infinitesimal. That's why copying software illegally *is* copyright infringement (you're using something without permission), but *not* theft (by your use of this thing, you are not denying anyone else the use of it).
Now, walking into Best Buy and walking out with a full pack product of WindowsXP is theft. Downloading a warez version is copyright infringement. Two different crimes. Hence, copying software != theft.
...since they were last shut. ;-)
Wanna come around and do a VRML and archive of my bedroom?
You said you were offered a Notes Windows solution - have you considered running Notes/Domino on Linux? Domino runs native on Linux, and you can use Wine to run the Notes client quite nicely (although Codeweavers Crossover Office does a better job, for a little extra $$$). That'd get you a supported, commercial-grade software without having to pay the Windows tax.
Plus I really like Domino for groupware. It's the only real challenger for MS Exchange out there.
And they include heat and noise reports in their excellent reviews. Highly recommended for any HDD purchase.
So they say pricefixing went on from 95 - '00, and is now over.
But average CD prices in 2001 were higher than they were in 2000 (from $14.02 per CD to $14.63, according to the RIAA's *own numbers*). Surely if the pricefixing was that extensive, and ended in 2000, then the average CD price in 2001 would have fallen?
Anyone? Anyone?
Bueller?
Hey! That's my Alma Mater!
No surprise they're banning Linux; net services sucked so much when I was there, I scammed myself a UNIX account up the road at UCL. KCL's computers used to be a bunch of BBC 'B' micros serving as dumb terminals for their VAX system. They had no helpdesk. One of their labs was in an old plague pit. They had one grouchy old lady operator (in the 'old skool' style) and you had to apply for special dispensation to have more than 256K (yes, K) of disk space. Office hours were 2pm - 4pm, Wednesdays.
Ah, memories!
It's no surprise they're *completely* clueless... they have no history of decent computing or having a helpdesk. Now, UCL and Imperial, they have a clue... good helpdesk, too (at least at UCL, didn't get a chance to talk to the Imperial folks).
Were I you, I would seriously consider Lotus Domino as an Exchange replacement. It's more open, more flexible, and it runs on Linux! :-)
You can't move a weather balloon. Indeed, it's at the whim of those pesky high-altitude winds ... one of these babies can actually stay in position over a target city, perhaps providing wireless / WAP coverage for the entire area. This makes perfect sense, when you look at the aerial density needed in your typical urban environment : they don't get those roof-top spaces for free, you know. If you could get one of these puppies for $1M to cover Manhattan, you'd save that in the first year alone in wireless basestation leases.
Of course, the math isn't quite that cut and dried, but it still offers tanalising possibilities to wireless service providers. And that's just one possible use with a clear business need.
Those Wackos at AMD have done it this time! Now they're just some chip manufacturer who sells CPU that are better, clock-for-clock, than their Intel equivalents, for less money!
I don't know if I can continue to give them business in light of this news.
:-)
Ever since I got my Apex DVD player, I've been collecting the Region 2 Farscape DVDs, purchased from various retaillers in the UK. Disc Set 1 I bought from Amazon.co.uk, for 20% of the UK retail price. When I went back to buy Disc Set 2, they had changed their pricing policy to 1UKP off retail (about a 2% discount). This was dumb : once you added in postage, it was cheaper to buy the set from a brick and mortar establishment in the UK. I had a brief email exchange with Amazon UK customer service (also pointing out that it was cheaper for UK customers to buy DVDs from Amazon US [yeah, UK DVD players can handle Region 1 ;-)] than it was to buy from AUK) that boiled down to "I'm letting you know you've lost my custom until you fix it".
Lo! This time, when I go to get Disc Set 4 (after having bought from blackstar.co.uk the last two times) Amazon UK was the best deal again. Co-incidence? I think not. :-) But it was a dumb move in the first place. I suspect this whole variable-pricing at Amazon.com is part of the same strategy : let's see if people will still buy if it's NOT 25% off retail...me, I always shop around for the best price, and give my custom accordingly.
You're only in violation if you agreed to the license in the first place. My understanding is that these units are given away at Radioshack in clear plastic baggies. The bag is not shrink-wrapped. There is no lecture from a Radio Shack salesguy telling you of the license. You only see the license if you install the Windows software.
If you do not see the license, then you cannot agree to it. You don't agree to it, you ain't bound by it. Ergo, you can look at the bitsream under linux as much as you like.
Besides which, license or no, REVERSE ENGINEERING IS LEGAL, no matter what they say. They could include in the license a clause that said "You must give us your first-born child within one year of birth", but that wouldn't make it legally binding. :-)
My bosses' machine had that virus about six weeks ago. It placed a link to a porn link exchange site, if I remember correctly.
