I'm sorry, but the only way to improve anti-circumvention law is by revoking it.
Reverse engineering has value in gaining greater understanding of existing technology, maintaining, and improving upon it.
If wily customers choose to violate warranties and license agreements, it certainly poses a problem for companies, but in no way should laws be passed to prohibit them, for the damage such laws do to legitimate research. If companies need a legal method of deterring such behaviour, let them sue for violating a license agreement that specifies no reverse engineering. They should not need, nor get, a stronger remedy.
In fact, remedies like DirectTV used (the small incremental updates of ROM code that eventually locked out hackers) should be applauded. (Even if it was a bummer to those getting free services) DirectTV needed no legal recourse, but preserved their business through creative techological means.
The point is simply this:
Just because a company has made money in the past, there should be no law guaranteeing them that they will continue to do so in the future. It is not up to Congress to preserve the business models of corporations. That duty lies with a CTO, CIO, CFO, and board of directors.
I'm a North Carolinian and proud of it, but your lack of historical perspective is appalling. Yes Sinai was an Egyptian land, taken in a time of war, and unlike most spoils of war, negotiated a return after the end of conflict.
Israel is not a representative democracy (republic?) as America attempts to be. Israel's system of government is based on emulation of the British.
Here's the letter I sent to my congressmen, composed in AbiWord.
Lester Marks
5905 North Hills Drive
Raleigh NC 27609-4237
(919)-782-2009
To the Honorable Senator John Edwards
Dear Senator Edwards,
I am concerned about the future of email and privacy in my email communications. In the wake of our National Tragedy, it is my understanding that the Justice Department is asking for legislation granting them less restrictions on obtaining and using a wiretap, both for telephone and internet communications.
With any greater power granted, lies the possibility for abuse. I fear that wider use of wiretaps in the way that the Justice department proposes will lead to abuse.
Email is commonly assumed to be a private communication between the sender and the recipient. In reality, it can be intercepted and read, much the same way that a postcard can be read while in transit. Encryption is a technology that secures a message or document so that only the sender and the intended recipient can read it, much the same way that an envelope prevents mail handlers or others from casually reading your postal mail. Encrypted mail cannot be considered secure if it can be decrypted and read by anyone other than the intended recipient.
As a private citizen, and one of your constituents living in Raleigh, I do not want my private communications spied upon by Law Enforcement without probable cause and a court order. If, as I fear, greater power over wiretaps is given to Law Enforcement, I will increase my usage of encryption in my emails and other communications. If legislation is introduced that requires encryption to have "back-doors" that allow Law Enforcement to read my encrypted emails, then not only will I have suffered the loss of my right to keep my private communications private, but terrorists and criminals will still have use of the encryption technology that doesn't have "back-doors" for Law Enforcement.
I understand the need for swift action in the wake of the National Tragedy, but I don't want to lose the civil liberties and freedoms that I currently enjoy, in the name of security measures, temporary or permanent. If you vote for or approve any legislation that grants wider use of wiretaps and surveillance on U.S. citizens' communications, I will be sure to vote for your opponent when you next run for re-election.
Is it really our position that Wal-Mart can own the details of our lives, but that government agents tracking those people who murdered 5,000 of our fellow citizens can't?
As Jon knows, but ignores, the difference is, we willingly give our details to Wal-Mart, or they illegally bought them after we opted-out. The government should be in the same position: they can ask me to give up my details, or they can buy them from someone violating my having opted out, same as anyone else.
The government is not a knight in shining armor, and they don't deserve any extra priveliges over me.
I wonder if we couldn't file a suit against the DVD-CCA that region encoding and CSS encryption is false advertising, unfair competition, and that playback is unacceptable? That they're marketing DVDs that don't playback well in players purchased around the world?
you don't begin to address that Israel gave Sinai to Egypt. Why would an expansionist country do such a thing, at the cost of eradicating several Israeli towns both in Sinai and along the border?
Also, you fail to address how Israel is willing to make nearly all the concessions Arafat asks for, and Arafat still doesn't agree?
You also don't address that it's amazing the Israelis even come to the table, when Arafat's PLO still has on it's charter that their goal is to eradicate all Jews from the land.
I know, I know, you'll say I'm brainwashed, but I think it's nominally interesting that you choose to ignore anything that contradicts your limited world-view.
B'nai B'rith, while a good organization, with good goals, is misguided in this attempt.
The problem is similar to that of Congress- Older people, without great knowledge of technology, and without being properly informed by people in posession of greate technological prowess.
