So, Apple made a mistake in assuming that people wouldn't need to replace the battery, and has now corrected it by offering a battery replacement program and a three-year warranty. What's the big brouhaha all about?
Firstly, let me state I'm neither an iPod/Mac owner nor a rabid anti-Apple person.
I'm firmly a member of the "Replace when necessary" brigade, getting irritated when my dad insists on trying to get stuff repaired way after it's lifespan.
But the emphasis is on when necessary.
In my list of Component Failures that Justify Buying a New Unit, "Battery" is definitely not on it. (Not for a music player, anyway. A PDA, perhaps, and even then I'd favour a unit which was easily fixable if at all possible)
Hard disc? Yes. Screen? Of course.
But the power unit (whether the battery or a PSU/cable) is not something that should mandate having to make a whole new replacement.
Hell. As the article says, even cellphones have replaceable batteries - even though many people but a new handset before/instead-of having to replace the battery.
At the very least it should be stated somewhere clearly that the rechargeable battery has a finite lifespan and is not trivially-replaceable.
Yes, there are other audio players out there. And, for me at least, they will be what I consider when i have the money to shell out for a really decent one. Something where the battery isn't the critical point fo failure.
You DON'T kill off your two main heroes! ARRRRGGHHHH!
Errrrrm, why not?
Some films are irritating because they seem to put their main heroes into life-threatening situations, but you know full well that they'll survive.
But not only did Revolutions turn that around, they did it when you've seen them conform to the cliche before.
In The Matrix, Neo dies, and comes back. And you're pretty certain that he won't die (and that neither will Morpheus).
In Reloaded you see Trinity saved by last-minute save cliche #132.5b. And, again, even as she's falling you just know that Neo'd gonna save her just in time.
They almost seem to be the cliche "unkillable heroes". But for one they're not. Trinity's dead. And Neo, if not confirmed permanently-dead, isn't exactly walking around returning unscathed (and with fixed eyes) before the credits roll either.
I use Windows Media Player when I'm at my parents' house using their XP machine because it's a decent program (forced DRM issues notwithstanding)
Much as I usually slag off Microsoft and their software, WMP is actually a pretty good media player. The only real problem I have with it is the DRM aspect. If it didn't have DRM and constant "call home" attempts, WMP9 would probably be my (video) player of choice.
In fact, it's only that Media Player Classic (along with Real/Quicktime Alternatives) will play every video file I've got that I even stopped using WMP.
Heh. I too am finding myself in the unexpected position of hoping that Microsoft actually win this one.
Yes, I know that WMP is horribly proprietary with a closed format. But so's Real. And if (if) I ever have to buy a Windows box agian, I'd prefer to have only the one horribly proprietary media player installed, thankyou very much.
Besides, I rarely use WMP anyway. And unlike RealOne, it doesn't make it's presence felt even when not using it.
Besides, what the with Real Alternative Player being out, and coming bundled with Media player Classic I've not used WMP for ages now, and never even bothered installing RealOne. (I only need real-compatibility for some low-quality video clips)
The thing is, if Microsoft actually lose this one, where will it go?
When forced to buy a new PC, you'll end up battling with WMP, RealOne, QuickTime, and God-knows-what-else. At least two of which always bombarding you with adverts every time i fires up.
OK, most of the problems go away when you do a reinstall yourself. But there are still a few times when that's not always an option.
I didn't say it wasn't technically illegal. I was just saying that, simply, it doesn't stop anyone. Well, except for the high-street stores. Which makes it a bugger when people send me gift vouchers for Christmas/birthdays.
Even the packaging (here in the UK, anyway) does tend to say "Layer Transition may trigger a slight pause".
But how the DVD is designed can make quite the difference.
Putting a layer transition in a scene transition is a good thing. So if a cheaper player stutters, it stutters over "dead air". (Case: Matrix Reloaded)
But putting a layer transition during speech is a bugger. 'Cos a cheaper player will stutter over something you're trying to pay attention to.
Unfortunately, the CEO of Blockbuster was not interested in whether or not region codes were fundamentally evil. He was only concerned with the fact that their implementation caused an increase in piracy and a decrease in his revenues.
