There is another theory which says that one of the main reasons for hacking software is because of the challenge of beating the software's protection, and that posting it to the pirate sites is done more for the bragging rights than to let people have the software for nothing.
If this is true, putting in ever more complex protection schemes will have no effect, other than to make the software an even more interesting target for the hackers.
The easiest thing to do would be to setup your own SMTP server
Not everyone has a permenant net connection that lets them set up a personal mail server, and even if you do have that, those 30k messages will have to be routed via a service provider of some sort - okay, so you stop annoying your hosting provider, but you'll very quickly get on the wrong end of your network provider with that sort of traffic coming into a home account.
Which is worse? Having your hosting provider pull the plug on your email, or having your ISP pull the plug on your entire connection?
As has already been said, the problem will go away in it's own time, but for the time being, I don't see any real solution other than just sitting it out.
Let's see.... I think a big solid wood table, surrounded by plush leather executive seats.... and a set of buttons by my chair so I can drop random people into the firey pit!
Oh, and a big tank filled with killer sea bass with frikkin lasers on their heads.
And I'd need a really massive plasma screen... no, make that a holo-projector built into the table... so I can hook into the corporation's satellite network, and spy on random people... just because I can.
Yeah. That would be a good entertainment room. I can only dream, eh....:-)
Fourty years ago, when the Americans were graring up for their first moon missions, the 'pundits' made exactly the same predictions.
Today it's the Chinese, but it all seems very similar.
Sure we've got better technology now, but will that really make the difference? Lunar colonisation will only happen when there's political will to see it happen, and frankly, I can't see the conditions being right for that for some time.
That's the only funny thing I could come up with on this.
Oh come on!;-) You could have tried a bit harder...
How about coming up with silly alternate meanings for the acronym?
Say... "Aardvark Council for the Legalisation of Unicorns" or.... "Asphalt County Landfill University" or.... "Airplanes Can't Land on Us" or.... "A Clearly Litigous Unit" or.... "Anyone Can Learn Urdu"
[Replying to my own post, so I can answer all the responses at once]
Firstly Quality: I was referring to the spam, not the rest of the messages. Flame wars etc are a whole other topic; I wasn't talking about that.
Secondly Filtering: Yes, it's possible you're right that a decent Usenet server will delete the spam. But as I said, I gave up serveral years ago, and that certainly wasn't the case then.
In any case, I don't have access to a decent newsgroup server. My ISP service doesn't include an NNTP server, and the free ones are generally the ones with the most junk.
Finally Usenet vs Email: You can be as sarcastic as you like, but I need email; I don't need Usenet. Truth be told, I'm irritated enough by the spam I get in my email box anyway. I simply don't have the patience to spend time in a place where I'm going to be subjected to even more of it.
I agree it's a shame. Usenet could be (and was) a useful resource. If it ever returns to the way it was, I might come back, but not now.
Just how valuable are these PDAs anyway? It seems awfully petty to be arguing over the ownership of something that was given away for free in the first place, and would probably only have cost a couple of hundred dollars if it hadn't.
Frankly, I can't see the point in making a fuss over it.
Yes, seriously. My answer is "don't read this". You're asking how to stop wasting time on the internet, but you ask the question on the one site that probably wastes more geek time than anything else. This answer is probably five or six pages down the list of replies, so if you're reading this answer, you've already wasted way too much time here.
Wow. Matt Dillon.:) There's a name that brings back memories.
Matt: if you're reading this, I loved DICE, and all your other work on the Amiga - your compiler is one of the reasons I'm a programmer today. I hadn't been keeping up with your work but it's good to see you're still out there doing stuff.:) (seems a lot of the old Amiga 'big names' have gone on to do interesting stuff in the time since)
Germany, Austria, Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Sweden
What the...? That's more than half the nations in the EU, and with Germany and France, two of the biggest and most powerful.
So my question is simple: How on earth did this law ever get ratified by the EU in the first place if the majority of nations had no intention of implimenting it? Sounds to me like something is seriously wrong with the democratic process.
Slashdot Mirror
Historic Linux? Hmmm.... what should we call it?
:-D
How about "Old Hat Linux" ?
-- ba-ching! --
First scientist: "Say, Bob, I've got a bit of free time, so I'm going up the mountain with my duck. You wanna join me?"
:-D
Is it just me, or does that sound like it came straight out of a Farside comic?
How come this seems to be the only project that's getting any attention?
;-))
Is it because it's the only one that's doing anything? Or is it more like it's the only one that's making all their results public?
(or quite possibly, in true slashdot tradition, it could be just because it's the one that looks the coolest?
There is another theory which says that one of the main reasons for hacking software is because of the challenge of beating the software's protection, and that posting it to the pirate sites is done more for the bragging rights than to let people have the software for nothing.
:-/
If this is true, putting in ever more complex protection schemes will have no effect, other than to make the software an even more interesting target for the hackers.
Hmm.... sorry to sound cynical.
The easiest thing to do would be to setup your own SMTP server
Not everyone has a permenant net connection that lets them set up a personal mail server, and even if you do have that, those 30k messages will have to be routed via a service provider of some sort - okay, so you stop annoying your hosting provider, but you'll very quickly get on the wrong end of your network provider with that sort of traffic coming into a home account.
