Same here. Verizon DSL has sent me 3 emails (about 2 years ago) where they caught me downloading movies or tv shows. I'm curious what they will do to me next time I'm caught. One thing's for sure:
I'm not going to go out and buy Hollywood's crap, unless it's something I've already seen and liked -- such as Battlestar Galactica. This past year I downloaded about 200 movies and liked almost none of them. TV shows were a little better percentage but not by much.
Instead I'll just read science fiction in books and magazines. Or watch free TV (the 45 channels I get over the antenna). Or free hulu. Or cheap games ($20 for 40+ hours is a good bargain). It makes no sense to buy movie/show DVDs when they have no return policy for the crap, and there are so many other options.
Thanks for the info. I researched it and it wasn't just FOX news saying it. Quote: Henry Juszkiewicz, the chief executive officer of Gibson Guitar Corp., tells National Review Online that President Obama, a "big liberal," has done "untold damage to business" and should not be applauded for his jobs speech. "He's a government fan," he says. "He has a problem with successful businesses. He thinks they're the problem, that they shouldn't be quite as successful."
"He is using the levers of government to not only redistribute, but to penalize," he adds. "I see a difference between what he said and what he's doing."
"Gibson has been under federal investigation in recent months, reportedly for its importation practices. Juskiewicz blames the Obama administration for causing his company, an iconic American brand, to lose money and lawyer up."
Most times a PC with windows is cheaper than a PC without, because of the adware subsidizing the PC. I'm not going to buy a PC w/o windows if it actually cost 50-100 dollars more.
A trunk is not plain view. If the cops did not have a warrant of cause (in this case they did not), then any contraband is inadmissable as evidence. BTW the pastor wa not carrying drugs. The dog did not smell anything nor did it signal. The cops lied.
Not the correct answer. The conversation should go like this. And by the way "acting suspicious" is not probable cause, so the cop still can't enter. And remember to exercise your Miranda rights; keep quiet. (Hand them the drivers license & insurance card; that's all the information they can ask of you.)
I use Windows (comes with the PC for free), but everything on windows is OpenSource.
That Cnet article blows. Is that the same guitar guy who has been raided twice, because he's using imported wood (all of which is legal, but they still shut him down)? If it's not RIAA or the BSA, then it's your own government. The owner believes he's being harassed because he gave multi-million dollar donations to the Republicans, but not one penny to Obama in 2008.
Using linux doesn't protect your business from a disgruntled employee claiming you have stolen software, and the MS-BSA sending you a scary software audit letter "or else we will drag you to a court of law".
BTW these megacorps use government regulations in the same fashion -- to harass small business citizens.
If you have nothing to hide, why don't you just let the WW2-era soldiers into your home and search, like a good American of japanese descent? (And then be forced into a concentration camp.) BETTER ANSWER: Obey the law which clearly states no warrant; no search. We have no Bill of Rights (laws) if we don't stand-up for them when they are being trampled.
Why would I deny it? $7 dailup can be a good last resort if you get to a hotel w/o proper internet (like the one I'm at now), or as back up when the home DSL goes down.
Sending-out extortionate letters that scare the receiver, for fear they might be drug to court. The only difference is that BSA letters don't demand $5000 bribe.
I see no problem with watching TV. No different than reading a book (which for some reason is considered a higher form, but is still just entertainment).
And I try to erase my tracks from being recorded. Fake handles for example. I don't need some employer or voter (if I ran for office), googling my name and uncovering everything I did. It's bad enough there's a track ranging from 1988 to 2002 (when I stopped using my real name). I prefer to be hard to find.
The web was more text-based back then (because it had to be 14k or 28k dialup friendly) with maybe two photos per page, but it wasn't as bad as you describe. I remembering using search engines to locate information as early as 1994 (hotbot, etc).
Anyway I'm not buying that Encarta killed-off Britannica. How many of those CDs were sold anyway? 500,000? That's not enough to kill off a major franchise like Britannica.
>>>In 1993 computers were still disgustingly expensive ($2000+ with a monitor)
Commodore Amigas (68020s) were only $500. With monitor it was $700 or you could use a TV. 28.8 modems were already available in 1994. Or you could get the cheap 14.4 instead.
