DVDs and CDs can last for a very short time. One scratch on that little disc can kill everything. You are using caddies to mount your precious media, aren't you?
I back up my data, all of which is precious, to three RAID arrays in two countries. Can you do this with your precious DVDs without incurring fascist "postal service" charges?
If you have a fire, all your CDs and DVDs will melt into pools of indistinct data-liquid. Do you want to mop up the remnants of pornography? I know I don't.
I have 80 GB of data -- that's right, 80 *giga*bytes of important documents that I as an important researcher can't afford to lose. On DVD-R (or +R, or *R, or whatever the hell it is today) I would need 18 discs to back it all up. Now maybe you have the free time to sit at a computer, changing discs all night, but I have better things to do.
That's why I recommend the Mirra to all my clients.
Sincerely, Seth Finklestein Proud Mirra Owner since 2003
No. Musical beauty was sold to Clear Channel Worldwide in a $500 million stock swap. You can now buy "musical beauty" as part of the promotional package for your newest pre-fabricated top 40 hit. Once you've paid Clear Channel your $100,000 to package up your "song" (you do have $100,000, right?) then the musical beauty comes along for free!
I strongly recommend that you boycott Clear Channel. Thank you for your time.
Most people quickly tire of reading anything more than five words long. We call this the "Joe Sixpack limitation." To ensure that my posts will be understood by Joe Sixpack and the highly educated Slashdot reader, I occasionally highlight passages which are more important than others.
Yes, but is your music going to be on all of them? If so, I assume that all of them run Windows or Mac OS X.
Of course, you can try this secret Fair Use countermeasure that I invented: burn your iTunes music files to a compact disc recordable disc, then insert the compact disc recordable disc into your Linux box. Use a program like MusicMatch Jukebox (or its equivalent on Linux) to "rip" the compact disc recordable disc into MP3 files. Presto! Your Fair Use concerns have just been alleviated!
As a long-time Apple, I have to disagree. Forbes magazine, one of the United States' foremost authorities on technology, named iTunes Music Store its Product of the Year for 2003. Now, I know several people who use Windows, and all of them are of the opinion that "if you can download it for free, then you should download it for free." This attitude is highly destructive to the intellectual property industry, and will only lead to such initiatives as "Trusted" Computing gaining a foothold.
To address you're so-called "complaints."
"that's a huge flop" -- Apple has sold over 25 million songs on iTunes. That's a huge flop?
"DRM'd to hell" -- You can burn your songs an infinite number of times, as long as you change the playlist every 10th time. Apple permits you to have your music on up to 3 computers (does anyone even have more than two nowadays?) and as many iPods as you want (which is good; I own five).
"harder to use than going online and downloading a blah blah blah" -- Not true. Maybe if you're Joe Sixpack and you enjoy listening to payolaed Top-40 dreck, you can find what you're looking for on the so-called "free" networks. (Many of those networks use proprietary, closed-source software with spyware such as Gator.) I went on the KaZaA and searched for Leonard Cohen, my favourite artist. After five minutes, I could have used my high-capacity Speakeasy DSL to download Leonard's entire catalogue!
Frankly, I consider you little more than a troll. Run along, troll. Go beat rocks together, you sissy!
...such memorable Internet buzzwords as "push technology"? Oh yeah, everyone's going to want a desktop that looks like a hyperactive 2-year-old made it.
I'd also like to take this opportunity to wish all of my followers a merry new year. 2004 will be Michael Sims' last year as a Slashdot "editor."
Yeah, and Al Sharpton is the running favourite in the group of "18-24-year-old black wankers who don't have a clue." Al Sharpton is actually more likely to win the presidency of the United States than Howard Dean is.
You webbers are all the same. You think that just because all the blogs you read endorse Howard Dean, Howard Dean will be elected. He will not. He will lose the election and I will continue to boycott America.
Sincerely, Seth Finklestein Political Pundit and Web Log
The Nitrus is very poor. I plugged it into my Linux boxen, and none of them (none!) would recognize the Nitrus as an external storage device. I had to bring it to an acquaintance's house and use proprietary, closed-source software to copy files to its very small hard drive. It wouldn't even play Ogg Vorbis files.
