This is ridiculous. Record sales haven't been flagging -- people have just given up on the Top 40 mainstream dross the record labels are spitting out, and are buying music from indie labels instead.
We're not buying less music, we're not buying more music. We're buying music from people who aren't them, and they're pissed.
I've bought at least ten CDs this month from The End and I doubt a penny of it went to the RIAA.
I work for a reasonably large NT web hosting company, whose name I will decline to mention for fear of getting h4x0r3d. Our security measures suck.
I had a customer call me on Wednesday and told me that he couldn't get his email because his Internet connection wasn't working. We are not an Internet Service Provider.
I wish I could've gotten his credit card number and billed a bunch of things to it, because this is someone who obviously wouldn't notice the charges.
United States copyright law allows you to make one backup copy of the work, for private use. So if someone downloads it, they'd have to be the only person downloading it, and once it's downloaded, it would have to be deleted off of the servers. I don't seem to recall anything about group owners being able to make an unlimited number of backup copies.
I think this is just what we need for people to unite against record companies. A lot of people may have heard about the folks up at RPI who got hassled by the RIAA, but thought "You know, these are just a couple of dumb kids. And they started a new Napster and got themselves in trouble," citing what would most likely have been the Fox News version of that story if it had been broken.
But if hundreds of parents that own the broadband accounts their kids, and sometimes themselves, use, because their kids shared 8 songs on Kazaa or eDonkey2000? Well, they're probably not going to be buying any CDs for a while. And you know Mom is going to blab all about it to gossiping Aunt Gladys at the next family gathering, who will tell all of her friends at work that her sister just got sued by the RIAA for several thousand dollars. Are these people going to buy their kids CDs for Christmas? Some will, but most of them will probably look into other gift ideas instead.
First, it's important to note that the copyright holder is the record label which holds the copyright, and not the artist whose name is on the album.
The RIAA is a trade union, and as such has certain powers granted to it by the labels which have created it. I'm sure that this is one of them. It's much better for these companies, PR-wise, to sue and subpoena under the guise of an industry lobby group than that of their own corporate moniker.
When all the trade commissions of the world are done with SCO, it's going to be one guy buried up to his neck and covered in Brazilian army ants marching aimlessly about his body consuming his delectably tasty flesh. Or maybe I'm thinking of someone else.
Many ISPs have anticipated this, and assuming that you didn't violate their AUP in the first place by installing a router or other device that allows the connection to be shared between multiple computers (Cablevision and many other ISPs do not permit more than one computer to access the service from a single IP address), there is also, with nearly 100% certainty, a clause in your contract which states that the account holder is responsible for all actions while in use of agreed-upon service. It doesn't matter if the RIAA thinks it's you, your 6-year-old sister, your grandfather, or your pet hamster Tobias. They're looking to extort money from someone, and they have every right to sue you, your wife, your mother or your father because their name is on the contract.
Get out there and lobby your politicians against these ridiculous laws like the DMCA.
If I were a big developer, I'd move all my development offshore too. If I ever needed to reverse-engineer a competitor's product, I'd be perfectly allowed to under that nation's laws.
I'll just make sure they don't discuss it at US conferences like Sklyarov.
For further clarification, these are the only reasons this machine has ever been rebooted:
Windows XP froze because of an ACPI incompatibility with my motherboard.
SuSE 7.3 froze because of an ACPI incompatibility with my motherboard.
Windows XP bluescreened due to leaked beta nVidia drivers while I was playing Unreal Tournament.
Moving furniture forced me to disconnect the computer because power isn't wireless.
This room is 85 degrees with all my computers on and that's not necessarily comfortable.
27 days ago, I removed the computer from a Windows 2000 domain and it forced a reboot. Added a hard drive from my former domain controller, which I formatted and installed Mandrake 9 upon.
I do seem to recall mentioning "better" and "cheaper," not in some mutually exclusive bargain. Nor did I define "better" as a "list of features" because I am not an idiot. I understand the idea of a "total cost of ownership," and more importantly, I understand the idea of a shitty product. I also understand that it's very possible Microsoft will produce an absolute hunk of garbage and market it. But given the strides taken with Windows 2000, XP, and Server 2003, I am obligated to give them the benefit of the doubt.
