This would never happen in Canada. Not because of our state of the art security systems, but simply because we don't invest money in developing weapons, and we have no information that anyone wants. hehe...:P
I am glad this was the final judgement. This website caused me some grief having to fix up my parent's computer and get them hooked up to a new email address. Anyone know if MS has said they will give the winnings to a charity?
They could have asked for permission to attempt and hack into the network before actually doing it. At my university, there was a group of students who asked to test the network security and they got permission to try in the summer between a summer session block when not too many people were using the network. It also meant that when they printed their findings, not too many people were around to read it because it was obviously summer session. They didn't find many security lapses, heck if I remember correctly it was printed up on page 6 of the student newspaper.
I have had this happen to myself one time as well. The computer was compromised before I was able to get the security updates from Windows Update.
What you need to do (if you want Windows XP to work) is to download the service packs and security updates in advance and install them before connecting your network. Install firewall/anti-virus software and then turn on your network. Windows XP SP2 will be out soon on CD-ROM which should make things easier (for a few days/weeks at least).
I just figured it out... it came to me so clearly and instinctively that it is frightning. Here is the revelation: MY PURPOSE IN LIFE WAS TO DOWNLOAD THIS VERSION OF FIREFOX!!! Anything from now on is icing on the cake... I am now complete.:P
I am Canadian and I tried the service (why? Because I live in a rural area and driving to video store is a pain). Of course the service is not available to Canadians but I have gotten aroudn that before...
I have a Superpass Realplayer subscription (My hobby is comparing American news with Canadian/European news). Anyway the RealOne Superpass itself is for Americans only, but you can get through that by giving your American aunts address, they don't check it as long as your credit card is valid the first time.
OK, So I tried signing up ($8/month if you are already a superpass subscriber) and it wouldn't let me because I have a Canadian ip address.
So I use an American proxy server and pay the $4 to get the service for the rest of the month. They tell me my speed is too slow (damn slow proxy server) so I had to find a faster proxy server that supports SSL. When I finally did that, and purchased the subscription it made me redownload RealPlayer 10 (even though I already had it installed, I had to download and install the damn thing or it wouldn't let me log into the service).
After downloading, it updated me with the latest DRM software and I was on my way! Unfortunately, I was stuck in a loop that kept testing my speed... I was fast enough but something was preventing me from proceeding beyond the speed check. I turned off the proxy server and it detected that I was Canadian and immediately denied me access (even though I had paid $4 at this point! How rude!). I tried using other proxy servers but could not get out of the speed test loop.
Frusterated I phoned up Real support and asked them what the hell was going on (their toll-free number works from Canada)! Anyway, eventually I demanded a refund and they gave me a month of Real Superpass free because of my frusteration. (If you ever try to cancel they give you a free month, so you can get about every second/third month free).
It pisses me off that Canadians have to wait for services like this to launch in Canada. Seriously I would pay for a good service like this because going to the video store is a pain in the @$$... I guess I will have to stick to giganews/p2p for now to get my needs serviced. I hope that at the very least it works for Americans.
I do see potential for abuse, even if the identity is verified 100%
Consider these scenarios:
-People selling/stealing votes. What is to prevent me from casting a vote on behalf of my parents or siblings? I have access to all their information including SIN numbers, drivers license etc., especially if I know they will not be voting? On the same note, what is to prevent people from selling votes or letting others vote for them? In the current system with video cameras, picture ID, paper trails, trained people who are hard to trick face to face it is indeed much harder. -What if on the day of election, an email comes around claiming that a candidate is any one of: violent, gay, homophobic, sexist etc. with links to spoofed or fake newspaper articles showing fake evidence. You may not think much of this, but how many people are tricked by email hoaxes everyday? A nasty email/IM might trigger someone to vote abruptly for a stupid reason who would previously not have even voted but with the convience an uninformed vote is made easier.
I am not saying that e-voting should not be implemented, just that we should seriously look into the ramifications. Personally I think at a minimum, there should be audit organizations, paper trials (confirmation number with vote that can be matched to one on public record perhaps?) and people should be notified by postal mail if they voted.
