I think that people who aren't familiar with the industry don't really have a clue as to how big of a deal Final Cut Pro is.
Avid systems are perhaps a little more powerful than a Final Cut Pro suite, but they're also a real pain. Avids are terribly finicky, and conflict with almost every other piece of software known to man. I swear, I've seen an Avid break down because someone breathed on it wrong.
The only video editor I know that is still using an Avid simply hasn't switched over to Final Cut because he hasn't had a chance to learn it yet. For so long Avid was really the only way to go, and now that there's serious competition, it's opened a lot of eyes, and wallets.
Try listening to your own advice. If he's not talking about the inner-workings, in what way does the line-
PS: Some of you might be thinking: "Hey, the Sega dreamcast had a D-PAD just like the Nintendo ones!". Which isn't true, you just have to flip open the controller to see why that is so.
You can't patent a button, but you can patent how the button works, and in the end that's all that matters. All directional pads are functionally identical- everything else it just window dressing.
I never said p2p is illegal, simply that it's most often used in an illegal manner. Sure, there are legit uses for it, but you're being naive if you think that's their main use.
And Bittorrent is not Kazaa. It is used in a completely different manner. It is completely irrelevant to your point.
Any of those other legit things you mention are frequently available on the web, and often as torrents.
Considering we were comparing the existance of DRM in WM9 and iTunes, whether CDex has DRM or not is quite frankly irrelevant. My point is, while both have DRM, their implementation is very different. iTunes doesn't apply DRM to any CDs you rip yourself, but rather only uses it on songs you buy from the iTunes Music Store.
The big difference between DRM in WM9 and iTunes is that iTunes only uses DRM on songs you buy in the iTunes store- if you rip it yourself, there is no DRM.
The tone of the article has a lot to do with the assumption.
I mean, if I said, "I wish he'd just shut his mouth if he's not going to read the article," you can safely assume more malice there than if I said "He really should read the article before commenting," right?
I've opened up many, many controllers, and the directional pads all work the same. They may look a little different, but underneath the outer casing all of them use the exact same premise. All a directional pad is is a solid piece of plastic that is able to tilt in order to press one or two of the four buttons in the controller. That goes for the Playstation controller too- it only looks like they're separate buttons, underneath they're connected.
I'm sure I'm just stating the obvious here, but isn't it a little hypocritical for them to complain about people breaking their license agreement when 99.9% of the time their software is used to steal from other companies?
While I typically don't care much for Gateway, I have noticed whenever I need to take my laptop in for repairs (whenever meaning frequently- the hardware is junk) they have fliers all over the place warning their customers about spyware and telling them how to get rid of it.
I've never liked Dell, and I like them even less now. While most of us on Slashdot are just as happy (if not happier) using custom built machines, I know a lot of less savvy users who like having one company they can go to for support. Unfortunately for them, there just don't seem to be many deservedly reputable manufacturers out there anymore.
What's interesting is that I wasn't disappointed by the end of Revolutions, probably because it ended exactly as I had predicted it would.
It really couldn't have ended any other way, really. The machines couldn't have won, because then the entire thing would have been pointless. The humans couldn't have won, because the machines themselves weren't entirely evil. They couldn't have kept fighting, because it would have been unresolved. Peace was the only answer.
The AC said:
Where's the genius in "let's make everything USB" when Desktop Serial Bus (at the time) was fine?
The Apple Desktop Bus (what Apple used prior to USB) wasn't fine. It wasn't hotswappable, you had to daisy chain devices in nasty ways, there was no standardization in drivers, it wasn't cross-platform... I could go on. Why switch to the telephone when a telegraph works fine?
And Apple didn't force people to switch right away- for a period of time G3s shipped with both USB and ADB built-in. Ultimately they stopped including ADB because it was antiquated and useless. Rather than hang on to an inferior technology they made the industry to move to a better one.
That IS a feather in Apple's cap.
Yeah, but when Macs stop being able to support legacy hardware, it's typically because Apple decided they were going to cut legacy support. That just leads to cleaner, if less compatible, software.
When Windows stops being able to support legacy hardware, it's not because Microsoft decided they weren't going to keep legacy support, but because something they hadn't accounted for broke it.
It's simply a difference in mindset. Apple constantly tries to make something new and improved, and ignores anything that isn't current. Microsoft simply tries to accomodate as many people as possible, worrying more on quantity than quality. Both are frustrating as hell, it just depends on which frustrates you least.
Apple makes its money off of hardware, yet if it weren't for their software they wouldn't sell any.
Microsoft is predominantly a software company, although with its recent forays into hardware you can tell they're not happy just controlling the software people use.
The fact of the matter is that neither is simply a "hardware" or "software" company, both Apple and Microsoft are both.