I haven't been belonged to a B'nai B'rith congregation in years, or else I would call them and write them pointing out their error.
Actually, I'm considering running for office, simply because I'm tired of having no one represent my beliefs in voting against bad legislation.
The only problem is, IANAL, and in my district and state, all of my opponents are lawyers. I would get whomped in debate unless I emulate all the best politicians, and attempt to be just a down-home-folks kind of guy. Oh, and I'm young, just old enough to legally be eligible for campaigning for office.
If you're in North Carolina, let me know if you'd vote for a fellow-slashdotter, who desires to bring an technologically informed point of view to legislation.
Thank you.
Oh, this was not a troll, I am absolutely serious. contact me via email if you care to discuss it further.
These links all are by other users who installed linux on the TP701 laptops.
IBM stepping up to the plate
on
More WTC News
·
· Score: 2
More than 1,200 IBM customers were located in the World Trade Center or within a two-block radius.
Hundreds of them have contacted IBM since Tuesday morning. Currently, IBM is managing or has already resolved 20 full-blown emergency situations. IBM is rolling in large servers, thousands of ThinkPads and workstations; IBM is providing thousands of square feet of data center capacity; re-creating data processing environments that were destroyed; and relocating customers' operations to IBM facilities. In addition, IBM employees are helping various disaster relief organizations with IBM products and assistance. Thousands of IBMers are on the case, and the work proceeds around the clock.
Mod Down, CNN lies, but not this time
on
More WTC News
·
· Score: 4, Informative
CNN has been known on many occasions to get the news wrong, or fabricate stories (Wolf Blitzer).
However, this time, they are reporting the truth. www.haaretzdaily.com , one of Israel's better independent newspapers also reported this story, and took photos on site, from the past few days, not 1991.
The story at Indymedia was posted by a Brazilian. I think I'll trust sources in Israel instead of someone in South America, Thank You very much.
I wish I could sit on the porch with a beer, as you suggest.
However, there are dry counties, and in non-dry counties, there are open container laws-
either of which prohibit me from kicking back on my porch because I'm visibly imbibing from the street.
You may note that the open container law doesn't prohibit me from drinking on my porch, but it's of no consequence- I'm seen from a public place, the street, so I still get harrassed.
Minor league baseball season is over.
Should I really try and pursue Eureka(tm) for their vacuum cleaner that failed under warranty, but the warranty has now expired? Should I really practice escapism and go to the movie theater?
If we become something other than ourselves, we've lost, but right now, we're busy being ourselves in mourning.
What shall we do, other than trudge into work, under the cloud that has been cast over our spirits?
If the 600x itself survived (and thinkpads are built to be pretty damn solid, I'm using a 385xd) just buy a new drive and put it in. On the Thinkpad, it's easy.
There are two widely used mechanisms for consumer priced DVD recording drives.
There is the Pioneer DRV-103/A03 unit that is used in the G4 Power Macintosh computers.
It is a DVD-R / DVD-RW/CD-RW/CD-R drive.
It writes and rewrites DVD and CD media, and it's DVD movies are playable in set top box DVD players.
The other prevalent drive is a Panasonic unit that is DVD+RW, DVD-R, DVD-RAM, CD (no CD recording, just playback.)
Plextor, Yamaha and others are largely reselling these mechanisms.
Expect to pay about 500-1000 dollars US for one of these units. These are DVD General drives, and cannot be used as Masters for DVD reproduction use. The DVD Authoring drives are SCSI, cost upwards of $5000, and the only one I know if is a Pioneer unit. (Doesn't mean there aren't others, but I haven't done my homework to find them.)
God bless America, and may her enemies cower in fear.
with the lull in any news about CPRM, I worry that they'll announce a spectacular product like this, and not tell anyone that it has CPRM inside.
That way, they can be ready for the SSSCA if/when it comes.
Now, I don't know if this drive has CPRM in it or not, but I think I'm justified in being scared and cautious- I'll stock up on 80gb drives before I buy something with CPRM in it.
I am steadfastly against beating up people in streets.
The reasons I named above were told to me as factual information by Palestinians when I was in Israel. I posted them above as factual based on what I was told.
Haaretzdaily.com ( a newspaper in Israel, so you know)
IS reporting that "
The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine initially took responsibility, but later an official from the organization denied any involvement. Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat condemned the attacks.
A U.S. official said there had been no advance warning of an attack. "It's clear that this is terrorist-related, we're not sure who is responsible," the official said.
