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*HOT* Tech News And Downloads, I Would Read This Thread And Post Any Good Info
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AfterDawn Addict
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17. October 2006 @ 15:43 |
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Legal p2p downloads coming soon?
10/17/2006 4:25:52 PM, by Nate Anderson
Did Google's purchase of YouTube change the online world? More specifically, do the deals signed with content providers on the morning of the buyout indicate that the industry is now open to new ways of licensing content?
Michael Geist, an influential professor of Internet and E-commerce Law at the University of Ottawa, thinks that it does, and that licensed (read: legal) p2p file-swapping could be a real possibility. In a recent column, Geist pointed out how different the YouTube deal was from what happened to Napster. One company made $1.65 billion, the other was sued into financial ruin. Music and television production houses are increasingly aware that certain methods of Internet distribution might be in their best interests. But p2p? Have the RIAA headquarters frozen over?
Music and movie companies are more interested in getting paid than in how they get paid, as the YouTube deal makes clear. Entertainment companies are willing to settle for a slice of the advertising pie, even if that revenue comes from sites not under their control. In short, the entertainment biz is more willing to follow consumer eyeballs than to insist on total dominance.
China first?
But the content creators still need to get paid. They have no incentive to license current p2p schemes with limited revenues and advertising dollars. But what if you could charge people to access the p2p system in the first place, then split that money with the content owners? That's the approach taken by Harvard professor Terry Fisher, who heads the Berkman Center there. Fisher's idea is to launch a p2p platform called Noank in China.
Here's how Geist describes the system: "Once operational, it will enable 10 million Chinese university students to freely download music and movies with no technological restrictions. The service will be funded by a mandatory student fee (similar to a student activity fee), with 85 percent of the proceeds distributed to participating artists and content owners. Fisher estimates that the service will generate $200 million per year from these fees alone, with additional advertising revenue possibly doubling that figure."
Imagine how well such a system would flourish here. Students have not been thrilled with mandatory fees to fund music, but there's no reason the fee need be mandatory. Just market to college students: $200 a year for all you can download, no DRM, and it's legal. Such a system could well mark the end of iTunes.
Fisher has thought about this quite a bit. In chapter six of his 2004 book Promises to Keep: Technology, Law, and the Future of Entertainment, Fisher ponders a system where the government supervises file-swapping, imposes taxes, and then distributes the money to artists.
In brief, here's how such a system would work. A creator who wished to collect revenue when his or her song or film was heard or watched would register it with the Copyright Office. With registration would come a unique file name, which would be used to track transmissions of digital copies of the work. The government would raise, through taxes, sufficient money to compensate registrants for making their works available to the public. Using techniques pioneered by American and European performing rights organizations and television rating services, a government agency would estimate the frequency with which each song and film was heard or watched by consumers. Each registrant would then periodically be paid by the agency a share of the tax revenues proportional to the relative popularity of his or her creation. Once this system were in place, we would modify copyright law to eliminate most of the current prohibitions on unauthorized reproduction, distribution, adaptation, and performance of audio and video recordings. Music and films would thus be readily available, legally, for free.
But will any of these approaches play in Peoria?
YouTube vs. BitTorrent
The YouTube deals don't necessarily indicate that the entertainment industry is ready to go this far, this soon, though, even if they get paid.
Think about the content of the YouTube deals. Much of it is old music videos. While Ars' Managing Editor Eric Bangeman enjoys nothing better than a bubble bath with Elton John's "Your Song" playing on the laptop, we can all admit that this is less-than-premium content. It has value, but not the same value as current radio hits, for instance, or episodes of The Office. These companies are moving cautiously, worried about releasing their crown jewels without adequate compensation.
The music videos and music also don't cannibalize sales. Though technically possible to record the audio from YouTube clips into your personal music library, few people bother. If they like the song, they'll have to find it elsewhere. Allowing for p2p distribution of premium content would cannibalize sales in other formats, though.
Finally, this sort of blanket licensing would lower the price (and perceived value) of music, TV shows, and movies. This, in turn, would make it difficult for online stores and bricks-and-mortar retailers to compete without a major price reduction. And if that happened, the content creation industries stand to lose a lot of cash. Perhaps it would be offset by volume, perhaps not. It's a risky move, and few of these companies have shown themselves open to risky Internet strategies.