And honestly, if Microsoft did sell XP at $30, I'd probably buy it. If you think it's crap, so what? It's about using the right tool for the right job, and Linux isn't "there" on the desktop yet (there is absolutely nothing on Linux that remotely compares to what Adobe Premiere is capable of, and despite many claims to the contrary, The Gimp isn't a viable Photoshop replacement yet, and don't even get me started on games). If I hated it, which I certainly don't because I'm using it right now, I'd be out a whole $30. Wow.
I'm not bashing Linux, since I do, in addition to this Windows XP machine, have a Mandrake 9.1 box set up right next to me. It's quite reliable, I use it for mail, web browsing, instant messaging, word processing in OpenOffice, and many other tasks. I do also intend to do Linux development once I finish my reading on Qt and GTK+ (again, the right tool for the job). But right now, using it as an everyday machine isn't feasible.
Especially considering that I run Apache and MySQL on my desktop, for development/testing, and am constantly rendering things in Premiere. Honestly, I can barely remember the last time XF86 DIDN'T crash on me over the course of normal use, and that's after taking 5 minutes to start up because of nVidia's crap drivers that constantly enumerate display modes my monitor can't support. This may very well be my own fault, but if it is, I'll stick with the easier solution right now.
Additionally, my system was taken down for the addition of a new hard drive and to remove it from an NT domain, not because of some random OS problem. Though, since you're only trolling me for a response, I might as well ignore it, but I'll take your bait this time;) My system has been up without a reboot for 27 days, this is by no means a maximum.
And I have to say, though Linux is making great strides, free or not, it doesn't compete with Windows. Yet. I am keeping up on the Freedesktop/Gnome/KDE/other-misc-WMs stuff to see how things progress, and I am looking forward to using a free (as in software) OS. And given that Windows still does things much easier than Linux does (Linux still doesn't have anything comparable to Premiere for my video editing, for example), I wouldn't be surprised if their digital cable offering had some features other people haven't matched yet either.
Personally, I have iO digital cable (Cablevision), with a Sony box, and the damned thing freezes up constantly and I have to turn it off and back on to get it to work. At least if a Microsoft box bluescreened there would be an explanation.;/
Though I already expected to see this many blue-screen "jokes" and anti-MS zealotry, I have to admit that while Microsoft's security is questionable, so far they've done a damned decent job of creating stable operating systems. This computer has, as of this writing, been up for 27 days without a reboot (XP Professional) and I never had a problem on my old iPaq either before I sold it. Windows Server 2003 is very much a step in the right direction too, ousting much legacy code responsible for instabilities in the past.
While I hate to further Microsoft's aims, as a matter of principle, if it does the job better and cheaper than other competing software for digital cable boxes, why not use it? If there is a cost savings, it will certainly trickle down to you as the consumer of said service.
You're also ignoring something here: We CONSENT to having these tags placed on something, and only what we want them placed on. No surprises here, and nothing's being tracked that we don't want tracked.
No, I've repeated this many more times than I care to, Beta was not better than VHS. Beta tapes, while technically superior in quality (and only marginally so), were only one hour long, whereas VHS tapes, clunky as they were, were two hours long, capable of recording an entire feature-length movie unattended. Eventually, the length of a Beta tape would be extended as the standard was revised and perfected, but by this time the damage had already been done and VHS had taken hold. It was this fundamental difference that led to Beta losing the video format war, not some silly "open standard."
Do you own a Playstation2? That's got all sorts of proprietary hardware in it. Can you run Linux on it? Yes, you can.
"That project used techniques that do not seem fundamentally not unlike some of the basic principles used in the Pinpoint patents."
Do not seem fundamentally not unlike? What the fuck?
Slashdot Mirror
This is ridiculous. Record sales haven't been flagging -- people have just given up on the Top 40 mainstream dross the record labels are spitting out, and are buying music from indie labels instead.
We're not buying less music, we're not buying more music. We're buying music from people who aren't them, and they're pissed.
I've bought at least ten CDs this month from The End and I doubt a penny of it went to the RIAA.
