I dont think that it is as bad as you think. At least for iTunes. (I have never seen the others) iTunes does not really use a "special encrypted format" it uses AAC which is part of the MPEG-4 spec. And it allows you to convert anything to mp3 if you like. Yes, you do have to use iTunes to buy it, but once it is mp3 or ripped to cd you can play or burn the stuff on anything you like. I presume, (but am not sure) that you could use any AAC to mp3 converter to do the conversion, or any AAC player to play it. Apple simply decided to put their stuff in a newer (some say better) format rather than the older more popular format ( a typical apple thing to do)
-I don't remember the exact phrase but I remember the tone from the control announcer. It was like nothing out of the ordinary happened. It was like, "We have a system failure."
I believe it was: "Obviously a major malfunction."
That is because Apple has a huge amount of inventory in stock right now. They have cut prices and removed Build to Order in order to get the old machines out the door before the new machines are announced.
Well the important point here is that it is neigh trivial to cause damage to alot of systems. the kiddies can do damage with readily available tools. ILOVEYOU was really simple, mostly just a pasting together of a couple other viruses. Hell, given the security holes in.vbs It is trivial write from scratch anyway. when melissa came around I was stunned that it had taken so long for someone to actually write it. the holes had been there for years. so basically someone with an agenda an almost no skill can cause real damage.
While reading the IRC logs I was struck by a nearly overpowering urge to write a perl script ala Dialectizer. To convert plain text to k1dd3. I think that I would have to if I were to become an 31337 h4x0r. because I sure as hell cant type like that:)
Napster should have a system in which it scans for the first parts data on the CD before it allows you to start a download so people aren't ripping off music.
Yeah...but that is what MyMP3.com did...and look what happened to them.:) Oddly...it is a copyright violation to have the necessary database to enforce copyrights. go figure...
ok so the.god idea is stupid, and well we are already doing something stupid so...no need for something new.:)
OTOH...I actually would like TLDs that mean something. It would really be nice to be able to tell something about the nature of the group that has the domain by the TLD. you know, back in the day having a.net address ment that you were an ISP or something,.com ment that you were selling something and so on. Yeah I know that it leads to the whole microsoft.com vs microsoft.org mess, but I like the information that it can give. pity it doesnt seem to work.
Well...sort of, IBM opensourced a spec for a PPC motherboard a while back and around that time I heard that there were people planning on building these machines and shipping them with Linux PPC on them. I havent heard anyting recently, but I havent bothered to look.
IBM also uses the PPC in its RS6000s and other machines. but you arent going to put that on your desk.
So...If he wants to use water to control/accelerate the degradation process, then he is going to have to deal whith the toxic water/runoff somehow...and dude's solution to this is to use the trees...to do what? If he is talking about genetically engineered trees to eat the heavy metals and other pollutants like others have suggested, then he doesnt really bring that out in the article. If he is just talking regular poplar trees then they probably wont prevent this type of pollutant from leaching into groundwater, etc.
Trees are good for a lot of things but I wouldnt expect them to be efficient filters for things like cadmium, mercury and organic pollutants, that you are likely to get coming out of a landfill. Though I honestly dont know.
The thing about this that the dude does not mention and that the sycophant interviewer does not ask about, is that this idea has been around for a while and really does not have all the wide ranging applications that dude seems to imply.
The problem that gets addressed here is, water pollution from nitrogen fertilizers and manure. For a variety of reasons (not worth gettting into now) these fertilizer have a tendency to run-off into waterways, and ground water. this nitrogen can create several kinds of pollution. one example is that serves as a fertilizer for algae it these waterways. Massive alge blooms follow, and then a dramatically lowered dissolved O2, then dead fish, and other problems.
So what happens is that dude plants his poplar trees and the N2 fertilizes them instead of getting into the water system...also the root systems of the trees hold the soils/N2 in one place. So the issue of pollutants being stored in the trees that some people have mentioned isnt a big deal because we it is good for the trees. He is using Poplar trees because they grow fast and are easy to plant.
OTOH...the part where dude was talking about running H20 through landfills to decompose the trash faster and using trees there is something I dont think I quite get. The water that runs through would be come toxic as hell, and since we are no longer talking about N2 pollution I dont think the trees would help. In fact most modern landfills want to prevent the trash from decomposing, the goal is simply long term storage. So I am not so sure what he is getting at here
Slashdot Mirror
I dont think that it is as bad as you think. At least for iTunes. (I have never seen the others) iTunes does not really use a "special encrypted format" it uses AAC which is part of the MPEG-4 spec. And it allows you to convert anything to mp3 if you like.
Yes, you do have to use iTunes to buy it, but once it is mp3 or ripped to cd you can play or burn the stuff on anything you like. I presume, (but am not sure) that you could use any AAC to mp3 converter to do the conversion, or any AAC player to play it.
