This is an excellent point, and I find it difficult to believe that so many Slashdot readers are buying into the marketing hype surrounding these snake-oil music download services. Want free, legal, music? Go to your nearest library. A lot of libraries have great music selections. But I digress. Sometimes it seems like slashdot is the cutting edge of intelligent thought and technology, but for some reason when it comes to music slashdotters are just as eager to jump on the bandwagon, even with all the DRM involved in these services. As far as I'm concerned, these legal e-music services are just as stupid as 20" rims, $150 shoes, and expensive. Great for rich people - but only a moron would spend his hard-earned wages on such frivolities.
This is not intended as a flame - I really find it hard to believe that any intelligent person would pay money for data that isn't even necessarily permanent! All it does is encourage the use of DRM technologies. Any responsible slashdotter should be telling everyone they know to stay away from these services.
I'm pretty experienced with home networking, although I'm no expert. But I've had home networks since probably 1995, so I know what I'm doing. I took one of boxes over to a friends house the other day and tried to get onto his LAN. We had all the settings right on the 2nd try. After that it took at least 6 reboots with no changes to networking components before I got onto the LAN. I was jokingly suggesting that "maybe if we reboot one more time it will work!" Imagine my surprise when, after we stopped counting the reboots, suddenly the box magically came online!
I picked up a second job a few weeks ago waiting tables at a restaurant. within a week they wanted my fingerprints so that logging into the system is a bit faster. I explained that i wouldnt give my fingerprints unless they provide me with a privacy policy detailing exactly what will be done with my prints, who will have access to them, and what will be done if the information is leaked. this seems to have slowed them down a bit as it's been 2 weeks since they've mentioned it to me... anyone know what to do in this situation? (Other than look for a new job, which I've already started doing...)
The problem with ID cards is that often people who are not carrying ID are considered "suspicious". This is what is called a "slippery slope". Sure ID cards aren't bad - they dont take away any privacy do they? Except that since leaving home without ID makes you suspicious, it is effectively illegal to leave home without ID. OK, it's not explicitly illegal to leave home without ID, but without ID you are more likely to be arrested, held and questioned than when you are without ID.
Similar problems occur in the privacy arena. This is why guardians of privacy must question every move that the government and corporations make, because each tiny step can take us far further than it was intended to - there are always unintended, unpredictable consequences.
Apple's position is that it is impractical, though perhaps within someone's rights, to sell music purchased online," Peter Lowe, Apple's director of marketing for applications and services, told CNET News.com in an interview.
sounds more like they don't want people reselling, but they aren't going to worry about it because it's such a pain in the ass that no one will do it.
They seem to be handling this pretty responsibly. Most companies (and people as well) will go on the attack when this sort of thing happens. The MMORPG companies have been particularly mean about this sort of stuff when they probably could have done things in a much more responsible way. I'm really not a fan of Apple, but it's nice to see that somebody keeps doing things right when everyone else seems to be sueing, legislating, lying, bribing, bombing, terrorizing, and so on.
I know this is off-topic, but an Open Source Army could be extremely powerful if it were built on the right principles. I'm thinking of groups like Earth First!, who use rather extreme methods for furthuring their ideas. The Open Source community could easily create a set of principles to build upon, and with enough collective knowledge it's quite possible that such a group could even use entirely legal means to furthur their ideas. I'm not suggesting the use of armed force, violence, or weapons, of course - more like an organized group for trading ideas and actions. Throw in the use of networks like freenet to distribute documents, and such an army could be an extremely powerful tool for social change.
This is how America works these days! It's not about whether or not it's legal, it's whether or not someone will press charges/sue/etc. EULA is oppressive, rude, annoying, and possibly illegal? That doesnt matter until it gets to court. DMCA is bad and unconstitutional? Even though lawmakers know this, it still has to be proven in court.
