Are you kidding? This is the reason Microsoft got off the hook!
Judge: "OK, Microsoft, we will not break you up for now, but now you're our biatch. We want your OS to be able to keep track of everything that happens on the proles' P.C.'s, and we want you to make it so we can enforce the DMCA with their own computers!"
I find it particularly amusing how the apologists have spun the M$ OS over the years. From "Who needs a mouse and windows in their OS?" (DOS days) to "The browser is a *part* of the OS." (Win 98) to "All your files are belong to us." (Proprietary FS). Why more people aren't leaving in droves, fleeing a company that has neither vision nor integrity boggles the mind.
And yes... a proprietary file system is all about Digital Rights Management. Your digital ass belongs to Microsoft. Can you dig it?
3% loss in revenue over last year. That's what the music industry is worried about. Nevermind that there was an economic downturn this year and many more industries lost more both in percentages and money. Of course the rest of the industries in the economy aren't lobbying to have our rights taken away... or are they?
But the world is also full of new ideas for lower-bit-rate encoding, including wavelet, MPEG-4 and such proprietary codecs as Microsoft Corp.'s Corona. The DVD Forum's technical working group has already proved that encoding rates as low as 7 Mbits/s will yield HD video of acceptable quality.
3 points:
Microsoft is let off completely by Justice largely due to the requests/lobbying of digital-content-providers.
In return for getting off the hook, M$ provides its new codecs to said content-providers, along with its current Digital Rights Management scheme.
M$ monopoly is secure as it helps other industry players squeeze the consumer, reduce choice, and further consolidate power in the hands of an incredibly richer and more powerful anointed few.
You could see it another way, but I don't know how you would without willingly choosing to be naive.
Can't we all just get a long and agree on my compromise -- a green DVD laser. Only $50,000 to me for the idea, so it's cheap, does the job, and everybody is happy!
Is this really a big issue that deserves a set of Draconian laws? People can already be kicked off their ISP if there are a lot of complaints anyway. My guess is that this law will get on the books, it will be enforced a couple of times behind the scenes, and for the most part everyone will forget about it.
Then years down the line, when there is a "crisis," this obscure old internet law will be used to squash some political dissenters... at a time when political dissent becomes truly necessary.
Think about it. How often do people "upgrade" their televisions? My guess is that they go through a couple of cars (15-25 years) before they think about something like this. And everyone knows most cars on the road are from the 80's and 90's.
Additionally, HDTV has been "scooped" by DVD. Now that millions have upgraded those old "Solid State" T.V.'s from the 60's, 70's, and 80's to nice new WEGA's with DVD players, very few are going to be willing to slap down 1-2k again just to get HDTV compatibility. If DVD & HDTV had been "bundled" or at least made the scene at the same time, HDTV might have had a chance to catch this "cycle." My estimate: another 15 years.
Yeah, we messed with Trash 80's in junior high... Our favorite stunt back then was waiting until a buddy got a couple of "pages" of program typed in (and none of us knew how to type, so that was an accomplishment) and then whoops! Accidentally hit that orange reset key! That button was on the right of the keyboard, well away from the rest of the keys and it was just begging to be hit...
Aren't we forgetting something? If she's good enough to marry, she's good enough to be a "friend" on Slashdot! Kathleen's Fans All that's left is this and the ring, dude!
Why not add a Javascript ticker-tape display to Slashdot so we can just watch the M$ virii/security-holes flash by like so many stock market reports?
.NET is a Come ON!
on
What is .NET?
·
· Score: -1, Flamebait
It's M$'s attempt to shake-down the internet community by giving them a proprietary, closed-box "solution" to the unprecedented freedom and interoperability presented in our current open, "free," internet scheme.
Maybe the Futurama writers will go back to writing for The Simpsons and save it from being ruined by the current group of monkeys-at-typewriters that have been doing scripts for the show the past few years...
More likely is that the USA will breed an army of expendable super-patriotic clones to go out into the rest of the world and spread the word about the fantastic US way of life.
And if anyone disagrees they get shot:-) Too late. The Soviets already tried this. It doesn't work.
Is there something they're not telling us here? Is this making anyone else paranoid? If the human race is having serious problems with self-government and religion, what makes anyone believe we are going to get "better" playing God?
Slashdot Mirror
So now we have to lobby to get our fair use rights returned to us?