I would rate the Rio Nitrus very lowly. The new iPod will be much better than any Rio product ever were.
One button is all that Joe Sixpack needs. Joe Sixpack can't even drive his GM SUV with OnStar whilst drinking his Starbucks coffee and talking to his mate on his mobile phone. How can you expect Joe Sixpack to use a scroll wheel?
Sincerely, Seth Finklestein Noam Chomsky fan #540982881
This device does "honour" the broadcast flag. What this means is exactly what you fear: content providers have usurped your right to time shift.
As a consultant, I am frequently out of town on business and on holiday. With this Dish receiver, I would go out of town, return, and find that all of my time shifted programs have expired. Sure, they might look good on my 2-metre plasma screen, but who cares if I'm not allowed to properly record my programmes?
Frankly, I would reiterate my sentiment that this product must be boycotted. Companies need to learn good behaviour.
I don't own a television set, so I had to ask one of my close personal friends to write a review of this device. Here it is.
As you all know, High Definition Television represents a clear and present danger to customers' right to time shift. The so-called "broadcast flag" prevents casual users from exercising their Fair Use rights.
Nevertheless, I watch a lot of television thanks to my TiVo. TiVo lets me skip the commercials, which makes me a "thief" but lets me enjoy the entertainment I deserve. Let's compare some features.
Dish Network DVR-921 HD DVR does not have a "Season Pass" option to let you record a whole season's worth of programming. TiVo has a Season Pass option.
Dish Network DVR-921 HD DVR does not offer the ability to play multimedia content streamed from a personal computer. TiVo's Home Media Options turns your TiVo into a multimedia access centre!
Dish Network DVR-921 HD DVR does not run Linux. TiVo is an open-source-friendly company.
Based on my good friend's comments, I rate Dish Network DVR-921 HD DVR a 1 on the Seth Finklestein scale of greatness. Do not buy the Dish Network DVR-921 HD DVR.
No, thanks. Millions of users, businesses, and countries have switched to the GIMP. Perhaps they got tired of paying $700 for Adobe's feature-poor, bug-ridden implementation of the GIMP.
As a computer professional, I rely on a solid connection to the Internet. That's why I signed up with Speakeasy's high-quality DSL. 99.999% is not 100% though, so I decided to give this "Netscape" a try for when my DSL goes down for no more than 5 minutes a year. I consider $1.00 per month overpriced for what the service does(n't do).
First of all, they insisted on sending me a CD. I refuse to install software provided on read-only media that I didn't burn myself. I tried asking their "Customer Service Rep" for assistance, but I was told that their bargain service does not include free technical support. Grudgingly, I gave the "rep" my single-use credit card number provided by MasterCard, with the assurance that it would be refunded when their crappy software was found to be inadequate. Here is the transcript of my "conversation" with the Indian call center jockey.
Me: I'm trying to set up my Linux box to use your "service." Him: What version of Windows do you have, sir? Me: I use Linux. It's superior to Windows. Him: Could you please right-click My Computer and choose "Properties." Me: I don't have a My Computer. I use Linux. Him: Okay sir, please click on the Start button. Me: Please terminate my service. You lack a clue.
To make a long story short, I was billed $19.95 for that call in which nothing was accomplished. They refuse to support highly optimized Linux boxen like mine. As a result, I will encourage all my followers to boycott this "Netscape" service that cannot be called an "ISP" in good faith.
"Oh noes! We're PLAYING GOD! We're TOYING with the essence of LIFE! OH GOD NO WE omg LOOK at that PUPPY!! It's soooo CUTE! Look at the little puppy! Whats his name? Awwwwww!!" - Every hippy in this thread
Shut the fuck up, hippies! What the hell do you think we've been doing for the past 6000 years? You guessed it -- Genetically engineering animals to exhibit desirable traits, particularly those that amuse us, or suit a particular purpose. Everything from goldfish with big bubbly eyes to the little Maltese puppy dog in the store window. They're all genetically modified for our amusement. Every last one of em. Get over it, and shut up.
Slashdot Mirror
DVDs and CDs can last for a very short time. One scratch on that little disc can kill everything. You are using caddies to mount your precious media, aren't you?