I work for a reasonably large NT web hosting company, whose name I will decline to mention for fear of getting h4x0r3d. Our security measures suck.
I had a customer call me on Wednesday and told me that he couldn't get his email because his Internet connection wasn't working. We are not an Internet Service Provider.
I wish I could've gotten his credit card number and billed a bunch of things to it, because this is someone who obviously wouldn't notice the charges.
Blame Trigger Happy TV and Channel Four Entertainment!
United States copyright law allows you to make one backup copy of the work, for private use. So if someone downloads it, they'd have to be the only person downloading it, and once it's downloaded, it would have to be deleted off of the servers. I don't seem to recall anything about group owners being able to make an unlimited number of backup copies.
I think this is just what we need for people to unite against record companies. A lot of people may have heard about the folks up at RPI who got hassled by the RIAA, but thought "You know, these are just a couple of dumb kids. And they started a new Napster and got themselves in trouble," citing what would most likely have been the Fox News version of that story if it had been broken.
But if hundreds of parents that own the broadband accounts their kids, and sometimes themselves, use, because their kids shared 8 songs on Kazaa or eDonkey2000? Well, they're probably not going to be buying any CDs for a while. And you know Mom is going to blab all about it to gossiping Aunt Gladys at the next family gathering, who will tell all of her friends at work that her sister just got sued by the RIAA for several thousand dollars. Are these people going to buy their kids CDs for Christmas? Some will, but most of them will probably look into other gift ideas instead.
I mentioned that days ago.
Maybe the RIAA is watching me... shit.
First, it's important to note that the copyright holder is the record label which holds the copyright, and not the artist whose name is on the album.
The RIAA is a trade union, and as such has certain powers granted to it by the labels which have created it. I'm sure that this is one of them. It's much better for these companies, PR-wise, to sue and subpoena under the guise of an industry lobby group than that of their own corporate moniker.
By transferring power to the government that is currently held by the... um... government?
When all the trade commissions of the world are done with SCO, it's going to be one guy buried up to his neck and covered in Brazilian army ants marching aimlessly about his body consuming his delectably tasty flesh. Or maybe I'm thinking of someone else.
Dude! Look at the picture! It's Dave Thomas!
Many ISPs have anticipated this, and assuming that you didn't violate their AUP in the first place by installing a router or other device that allows the connection to be shared between multiple computers (Cablevision and many other ISPs do not permit more than one computer to access the service from a single IP address), there is also, with nearly 100% certainty, a clause in your contract which states that the account holder is responsible for all actions while in use of agreed-upon service. It doesn't matter if the RIAA thinks it's you, your 6-year-old sister, your grandfather, or your pet hamster Tobias. They're looking to extort money from someone, and they have every right to sue you, your wife, your mother or your father because their name is on the contract.
Get out there and lobby your politicians against these ridiculous laws like the DMCA.
If I were a big developer, I'd move all my development offshore too. If I ever needed to reverse-engineer a competitor's product, I'd be perfectly allowed to under that nation's laws.
I'll just make sure they don't discuss it at US conferences like Sklyarov.
Don't you know what Slashdot readers do to people who link proprietary-format videos? ;)
When did I mention a single thing about servers, again? Oh, wait, I didn't. How was your train of thought drawn to servers?
http://www.gradware.com/ProductDetailT.asp?Product ID=5262
Windows XP froze because of an ACPI incompatibility with my motherboard.
SuSE 7.3 froze because of an ACPI incompatibility with my motherboard.
Windows XP bluescreened due to leaked beta nVidia drivers while I was playing Unreal Tournament.
Moving furniture forced me to disconnect the computer because power isn't wireless.
This room is 85 degrees with all my computers on and that's not necessarily comfortable.
27 days ago, I removed the computer from a Windows 2000 domain and it forced a reboot. Added a hard drive from my former domain controller, which I formatted and installed Mandrake 9 upon.