Which is worse? Having your hosting provider pull the plug on your email, or having your ISP pull the plug on your entire connection?
As has already been said, the problem will go away in it's own time, but for the time being, I don't see any real solution other than just sitting it out.
Let's see.... I think a big solid wood table, surrounded by plush leather executive seats.... and a set of buttons by my chair so I can drop random people into the firey pit!
Oh, and a big tank filled with killer sea bass with frikkin lasers on their heads.
And I'd need a really massive plasma screen... no, make that a holo-projector built into the table... so I can hook into the corporation's satellite network, and spy on random people... just because I can.
Yeah. That would be a good entertainment room. I can only dream, eh....
Fourty years ago, when the Americans were graring up for their first moon missions, the 'pundits' made exactly the same predictions.
Today it's the Chinese, but it all seems very similar.
Sure we've got better technology now, but will that really make the difference? Lunar colonisation will only happen when there's political will to see it happen, and frankly, I can't see the conditions being right for that for some time.
On SCO being deserted by Intel and HP:
Hmm... why do the words "rats" and "sinking ship" spring the mind here?
ACLU pronounced 'ack-LOO')
;-) You could have tried a bit harder...
:-D
That's the only funny thing I could come up with on this.
Oh come on!
How about coming up with silly alternate meanings for the acronym?
Say... "Aardvark Council for the Legalisation of Unicorns"
or.... "Asphalt County Landfill University"
or.... "Airplanes Can't Land on Us"
or.... "A Clearly Litigous Unit"
or.... "Anyone Can Learn Urdu"
Wow. The fun just never stops, does it?
Ulch, Slashdot ate my diacriticals. I meant to say "Extra keys for [n~] and such."
:-D
I'm glad you said that - I was just about to start being [dia]critical about your post.
Is this a common affliction?
:-D
Go wash your hands immediately, you naughty naughty boy. *smack* How many times must I tell you not to handle your balls with dirty hands?
Um, yea. Same goes for the scroll wheel, too.
the CBDLF donations and giving to the EFF are Good Things.
Okay. I can see how the CBDLF is relevant to this. But what possible connection does the EFF have to a case about comic books?
...said Albert Stebbins of the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory.
;-)
Why do all the really clever people in the world have to be named Albert?
[Replying to my own post, so I can answer all the responses at once]
Firstly Quality: I was referring to the spam, not the rest of the messages. Flame wars etc are a whole other topic; I wasn't talking about that.
Secondly Filtering: Yes, it's possible you're right that a decent Usenet server will delete the spam. But as I said, I gave up serveral years ago, and that certainly wasn't the case then.
In any case, I don't have access to a decent newsgroup server. My ISP service doesn't include an NNTP server, and the free ones are generally the ones with the most junk.
Finally Usenet vs Email: You can be as sarcastic as you like, but I need email; I don't need Usenet. Truth be told, I'm irritated enough by the spam I get in my email box anyway. I simply don't have the patience to spend time in a place where I'm going to be subjected to even more of it.
I agree it's a shame. Usenet could be (and was) a useful resource. If it ever returns to the way it was, I might come back, but not now.
usenet is supposed to be distributed and resiliant to poor communications and have no choke points
:-(
Then it's failed, because the indescribably poor communication commonly called "spam" has all but choked it.
I haven't bothered with Usenet for several years simply because of the quantity of junk. Not to mention the quality
Just how valuable are these PDAs anyway? It seems awfully petty to be arguing over the ownership of something that was given away for free in the first place, and would probably only have cost a couple of hundred dollars if it hadn't.
Frankly, I can't see the point in making a fuss over it.
All fine and dandy... until the sun goes behind a cloud right at the critical moment! :-o
Yes, seriously. My answer is "don't read this". You're asking how to stop wasting time on the internet, but you ask the question on the one site that probably wastes more geek time than anything else.
This answer is probably five or six pages down the list of replies, so if you're reading this answer, you've already wasted way too much time here.
I want to have my bases covered.
All your bases are covered by us!
'Sorry, there are currently no samples for sale in the category'
;-)
Of course not - the just sold their entire stock to Saddam Hussein.
Wow. Matt Dillon. :) There's a name that brings back memories.
:)
Matt: if you're reading this, I loved DICE, and all your other work on the Amiga - your compiler is one of the reasons I'm a programmer today. I hadn't been keeping up with your work but it's good to see you're still out there doing stuff.
(seems a lot of the old Amiga 'big names' have gone on to do interesting stuff in the time since)
This sort of thing is starting to happen way too often.
I'm wondering how long it will be before someone sues the patent office for issuing a dud patent and wasting everyone's time.
Maybe that will stop the flow?
Germany, Austria, Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Sweden
What the...? That's more than half the nations in the EU, and with Germany and France, two of the biggest and most powerful.
So my question is simple: How on earth did this law ever get ratified by the EU in the first place if the majority of nations had no intention of implimenting it? Sounds to me like something is seriously wrong with the democratic process.
What kind of fun is this game going to be with no-one shooting back at you?
It's deja vu all over again. I'm sure I had a copy of Outrun 2 on my Amiga ten years ago or more.