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User: object88

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Comments · 286

  1. Re:Yeah, that's highly likely! on Life-Ruining Browser Hijackers · · Score: 1

    The article also notes that "Jack" had this happen to him on several occasions, and at some point, his browser was going to the porn sites when he connected to his ISP. So there isn't a single instance.

  2. Re:Uh, prior-art? on Professor and Student Thwart P2P File Sharing · · Score: 1

    They applied for patent in 2000. Was anyone doing it before that?

  3. Re:MicroBroadcasters on Microbroadcasting Summer Camp · · Score: 1

    GP: Maybe in New York or LA but in a town like Des Moines, Iowa there's PLENTY of specturm available...

    P: There is the same amount of spectrum in New York as there is in Des Moines.


    He didn't say total spectrum, he said spectrum available. Exactly the same as what you said.

    GP: Why can't WE THE PEOPLE, by whose authority public resources are SUPPOSED to be available fairly (if not equally), use broadcast media for our own purposes?

    P: Because there are not enough of those resources for everyone to use them at the same time, even in Des Moines, IA.


    Well, then, it's sure a good thing that rich companies get the vast majority of what's out there.

  4. Re:MicroBroadcasters on Microbroadcasting Summer Camp · · Score: 1

    Similar thing happened to me. When I was living at my folks house, my backyard neighbors set up a (large) CB antenna. The signal got sapped right up into my telephone cord. My folks tried complaining, though I forgot whom to, but no action was taken.

  5. Re:Excuuuuuse me? on Record Labels Push for iTunes Price Hike · · Score: 1

    Who cares if the singer's voice isn't authentic? It sounds better, doesn't it?

    Not necessarily. Autotune can leave annoying artifacts if its made to fix a really badly out of tune voice. Furthermore, some performers greatly benefit from being out of tune, either in certain parts of a song, or wholesale.

  6. Re:Ripoffs? on Record Labels Push for iTunes Price Hike · · Score: 1

    KMFDM (Rammstein? Again, who was first?)

    KMFDM (1984-) was around long before Rammstein (1993-).

  7. Re:Oh, please on Record Labels Push for iTunes Price Hike · · Score: 1

    The Mars Volta

    From the one song I've heard, perhaps early Sonic Youth? Not that I think they're ripping them off, just performing in the same style. If they were ripping them off, they'd have to be performing exactly the same stuff, which discredits a lot of what's said in this thread.

  8. Re:Oh, please on Record Labels Push for iTunes Price Hike · · Score: 1

    Has Led Zeppelin produced anything new lately?

    If you consider that their live music was often substantially different than the recorded stuff, then there's "How The West Was Won", released a year or two ago. ... and I'm not even a fan.

  9. Re:Please... kill me now on Record Labels Push for iTunes Price Hike · · Score: 1

    $50 million, to be held (not taken, exactly) by the state until the artists are located.

    I do wonder what rocks the RIAA were looking under...

  10. Re:Please... kill me now on Record Labels Push for iTunes Price Hike · · Score: 1

    I misspoke. Isn't there a Quicktime graphics API? Ah, it's more akin to DirectX; my mistake was confusing it with a widget API. Foot firmly planted in mouth.

    At any rate, the iTunes client itself is definately more than a "eStore", in that it's a thick client / application, although it need not necessarily be.

  11. Re:Please... kill me now on Record Labels Push for iTunes Price Hike · · Score: 1

    A good counter to this argument would be to show the decline of sales relative to the increase in price.

    Well, assuming the RIAA are interested in a logical argument... oh, oops.

  12. Re:Please... kill me now on Record Labels Push for iTunes Price Hike · · Score: 1

    The store itself? Codemonkeys are cheap and can easily handle the job, it's not much different from any other e-commerce store

    Well, not exactly. iTunes is a Quicktime-based application (correct?), where as most "eStores" are browser based.

  13. Re:Please... kill me now on Record Labels Push for iTunes Price Hike · · Score: 1

    I'd love to know how CC companies actually make their dollar. I used to think it was $0.25 per transaction (or some similar amount). But I heard recently that it was 5% of the transaction amount. Of course, I can't say how reputable either source was.

  14. Re:Please... kill me now on Record Labels Push for iTunes Price Hike · · Score: 1

    Just to counter, I too interned for a independent label, and I never once heard about mistreatment of money, from either the bands (some of which I was friends with) or the two people who actually ran the label (both of which I was friends with).

    Not to say that all indies are good, obviously, but to confirm that not all are bad.

  15. Re:You've got it all wrong... on Record Labels Push for iTunes Price Hike · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Personally, I just don't buy single-CD albums for $16.99. And I'm sure as hell not going to buy a single-CD's worth of MP3s for that much.

    With the popularity of stores like Best Buys and Walmart, where the new CDs are something more like $11.99 to $13.99, is anyone actually paying that high of a price?

