Apple could easily have iTunes disable autorun when it is installed (after asking nicely). That would make it so Windows users wouldn't have to worry about the copy prevention crap.
But then Sony would sue Apple for violating Sony's DRM-protected CDs. Why should Apple risk such a thing? In the modern crazy media and legal environment, such a feature would be called" hacking" and the press would say Apple is evil for doing it. if it's illegal to tell people how to circumvent copy protection, it must be even more illegal to provide a tool that actually does it for you.
How can it be circumvention if Sony owns the copyright and thus defines what is permitted decoding versus circumvention?
Because the DMCA is a stupid, draconian law that makes no sense. Where the hell do you get off, expecting US law to make sense, anyway? There are an amazing number of stupid laws in the US that are contradictory and make no sense.
And why does one need a car to transport multiple loads of laundry? The only reasons would be weakness or laziness... or perhaps a family of ten. but somehow I doubt that's the case.
If I want to play a song that my wife purchased from iTMS in my car, which can play CDs burned with MP3s or WMAs, my options are to burn the tracks to a normal CD, and rip them back to MP3s. I don't have to take this two-step approach anywhere else.
Incorrect. Your car's CD player won't play DRMed WMA files - you will still have to convert format or remove DRM somehow. And some WMA vendors don't even allow burning to CDs, or charge you extra for the privilege. Subscription services like Napster do not allow you to burn at all. At least Apple lets you burn standard audio CDs! Why are there two steps? She can just play an ordinary audio CD from iTunes in her CD player. You don't have to convert to MP3 to play the tracks.
I think the point in the article (not the clearest or greatest aritcle written) was that music bought from any of the stores is DRM laden. The only DRM flavor that works with iPods is from iTunes
That would be incorrect, because the article also mentions that Real's music store supports the iPod. So, if you can play Real's tracks on your iPod, how are iPod users only restricted to iTMS? In fact, I believe you can't use iTunes if you want to use Real's DRM-laden merchandise on your iPod.
My point is many people don't like iTunes. Look, I wouldnt be here writing this if I wasn't extremely pissed off about the general lousiness and unnecessary extra steps required to load mp3s on to my iPod.
Those people are an extreme minority. Many more people consider iTunes to be the best application they ever used, and it changed the way they used music and computers. iTunes is ubiquitous. I haven't seen any "consumer" use anything but iTunes for years. Audio pros use professional audio software, but that's entirely different. Everyone else, except a ver few, use iTunes.
If people like iTunes so much then why did anyone bother writing an application to replace it?
Because there are a few people who have obscure needs, different preferences, or have a thing against Apple. Doesn't mean there are very many of them. It's not a mainstream phenomenon. And you have your alternatives, so what's the problem?
People expect that since they just have a licence, there's no reason they shouldn't be given another copy.
Why? That's not the case with the majority of software sold. Lose that, and you have to buy another copy. I think people need some education if they believe in such fantasies. But I'd say most people do know that they aren't entitled to another copy. Only the wilfully ignorant or over-expectant would think like this. Do you have any evidence to suggest most people expect replacements of products they lose or damage? You break it, you get a new one, is the conventional logic.
So, Apple should annihilate their already-slim profit margins on songs, just because you couldn't be bothered? Bandwidth and record-keeping is not cheap. And, if they offered this, you can bet that even fewer people would bother backing up - and many people would re-download, even if they did NOT lose their file, just for the convenience of moving a copy to work, or getting it while on holiday, instead of using a CD, backup server or iPod to transport it. There's immense potential for abuse of such a system.
I don't have money for some $100/hr consultant to "set up a music server" for me either.
Well, get a fucking.Mac account or an FTP server. You don't need RAID. A cheap HDD or DVD-R will do just as well. I mean, really. Backup is the first thing to think about when managing electronic data. It's your own damn fault if you don't protect your property.
I paid for the damn thing it should be around forever even if some craptastic BestBuy red tag special PC stops working and all the music my parents and grandparents bought is gone.
So, do you expect the same when you buy physical CDs, that you should get a free replacement if you scratch it or lose it?
Also, backing up doesn't take any significant amount of time. You just make a script to backup in the middle of the night, or whenever you are at work. You waste more time (and money) by not backing up, than the few minutes it takes to permanently set up a backup regime.
If you were using the iPod to play those songs, you wouldn't be using it as an "MP3 Player" technically speaking.