In Canada we have an immense problem getting young people to vote, but I don't really see how making it easier (in a possibly flawed way) will make the government represent the people more...
Not entirely true, Canadian english borrows heavily from both English proper and American English, and is viewed seperately because some terms used from English proper would be wrong, whereas others used from American English would be considered wrong as well. Canadian english is a mixture of the two and I must say Microsoft Word does a dang good job of getting it right for the most part. I am going to look into availability of language packs for OpenOffice & StarOffice for Canadian english and compare them with Canadian dictionaries to see if they are as good as Microsoft Word. Frankly, they should be because all it takes is for someone to copy the appropriate words from a Canadian dictionary straight into a spell check...
Microsoft is not going to let this happen, and I think I know what they will do. First, drastic price cuts will be implemented followed by the creation of additional tools and resources for schools and teachers.
The reason Microsoft will refuse to give in, even if it means that they might lose a load of money in the short run, is because they understand that if they can get students hooked while they are young, they can keep perpetuating a monopoly. My younger siblings want Microsoft Word/Powerpoint/Excel on their computer/laptop simply because they know it from school.
It will be a tough fight if larger inroads are made, because Microsoft will certainly retaliate. Another problem is schools are still able to opt for Microsoft Office instead, which many of them will certainly do.
It is not going to stop any/many criminals, but I think the main idea is to stop kids or newbie counterfeiters from printing money easily. You would be surprised at how little attention cashiers pay when a store is busy...
Think of the Windows XP activation code... sure there are ways around it, but for your average Joe and Susan who try to install their one copy onto three machines it won't work unless they have a fascinating story for the MS people on the phone, and they will be pressured to comply.
Photoshop and other graphic suites already have this in place, without the legal requirement to do so. You can bet that there won't be much resistance from them because they are already in compliance with this. Frankly, as someone who would never have to scan in money, I am quite indifferent about it, especially since I have been handed counterfeit cash twice (that I know) by a food vendor at my school. I am not saying that I want this law to pass anywhere, it's just that I think there are bigger battles to be won.
In Canada, while our government does not build networks, they certainly subsidize them especially in rural areas. My town (20 minutes from Winnipeg, MB) has a population of ~500 and we have broadband wireless internet.
Of course we also have way higher tax rates than the US, but if you want the government to subsidize everything, they need to get the money from somewhere.
If you are teaching young children how to type on computers, you would almost certainly still find a use for caps lock.
While some of them can handle Shift + letter, many of them rely on Caps Lock to get a capital letter through, especially when they are just getting started.
Seriously, why would they not have completely removed the code or made it buggy on purpose just to protect themselves? Owners of this camera can rejoice this time but I am sure that next time Canon won't make the same mistake...
I don't understand what the problem is... I just signed up with AT&T and got a FREE $290 flip phone plus six FREE months of UNLIMITED calling, INTERNET access on my phone and all sorts of cool arcade games to play on my cellphone. Yeah they did ask me for my bank account information and two major credit cards but this was only to ensure that I "qualified" for their great free offer. Sure there was a long spiel about rates after the six months but I just plan on cancelling then and looking for another free six months. LET THE SUN SHINE DOWN ON SUCH GREAT OFFERS, THEY MAKE ME FEEL SO SPECIAL.:):):)
See post by Mr. Firewall (174989) on 2004.05.28 11:48 (#82188)
A slight correction from the author
"After it was too late to change this review, the Abiword and Quanta packages magically showed up in my package manager! I don't know why I couldn't find them when I looked for them, but they ARE included.
So the only thing still missing from my list of missing packages above is Audacity. My bad."
But... those Windows Server advertisements say that Windows server is so much faster... And the results are from INDEPENDENT and ACADEMIC sources?? Why would companies buy the inferior product?? Surely Microsoft would not lie?:P
They were making money a few days after launching. What % of their budget was rendering? With the money that is pouring in, I highly doubt that this is an area they would even be interested in looking into.
