As another poster mentions, copying the plugin files to your moz plugin directory does work.
However, registering the plugin with regxpcom (the prefered method of installing the plugin) fails (segfaults for me, on RHL 7.2). The Windows installer tries to use regxpcom automatically, so that's why it appears to fail.
I believe this is because the xpcom or oji api changed in later versions of mozilla, while the Sun plugin is still using the older version. Obviously things should get better once interfaces stabilise for 1.0
There's some work going on within our department (which I'm not involved in, so don't blame me if I don't get it all right;) which looks pretty useful/interesting.
Firstly the eprints.org author/institution self-archiving software:
eprints.org It's been designed "to be as flexible and adaptable as possible so that universities can adopt and configure it with minimal effort for all disciplines".
An exapmple of its use is at the:
Cognitive Sciences eprint Archive
It's also got other noble principles behind it:"The generic version of eprints is fully interoperable with all other OAI-Compliant Open Archives. This means that it no longer matters where papers are archived; the papers in all registered OAI-compliant Archives can be harvested using the OAI protocol into one global "virtual archive" by Open Archives Service Providers".
See the Open Archives Initiative for more info.
Ok, let's face it, they should feel threatened, becuase new technologies will allow piracy on a much larger scale then ever before.
Copy protection systems are incredibly annoying (probably unacceptably so) because they stop the user from making legitimate copies. And in the case of DVD/DeCSS it was wrong that you could only use the media on certain 'supported' platforms.
But to be honest, I (perhaps naively) think that if the media content industries really believed that people would only make legitimate copies, they might consider scrapping the whole copy protection issue. But let's face it, no matter what you or I might do, we have to admit that a large majority of users do use and distribue illegal MP3s - how many people really delete an MP3 they 'don't like' and go and buy a copy of the ones they do? It's an insignificant number, and theft is occuring. It's the natural tendancy of humans - if breaking the law becomes that easy, they play it down as a minor thing, and that it doesn't really matter. Downloading an MP3 doesn't hold the same gravitas as walking into a record store and physically stealing a CD.
If people didn't use the new technologies to steal there wouldn't be a problem. Making your own personal copy, or even small scale theft like making a copy for a friend, are fine. But large scale internet distribuion is a much bigger problem. And if society can't be trusted to 'behave' within the law, then obviously tactics such as copy protection will be tried.
It doesn't matter what your viewpoint on whether you think you should have to pay for music/film etc. is. Artists should have the right to sign up to a record company and sell their material to the public. If society then believes that material from other (possibly free) sources is as good, they will download such material, and record companies and their associated artists will die out as the artists who offer their material through other mediums prosper (presuming they can make a living from it). Market (or market-less) forces at work.
But in reality, we know that the record companies and their artists will go out of business becuase the new technologies for copying and distribution will mean that noone will buy their products because it's easier to steal them. This may or may not be a good thing (loosing large record companies and artists). Indeed, you could argue that once the majority of society believes that theft of this sort is acceptable, then the laws of society will be changed to legalise it. This too may or may not be a good thing.
Firstly, this isn't an official draft of an IETF working group - anyone can submit a draft, even if it's this lousy. (Working group drafts are of the form draft-ietf-working_group_name-*)
Secondly, IPv6 isn't really that complex, especially considering this proposal isn't exactly simple (would it really be easier to roll this out instead?!). An excellent starting point is the Internet Architecture Board Case for IPv6. You can also get some good information and links at the IPv6 Imformation Page. I have to say I don't like the way this guy slates IPv6 without explanation, maybe he needs to read up a bit more on the subject.
Finally, although one day we may run out of IPv4 addressing, that's not the immediate addressing problem - the problem is of uneven distribution of addresses. While the USA might be alright, where every corporation who could shout "Me Too!" got a class A, there are other places in the world who are very short on addresses. I've heard it said that Madagascar has just 200 global IPv4 addresses! A whole country run through NAT! *Shudder* (I reserve the right for this to be an urban legend;)
Anway, there's loads of other really neat stuff in IPv6 aside from extending the address space to keep us all happy....