If anything, though, this is more likely to ge the MPAA to lsiten than any of us complainnig about not being able to watch stuff from other parts of the world.
When "one of their own" starts complaining about Region-coding being a potential loss of revenue then they're gonna pay more attention than when Joe Slashdotter says the same thing.
I can't even begin to count the amount of people I know that have big brand players that won't play different regions, or burned anything. Not to mention the countless amount of people who use their PS2s and Xboxen(thats a funny word) as players.
Firstly, as another reply stated, DVDs with no Region-Code (i.e. "Region 0") will play on anything. The PAL/NTSC factor might affect playback quality if your TV won't handle it, but that's not a Ragion issue.
Most importantly, although I don't know about the X-Box, the PS2 is easy to turn into a region-free player. There are several de-region programs available, and many come packaged with remote-control adaptors anyway.
Really, how many people are watching foreign DVD's??
British Anime fans, and British "don't like long waits and/or BBFC certification" fans. That's who.
OK. We're lucky. We actually have something resembling decent Anime DVD choice here these days. But there's a lot of stuff that simply isn't around here. We import. Either the R1 DVDs, or the R4 DVDs.
Plus, whether Anime or not, UK releases are normally several months behind the US. And also you simply can't trust anything to not have BBFC-releated cuts.
You mean like in the UK, where Sony stores will offer to pre-chip players for you and keep the warranty in tact. Even though they're affiliated to a film production operation?
I do think Piracy will lead to more films coming out simultaneously throughout the world, which will make region codes less necessary.
Heh. I bet that's one thing that really ticks of the big companies.
They keep on spinning the line that "Piracy hurts the Industry and the Consumer". but that's simply not true.
If it wasn't for the threat of Piracy, there's no way that the Matrix sequels, LoTR films, and X2 would have been released in such a short International window.
It might have cost "The Industry" more, but it sounds like a win for the Consumer to me.
Aah, but they think it's such an important message to put across. At least, it would be if it wasn't for the fact that...
The "If you think this copy is a pirate copy" message won't appear on the pirated version anyway.
So it's rather pointless.
One of the major selling points for chipped players and flashed drives/software is that not only can you disable the Regions and Macrovision, but you can auto-skip those damn messages.
Failing that, do what most people do. Put the disc in a few minutes early and use the warnings as a chance to go to the loo, or make a cup of tea.
Yes, it's false advertising. Unfortunately all the ISPs are in the same boat, so anybody who advertises honestly that the accounts aren't really unlimited won't get any business and will go broke. It's a selection process that leads only to those willing to advertise falsely being left in the market.
But sooner or later someone is goping to be pulled up on False Advertising. Lord Dweomer raises a very valid point that some people do want to know hard and fast limits. especially seeing that your average Slashdotter is a geek, and we almost by definition push things to the limit. We tweak our hardware and software to try and get the limit out of our systems.
Especially when we're actually paying money for something advertised as "Unlimited".
It's not about getting a "free ride", it's about getting what you pay for. Or, in this case, getting what was advertised.
SCO has violently opposed public disclosure of the code at the heart of the dispute, claiming that doing so would damage its ability to leverage its intellectual property in future.
Too right it would damage the ability. 'Cos if the code's in there, the moment it's out in the open it's get yanked, losing SCO it's chance of all that lovely licensing.
And regardless of whether it is or not, if the Judge decides it is infringing copyrights, again the devs won't be able to see the bits of code that need pulling.
And I'm guessing the latter would require extensive rewrites "just in case" - harming the corporate takeup of Linux (except on SCO's twisted terms).
Y'know, I get the feeling that perhaps SCO understands OSS a lot better than they pretend to.
It looks very much that they know that if there's the slightest chance that some code was there that shouldn't be, it'd be re-written to exclude it in less time than a corporate project would take to draft the first memo to Management.
OK. So they're charging for extra features - but all the of the main features come free. The extra features themselves are far from essential, can be done with other software, and probably with plugins anyway.
Oh, and they're giving you the choice to install Icons from their parent company - which you can choose to not install.
No ad-banners, popups, or own like that apparently. And no forcing you to pay for what could be counted as a "basic" feature.