I want to see them give Shrek 3 five times the budget though just to see what they can come up with.:)
With 1GB of flash memory, I have more than enough space for hours of songs. As for battery power, I easily get over 20 hours... plus I have all the added bonuses of having a mini-computer. I am not sure what I would do without my Axim X5...
quote from that link: "For example, one guy may not eat anything until noon because he "just doesn't feel hungry in the morning." Sure, he eats a high-calorie food at lunch like a cheeseburger and some fries along with some type of candy; however, that may only equate to around 1200 calories or so. Now he's "full" until 6 o'clock that night when he discovers he's "starving", so he decides to eat some cookies and ice cream or something of that nature. Let's say he ingests 800 calories worth before he's full. Well, that's still only 2000 calories for the day."
Wow that explains me 100%! Maybe I should take this guy seriously!!
What insensitive clods! What about those of us who need to pick up a few extra pounds? They need an exercise game that encourages eating more and doing exercises that build weight!
Or maybe a video game based on SuperSize Me bundled with discount coupons would be a more tasty way to approach it?:P
Debates like this seem no brainers for many of us, but it is amazing how the free speech argument can be used to rally people behind a stupid cause. It was only a few years ago that there were university students being sucked into the Holocaust denial movement all over the world because some of the head honchos were preaching "free speech" and then pulled uninformed people in deeper with a one sided view after they had their attention. Have a look at: Free Speech Articles on Holocaust Denial
My point is that it is amazing how often seemingley rational people can be fooled by a convincing argument... Don't be suprised if the spammer pulls out a blocked website with a certain political viewpoint and claims that it is being blocked for reasons other than spamming, or that blocking mail is somehow equal to what is happening in China... Here's hoping that our guy has some debating skills.
Why? Because Google respects trademarks and if you do not want ads to appear with your trademark, all you have to do is let them know.
Many companies take advantage of this fact, do a search for New York Times... notice any advertisements? OK occassionaly there are some because creating an advertisement for Google automatically puts it on the search engine, but if any show up, they will be gone the next morning when a Google editor gets a chance to look at it. The exact same holds true for a search of L. Bean (do a search, the one adverstisement is their own, they have a monopoly on advertising with their search term on Google.)
Google forbids advertisers bidding on a search term if you write them a letter formerly requesting as much.
The question that comes up is... should companies with trademarks have to proactively fight to have ads removed on Google associated with their trademarks, or should they request being added to a whitelist first? Many companies do not mind advertising on Google with their trademarks ie: Microsoft... while others forbid it, ie: eBay, New York Times, L Bean.
The funny thing about eBay is that although they forbid advertising using such terms as e-Bay, eBay, e bay, ebaye (or anything similar) they (eBay itself) actively advertise on Google urging people to buy products from other manufacturers on the eBay website, they even give affiliates a list of recommended keywords if you want to make $$$ buying the keyworks on search engines and referring new users to eBay. See: http://keyword.ebay.com/
Any judgement coming out of this could also have a potential impact on Google if a company were to decide to seek damages from Google, but at least with Google you can ask nicely and they will remove advertisements.
How are these bikes "green" when they are being charged by hydro plants that are diverting entire rivers and changing ecosystems. The energy source has to come from somewhere, and just because it is electric does not make it any better for nature. Old-fashioned bikes are the ones that are truly "green." (Except of course for the damage done when making the bike, advertising the bike and so on.) While electric bikes may convert some people from using their car (not me by the way because I live in a rural area) they will also cause more energy to be used if kids who normally would have had "regular" bikes start using them.
The software for the MS broadband networking worked with all networking products, and it was pretty good, you just needed one MS hardware component and you could use it for your network.
The software company argument is probably not why they dropped this though. They have been dropping software titles in gaming (sold rights to AC, AC2 & cancelled Mythica). Also remember that they have been selling Keyboards & Mice like crazy for years. Basically Microsoft is a respected brand by many people (not necessarily on slashdot and in the internet community) and if they can make money by slapping their brand onto something, by gosh they probabley will.
