Breaking News – You Can Tape Stuff Off the Radio…
By Brian | May 31, 2005
Remember the good old days when everybody was stealing digital music? Then iTunes came along and made it so easy (and cheap) to buy music, that stealing it actually became more of a hassle than it was worth? Well, in what should have been an obvious next step, that state of affairs appears to be short-lived:
Lawyers, others questions radio TIVO-like devices – Yahoo! News
Various devices that enable listeners to record Internet radio streams and then convert them into MP3 files are catching on and making Web radio and streaming services more appealing to the general public.
But some legal experts say the recording software may violate digital copyright laws and does little more than promote piracy.
I must admit, I never understood how Digital Rights Management (DRM) was going to last. When I was a teenager, I knew the 50 ways to hack through Apple II+ copy-protection so I could copy my friend’s new video game. Nowadays, I’m just an old fogey at 35, relegated to reading about today’s teenagers, who hack into massive government or corporate networks and cause millions in damages. Still, even *I* can figure out how to break DRM protection. Simply play the DRM-laden song on the PC, have the PC record straight from the sound card into an (unprotected) MP3 file, and then “Save As…” Voila! Instant cyber-thief. So if I can figure this out, why is the rest of the world pretending the teenagers are even breaking a sweat?
Tools like Replay Radio put the issue in the forefront, though. Music is different than TV. It’s portable and personal. A copy of a TV show still requires a TV, and usually, if you’re lucky, someone to watch it with. A copy of a song, though, is the whole package. It’s a 100% replacement for the purchased product. Not to mention the fact that you could conceivably go to work/school and leave Replay Radio running all day, then come home and cherry-pick the songs you want to add to your collection. A few weeks and some creative choices of radio stations, and you could fill an iPod for free.
Jay Cooper, a veteran entertainment lawyer, is quoted in the article singing that old refrain: “[This] Technology’s way ahead of the law.”
Indeed…
Categories: Tech Talk | 2 Comments »
Home Networking – Now with More Wires!
By Brian | May 31, 2005
Here’s a prediction: As soon as I get off my butt & configure a wireless network in the house, this will become ubiquitous.
Categories: Tech Talk | 5 Comments »
Highway Blogging…
By Brian | May 27, 2005
I’m in the car on the way to a cousin’s birthday party, and basically just want to see if e-mail initiated blogging is everything it’s cracked up to be.
Don’t worry, I’m not driving. Although, to be fair, there wasn’t a lot of driving to be done in the last couple of hours. The NJ Turnpike folks decided that Memorial Day Friday would be a good time to fix the shoulder by Exit 8. Backed up traffic in both directions by around 30 miles.
Anyway, last time I tried this, the formatting was all screwy. If that’s the case now, pardon our appearance while we strive to serve you better. I’ll clean up the mess next time I’m at a PC…
UPDATE: Well, the formatting was indeed all screwy, but the good news is the blogger tools let me fix it from right here in the car. In fact, for those who are HTML geeks, what it did was automatically bracket each paragraph with a class called “mobile-post”. So, when I do get back to my PC, I can actually define that class in my style sheet to be the same as a regular blog post (or, if I desire, a snazzy new mobile style!). The possibilities are mind boggling.
Anyway, kudos to the blogger tools once again…
Categories: Blogging about Blogs | 1 Comment »
Hello World – Redux…
By Brian | May 25, 2005
I finally sent an e-mail out to some friends telling them about this blog (it was a soft-launch for a few weeks). So I’m re-posting my first entry for their benefit.
Categories: Blogging about Blogs | Comments Off on Hello World – Redux…
Primetime TV Update #3
By Brian | May 25, 2005
I went with Bo for American Idol, but it seems Carrie pulled it out. I stand by what I said, though – the winner got a recording contract, fame and fortune. The loser will get, well…a recording contract, fame and fortune.
On the upside, the fall season is now basically done. What will I do with all my free time? Probably post a little more around here, I bet…
Categories: Primetime TV | Comments Off on Primetime TV Update #3
(Grease) Monkeying around with the web
By Brian | May 21, 2005
Almost as if the whole controversey around Google’s new toolbar didn’t happen, now there’s a tool for Firefox browsers called Greasemonkey, which lets users write client side scripts to change the way a web page looks or functions directly from their browser.
