Ah, but the EULA was of course written up by lawyers, not by mouthpieces. And I believe courts have indeed sided with the makers of those EULA's. See the software alliance headed by Microsoft and its legal successes.
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"someone please explain how one of these devices would possibly impact a user who simply doesn't make use of copy-protected data?"
Unfortunately, though, 99% of the world does. And that WILL affect you. If your next hard drive tried to interpret your right to write to it, you will no doubt run into problems soon enough.
"if the governments start to ban the manufacture of good ol' simple hard-drives"
What - in tandem? Taiwan, Japan, the US, and Korea all agree, and all at the same time, to ban non-conformant drives? Fujitsu and Samsung sit around the same table for this?
"I have a right to make as many copies and backups of the software that I OWN as I like"
I wish it were true.
Read a software license agreement. You do not OWN the software at all. You have a license to use it under certain proscribed conditions.
I agree with your sentiments - this very dangerous initiative truly sucks - but since this is a legal question let's be legal about this: you do not own the software you "buy", and you can not legally copy it as you like.
Yes indeed, Christmas it may be (and here's a well-meant Merry Christmas from this atheist), but Christmas is not a reason to sit by while our rights are taken away.
The "if you have done nothing wrong you have nothing to fear" argument that you seem to be using is a dangerous one, becuase it can be used (and has been used) to justify taking away rights. Hitler used that argument, as did Lenin. As, no doubt, did Caesar (since you mention him) against the Christians.
It is also a meaningless argument. I have no contraband or drugs in my pocket. So do I object to being searched at every corner by a policeman? Or to being strip-searched when entering the country? YES!!
Let's look in practice. I have a lot of software. Probably 100 apps. For Windows as well as for Linux. But let's concentrate on the Windows apps. Yes, I paid for them! But here's the problem: Every time I switch PCs (I am on my fourth laptop this year, and have 8 PCs at home that I frequently switch around) I need to be able to move the app to the now-current PC. That is my RIGHT. And anything that prevents me from doing that is not a good thing. Call a 1-800 number? I spend half the year in Hong Kong and apart from the fact we do not have 1-800 numbers there, it is also 12 hours later there. Forget calling.
Remembering passwords? I ever forget where I wrote them down.
DVD regions? This means I have to buy TWO players (one for Canada and one for Hong Kong) an d I have to buy each movie TWICE. This is obviously insane! I should have the right to buy one portable player and one of each movie, and them to watch it whether I am in Hong Kong or in Toronto.
This kind of initiative is a slippery slope. We had copy protection once and it failed, because users them were vocal and clever. Users now are not (AOL is the world's largest provider...). Please, try to be a clever, vocal user and do not accept loss of rights, and inconveience, to do these corporations a favour!
Yes, unfortunately they can and will enforce it. France has always been very protectionist that way. Buy a random FM radio, for example, and you will see there's essentially three versions: world, France, and "Saudi Arabia".
The French courts have, this century at least, always been on the side of the goverment and against freedom of speech. The ebay Nazi thing is nothing new.
As for DVD, the average Joe (Jean) has no idea what these region things mean, and anyway only buys French-dubbed movies. So there is no popular drive to change these laws. Alas, the forces of evil will win this battle.
"Essentially, it now means that the individual legally has complete control over his or her own personal information and over what organizations may do with that information."
Except the government that is! Living in Canada, every time I enter and leave the country, every time I do anything significant with my bank, every time a cop stops me, every time I renew my car license, every time I sign a lease, every time I visit the doctor... etc... all of those times, all sorts of prive info that I do not want to divulge is divulged anyway. Canada has been quite good at giving everyone cards with magnetic strips, and more and more these are tied together. This "complete freedom" thing is a fallacy: we are monitored more and more. A speeding ticket is known instantly by my insurance company. My car lease is known to my credit card company, My credit card bills are known to almost every vendor... etc.
As a Canadian, how often must you give someone your SIN (Social Insurance Number)? And do you comply?
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Ah, but the EULA was of course written up by lawyers, not by mouthpieces. And I believe courts have indeed sided with the makers of those EULA's. See the software alliance headed by Microsoft and its legal successes.
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I know he said governments in the plural. Read my post.
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"someone please explain how one of these devices would possibly impact a user who simply doesn't make use of copy-protected data?"
Unfortunately, though, 99% of the world does. And that WILL affect you. If your next hard drive tried to interpret your right to write to it, you will no doubt run into problems soon enough.
---
"if the governments start to ban the manufacture of good ol' simple hard-drives"
What - in tandem? Taiwan, Japan, the US, and Korea all agree, and all at the same time, to ban non-conformant drives? Fujitsu and Samsung sit around the same table for this?
I can't see it happen.
---
"I have a right to make as many copies and backups of the software that I OWN as I like"
I wish it were true.
Read a software license agreement. You do not OWN the software at all. You have a license to use it under certain proscribed conditions.
I agree with your sentiments - this very dangerous initiative truly sucks - but since this is a legal question let's be legal about this: you do not own the software you "buy", and you can not legally copy it as you like.
Michael
---
The "if you have done nothing wrong you have nothing to fear" argument that you seem to be using is a dangerous one, becuase it can be used (and has been used) to justify taking away rights. Hitler used that argument, as did Lenin. As, no doubt, did Caesar (since you mention him) against the Christians.
It is also a meaningless argument. I have no contraband or drugs in my pocket. So do I object to being searched at every corner by a policeman? Or to being strip-searched when entering the country? YES!!
Let's look in practice. I have a lot of software. Probably 100 apps. For Windows as well as for Linux. But let's concentrate on the Windows apps. Yes, I paid for them! But here's the problem: Every time I switch PCs (I am on my fourth laptop this year, and have 8 PCs at home that I frequently switch around) I need to be able to move the app to the now-current PC. That is my RIGHT. And anything that prevents me from doing that is not a good thing. Call a 1-800 number? I spend half the year in Hong Kong and apart from the fact we do not have 1-800 numbers there, it is also 12 hours later there. Forget calling.
Remembering passwords? I ever forget where I wrote them down.
DVD regions? This means I have to buy TWO players (one for Canada and one for Hong Kong) an d I have to buy each movie TWICE. This is obviously insane! I should have the right to buy one portable player and one of each movie, and them to watch it whether I am in Hong Kong or in Toronto.
This kind of initiative is a slippery slope. We had copy protection once and it failed, because users them were vocal and clever. Users now are not (AOL is the world's largest provider...). Please, try to be a clever, vocal user and do not accept loss of rights, and inconveience, to do these corporations a favour!
Michael
---
The French courts have, this century at least, always been on the side of the goverment and against freedom of speech. The ebay Nazi thing is nothing new.
As for DVD, the average Joe (Jean) has no idea what these region things mean, and anyway only buys French-dubbed movies. So there is no popular drive to change these laws. Alas, the forces of evil will win this battle.
---
"Essentially, it now means that the individual legally has complete control over his or her own personal information and over what organizations may do with that information."
Except the government that is! Living in Canada, every time I enter and leave the country, every time I do anything significant with my bank, every time a cop stops me, every time I renew my car license, every time I sign a lease, every time I visit the doctor... etc... all of those times, all sorts of prive info that I do not want to divulge is divulged anyway. Canada has been quite good at giving everyone cards with magnetic strips, and more and more these are tied together. This "complete freedom" thing is a fallacy: we are monitored more and more. A speeding ticket is known instantly by my insurance company. My car lease is known to my credit card company, My credit card bills are known to almost every vendor... etc.
As a Canadian, how often must you give someone your SIN (Social Insurance Number)? And do you comply?
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