Actually, Fox's FX channel has long been broadcasting re-runs of the show. It's nice to see the old episodes again, episodes which stretched our imaginations and turned me into a fan.
You're right, this patent is ridiculous. This whole thing is just as ridiculous as British Telecom believing that they own the patent for hyperlinks, and that they can license the techology and thus collect on its use.
I think you might be referring to the Fair Use provision of the U.S. Code (Title 17; Sec. 107 - Limitations on exclusive rights: Fair use) which states:
Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, research, or personal use, is not an infringement of copyright.
I would assume that this provision also grants us the right to make backup copy's, too.
I'm just curious as to what would happen if the government were successful in getting the release of Win XP delayed. It seems as though almost everyone on Wall Street (including PC makers and other tech companies) believes that the release of Win XP will somehow result in an increase in PC sales -- "A delay in the release of Windows XP would prove costly not only for Microsoft but for many other segments of the technology industry. PC makers have identified XP as a key factor for breathing new life into stalled PC sales."
I wonder if PC makers/tech companies would drop their cases against MSFT as a result of lost sales? So many of them seem to believe that the release of XP will save them all from this slump. But if XP gets delayed, will they become desperate and give in? It's scary that MSFT has this kind of hold and power over companies and people -- you're screwed if XP gets released and you're screwed if it doesn't.
This Product Activation thing is definitely going to be an inconvenience. And according to the results of an informal survey conducted by PC World, consumers are NOT pleased with Microsoft's Product Activation requirement.
According to many of the survey participants, they are not willing to "use software that requires me to justify my system changes to Microsoft." Others exclaimed: "They expect me to purchase their products and then get their permission to use them? I don't think so!"
This could be Microsoft's undoing, as "many participants in the informal survey declared they'd just say no to upgrades that require Product Activation. Instead, they vowed to stick with their current version of Office or Windows, or look into software alternatives such as Linux, Macintosh, Sun's StarOffice, Lotus SmartSuite, and Corel WordPerfect Office."
I also wonder how many scenarios like this we'll see:
Consumer buys a computer for the first time.
Doesn't realize he/she needs to activate XP, only registers it.
Computer stops functioning after 30 days.
Returns computer claiming it's defective.
Gets a replacement system.
Repeat scenario again.
After several attempts, user decides that Microsoft sucks and instead gets a Mac, Linux,... etc. system.
Or even worse, computer manufacturers notice how many sales they're losing (not to mention the countless systems being returned) and decide to load their systems with Linux instead.
"Our target is mass-producing a high-roller experience for the common person," said Glenn Bonner, CIO at MGM Mirage in Las Vegas, Nevada. "We want to provide you with the best experience imaginable, so that you'll want to come back."
A high-roller experience for the common person? The best experience imaginable? What exactly would they call it when I have my car valet parked, and when I ask the valet to get it, he tells me (30 minutes later) that they seem to have misplaced it?
Maybe they should use their database to keep track of where they park peoples' cars.
Personally, I think the cube was ahead of its time (small form factor, quietness, nice sleek design.... etc.) and as a result there was no place for it yet. Of course, its high price didn't help much either. More thought and time should have gone into its design (hairline cracks, overheating, unexpected shutdowns, weak graphics card) and marketing strategy.
But just as Apple's Newton PDA was ahead of it's time, the cube was too. And when the time is right the cube will somehow reinvent itself and reappear, if not from Apple then from someone else, just like how the Newton was reinvented as Palm.
"The company said there is a small chance it will reintroduce an upgraded model of the unique computer in the future, but that there are no plans to do so at this time."
In a sense, yes, they are competing products since they're both Illustration programs. But in another sense, they're not competing as KIllustrator is for the Linux OS and Adobe's Illustrator is not. The term "Illustrator" merely describes what the program does -- it illustrates. Companies shouldn't be allowed to place copyrights on descriptive terms.
Don't know if this has been mentioned before or not, but I've found Dynamat products to be excellent at sound absorption, particularly their Extremeliner.