Israel evacuated all its missions around the world. Defense Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer hinted that the attack was carried out by Islamic terrorists, saying that "the threat of radical Islam is the central threat to the free world because its goal is to destroy everything connected to the values of western democracies."
Ben-Eliezer, who cancelled a scheduled trip to the U.S. which was to begin Wednesday, confirmed that an Israeli rescue team was being sent to the U.S. to help with the rescue operation.
Three weeks ago, arch-terrorist Osama Ben Laden warned that he would carry out an unprecedented attack on American interests because of their support for Israel.
"
and that palestinians on the west bank are celebrating our tragedy:
palestinians celebrate
Palestinians in West Bank celebrate attacks on U.S.
By Amos Harel, Ha'aretz Correspondent and Agencies
Palestinians across the West Bank on Tuesday celebrated the series of aircraft attacks on New York and Washington. There were scenes of celebration in the West Bank cities of Nablus, Tul Karm, Bethlehem and the Balata refugee camp.
While Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat condemned the attacks which levelled the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New
York City and struck the Pentagon in Washington, hundreds of Palestinians distributed sweets in Nablus.
"I feel I am in a dream. I never believed that one day the United States would come to pay a price for its support to Israel," said Mustafa, a 24-year-old Palestinian gunman.
Several dozen Palestinian youths gathered in East Jerusalem to celebrate as well, honking out wedding tunes on their car horns. "We are so happy that America was hit. America is against us in supporting Israel," Suleiman, one of the demonstrators, said.
In Nablus, motorists honked their horns and gunmen fired into the air from assault rifles to cheer on the attacks which unfolded in the space of a few hours.
Slashdot Mirror
I'm sorry, but the only way to improve anti-circumvention law is by revoking it.
Reverse engineering has value in gaining greater understanding of existing technology, maintaining, and improving upon it.
If wily customers choose to violate warranties and license agreements, it certainly poses a problem for companies, but in no way should laws be passed to prohibit them, for the damage such laws do to legitimate research. If companies need a legal method of deterring such behaviour, let them sue for violating a license agreement that specifies no reverse engineering. They should not need, nor get, a stronger remedy.
In fact, remedies like DirectTV used (the small incremental updates of ROM code that eventually locked out hackers) should be applauded. (Even if it was a bummer to those getting free services) DirectTV needed no legal recourse, but preserved their business through creative techological means.
The point is simply this:
Just because a company has made money in the past, there should be no law guaranteeing them that they will continue to do so in the future. It is not up to Congress to preserve the business models of corporations. That duty lies with a CTO, CIO, CFO, and board of directors.
Not to mention the peace of mind that comes with buying someone else's linux solution in a pretty box-
If something ever does go wrong (unlikely) you have someone you can call, and make it their responsibility rather than yours.
priceless.
Close-
DiskZerver is the product. You don't sue products.
MicroTest claimed to have originated the DiskZerver product, and sold it to Xstore.
Xstore now can sue MicroTest for selling what they didn't own.
Oh please, out of YOUR country?
I'm a North Carolinian and proud of it, but your lack of historical perspective is appalling. Yes Sinai was an Egyptian land, taken in a time of war, and unlike most spoils of war, negotiated a return after the end of conflict.
Israel is not a representative democracy (republic?) as America attempts to be. Israel's system of government is based on emulation of the British.
Thank you, come again.
Here's the letter I sent to my congressmen, composed in AbiWord.
Lester Marks
5905 North Hills Drive
Raleigh NC 27609-4237
(919)-782-2009
To the Honorable Senator John Edwards
Dear Senator Edwards,
I am concerned about the future of email and privacy in my email communications. In the wake of our National Tragedy, it is my understanding that the Justice Department is asking for legislation granting them less restrictions on obtaining and using a wiretap, both for telephone and internet communications.
With any greater power granted, lies the possibility for abuse. I fear that wider use of wiretaps in the way that the Justice department proposes will lead to abuse.
Email is commonly assumed to be a private communication between the sender and the recipient. In reality, it can be intercepted and read, much the same way that a postcard can be read while in transit. Encryption is a technology that secures a message or document so that only the sender and the intended recipient can read it, much the same way that an envelope prevents mail handlers or others from casually reading your postal mail. Encrypted mail cannot be considered secure if it can be decrypted and read by anyone other than the intended recipient.
