Don't confuse the included media player with the rootkit files. The author clearly states that 'Rootkits are cloaking technologies that hide files, Registry keys, and other system objects from diagnostic and security software', and that is exactly what is happening here.
"On top of that, consumers should expect punishment for tinkering with their Blu-ray players, as many have done with current DVD players, for instance to remove regional coding. The new, Internet-connected and secure players will report any "hack" and the device can be disabled remotely."
Here is why HD-DVD is better according to MS and Intel...
----------------
Microsoft and Intel cited the following consumer and industry requirements of any successful next-generation optical format for high definition, which is reflected by what HD DVD delivers today:
- Managed Copy: A first for DVDs. Managed Copy is a guaranteed feature within HD DVD that gives consumers the freedom to make copies of their discs to a hard drive or home server, including Media Center PCs using Intel Viiv technology, and enjoy them in every room of the house over their home networks. HD DVD discs also will allow copies of the movie to be played on portable devices.
- "Future-proof" compatibility. Using proven HD DVD "hybrid disc" technology, a single disc can store both high-definition and standard-definition versions of a film, allowing consumers to immediately enjoy the standard-definition movies stored on these discs on today's DVD players, while HD movies can be replayed later on the HD DVD platform. This is an opportunity for consumers to buy discs at launch that future proof their collections -- in other words, helping assure customers that the discs they buy will remain viewable in the future.
- Proven low-cost, high-volume manufacturing. HD DVD discs use essentially the same manufacturing equipment as existing DVDs, meaning that production of HD DVD can ramp up easily and with lower costs.
- Superior capacity. HD DVD-ROM discs will offer dual-layer 30GB discs at launch, compared with BD-ROM discs, which will be limited to 25GB.
- Superior interactivity. HD DVD discs will offer greater interactivity using iHD technology, allowing for enhanced content, navigation and value-added functionality for high-definition films. For example, HD DVDs can offer advanced picture-in-picture capability so that other video, such as a director's commentary, could play on top of the movie.
- Superior format for notebook PCs. The compatibility of HD DVD with standard DVD facilitates and simplifies development of slim disc drives for integration in notebook PCs, one of the fastest-growing segments of the PC market.
In addition to laptops they claim they are installing other hardware.
But Long is working to change things. Along with the 300 Smart Boards being installed this summer, TUSD also is putting response pads in select classrooms. It's similar to the "ask the audience" lifeline on the game show "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" Teachers ask a question and can gauge the group's understanding based on the answers.
The Smart Boards are a huge step, she said. With a few clicks, teachers will be able to fly the class into Egypt through a digital map and highlight the history of the Valley of the Kings with photos, videos and multimedia timelines.
Jeff Pulver of Freeworlddialup (not subject to the order) wrote at his blog...
My final thought on today's events: Amidst all the emotionally heart-wrenching anecdotes about failed Vonage 911 calls, no one ever mentioned the failures of traditional carrier emergency response services. I'm forced to wonder what would have happened if the FCC had paraded the spouses and parents of those who died when 911 failed on traditional wireline and wireless networks? I guess that wouldn't be acceptable - that might scare consumers of traditional telecom services and antagonize the traditional communications power structure. Let's bully the new weak kids in town but not draw attention to current emergency response failures by those that are capable of fighting back.
Couldn't agree more. This order is just the stepping stone to full regulation of VOIP inlcuding lawful intercept (CALEA) in order to kill it on behalf of the BOCs.
Looks like Skype is involved too. The submitted a request to be excluded from the regulations claming that most of their users are mobiel and do not use a handset, but since they do interconnect to the PSTN it looks like they will be are required to offer E911.
Skyped offered a statement day offering to work with the FCC on E911.
"We've all heard that a million monkeys banging on a million typewriters will eventually reproduce the entire works of Shakespeare. Now, thanks to the Internet, we know this is not true."
Vonage is clearly making the consumer aware of the way that its 911 feature works and making an effort to get 911 services to its users.
So what happens when P2P services like Skype take over and we don't even need the current POTS infrastsructure? When I get my phone service from a company based in Luxembourg, the AG in Texas isn't going to be able to sue to get his way.
BTW, Skype with 29 million users and 1 million SkypOut users does not offer any sort of 911 service.
http://www.skype.com/help/faq/skypeout.html
Can I call an emergency number (e.g. 211, 999, 911)?
The current version of Skype software does not support calls to any emergency numbers nor emergency services (e.g. 211, 911, 999 etc). To perform calls of this type please make sure to use a landline telephone or a cellular/mobile phone.
So why can those in the US buy a book or CD from http://amazon.co.uk.
I must also say, in my international travels, I have purchased many books overseas for reading on the return trip and US customs has never said anything.
You are correct that MSFT stock is stagnant, but the company has become a victim of the law of large numbers. Growing +10% year over year eventually becomes impossible.
Remember that this company was on it was to having 1/10th of a TRILLION dollars in the bank before the large dividend it just paid out.
You are incorrect. For FY 2004, overall revenue was up %14, Windows revenue up 11%, and Office revenue was up 14%.