Re:Asimov Robots vs. Real Robots
on
Review: A.I.
·
· Score: 1
> "The software was incredibly buggy,.... "
Hmmm.... sounds like Microsoft might have been the ones who wrote the program.
> ".... a _really_ simple robot, designed to deliver a few different kind of radiation pulses as cancer treatments."
And Microsoft might have even had a hand in developing the robot to administer cancer treatments.
"Right, so lets go censor things we don't want on television too, since they're 'invading' your home through the non-essential service you voluntarily use."
We already can censor things we don't want on television.... by changing the channel.
With e-mail, we don't always know immediately what's junk and what's not unless we read them. Plus, we have to go through and delete them as well. And that takes away from our precious time. As they say, Time = Money.
With television commercials, for example, we can tell when one's coming from the fading out of the program we might be watching at the time. With junk e-mail, we have no warning and no way to avoid them until it's too late.
I really don't have a problem with their pricing. What i do have a problem with is the region coding.
If I was vacationing in India and I saw a DVD I'd been meaning to get for $5, I'd get it there rather than pay the $30. But that $5 DVD wouldn't do me any good since I wouldn't be able to play it on my player, unless I had a region free DVD player or one where I could switch its regional code.
With airline seats, consumers wouldn't have that problem. You're basically comparing apples to oranges since airlines aren't putting a restraint on your ability to choose and pay less for something.
Personally, I don't think they would ever promise to not sell their database of information to anyone or any company. They know the value of such data. And considering the number of tech companys that have been going belly up, they could sell the database to help pay off whatever debts they may have.
But if they ever do make such a promise, we'll be protected since a bill was passed in March by the U.S. Senate along with the U.S. House (though I can't remember which one or where I read this) which would prevent bankrupt companies from selling their database of personal data, if those companies promised not to. Only thing is there's also a loophole in the bill -- companies can sell or lease the personal data and it would be justifiable if it is consistent with the company's pre-existing policy. And because there's this loophole, many companies have already changed their policies, or are beginning to (or eventually will) change them to reflect this. Ebay recently did this and Amazon has since September 2000.
I'd have to disagree with your 90% availability estimate. According to some of the stuff that I've read and heard, DSL/Cable access is more likely in the range of 70-80%.
In either case, I wasn't refering only to U.S./North American availability. If we were to include those from other parts of the world (which is what I meant), that percentage would surely be lower.
how successful this will be considering "modem users need not apply for the service." The majority of people still use regular dial-up accounts since broadband connections (i.e. DSL) still aren't that readily available in many areas. And if someone were to get a DSL connection solely for this service, they might as well spend that $40-$50 on the game itself as it would probably be cheaper to do so in many instances.
When I tried the service with a regular dial-up account, I got this message:
You don't seem to have the minimum broadband connection (265k) required to enjoy gameplay from EB1.
Your tested speed : 96Kbps/sec
Possible reasons for your speed are:
Net congestion
You don't have a broadband (dsl, cable) connection
If we're wrong, click here to enter anyway, or click here to test your connection again.
You can sign up for connectivity through any broadband provider, including:
@Home
Roadrunner
For the latest gaming news, game reviews and a huge selection of video and PC games, click here to go to EBgames.com.
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Actually, Fox's FX channel has long been broadcasting re-runs of the show. It's nice to see the old episodes again, episodes which stretched our imaginations and turned me into a fan.
The thing that angers ME the most is the fact that he still hasn't had a bail hearing.
You're right, this patent is ridiculous. This whole thing is just as ridiculous as British Telecom believing that they own the patent for hyperlinks, and that they can license the techology and thus collect on its use.
I would assume that this provision also grants us the right to make backup copy's, too.
Maybe you could also compare your pentium 3 850 chip to e-com-con's Octium IV chip and let us know which is FASTER.
I wonder if PC makers/tech companies would drop their cases against MSFT as a result of lost sales? So many of them seem to believe that the release of XP will save them all from this slump. But if XP gets delayed, will they become desperate and give in? It's scary that MSFT has this kind of hold and power over companies and people -- you're screwed if XP gets released and you're screwed if it doesn't.
