Yeah, wonderful point of view you have there. Let's build our system of law around protecting the stupidity of the most moronic portion of our civilization. Or maybe it's just that you and the people who agree with you think that the general public is a big herd of sheep that lacks you insightful nature. Quick, someone call Comedy Central and NBC, god only knows what horrible carnage has been wrought by various skits that've parodized Fedex, Pizza Hut, and the GAP over the years. By using actual company names in the production, millions of people must be convinced that the show was given official permission to portray them in this way, and that despite the negative nature of the parody, the company must for some reason be actively involved in it's own slander.
I don't really see how they compete, since the Zone is mostly used to play games (and most of them are Microsoft games) that can't be played online anywhere else. At least, not with any convenience and not with random strangers. 'Gamespy 3D' doesn't support those games, and any that are supported through it's other server-browser, 'Gamespy Arcade', are likely the result of a deal with Microsoft. In the same way that, in order to have working support for HAlf-Life, GSI had to work with Valve and 'WON'. In fact, I know a few people who've been inside GSI since it's infancy, and they saw the acquisition of Mplayer as the defeat of their last remaining competitor.
In any case, Gamespy (GSI) is such small potatoes in comparison to Microsoft, that they could never meet the role of it's competitor. GSI is struggling just to stay relevant, when many games have server-browsers of their own. Microsoft won't have that problem on the Zone, because they make the games they support.
Yeah, I'm sure this'll accomplish a lot. Assuming that, unlike when I was their age, kids these days prefer to look at porn while their parents are still awake.
When a store gets big to the point that it begins to see itself as so entrenched that it has a 'moral responsibility' to start banning items it decides could cause the downfall of civilized society with their adult-oriented content, I say it's time to pass the stick to the little guys, thanks.
"Because small companies can't take advantage of economies of scale to offer better pricing and superior customer service."
Yeah, okay. I guess the concept of growth and expansion are meaningless, the large companies must've materialized out of thin air.
Well, to be frank, a console isn't really an option since I would actually have to start paying for the games. Even if I could afford my addiction, I would feel dumb for spending so much on something I don't really need. That's just me. But anyway, I haven't read anything about Mandrake. I'm not really sure at all how the Linux community works, or how the different software is categorized. I've heard about different 'distributions' like redhat, but I'd always assumed Linux would be something I'd download for free. The only thing I'm even remotely acquainted with is the small intro to Gnome that was linked in the article. That kind of familiar visual interface is probably what I need. If mandrake is a distribution, than judging by the Gnome page it might come with mandrake. I only know enough to be confused right now, though. Come christmas I'm finally replacing a few parts on my system, like my 4gb hard drive, so I'll find out more then. Thanks for the suggestions.
Another field would be politics, I think. When I started getting involved with it and paying more attention to how politics effected the daily lives of myself and everyone around me, I found that my passion for it would sort of rub off on others. I remember ranting on one small internet forum that I frequently visited, and more often than not my topic was politics. Eventually more and more of the regulars there started caring about the things I cared about. In fact, when the 2000 election came around a good majority of them were set on voting (for Nader) and making sure their friends and family got out to vote as well. In contrast, these days I find that most peoples' eyes just start to glaze over when I'm talking about politics. My guess is that I stopped relating an issue to how it would affect a person's daily routine. I would just start blabbing about Carnivore, or the DMCA, and expect someone to understand how it would impact them.
But anyway, to get on topic, given the impending exinction of Win98 I hope somehow to learn to use Linux. There's two reasons I haven't done it already...
1. I know a lot more about politics than I do about computers.
2. I don't know if Linux is, as yet, fully compatible with my gaming addiction.
But I know for certian that I'd rather learn Linux or buy a Mac than give any of my money to Microsoft.
I should say 'physical beauty' instead of perfection, since really non-biodegradable body parts don't constitute perfection. I kinda went off on a tangent, huh...