I back up my data, all of which is precious, to three RAID arrays in two countries. Can you do this with your precious DVDs without incurring fascist "postal service" charges?
If you have a fire, all your CDs and DVDs will melt into pools of indistinct data-liquid. Do you want to mop up the remnants of pornography? I know I don't.
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Backup Media Bigot
I have 80 GB of data -- that's right, 80 *giga*bytes of important documents that I as an important researcher can't afford to lose. On DVD-R (or +R, or *R, or whatever the hell it is today) I would need 18 discs to back it all up. Now maybe you have the free time to sit at a computer, changing discs all night, but I have better things to do.
That's why I recommend the Mirra to all my clients.
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Proud Mirra Owner since 2003
No. Musical beauty was sold to Clear Channel Worldwide in a $500 million stock swap. You can now buy "musical beauty" as part of the promotional package for your newest pre-fabricated top 40 hit. Once you've paid Clear Channel your $100,000 to package up your "song" (you do have $100,000, right?) then the musical beauty comes along for free!
I strongly recommend that you boycott Clear Channel. Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Music Pundit 2000
Most people quickly tire of reading anything more than five words long. We call this the "Joe Sixpack limitation." To ensure that my posts will be understood by Joe Sixpack and the highly educated Slashdot reader, I occasionally highlight passages which are more important than others.
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Excellent Cybersecurity Expert
Yes, but is your music going to be on all of them? If so, I assume that all of them run Windows or Mac OS X.
Of course, you can try this secret Fair Use countermeasure that I invented: burn your iTunes music files to a compact disc recordable disc, then insert the compact disc recordable disc into your Linux box. Use a program like MusicMatch Jukebox (or its equivalent on Linux) to "rip" the compact disc recordable disc into MP3 files. Presto! Your Fair Use concerns have just been alleviated!
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Countermeasure Security Expert
No.
As a long-time Apple, I have to disagree. Forbes magazine, one of the United States' foremost authorities on technology, named iTunes Music Store its Product of the Year for 2003. Now, I know several people who use Windows, and all of them are of the opinion that "if you can download it for free, then you should download it for free." This attitude is highly destructive to the intellectual property industry, and will only lead to such initiatives as "Trusted" Computing gaining a foothold.
To address you're so-called "complaints."
Frankly, I consider you little more than a troll. Run along, troll. Go beat rocks together, you sissy!
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Long-Time Apple
...such memorable Internet buzzwords as "push technology"? Oh yeah, everyone's going to want a desktop that looks like a hyperactive 2-year-old made it.
I'd also like to take this opportunity to wish all of my followers a merry new year. 2004 will be Michael Sims' last year as a Slashdot "editor."
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Cyberweb Prognosticateur
For fuck's sake, the word is fuck. Learn to use some real fucking profanity.
Yeah, and Al Sharpton is the running favourite in the group of "18-24-year-old black wankers who don't have a clue." Al Sharpton is actually more likely to win the presidency of the United States than Howard Dean is.
You webbers are all the same. You think that just because all the blogs you read endorse Howard Dean, Howard Dean will be elected. He will not. He will lose the election and I will continue to boycott America.
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Political Pundit and Web Log
The Nitrus is very poor. I plugged it into my Linux boxen, and none of them (none!) would recognize the Nitrus as an external storage device. I had to bring it to an acquaintance's house and use proprietary, closed-source software to copy files to its very small hard drive. It wouldn't even play Ogg Vorbis files.
I would rate the Rio Nitrus very lowly. The new iPod will be much better than any Rio product ever were.
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Audiophile Extraordinaire
One button is all that Joe Sixpack needs. Joe Sixpack can't even drive his GM SUV with OnStar whilst drinking his Starbucks coffee and talking to his mate on his mobile phone. How can you expect Joe Sixpack to use a scroll wheel?
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Noam Chomsky fan #540982881
This device does "honour" the broadcast flag. What this means is exactly what you fear: content providers have usurped your right to time shift.
As a consultant, I am frequently out of town on business and on holiday. With this Dish receiver, I would go out of town, return, and find that all of my time shifted programs have expired. Sure, they might look good on my 2-metre plasma screen, but who cares if I'm not allowed to properly record my programmes?
Frankly, I would reiterate my sentiment that this product must be boycotted. Companies need to learn good behaviour.
