Well, generally middlemen tend to take a cut. ISPs charge a fee non-dependent on what an artist takes in. Of course the more viewers, the more bandwidth so probably more charges but $10 a month or $0.25 a month they don't work off of revenue.
Is the owner of a building a shop keeper leases a "middleman?"
They're like the pen, ink, and paper suppliers. The provide the medium (or access to it). You might say they're like the distributors, but print comics aren't really traditional in that sense, what with the syndicates and all.
The arcade vs. Hollywood comparison is skewed anyway. It's more like arcade vs. Hollywood first run US box office profit. Everyone knows Hollywood is viewed as huge, so everyone loves to compare themselves to it, with a statistician's fine print thrown in.
Don't underestimate the money and eyeballs involved in fantasy baseball. Fanatics will watch practically any game they can to see their or their prospective players play. This is precisely why you (well, not the parent on top, but someone) might want to watch games besides the hometeam's.
People happily pay $80 season just for a service that gives you [freely available] stats and tells you their opinion of who is good and who isn't. Being able to catch the occasional game to do some "scouting" would probably be worth just as much.
And, as amazing as it might sound, some people actually enjoy watching more than one team's games.
They're probably pre-determined. They state odds, 1 in 260,000. I doubt they can predict people's "skillz." You have no more chance of winning this by skill than you do playing scratch off bingo. You know, "Damn, I was so close, next time I'll scratch off the "B" column first. I can effect the outcome of a pre-printed lottery card..."
It sounds dumb, that's what I think. But I wouldn't worry about crackers (people trying to crack the game and win the cash kind of crackers). They state the odds are 1 in 260,000. This is their business and you damn well better believe they won't be paying out more than that.
Even if they are foolish enough to let out a game that can easily be cracked (doubtful, they'll probably just put an encryped code on the winning CDs and check it when you come to redeem), they can refuse the prize at any time. So if too many people come to redeem it, "Sorry, we're paid out. Read the fine print, go home."
Perhaps you're all intentionally ignoring PC games in favor of only open sourced ID games. If so, forgive my impudence, but have you ever heard of Serious Sam? Multiplayer co-op with up to hundreds of enemies on screen at once, outdoors or indoors, or both. All online, no client side tricks, no character scaling, and lots of fun.
May not run in Linux, but it is an example of what can be done now, without cheating.
Yeah, but prior art doesn't count for crap. If you read the patent information, they give it a broad definition but a range of extremely narrow specifics. Basically no one has done exactly what they have said. So the Patent Office accepts it, figuring if they screwed up, the courts can fix it. But the courts won't. You can't sue because you think a patent is wrong. You can only take it to court when they try to impose licensing fees. Fat chance you or I can go up against Amazon (or really will ever have cause too). And those who can have routinely just paid the fees (Apple for once click shopping for one). Hell, it's just creative accounting for them. They patent shit and pay each other.
And with time, the "prior art" is dilluted. Will google have caches of everything ever? Will courts really believe that HTML file and screen shot of the product discussion at SmallCompShop.com from 1996 is legit? Afterall, this is the great visionary Bezos. How could some amateur come up with such a revolutionary idea?
They're not completely secure because if they were, it would put a dent in all that dough they're raking in. Security through obscurity is free, security that is secure isn't.
I didn't intend to insult anyone, just call attention to the fact that they looked stupid (riding Segways).
As for "city streets," there is the bus, taxis, and possibly train transportation. Lacking the physical skills or stamina I can comprehend, but would these people be able to use a Segway? Perhaps some? How many then? Perhaps a small percentage needs these devices and would be willing and able to pay the requisite $5000. My point was for those that biking or walking is an alternative for.
Kind of chicken and egg, that. If no one buys one, why would you design a city around them? That'll go over well with the city budget committee. While you're at it, start requiring rooftop parking for the imminent hover cars. Heck, rip out the roads altogether.
Can your fully functional legs carry you 12 mph for 5 miles?
On a bicycle, easily. On foot, at half that speed easily.
I could be wrong with the figures but wouldn't a Segway pay for itself in a couple years if you could save $8 a day on that one fee alone? ($5000/8=625)
Or you could buy a really really nice bicycle for half that price (or a really nice one for under 1/5 the price). As an added bonus, you wouldn't be a fat lump looking stupid standing on a self balancing Jetsonesque piece of kitch.
I can imagine trouble just carrying a spare tire, let alone 1/4 the "stuff."