It was trivial to clean, AIRC. Nowhere near as nasty as ILUVU was.
Sorry, Cmdr, but this doesn't sound like a new virus. Did you check out Symantec's library before posting, to see if it had any history?
OK, so I'm playing with semantics. And it's early, and the coffee isn't working yet, but still...
...we were all promised from Sony that would be bigger than the Walkman? ;-)
Either that, or Sony wants to collect biometric data from everyone on the planet...
Sorry. Too much X-Files. Not enough fiber.
...Me, myself, and Irene.
;-)
Hey, if /. is moving to Exodus, Waltham, they'll be next to my boxes!
Just think, when I get that dedicated T1 between our office and Exodus, I can route directly to /. without having to go through the cloud! I'll be, like, four hops away, or something similarly stupid.
This way, when slash is slow, I'll know it's a hardware problem, and not my connection. ;-)
I could give tours of the boxes to my friends!("And on your left we see Lycos...and on your right, Slashdot..."). Kewl!
We need to listen to a track, then click a button to send 50 cents or a dollar to the artist (or even the record label). Tracks need to be spun off from albums ; I won't pay $20 to buy an album with one or two tracks on it that I want, but I will pay $1 a pop for them.
Sites that let you 'build your own' CD are a step in the right direction, but the major labels so far have refused to let their artist's work appear on them, probably out of fear that it would reduce album sales, which are, after all, the traditional lifeblood of the labels.
The technology for micropayments already exists. I know I'd pay $1 a track to build my own CD online, then have it mailed to me, providing the track library was large enough. You could even (shock, horror) do it with downloadable MP3s...after all, who here doesn't know how to rip a track from a CD? ;-)
The record companies could do this themselves. They own the libraries, they have the money to develop the web tools and production lines. They'd gain *valuable* demographics...the list goes on. All they'd lose would be a reliance on album sales as the be-all and end-all metric of the industry.
I guess it's easier to litigate than inovate. After all, they already have thousands of lawyers on their books, and all the good web designers are working for the indies...;-)
France.
Much as I hate to admit it, the Frogs got something right ; "shink wrap" licenses (including click-throughs) are explicitly illegal there. Something to do with being unable to know what you've bought until you've used it.
There's also the strong possibility that shrink-wrap licenses are illegal in the EU in general, as part of harmonisation of laws and whatnot, but I'm not so sure about that.
Two points: First, the NYT isn't just an Internet newspaper. ;-) And no matter how much we'd like, some printed on paper and distributed through normal channels carries far more weight than thousands of Usenet/internet downloads .
Secondly, if an innocent published it (if they had no reason to know it was illegal) then it's legal. That's what trade secret law says. And despite the fact that we all know the source has be propagated on Usenet (how many thousands of downloads? Unknown, unquanitifable, doesn't count) you can point at the NYT and say "150,000 innocent people saw this". Publishing in a hardcopy distributed media is recognised as public domain.
And once it's in the public domain, it fails one of the three requirements for it to be a trade secret (regardless of whether or not the publisher and / or publishee were aware of any legal ramifications). No Trade Secret, no CA case. Doesn't help those folks in NY state or CT, but it does solve *one* problem...as well as getting DVD distributers miffed at the way the MPAA has handled their brief. ;-)
Oh, and NYT vs MPAA? Who'd you think would win? Can you hear "Freedom of the Press!" anyone? :-)
Another alternative might be a mailshot. Or heck, even just distributing copies of that guy's analysis of CSS (I'm sorry I've forgotten your name...Frank?). Even an Ad in a 'local' rag with a distro of only thousands would count, and that could be done for a few hundred bucks.
Or how about UseNet? I'm sure the source has been posted there. You could get it from an anonymous post, and then could reprint in the good faith that you have no knowledge (or reasonable assumption of illegailty) of it's origin. People post their own code to mailing lists all the time. It's part of the atmosphere of Open Source. ;-)
Of course, it'd be better if the ad was posted by a non-US resident; less chance of legal recourse, no matter how screwy that might be.
Heh. How about a full page ad in Variety, outlining the weaknesses of CSS? :-)
If it gets printed, then it's public knowledge. And Trade Secret claims go to pot once 'an innocent' comes across it.
PLUS you can't use that source code to copy a DVD. You'd have to type it in, compile it, run it...three steps removed from source is legal defence enough about wishing to encourage piracy...and they can't use a US court to pursue a foreign national in another country. Especially if that country is Norway, or somewhere with similar protected speech laws.
Whaddaya say?
I also got my DVD CCA T-shirt from copyleft. Get yours before they're banned!