Still, anything's possible. Fisher has his eyes on Canada next. If the model works there and gets industry support, the US can't be too far behind.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20061017-8012.html
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17. October 2006 @ 15:53 |
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Bug fixes lead to Firefox 2 RC3
10/17/2006 1:54:56 PM, by Ryan Paul
Firefox 2.0 Release Candidate 3 (RC3) is now available for download. There are no significant perceivable differences between the latest release candidate and the previous one, which we reviewed in depth earlier this month. RC3 features a number of bug fixes and minor security improvements that bring us closer to the official Firefox 2 release.
With aesthetic improvements, useful new tab management features, built-in spell-checking, a phishing protection mechanism, browser session persistence, Javascript 1.7, and an assortment of other features, Firefox 2 is a solid incremental improvement over the 1.5.x series, but none of the new features are particularly impressive must-haves, and it doesn't exceed expectations as major Firefox releases have in the past. Although plug-in availability for Firefox 2 was limited at the time when we did our RC2 review, the situation has improved a bit, and more add-ons are now compatible with Firefox 2. Although the Mozilla developer calendar does not show the actual launch date for Firefox 2, we expect it to be soon.
Interested users can download the release candidate from the Mozilla web site. If you are currently using RC2, consider upgrading for improved reliability. Those of you that haven't tried any Firefox 2 prerelease yet might just want to wait until the official release at this point. Firefox 3, which is planned for May 2007, will include Gecko 1.9, a major overhaul of the Firefox HTML rendering engine. Gecko 1.9 features Javascript 2, XBL 2, Cairo rendering support, and numerous other improvements.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20061017-8007.html
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18. October 2006 @ 08:30 |
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Universal sues video-sharing websites
By Joshua Chaffin in New York
Published: October 17 2006 20:27 | Last updated: October 18 2006 02:34
Universal Music, the world?s largest record company, has launched the established media industry?s first legal action against user-generated internet sites in the wake of its distribution deal last week with YouTube, the most popular video-sharing website.
In separate lawsuits, Universal alleged that Grouper.com ? recently acquired by Sony Pictures Entertainment ? and Bolt.com had built up traffic by encouraging users to share music videos from its artists without their permission. In one incident, it claimed a video for the Mariah Carey song ?Shake it Off? was viewed more than 50,000 times on Grouper without the company?s permission.
Please go here to read the total article
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/57d66d24-5e0f-11db-82d4-0000779e2340.html
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18. October 2006 @ 09:37 |
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These guys, If it's such a nuisance for unauthorized people to watch a video, why produce it in the first place???
They shouldn't bother to make videos they don't want us to see.
Chuck
"Men are slower to recognize blessings than misfortunes." Titus Livius (59BC-17AD)
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18. October 2006 @ 09:58 |
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it's not that they don't want us to see it, it's that they want us to feel we need to see it and thus have our wallets appropriately drained to view it.
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18. October 2006 @ 10:00 |
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Music for the Masses
p2pnet.net News:- AllofMP3.com represents viable, and extremely powerful, competition to Warner Music, EMI, Vivendi Universal and Sony BMG, the members of the Big Four Organized Music cartel.
That's why they hate and fear it so much.
The Russian p2p music download site is being pilloried by the US administration, with US trade rep Susan Schwab in the front line, and now the site is planning to release, "hundreds of thousands of albums free," says the International Herald Tribune.
There's an interesting anaolgy between what's happening to AllofMP3.com, and to the Big Four's consumer base.
In both cases, Organized Music is using its tremendous wealth, and the frightening political clout it buys, its limitless legal resources and its various faux trade organizations such as the RIAA, BPI, IFPI, etc, to pressure governments into introducing legislation and initiating actions which, bottom line, exist solely to serve and protect members' bottom lines.
And the same charge can be levelled at the movie and software industries.
AllofMP3.com, "remunerates artists by paying 15 percent of its revenue to a collecting agency, the Russian Multimedia and Internet Society, or ROMS by its initials in Russian," the story has Vadim Mamotin, director general of the site?s parent company, Mediaservices, saying, "by telephone with the International Herald Tribune" and then during an online chat with journalists.
