Fuck Beta... I've been on this site for over 16 years I thought you guys were on something until I went and viewed it. It is an unholy abomination. I even took the time to dig up my Slashdot account instead of lurking because of how horrendous the new site is to use.
P.S. Do I get bonus points for hating Beta with a 4 digit UID or does that just make me old? Of course you can't see that if you are using beta.;)
Unfortunately, I have to strongly disagree with you. The future importance of Geo Cities cannot be discounted. One of the most prized finds in archaeology is the ancient human garbage dump... Geo Cities is the largest garbage dump of our generation!! The reason for this is because the knowledge behind many historical items of significance DOESN'T EXIST ANYMORE!!!
Researching even the detritus of Geo Cities would provide a great deal of insight into our culture to those researching it hundreds of years from now. Given the difficulties our civilization has had in researching the construction of the pyramids, Stone Henge, and the Mayan calendar, no reasonable person should be okay with destroying our history... even if it is "garbage." These instances, and many others, demonstrate the vast quantities of knowledge that have been lost throughout the ages. The sad part is that it probably derived from the people of that time having an attitude similar to yours.
As a result, we have people producing documentaries on the History Channel proclaiming ALIENS had to help build the Pyramids and create the Mayan calendar.. because, you know, humans back then had to be too stupid and simple to do it themselves. Heck, we cannot even recover some knowledge from the 1960's and 70's because of our blatant disregard of the potential need for the information in the future!!! Perhaps you may not care, but I would prefer people knowing how we built the Hoover Damn or developed atomic energy. It would be highly insulting for future generations to have create a hypothesis about alien life allowing us to build our great achievements because your attitude resulted in the information being destroyed.
In short, I'd rather future civilizations know too much about us rather than too little.
I believe it was a SYN flood but like I said I'm just a moderator at the site. I never had the desire to learn about being a sys admin so therefore I may be incorrect about the details of such an attack.
While these two sites may be the biggest sites that we know of under DDoS attacks to me it seems to be more widespread. I am a moderator of a small Mazda enthusiast forum and we underwent a variety of DDoS attacks pretty much all night from varying addresses. I have no clue why someone would want to DDoS a small non-profit forum (we have our own server) but seems to me like Suprnova.org and the other BitTorrent sites are just collateral in a much larger game.
Luckily for us, we have a very good admin and he was updating the firewall rules pretty much left and right. Site never went down but at least we weren't posted on the front page of Slashdot either... then things would have been a bit different.
This practically reminds me of the first reports about the the uber network called Gnutella and how it was supposed to own all other p2p networks. It worked well for awhile when it was small but then, at least IMO, became more of a hassle to use as it grew then the programs it was designed to replace.
I wish the SuprNova.org people the best of luck with there new program but I'll wait for the finished product before I start thinking its the Holy Grail of file sharing. The one thing though that is a big plus for them is how BitTorrent has developed to this point, on my torrents for UT2004 upgrades I've gotten 300-400k second which I'll take any day of the week.
While a good idea the U.S. would never go for it unless the opposing force was only allowed to use the regular weapons and vehicles and U.S. force all got Redeemers by default... With no friendly fire penalty mind you since the citizens might be outraged is someone has to respawn.
The C3, while it has many good uses, isn't P4 grade. IMO I think the government would rather have countries stuck using those for their simulators since the FPU performance makes my old Duron 700 look like a champ. Although we all know that --insert favorite "militarily controlled"/"hated by the U.S." country here-- would be able to get high performance computers from some other party not subject to export restrictions, which totally defeats the purpose of export restrictions.
Well the main reason they did not produce the gun type bombs is because of several reasons. When you take into context the production of Uranium-235 at the Oak Ridge refinement facility back in the Manhattan Project days, they were getting several kg's a month (I don't remember the exact amount) so this was never a mass producable design in WWII. Which, due to the production process limits at the time meant that they couldn't just churn out another 85-140lb's of U-235 the next day or even month.