Hard to call any company that has double digit growth "rotting".
I'd like to know why ths author thinks that these items are in decline. Check MSFT's last annual report.
"For Microsoft, fiscal 2004 was a great year, marked by strong growth and development of exciting new technologies. All of our businesses grew during the year, increasing total revenue by $4.65 billion, or 14 percent, to $36.8 billion. Profit margins from continuing operations improved, particularly in our emerging businesses."
"Our Information Worker (home of office) business continues to grow, with a 17 percent increase in revenue during 2004."
and
"Client revenue increase was driven by a 14% growth in OEM licenses and 16% growth in OEM revenue on increased consumer PC unit shipments in the first half of the fiscal year and growth in business PC unit shipments in the second half of fiscal 2004. "
"
So in summary...
MSFT Revvenue +14%
Office Revenue +17%
Windows Revenue +11%
You really need to understand academic volume licensing better. Microsoft only charges $3 for a server CAL and $55 for the server software. MS offers a Microsoft School Agreement Estimated Retail Price Calculator you can find here.
The estimated retail price for your School Agreement coverage is below (USD).
PRODUCT SELECTION ESTIMATED PRICE PER UNIT TOTAL ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE Windows Server CAL $3.00 $1,050.00 Windows Server Standard Edition $55.00 $55.00 Estimated Total $1,105.00
Windows Media Center Edition 2004 is, of course, proprietary software, which means that it cannot be altered or tailored to different needs.
There is an SDK for MCE 2004 which "is designed to help developers create applications and software components that take advantage of features provided by Windows XP Media Center Edition." It works great but does has some limitations.
"A headline in Business Day yesterday with an article about I.B.M.'s decision to make some software code more widely available to programmers referred imprecisely to its plans. While the code will be contributed to an "open source" software group, it will not be in the public domain. The group, the Apache Software Foundation, will hold the licensing and intellectual-property rights. "
OK, great. But have your students test schools gone up, graduation rates increased, the drop out rate decreased, class sizes gone down or teacher workload decreased?
Numbers like this would be the true measure of the success of E-rate.
Slashdot Mirror
And the winners are...
3. TivoToGo for Mac
2. Optimus keyboard
1. Playstation 3
Don't confuse the included media player with the rootkit files. The author clearly states that 'Rootkits are cloaking technologies that hide files, Registry keys, and other system objects from diagnostic and security software', and that is exactly what is happening here.
"What is next? Drm that will rewrite your bios and turn your pc into an expensive doorstop for copyright violation?"
Yes, look for it in your next Blu-Ray Disc Player.
http://www.engadget.com/entry/1234000737057152/
"On top of that, consumers should expect punishment for tinkering with their Blu-ray players, as many have done with current DVD players, for instance to remove regional coding. The new, Internet-connected and secure players will report any "hack" and the device can be disabled remotely."
I assume the key phrase here is 'at launch'.
Here is why HD-DVD is better according to MS and Intel...
----------------
Microsoft and Intel cited the following consumer and industry requirements of any successful next-generation optical format for high definition, which is reflected by what HD DVD delivers today:
- Managed Copy: A first for DVDs. Managed Copy is a guaranteed feature within HD DVD that gives consumers the freedom to make copies of their discs to a hard drive or home server, including Media Center PCs using Intel Viiv technology, and enjoy them in every room of the house over their home networks. HD DVD discs also will allow copies of the movie to be played on portable devices.
- "Future-proof" compatibility. Using proven HD DVD "hybrid disc" technology, a single disc can store both high-definition and standard-definition versions of a film, allowing consumers to immediately enjoy the standard-definition movies stored on these discs on today's DVD players, while HD movies can be replayed later on the HD DVD platform. This is an opportunity for consumers to buy discs at launch that future proof their collections -- in other words, helping assure customers that the discs they buy will remain viewable in the future.
- Proven low-cost, high-volume manufacturing. HD DVD discs use essentially the same manufacturing equipment as existing DVDs, meaning that production of HD DVD can ramp up easily and with lower costs.
- Superior capacity. HD DVD-ROM discs will offer dual-layer 30GB discs at launch, compared with BD-ROM discs, which will be limited to 25GB.
- Superior interactivity. HD DVD discs will offer greater interactivity using iHD technology, allowing for enhanced content, navigation and value-added functionality for high-definition films. For example, HD DVDs can offer advanced picture-in-picture capability so that other video, such as a director's commentary, could play on top of the movie.
- Superior format for notebook PCs. The compatibility of HD DVD with standard DVD facilitates and simplifies development of slim disc drives for integration in notebook PCs, one of the fastest-growing segments of the PC market.
All-laptop high school to open in Vail
In addition to laptops they claim they are installing other hardware.
But Long is working to change things. Along with the 300 Smart Boards being installed this summer, TUSD also is putting response pads in select classrooms. It's similar to the "ask the audience" lifeline on the game show "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" Teachers ask a question and can gauge the group's understanding based on the answers.
The Smart Boards are a huge step, she said. With a few clicks, teachers will be able to fly the class into Egypt through a digital map and highlight the history of the Valley of the Kings with photos, videos and multimedia timelines.