That's what I see, anyway. I've been a part of multiple small communities that've turned into something big. The Planetquake community that became Gamespy Industries, the Contaminated.net community that was devoured by GSI and became planethalflife.com, the group of Lowtax fans that became SomethingAwful.com readers, and the Politechbot.com members that became readers of what has to be one of the most popular mailing lists around.
Your readers may say they love what you do, but if they loved it enough word of mouth and power of linkage would keep your hitcount rising. This is where I come to the 'problematic solution' part: when it's decided that content-creators somehow are entitled to success in return for their having worked hard to create something not many people want, we'll get our savior; it'll be 'Philip Mepocketz', saint of consumerism. A website's existence will become even more dependent on advertisers, and achievement through one's own talent will become obsolete in the face of large marketing firms that can be hired to make "Bill Gates' personal journal" page the most popular site online -- much like how, today, a large record company can give a pile of shit a pretty face and make it the most popular band in America (among young people who've been raised in a world that holds physical perfection as it's #1 priority). And the day that happens, is the day I sell my computer.
Re:Why can't anyone see the implications of this?
on
This is IT?
·
· Score: 2
Seems to me 'IT' will fail for 2 reasons:
1. It will cost so much that few people will have them initially.
2. Number 1, taken into account along with the superficial nature of most people, will result in people opting to walk or drive rather than stand out by looking like they're riding around on a scooter.
Given time, and a cheaper price, it probably would go big. But, IMHO, before it has the chance investors will start jumping ship, the hype will backfire, and 'IT'll be gone just as fast as it got here. Except in Japan, where millions of units will be sold.
If you would like to hear more about the future, please insert $5.00.
Just because most people on a P2P network use it for piracy, it doesn't become a pirate-app. I can, and have, used programs that are under attack by the RIAA do download speeches, text documents, etc. At the early point of the 2000 Nader campaign, when he couldn't get 30 seconds of time on M$NBC (much less a place in the debates later on), I used Napster and Scour to find speeches he's given. And when the Department of Commerce kicked of it's 'Safe Harbor' privacy program by failing to put the confidential information provided by the companies involved on a secure site, I downloaded the pages in a zip file despite the site being closed for a fix. Using programs like Scour, I found reading material on scientology, COINTELPRO, and more, all the way up until the day that lawsuits shut them down.
I don't see what's wrong with friends. Seems to me like it's a modern, wholesome, realistic portrayal of a New York City where people of color are never around in any capacity.
Explain to me what the difference is. You can use search engines to find copyrighted work to download from FTP's and websites. The only difference I see is that P2P programs are designed to funnel those people who want to share media and information on the internet into one place. Maybe you're just trolling, because it's rediculous to suggest that any of these programs were designed for copyright infringement. None of them come with programs for cracking copy-protections, or links to warez and cracking sites. Many could have that information automatically pop-up on a browser in the program, and they don't. What's nonsense is the way that programs like these, that have very substantial, legit uses, are being shutdown as an excuse for fighting 'pirates'. The end result is just to give the industry control of online sharing of media. Think about it; since you apparently haven't done enough of that. Any P2P program that pops up is going to immediately have users who share the mainstream popular media that the industry claims to be protecting. There are 500,000 people who have the latest Britney Spears album on mp3. No one who ever used Napster or Kazaa needed it to find music and video owned by the RIAA/MPAA. What those popular programs provided, was so much goddamn quantity that you could spend the whole day listening to garage bands and obscure music you heard in a commercial when you were 5 years old. Without these programs, artists who try to use the internet to spread their work become victims of an 'anti-piracy' war, and it's not a coincidence. Because now, P2P programs will stay small and obscure (grow and get sued), and we return to the pre-internet status-quo where you either do business with the RIAA or you don't do business.
And I'm sorry if that seems harsh, but really, what could piss you off more than the RIAA except one of the 'good guys' turning around and stabbing you in the back?
I don't like the copyright cartel anymore than most people here; in fact I probably hate them a lot more than most people do. But I also hate having spyware installed on my system without my knowledge. Like Kazaa does with Cydoor. So to all the guys at Kazaa, you can't see it, but at this very instant I'm giving you the big middle finger.