Examples include a script that removes all stories about Michael Jackson from a Reuters newsfeed, and one that makes the Chicago Transit Authority map a background on the Google Map of Chicago.
Watch for the intellectual property rights police to jump all over this one…
Categories: Tech Talk | 7 Comments »
Laura weighs in…
By Brian | May 20, 2005
Laura Bush agrees with me.
Categories: Political Rantings | Comments Off on Laura weighs in…
News cataloging, Part Deux
By Brian | May 20, 2005
OK, so they’ve got pictures of Saddam Hussein in his underwear. Here’s what his lawyer said:
“In our opinion this is a violation of all international agreements and human dignity, therefore we must sue the people responsible and the providers of these pictures, because if you look closely you can see that they were taken from his prison cell,” lawyer Ziad Khasawneh of Saddam’s defense team said.
“This is considered as another Abu Ghraib and we will take the necessary legal actions which we have already started,” he told Reuters in Amman.
Fine. Sue ’em. I hope he wins. Whoever published these pictures was being infantile and gets what he deserves. But this was no Abu Ghraib.
Yes, publicly displaying pictures of him in his underwear is embarrasing. But it’s junior high-school embarassing. He wasn’t being humiliated by his captors like the Abu Ghraib detainees were. In fact, he wasn’t being mistreated at all. What was awful about Abu Ghraib was what they were doing, not the fact that they photographed it.
Nonetheless, Mr. Khasawneh knows that this will only be an amusing side-story unless he can get it lumped into the “America Absuses Prisoners” meme, so it gets repeated over & over again by those who wish us harm.
Categories: News and/or Media | 4 Comments »
Primetime TV update #2
By Brian | May 20, 2005
(SPOILER WARNING: If you haven’t seen The Apprentice or ER finales, stop reading now).
The Apprentice: Redemption is mine! Tana got crushed, and for precisely the reason I stated. Kudos to her for coralling the team after she saw how bad she looked on air & trying the contrite apology thing, but that was a dead end all the way. Also, kudos to Donald Trump for telling Kendra that crying at work is over the top (and then for hiring her anyway).
Did anyone notice, by the way, that The Donald was extremely awkward and unsure of himself as the host of a live TV show? Last year, they had Regis Philbin around to gloss over the awkward moments (like when Trump’s CFO was literally speechless on camera). Last night, Trump looked uncomfortable and the show never really built to a fever pitch.
And what’s up with Martha Stewart? Apparently, this was announced back in February. I completely missed it, and haven’t heard about it since. I’m also amazed (and quite happy) that they didn’t plug it each & every week during this season.
As for ER, this was one of those interesting shows that provides a break between the “formula” shows. The transition from Noah Wylie to the new cast was excellent, as were the callbacks to the old cast members (very subtle – not too schmaltzy). The cliffhanger was a good one too. Yet again, another season awaits. I’m feeling pretty good about my prediction…
Categories: Primetime TV | Comments Off on Primetime TV update #2
A Palm in your hand is worth er, well…nevermind
By Brian | May 20, 2005
Some months ago, I bought this as part of my ongoing PDA upgrade process (wherein my wife’s PDA becomes unusable, and I buy a cool new one for myself and give her my old one).
At the time, it’s “wow” features were the huge 320×480 display, the ability to display in landscape orientation, the MP3 playing functionality, and the whopping 256MB of storage, which could be used like a USB drive, without all that nasty synching. The complaints were the lack of WiFi, and the lack of voice recording capability.
Yesterday, a friend sent me this link. Almost as if by magic, WiFi and voice recording are here. Not only that, we’re talking about 4GB of storage. One could not only digitize their photo collection, but carry the whole thing around with them at all times.
It’s great to see innovation at work, but I probably won’t upgrade right now. I don’t need the voice recorder, I’m not using anywhere near the 256MB I have, and the WiFi card for the Tungsten T5 is only $100. Including the $350 I spent on the device, that’s still cheaper than the $500 they want for the LifeDrive. (This seems to be a theme, by the way, since they’re offering a free WiFi card with the purchase of a T5 right now. I guess you’re basically paying $150 for a voice recorder and 3.75GB of memory…)
Categories: Tech Talk | Comments Off on A Palm in your hand is worth er, well…nevermind