Yes you would, because most people have MP3 files mixed into their playlists along with their AAC tracks from iTMS. So, it's an MP3 player plus support for other formats.
2 platforms does not constitute multiplatform. There are way more than 2 platforms out there.
Except that iTunes is the only one (apart from allofmp3.com, of uncertain legality) that supports more than Windows. It is definitely the only store that sells DRMed music for more than one platform.
What about quality, usability and iPod compatibility? Who cares about a few cents here or there, if you have to use a crappy interface and Windows Media formats?
A $50 version that lets you just print to Distiller to create simple PDFs would be quite nice for a large number of users.
But who needs that product? MacOS users already have that built-in. other platform users can use free OpenSource utilities. Distiller is for print professionals. So, you would be stupid to buy a product just for simple PDF functionality. but it makes perfect sense for the target market, who the product was designed for.
How much expense would be added if biometrics were incorporated into the design so that once a laptop is "mated" to a child, only that child can operate it, thus rendering its worth on the black market so much less?
Too easily defeated. You just hack off the kid's finger or rip out her eyeball when you mug her for the laptop, and use that as the "key."
To say there's been a lot in the media about the iPod Nano and its butter-soft screen would be a masterpiece of understatement.
Just think for a minute. The media amplifies, repeats and sensationalizes things. Especially when it comes to Apple. You can't get an accurate picture of the true extent of defects from the media. A few loud voices can make it seem like a bigger problem. Would similar defects (which are common in many products) be so widely reported if it were Toshiba's products? What about Dell - don't hear much in the media, but a large number of those things are delivered faulty. Don't hear much in the mainstream media about flaws in Windows. People pay attention to very small issues with Apple, which would never even raise an eyebrow for an ordinary company.
Do the thousands of reports on Hurrican Katrina mean that there were thousands of hurricanes?
Laws should prevent someone else from fucking with me, not me fucking with me
That's exactly what seatbelt laws do. they help prevent you from being killed by a drive who isn't wearing a seatbelt, and flies out of his car in a crash. It is not safe to have loose, unsecured objects in moving vehicles.
Out of all those examples the only one I _might_ consider granting you would be the seat belt laws. There really isn't a reason for the Government to care if you live or die. Though if you abolish seat belt laws for adults (you can't abolish them for children because children can't legally consent to risking their life in such a manner
Not wearing a seatbelt is a danger to the public, not just the individual wearing the belt. It holds you in the seat, and stops you from becoming a projectile that can impact and kill other people.
what happens if you don't follow silly traffic laws like buckling your seat belt?
Whit is "silly" about seat belt laws? These are the best kind of laws - rational ones that help protect the public and save lives. Much better than the "morality" and "security" laws.
How about you show a link to this "fact," rather than just saying it is true? Sounds like a load of FUD to me. people who bash the iPod usually don't bother with actual facts. It's more about personal bitterness and unfulfilment.
that's one big ass driver. that's like saying it would be ok for epson scanners to work only with epson imaging software
Well, yes, that is OK and perfectly legal. It doesn't make good business sense, but there's nothing immoral or illegal in making your product work only with one's own software.
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But then Sony would sue Apple for violating Sony's DRM-protected CDs. Why should Apple risk such a thing? In the modern crazy media and legal environment, such a feature would be called" hacking" and the press would say Apple is evil for doing it. if it's illegal to tell people how to circumvent copy protection, it must be even more illegal to provide a tool that actually does it for you.
Because the DMCA is a stupid, draconian law that makes no sense. Where the hell do you get off, expecting US law to make sense, anyway? There are an amazing number of stupid laws in the US that are contradictory and make no sense.
And why does one need a car to transport multiple loads of laundry? The only reasons would be weakness or laziness ... or perhaps a family of ten. but somehow I doubt that's the case.
Incorrect. Your car's CD player won't play DRMed WMA files - you will still have to convert format or remove DRM somehow. And some WMA vendors don't even allow burning to CDs, or charge you extra for the privilege. Subscription services like Napster do not allow you to burn at all. At least Apple lets you burn standard audio CDs! Why are there two steps? She can just play an ordinary audio CD from iTunes in her CD player. You don't have to convert to MP3 to play the tracks.
That would be incorrect, because the article also mentions that Real's music store supports the iPod. So, if you can play Real's tracks on your iPod, how are iPod users only restricted to iTMS? In fact, I believe you can't use iTunes if you want to use Real's DRM-laden merchandise on your iPod.
