A large part of the problem of fraud within corporations is because of the construct of a corporation itself. A corporation is a fictitious person who bears the responsibility of (nearly) all acts the corporation takes; stockholders can't be held liable. As a result, stockholders will constantly push towards the profit while ignoring the means of generating that income.
It's certainly slowed down. But I foresee a further increase once the long-distance DSL variants have been rolled out. There's a huge amount of growth available in outlying suburbs that haven't been wired for digital cable and where CO runs are lengthy -- and where upper-middle-class denizens have fled from the city. It's an as-yet untapped market.
> They find people with talent and produce them. > They fund the band to go into a studio and turn > out polished music. Some people are able to turn > out something just as polished but that is not > going to be common.
I disagree. The cost of studio equipment has been dropping dramatically, and I'd expect the cost of studio time to go down as well. Distribution is a problem the net has solved; so has "airplay". I believe that indy will eventually be the way to go.
It's possible... Thing is, while the RIAA can set up its own infrastructure bypassing those stupid royalties, other people can still come in with indy bands as content. The net is a very egalitarian medium, and if someone offers competing goods, people will take it. I suspect the free market will do better than the record cartel in the end.
Well, the government has spoken, and the rates have been set, at a level high enough to kill webcasting as we know it. The RIAA must be cheering -- if they're not planning some sort of appeal to raise the rates even higher.
Personally, I think the RIAA has just finished the job of cutting its own throat.
Let's look at the facts: These rates apply to "commonly available" music, as a default royalty system. Webcasters are free to sign contracts with content performers and bypass these rates entirely. "But there's nothing good out there!" For now, perhaps.
Thing is, broadband is spreading like wildfire, as is the potential audience for webcasters, and more people will be edging to push their way into it. I'd expect to see underground webcasting stations pushing unknown bands grow common, and then some of them (both stations and bands) will grow increasingly popular. Meanwhile the bands pushed by the big labels (and big prices) will seem more and more stale.
The end result will be the decline and fall of the record companies, which will probably drag their signed artists down with them. Oh well.
Yup, real soon we won't be able to tape shows off the TV.
Yes, one could get a Tivo or the like to do one's "time-shifting", but the MPAA and other associations are already attacking the systems, and the ability to share recordings with friends is limited and may get cut off altogether.
This is a good sign that the concept of intellectual property is reaching dangerous new highs, and should be reined in.
You know, when people complain about digital technology ruining the music, I can't help rolling my eyes. Sure, incorrectly implemented technology can change the way the music sounds. When it's done right, though, it can only get better.
Mr. Maul here thinks the lack of quantization in the paper roll makes the music "real". Yeah, well, when the quantization gets smaller than the normal variations in friction of the pins against the sides of the holes in the paper, especially as the paper wears, then one has a digital recording system more accurate than the paper roll, quantization or no.
I will admit, there's a certain special something when someone is performing live you can't get from a recording. But just because that recording is digital doesn't mean it's any less special.
Thing is, your battery has a standby time of 48 hours, but a talk time of what? 1 hour? 90 minutes? Most of that power isn't going to sound circuitry, it's going to the radio, and if your phone is busy relaying a call that radio will be pulling just as much power.
Yeah, it's possible. Of course, it'd mean your cell phone's battery would run down within a matter of hours as it relayed other people's conversations around. I'd guess a lot of people would "hack" their phones to not act as relays, so as to conserve battery life. The result would be a breakdown of the network.
The multiple relay idea isn't such a bad idea, though, if you move the relays out of the phones and onto the power grid. How 'bout if everyone who got a phone also plugged in a base station at their house? That piece of hardware would do the relaying instead. Then battery life wouldn't be a problem. Offer a few people free service if there are dead spots in the neighborhood.
Add on another feature; plug the relay into your phone line, and when you're at home or near it, your cell phone becomes a cordless phone (like in L. Neil Smith's book Hope.
I'm in the market for a couple of cheap web-serving boxes, and strongly considered buying these machines. The price is certainly right, they're pre-built (I'm lazy and hate building from scratch), and I'd be certain drivers for Linux would already be available for all the hardware. Hell, they'd already be installed and configured! A little security work, install Apache, and voila! It's not NetBSD, but it'd be workable.