The second point that I would make as to why they were never mass produced relates to something you talked about in your post. Since the Little Boy was not a very efficient bomb why would I (U.S. or anyone else) want to mass produce it if the only resource it worked with was very hard/expensive to produce in significant quantities and would be used very inefficiently in the delivery of any nuclear weapon. Essentially the implosion assemblies allowed for greater efficiency which means you need less material to accomplish the same goal. In the long run the costs of developing the implosion based devices is worth it. Since, it would have cost quite a bit of money to refine enough U-235 for a sizable nuclear arsenal of gun-type bombs.
While you have a good point, both Cingular and T Mobile have GSM networks. I'm quite sure the Cingular's GSM network would have to be pretty extensive due to their service. I use T-Mobile and even I'm not exactly thrilled with the service on long trips, (goes into roaming in remotes areas on other GSM networks), it works great for the 99.9% of the time I am in town.
Your right it will trickle off, but that is because the groups will become more secretive, more elusive, and harder to break into. Its kinda like the U.S. Army Delta Force, everyone knows it exists but rarely can you find them, know what they are doing, and easily join them.
Oh give me a break. People can copy console games as well, it just actually requires some skill and/or knowledge to be able to do it, so while that may be a reason I discount it to a certain degree.
Second, PC's aren't developed for as much anymore because there are too many damn parts out there. The customisation we think is great is murder to program. Would you rather develop a game that accounts for 100's of different combinations of graphics cards, sound cards, CPU's, and Memory that constantly changes. Or would you like to program for 1 set spec that doesn't change for 3-5 years?
I think I would choose the latter, that is why many places go for consoles. Plus consoles lend themselves to multiplayer very well (I'm talking about having people over as well as internet). Overall, develop costs on a console are LOWER for a major title, which is what allows more companies to enter the market. Yes you can do the Doom 3 route and FORCE people to upgrade but economically you are not maximizing your market and many companies / development houses simply don't have the glamor that iD, Valve, and Digital Extremes.
Now you know I have only bought 3 games in the last 2 years (UT2004, Medal of Honor, & Hegemonia) in comparison I've bought 18 console games. The reason is simply because none of the other PC games were intruiging to me and/or had gameplay issues or stability issues that even patching did not fix.
There were plenty of good PC games released in that time period to be sure but there was a large volume of crap that was produced as well because for PC's almost anyone can develop software. (yes i know this seems to contradict my previous statement on consoles, but note there I was referring to companies.)
If anyone is familar with the German goverment you know they have a 5% rule for any party wanting to run in the government, this allows a diversity of parties (choices) but keeps most of the fringe parties out. On consoles the initial cost of the dev kit could be considered the 5% rule, since it will keep more of the bad stuff out then no barrier to entry at all when you look at the PC.
I will say it is good for the feds to crack down on these groups but I would like to see them crack down on the piracy rings that SELL this as well. Also, your right I do have something against Ashcroft, anyone who looses to a DEAD man doesn't deserve a place in public office. He is a conservative zealot and spews more propaganda then the anti-smoking people.
I, however, do not participate in "piracy" because people who produce something I like and use deserve my money for it so they can continue to develop more products and be paid for their efforts. I will say in all fairness that I download some music. But you know what, if I listen to it in my car every day for a month and it doesn't get tossed then I buy it because obviously it fits my tastes. Yes, you can see this as a justification but I see it as radio w/o the Clear Channel, I discover talent, not have it force fed to me. Also, if you compare my CD buying habits before mp3's and after you would find that I have bought many more cd's after mp3's. If you want justification and evidence for that, thats another post in itself.
I'd love to see a new or even a recent Taurus with a clutch. I just had my Taurus transmission go out (after 140,000 miles) and it would have cost $2000 (transmission was $1600 of that) to fix a car that was worth $900. Needless to say I drive a nice new shiny car while my old car was shipped off to some charity to part out.
While I agree that we spent alot of money on Commance that could have found its way elsewhere the systems and technology developed will be used in other defense projects. For instance the advanced rotor design of the Commanche could perhaps be used as an upgrade to some of our existing helicopter platforms. The improvements in cockpit management and targetting systems will also undoubtly be upgrades for Apaches and maybe even the Super Cobras. Either way, our tax payer dollars will have some good come out of the program even if the machine that was the main focus of it is killed.