It's been like that for a good couple years now. it was the one time I ever used a licensed download. It would only play in WMP. The link that WinAmp gave pointed to a site listing WinAmp. As a result I soon checked P2P to find an MP3 of the file so I could actually listen to it in player/OS of choice.
Being neitehr a very good coder nor someone who understands "legal speak", I'm just checking to make sure I understand this.
No, you can't do that. You either have to ask the original copyright holder of the contributions permission or re-create the contributed code. Otherwise you would be violating the copyrights of the creator of the contributions. What you do with your own code is of course your own business.
It's the "What you do with your own code is of course your own business." bit which is tripping up my understanding - as well as other people's. And it doesn't help that no-one here sees to agree either.
So you write something. It contains some GPL code. it also contains some homebrew code - some of which you might wish to remain proprietary (for whatever reason).
Now some people would say that you need to GPL all of your own code as well to distribute it. But that might not always be an option.
The solution that seems most right would be to put the GPL code segments on the CD (or whatever) with the binaries, and also make the various GPL parts avialable for download. That would certainly seem to satisfy the "redistributing under GPL" part, as well as keeping the rights to one's own code in-house.
But there is disagreement as to whether that's enough.
There's always the GPL the code, but charge for service contracts possibility. I'm pretty certain that that wouldn't contravene the GPL, but it also wouldn't work in all situations.
You could always GPL everything, as (as far as I can tell) you're still allowed to charge for distribution. It might still jar to GPL your stuff, but charging for well-pressed discs with dead-tree documentation (and perhaps the above-mentioned better support) would be a legitimate charge. (The GPL text itself does see to support this.)
There is, of course, the best way that's been mentioned already in this thread. Find the original author or copyright-holder and see if you can purchase a license specific for your use. So that instance of the code woudn't be GPLd, but the author would get fair compensation for their work.
But, as has also been brought up, sometimes GPL code can't be easily traced to one author or rights-holder. Plus if the original author falls off the face of the earth, it could prove difficult to obtain a license.
There's also the LGPL option. In that if you really don't have the option to code parts yourself, look for LGPL code. You can use that, as far as I can tell. Plus if you GLPd (or LGPLd) what you could it would certainly show willing to comply with the spirit of Open Source, even if you prefer some aspects of your own code to remain in-house.
That's only how it looks like to me, though. And a lot of it is me hoping I've got the right interpretation. luckily, not currently coding anything, it doesn't matter if i get it wrong. But I can see a great need for something easy fo people to understand so that they don't get it wrong accidentally - and make it more obvious when it's not accidental.
Unmetered dialup has been the norm for 5 years now, anyone who charges by-the-minute is in a minority, or offers it alongside their primary ISP payment program.
But many of the pay-per-month ISPs require (or used to...) that you have a BT phone line. So if you had a cable phoneline (during a time when NTL weren't making it easy to subscribe to their 10-per-month deal), then you were stuck with either pay -per-minute, or pay-by-card-to-companies-which-financially-sunk.
Needless to say, after this happened the second time I didn't want to take the risk anymore. So I went back to metred. SHortly after that NTL finally rolled out their broadband package in my area, and I soon realised it'd be cheaper for me to go Broadband despite the fact I was unemployed.
(Being an unemployed geek meant I didn't have much to do except sit at my PC all day.)
I know I'm far from a "representative example of the music loving public", but I thought I'd answer to the reasons given in the survery. Starting with the most popular ones...
2) More convenient than buying CDs
Damn right. Buying CDs isn't quite as straightforward as one would hope. If you go to a high-street store, what you want isn't always in stock when you go in.
And yes, online shopping exists. (Its how I personally buy music these days) but thigns aren't always in stock, and then you're at the mercy of shipping. And woebetide if you have crappy postage/delivery and your'e not in the house when they van arrives.[*]
[*] - I have it on good authority (from a local postman) that the UK Postal Service doesn't have any concrete written rules on what to do if there's noone in and they have a parcel to deliver. At least once I've been glad it's not been raining, as a parcel had been left by the back gate, outside, where I'd never have thought of looking normally.