IMHO, the biggest con for all of them is that none of them (that I'm aware of) consolidates ALL music.
Even the file sharing networks fail to consolidate all music. Same with record stores. File sharing services require a demand to be available. If nobody has heard of it you'll have to wait until the one or two people that have a copy log on. Record stores can only stock so much at once, so they only stock what is popular.
I may not be overly impressed by the selection provided by iTunes and its ilk right now, but the catalogs are growing. They're far from perfect, but perfection takes work. Even at this point they're better than nothing.
Yep, same as if you'd bought a CD and lost it. You buy a copy, you protect your copy. Simple as that.
To the best of my knowledge Apple doesn't keep track of the songs you've bought. Funny how people complain so much about companies spying on their downloads and purchases, yet here people are complaining that they're not spying on your downloads and purchases. Sometimes you have to decide whether to keep the cake or eat it.
Those installation requests can be eliminated simply by disabling "download ActiveX controls" in IE's security settings. Sure, if you actually need to install a new ActiveX control you need to turn it back on temporarilly, but you'll be much happier in the long run.
Scratches on CDs don't affect the audio. They can make the audio skip because part of it is unreadable, but if that happened you would get an error while ripping the track. So a flaw on the CD would not affect a rip.
Now, if there was a little blip in the ripping process (caused by the computer, not the CD) you would still end up with two different files.
One other thing to point out- it is technically possible for two unrelated files to have the same MD5. Just very (very) unlikely.
You're right, most third party products are great. If you go to Walgreens or Kroger and buy some AA batteries, most of the time they're even actually manufactured by Energizer or Rayovac (I've worked with Rayovac before, so I know this to be a fact).
On the other hand, some third party products actually are garbage. The original manufacturer has no control over the quality of these products, so why should they be liable?
I'm just saying that whoever is to blame should do a recall. If it's the manufacturer of the batteries, fine. If it's the manufacturer of the cell phones, fine. Just as long as the flawed product is recalled.
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I think that people who aren't familiar with the industry don't really have a clue as to how big of a deal Final Cut Pro is.
Avid systems are perhaps a little more powerful than a Final Cut Pro suite, but they're also a real pain. Avids are terribly finicky, and conflict with almost every other piece of software known to man. I swear, I've seen an Avid break down because someone breathed on it wrong.
The only video editor I know that is still using an Avid simply hasn't switched over to Final Cut because he hasn't had a chance to learn it yet. For so long Avid was really the only way to go, and now that there's serious competition, it's opened a lot of eyes, and wallets.
Try listening to your own advice. If he's not talking about the inner-workings, in what way does the line-
PS: Some of you might be thinking: "Hey, the Sega dreamcast had a D-PAD just like the Nintendo ones!". Which isn't true, you just have to flip open the controller to see why that is so.
-make any sense?
You can't patent a button, but you can patent how the button works, and in the end that's all that matters. All directional pads are functionally identical- everything else it just window dressing.
I never said p2p is illegal, simply that it's most often used in an illegal manner. Sure, there are legit uses for it, but you're being naive if you think that's their main use.
And Bittorrent is not Kazaa. It is used in a completely different manner. It is completely irrelevant to your point.
Any of those other legit things you mention are frequently available on the web, and often as torrents.
...
Considering we were comparing the existance of DRM in WM9 and iTunes, whether CDex has DRM or not is quite frankly irrelevant. My point is, while both have DRM, their implementation is very different. iTunes doesn't apply DRM to any CDs you rip yourself, but rather only uses it on songs you buy from the iTunes Music Store.
The big difference between DRM in WM9 and iTunes is that iTunes only uses DRM on songs you buy in the iTunes store- if you rip it yourself, there is no DRM.
The tone of the article has a lot to do with the assumption.
I mean, if I said, "I wish he'd just shut his mouth if he's not going to read the article," you can safely assume more malice there than if I said "He really should read the article before commenting," right?
Uh, no. False.
I've opened up many, many controllers, and the directional pads all work the same. They may look a little different, but underneath the outer casing all of them use the exact same premise. All a directional pad is is a solid piece of plastic that is able to tilt in order to press one or two of the four buttons in the controller. That goes for the Playstation controller too- it only looks like they're separate buttons, underneath they're connected.
I'm sure I'm just stating the obvious here, but isn't it a little hypocritical for them to complain about people breaking their license agreement when 99.9% of the time their software is used to steal from other companies?
Hell, I remember Webcrawler, and I've only been on the web since around '95...