Really, it's silly. There is hardly a niche for this thing. For short distances I'd rather walk than have to worry about where I'm going to put the bluky scooter when I get to where I'm going. For longer distances a bike is more practical for it's greater speed and manuverability. And of course a 1970 Monte Carlo SS is way cooler for any distance. Zoom zoom.
Well that and resetting the password will also tip off the legit user something is wrong (when they go to login with their old password and it doesn't work). Ideally you would re-set the password and email the new one to the user's registered email address.
Well, either they they make HTML/PHP/CGI etc. routines and code unpatentable or I'm going to file patents for similies, metaphors, analogies, rhyme, hyperbole, etc.
What's the difference here?
"Abstract: In human interaction it is sometimes necessary and often preferable to unfavorably interact with other persons rather than favorably. To this end, this patent claims the usage of words in such a manner as to create an "insult" whereby the target is subjected to one or more of the following: belittlement, ridicule, laughter (at, not with, target), embarassment, humor, insight, and/or humility. Additional states that can be created by said arrangement of words, either spoken, written, or implied, are also claimed under this patent. This patent is not limited to any specific language, though the exact construction methods of "insults" may vary..."
To...protect...against...retailer (you can call them an etailer if you prefer)...fraud.
I'm not blind to probable secondary uses (ie. stopping you from leeching) but as has been pointed out, this would only stop casual file sharers. If you think this will stop piracy, perhaps you should step out of the gene pool.
This isn't designed to stop piracy. All it is is an inventory/sales tracking mechanism. The unique ID is generated and saved for each download of a particular song. So at the end of the month they can say song "X" had such and such amount of sales. From there they can divy up the money.
The problem with electronic files (say MP3) as commodity isn't just piracy. A retailer could easily sell of 4 copies of a song and only report selling one. 3x free money. Or an interrupted download might be counted twice. Etc.
You would think there is a better way, but this is what they came up with.
Slashdot Mirror
And you might want to click here, Mr. Kettle. Again, props to Dictionary.com (aka dictionary.reference.com).
Well, generally middlemen tend to take a cut. ISPs charge a fee non-dependent on what an artist takes in. Of course the more viewers, the more bandwidth so probably more charges but $10 a month or $0.25 a month they don't work off of revenue.
Is the owner of a building a shop keeper leases a "middleman?"
They're like the pen, ink, and paper suppliers. The provide the medium (or access to it). You might say they're like the distributors, but print comics aren't really traditional in that sense, what with the syndicates and all.
The arcade vs. Hollywood comparison is skewed anyway. It's more like arcade vs. Hollywood first run US box office profit. Everyone knows Hollywood is viewed as huge, so everyone loves to compare themselves to it, with a statistician's fine print thrown in.
Don't underestimate the money and eyeballs involved in fantasy baseball. Fanatics will watch practically any game they can to see their or their prospective players play. This is precisely why you (well, not the parent on top, but someone) might want to watch games besides the hometeam's.
People happily pay $80 season just for a service that gives you [freely available] stats and tells you their opinion of who is good and who isn't. Being able to catch the occasional game to do some "scouting" would probably be worth just as much.
And, as amazing as it might sound, some people actually enjoy watching more than one team's games.
Smile. They just saved you $26.99
It's a state lottery. They don't lose money. No matter what.
They're probably pre-determined. They state odds, 1 in 260,000. I doubt they can predict people's "skillz." You have no more chance of winning this by skill than you do playing scratch off bingo. You know, "Damn, I was so close, next time I'll scratch off the "B" column first. I can effect the outcome of a pre-printed lottery card..."
What do you think?
It sounds dumb, that's what I think. But I wouldn't worry about crackers (people trying to crack the game and win the cash kind of crackers). They state the odds are 1 in 260,000. This is their business and you damn well better believe they won't be paying out more than that.
Even if they are foolish enough to let out a game that can easily be cracked (doubtful, they'll probably just put an encryped code on the winning CDs and check it when you come to redeem), they can refuse the prize at any time. So if too many people come to redeem it, "Sorry, we're paid out. Read the fine print, go home."
What, you don't shoot your computer too? It can't connect to the 'net when it's blowed up. Pansy.
Perhaps you're all intentionally ignoring PC games in favor of only open sourced ID games. If so, forgive my impudence, but have you ever heard of Serious Sam? Multiplayer co-op with up to hundreds of enemies on screen at once, outdoors or indoors, or both. All online, no client side tricks, no character scaling, and lots of fun.
May not run in Linux, but it is an example of what can be done now, without cheating.