5) Instant access to songs
It's a drawback to the heavy-marketing effect that, ironically, the Music industry tries to use to sell it's songs. Three weeks prior to release used to be the earliest you'd hear most songs. Now it's the latest. If I like a song, I'd do anything to get hold of it.
Before I had easy Internet access, I'd even been known to buy an entire album (Linkin Park: Hybrid Theory) just because it was out a few weeks before the single (One Step Closer). Ok, maybe that's just me, but still. A few years ago ISTR that one song (Eiffel 65's "Blue") was the top-selling single one week, but didn't chart as it was the Import version that was outselling everythign else, as the UK release was taking so damn long.
Then there's the "least important factor"...
4) To sample songs
Lemon Jelly "Lost Horizons". Polyphonic Spree "The Beginning Stages Of". David Bowie "Earthling". Nine Inch Nails "Pretty Hate Machine".
All albums I'd not have personally bought had I not heard several tracks off each via MP3.
1) Cheaper than CDs
3) Not worth buying CD for 1-2 songs
Possibly the biggest factor I'd think has on people downloading stuff.
Album-wise, I hate paying for a new CD, only to find it going for two-third to one-half the price maybe six months later. And that's just the rare times there's more thn one or two songs I like.
And single-wise? Well I rarely buy them. The main time I'll buy singles is if it's a song that I think is really worth it. (Johnny Cash's "Hurt" being a recent exmaplwe - despite me already having the MP3 and MPEG video at the time)
And the otehr time is around now - Christmas time. And purely to get something half-way decent into the charts, as a gesture agianst the commercial shite that'll get to number 1 otherwise.
In a way, Internet-based sharing is bootlegging.
Albeit high-quality bootlegging. But it's making available stuff that people would mostly either [a] buy anyway, or [b] not pay for at all.
P2P is not"wholesale piracy".
That description would be more appropriately applied to bulk-copying CDs and selling them at a profit.
Stop trying to twist stories to justify your own greed.
You mean like that the RIAA is doing?
True, comment alongside the article is highly biased in one direction, but it's it also true that the RIAA's reporting is just as highly biased in the other?
Open Source as a model for music distribution may be tricky to implement. But I have seen one interesting take on using downloads as a primary distribution medium.
Songs were downloadable from the site. If you liked the music, you were asked to "register" your copy (i.e. pay for it, and give your shopping details)
If enough cash was raised, proper physical CDs were sent out.
In a way I think the "pay if you like it" approach might be one of the best. It has its flaws (like the many people who will inevitably download and never pay).
But it would have one thing going for it - in that the bands that people think are worth paying for will actually make money. And the stuff that is "disposable" (i.e. listenable, but not worth paying for[*]) woulnd't be finanacially viable.
Tiggs
[*]
Could be arguably said to describe much current pop music.
Slashdot Mirror
Firstly, let me state I'm neither an iPod/Mac owner nor a rabid anti-Apple person.
I'm firmly a member of the "Replace when necessary" brigade, getting irritated when my dad insists on trying to get stuff repaired way after it's lifespan.
But the emphasis is on when necessary.
In my list of Component Failures that Justify Buying a New Unit, "Battery" is definitely not on it. (Not for a music player, anyway. A PDA, perhaps, and even then I'd favour a unit which was easily fixable if at all possible)
Hard disc? Yes. Screen? Of course.
But the power unit (whether the battery or a PSU/cable) is not something that should mandate having to make a whole new replacement.
Hell. As the article says, even cellphones have replaceable batteries - even though many people but a new handset before/instead-of having to replace the battery.
At the very least it should be stated somewhere clearly that the rechargeable battery has a finite lifespan and is not trivially-replaceable.
Yes, there are other audio players out there. And, for me at least, they will be what I consider when i have the money to shell out for a really decent one. Something where the battery isn't the critical point fo failure.
TiggsErrrrrm, why not?
Some films are irritating because they seem to put their main heroes into life-threatening situations, but you know full well that they'll survive.
But not only did Revolutions turn that around, they did it when you've seen them conform to the cliche before.
In The Matrix, Neo dies, and comes back. And you're pretty certain that he won't die (and that neither will Morpheus).
In Reloaded you see Trinity saved by last-minute save cliche #132.5b. And, again, even as she's falling you just know that Neo'd gonna save her just in time.