The reason I have heard that you can see people flying Mig 15's, F-86's, and a whole slew of other Korean War era aircraft (and some newer aircraft as well) is because they lack the capability to carry nuclear weapons and/or missiles. I heard this from an aviation lawyer at EAA's Air Venture (formerly Osh Kosh) a few years ago so it may be inaccurate or wrong entirely.
I also imagine that the technology in those aircraft, while outdated, would still present enough of a problem for the government to not want civillians owning one.
Keep in mind I'm not saying all aircraft are covered by this because you can buy some Vietnam era or newer military aircraft but they all tend to be observation, recon, or training aircraft. Like I said it may be inaccurate but it does make alot of sense when you consider such decommishioned aircraft as the F-100 Super Sabre, F-105 Thunderchief, F-8 Crusader II, A-7 Corsair II, etc.
"...empowering the FBI to release anti-P2P propaganda and other typical RIAA/MPAA sponsored oddities."
I think I can safely say that this one will get the message out about as effectively as the government's drug ads. Lord knows all my friends stop passing the bong around when a drug PSA comes on. So I can't wait to see the throngs of kids who suddenly stop (or start) doing P2P because the government feels the need to release a "The More You Know" ad in the middle of Saturday morning cartoons.
One thing that does disturb me as a scientist in general is the chilling effects on academic research in the United States. If we continue to pander to large companies with fat wallets (read DMCA) the United States could very conceivabley loose its place as a leader of technological innovation.
This would be a very catastophic result since this is one of the few areas the United States actually exports more than it imports (the only other area is aircraft).
If the United States lost its technological edge and thus the economic advantage it enjoys in this field the economic effects worldwide could be very troubling (As a percentage of worldwide consumption the United States accounts for 20%). Therfore, people in other countries who see the DMCA as an American problem should try and see that if this type of lawmaking persists in the United States any ill effects of these laws could very well affect the rest of the world in addition to the United States.
I think instead of us all getting upset at the ridiculousness of the lawsuit we should be praising it.
Is the lawsuit ridiculous? Most certainly.
Is the lawsuit an attempt by SunnComm to hide their technical deficiencies in their so called copy protections? Yes.
However, what is even more important is this case, if it goes to trial will further underscore the problems with the DMCA.
RIAA has brought enough scrutiny on the law recently with the forests of trees that have become subpeonas to 12 year olds and grandmothers. However, the fact of the matter is in their case they are protecting their legal copyright (although using a sledge hammer on a tack is a bit excesive, but to them it gets the job done). While they may turn popular opinion against them many people may not entirely understand the DMCA and the provisions it gives copyright holders, thus making any change in the law relatively minor (such as requiring judicial review to issue a subpeona).
However, if you can provide in addition to RIAA's abuse of the DMCA vast examples that companies are using this law wholesale to cover up anything they deem violates their rights then a pattern of missuse can be proven.
So far the pattern of missuse can be seen in the Dimitri Skylarov trial, MPAA and the magical and 40bit encryption known as CSS (which in the end only took 5 lines of code to break), RIAA preventing the publishing of academic research on the faults of their digital watermark in music, etc.
This list goes on and on, while this is not the first time nor will it be the last someone is threatened with the DMCA. It is important that the author decided to test the law rather than hide as has happened in prior cases. The more the publicity about how draconian it is the better the chance for meaningful change and hopefully to restore some balance in favor of the consumer and researcher.
IANAL but owning my own business and consulting for several others I think things are pretty cut and dry from a business stand point.
This is not about Apple Records crying foul over trademark or copyright infringements but is moreover most likely related to the laws governing incorporation of a business. If Apple Records was already registed in California as Apple Inc. or something similar Apple Computer would had to have gotten permission from Apple Records to be incorporated under a similar name.
Most companies will let this happen but only if the company wanting to incorporate under a similar name agrees not to enter its market. This appears to be exactly what Apple Music asked of Apple Computer and Apple Computer obliged. So we really should not be making Apple Music into another big bad ligitation-happy corporation because they are simply enforcing the agreement Apple Computer willingly signed.