Slashdot Mirror
However, registering the plugin with regxpcom (the prefered method of installing the plugin) fails (segfaults for me, on RHL 7.2). The Windows installer tries to use regxpcom automatically, so that's why it appears to fail.
I believe this is because the xpcom or oji api changed in later versions of mozilla, while the Sun plugin is still using the older version. Obviously things should get better once interfaces stabilise for 1.0
See buzilla bug #99337:
http://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=99337 (bah! bugzilla's down for maintainance atm)
Firstly the eprints.org author/institution self-archiving software: eprints.org
It's been designed "to be as flexible and adaptable as possible so that universities can adopt and configure it with minimal effort for all disciplines".
An exapmple of its use is at the: Cognitive Sciences eprint Archive
It's also got other noble principles behind it:"The generic version of eprints is fully interoperable with all other OAI-Compliant Open Archives. This means that it no longer matters where papers are archived; the papers in all registered OAI-compliant Archives can be harvested using the OAI protocol into one global "virtual archive" by Open Archives Service Providers".
See the Open Archives Initiative for more info.
Oh, and our department's publication database isn't bad either.
Ok, let's face it, they should feel threatened, becuase new technologies will allow piracy on a much larger scale then ever before.
Copy protection systems are incredibly annoying (probably unacceptably so) because they stop the user from making legitimate copies. And in the case of DVD/DeCSS it was wrong that you could only use the media on certain 'supported' platforms.
But to be honest, I (perhaps naively) think that if the media content industries really believed that people would only make legitimate copies, they might consider scrapping the whole copy protection issue. But let's face it, no matter what you or I might do, we have to admit that a large majority of users do use and distribue illegal MP3s - how many people really delete an MP3 they 'don't like' and go and buy a copy of the ones they do? It's an insignificant number, and theft is occuring. It's the natural tendancy of humans - if breaking the law becomes that easy, they play it down as a minor thing, and that it doesn't really matter. Downloading an MP3 doesn't hold the same gravitas as walking into a record store and physically stealing a CD.
If people didn't use the new technologies to steal there wouldn't be a problem. Making your own personal copy, or even small scale theft like making a copy for a friend, are fine. But large scale internet distribuion is a much bigger problem. And if society can't be trusted to 'behave' within the law, then obviously tactics such as copy protection will be tried.
It doesn't matter what your viewpoint on whether you think you should have to pay for music/film etc. is. Artists should have the right to sign up to a record company and sell their material to the public. If society then believes that material from other (possibly free) sources is as good, they will download such material, and record companies and their associated artists will die out as the artists who offer their material through other mediums prosper (presuming they can make a living from it). Market (or market-less) forces at work.
But in reality, we know that the record companies and their artists will go out of business becuase the new technologies for copying and distribution will mean that noone will buy their products because it's easier to steal them. This may or may not be a good thing (loosing large record companies and artists). Indeed, you could argue that once the majority of society believes that theft of this sort is acceptable, then the laws of society will be changed to legalise it. This too may or may not be a good thing.
Firstly, this isn't an official draft of an IETF working group - anyone can submit a draft, even if it's this lousy. (Working group drafts are of the form draft-ietf-working_group_name-*)
;)
Secondly, IPv6 isn't really that complex, especially considering this proposal isn't exactly simple (would it really be easier to roll this out instead?!). An excellent starting point is the Internet Architecture Board Case for IPv6. You can also get some good information and links at the IPv6 Imformation Page. I have to say I don't like the way this guy slates IPv6 without explanation, maybe he needs to read up a bit more on the subject.
Finally, although one day we may run out of IPv4 addressing, that's not the immediate addressing problem - the problem is of uneven distribution of addresses. While the USA might be alright, where every corporation who could shout "Me Too!" got a class A, there are other places in the world who are very short on addresses. I've heard it said that Madagascar has just 200 global IPv4 addresses! A whole country run through NAT! *Shudder* (I reserve the right for this to be an urban legend
Anway, there's loads of other really neat stuff in IPv6 aside from extending the address space to keep us all happy....