Well you've got it all figured out obviously. I must've spelled well enough for you to read what I was saying, and beyond that it really doersn't matter to someone who would use the name "Sarcasmooo!" (me). As far as being a 'leftist' with 'necessary' things, I'm a kid between highschool and college who can't afford luxuries. My dad bought me my TV when I was 15, and I bought my computer with money left to me in a will when I turned 18. This christmas I would be asking my family to spend money on charity instead of gifts for me, but I get antsy about looking self-righteous in front of pricks like yourself, so I just take what I get to the salvation army or wherever else it can go. And politics seems to be the last great haven for bigotry; I'm not a person with an individual mind and opinions, I'm a 'leftist fool'. Let's just cut the shit and go back to 'nigger, kike, etc' ok?
Bah. I'm not an extremist, just a realist. I said 'rediculous', didn't I? I see this gadget as a rediculous example. I don't see my computer or my internet access that way, because I've learned more from it than I learned in my 4 years of highschool. You'd probably agree that internet access is no more a luxury than a phoneline. Or at least, that it should be by being provided to low income areas and schools.
WOW, what a bargain. Well I know what I'm gonna use mine for! "Reminder: call smelly guy in front of my apartment and comment that 'While the cost of this device might be enough to save people like you, I'm sure the unecessary convenience it offers me will one day be as valuable as the lives of multiple human beings.'" Homeless people have cellphones, right?
(Disclaimer: No one wants to force you to spend your money helping people not die instead of buying insanely priced doo-hickeys that you don't need, but I reserve the right to make fun of you for choosing not to in such a rediculously extreme example as buying things like this. As always, it's just my opinion.)
Slashdot Mirror
The NRA spends plenty on bribes.
Yeah, wonderful point of view you have there. Let's build our system of law around protecting the stupidity of the most moronic portion of our civilization. Or maybe it's just that you and the people who agree with you think that the general public is a big herd of sheep that lacks you insightful nature. Quick, someone call Comedy Central and NBC, god only knows what horrible carnage has been wrought by various skits that've parodized Fedex, Pizza Hut, and the GAP over the years. By using actual company names in the production, millions of people must be convinced that the show was given official permission to portray them in this way, and that despite the negative nature of the parody, the company must for some reason be actively involved in it's own slander.
What brilliant skills of deduction you have.
I don't really see how they compete, since the Zone is mostly used to play games (and most of them are Microsoft games) that can't be played online anywhere else. At least, not with any convenience and not with random strangers. 'Gamespy 3D' doesn't support those games, and any that are supported through it's other server-browser, 'Gamespy Arcade', are likely the result of a deal with Microsoft. In the same way that, in order to have working support for HAlf-Life, GSI had to work with Valve and 'WON'. In fact, I know a few people who've been inside GSI since it's infancy, and they saw the acquisition of Mplayer as the defeat of their last remaining competitor.
In any case, Gamespy (GSI) is such small potatoes in comparison to Microsoft, that they could never meet the role of it's competitor. GSI is struggling just to stay relevant, when many games have server-browsers of their own. Microsoft won't have that problem on the Zone, because they make the games they support.
Yeah, I'm sure this'll accomplish a lot. Assuming that, unlike when I was their age, kids these days prefer to look at porn while their parents are still awake.
Thought some people might wanna see one of the many related links I have scattered around from rejected stories and junk:
Rep. Ed Markey's letter to John Ashcroft (pdf) in opposition to the settlement.
You've helped a lot actually, now I'm almost looking forward to M$ forcing me to lose Win98. Thanks abunch :)
When a store gets big to the point that it begins to see itself as so entrenched that it has a 'moral responsibility' to start banning items it decides could cause the downfall of civilized society with their adult-oriented content, I say it's time to pass the stick to the little guys, thanks.
"Because small companies can't take advantage of economies of scale to offer better pricing and superior customer service."
Yeah, okay. I guess the concept of growth and expansion are meaningless, the large companies must've materialized out of thin air.