Now whether we feel the merits of the lawsuits are justified is not important in contract law. The only thing that is important is whether the contract is legally binding and enforcable. It seems as if it is and Apple Computer has willingly cornered itself in its business strategy.
After all who would of thought of music on personal computers back in the early 80's.
Therefore instead of getting upset with Apple Records we should all see that Apple Computers latest lawsuit is one that they knew would be coming and have probably set aside some money to pay Apple Music off. Just don't be surprised if Apple Records wants some sort of royalties from iPods or something of the like.
Finally I repeat even though we may not like it Apple Music is merely enforcing its contract that was mutually agreed to by Apple Computer.
After reading many a thread on the forums this I will say has caught my attention. Now that said I think that many people don't exactly understand New Media and the like. There is one thing to get your information from ABCNews.com or CNN.com and another to get it from places like Slashdot.org and places like TheRegister. First when I go to ABCNews or CNN I expect just the news and I trust there word for what it is. Now as far as places like TheRegister and Slashdot I like because they inject their opinions into the piece. Maybe it doesn't make for good journalism or something along those lines, but I know when I read these sites that everything should be taken with a grain of salt. The problem with today is too many people want to take everything on the internet as pure fact and thats completely wrong, after all it a place for freedom of expression etc... in addition to fact. So the fact that Mr. Katz or any other Slashdot staff member injects their opinion into an article doesn't bother me. However, people that are too ignorant to judge things for themselves and who take everything as fact does bother me. So in conclusion I believe it is not the fact that Slashdot editorializes its news that should be of concern to readers, but the concern of readers should be that some fellow readers cannot distinguish fact from opinion.
Slashdot Mirror
Fuck Beta... I've been on this site for over 16 years I thought you guys were on something until I went and viewed it. It is an unholy abomination. I even took the time to dig up my Slashdot account instead of lurking because of how horrendous the new site is to use.
P.S. Do I get bonus points for hating Beta with a 4 digit UID or does that just make me old? Of course you can't see that if you are using beta. ;)
Unfortunately, I have to strongly disagree with you. The future importance of Geo Cities cannot be discounted. One of the most prized finds in archaeology is the ancient human garbage dump... Geo Cities is the largest garbage dump of our generation!! The reason for this is because the knowledge behind many historical items of significance DOESN'T EXIST ANYMORE!!!
Researching even the detritus of Geo Cities would provide a great deal of insight into our culture to those researching it hundreds of years from now. Given the difficulties our civilization has had in researching the construction of the pyramids, Stone Henge, and the Mayan calendar, no reasonable person should be okay with destroying our history... even if it is "garbage." These instances, and many others, demonstrate the vast quantities of knowledge that have been lost throughout the ages. The sad part is that it probably derived from the people of that time having an attitude similar to yours.
As a result, we have people producing documentaries on the History Channel proclaiming ALIENS had to help build the Pyramids and create the Mayan calendar.. because, you know, humans back then had to be too stupid and simple to do it themselves. Heck, we cannot even recover some knowledge from the 1960's and 70's because of our blatant disregard of the potential need for the information in the future!!! Perhaps you may not care, but I would prefer people knowing how we built the Hoover Damn or developed atomic energy. It would be highly insulting for future generations to have create a hypothesis about alien life allowing us to build our great achievements because your attitude resulted in the information being destroyed.
In short, I'd rather future civilizations know too much about us rather than too little.
I see your Bill O'Reilly and raise Keith Olbermann (MSNBC), Rachel Maddow (MSNBC), Campbell Brown (CNN), and Glenn Beck (FOX).
Face it, MSNBC, FOX, and CNN and the rest of our news media are filled with tools... It's like pointing out horse crap at the Kentucky Derby.
It is sad that comedians like John Stewart and Steven Colbert are more informative and balanced than the "real" news media.
I moderate over at clubatenza.com under the name PhatalOne.
I believe it was a SYN flood but like I said I'm just a moderator at the site. I never had the desire to learn about being a sys admin so therefore I may be incorrect about the details of such an attack.