They almost seem to be the cliche "unkillable heroes". But for one they're not. Trinity's dead. And Neo, if not confirmed permanently-dead, isn't exactly walking around returning unscathed (and with fixed eyes) before the credits roll either.
TiggsI regularly use Microsoft as a ocmparison for other company's products.
Basically, if a product makes a mistake and "even Microsoft gets [feature X] right" then I know that it's a shoddy product.
TiggsMuch as I usually slag off Microsoft and their software, WMP is actually a pretty good media player. The only real problem I have with it is the DRM aspect. If it didn't have DRM and constant "call home" attempts, WMP9 would probably be my (video) player of choice.
In fact, it's only that Media Player Classic (along with Real/Quicktime Alternatives) will play every video file I've got that I even stopped using WMP.
TiggsHeh. I too am finding myself in the unexpected position of hoping that Microsoft actually win this one.
Yes, I know that WMP is horribly proprietary with a closed format. But so's Real. And if (if) I ever have to buy a Windows box agian, I'd prefer to have only the one horribly proprietary media player installed, thankyou very much.
Besides, I rarely use WMP anyway. And unlike RealOne, it doesn't make it's presence felt even when not using it.
Besides, what the with Real Alternative Player being out, and coming bundled with Media player Classic I've not used WMP for ages now, and never even bothered installing RealOne. (I only need real-compatibility for some low-quality video clips)
The thing is, if Microsoft actually lose this one, where will it go?
When forced to buy a new PC, you'll end up battling with WMP, RealOne, QuickTime, and God-knows-what-else. At least two of which always bombarding you with adverts every time i fires up.
OK, most of the problems go away when you do a reinstall yourself. But there are still a few times when that's not always an option.
TiggsI didn't say it wasn't technically illegal. I was just saying that, simply, it doesn't stop anyone. Well, except for the high-street stores. Which makes it a bugger when people send me gift vouchers for Christmas/birthdays.
Tiggs
Well, they do call the camel the "Ship of the Desert".
Even the packaging (here in the UK, anyway) does tend to say "Layer Transition may trigger a slight pause".
But how the DVD is designed can make quite the difference.
TiggsPutting a layer transition in a scene transition is a good thing. So if a cheaper player stutters, it stutters over "dead air". (Case: Matrix Reloaded)
But putting a layer transition during speech is a bugger. 'Cos a cheaper player will stutter over something you're trying to pay attention to.
If anything, though, this is more likely to ge the MPAA to lsiten than any of us complainnig about not being able to watch stuff from other parts of the world.
TiggsWhen "one of their own" starts complaining about Region-coding being a potential loss of revenue then they're gonna pay more attention than when Joe Slashdotter says the same thing.
Firstly, as another reply stated, DVDs with no Region-Code (i.e. "Region 0") will play on anything. The PAL/NTSC factor might affect playback quality if your TV won't handle it, but that's not a Ragion issue.
Most importantly, although I don't know about the X-Box, the PS2 is easy to turn into a region-free player. There are several de-region programs available, and many come packaged with remote-control adaptors anyway.
TiggsBritish Anime fans, and British "don't like long waits and/or BBFC certification" fans. That's who.
OK. We're lucky. We actually have something resembling decent Anime DVD choice here these days. But there's a lot of stuff that simply isn't around here. We import. Either the R1 DVDs, or the R4 DVDs.
Plus, whether Anime or not, UK releases are normally several months behind the US. And also you simply can't trust anything to not have BBFC-releated cuts.
TiggsYou mean like in the UK, where Sony stores will offer to pre-chip players for you and keep the warranty in tact. Even though they're affiliated to a film production operation?
Tiggs
Still doesn't affect some markets. Several Anime distributors operate within the UK, and usually have stands an Anime Cons.
Tiggs
Heh. I bet that's one thing that really ticks of the big companies.
They keep on spinning the line that "Piracy hurts the Industry and the Consumer". but that's simply not true.
If it wasn't for the threat of Piracy, there's no way that the Matrix sequels, LoTR films, and X2 would have been released in such a short International window.
It might have cost "The Industry" more, but it sounds like a win for the Consumer to me.