Slashdot Mirror
This would never happen in Canada. Not because of our state of the art security systems, but simply because we don't invest money in developing weapons, and we have no information that anyone wants. hehe... :P
I am glad this was the final judgement. This website caused me some grief having to fix up my parent's computer and get them hooked up to a new email address. Anyone know if MS has said they will give the winnings to a charity?
They could have asked for permission to attempt and hack into the network before actually doing it. At my university, there was a group of students who asked to test the network security and they got permission to try in the summer between a summer session block when not too many people were using the network. It also meant that when they printed their findings, not too many people were around to read it because it was obviously summer session. They didn't find many security lapses, heck if I remember correctly it was printed up on page 6 of the student newspaper.
I have had this happen to myself one time as well. The computer was compromised before I was able to get the security updates from Windows Update.
What you need to do (if you want Windows XP to work) is to download the service packs and security updates in advance and install them before connecting your network. Install firewall/anti-virus software and then turn on your network. Windows XP SP2 will be out soon on CD-ROM which should make things easier (for a few days/weeks at least).
I just figured it out... it came to me so clearly and instinctively that it is frightning. Here is the revelation: MY PURPOSE IN LIFE WAS TO DOWNLOAD THIS VERSION OF FIREFOX!!! Anything from now on is icing on the cake... I am now complete. :P
I am Canadian and I tried the service (why? Because I live in a rural area and driving to video store is a pain). Of course the service is not available to Canadians but I have gotten aroudn that before...
I have a Superpass Realplayer subscription (My hobby is comparing American news with Canadian/European news). Anyway the RealOne Superpass itself is for Americans only, but you can get through that by giving your American aunts address, they don't check it as long as your credit card is valid the first time.
OK, So I tried signing up ($8/month if you are already a superpass subscriber) and it wouldn't let me because I have a Canadian ip address.
So I use an American proxy server and pay the $4 to get the service for the rest of the month. They tell me my speed is too slow (damn slow proxy server) so I had to find a faster proxy server that supports SSL. When I finally did that, and purchased the subscription it made me redownload RealPlayer 10 (even though I already had it installed, I had to download and install the damn thing or it wouldn't let me log into the service).
After downloading, it updated me with the latest DRM software and I was on my way! Unfortunately, I was stuck in a loop that kept testing my speed... I was fast enough but something was preventing me from proceeding beyond the speed check. I turned off the proxy server and it detected that I was Canadian and immediately denied me access (even though I had paid $4 at this point! How rude!). I tried using other proxy servers but could not get out of the speed test loop.
Frusterated I phoned up Real support and asked them what the hell was going on (their toll-free number works from Canada)! Anyway, eventually I demanded a refund and they gave me a month of Real Superpass free because of my frusteration. (If you ever try to cancel they give you a free month, so you can get about every second/third month free).
It pisses me off that Canadians have to wait for services like this to launch in Canada. Seriously I would pay for a good service like this because going to the video store is a pain in the @$$... I guess I will have to stick to giganews/p2p for now to get my needs serviced. I hope that at the very least it works for Americans.
I do see potential for abuse, even if the identity is verified 100%
Consider these scenarios:
-People selling/stealing votes. What is to prevent me from casting a vote on behalf of my parents or siblings? I have access to all their information including SIN numbers, drivers license etc., especially if I know they will not be voting? On the same note, what is to prevent people from selling votes or letting others vote for them? In the current system with video cameras, picture ID, paper trails, trained people who are hard to trick face to face it is indeed much harder.
-What if on the day of election, an email comes around claiming that a candidate is any one of: violent, gay, homophobic, sexist etc. with links to spoofed or fake newspaper articles showing fake evidence. You may not think much of this, but how many people are tricked by email hoaxes everyday? A nasty email/IM might trigger someone to vote abruptly for a stupid reason who would previously not have even voted but with the convience an uninformed vote is made easier.