Well, to be frank, a console isn't really an option since I would actually have to start paying for the games. Even if I could afford my addiction, I would feel dumb for spending so much on something I don't really need. That's just me. But anyway, I haven't read anything about Mandrake. I'm not really sure at all how the Linux community works, or how the different software is categorized. I've heard about different 'distributions' like redhat, but I'd always assumed Linux would be something I'd download for free. The only thing I'm even remotely acquainted with is the small intro to Gnome that was linked in the article. That kind of familiar visual interface is probably what I need. If mandrake is a distribution, than judging by the Gnome page it might come with mandrake. I only know enough to be confused right now, though. Come christmas I'm finally replacing a few parts on my system, like my 4gb hard drive, so I'll find out more then. Thanks for the suggestions.
Another field would be politics, I think. When I started getting involved with it and paying more attention to how politics effected the daily lives of myself and everyone around me, I found that my passion for it would sort of rub off on others. I remember ranting on one small internet forum that I frequently visited, and more often than not my topic was politics. Eventually more and more of the regulars there started caring about the things I cared about. In fact, when the 2000 election came around a good majority of them were set on voting (for Nader) and making sure their friends and family got out to vote as well. In contrast, these days I find that most peoples' eyes just start to glaze over when I'm talking about politics. My guess is that I stopped relating an issue to how it would affect a person's daily routine. I would just start blabbing about Carnivore, or the DMCA, and expect someone to understand how it would impact them.
But anyway, to get on topic, given the impending exinction of Win98 I hope somehow to learn to use Linux. There's two reasons I haven't done it already...
1. I know a lot more about politics than I do about computers.
2. I don't know if Linux is, as yet, fully compatible with my gaming addiction.
But I know for certian that I'd rather learn Linux or buy a Mac than give any of my money to Microsoft.
Give my buddy Declan McCullaghalala his credit for breaking the story first.
I should say 'physical beauty' instead of perfection, since really non-biodegradable body parts don't constitute perfection. I kinda went off on a tangent, huh...
That's what I see, anyway. I've been a part of multiple small communities that've turned into something big. The Planetquake community that became Gamespy Industries, the Contaminated.net community that was devoured by GSI and became planethalflife.com, the group of Lowtax fans that became SomethingAwful.com readers, and the Politechbot.com members that became readers of what has to be one of the most popular mailing lists around.
Your readers may say they love what you do, but if they loved it enough word of mouth and power of linkage would keep your hitcount rising. This is where I come to the 'problematic solution' part: when it's decided that content-creators somehow are entitled to success in return for their having worked hard to create something not many people want, we'll get our savior; it'll be 'Philip Mepocketz', saint of consumerism. A website's existence will become even more dependent on advertisers, and achievement through one's own talent will become obsolete in the face of large marketing firms that can be hired to make "Bill Gates' personal journal" page the most popular site online -- much like how, today, a large record company can give a pile of shit a pretty face and make it the most popular band in America (among young people who've been raised in a world that holds physical perfection as it's #1 priority). And the day that happens, is the day I sell my computer.
Seems to me 'IT' will fail for 2 reasons:
1. It will cost so much that few people will have them initially.
2. Number 1, taken into account along with the superficial nature of most people, will result in people opting to walk or drive rather than stand out by looking like they're riding around on a scooter.
Given time, and a cheaper price, it probably would go big. But, IMHO, before it has the chance investors will start jumping ship, the hype will backfire, and 'IT'll be gone just as fast as it got here. Except in Japan, where millions of units will be sold.
If you would like to hear more about the future, please insert $5.00.
Just because most people on a P2P network use it for piracy, it doesn't become a pirate-app. I can, and have, used programs that are under attack by the RIAA do download speeches, text documents, etc. At the early point of the 2000 Nader campaign, when he couldn't get 30 seconds of time on M$NBC (much less a place in the debates later on), I used Napster and Scour to find speeches he's given. And when the Department of Commerce kicked of it's 'Safe Harbor' privacy program by failing to put the confidential information provided by the companies involved on a secure site, I downloaded the pages in a zip file despite the site being closed for a fix. Using programs like Scour, I found reading material on scientology, COINTELPRO, and more, all the way up until the day that lawsuits shut them down.