TiggsAah, but they think it's such an important message to put across. At least, it would be if it wasn't for the fact that...
So it's rather pointless.
Failing that, do what most people do. Put the disc in a few minutes early and use the warnings as a chance to go to the loo, or make a cup of tea.
TiggsBut sooner or later someone is goping to be pulled up on False Advertising.
Lord Dweomer raises a very valid point that some people do want to know hard and fast limits. especially seeing that your average Slashdotter is a geek, and we almost by definition push things to the limit. We tweak our hardware and software to try and get the limit out of our systems.
Especially when we're actually paying money for something advertised as "Unlimited".
TiggsIt's not about getting a "free ride", it's about getting what you pay for. Or, in this case, getting what was advertised.
Too right it would damage the ability. 'Cos if the code's in there, the moment it's out in the open it's get yanked, losing SCO it's chance of all that lovely licensing.
And regardless of whether it is or not, if the Judge decides it is infringing copyrights, again the devs won't be able to see the bits of code that need pulling.
And I'm guessing the latter would require extensive rewrites "just in case" - harming the corporate takeup of Linux (except on SCO's twisted terms).
Y'know, I get the feeling that perhaps SCO understands OSS a lot better than they pretend to.
TiggsIt looks very much that they know that if there's the slightest chance that some code was there that shouldn't be, it'd be re-written to exclude it in less time than a corporate project would take to draft the first memo to Management.
OK. So they're charging for extra features - but all the of the main features come free.
The extra features themselves are far from essential, can be done with other software, and probably with plugins anyway.
Oh, and they're giving you the choice to install Icons from their parent company - which you can choose to not install.
No ad-banners, popups, or own like that apparently. And no forcing you to pay for what could be counted as a "basic" feature.
Tiggs
It's been like that for a good couple years now. it was the one time I ever used a licensed download. It would only play in WMP. The link that WinAmp gave pointed to a site listing WinAmp. As a result I soon checked P2P to find an MP3 of the file so I could actually listen to it in player/OS of choice.
Way to go, DRM.
Today's Experiment........ FAILED
Being neitehr a very good coder nor someone who understands "legal speak", I'm just checking to make sure I understand this.
It's the "What you do with your own code is of course your own business." bit which is tripping up my understanding - as well as other people's. And it doesn't help that no-one here sees to agree either.
So you write something. It contains some GPL code. it also contains some homebrew code - some of which you might wish to remain proprietary (for whatever reason).
Now some people would say that you need to GPL all of your own code as well to distribute it. But that might not always be an option.
The solution that seems most right would be to put the GPL code segments on the CD (or whatever) with the binaries, and also make the various GPL parts avialable for download. That would certainly seem to satisfy the "redistributing under GPL" part, as well as keeping the rights to one's own code in-house.
But there is disagreement as to whether that's enough.
There's always the GPL the code, but charge for service contracts possibility. I'm pretty certain that that wouldn't contravene the GPL, but it also wouldn't work in all situations.
You could always GPL everything, as (as far as I can tell) you're still allowed to charge for distribution. It might still jar to GPL your stuff, but charging for well-pressed discs with dead-tree documentation (and perhaps the above-mentioned better support) would be a legitimate charge. (The GPL text itself does see to support this.)
There is, of course, the best way that's been mentioned already in this thread. Find the original author or copyright-holder and see if you can purchase a license specific for your use. So that instance of the code woudn't be GPLd, but the author would get fair compensation for their work.
But, as has also been brought up, sometimes GPL code can't be easily traced to one author or rights-holder. Plus if the original author falls off the face of the earth, it could prove difficult to obtain a license.
There's also the LGPL option. In that if you really don't have the option to code parts yourself, look for LGPL code. You can use that, as far as I can tell. Plus if you GLPd (or LGPLd) what you could it would certainly show willing to comply with the spirit of Open Source, even if you prefer some aspects of your own code to remain in-house.
That's only how it looks like to me, though. And a lot of it is me hoping I've got the right interpretation. luckily, not currently coding anything, it doesn't matter if i get it wrong. But I can see a great need for something easy fo people to understand so that they don't get it wrong accidentally - and make it more obvious when it's not accidental.