Anyway I'm not buying that Encarta killed-off Britannica. How many of those CDs were sold anyway? 500,000? That's not enough to kill off a major franchise like Britannica.
Why not? All you had to do was pay AOL or Genie or Delphia or some other ISP ~$15 a month to get the internet. (In fact I've been paying 7-15 dollars to AOL ever since it was called Quantum Link in the 80s.)
You can insure the OTHER driver and his car, but you don't have to insure your own car (i.e. if it gets destroyed, you have to pay to fix it yourself (unless it's the other guy's fault)). At least that's the case in my state.
You left-out an important detail: The driver had already committed a crime (speeding). The checkpoints along the border state highways are stopping-and-seizing drivers who are not guilty, and therefore it's an illegal warrantless search.
It's just the same as if a cop went door-to-door and started sniffing around your home's doors. It's harassment and the reason the 4th amendment was created in the first place.
You kidding? Getting beat-up by the government is like winning a multi-million dollar lottery (though it takes several years of court cases to get your prize).
Or possibly another one similar in design. The cops claimed the dog signaled the presence of drugs. The pastor knew that was a lie, and refused to exit the video, so the cops smashed-in the windows, drug the pastor out, and started beating him (the video is on youtube).
Later in court it was discovered via testimony that the dog had NOT signaled and the cops were lying. They were/are just using the dogs to perform searches without cause. So the charges were dropped, and now the pastor is suing the police for damages to his car and person.
According to several SCOTUS rulings, these checkpoints are legal but ONLY for the purpose of idenitfying illegals, or escaped criminals, but nothing else. And any contraband must be thrown out, since a judge-issued warrant was not obtained, and the search is unconstitutional. The cops are ignoring the justices rulings and arresting people anyway.
>>>"Anyone that had anything to do with Babylon 5 should be sending me money"
Wow. Really? You must think B5 was crap. I consider Babylon 5 (and Star Trek DS9) the best science dramas ever produced for television. But then I've always preferred ongoing "videonovels" over the short story of the week format (like TNG). And I liked the political intrigue/war concept.
As for profit: Nothing coming out of Hollywood ever makes a profit, not even megahits like Avatar or CSI. It's basically accounting fraud (they apply losses from other movie/TV shows to the profits & thereby claim Avatar/CSI had losses).
Aside - I didn't discover Walking Dead until after the AMC announcement of a show. The comic is definitely superior but the show is pretty good too (since the comic creator is also the producer/writer).
Of course the best option is to just throw the letter in the trash. I doubt the MPAA/RIAA will come after you, since they are just using a shotgun approach to extort money from the millions of uploaders they have in their database. They are hoping to dupe you into paying $5000. (Like the nigerian lottery scammers.)
Oh and send some real money to the people who deserve it. Like JMS of Babylon 5 or the Writer/Artist of the Walking Dead, because they certainly aren't getting paid by the corporations (somehow these TV shows never show a profit).
It was Mosaic and other web browsers that sold PCs from 1993 onward, not Encarta.
I know that's why I bought my first PC (the old 68000 Amiga Mosaic had become too slow for the web), and it's why everyone I knew was buying PCs..... they wanted web access. All the information is available through a search engine.
The World Wide Web browser was the killer app that turned PCs from being novelties for geeks into something everyone wanted to have. "I don't know what the 'web' is, but I want to check it out." - common people.
I fully expect the same for the tablet, though I doubt it will ever be as popular as the Web on the cellphone which is nice and compact, plus always on your person. Tablets might find a niche for students taking notes, but I doubt it (it's easier to just use pen and paper especially for writing formulas).
Of course the next thing that would happen is the police arrest the homeowner for filing a false report, or abusing 911 resources, or wasting police officers' time on a crime of low priority. Or maybe just "disturbing the peace" which is the standard catch-all to arrest someone who did nothing wrong (like Professor Gates).
