The drive is the cheap part; it's the dual layer media that hurts.
DL DVD+R disks have dropped nicely in price the past year or so. If I remember correctly, back in November, I paid $15 for a pack of DL blanks. I can't remember if it was a 3-pack or a 5-pack, but either way, the per disk cost wasn't bad at all.
The DCMA can say whatever it wants -- it holds no sway over what I can and cannot do here in Canada
And likewise, for those of us here in the U.S., the DMCA holds no sway over what we can and cannot do in the privacy of our own homes with media we have legally purchased, unless you are the type who blindly follows every last little bit of legal code our lawmakers fart out, because it is law and all laws must be obeyed without question.
In this age of media convergence where TV networks own cable companies, what better way to force people not to "steal" their content by skipping commercials???
If we are "stealing" their content by skipping commercials, then what exactly are the cable companies providing in exchange for our monthly subscription fees? Isn't that money paid to them in exchange for the content they provide?
If and when the time comes that this becomes mandatory, then anyone looking to replace their old equipment will be buying, because there will be no choice once this is all that is available.
I'm sorry, but why would you be *wanting* to use *any* kind of encryption (or just not speak clearly enough for us to understand) if you do not have anything to hide ?
My private information is no one's fuckin' business but my own. Without my explicit permission, no one has any right to access my financial records, medical records, master password list (for various sites and the various computers on my home network), bits and pieces of stories I'm working on that are not ready for public viewing, etc.
And to keep that private information private, I will encrypt it. Did you seriously think that only people engaging in criminal or otherwise questionable activity have any need for privacy and data security?
It'll be a sad day when I'm forced to 'upgrade' from Win2k
Aw, it isn't that bad. A couple years ago, I was finally forced to upgrade my primary system from Windows 98SE Lite (that's 98SE with IE totally stripped out), because for some reason, the OS would go into seizures when there was more than one DIMM installed in the motherboard.
The upgrade was fairly painless. I went to Knoppix, then Mepis, and finally settled on pure Debian Sid. Haven't had any major problems with that system ever since then (other than getting rooted once because I was doing some experimenting and forgot to turn the firewall back on. That was when I went from Mepis to Debian, come to think of it.);)
Forced upgrades aren't necessarily bad things depending on what upgrade path you take.
Some company had "net saving in the region of £10,000." That means Microsoft probably lost a lot more than that.
Microsoft didn't lose anything. They made their money from the original sale of those licenses which were then resold. That would be like claiming nVidia would be losing whatever the current retail value is of the used GeForce card that I may sell, since I have replaced it with a new one. They made their money off it already.
Romulan Ale is okay, but real life forms prefer the Pan Galactic Gargleblaster, for when you want to feel like you have had your head smashed in by a slice of lemon wrapped around a large gold brick.
Remember...the State of Oklahoma was created by Congress; whereas it can't legislate to Oklahoma because it is a state already created by the people; thereby, Congress can't create a state within a state unless by Admiralty jurisidiction (libel) to say our (the people's) Oklahoma is a Territory under the US Constititution. This brings in many presumptions whereas this Oklahoma (not-confederated several states of the people) are not a part of that OKLAHOMA (a federal State upon the dejure state known as Oklahoma libeled/Admiralty to be respected as a Territory for Congress to charter and "graze" its a corporation upon). The United States (plural) is not the United States (singular; USCODE Title 27 Section 3002, 15 ; '"United States" means a federal corporation') in the Admiralty mode can only see Territory when it has a Treaty to extend its venue.
Warning!!! The Surgeon General has determined that reading the above and attempting to comprehend it without the aid of certain chemical substances may induce spontaneous cerebral detonation.
Enough! And stop those miserable psalms, they're so boring and so depressing. And stop bowing! Every time I try to talk to someone it's forgive me this and forgive me that and I'm not worthy...
Slashdot Mirror
Sounds like it is time to trademark the name SoylentFuel. ;)
And likewise, for those of us here in the U.S., the DMCA holds no sway over what we can and cannot do in the privacy of our own homes with media we have legally purchased, unless you are the type who blindly follows every last little bit of legal code our lawmakers fart out, because it is law and all laws must be obeyed without question.
If we are "stealing" their content by skipping commercials, then what exactly are the cable companies providing in exchange for our monthly subscription fees? Isn't that money paid to them in exchange for the content they provide?
I guess that would be a tremendous test of character, integrity, and conscience to resist such a temptation.
If and when the time comes that this becomes mandatory, then anyone looking to replace their old equipment will be buying, because there will be no choice once this is all that is available.
Or to quote Linus (Vanpelt, that is...)
I love humanity. It's the people I can't stand.
My private information is no one's fuckin' business but my own. Without my explicit permission, no one has any right to access my financial records, medical records, master password list (for various sites and the various computers on my home network), bits and pieces of stories I'm working on that are not ready for public viewing, etc.
And to keep that private information private, I will encrypt it. Did you seriously think that only people engaging in criminal or otherwise questionable activity have any need for privacy and data security?
Or to convert it to laymen's terms...
The temperature of Venus is unfuckingbelievably hot.
(Just ask Mercury. I believe he was tasked with taking her temperature.)
Aw, it isn't that bad. A couple years ago, I was finally forced to upgrade my primary system from Windows 98SE Lite (that's 98SE with IE totally stripped out), because for some reason, the OS would go into seizures when there was more than one DIMM installed in the motherboard.
The upgrade was fairly painless. I went to Knoppix, then Mepis, and finally settled on pure Debian Sid. Haven't had any major problems with that system ever since then (other than getting rooted once because I was doing some experimenting and forgot to turn the firewall back on. That was when I went from Mepis to Debian, come to think of it.)
Forced upgrades aren't necessarily bad things depending on what upgrade path you take.
Microsoft didn't lose anything. They made their money from the original sale of those licenses which were then resold. That would be like claiming nVidia would be losing whatever the current retail value is of the used GeForce card that I may sell, since I have replaced it with a new one. They made their money off it already.
Romulan Ale is okay, but real life forms prefer the Pan Galactic Gargleblaster, for when you want to feel like you have had your head smashed in by a slice of lemon wrapped around a large gold brick.
And Windows deletes itself, thus removing that particular threat once and for all.
Warning!!! The Surgeon General has determined that reading the above and attempting to comprehend it without the aid of certain chemical substances may induce spontaneous cerebral detonation.
So in other words, we lose all the ass jokes and get subjected to piss jokes (which just aren't as funny as ass jokes IMHO.)
Just out of curiosity, anyone here have any idea how many anal-oriented jokes this article has spawned here so far?
Would it be a buttload, shitload, assload, crapload, or fuckload?
Admit it. You had tears streaming down your cheeks from laughing too hard while trying to make your post.
I think your post got modded redundant because the brown ring joke had already been posted a couple times higher up in the discussion.
This is why before I hit submit after previewing a post, I reload the thread just to make sure someone else hasn't said what I'm saying already.
Enough! And stop those miserable psalms, they're so boring and so depressing. And stop bowing! Every time I try to talk to someone it's forgive me this and forgive me that and I'm not worthy...
Does anyone else think that sounds like a quote from something like Organized Crime for Dummies?
Will that be with or without the machine gun jubblies?
I'd love to see ROTJ redone the way Lucas originally conceived it, using Wookies instead of Ewoks.
The carnage would have been glorious.
[Yoda]: Take you to him I will. But first we must eat. Cum! Good food, cum! Yee-hee-hee-hee-hee....
Why? What does People Eating Tasty Animals have to do with this?
Bah! Fire is overrated. I'd rather have a Dragon that could do lightning instead.