Apple simply decided to put their stuff in a newer (some say better) format rather than the older more popular format ( a typical apple thing to do)
-I don't remember the exact phrase but I remember the tone from the control announcer. It was like nothing out of the ordinary happened. It was like, "We have a system failure." I believe it was: "Obviously a major malfunction."
That is because Apple has a huge amount of inventory in stock right now. They have cut prices and removed Build to Order in order to get the old machines out the door before the new machines are announced.
I am sure that they will have BTO back soon.
THE LAMA
Ogden Nash
(1931)
The one-l lama
He's a priest.
The two-l llama,
He's a beast.
And I will bet
A silk pajama
There isn't any
Three-l lllama.
Sorry, I hate to engourage this sort of thing, but I love lamas the're so cute.
DC wants you to run the scans through their servers so they can keep track of what people are scanning and presumably sell that info.
Didn't the wired article say that these things have unique IDs.
hmmm...
the one I got uses a PC serial connector.
I just said "no usb?" shrugged and went on with my life. I suppose you could get an adapter of some kind.
Well the important point here is that it is neigh trivial to cause damage to alot of systems. the kiddies can do damage with readily available tools. ILOVEYOU was really simple, mostly just a pasting together of a couple other viruses. Hell, given the security holes in .vbs It is trivial write from scratch anyway. when melissa came around I was stunned that it had taken so long for someone to actually write it. the holes had been there for years. so basically someone with an agenda an almost no skill can cause real damage.
While reading the IRC logs I was struck by a nearly overpowering urge to write a perl script ala Dialectizer. To convert plain text to k1dd3. :)
I think that I would have to if I were to become an 31337 h4x0r. because I sure as hell cant type like that
Yeah...but that is what MyMP3.com did...and look what happened to them. :) Oddly...it is a copyright violation to have the necessary database to enforce copyrights. go figure...
ok so the .god idea is stupid, and well we are already doing something stupid so...no need for something new. :)
.net address ment that you were an ISP or something, .com ment that you were selling something and so on. Yeah I know that it leads to the whole microsoft.com vs microsoft.org mess, but I like the information that it can give.
OTOH...I actually would like TLDs that mean something. It would really be nice to be able to tell something about the nature of the group that has the domain by the TLD. you know, back in the day having a
pity it doesnt seem to work.
ACZ
Well...sort of, IBM opensourced a spec for a PPC motherboard a while back and around that time I heard that there were people planning on building these machines and shipping them with Linux PPC on them. I havent heard anyting recently, but I havent bothered to look.
IBM also uses the PPC in its RS6000s and other machines. but you arent going to put that on your desk.
:) teehee.... I went to RPI, and I remember this stairwell. It really is the sort of thing that absolutely _begs_ to have stuff dropped down it.
Of course it is the style and panache (and video) that makes this neat.
however, I am not really sure about selling mousepads, to me it seems to take something away from it.
OK, I think you are right.
So...If he wants to use water to control/accelerate the degradation process, then he is going to have to deal whith the toxic water/runoff somehow...and dude's solution to this is to use the trees...to do what? If he is talking about genetically engineered trees to eat the heavy metals and other pollutants like others have suggested, then he doesnt really bring that out in the article. If he is just talking regular poplar trees then they probably wont prevent this type of pollutant from leaching into groundwater, etc.
Trees are good for a lot of things but I wouldnt expect them to be efficient filters for things like cadmium, mercury and organic pollutants, that you are likely to get coming out of a landfill. Though I honestly dont know.
The thing about this that the dude does not mention and that the sycophant interviewer does not ask about, is that this idea has been around for a while and really does not have all the wide ranging applications that dude seems to imply.
The problem that gets addressed here is, water pollution from nitrogen fertilizers and manure. For a variety of reasons (not worth gettting into now) these fertilizer have a tendency to run-off into waterways, and ground water. this nitrogen can create several kinds of pollution. one example is that serves as a fertilizer for algae it these waterways. Massive alge blooms follow, and then a dramatically lowered dissolved O2, then dead fish, and other problems.
So what happens is that dude plants his poplar trees and the N2 fertilizes them instead of getting into the water system...also the root systems of the trees hold the soils/N2 in one place. So the issue of pollutants being stored in the trees that some people have mentioned isnt a big deal because we it is good for the trees.
He is using Poplar trees because they grow fast and are easy to plant.
OTOH...the part where dude was talking about running H20 through landfills to decompose the trash faster and using trees there is something I dont think I quite get. The water that runs through would be come toxic as hell, and since we are no longer talking about N2 pollution I dont think the trees would help. In fact most modern landfills want to prevent the trash from decomposing, the goal is simply long term storage. So I am not so sure what he is getting at here
anyway sorry to ramble
Mike