Are they not allowing people to view a recording of the webcast? I'd love to see this but I left my time machine in my other pants.
I don't see what's wrong with friends. Seems to me like it's a modern, wholesome, realistic portrayal of a New York City where people of color are never around in any capacity.
Explain to me what the difference is. You can use search engines to find copyrighted work to download from FTP's and websites. The only difference I see is that P2P programs are designed to funnel those people who want to share media and information on the internet into one place. Maybe you're just trolling, because it's rediculous to suggest that any of these programs were designed for copyright infringement. None of them come with programs for cracking copy-protections, or links to warez and cracking sites. Many could have that information automatically pop-up on a browser in the program, and they don't. What's nonsense is the way that programs like these, that have very substantial, legit uses, are being shutdown as an excuse for fighting 'pirates'. The end result is just to give the industry control of online sharing of media. Think about it; since you apparently haven't done enough of that. Any P2P program that pops up is going to immediately have users who share the mainstream popular media that the industry claims to be protecting. There are 500,000 people who have the latest Britney Spears album on mp3. No one who ever used Napster or Kazaa needed it to find music and video owned by the RIAA/MPAA. What those popular programs provided, was so much goddamn quantity that you could spend the whole day listening to garage bands and obscure music you heard in a commercial when you were 5 years old. Without these programs, artists who try to use the internet to spread their work become victims of an 'anti-piracy' war, and it's not a coincidence. Because now, P2P programs will stay small and obscure (grow and get sued), and we return to the pre-internet status-quo where you either do business with the RIAA or you don't do business.
And I'm sorry if that seems harsh, but really, what could piss you off more than the RIAA except one of the 'good guys' turning around and stabbing you in the back?
I don't like the copyright cartel anymore than most people here; in fact I probably hate them a lot more than most people do. But I also hate having spyware installed on my system without my knowledge. Like Kazaa does with Cydoor. So to all the guys at Kazaa, you can't see it, but at this very instant I'm giving you the big middle finger.
Am I missing something? 10 comments in, most of which are 'frst post d00d!' and it's the most poorly received Slashdot story you've seen?
Well you've got it all figured out obviously. I must've spelled well enough for you to read what I was saying, and beyond that it really doersn't matter to someone who would use the name "Sarcasmooo!" (me). As far as being a 'leftist' with 'necessary' things, I'm a kid between highschool and college who can't afford luxuries. My dad bought me my TV when I was 15, and I bought my computer with money left to me in a will when I turned 18. This christmas I would be asking my family to spend money on charity instead of gifts for me, but I get antsy about looking self-righteous in front of pricks like yourself, so I just take what I get to the salvation army or wherever else it can go. And politics seems to be the last great haven for bigotry; I'm not a person with an individual mind and opinions, I'm a 'leftist fool'. Let's just cut the shit and go back to 'nigger, kike, etc' ok?
Bah. I'm not an extremist, just a realist. I said 'rediculous', didn't I? I see this gadget as a rediculous example. I don't see my computer or my internet access that way, because I've learned more from it than I learned in my 4 years of highschool. You'd probably agree that internet access is no more a luxury than a phoneline. Or at least, that it should be by being provided to low income areas and schools.
WOW, what a bargain. Well I know what I'm gonna use mine for! "Reminder: call smelly guy in front of my apartment and comment that 'While the cost of this device might be enough to save people like you, I'm sure the unecessary convenience it offers me will one day be as valuable as the lives of multiple human beings.'" Homeless people have cellphones, right?
(Disclaimer: No one wants to force you to spend your money helping people not die instead of buying insanely priced doo-hickeys that you don't need, but I reserve the right to make fun of you for choosing not to in such a rediculously extreme example as buying things like this. As always, it's just my opinion.)
Up, I say! UP!
hoohah
Maybe. But EPIC does do this and the EFF does do this.