I am not saying that e-voting should not be implemented, just that we should seriously look into the ramifications. Personally I think at a minimum, there should be audit organizations, paper trials (confirmation number with vote that can be matched to one on public record perhaps?) and people should be notified by postal mail if they voted.
In Canada we have an immense problem getting young people to vote, but I don't really see how making it easier (in a possibly flawed way) will make the government represent the people more...
Not entirely true, Canadian english borrows heavily from both English proper and American English, and is viewed seperately because some terms used from English proper would be wrong, whereas others used from American English would be considered wrong as well. Canadian english is a mixture of the two and I must say Microsoft Word does a dang good job of getting it right for the most part. I am going to look into availability of language packs for OpenOffice & StarOffice for Canadian english and compare them with Canadian dictionaries to see if they are as good as Microsoft Word. Frankly, they should be because all it takes is for someone to copy the appropriate words from a Canadian dictionary straight into a spell check...
Microsoft is not going to let this happen, and I think I know what they will do. First, drastic price cuts will be implemented followed by the creation of additional tools and resources for schools and teachers.
The reason Microsoft will refuse to give in, even if it means that they might lose a load of money in the short run, is because they understand that if they can get students hooked while they are young, they can keep perpetuating a monopoly. My younger siblings want Microsoft Word/Powerpoint/Excel on their computer/laptop simply because they know it from school.
It will be a tough fight if larger inroads are made, because Microsoft will certainly retaliate. Another problem is schools are still able to opt for Microsoft Office instead, which many of them will certainly do.
It is not going to stop any/many criminals, but I think the main idea is to stop kids or newbie counterfeiters from printing money easily. You would be surprised at how little attention cashiers pay when a store is busy...
Think of the Windows XP activation code... sure there are ways around it, but for your average Joe and Susan who try to install their one copy onto three machines it won't work unless they have a fascinating story for the MS people on the phone, and they will be pressured to comply.
Photoshop and other graphic suites already have this in place, without the legal requirement to do so. You can bet that there won't be much resistance from them because they are already in compliance with this. Frankly, as someone who would never have to scan in money, I am quite indifferent about it, especially since I have been handed counterfeit cash twice (that I know) by a food vendor at my school. I am not saying that I want this law to pass anywhere, it's just that I think there are bigger battles to be won.
In Canada, while our government does not build networks, they certainly subsidize them especially in rural areas. My town (20 minutes from Winnipeg, MB) has a population of ~500 and we have broadband wireless internet.
Of course we also have way higher tax rates than the US, but if you want the government to subsidize everything, they need to get the money from somewhere.
If you are teaching young children how to type on computers, you would almost certainly still find a use for caps lock.
While some of them can handle Shift + letter, many of them rely on Caps Lock to get a capital letter through, especially when they are just getting started.
Seriously, why would they not have completely removed the code or made it buggy on purpose just to protect themselves? Owners of this camera can rejoice this time but I am sure that next time Canon won't make the same mistake...
I don't understand what the problem is... I just signed up with AT&T and got a FREE $290 flip phone plus six FREE months of UNLIMITED calling, INTERNET access on my phone and all sorts of cool arcade games to play on my cellphone. Yeah they did ask me for my bank account information and two major credit cards but this was only to ensure that I "qualified" for their great free offer. Sure there was a long spiel about rates after the six months but I just plan on cancelling then and looking for another free six months. LET THE SUN SHINE DOWN ON SUCH GREAT OFFERS, THEY MAKE ME FEEL SO SPECIAL. :) :) :)
:P)
(j/k of course
See post by Mr. Firewall (174989) on 2004.05.28 11:48 (#82188)
A slight correction from the author
"After it was too late to change this review, the Abiword and Quanta packages magically showed up in my package manager! I don't know why I couldn't find them when I looked for them, but they ARE included.
So the only thing still missing from my list of missing packages above is Audacity. My bad."