I worked for a debt collection company for a while. They would threaten and harass and threaten more, but they would never take a case to court unless 1) the person had reasonable credit, 2) they had an income, and (this is the big one) 3) the debt had to be over $3000! There was a little flexibility there, but basically if you owe $2000 and don't pay it, all you have to do is wait seven years.
Obviously that example is pretty specific, but "barely legal" tactics are everywhere. I would guess that it's even worse in big companies... But cheating is a way of life. You may not be cheating, but you are probably being cheated by someone somewhere!
the point is that cops cant search you without good reason. Kazaa or whatever p2p app is like leaving the window open on your computer (anyone can see inside). in this case, the RIAA has walked in, searched the place, and then moved to the court system. the RIAA has taken vigilante action, and it should be illegal to do so, otherwise we would live in anarchy. we have safeguards in place to prevent this sort of thing in the real world, but since this is digital the RIAA is skipping over those safeguards.
if Wal-Mart thinks you are stealing, they can't just go search your car, or search your house. they have to get the police involved. that's what the RIAA should have done when they thought they were wronged: they should have gotten the police. The police would tell them to fuck off. but they have perverted the system and have become vigilantes.
Why don't P2P apps use a disclaimer to put the responsibility in the hands of the downloader instead? for instance, each user can configure their own disclaimer in the settings somewhere. Upon downloading from me, a message pops up with the disclaimer text. the client would prevent the download unless you agree to the terms of the disclaimer. Mine would be simple: "by downloading from me you accept all liability for the use or storage of data received from my computer. you also agree that said data will be used or stored in full compliance with federal, state, and local law."
wouldn't a system like that make it more difficult for the RIAA to continue like this?
I heard that a very substantial amount of our brain's capacity is devoted to differentiating faces
It's not facial recognition, it's pattern recognition. our brains are designed to recognize patterns. that's what we do, and that's what "deja vu" is. it's when you recognize something that isn't there - a false positive.
On a related note, that's also generally accepted as the explanation for Astrology - we find patterns in the predictions/horoscopes and match them to patterns in our lives. We're very good at recognizing patterns, but we are terribly inaccurate when it comes to false positives.
actually the word is "virii". several thousand people use this more appealing term, and it is now part of the enlgish language. it will be added to dictionaries in the next few years. thanks for playing
go around to everyone you know, and install alternative software such as OpenOffice on their machines. do this at work if possible. I'm working on a suite of software that I will be installing on all my family's machines: OpenOffice, Mozilla, Winamp 2.x, Trillian. If everybody does this for their friends, it will really soften the effects that all this shite commercial software has been having...
Apparently there are pieces of information that Americans are not allowed to write down. We are definitely edging towards thought crime here. Between this and the illegality of writing virii (i know its spelled wrong but it looks better), we are on our way! I just wonder when someone will get punished for writing these things with pen & paper instead of electronically...
these are good points, and i would add that it is also important to realize that our educations will suffer as the jobs go overseas. the IT segment consists of well-educated people, and chances are good that "whatever are good at next" might require less education. innovation might eventually move overseas as well...
so what is the best alternative IM client? i know that trillian supports IRC, does it work as well as the IM networks like MSN/AIM? (I'm currently using trillian with MSN and ICQ and it's been very tolerable.)
is there a usable IM client that uses an open protocol? how about jabber has anyone had good luck with it? i'll use alpha software if it does things right...
they lose revenue from the banner advertisements in their messenger program.
does that mean that TV stations lose money when I turn off the TV? do magazines lose money if i only read halfway through? do billboard owners lose money if i look at the other side of the road? does microsoft lose money if i don't view their ads?
i mean this rhetorically of course(that means don't answer for those who cant figure out big words).
