I agree 110%. However, many of these folks have a hard time handling the traffic such a mob would create. This was actually one of my very first Flashmob ideas, but when I asked some local foodbanks about how we could do it, they totally blanched at the idea. I welcome suggestions on how to make it a reality.
OK, re-posting this chunk from Acacia's video compression patent for context's sake:
A system of distributing video and/or audio information employs digital signal processing to achieve high rates of data compression. The compressed and encoded audio and/or video information is sent over standard telephone, cable or satellite broadcast channels to a receiver specified by a subscriber of the service, preferably in less than real time, for later playback and optional recording on standard audio and/or video tape.
What about cable TV? Isn't that *exactly* what they do -- convert video to some signal they pass to subscribers over a cable? I don't know for sure how long cable TV has been around, but I do remember my parents subscribing to something called "On TV" way back in, like, 1981 or something. Anyone know when cable TV first hit the world? I'm pretty sure that's your prior art right there.
My problem with HandStory is that it isn't open source (which, I realize, is being nitpicky, but it's just one of those things, y'know) and it doesn't work on the PocketPC 2000/WinCE 3.0. I sent an email to their customer support line about two weeks ago and have yet to receive a response.
Plus, why shjould I pay $20 for a browser for my PDA when the browsers for my desktop are free? I essentially want the Internet experience just slightly distilled and in my hand.
Couldn't have said it better. While I'd like to avoid a Sklyarov rant, laws like the DMCA only hamper the exchange of information, making it illegal for white hats to find the holes before black hats can exploit them.
A real world example: If I leave my car door unlocked and a thief steals my stereo, the cops will take a report, but they'll have little to go on and will, more than likely, not even bother to help me find the guy who did it. If The window is shattered and the lock ripped off, a cop is more likely to help out.
But, under the DMCA, the equivalent of someone telling me that I should lock my door can get me sued or, worse, arrested. Folks who willfully do real damage to a system *should* be punished. Hackers who find a hole and let the world know before allowing black hats to exploit it should be praised.
While Dmitry, admittedly, wrote a program to break the encryption of Adobe's eBook software, the encryption key was so weak that it was relatively trivial for him. And he marketed the program as a tool for those who want to *legally* use an item they bought. He essentially showed the world that Adobe's door was unlocked, and gave us a reason to buy better locks.
Actually, this is extremely sound advice. When I was a sophomore in Mechanical Engineering I was asked to leave the department as a result of three semesters of Academic Probation. I was totally upset with my education and kinda rebelled against it. What this did was free me completely to do whatever I wanted. So, I did journalism. Then I got a job as a news editor for an online site. When they saw how sharp my computer skills were, they put me in Web Production. When they saw that -- gasp! -- I could program, they put me in web development. I am now a full-time Java Programmer, and I've been out of school for about three years. Kinda full circle.
Try something new and different. If you stick to that and never look back at computers, that's the way it was meant to be. If you wind back up in front of a terminal and loving it, you're a geek for life!
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I agree 110%. However, many of these folks have a hard time handling the traffic such a mob would create. This was actually one of my very first Flashmob ideas, but when I asked some local foodbanks about how we could do it, they totally blanched at the idea. I welcome suggestions on how to make it a reality.
Rob Z.
http://www.flocksmart.com/
My problem with HandStory is that it isn't open source (which, I realize, is being nitpicky, but it's just one of those things, y'know) and it doesn't work on the PocketPC 2000/WinCE 3.0. I sent an email to their customer support line about two weeks ago and have yet to receive a response. Plus, why shjould I pay $20 for a browser for my PDA when the browsers for my desktop are free? I essentially want the Internet experience just slightly distilled and in my hand.
Couldn't have said it better. While I'd like to avoid a Sklyarov rant, laws like the DMCA only hamper the exchange of information, making it illegal for white hats to find the holes before black hats can exploit them. A real world example: If I leave my car door unlocked and a thief steals my stereo, the cops will take a report, but they'll have little to go on and will, more than likely, not even bother to help me find the guy who did it. If The window is shattered and the lock ripped off, a cop is more likely to help out. But, under the DMCA, the equivalent of someone telling me that I should lock my door can get me sued or, worse, arrested. Folks who willfully do real damage to a system *should* be punished. Hackers who find a hole and let the world know before allowing black hats to exploit it should be praised. While Dmitry, admittedly, wrote a program to break the encryption of Adobe's eBook software, the encryption key was so weak that it was relatively trivial for him. And he marketed the program as a tool for those who want to *legally* use an item they bought. He essentially showed the world that Adobe's door was unlocked, and gave us a reason to buy better locks.
Actually, this is extremely sound advice. When I was a sophomore in Mechanical Engineering I was asked to leave the department as a result of three semesters of Academic Probation. I was totally upset with my education and kinda rebelled against it. What this did was free me completely to do whatever I wanted. So, I did journalism. Then I got a job as a news editor for an online site. When they saw how sharp my computer skills were, they put me in Web Production. When they saw that -- gasp! -- I could program, they put me in web development. I am now a full-time Java Programmer, and I've been out of school for about three years. Kinda full circle.
Try something new and different. If you stick to that and never look back at computers, that's the way it was meant to be. If you wind back up in front of a terminal and loving it, you're a geek for life!