The only thing that stopped me was that these machines were slightly too low-end for me. The $500 unit with the Athlon XP1800+ would've worked nicely. The main problem is the default hard drive, a 40GB, 5400 RPM clunker. If I'd had the option to upgrade to a faster drive, I'd've grabbed 'em.
You're talking about piracy over the net, in which case someone is making a DVD rip. The DVD itself does NOT have Macrovision encoded on it. It's the DVD players that add the Macrovision signal overlay. (This is why so many players have an option to turn it off; it's a no-brainer, requiring very little code.) A computer DVD player has no way of inserting a Macrovision signal to the mix, so the whole idea of using Macrovision to protect against online piracy is useless.
If it were a standard dial-up, hell yeah! They have the best national access I've seen. Sometimes I go on the road, and I need every POP I can find. If it weren't for their proprietary access software, I'd join in a nanosecond.
Adding Macrovision to video doesn't prevent the pirates from duplicating videos, so the biggest effect of Macrovision is to reduce the quality of the video. I applaud Time Warner for having some sense. (Now if they'd only let people log onto AOL without using their stupid software...)
I'd suggest a variation; reformat their drives with a fairly small primary partition. That way you'll get the speed of a modern drive with the same effect.
Then, once people are used to saving their data on the network drive, you can create a secondary partition with an odd drive assignment for "personal use".
At first, I thought this would be a great idea for an emergency cell phone. Leave it in your car, and if you break down or get in an accident, just a little winding and you can call for help. No worries about batteries dying.
Then I realized that if you got in an accident, you might not be ABLE to wind the thing. A phone meant for real emergencies would need to be operable without having to wind it up first.
I'd recommend using one of those battery packs that takes AA cells, then filling it with Eveready's Energizer Lithium AAs. Not only would they give a long talk time, they also have an incredible shelf life. Ideal for emergency use.
If you're worried about backdoors and trojan horses being inserted during a transfer over the net, then contact the author and order the source on CD. The author doesn't offer CDs? Throw him some cash and I'm sure he'd be happy to burn you one. It would still be less expensive than ordering a commercial package.
Yes, Microsoft's security sucks, and every one knows there are open security holes, and it takes ages for them to be patched... But Microsoft's OSes do have one advantage over all the current open source OSes -- Windows Update.
It may take MS too long to patch their stuff, but when the patch does come out, access to that patch is quick and easy. An update facility for *nix would be a huge step in combatting bugs and security problems. The facility need not be centralized, either; individual distributions or packages could have their own repositories.
Such a system could even go one step further than Microsoft and report when an unpatched hole is found, and give the option to disable that service 'til a fix is discovered. This would be highly appropriate for individuals, companies and governments who are worried about keeping their systems secure, and would keep them safer than any closed-source software can.
I don't think most modern cable boxes can be reset simply by yanking the power. The cable company could reset it remotely, of course, but I suspect they'd either only feign sending the signal or simply tell you to bring your box in if you called to complain within a few hours of the bullet's transmission.
On the topic of stupid cable thieves who get tricked into turning themselves in, I just wanted to mention another trick the cable companies have pulled in the past.
You'd be watching your show, and right when the movie was due to begin, you'd see a message saying you won a prize (new TV, whatever), and to call a number to claim it. When you called and gave your name and address, you'd then wind up losing your cable service and/or having to pay a fine or go to court.
What happened? The cable company scrambled that ad with a key that no one was supposed to be set up to receive. But the modified boxes would treat it as a regular scrambled show and decode it. So only the cable pirates would get the message.
The "magic bullet" is basically malformed code that the descrambling computer chokes on. It can't hurt your VCR, because your VCR doesn't descramble anything.
I just tried to install Mozilla 1.0 on a virgin XP Pro box, and when I try to make it the default browser, Mozilla freezes. Does anyone have any suggestions? Would it help if I uninstalled, put in an earlier RC and then upgraded?
Both subtractive etching and atomic construction are being used in trying to build real nanomachines. I agree, I think these people are trying to redefine the term in order to make their product more sexy.
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A large part of the problem of fraud within corporations is because of the construct of a corporation itself. A corporation is a fictitious person who bears the responsibility of (nearly) all acts the corporation takes; stockholders can't be held liable. As a result, stockholders will constantly push towards the profit while ignoring the means of generating that income.