TiggsBut many of the pay-per-month ISPs require (or used to...) that you have a BT phone line. So if you had a cable phoneline (during a time when NTL weren't making it easy to subscribe to their 10-per-month deal), then you were stuck with either pay -per-minute, or pay-by-card-to-companies-which-financially-sunk.
Needless to say, after this happened the second time I didn't want to take the risk anymore. So I went back to metred. SHortly after that NTL finally rolled out their broadband package in my area, and I soon realised it'd be cheaper for me to go Broadband despite the fact I was unemployed.
(Being an unemployed geek meant I didn't have much to do except sit at my PC all day.)
TiggsI know I'm far from a "representative example of the music loving public", but I thought I'd answer to the reasons given in the survery. Starting with the most popular ones...
2) More convenient than buying CDs
Damn right. Buying CDs isn't quite as straightforward as one would hope. If you go to a high-street store, what you want isn't always in stock when you go in.
And yes, online shopping exists. (Its how I personally buy music these days) but thigns aren't always in stock, and then you're at the mercy of shipping. And woebetide if you have crappy postage/delivery and your'e not in the house when they van arrives.[*]
[*] - I have it on good authority (from a local postman) that the UK Postal Service doesn't have any concrete written rules on what to do if there's noone in and they have a parcel to deliver. At least once I've been glad it's not been raining, as a parcel had been left by the back gate, outside, where I'd never have thought of looking normally.
5) Instant access to songs
It's a drawback to the heavy-marketing effect that, ironically, the Music industry tries to use to sell it's songs. Three weeks prior to release used to be the earliest you'd hear most songs. Now it's the latest. If I like a song, I'd do anything to get hold of it.
Before I had easy Internet access, I'd even been known to buy an entire album (Linkin Park: Hybrid Theory) just because it was out a few weeks before the single (One Step Closer). Ok, maybe that's just me, but still. A few years ago ISTR that one song (Eiffel 65's "Blue") was the top-selling single one week, but didn't chart as it was the Import version that was outselling everythign else, as the UK release was taking so damn long.
Then there's the "least important factor"...
4) To sample songs
Lemon Jelly "Lost Horizons". Polyphonic Spree "The Beginning Stages Of". David Bowie "Earthling". Nine Inch Nails "Pretty Hate Machine".All albums I'd not have personally bought had I not heard several tracks off each via MP3.
1) Cheaper than CDs
3) Not worth buying CD for 1-2 songs
Possibly the biggest factor I'd think has on people downloading stuff.
Album-wise, I hate paying for a new CD, only to find it going for two-third to one-half the price maybe six months later. And that's just the rare times there's more thn one or two songs I like.
And single-wise? Well I rarely buy them. The main time I'll buy singles is if it's a song that I think is really worth it. (Johnny Cash's "Hurt" being a recent exmaplwe - despite me already having the MP3 and MPEG video at the time)
TiggsAnd the otehr time is around now - Christmas time. And purely to get something half-way decent into the charts, as a gesture agianst the commercial shite that'll get to number 1 otherwise.
In a way, Internet-based sharing is bootlegging.
Albeit high-quality bootlegging. But it's making available stuff that people would mostly either [a] buy anyway, or [b] not pay for at all.
P2P is not "wholesale piracy".
TiggsThat description would be more appropriately applied to bulk-copying CDs and selling them at a profit.
You mean like that the RIAA is doing?
True, comment alongside the article is highly biased in one direction, but it's it also true that the RIAA's reporting is just as highly biased in the other?
TiggsOpen Source as a model for music distribution may be tricky to implement. But I have seen one interesting take on using downloads as a primary distribution medium.
Songs were downloadable from the site. If you liked the music, you were asked to "register" your copy (i.e. pay for it, and give your shopping details)
If enough cash was raised, proper physical CDs were sent out.
In a way I think the "pay if you like it" approach might be one of the best. It has its flaws (like the many people who will inevitably download and never pay).
But it would have one thing going for it - in that the bands that people think are worth paying for will actually make money. And the stuff that is "disposable" (i.e. listenable, but not worth paying for[*]) woulnd't be finanacially viable.
Tiggs
[*]
Could be arguably said to describe much current pop music.