Wouldn't it be possible to spray some sort of protective coating onto your CDs? Could you just spray paint the top side to prevent the foil from flaking? What about gloss cote or a clear epoxy on the data side? There has to be a way to make them last longer, there must be some kind of workaround. -dbc
Guess what dipshit, several of my friends run successful indy labels, and I myself write arrangements for guitar, bass and various strings. I record my own sounds, master my own mixes, and write lyrics. I work with vocalists, banjo players, guitarists, and drummers. I'm talking about real music where knowledge of music theory is no longer necessary. My music gets played at clubs that you can't get into, so keep yer mouth shut if you don't want to get bitchslapped by people who know what they're talking about.
I'm looking forward to the point when SCO employees start releasing confidential internal documents and source code to fight back. There must be Linux supporters (or freedom-lovers!) who work for SCO, and surely they're starting to get fed up with all this crap.
To: All Linux Users
Re: Proprietary Code being used in Linux
I have recently discovered that some of my personal code has found it's way into the most common Linux distributions. I will begin legal preparations immediately, but for the time being, if you are using Linux you are probably using some of my intellectual property.
I am offering a "good will" software license to those who wish to stay within the law: those users who contact me within the next 72 hours can purchase a license to use my code for $299 US (significantly less than some others are asking for access to their code!). I will take legal action against all Linux users who do not contact me within the next 72 hours. I have recieved a number of queries as to which code belongs to me, and unfortunately I cannot reveal this for obvious legal reasons.
I have also found that some of my intellectual property is being used in most automobiles, and my lawyers are preparing lawsuits against some of the larger auto manufacturers. Again, I cannot reveal which parts of the cars I have IP rights to, for obvious legal reasons.
If you are using Linux and do not contact me immediately, I WILL SEE YOU IN COURT!!
I write music. Most of my friends write music and consider themselves amateur musicians. We trade music amongst ourselves, and give it to our friends for free. The tools required to make professional quality music are becoming more and more affordable everyday, and it's possible that in the near future, making music will be as affordable as learning to paint(some would argue that we have already reached that point).
How will the music industry survive when everyone has a friend who is a musician? I've found that most people are very fond of their friends' music, even when it's technically inferior to commercial products. Will "pop songs" reach a point where they have the same value as a nice painting, or can the music industry provide something more valuable than music itself?
Slashdot Mirror
This is an excellent point, and I find it difficult to believe that so many Slashdot readers are buying into the marketing hype surrounding these snake-oil music download services. Want free, legal, music? Go to your nearest library. A lot of libraries have great music selections. But I digress. Sometimes it seems like slashdot is the cutting edge of intelligent thought and technology, but for some reason when it comes to music slashdotters are just as eager to jump on the bandwagon, even with all the DRM involved in these services. As far as I'm concerned, these legal e-music services are just as stupid as 20" rims, $150 shoes, and expensive. Great for rich people - but only a moron would spend his hard-earned wages on such frivolities.
This is not intended as a flame - I really find it hard to believe that any intelligent person would pay money for data that isn't even necessarily permanent! All it does is encourage the use of DRM technologies. Any responsible slashdotter should be telling everyone they know to stay away from these services.
You left out the part about rebooting 12 times.
I'm pretty experienced with home networking, although I'm no expert. But I've had home networks since probably 1995, so I know what I'm doing. I took one of boxes over to a friends house the other day and tried to get onto his LAN. We had all the settings right on the 2nd try. After that it took at least 6 reboots with no changes to networking components before I got onto the LAN. I was jokingly suggesting that "maybe if we reboot one more time it will work!" Imagine my surprise when, after we stopped counting the reboots, suddenly the box magically came online!
I picked up a second job a few weeks ago waiting tables at a restaurant. within a week they wanted my fingerprints so that logging into the system is a bit faster. I explained that i wouldnt give my fingerprints unless they provide me with a privacy policy detailing exactly what will be done with my prints, who will have access to them, and what will be done if the information is leaked. this seems to have slowed them down a bit as it's been 2 weeks since they've mentioned it to me... anyone know what to do in this situation? (Other than look for a new job, which I've already started doing...)