It's certainly slowed down. But I foresee a further increase once the long-distance DSL variants have been rolled out. There's a huge amount of growth available in outlying suburbs that haven't been wired for digital cable and where CO runs are lengthy -- and where upper-middle-class denizens have fled from the city. It's an as-yet untapped market.
> They find people with talent and produce them.
> They fund the band to go into a studio and turn
> out polished music. Some people are able to turn
> out something just as polished but that is not
> going to be common.
I disagree. The cost of studio equipment has been dropping dramatically, and I'd expect the cost of studio time to go down as well. Distribution is a problem the net has solved; so has "airplay". I believe that indy will eventually be the way to go.
Besides, the recording industry exacts an enormous price for their services. See Courtney Love's speech on the subject for more details.
It's possible... Thing is, while the RIAA can set up its own infrastructure bypassing those stupid royalties, other people can still come in with indy bands as content. The net is a very egalitarian medium, and if someone offers competing goods, people will take it. I suspect the free market will do better than the record cartel in the end.
Well, the government has spoken, and the rates have been set, at a level high enough to kill webcasting as we know it. The RIAA must be cheering -- if they're not planning some sort of appeal to raise the rates even higher.
Personally, I think the RIAA has just finished the job of cutting its own throat.
Let's look at the facts: These rates apply to "commonly available" music, as a default royalty system. Webcasters are free to sign contracts with content performers and bypass these rates entirely. "But there's nothing good out there!" For now, perhaps.
Thing is, broadband is spreading like wildfire, as is the potential audience for webcasters, and more people will be edging to push their way into it. I'd expect to see underground webcasting stations pushing unknown bands grow common, and then some of them (both stations and bands) will grow increasingly popular. Meanwhile the bands pushed by the big labels (and big prices) will seem more and more stale.
The end result will be the decline and fall of the record companies, which will probably drag their signed artists down with them. Oh well.
Yup, real soon we won't be able to tape shows off the TV.
Yes, one could get a Tivo or the like to do one's "time-shifting", but the MPAA and other associations are already attacking the systems, and the ability to share recordings with friends is limited and may get cut off altogether.
This is a good sign that the concept of intellectual property is reaching dangerous new highs, and should be reined in.
You know, when people complain about digital technology ruining the music, I can't help rolling my eyes. Sure, incorrectly implemented technology can change the way the music sounds. When it's done right, though, it can only get better.
Mr. Maul here thinks the lack of quantization in the paper roll makes the music "real". Yeah, well, when the quantization gets smaller than the normal variations in friction of the pins against the sides of the holes in the paper, especially as the paper wears, then one has a digital recording system more accurate than the paper roll, quantization or no.
I will admit, there's a certain special something when someone is performing live you can't get from a recording. But just because that recording is digital doesn't mean it's any less special.
But that's my entire business model, and my VCs would crucify me.
Heh.
Yes, it sends packets every once in a while.
Thing is, your battery has a standby time of 48 hours, but a talk time of what? 1 hour? 90 minutes? Most of that power isn't going to sound circuitry, it's going to the radio, and if your phone is busy relaying a call that radio will be pulling just as much power.
Yeah, it's possible. Of course, it'd mean your cell phone's battery would run down within a matter of hours as it relayed other people's conversations around. I'd guess a lot of people would "hack" their phones to not act as relays, so as to conserve battery life. The result would be a breakdown of the network.
The multiple relay idea isn't such a bad idea, though, if you move the relays out of the phones and onto the power grid. How 'bout if everyone who got a phone also plugged in a base station at their house? That piece of hardware would do the relaying instead. Then battery life wouldn't be a problem. Offer a few people free service if there are dead spots in the neighborhood.
Add on another feature; plug the relay into your phone line, and when you're at home or near it, your cell phone becomes a cordless phone (like in L. Neil Smith's book Hope .
I'm in the market for a couple of cheap web-serving boxes, and strongly considered buying these machines. The price is certainly right, they're pre-built (I'm lazy and hate building from scratch), and I'd be certain drivers for Linux would already be available for all the hardware. Hell, they'd already be installed and configured! A little security work, install Apache, and voila! It's not NetBSD, but it'd be workable.