While I typically don't care much for Gateway, I have noticed whenever I need to take my laptop in for repairs (whenever meaning frequently- the hardware is junk) they have fliers all over the place warning their customers about spyware and telling them how to get rid of it. I've never liked Dell, and I like them even less now. While most of us on Slashdot are just as happy (if not happier) using custom built machines, I know a lot of less savvy users who like having one company they can go to for support. Unfortunately for them, there just don't seem to be many deservedly reputable manufacturers out there anymore.
What's interesting is that I wasn't disappointed by the end of Revolutions, probably because it ended exactly as I had predicted it would.
It really couldn't have ended any other way, really. The machines couldn't have won, because then the entire thing would have been pointless. The humans couldn't have won, because the machines themselves weren't entirely evil. They couldn't have kept fighting, because it would have been unresolved. Peace was the only answer.
The AC said: Where's the genius in "let's make everything USB" when Desktop Serial Bus (at the time) was fine? The Apple Desktop Bus (what Apple used prior to USB) wasn't fine. It wasn't hotswappable, you had to daisy chain devices in nasty ways, there was no standardization in drivers, it wasn't cross-platform... I could go on. Why switch to the telephone when a telegraph works fine? And Apple didn't force people to switch right away- for a period of time G3s shipped with both USB and ADB built-in. Ultimately they stopped including ADB because it was antiquated and useless. Rather than hang on to an inferior technology they made the industry to move to a better one. That IS a feather in Apple's cap.
Yeah, but when Macs stop being able to support legacy hardware, it's typically because Apple decided they were going to cut legacy support. That just leads to cleaner, if less compatible, software.
When Windows stops being able to support legacy hardware, it's not because Microsoft decided they weren't going to keep legacy support, but because something they hadn't accounted for broke it.
It's simply a difference in mindset. Apple constantly tries to make something new and improved, and ignores anything that isn't current. Microsoft simply tries to accomodate as many people as possible, worrying more on quantity than quality. Both are frustrating as hell, it just depends on which frustrates you least.
Especially considering they've probably already started having it duplicated to send to theatres...
I've never understood the point of starting petitions that don't have even the slightest chance of having any effect.
Apple makes its money off of hardware, yet if it weren't for their software they wouldn't sell any.
Microsoft is predominantly a software company, although with its recent forays into hardware you can tell they're not happy just controlling the software people use.
The fact of the matter is that neither is simply a "hardware" or "software" company, both Apple and Microsoft are both.
Funny how this is the opposite of what Microsoft did with the X-Box:
Microsoft undercharges the cost of the hardware to increase software sales, while Apple undercharges the cost of music to increase hardware sales...
I guess we'll have to wait and see which idea works in the long run.
IMHO, the biggest con for all of them is that none of them (that I'm aware of) consolidates ALL music.
Even the file sharing networks fail to consolidate all music. Same with record stores. File sharing services require a demand to be available. If nobody has heard of it you'll have to wait until the one or two people that have a copy log on. Record stores can only stock so much at once, so they only stock what is popular.
I may not be overly impressed by the selection provided by iTunes and its ilk right now, but the catalogs are growing. They're far from perfect, but perfection takes work. Even at this point they're better than nothing.
Yep, same as if you'd bought a CD and lost it. You buy a copy, you protect your copy. Simple as that.
To the best of my knowledge Apple doesn't keep track of the songs you've bought. Funny how people complain so much about companies spying on their downloads and purchases, yet here people are complaining that they're not spying on your downloads and purchases. Sometimes you have to decide whether to keep the cake or eat it.
Those installation requests can be eliminated simply by disabling "download ActiveX controls" in IE's security settings. Sure, if you actually need to install a new ActiveX control you need to turn it back on temporarilly, but you'll be much happier in the long run.
The Power Pad can't be used as a regular controller, so even on that merit alone a DDR Pad is superior.
That's ignoring the fact that IBM isn't anywhere near as big as it used to be. They have only a fraction of the capital they did in the 80s.
Scratches on CDs don't affect the audio. They can make the audio skip because part of it is unreadable, but if that happened you would get an error while ripping the track. So a flaw on the CD would not affect a rip.
Now, if there was a little blip in the ripping process (caused by the computer, not the CD) you would still end up with two different files.
One other thing to point out- it is technically possible for two unrelated files to have the same MD5. Just very (very) unlikely.
With all that other crap they show nowadays, I can't remember the last time I saw a music video on MTV period.
You're right, most third party products are great. If you go to Walgreens or Kroger and buy some AA batteries, most of the time they're even actually manufactured by Energizer or Rayovac (I've worked with Rayovac before, so I know this to be a fact).
On the other hand, some third party products actually are garbage. The original manufacturer has no control over the quality of these products, so why should they be liable?
I'm just saying that whoever is to blame should do a recall. If it's the manufacturer of the batteries, fine. If it's the manufacturer of the cell phones, fine. Just as long as the flawed product is recalled.