My final thought on today's events: Amidst all the emotionally heart-wrenching anecdotes about failed Vonage 911 calls, no one ever mentioned the failures of traditional carrier emergency response services. I'm forced to wonder what would have happened if the FCC had paraded the spouses and parents of those who died when 911 failed on traditional wireline and wireless networks? I guess that wouldn't be acceptable - that might scare consumers of traditional telecom services and antagonize the traditional communications power structure. Let's bully the new weak kids in town but not draw attention to current emergency response failures by those that are capable of fighting back.
Couldn't agree more. This order is just the stepping stone to full regulation of VOIP inlcuding lawful intercept (CALEA) in order to kill it on behalf of the BOCs.Looks like Skype is involved too. The submitted a request to be excluded from the regulations claming that most of their users are mobiel and do not use a handset, but since they do interconnect to the PSTN it looks like they will be are required to offer E911.
Skyped offered a statement day offering to work with the FCC on E911.
Robert Wilensky joked that...
"We've all heard that a million monkeys banging on a million typewriters will eventually reproduce the entire works of Shakespeare. Now, thanks to the Internet, we know this is not true."
So what happens when P2P services like Skype take over and we don't even need the current POTS infrastsructure? When I get my phone service from a company based in Luxembourg, the AG in Texas isn't going to be able to sue to get his way.
BTW, Skype with 29 million users and 1 million SkypOut users does not offer any sort of 911 service.
http://www.skype.com/help/faq/skypeout.html
Can I call an emergency number (e.g. 211, 999, 911)? The current version of Skype software does not support calls to any emergency numbers nor emergency services (e.g. 211, 911, 999 etc). To perform calls of this type please make sure to use a landline telephone or a cellular/mobile phone.
Excellent posts! Thanks for the information.
So why can those in the US buy a book or CD from http://amazon.co.uk.
I must also say, in my international travels, I have purchased many books overseas for reading on the return trip and US customs has never said anything.
Remember that this company was on it was to having 1/10th of a TRILLION dollars in the bank before the large dividend it just paid out.
You are incorrect. For FY 2004, overall revenue was up %14, Windows revenue up 11%, and Office revenue was up 14%. Hard to call any company that has double digit growth "rotting".
http://www.microsoft.com/uk/education/how-to-buy /where-to-buy/aer/
Academic pricing is around 10% of retail.
"For Microsoft, fiscal 2004 was a great year, marked by strong growth and development of exciting new technologies. All of our businesses grew during the year, increasing total revenue by $4.65 billion, or 14 percent, to $36.8 billion. Profit margins from continuing operations improved, particularly in our emerging businesses."
"Our Information Worker (home of office) business continues to grow, with a 17 percent increase in revenue during 2004."
and
"Client revenue increase was driven by a 14% growth in OEM licenses and 16% growth in OEM revenue on increased consumer PC unit shipments in the first half of the fiscal year and growth in business PC unit shipments in the second half of fiscal 2004. " " So in summary... MSFT Revvenue +14% Office Revenue +17% Windows Revenue +11%
You really need to understand academic volume licensing better. Microsoft only charges $3 for a server CAL and $55 for the server software. MS offers a Microsoft School Agreement Estimated Retail Price Calculator you can find here.
http://www.microsoft.com/education/default.asp?I D=SACalculator#Estimate
You can see the top 10 list for 2004 here.
1. Coke
2. Microsoft
3. IBM
4. GE
5. Intel
This popularity contest at brandchannel.com really seems to be ranking cult brands.
The one word answer is carriage. G4 was in 15 million homes and TechTV was in 43 million homes.
Now "G4 - Video Game Televison" is carried in 44 million homes.
From the article...
Windows Media Center Edition 2004 is, of course, proprietary software, which means that it cannot be altered or tailored to different needs.
There is an SDK for MCE 2004 which "is designed to help developers create applications and software components that take advantage of features provided by Windows XP Media Center Edition." It works great but does has some limitations.
Get it here...
Media Center 2004 SDK
NYT Correction...
"A headline in Business Day yesterday with an article about I.B.M.'s decision to make some software code more widely available to programmers referred imprecisely to its plans. While the code will be contributed to an "open source" software group, it will not be in the public domain. The group, the Apache Software Foundation, will hold the licensing and intellectual-property rights. "
Windows XP and Server 2003 do prefetch...
t ro l\Session Manager\Memory Management\PrefetchParameters
http://www.jsiinc.com/SUBL/tip5800/rh5826.htm
You can configure it here..
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Con
EnablePrefetcher Value Name, a REG_DWORD data type. Allowable values...
0 Disabled.
1 Application launch pre-fetch.
2 Boot pre-fetch.
3 Both Application launch and Boot pre-fetch.
British pound sterling to United States dollar 0.790000 = 1.436807 US$ European Union euro to United States dollar 0.990000 euro = 1.196929 US$
Numbers like this would be the true measure of the success of E-rate.
You can read the article here...
Waste and Fraud Besiege U.S. Program to Link Poor Schools to Internet
See here...
Task List Window