    So, it seems to me like this is more of a move to kill off or injure iTunes.

    Aside, I often see older, back-catalog CDs selling for those prices. I always figured it was because the record industry thought that anyone who was going to buy them was diong so because they really wanted to get that album, and therefore they could milk the customer for more. As compared to the "new hit" CD, which I suspect people buy en mass because it's cool, hip, and now.

  16. Re:Please... kill me now on Record Labels Push for iTunes Price Hike · · Score: 1

    Or, if the Big Five are only pressuring iTunes, then it could be a way to knock them down a few steps, which would be good news for other online stores-- stores with more strict DRM.

  17. Re:Apple iTMS supports indies on Record Labels Push for iTunes Price Hike · · Score: 1

    I would LOVE to see the prices hiked on all the Big-Five tracks, while the indie tracks stay at a nice, cheap 99 cents. Then let the free market do its job. Let the Big-Five loose MORE sales, and cry foul again.

    What I really want to know is whether the Big Five have only targeted (sp?) iTunes, or will they demand price hikes on WalTunes, SonyTunes, NapTunes, etc. Because if they're not, I have this itching in the back of my head about conspiracy... something about getting iTunes / Apple out of the marketplace to make room for stores with tighter DRM...

  18. Re:old news on CDs May be Less Immortal than We Thought · · Score: 1

    You're wrong. :)

    Yes, in fact, there was. It has been known since the mid 90s, at least, that poorly produced pressed CDs have been subject to an untimely demise.

    With regard to CDs, this isn't new news, but it is worth alerting people to every few years or so, to make sure the new folks are fully informed.

    With regard to DVDs, I don't personally recall this making the news before, but I'm likely to have missed it. (Another good reason to bring it up every few years or so.)

  19. Re:Motives on RIAA Forgets to Make Royalty Payments · · Score: 1

    Out of curiosity, I did a not-very-thorough websearch for relationships between the named artists and the RIAA.

    As it turns out, David Bowie sees no need for copyrights, labels, or traditional distribution. So no need for the RIAA.

    Harry Belafonte is among those supporting AFM's STAR (Support Tejano Advancement in Recording), which seems to be about fighting for the rights of amazingly underpaid Tejano recording artists. I don't know if they are fighting the RIAA directly, but the RIAA does at least have numbers relating to their sales.

    I didn't find anything on the others, either particuarily good or bad, except that they all seems to sell amazingly well according to the RIAA.

    * Please forgive any typos, etc. I'm in a rush to pop out the door.

  20. Re:No F... way they will on Projected 'Average' Longhorn System Is A Whopper · · Score: 1

    They won't. They'll say "Fuck it. What we got works".

    Er, no. Because if they don't take the money and use it, they won't get it allocated next year, or the year later, when they do need it. Speaking from a little expirience in a semi-government office years ago.

  21. Re:Basic electronics on Microsoft's Janus DRM Software Officially Unveiled · · Score: 1

    As technology becomes smaller and more complicated, we're moving further and further out of the realm of the abilities of the common user.

    Let's say that an especially bright engineer came up with the ultimate it-just-works recording circuit for the new fangled HDTV. Do you think Joe Artist is going to be able to open up his HDTV and install it without screwing it up? If it's out of the reach of the common layman, it's not good enough.

  22. Re:Can't stop copying... on Microsoft's Janus DRM Software Officially Unveiled · · Score: 1

    I did look it up, thanks. But I can't imagine that spending several thousand dollars for quality equipment is better than non-DRMed equipment.

    And I'm not talking about piracy. I'm talking about making backups (my right) and creative personal reuse (also my right).

  23. Re:Can't stop copying... on Microsoft's Janus DRM Software Officially Unveiled · · Score: 1

    Nothing's going to stop you from diong it now. But the guy who just wants to creatively edit video for his own enjoyment, and isn't a geeky engineer, is screwed.

  24. Re:Basic electronics on Microsoft's Janus DRM Software Officially Unveiled · · Score: 1

    Audio is easy; video is harder.

  25. Re:Backwards compatible outputs have to go? on Microsoft's Janus DRM Software Officially Unveiled · · Score: 2, Insightful

    And with DVDs came (poor) encryption.

    Incidently, what shops are still selling VHS tapes? I was in Best Buy this past weekend, and I don't remember seeing VHS tapes, just racks and racks of DVDs. Similar thing with Circuit City and Good Guys. The only place I remember seeing predominately VHS tapes for sale is rental places clearing out their back stock.

    What I should have pointed out what was that, yes, entertainment companies will bundle some extra goodie to give the consumer some incentive to purchase the "protected" goods. I agree that DVDs are better than VHS tapes, in terms of content. But would you rather have 15 extra commentary tracks, or your freedom of creative reuse for personal purposes and to make backups so you don't need to "purchase" another copy when your computer crashes?