Judge: "OK, Microsoft, we will not break you up for now, but now you're our biatch. We want your OS to be able to keep track of everything that happens on the proles' P.C.'s, and we want you to make it so we can enforce the DMCA with their own computers!"
M$: "Yes Sir!"
I find it particularly amusing how the apologists have spun the M$ OS over the years. From "Who needs a mouse and windows in their OS?" (DOS days) to "The browser is a *part* of the OS." (Win 98) to "All your files are belong to us." (Proprietary FS). Why more people aren't leaving in droves, fleeing a company that has neither vision nor integrity boggles the mind.
And yes... a proprietary file system is all about Digital Rights Management. Your digital ass belongs to Microsoft. Can you dig it?
Is that a Beowulf Cluster in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?
Many people "discovered" America well before Christopher Columbus, as evidenced by the fact many people were already here when he arrived.
3% loss in revenue over last year. That's what the music industry is worried about. Nevermind that there was an economic downturn this year and many more industries lost more both in percentages and money. Of course the rest of the industries in the economy aren't lobbying to have our rights taken away... or are they?
I saved $600 on a brand new computer monitor just after I realized all I had to do was watch the LED's on my MODEM to surf Slashdot!
3 points:
- Microsoft is let off completely by Justice largely due to the requests/lobbying of digital-content-providers.
- In return for getting off the hook, M$ provides its new codecs to said content-providers, along with its current Digital Rights Management scheme.
- M$ monopoly is secure as it helps other industry players squeeze the consumer, reduce choice, and further consolidate power in the hands of an incredibly richer and more powerful anointed few.
You could see it another way, but I don't know how you would without willingly choosing to be naive.Can't we all just get a long and agree on my compromise -- a green DVD laser. Only $50,000 to me for the idea, so it's cheap, does the job, and everybody is happy!
The price of freedom is eternal vigilance, but who has time for that?
Is this really a big issue that deserves a set of Draconian laws? People can already be kicked off their ISP if there are a lot of complaints anyway. My guess is that this law will get on the books, it will be enforced a couple of times behind the scenes, and for the most part everyone will forget about it.
Then years down the line, when there is a "crisis," this obscure old internet law will be used to squash some political dissenters... at a time when political dissent becomes truly necessary.
Think about it. How often do people "upgrade" their televisions? My guess is that they go through a couple of cars (15-25 years) before they think about something like this. And everyone knows most cars on the road are from the 80's and 90's.
Additionally, HDTV has been "scooped" by DVD. Now that millions have upgraded those old "Solid State" T.V.'s from the 60's, 70's, and 80's to nice new WEGA's with DVD players, very few are going to be willing to slap down 1-2k again just to get HDTV compatibility. If DVD & HDTV had been "bundled" or at least made the scene at the same time, HDTV might have had a chance to catch this "cycle." My estimate: another 15 years.
I wouldn't let you pump my laptop!
Yeah, we messed with Trash 80's in junior high... Our favorite stunt back then was waiting until a buddy got a couple of "pages" of program typed in (and none of us knew how to type, so that was an accomplishment) and then whoops! Accidentally hit that orange reset key! That button was on the right of the keyboard, well away from the rest of the keys and it was just begging to be hit...
Just how much "justice" M$ has bought...
Aren't we forgetting something? If she's good enough to marry, she's good enough to be a "friend" on Slashdot! Kathleen's Fans All that's left is this and the ring, dude!
The praise borders on sycophancy ("Gutenberg ... Babbage ... now Gates") with no apparent tongue in his cheek.
Microsoft has apologists? No way!
Why not add a Javascript ticker-tape display to Slashdot so we can just watch the M$ virii/security-holes flash by like so many stock market reports?
It's M$'s attempt to shake-down the internet community by giving them a proprietary, closed-box "solution" to the unprecedented freedom and interoperability presented in our current open, "free," internet scheme.
Maybe the Futurama writers will go back to writing for The Simpsons and save it from being ruined by the current group of monkeys-at-typewriters that have been doing scripts for the show the past few years...
More likely is that the USA will breed an army of expendable super-patriotic clones to go out into the rest of the world and spread the word about the fantastic US way of life.
:-)
And if anyone disagrees they get shot
Too late. The Soviets already tried this. It doesn't work.
Is there something they're not telling us here? Is this making anyone else paranoid? If the human race is having serious problems with self-government and religion, what makes anyone believe we are going to get "better" playing God?