While these two sites may be the biggest sites that we know of under DDoS attacks to me it seems to be more widespread. I am a moderator of a small Mazda enthusiast forum and we underwent a variety of DDoS attacks pretty much all night from varying addresses. I have no clue why someone would want to DDoS a small non-profit forum (we have our own server) but seems to me like Suprnova.org and the other BitTorrent sites are just collateral in a much larger game.
Luckily for us, we have a very good admin and he was updating the firewall rules pretty much left and right. Site never went down but at least we weren't posted on the front page of Slashdot either... then things would have been a bit different.
This practically reminds me of the first reports about the the uber network called Gnutella and how it was supposed to own all other p2p networks. It worked well for awhile when it was small but then, at least IMO, became more of a hassle to use as it grew then the programs it was designed to replace.
I wish the SuprNova.org people the best of luck with there new program but I'll wait for the finished product before I start thinking its the Holy Grail of file sharing. The one thing though that is a big plus for them is how BitTorrent has developed to this point, on my torrents for UT2004 upgrades I've gotten 300-400k second which I'll take any day of the week.
While a good idea the U.S. would never go for it unless the opposing force was only allowed to use the regular weapons and vehicles and U.S. force all got Redeemers by default... With no friendly fire penalty mind you since the citizens might be outraged is someone has to respawn.
The C3, while it has many good uses, isn't P4 grade. IMO I think the government would rather have countries stuck using those for their simulators since the FPU performance makes my old Duron 700 look like a champ. Although we all know that --insert favorite "militarily controlled"/"hated by the U.S." country here-- would be able to get high performance computers from some other party not subject to export restrictions, which totally defeats the purpose of export restrictions.
Well the main reason they did not produce the gun type bombs is because of several reasons. When you take into context the production of Uranium-235 at the Oak Ridge refinement facility back in the Manhattan Project days, they were getting several kg's a month (I don't remember the exact amount) so this was never a mass producable design in WWII. Which, due to the production process limits at the time meant that they couldn't just churn out another 85-140lb's of U-235 the next day or even month.
The second point that I would make as to why they were never mass produced relates to something you talked about in your post. Since the Little Boy was not a very efficient bomb why would I (U.S. or anyone else) want to mass produce it if the only resource it worked with was very hard/expensive to produce in significant quantities and would be used very inefficiently in the delivery of any nuclear weapon. Essentially the implosion assemblies allowed for greater efficiency which means you need less material to accomplish the same goal. In the long run the costs of developing the implosion based devices is worth it. Since, it would have cost quite a bit of money to refine enough U-235 for a sizable nuclear arsenal of gun-type bombs.
While you have a good point, both Cingular and T Mobile have GSM networks. I'm quite sure the Cingular's GSM network would have to be pretty extensive due to their service. I use T-Mobile and even I'm not exactly thrilled with the service on long trips, (goes into roaming in remotes areas on other GSM networks), it works great for the 99.9% of the time I am in town.
Your right it will trickle off, but that is because the groups will become more secretive, more elusive, and harder to break into. Its kinda like the U.S. Army Delta Force, everyone knows it exists but rarely can you find them, know what they are doing, and easily join them.
Oh give me a break. People can copy console games as well, it just actually requires some skill and/or knowledge to be able to do it, so while that may be a reason I discount it to a certain degree.
Second, PC's aren't developed for as much anymore because there are too many damn parts out there. The customisation we think is great is murder to program. Would you rather develop a game that accounts for 100's of different combinations of graphics cards, sound cards, CPU's, and Memory that constantly changes. Or would you like to program for 1 set spec that doesn't change for 3-5 years?
I think I would choose the latter, that is why many places go for consoles. Plus consoles lend themselves to multiplayer very well (I'm talking about having people over as well as internet). Overall, develop costs on a console are LOWER for a major title, which is what allows more companies to enter the market. Yes you can do the Doom 3 route and FORCE people to upgrade but economically you are not maximizing your market and many companies / development houses simply don't have the glamor that iD, Valve, and Digital Extremes.