The only thing that stopped me was that these machines were slightly too low-end for me. The $500 unit with the Athlon XP1800+ would've worked nicely. The main problem is the default hard drive, a 40GB, 5400 RPM clunker. If I'd had the option to upgrade to a faster drive, I'd've grabbed 'em.
You're talking about piracy over the net, in which case someone is making a DVD rip. The DVD itself does NOT have Macrovision encoded on it. It's the DVD players that add the Macrovision signal overlay. (This is why so many players have an option to turn it off; it's a no-brainer, requiring very little code.) A computer DVD player has no way of inserting a Macrovision signal to the mix, so the whole idea of using Macrovision to protect against online piracy is useless.
If it were a standard dial-up, hell yeah! They have the best national access I've seen. Sometimes I go on the road, and I need every POP I can find. If it weren't for their proprietary access software, I'd join in a nanosecond.
Adding Macrovision to video doesn't prevent the pirates from duplicating videos, so the biggest effect of Macrovision is to reduce the quality of the video. I applaud Time Warner for having some sense. (Now if they'd only let people log onto AOL without using their stupid software...)
Nice idea, but 4 gig drives suck.
I'd suggest a variation; reformat their drives with a fairly small primary partition. That way you'll get the speed of a modern drive with the same effect.
Then, once people are used to saving their data on the network drive, you can create a secondary partition with an odd drive assignment for "personal use".
At first, I thought this would be a great idea for an emergency cell phone. Leave it in your car, and if you break down or get in an accident, just a little winding and you can call for help. No worries about batteries dying.
Then I realized that if you got in an accident, you might not be ABLE to wind the thing. A phone meant for real emergencies would need to be operable without having to wind it up first.
I'd recommend using one of those battery packs that takes AA cells, then filling it with Eveready's Energizer Lithium AAs. Not only would they give a long talk time, they also have an incredible shelf life. Ideal for emergency use.
If you're worried about backdoors and trojan horses being inserted during a transfer over the net, then contact the author and order the source on CD. The author doesn't offer CDs? Throw him some cash and I'm sure he'd be happy to burn you one. It would still be less expensive than ordering a commercial package.
Yes, Microsoft's security sucks, and every one knows there are open security holes, and it takes ages for them to be patched... But Microsoft's OSes do have one advantage over all the current open source OSes -- Windows Update.
It may take MS too long to patch their stuff, but when the patch does come out, access to that patch is quick and easy. An update facility for *nix would be a huge step in combatting bugs and security problems. The facility need not be centralized, either; individual distributions or packages could have their own repositories.
Such a system could even go one step further than Microsoft and report when an unpatched hole is found, and give the option to disable that service 'til a fix is discovered. This would be highly appropriate for individuals, companies and governments who are worried about keeping their systems secure, and would keep them safer than any closed-source software can.
I don't think most modern cable boxes can be reset simply by yanking the power. The cable company could reset it remotely, of course, but I suspect they'd either only feign sending the signal or simply tell you to bring your box in if you called to complain within a few hours of the bullet's transmission.
On the topic of stupid cable thieves who get tricked into turning themselves in, I just wanted to mention another trick the cable companies have pulled in the past.
You'd be watching your show, and right when the movie was due to begin, you'd see a message saying you won a prize (new TV, whatever), and to call a number to claim it. When you called and gave your name and address, you'd then wind up losing your cable service and/or having to pay a fine or go to court.
What happened? The cable company scrambled that ad with a key that no one was supposed to be set up to receive. But the modified boxes would treat it as a regular scrambled show and decode it. So only the cable pirates would get the message.
The "magic bullet" is basically malformed code that the descrambling computer chokes on. It can't hurt your VCR, because your VCR doesn't descramble anything.
How are you gentlemen!
All your TV are belong to us!
I just tried to install Mozilla 1.0 on a virgin XP Pro box, and when I try to make it the default browser, Mozilla freezes. Does anyone have any suggestions? Would it help if I uninstalled, put in an earlier RC and then upgraded?
Both subtractive etching and atomic construction are being used in trying to build real nanomachines. I agree, I think these people are trying to redefine the term in order to make their product more sexy.
Umm, forgive me, but I don't think the "gray goo" syndrome referred to the stuff you squeeze out of a bottle of sunblock.