The problem with ID cards is that often people who are not carrying ID are considered "suspicious". This is what is called a "slippery slope". Sure ID cards aren't bad - they dont take away any privacy do they? Except that since leaving home without ID makes you suspicious, it is effectively illegal to leave home without ID. OK, it's not explicitly illegal to leave home without ID, but without ID you are more likely to be arrested, held and questioned than when you are without ID.
Similar problems occur in the privacy arena. This is why guardians of privacy must question every move that the government and corporations make, because each tiny step can take us far further than it was intended to - there are always unintended, unpredictable consequences.
Apple's position is that it is impractical, though perhaps within someone's rights, to sell music purchased online," Peter Lowe, Apple's director of marketing for applications and services, told CNET News.com in an interview.
sounds more like they don't want people reselling, but they aren't going to worry about it because it's such a pain in the ass that no one will do it.
They seem to be handling this pretty responsibly. Most companies (and people as well) will go on the attack when this sort of thing happens. The MMORPG companies have been particularly mean about this sort of stuff when they probably could have done things in a much more responsible way. I'm really not a fan of Apple, but it's nice to see that somebody keeps doing things right when everyone else seems to be sueing, legislating, lying, bribing, bombing, terrorizing, and so on.
-dbc
I know this is off-topic, but an Open Source Army could be extremely powerful if it were built on the right principles. I'm thinking of groups like Earth First!, who use rather extreme methods for furthuring their ideas. The Open Source community could easily create a set of principles to build upon, and with enough collective knowledge it's quite possible that such a group could even use entirely legal means to furthur their ideas. I'm not suggesting the use of armed force, violence, or weapons, of course - more like an organized group for trading ideas and actions. Throw in the use of networks like freenet to distribute documents, and such an army could be an extremely powerful tool for social change.
This is how America works these days! It's not about whether or not it's legal, it's whether or not someone will press charges/sue/etc. EULA is oppressive, rude, annoying, and possibly illegal? That doesnt matter until it gets to court. DMCA is bad and unconstitutional? Even though lawmakers know this, it still has to be proven in court.
I worked for a debt collection company for a while. They would threaten and harass and threaten more, but they would never take a case to court unless 1) the person had reasonable credit, 2) they had an income, and (this is the big one) 3) the debt had to be over $3000! There was a little flexibility there, but basically if you owe $2000 and don't pay it, all you have to do is wait seven years.
Obviously that example is pretty specific, but "barely legal" tactics are everywhere. I would guess that it's even worse in big companies... But cheating is a way of life. You may not be cheating, but you are probably being cheated by someone somewhere!
the point is that cops cant search you without good reason. Kazaa or whatever p2p app is like leaving the window open on your computer (anyone can see inside). in this case, the RIAA has walked in, searched the place, and then moved to the court system. the RIAA has taken vigilante action, and it should be illegal to do so, otherwise we would live in anarchy. we have safeguards in place to prevent this sort of thing in the real world, but since this is digital the RIAA is skipping over those safeguards.
if Wal-Mart thinks you are stealing, they can't just go search your car, or search your house. they have to get the police involved. that's what the RIAA should have done when they thought they were wronged: they should have gotten the police. The police would tell them to fuck off. but they have perverted the system and have become vigilantes.
Why don't P2P apps use a disclaimer to put the responsibility in the hands of the downloader instead? for instance, each user can configure their own disclaimer in the settings somewhere. Upon downloading from me, a message pops up with the disclaimer text. the client would prevent the download unless you agree to the terms of the disclaimer. Mine would be simple: "by downloading from me you accept all liability for the use or storage of data received from my computer. you also agree that said data will be used or stored in full compliance with federal, state, and local law."
wouldn't a system like that make it more difficult for the RIAA to continue like this?
credit card photos are easier to forge than drivers license photos.
I heard that a very substantial amount of our brain's capacity is devoted to differentiating faces
It's not facial recognition, it's pattern recognition. our brains are designed to recognize patterns. that's what we do, and that's what "deja vu" is. it's when you recognize something that isn't there - a false positive.