But... those Windows Server advertisements say that Windows server is so much faster... And the results are from INDEPENDENT and ACADEMIC sources?? Why would companies buy the inferior product?? Surely Microsoft would not lie? :P
They were making money a few days after launching. What % of their budget was rendering? With the money that is pouring in, I highly doubt that this is an area they would even be interested in looking into.
:)
I want to see them give Shrek 3 five times the budget though just to see what they can come up with.
With 1GB of flash memory, I have more than enough space for hours of songs. As for battery power, I easily get over 20 hours... plus I have all the added bonuses of having a mini-computer. I am not sure what I would do without my Axim X5...
quote from that link:
"For example, one guy may not eat anything until noon because he "just doesn't feel hungry in the morning." Sure, he eats a high-calorie food at lunch like a cheeseburger and some fries along with some type of candy; however, that may only equate to around 1200 calories or so. Now he's "full" until 6 o'clock that night when he discovers he's "starving", so he decides to eat some cookies and ice cream or something of that nature. Let's say he ingests 800 calories worth before he's full. Well, that's still only 2000 calories for the day."
Wow that explains me 100%! Maybe I should take this guy seriously!!
What insensitive clods! What about those of us who need to pick up a few extra pounds? They need an exercise game that encourages eating more and doing exercises that build weight!
:P
Or maybe a video game based on SuperSize Me bundled with discount coupons would be a more tasty way to approach it?
My point is that it is amazing how often seemingley rational people can be fooled by a convincing argument... Don't be suprised if the spammer pulls out a blocked website with a certain political viewpoint and claims that it is being blocked for reasons other than spamming, or that blocking mail is somehow equal to what is happening in China... Here's hoping that our guy has some debating skills.
Nope, it's not the same.
Why? Because Google respects trademarks and if you do not want ads to appear with your trademark, all you have to do is let them know.
Many companies take advantage of this fact, do a search for New York Times... notice any advertisements? OK occassionaly there are some because creating an advertisement for Google automatically puts it on the search engine, but if any show up, they will be gone the next morning when a Google editor gets a chance to look at it. The exact same holds true for a search of L. Bean (do a search, the one adverstisement is their own, they have a monopoly on advertising with their search term on Google.)
Google forbids advertisers bidding on a search term if you write them a letter formerly requesting as much.
The question that comes up is... should companies with trademarks have to proactively fight to have ads removed on Google associated with their trademarks, or should they request being added to a whitelist first? Many companies do not mind advertising on Google with their trademarks ie: Microsoft... while others forbid it, ie: eBay, New York Times, L Bean.
The funny thing about eBay is that although they forbid advertising using such terms as e-Bay, eBay, e bay, ebaye (or anything similar) they (eBay itself) actively advertise on Google urging people to buy products from other manufacturers on the eBay website, they even give affiliates a list of recommended keywords if you want to make $$$ buying the keyworks on search engines and referring new users to eBay. See: http://keyword.ebay.com/
Any judgement coming out of this could also have a potential impact on Google if a company were to decide to seek damages from Google, but at least with Google you can ask nicely and they will remove advertisements.
How are these bikes "green" when they are being charged by hydro plants that are diverting entire rivers and changing ecosystems. The energy source has to come from somewhere, and just because it is electric does not make it any better for nature. Old-fashioned bikes are the ones that are truly "green." (Except of course for the damage done when making the bike, advertising the bike and so on.) While electric bikes may convert some people from using their car (not me by the way because I live in a rural area) they will also cause more energy to be used if kids who normally would have had "regular" bikes start using them.
The software for the MS broadband networking worked with all networking products, and it was pretty good, you just needed one MS hardware component and you could use it for your network.
The software company argument is probably not why they dropped this though. They have been dropping software titles in gaming (sold rights to AC, AC2 & cancelled Mythica). Also remember that they have been selling Keyboards & Mice like crazy for years. Basically Microsoft is a respected brand by many people (not necessarily on slashdot and in the internet community) and if they can make money by slapping their brand onto something, by gosh they probabley will.