Now you know I have only bought 3 games in the last 2 years (UT2004, Medal of Honor, & Hegemonia) in comparison I've bought 18 console games. The reason is simply because none of the other PC games were intruiging to me and/or had gameplay issues or stability issues that even patching did not fix.
There were plenty of good PC games released in that time period to be sure but there was a large volume of crap that was produced as well because for PC's almost anyone can develop software. (yes i know this seems to contradict my previous statement on consoles, but note there I was referring to companies.)
If anyone is familar with the German goverment you know they have a 5% rule for any party wanting to run in the government, this allows a diversity of parties (choices) but keeps most of the fringe parties out. On consoles the initial cost of the dev kit could be considered the 5% rule, since it will keep more of the bad stuff out then no barrier to entry at all when you look at the PC.
I will say it is good for the feds to crack down on these groups but I would like to see them crack down on the piracy rings that SELL this as well. Also, your right I do have something against Ashcroft, anyone who looses to a DEAD man doesn't deserve a place in public office. He is a conservative zealot and spews more propaganda then the anti-smoking people.
I, however, do not participate in "piracy" because people who produce something I like and use deserve my money for it so they can continue to develop more products and be paid for their efforts. I will say in all fairness that I download some music. But you know what, if I listen to it in my car every day for a month and it doesn't get tossed then I buy it because obviously it fits my tastes. Yes, you can see this as a justification but I see it as radio w/o the Clear Channel, I discover talent, not have it force fed to me. Also, if you compare my CD buying habits before mp3's and after you would find that I have bought many more cd's after mp3's. If you want justification and evidence for that, thats another post in itself.
Hmmm,
I'd love to see a new or even a recent Taurus with a clutch. I just had my Taurus transmission go out (after 140,000 miles) and it would have cost $2000 (transmission was $1600 of that) to fix a car that was worth $900. Needless to say I drive a nice new shiny car while my old car was shipped off to some charity to part out.
While I agree that we spent alot of money on Commance that could have found its way elsewhere the systems and technology developed will be used in other defense projects. For instance the advanced rotor design of the Commanche could perhaps be used as an upgrade to some of our existing helicopter platforms. The improvements in cockpit management and targetting systems will also undoubtly be upgrades for Apaches and maybe even the Super Cobras. Either way, our tax payer dollars will have some good come out of the program even if the machine that was the main focus of it is killed.
And the sad thing is the only person with enough balls to sue RIAA is a woman... go figure.
The reason I have heard that you can see people flying Mig 15's, F-86's, and a whole slew of other Korean War era aircraft (and some newer aircraft as well) is because they lack the capability to carry nuclear weapons and/or missiles. I heard this from an aviation lawyer at EAA's Air Venture (formerly Osh Kosh) a few years ago so it may be inaccurate or wrong entirely.
I also imagine that the technology in those aircraft, while outdated, would still present enough of a problem for the government to not want civillians owning one.
Keep in mind I'm not saying all aircraft are covered by this because you can buy some Vietnam era or newer military aircraft but they all tend to be observation, recon, or training aircraft. Like I said it may be inaccurate but it does make alot of sense when you consider such decommishioned aircraft as the F-100 Super Sabre, F-105 Thunderchief, F-8 Crusader II, A-7 Corsair II, etc.
I think I can safely say that this one will get the message out about as effectively as the government's drug ads. Lord knows all my friends stop passing the bong around when a drug PSA comes on. So I can't wait to see the throngs of kids who suddenly stop (or start) doing P2P because the government feels the need to release a "The More You Know" ad in the middle of Saturday morning cartoons.
Get a life. This is merely a discussion forum not a place for you to try and tear people down to make yourself feel bigger.
One thing that does disturb me as a scientist in general is the chilling effects on academic research in the United States. If we continue to pander to large companies with fat wallets (read DMCA) the United States could very conceivabley loose its place as a leader of technological innovation.
This would be a very catastophic result since this is one of the few areas the United States actually exports more than it imports (the only other area is aircraft).
