Re:If MS were to use such strategies, would anyone
on
Platform Evangelism
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· Score: 1
The question is not "does MS want to help or hurt the competition" but rather "did MS engage in illegal anti-competitive practices which are bad for the consumer and bad for the market." I don't see you answering that question.
The courts already answered that question with a resounding yes.
Management has told us meeting deadlines means that for the next month to six weeks all of the developers involved will have to work 12 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Make sure you get that in writing. You'll need it when you talk to your lawyer.
Sorry. You're wrong. I just installed Trillian 0.74d and there's only one configuration section for AIM & ICQ. So I can enter my AIM or my ICQ ID but I can't use both at once.
Does Trillian support using both at once? The last time I looked it only supported using one or the other, not both at the same time. I have friends on AIM and different friends on ICQ and need to log into both networks at the same time with different IDs.
Why should it make any difference what form the code is being distributed in? The GPL doesn't permit distribution of executables in any form without accompanying source or an offer of same.
It's a matter of intent. The intent is to distribute the code to people who have the device upon which the firmware can be installed. Those people are entitled to the source. It may very well be that all an owner of one of these devices has to do is ask Linksys for the source and they can have it. Note that the author of the message on the LKML stated that he didn't own one of the devices. Therefore the code wasn't distributed to to him or his device (which he doesn't have) and he's not entitled to the source.
The form is important. It's not a zip or tar file. It's a firmware image. Just because he figured out how to get in and find GPL binaries, no matter how trivial, doesn't entitle him to the source for reasons stated above.
As an analogy, if I make changes to the linux kernel, compile binaries, zip them up into a passworded zip file, and put them on my web site for a friend to download that doesn't mean that you are entitled to the source if you download the file and figure out that the password is "abc123". Only my friend is entitled to the source. He is the intended recipient.
You should talk to a lawyer if you're unclear on how matters of intent affect things like this. There's a lot of case law surrounding this, at least in the American legal system.
As a side note, if an owner of one of these units calls Linksys and asks how to obtain a copy of the source and Linksys fails to provide a way for them to get it, then that's a problem. As far as I can see, no one has established if that is the case yet.
Doesn't matter. The firmware is downloadable regardless of whether you own the product or not - and the firmware includes a CRAMFS filesystem containing the kernel and busybox, so it's binary distribution of GPLed code.
They aren't distributing the raw filesystem. They are distributing a firmware image that contains a filesystem image as a portion of the firmware image. Just because someone figured out there was a filesystem there and jumped through a bunch of hoops to get to the filesystem and mount it, doesn't mean that they are in any way entitled to the source. Someone who owns the equipment that uses the firmware is entitled though.
Most likely this is something the courts would have to rule on.
The source might be available but only mentioned in the documentation. He states in his message that he doesn't own one of these units so he doesn't have access to all the information that an owner of the unit would. The GPL doesn't require that the source be distributed with the binaries only that it be available. That doesn't mean downloadable. It's possible that people who have purchased the unit have instructions contained within on how to download or order a CD with the source code.
If you replaced the word "Tivo" with "Microsoft," I swear there would be a posse forming in some thread on this comments page as we speak to go down to their corporate HQ and burn every copy of XP they received with their PCs.
I'm sure they would. Microsoft has a track record of deception and underhandedness. They've shown time and again that they will use any means, even illegal ones, to further their own goals, irregardless of the consequences. They even have several legal rulings against them that prove it. Consequently the people here on Slashdot have a hair trigger when it comes to Microsoft.
Tivo, on the other hand, has been very open and honest about their business and their hardware. They've never lied or attempted to be dishonest in any way. They've always been respectful of their cusotmers and made a good-faith effort to communicate with them. Also, they've respected the hacker community and the hacker community has respected them in turn. This has brought about a lot of great enhancements for the series one unit and the company has been good about listenting to their customers and what they want.
Tivo has stated since day one that they collect informtation, detailed what information they collect, and have provided a way to opt out. They've also stated that they would probably sell the information at some later point. People have verified that Tivo is telling the truth in regards to what information they collect and send back to their servers.
Tivo has earned most customers respect whereas Microsoft seems almost proud that they have not.