On a related note, that's also generally accepted as the explanation for Astrology - we find patterns in the predictions/horoscopes and match them to patterns in our lives. We're very good at recognizing patterns, but we are terribly inaccurate when it comes to false positives.
actually the word is "virii". several thousand people use this more appealing term, and it is now part of the enlgish language. it will be added to dictionaries in the next few years. thanks for playing
go around to everyone you know, and install alternative software such as OpenOffice on their machines. do this at work if possible. I'm working on a suite of software that I will be installing on all my family's machines: OpenOffice, Mozilla, Winamp 2.x, Trillian. If everybody does this for their friends, it will really soften the effects that all this shite commercial software has been having...
Apparently there are pieces of information that Americans are not allowed to write down. We are definitely edging towards thought crime here. Between this and the illegality of writing virii (i know its spelled wrong but it looks better), we are on our way! I just wonder when someone will get punished for writing these things with pen & paper instead of electronically...
these are good points, and i would add that it is also important to realize that our educations will suffer as the jobs go overseas. the IT segment consists of well-educated people, and chances are good that "whatever are good at next" might require less education. innovation might eventually move overseas as well...
so what is the best alternative IM client? i know that trillian supports IRC, does it work as well as the IM networks like MSN/AIM? (I'm currently using trillian with MSN and ICQ and it's been very tolerable.)
is there a usable IM client that uses an open protocol? how about jabber has anyone had good luck with it? i'll use alpha software if it does things right...
i mean this rhetorically of course(that means don't answer for those who cant figure out big words).
R I A A
Wouldn't it be possible to spray some sort of protective coating onto your CDs? Could you just spray paint the top side to prevent the foil from flaking? What about gloss cote or a clear epoxy on the data side? There has to be a way to make them last longer, there must be some kind of workaround.
-dbc
Guess what dipshit, several of my friends run successful indy labels, and I myself write arrangements for guitar, bass and various strings. I record my own sounds, master my own mixes, and write lyrics. I work with vocalists, banjo players, guitarists, and drummers. I'm talking about real music where knowledge of music theory is no longer necessary. My music gets played at clubs that you can't get into, so keep yer mouth shut if you don't want to get bitchslapped by people who know what they're talking about.
I'm looking forward to the point when SCO employees start releasing confidential internal documents and source code to fight back. There must be Linux supporters (or freedom-lovers!) who work for SCO, and surely they're starting to get fed up with all this crap.
DOH!
To: All Linux Users
Re: Proprietary Code being used in Linux
I have recently discovered that some of my personal code has found it's way into the most common Linux distributions. I will begin legal preparations immediately, but for the time being, if you are using Linux you are probably using some of my intellectual property.
I am offering a "good will" software license to those who wish to stay within the law: those users who contact me within the next 72 hours can purchase a license to use my code for $299 US (significantly less than some others are asking for access to their code!). I will take legal action against all Linux users who do not contact me within the next 72 hours. I have recieved a number of queries as to which code belongs to me, and unfortunately I cannot reveal this for obvious legal reasons.
I have also found that some of my intellectual property is being used in most automobiles, and my lawyers are preparing lawsuits against some of the larger auto manufacturers. Again, I cannot reveal which parts of the cars I have IP rights to, for obvious legal reasons.
If you are using Linux and do not contact me immediately, I WILL SEE YOU IN COURT!!
I write music. Most of my friends write music and consider themselves amateur musicians. We trade music amongst ourselves, and give it to our friends for free. The tools required to make professional quality music are becoming more and more affordable everyday, and it's possible that in the near future, making music will be as affordable as learning to paint(some would argue that we have already reached that point).
How will the music industry survive when everyone has a friend who is a musician? I've found that most people are very fond of their friends' music, even when it's technically inferior to commercial products. Will "pop songs" reach a point where they have the same value as a nice painting, or can the music industry provide something more valuable than music itself?
-dbc