Clive Barker's Undying. Seriously. If you want to be scared AND enjoy a beautiful FPS, check out Undying. Can be had for $10 new.
Yeah, but prior art doesn't count for crap. If you read the patent information, they give it a broad definition but a range of extremely narrow specifics. Basically no one has done exactly what they have said. So the Patent Office accepts it, figuring if they screwed up, the courts can fix it. But the courts won't. You can't sue because you think a patent is wrong. You can only take it to court when they try to impose licensing fees. Fat chance you or I can go up against Amazon (or really will ever have cause too). And those who can have routinely just paid the fees (Apple for once click shopping for one). Hell, it's just creative accounting for them. They patent shit and pay each other.
And with time, the "prior art" is dilluted. Will google have caches of everything ever? Will courts really believe that HTML file and screen shot of the product discussion at SmallCompShop.com from 1996 is legit? Afterall, this is the great visionary Bezos. How could some amateur come up with such a revolutionary idea?
They're not completely secure because if they were, it would put a dent in all that dough they're raking in. Security through obscurity is free, security that is secure isn't.
I didn't intend to insult anyone, just call attention to the fact that they looked stupid (riding Segways).
As for "city streets," there is the bus, taxis, and possibly train transportation. Lacking the physical skills or stamina I can comprehend, but would these people be able to use a Segway? Perhaps some? How many then? Perhaps a small percentage needs these devices and would be willing and able to pay the requisite $5000. My point was for those that biking or walking is an alternative for.
Kind of chicken and egg, that. If no one buys one, why would you design a city around them? That'll go over well with the city budget committee. While you're at it, start requiring rooftop parking for the imminent hover cars. Heck, rip out the roads altogether.
Can your fully functional legs carry you 12 mph for 5 miles?
On a bicycle, easily. On foot, at half that speed easily.
I could be wrong with the figures but wouldn't a Segway pay for itself in a couple years if you could save $8 a day on that one fee alone? ($5000/8=625)
Or you could buy a really really nice bicycle for half that price (or a really nice one for under 1/5 the price). As an added bonus, you wouldn't be a fat lump looking stupid standing on a self balancing Jetsonesque piece of kitch.
I can imagine trouble just carrying a spare tire, let alone 1/4 the "stuff."
Really, it's silly. There is hardly a niche for this thing. For short distances I'd rather walk than have to worry about where I'm going to put the bluky scooter when I get to where I'm going. For longer distances a bike is more practical for it's greater speed and manuverability. And of course a 1970 Monte Carlo SS is way cooler for any distance. Zoom zoom.
Stupid liars.
Liars maybe, but stupid they are not.
Well that and resetting the password will also tip off the legit user something is wrong (when they go to login with their old password and it doesn't work). Ideally you would re-set the password and email the new one to the user's registered email address.
Except that toilet water doesn't, of course.
googled
Well, either they they make HTML/PHP/CGI etc. routines and code unpatentable or I'm going to file patents for similies, metaphors, analogies, rhyme, hyperbole, etc.
What's the difference here?
"Abstract: In human interaction it is sometimes necessary and often preferable to unfavorably interact with other persons rather than favorably. To this end, this patent claims the usage of words in such a manner as to create an "insult" whereby the target is subjected to one or more of the following: belittlement, ridicule, laughter (at, not with, target), embarassment, humor, insight, and/or humility. Additional states that can be created by said arrangement of words, either spoken, written, or implied, are also claimed under this patent. This patent is not limited to any specific language, though the exact construction methods of "insults" may vary..."
I doubt there is a single person here who wouldn't mind firing off a few dozen examples to help keep patents in line with reality...
Doubt there is a single person who wouldn't mind? Everyone would mind doing it? Actually there's probably quite a few people here who wouldn't mind.
To...protect...against...retailer (you can call them an etailer if you prefer)...fraud.
I'm not blind to probable secondary uses (ie. stopping you from leeching) but as has been pointed out, this would only stop casual file sharers. If you think this will stop piracy, perhaps you should step out of the gene pool.
This isn't designed to stop piracy. All it is is an inventory/sales tracking mechanism. The unique ID is generated and saved for each download of a particular song. So at the end of the month they can say song "X" had such and such amount of sales. From there they can divy up the money.
The problem with electronic files (say MP3) as commodity isn't just piracy. A retailer could easily sell of 4 copies of a song and only report selling one. 3x free money. Or an interrupted download might be counted twice. Etc.
You would think there is a better way, but this is what they came up with.