Fatal Error!
According to many of the survey participants, they are not willing to "use software that requires me to justify my system changes to Microsoft." Others exclaimed: "They expect me to purchase their products and then get their permission to use them? I don't think so!"
This could be Microsoft's undoing, as "many participants in the informal survey declared they'd just say no to upgrades that require Product Activation. Instead, they vowed to stick with their current version of Office or Windows, or look into software alternatives such as Linux, Macintosh, Sun's StarOffice, Lotus SmartSuite, and Corel WordPerfect Office."
I also wonder how many scenarios like this we'll see:
Or even worse, computer manufacturers notice how many sales they're losing (not to mention the countless systems being returned) and decide to load their systems with Linux instead.
Hey, I can dream, can't I?
A high-roller experience for the common person? The best experience imaginable? What exactly would they call it when I have my car valet parked, and when I ask the valet to get it, he tells me (30 minutes later) that they seem to have misplaced it?
Maybe they should use their database to keep track of where they park peoples' cars.
Subscriber ID: cpunks
Password: cpunks
But just as Apple's Newton PDA was ahead of it's time, the cube was too. And when the time is right the cube will somehow reinvent itself and reappear, if not from Apple then from someone else, just like how the Newton was reinvented as Palm.
"The company said there is a small chance it will reintroduce an upgraded model of the unique computer in the future, but that there are no plans to do so at this time."
Kai-Uwe Sattler: "Letter? What letter?"
In a sense, yes, they are competing products since they're both Illustration programs. But in another sense, they're not competing as KIllustrator is for the Linux OS and Adobe's Illustrator is not. The term "Illustrator" merely describes what the program does -- it illustrates. Companies shouldn't be allowed to place copyrights on descriptive terms.
Don't know if this has been mentioned before or not, but I've found Dynamat products to be excellent at sound absorption, particularly their Extremeliner.
Hmmm.... sounds like Microsoft might have been the ones who wrote the program.
> ".... a _really_ simple robot, designed to deliver a few different kind of radiation pulses as cancer treatments."
And Microsoft might have even had a hand in developing the robot to administer cancer treatments.
I don't know about anyone else here, but I wouldn't want some stranger *flashing* me.
Very well put. Couldn't have done it better myself!
We already can censor things we don't want on television.... by changing the channel.
With e-mail, we don't always know immediately what's junk and what's not unless we read them. Plus, we have to go through and delete them as well. And that takes away from our precious time. As they say, Time = Money.
With television commercials, for example, we can tell when one's coming from the fading out of the program we might be watching at the time. With junk e-mail, we have no warning and no way to avoid them until it's too late.
Sounds interesting. So what type of DVD player do you have? Who makes it, what's the model, where can I get one?
If I was vacationing in India and I saw a DVD I'd been meaning to get for $5, I'd get it there rather than pay the $30. But that $5 DVD wouldn't do me any good since I wouldn't be able to play it on my player, unless I had a region free DVD player or one where I could switch its regional code.
With airline seats, consumers wouldn't have that problem. You're basically comparing apples to oranges since airlines aren't putting a restraint on your ability to choose and pay less for something.
But if they ever do make such a promise, we'll be protected since a bill was passed in March by the U.S. Senate along with the U.S. House (though I can't remember which one or where I read this) which would prevent bankrupt companies from selling their database of personal data, if those companies promised not to. Only thing is there's also a loophole in the bill -- companies can sell or lease the personal data and it would be justifiable if it is consistent with the company's pre-existing policy. And because there's this loophole, many companies have already changed their policies, or are beginning to (or eventually will) change them to reflect this. Ebay recently did this and Amazon has since September 2000.
In either case, I wasn't refering only to U.S./North American availability. If we were to include those from other parts of the world (which is what I meant), that percentage would surely be lower.
When I tried the service with a regular dial-up account, I got this message:
how successful this will be considering "modem users need not apply for the service."
Excuse me while I go throw up!