And you're posting a message on slashdot, using a computer you had to pay several hundred for (at least), paying a monthly fee for some form of net access to read commercial-filled web pages. You're also a subscriber to Slashdot who has your personal information and a list of comments that you've posted (rich in information pertaining to you, no doubt).
And you think Tivo keeping track of the fact that someone in some zipcode somewhere watches Seinfeld is an issue? What's your point again?
I think that day will come sooner than you think. There's a lot a person can do today with, say, a Canon XL1, a good lighting kit and sound kit, and some software like Premiere. Sure, the final product probably won't have any special effects, but that just means that it'll have to have a good story and plot to carry the movie through. Which is something I think many movies these days could use.
I doubt it. I've had a similar problem on laptop where things acted haywire after a windows update. I restored a Ghost image from a month prior and everything was okay. Just to confirm I ran windows update again and installed the same patches I did before. Things started going nuts again.
Personally I think that the courts are the place to argue out the rules of innovation as if you believe in the idea strongly enough then you will be willing to fight, or raise finance to do so. If this forms part of your business proposal then that is right and good. Business decisions are implicitly risky and this will have to be bourne in mind.
You're making the assumption that all innovation comes from business or from individuals with the resources to go to court. People can still innovate without having or wanting to start a business.
let's set up a fund to help them pay off their debts to RIAA. I'll put in a buck for that.
Why? They were redistributing copyrighted material without permission from the copyright holder. Isn't this what we all wanted? The RIAA went after the person that committed the offense and not the technology.
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Sorry. You're wrong. I just installed Trillian 0.74d and there's only one configuration section for AIM & ICQ. So I can enter my AIM or my ICQ ID but I can't use both at once.
LVM does what you want.
It involves both. Read the article.
The form is important. It's not a zip or tar file. It's a firmware image. Just because he figured out how to get in and find GPL binaries, no matter how trivial, doesn't entitle him to the source for reasons stated above.
As an analogy, if I make changes to the linux kernel, compile binaries, zip them up into a passworded zip file, and put them on my web site for a friend to download that doesn't mean that you are entitled to the source if you download the file and figure out that the password is "abc123". Only my friend is entitled to the source. He is the intended recipient.
You should talk to a lawyer if you're unclear on how matters of intent affect things like this. There's a lot of case law surrounding this, at least in the American legal system.
As a side note, if an owner of one of these units calls Linksys and asks how to obtain a copy of the source and Linksys fails to provide a way for them to get it, then that's a problem. As far as I can see, no one has established if that is the case yet.
Most likely this is something the courts would have to rule on.
The source might be available but only mentioned in the documentation. He states in his message that he doesn't own one of these units so he doesn't have access to all the information that an owner of the unit would. The GPL doesn't require that the source be distributed with the binaries only that it be available. That doesn't mean downloadable. It's possible that people who have purchased the unit have instructions contained within on how to download or order a CD with the source code.
Tivo, on the other hand, has been very open and honest about their business and their hardware. They've never lied or attempted to be dishonest in any way. They've always been respectful of their cusotmers and made a good-faith effort to communicate with them. Also, they've respected the hacker community and the hacker community has respected them in turn. This has brought about a lot of great enhancements for the series one unit and the company has been good about listenting to their customers and what they want.
Tivo has stated since day one that they collect informtation, detailed what information they collect, and have provided a way to opt out. They've also stated that they would probably sell the information at some later point. People have verified that Tivo is telling the truth in regards to what information they collect and send back to their servers.
Tivo has earned most customers respect whereas Microsoft seems almost proud that they have not.
And you think Tivo keeping track of the fact that someone in some zipcode somewhere watches Seinfeld is an issue? What's your point again?
Also check out Ion and ratpoison. Very minimal and can be controled from the keyboard.
I think that ratpoison represents the pinnacle of GUI aesthetics. Less G and more UI, please.
They should show some films from independent filmmakers. There are a lot of good films out there and few of them originate in Hollywood.
I'd also recommend reading Rebel Without a Crew.
Or get yourself one of these.
For those of us that don't run Red Hat, what did Red Hat change?
I doubt it. I've had a similar problem on laptop where things acted haywire after a windows update. I restored a Ghost image from a month prior and everything was okay. Just to confirm I ran windows update again and installed the same patches I did before. Things started going nuts again.
I've found this hosts file useful for blocking ads using the method you described: http://www.everythingisnt.com/hosts.html