Those people are an extreme minority. Many more people consider iTunes to be the best application they ever used, and it changed the way they used music and computers. iTunes is ubiquitous. I haven't seen any "consumer" use anything but iTunes for years. Audio pros use professional audio software, but that's entirely different. Everyone else, except a ver few, use iTunes.
If people like iTunes so much then why did anyone bother writing an application to replace it?
Because there are a few people who have obscure needs, different preferences, or have a thing against Apple. Doesn't mean there are very many of them. It's not a mainstream phenomenon. And you have your alternatives, so what's the problem?
Why? That's not the case with the majority of software sold. Lose that, and you have to buy another copy. I think people need some education if they believe in such fantasies. But I'd say most people do know that they aren't entitled to another copy. Only the wilfully ignorant or over-expectant would think like this. Do you have any evidence to suggest most people expect replacements of products they lose or damage? You break it, you get a new one, is the conventional logic.
So, Apple should annihilate their already-slim profit margins on songs, just because you couldn't be bothered? Bandwidth and record-keeping is not cheap. And, if they offered this, you can bet that even fewer people would bother backing up - and many people would re-download, even if they did NOT lose their file, just for the convenience of moving a copy to work, or getting it while on holiday, instead of using a CD, backup server or iPod to transport it. There's immense potential for abuse of such a system.
Well, get a fucking .Mac account or an FTP server. You don't need RAID. A cheap HDD or DVD-R will do just as well. I mean, really. Backup is the first thing to think about when managing electronic data. It's your own damn fault if you don't protect your property.
So, do you expect the same when you buy physical CDs, that you should get a free replacement if you scratch it or lose it?
Also, backing up doesn't take any significant amount of time. You just make a script to backup in the middle of the night, or whenever you are at work. You waste more time (and money) by not backing up, than the few minutes it takes to permanently set up a backup regime.
Yes you would, because most people have MP3 files mixed into their playlists along with their AAC tracks from iTMS. So, it's an MP3 player plus support for other formats.
Except that iTunes is the only one (apart from allofmp3.com, of uncertain legality) that supports more than Windows. It is definitely the only store that sells DRMed music for more than one platform.
What about quality, usability and iPod compatibility? Who cares about a few cents here or there, if you have to use a crappy interface and Windows Media formats?
But who needs that product? MacOS users already have that built-in. other platform users can use free OpenSource utilities. Distiller is for print professionals. So, you would be stupid to buy a product just for simple PDF functionality. but it makes perfect sense for the target market, who the product was designed for.
Logic is a good thing.
Yeah, but why would you buy a Canon over a Nikon? It doesn't make any sense.
Too easily defeated. You just hack off the kid's finger or rip out her eyeball when you mug her for the laptop, and use that as the "key."
This story really turns my crank.
Just think for a minute. The media amplifies, repeats and sensationalizes things. Especially when it comes to Apple. You can't get an accurate picture of the true extent of defects from the media. A few loud voices can make it seem like a bigger problem. Would similar defects (which are common in many products) be so widely reported if it were Toshiba's products? What about Dell - don't hear much in the media, but a large number of those things are delivered faulty. Don't hear much in the mainstream media about flaws in Windows. People pay attention to very small issues with Apple, which would never even raise an eyebrow for an ordinary company.
Do the thousands of reports on Hurrican Katrina mean that there were thousands of hurricanes?
Well, what did you expect? Dolphins are badasses. You can have my toxic dart when you pry it from my cold, dead fin.
I had no idea that the government forced you to own and operate a vehicle.
That's exactly what seatbelt laws do. they help prevent you from being killed by a drive who isn't wearing a seatbelt, and flies out of his car in a crash. It is not safe to have loose, unsecured objects in moving vehicles.
Not wearing a seatbelt is a danger to the public, not just the individual wearing the belt. It holds you in the seat, and stops you from becoming a projectile that can impact and kill other people.
Whit is "silly" about seat belt laws? These are the best kind of laws - rational ones that help protect the public and save lives. Much better than the "morality" and "security" laws.
How about you show a link to this "fact," rather than just saying it is true? Sounds like a load of FUD to me. people who bash the iPod usually don't bother with actual facts. It's more about personal bitterness and unfulfilment.
Well, yes, that is OK and perfectly legal. It doesn't make good business sense, but there's nothing immoral or illegal in making your product work only with one's own software.