If the United States lost its technological edge and thus the economic advantage it enjoys in this field the economic effects worldwide could be very troubling (As a percentage of worldwide consumption the United States accounts for 20%). Therfore, people in other countries who see the DMCA as an American problem should try and see that if this type of lawmaking persists in the United States any ill effects of these laws could very well affect the rest of the world in addition to the United States.
I think instead of us all getting upset at the ridiculousness of the lawsuit we should be praising it.
Is the lawsuit ridiculous? Most certainly.
Is the lawsuit an attempt by SunnComm to hide their technical deficiencies in their so called copy protections? Yes.
However, what is even more important is this case, if it goes to trial will further underscore the problems with the DMCA.
RIAA has brought enough scrutiny on the law recently with the forests of trees that have become subpeonas to 12 year olds and grandmothers. However, the fact of the matter is in their case they are protecting their legal copyright (although using a sledge hammer on a tack is a bit excesive, but to them it gets the job done). While they may turn popular opinion against them many people may not entirely understand the DMCA and the provisions it gives copyright holders, thus making any change in the law relatively minor (such as requiring judicial review to issue a subpeona).
However, if you can provide in addition to RIAA's abuse of the DMCA vast examples that companies are using this law wholesale to cover up anything they deem violates their rights then a pattern of missuse can be proven.
So far the pattern of missuse can be seen in the Dimitri Skylarov trial, MPAA and the magical and 40bit encryption known as CSS (which in the end only took 5 lines of code to break), RIAA preventing the publishing of academic research on the faults of their digital watermark in music, etc.
This list goes on and on, while this is not the first time nor will it be the last someone is threatened with the DMCA. It is important that the author decided to test the law rather than hide as has happened in prior cases. The more the publicity about how draconian it is the better the chance for meaningful change and hopefully to restore some balance in favor of the consumer and researcher.
IANAL but owning my own business and consulting for several others I think things are pretty cut and dry from a business stand point.
This is not about Apple Records crying foul over trademark or copyright infringements but is moreover most likely related to the laws governing incorporation of a business. If Apple Records was already registed in California as Apple Inc. or something similar Apple Computer would had to have gotten permission from Apple Records to be incorporated under a similar name.
Most companies will let this happen but only if the company wanting to incorporate under a similar name agrees not to enter its market. This appears to be exactly what Apple Music asked of Apple Computer and Apple Computer obliged. So we really should not be making Apple Music into another big bad ligitation-happy corporation because they are simply enforcing the agreement Apple Computer willingly signed.
Now whether we feel the merits of the lawsuits are justified is not important in contract law. The only thing that is important is whether the contract is legally binding and enforcable. It seems as if it is and Apple Computer has willingly cornered itself in its business strategy.
After all who would of thought of music on personal computers back in the early 80's.
Therefore instead of getting upset with Apple Records we should all see that Apple Computers latest lawsuit is one that they knew would be coming and have probably set aside some money to pay Apple Music off. Just don't be surprised if Apple Records wants some sort of royalties from iPods or something of the like.
Finally I repeat even though we may not like it Apple Music is merely enforcing its contract that was mutually agreed to by Apple Computer.
After reading many a thread on the forums this I will say has caught my attention. Now that said I think that many people don't exactly understand New Media and the like. There is one thing to get your information from ABCNews.com or CNN.com and another to get it from places like Slashdot.org and places like TheRegister. First when I go to ABCNews or CNN I expect just the news and I trust there word for what it is. Now as far as places like TheRegister and Slashdot I like because they inject their opinions into the piece. Maybe it doesn't make for good journalism or something along those lines, but I know when I read these sites that everything should be taken with a grain of salt. The problem with today is too many people want to take everything on the internet as pure fact and thats completely wrong, after all it a place for freedom of expression etc... in addition to fact. So the fact that Mr. Katz or any other Slashdot staff member injects their opinion into an article doesn't bother me. However, people that are too ignorant to judge things for themselves and who take everything as fact does bother me. So in conclusion I believe it is not the fact that Slashdot editorializes its news that should be of concern to readers, but the concern of readers should be that some fellow readers cannot distinguish fact from opinion.