As a private citizen, and one of your constituents living in Raleigh, I do not want my private communications spied upon by Law Enforcement without probable cause and a court order. If, as I fear, greater power over wiretaps is given to Law Enforcement, I will increase my usage of encryption in my emails and other communications. If legislation is introduced that requires encryption to have "back-doors" that allow Law Enforcement to read my encrypted emails, then not only will I have suffered the loss of my right to keep my private communications private, but terrorists and criminals will still have use of the encryption technology that doesn't have "back-doors" for Law Enforcement.
I understand the need for swift action in the wake of the National Tragedy, but I don't want to lose the civil liberties and freedoms that I currently enjoy, in the name of security measures, temporary or permanent. If you vote for or approve any legislation that grants wider use of wiretaps and surveillance on U.S. citizens' communications, I will be sure to vote for your opponent when you next run for re-election.
Sincerely,
As Jon knows, but ignores, the difference is, we willingly give our details to Wal-Mart, or they illegally bought them after we opted-out. The government should be in the same position: they can ask me to give up my details, or they can buy them from someone violating my having opted out, same as anyone else.
The government is not a knight in shining armor, and they don't deserve any extra priveliges over me.
Don't tread on me.
I wonder if we couldn't file a suit against the DVD-CCA that region encoding and CSS encryption is false advertising, unfair competition, and that playback is unacceptable? That they're marketing DVDs that don't playback well in players purchased around the world?
Actually,
B'nai B'rith doesn't represent the interests of the State of Israel, Israel's ambassador does that.
B'nai B'rith represents conservative Jewish congregations and Jewish Theological Seminary. No more, no less.
What's interesting about your one-sided post is,
you don't begin to address that Israel gave Sinai to Egypt. Why would an expansionist country do such a thing, at the cost of eradicating several Israeli towns both in Sinai and along the border?
Also, you fail to address how Israel is willing to make nearly all the concessions Arafat asks for, and Arafat still doesn't agree?
You also don't address that it's amazing the Israelis even come to the table, when Arafat's PLO still has on it's charter that their goal is to eradicate all Jews from the land.
I know, I know, you'll say I'm brainwashed, but I think it's nominally interesting that you choose to ignore anything that contradicts your limited world-view.
Thanks anyways.
B'nai B'rith, while a good organization, with good goals, is misguided in this attempt.
The problem is similar to that of Congress- Older people, without great knowledge of technology, and without being properly informed by people in posession of greate technological prowess.
I haven't been belonged to a B'nai B'rith congregation in years, or else I would call them and write them pointing out their error.
My techworks.com / buffalo / melco Access point has a web page configure page, and it has the "MAC address allow list."
I never considered how inconvenient a disallow list would be.
Actually, I'm considering running for office, simply because I'm tired of having no one represent my beliefs in voting against bad legislation.
The only problem is, IANAL, and in my district and state, all of my opponents are lawyers. I would get whomped in debate unless I emulate all the best politicians, and attempt to be just a down-home-folks kind of guy. Oh, and I'm young, just old enough to legally be eligible for campaigning for office.
If you're in North Carolina, let me know if you'd vote for a fellow-slashdotter, who desires to bring an technologically informed point of view to legislation.
Thank you.
Oh, this was not a troll, I am absolutely serious. contact me via email if you care to discuss it further.
Here at IBM, we have in-house TV served over Token Ring to monitors at the corners of the buildings.
The monitors were re-broadcasting live news feeds from the outside world (can't remember who they were showing, CNN or NBC, or someone else).
here
and here
These links all are by other users who installed linux on the TP701 laptops.
More than 1,200 IBM customers were located in the World Trade Center or within a two-block radius.
Hundreds of them have contacted IBM since Tuesday morning. Currently, IBM is managing or has already resolved 20 full-blown emergency situations. IBM is rolling in large servers, thousands of ThinkPads and workstations; IBM is providing thousands of square feet of data center capacity; re-creating data processing environments that were destroyed; and relocating customers' operations to IBM facilities. In addition, IBM employees are helping various disaster relief organizations with IBM products and assistance. Thousands of IBMers are on the case, and the work proceeds around the clock.
CNN has been known on many occasions to get the news wrong, or fabricate stories (Wolf Blitzer).
However, this time, they are reporting the truth. www.haaretzdaily.com , one of Israel's better independent newspapers also reported this story, and took photos on site, from the past few days, not 1991.
The story at Indymedia was posted by a Brazilian. I think I'll trust sources in Israel instead of someone in South America, Thank You very much.
I wish I could sit on the porch with a beer, as you suggest.