Slashdot Mirror
Same here. Verizon DSL has sent me 3 emails (about 2 years ago) where they caught me downloading movies or tv shows. I'm curious what they will do to me next time I'm caught. One thing's for sure:
I'm not going to go out and buy Hollywood's crap, unless it's something I've already seen and liked -- such as Battlestar Galactica. This past year I downloaded about 200 movies and liked almost none of them. TV shows were a little better percentage but not by much.
Instead I'll just read science fiction in books and magazines. Or watch free TV (the 45 channels I get over the antenna). Or free hulu. Or cheap games ($20 for 40+ hours is a good bargain). It makes no sense to buy movie/show DVDs when they have no return policy for the crap, and there are so many other options.
Thanks for the info. I researched it and it wasn't just FOX news saying it. Quote: Henry Juszkiewicz, the chief executive officer of Gibson Guitar Corp., tells National Review Online that President Obama, a "big liberal," has done "untold damage to business" and should not be applauded for his jobs speech. "He's a government fan," he says. "He has a problem with successful businesses. He thinks they're the problem, that they shouldn't be quite as successful."
"He is using the levers of government to not only redistribute, but to penalize," he adds. "I see a difference between what he said and what he's doing."
"Gibson has been under federal investigation in recent months, reportedly for its importation practices. Juskiewicz blames the Obama administration for causing his company, an iconic American brand, to lose money and lawyer up."
Most times a PC with windows is cheaper than a PC without, because of the adware subsidizing the PC. I'm not going to buy a PC w/o windows if it actually cost 50-100 dollars more.
A trunk is not plain view. If the cops did not have a warrant of cause (in this case they did not), then any contraband is inadmissable as evidence. BTW the pastor wa not carrying drugs. The dog did not smell anything nor did it signal. The cops lied.
COP: "May I search your car?"
Do you have a warrant?
"No."
Then no you may not search my car.
Not the correct answer. The conversation should go like this. And by the way "acting suspicious" is not probable cause, so the cop still can't enter. And remember to exercise your Miranda rights; keep quiet. (Hand them the drivers license & insurance card; that's all the information they can ask of you.)
COP: "May I search your car?"
Do you have a warrant?
"No."
Then no you may not search my car.
I use Windows (comes with the PC for free), but everything on windows is OpenSource.
That Cnet article blows. Is that the same guitar guy who has been raided twice, because he's using imported wood (all of which is legal, but they still shut him down)? If it's not RIAA or the BSA, then it's your own government. The owner believes he's being harassed because he gave multi-million dollar donations to the Republicans, but not one penny to Obama in 2008.
Using linux doesn't protect your business from a disgruntled employee claiming you have stolen software, and the MS-BSA sending you a scary software audit letter "or else we will drag you to a court of law".
BTW these megacorps use government regulations in the same fashion -- to harass small business citizens.
If you have nothing to hide, why don't you just let the WW2-era soldiers into your home and search, like a good American of japanese descent? (And then be forced into a concentration camp.) BETTER ANSWER: Obey the law which clearly states no warrant; no search. We have no Bill of Rights (laws) if we don't stand-up for them when they are being trampled.
Why would I deny it? $7 dailup can be a good last resort if you get to a hotel w/o proper internet (like the one I'm at now), or as back up when the home DSL goes down.
Sending-out extortionate letters that scare the receiver, for fear they might be drug to court. The only difference is that BSA letters don't demand $5000 bribe.
What scum.
No crime committed.
I see no problem with watching TV. No different than reading a book (which for some reason is considered a higher form, but is still just entertainment).
And I try to erase my tracks from being recorded. Fake handles for example. I don't need some employer or voter (if I ran for office), googling my name and uncovering everything I did. It's bad enough there's a track ranging from 1988 to 2002 (when I stopped using my real name). I prefer to be hard to find.
The web was more text-based back then (because it had to be 14k or 28k dialup friendly) with maybe two photos per page, but it wasn't as bad as you describe. I remembering using search engines to locate information as early as 1994 (hotbot, etc).
Anyway I'm not buying that Encarta killed-off Britannica. How many of those CDs were sold anyway? 500,000? That's not enough to kill off a major franchise like Britannica.
>>>In 1993 computers were still disgustingly expensive ($2000+ with a monitor)
Commodore Amigas (68020s) were only $500. With monitor it was $700 or you could use a TV.