I do seem to recall mentioning "better" and "cheaper," not in some mutually exclusive bargain. Nor did I define "better" as a "list of features" because I am not an idiot. I understand the idea of a "total cost of ownership," and more importantly, I understand the idea of a shitty product. I also understand that it's very possible Microsoft will produce an absolute hunk of garbage and market it. But given the strides taken with Windows 2000, XP, and Server 2003, I am obligated to give them the benefit of the doubt.
And honestly, if Microsoft did sell XP at $30, I'd probably buy it. If you think it's crap, so what? It's about using the right tool for the right job, and Linux isn't "there" on the desktop yet (there is absolutely nothing on Linux that remotely compares to what Adobe Premiere is capable of, and despite many claims to the contrary, The Gimp isn't a viable Photoshop replacement yet, and don't even get me started on games). If I hated it, which I certainly don't because I'm using it right now, I'd be out a whole $30. Wow.
I'm not bashing Linux, since I do, in addition to this Windows XP machine, have a Mandrake 9.1 box set up right next to me. It's quite reliable, I use it for mail, web browsing, instant messaging, word processing in OpenOffice, and many other tasks. I do also intend to do Linux development once I finish my reading on Qt and GTK+ (again, the right tool for the job). But right now, using it as an everyday machine isn't feasible.
Especially considering that I run Apache and MySQL on my desktop, for development/testing, and am constantly rendering things in Premiere. Honestly, I can barely remember the last time XF86 DIDN'T crash on me over the course of normal use, and that's after taking 5 minutes to start up because of nVidia's crap drivers that constantly enumerate display modes my monitor can't support. This may very well be my own fault, but if it is, I'll stick with the easier solution right now.
;) My system has been up without a reboot for 27 days, this is by no means a maximum.
;/
Additionally, my system was taken down for the addition of a new hard drive and to remove it from an NT domain, not because of some random OS problem. Though, since you're only trolling me for a response, I might as well ignore it, but I'll take your bait this time
And I have to say, though Linux is making great strides, free or not, it doesn't compete with Windows. Yet. I am keeping up on the Freedesktop/Gnome/KDE/other-misc-WMs stuff to see how things progress, and I am looking forward to using a free (as in software) OS. And given that Windows still does things much easier than Linux does (Linux still doesn't have anything comparable to Premiere for my video editing, for example), I wouldn't be surprised if their digital cable offering had some features other people haven't matched yet either.
Personally, I have iO digital cable (Cablevision), with a Sony box, and the damned thing freezes up constantly and I have to turn it off and back on to get it to work. At least if a Microsoft box bluescreened there would be an explanation.
Though I already expected to see this many blue-screen "jokes" and anti-MS zealotry, I have to admit that while Microsoft's security is questionable, so far they've done a damned decent job of creating stable operating systems. This computer has, as of this writing, been up for 27 days without a reboot (XP Professional) and I never had a problem on my old iPaq either before I sold it. Windows Server 2003 is very much a step in the right direction too, ousting much legacy code responsible for instabilities in the past.
While I hate to further Microsoft's aims, as a matter of principle, if it does the job better and cheaper than other competing software for digital cable boxes, why not use it? If there is a cost savings, it will certainly trickle down to you as the consumer of said service.
Now I have to wear my watch on my LEFT wrist? Please.
Slashdot is too American-centric.
You're also ignoring something here: We CONSENT to having these tags placed on something, and only what we want them placed on. No surprises here, and nothing's being tracked that we don't want tracked.
BetaMax was a proprietary technology until Sony decided to license the format to Zenith once JVC had unveiled their VHS recorders.
No, I've repeated this many more times than I care to, Beta was not better than VHS. Beta tapes, while technically superior in quality (and only marginally so), were only one hour long, whereas VHS tapes, clunky as they were, were two hours long, capable of recording an entire feature-length movie unattended. Eventually, the length of a Beta tape would be extended as the standard was revised and perfected, but by this time the damage had already been done and VHS had taken hold. It was this fundamental difference that led to Beta losing the video format war, not some silly "open standard."
Do you own a Playstation2? That's got all sorts of proprietary hardware in it. Can you run Linux on it? Yes, you can.
"That project used techniques that do not seem fundamentally not unlike some of the basic principles used in the Pinpoint patents." Do not seem fundamentally not unlike? What the fuck?