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Certified Cybersecurity Expert
I don't own a television set, so I had to ask one of my close personal friends to write a review of this device. Here it is.
As you all know, High Definition Television represents a clear and present danger to customers' right to time shift. The so-called "broadcast flag" prevents casual users from exercising their Fair Use rights.
Nevertheless, I watch a lot of television thanks to my TiVo. TiVo lets me skip the commercials, which makes me a "thief" but lets me enjoy the entertainment I deserve. Let's compare some features.
Dish Network DVR-921 HD DVR does not have a "Season Pass" option to let you record a whole season's worth of programming.
TiVo has a Season Pass option.
Dish Network DVR-921 HD DVR does not offer the ability to play multimedia content streamed from a personal computer.
TiVo's Home Media Options turns your TiVo into a multimedia access centre!
Dish Network DVR-921 HD DVR does not run Linux.
TiVo is an open-source-friendly company.
Based on my good friend's comments, I rate Dish Network DVR-921 HD DVR a 1 on the Seth Finklestein scale of greatness. Do not buy the Dish Network DVR-921 HD DVR.
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
The Hobbit comes before The Fellowship of the Ring, moistard.
Photoshop anyone?
No, thanks. Millions of users, businesses, and countries have switched to the GIMP. Perhaps they got tired of paying $700 for Adobe's feature-poor, bug-ridden implementation of the GIMP.
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Open Source Software Integrator and Consulting Programmer for Hire
While you struggle with the use of opposable thumbs, I have implemented full-text search on my award-winning blog.
I'm sorry that it's taken you so long.
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Michael Sims' worst nightmare
I blogged about this. If you'd like to join me to your blogroll, please blogify my blogosphere and TrackBlog my blog.
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Information Superpundit
What the fuck does Jamie Zawinski know about Netscape? That crackpot hasn't designed anything besides hideous web pages.
He can't hold a candle to me.
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Highly Trained HTML Coder
As a computer professional, I rely on a solid connection to the Internet. That's why I signed up with Speakeasy's high-quality DSL. 99.999% is not 100% though, so I decided to give this "Netscape" a try for when my DSL goes down for no more than 5 minutes a year. I consider $1.00 per month overpriced for what the service does(n't do).
First of all, they insisted on sending me a CD. I refuse to install software provided on read-only media that I didn't burn myself. I tried asking their "Customer Service Rep" for assistance, but I was told that their bargain service does not include free technical support. Grudgingly, I gave the "rep" my single-use credit card number provided by MasterCard, with the assurance that it would be refunded when their crappy software was found to be inadequate. Here is the transcript of my "conversation" with the Indian call center jockey.
To make a long story short, I was billed $19.95 for that call in which nothing was accomplished. They refuse to support highly optimized Linux boxen like mine. As a result, I will encourage all my followers to boycott this "Netscape" service that cannot be called an "ISP" in good faith.
Thank you, and happy Chanukah.
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Cybersecurity Freedom Fighter
One time, ZDNet received a computer that burst into flames while they were testing it.
The computer was rated a 6.1. "Cons: Some heat issues."
Please do not trust ZDNet.
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Cybermedia Gadfly
ZDNet is biased towards Windows products. Please don't post any reviews from them as they are an untrustworthy source.
Believe me. I know about untrustworthy sources.
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
Expert
"Oh noes! We're PLAYING GOD! We're TOYING with the essence of LIFE! OH GOD NO WE omg LOOK at that PUPPY!! It's soooo CUTE! Look at the little puppy! Whats his name? Awwwwww!!" - Every hippy in this thread
Shut the fuck up, hippies! What the hell do you think we've been doing for the past 6000 years? You guessed it -- Genetically engineering animals to exhibit desirable traits, particularly those that amuse us, or suit a particular purpose. Everything from goldfish with big bubbly eyes to the little Maltese puppy dog in the store window. They're all genetically modified for our amusement. Every last one of em. Get over it, and shut up.
Good post.
Sincerely,
Seth Finklestein
To: zowch
From: two minutes ago
Re: Blatant ripoff
Thanks.
Sincerely,
Seth
No, he didn't. Not even Michael Sims is capable of that much short-sightedness.