28.8 modems were already available in 1994. Or you could get the cheap 14.4 instead.
Anyway I'm not buying that Encarta killed-off Britannica. How many of those CDs were sold anyway? 500,000? That's not enough to kill off a major franchise like Britannica.
Why not? All you had to do was pay AOL or Genie or Delphia or some other ISP ~$15 a month to get the internet. (In fact I've been paying 7-15 dollars to AOL ever since it was called Quantum Link in the 80s.)
You didn't understand what I wrote.
You can insure the OTHER driver and his car, but you don't have to insure your own car (i.e. if it gets destroyed, you have to pay to fix it yourself (unless it's the other guy's fault)). At least that's the case in my state.
You left-out an important detail: The driver had already committed a crime (speeding). The checkpoints along the border state highways are stopping-and-seizing drivers who are not guilty, and therefore it's an illegal warrantless search.
It's just the same as if a cop went door-to-door and started sniffing around your home's doors. It's harassment and the reason the 4th amendment was created in the first place.
You kidding? Getting beat-up by the government is like winning a multi-million dollar lottery (though it takes several years of court cases to get your prize).
Or possibly another one similar in design. The cops claimed the dog signaled the presence of drugs. The pastor knew that was a lie, and refused to exit the video, so the cops smashed-in the windows, drug the pastor out, and started beating him (the video is on youtube).
Later in court it was discovered via testimony that the dog had NOT signaled and the cops were lying. They were/are just using the dogs to perform searches without cause. So the charges were dropped, and now the pastor is suing the police for damages to his car and person.
According to several SCOTUS rulings, these checkpoints are legal but ONLY for the purpose of idenitfying illegals, or escaped criminals, but nothing else. And any contraband must be thrown out, since a judge-issued warrant was not obtained, and the search is unconstitutional. The cops are ignoring the justices rulings and arresting people anyway.
>>>"Anyone that had anything to do with Babylon 5 should be sending me money"
Wow. Really? You must think B5 was crap. I consider Babylon 5 (and Star Trek DS9) the best science dramas ever produced for television. But then I've always preferred ongoing "videonovels" over the short story of the week format (like TNG). And I liked the political intrigue/war concept.
As for profit: Nothing coming out of Hollywood ever makes a profit, not even megahits like Avatar or CSI. It's basically accounting fraud (they apply losses from other movie/TV shows to the profits & thereby claim Avatar/CSI had losses).
Aside - I didn't discover Walking Dead until after the AMC announcement of a show. The comic is definitely superior but the show is pretty good too (since the comic creator is also the producer/writer).
You'll be accused of counterfeiting.
Of course the best option is to just throw the letter in the trash. I doubt the MPAA/RIAA will come after you, since they are just using a shotgun approach to extort money from the millions of uploaders they have in their database. They are hoping to dupe you into paying $5000. (Like the nigerian lottery scammers.)
Oh and send some real money to the people who deserve it. Like JMS of Babylon 5 or the Writer/Artist of the Walking Dead, because they certainly aren't getting paid by the corporations (somehow these TV shows never show a profit).
Stop insuring your car.
That's what I did and why my insurance is only $300 a year.
It was Mosaic and other web browsers that sold PCs from 1993 onward, not Encarta.
I know that's why I bought my first PC (the old 68000 Amiga Mosaic had become too slow for the web), and it's why everyone I knew was buying PCs..... they wanted web access. All the information is available through a search engine.
The World Wide Web browser was the killer app that turned PCs from being novelties for geeks into something everyone wanted to have. "I don't know what the 'web' is, but I want to check it out." - common people.
I fully expect the same for the tablet, though I doubt it will ever be as popular as the Web on the cellphone which is nice and compact, plus always on your person. Tablets might find a niche for students taking notes, but I doubt it (it's easier to just use pen and paper especially for writing formulas).
Good one. :-)
Of course the next thing that would happen is the police arrest the homeowner for filing a false report, or abusing 911 resources, or wasting police officers' time on a crime of low priority. Or maybe just "disturbing the peace" which is the standard catch-all to arrest someone who did nothing wrong (like Professor Gates).