However, there are dry counties, and in non-dry counties, there are open container laws-
either of which prohibit me from kicking back on my porch because I'm visibly imbibing from the street.
You may note that the open container law doesn't prohibit me from drinking on my porch, but it's of no consequence- I'm seen from a public place, the street, so I still get harrassed.
Minor league baseball season is over.
Should I really try and pursue Eureka(tm) for their vacuum cleaner that failed under warranty, but the warranty has now expired? Should I really practice escapism and go to the movie theater?
If we become something other than ourselves, we've lost, but right now, we're busy being ourselves in mourning.
What shall we do, other than trudge into work, under the cloud that has been cast over our spirits?
thinkpad 701cs
486 dx75 butterfly keyboard model
upgraded to a 133mhz amd
8mb up to 48mb
540mb ub to 2gb
windows to linux
I second the -replace the drive- advice.
If the 600x itself survived (and thinkpads are built to be pretty damn solid, I'm using a 385xd) just buy a new drive and put it in. On the Thinkpad, it's easy.
You really think that with the approval of the SSSCA, that the proposal won't come back with the excuse "See, we're legally required to do it" ??
There are two widely used mechanisms for consumer priced DVD recording drives.
/CD-RW/CD-R drive.
There is the Pioneer DRV-103/A03 unit that is used in the G4 Power Macintosh computers.
It is a DVD-R / DVD-RW
It writes and rewrites DVD and CD media, and it's DVD movies are playable in set top box DVD players.
The other prevalent drive is a Panasonic unit that is DVD+RW, DVD-R, DVD-RAM, CD (no CD recording, just playback.)
Plextor, Yamaha and others are largely reselling these mechanisms.
Expect to pay about 500-1000 dollars US for one of these units. These are DVD General drives, and cannot be used as Masters for DVD reproduction use. The DVD Authoring drives are SCSI, cost upwards of $5000, and the only one I know if is a Pioneer unit. (Doesn't mean there aren't others, but I haven't done my homework to find them.)
God bless America, and may her enemies cower in fear.
I have to worry-
with the lull in any news about CPRM, I worry that they'll announce a spectacular product like this, and not tell anyone that it has CPRM inside.
That way, they can be ready for the SSSCA if/when it comes.
Now, I don't know if this drive has CPRM in it or not, but I think I'm justified in being scared and cautious- I'll stock up on 80gb drives before I buy something with CPRM in it.
I am steadfastly against beating up people in streets.
The reasons I named above were told to me as factual information by Palestinians when I was in Israel. I posted them above as factual based on what I was told.
Ata tzodek, chaver. We Americans are likely going to respond with a lot more force than we did when the USS Cole was attacked.
IS reporting that " The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine initially took responsibility, but later an official from the organization denied any involvement. Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat condemned the attacks.
A U.S. official said there had been no advance warning of an attack. "It's clear that this is terrorist-related, we're not sure who is responsible," the official said.
Israel evacuated all its missions around the world. Defense Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer hinted that the attack was carried out by Islamic terrorists, saying that "the threat of radical Islam is the central threat to the free world because its goal is to destroy everything connected to the values of western democracies."
Ben-Eliezer, who cancelled a scheduled trip to the U.S. which was to begin Wednesday, confirmed that an Israeli rescue team was being sent to the U.S. to help with the rescue operation.
Three weeks ago, arch-terrorist Osama Ben Laden warned that he would carry out an unprecedented attack on American interests because of their support for Israel. "
and that palestinians on the west bank are celebrating our tragedy: palestinians celebrate
Palestinians in West Bank celebrate attacks on U.S.
By Amos Harel, Ha'aretz Correspondent and Agencies
Palestinians across the West Bank on Tuesday celebrated the series of aircraft attacks on New York and Washington. There were scenes of celebration in the West Bank cities of Nablus, Tul Karm, Bethlehem and the Balata refugee camp.
While Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat condemned the attacks which levelled the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City and struck the Pentagon in Washington, hundreds of Palestinians distributed sweets in Nablus.
"I feel I am in a dream. I never believed that one day the United States would come to pay a price for its support to Israel," said Mustafa, a 24-year-old Palestinian gunman.
Several dozen Palestinian youths gathered in East Jerusalem to celebrate as well, honking out wedding tunes on their car horns. "We are so happy that America was hit. America is against us in supporting Israel," Suleiman, one of the demonstrators, said.
In Nablus, motorists honked their horns and gunmen fired into the air from assault rifles to cheer on the attacks which unfolded in the space of a few hours.