"Organizations representing global authors, composers, music publishers and record companies issued a statement, however, calling for closure of the site and reaffirming their stance that both ROMS and AllofMP3 operate illegally," says the story, continuing:
"The battle with AllofMP3 comes as the Internet continues to bring upheaval to the music industry by radically changing distribution models. Some players, like Pirate Bay in Sweden, continue to operate illegally, while others, like Napster and Kazaa, have come into the legal fold in order to offer services in cooperation with the music industry."
Not at all incidetnally, on the same day that AllofMP3.com held its press conference, the Big Four's IFPI also announced it was going after 8,000 men, women and children around the world for allegedly "distributing" copyrighted music files online.
"Warner Music, EMNI, Vivendi Universal and Sony BMG claim their sue 'em all lawsuits are driving victims to the corporate online 'services' and 'stores' backed and supplied by the industry and, asserts John Kennedy, the man who runs the Big Four's IFPI, the cases are, 'proving a major deterrent to illegal p2p file-sharing'," p2pnet posted yesterday.
However, "in September, on average 9,044,010 people around the world were logged onto the p2p networks simultaneously at any one time," p2p market research company Big Champagne told us. In September last year, the number was 9,284,558, well up from the 6,784,574 in 2004 and 3,764,032 in 2003.
Meanwhile, AllofMP3 said its business model, "would move toward an ad-supported distribution of free content," says the Herald Tribune.
"The company, which previously charged about $1 an album, plans to offer consumers a new software program that allows them to download any song from the site for free. AllofMP3 claims to have a catalogue of hundreds of thousands of albums, increasing at a rate of 1,000 per month."
But to do so, music lovers will have to use an AllofMP3's Music for the Masses application, and they'll only be able to play the music on one computer at a time.
MftM, "initially be available for Microsoft Windows, with an Apple version arriving in several weeks," says the International Herald Tribune, adding:
"Consumers who wish to transfer their songs between computers or to a music device like an iPod or another MP3 player, will have to pay for the music," which in turn will win new customers and build a big enough community to attract advertising, it quotes Mamotin as saying.
"We eventually plan to run advertisements on the music player. We will lose revenue from music sales, but we hope that the advertising will more than make up for it."
Also See:
International Herald Tribune - Moscow Music Site to Give Away Thousands of Albums, October 18, 2006
posted yesterday - Big Music ramps up anti-p2p war, October 17, 2006
at any one time - p2p file sharing is IN, October 17, 2006
p2pnet newsfeeds for your site.
rss feed: http://p2pnet.net/p2p.rss
Mobile - http://p2pnet.net/index-wml.php
(Wednesday 18th October 2006)
http://p2pnet.net/story/10152?PHPSESSID=...8d5c05485556bbb
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 18. October 2006 @ 10:02
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18. October 2006 @ 10:04 |
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Apple Says Shipped iPods Carrying Computer Virus
NEW YORK (Oct. 18) - Some of Apple Computer Inc.'s iPod digital music players shipped in the past month carry a computer virus, according to a posting on Apple's technical support Web site.
Apple says a small percentage of new video iPod for Windows machines shipped with a virus.
Apple said since September 12, less than 1 percent of Video iPods -- pocket-sized devices that can play music files and video clips -- left its contract manufacturer carrying the virus RavMonE.exe, which affects computers running Microsoft Corp.'s Windows operating system.
"So far we have seen less than 25 reports concerning this problem. The iPod nano, iPod shuffle and Mac OS X are not affected, and all Video iPods now shipping are virus free," the company said on the site.
Apple said the virus can be detected and removed using many popular anti-virus software programs.
Representatives for Apple and Microsoft were not available to comment further on Wednesday morning.
10/18/06 09:26 ET
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18. October 2006 @ 12:44 |
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Apple takes Cheap Shot at Microsoft after shipping iPod with Virus!
LINK TO THE STORY I POSTED
http://forums.afterdawn.com/thread_view.cfm/109/322699#2466488
IpodApple first of all just like any other manufacture of goods you should be ashamed of yourself for not having stronger quality assurance. This seems to be a running issue recently Allowing a virus that effects Windows users to be shipped on iPod?s is beyond unacceptable.
It?s bad enough that this has happened, and then you take a cheap shot at Microsoft on your website in reporting the problem you created. You will not win any friends in the Windows PC community low blow commentary you have on your support website. For those that have not seen the remarks I am referring to that Apple made check out a portion of Apple?s response to shipping iPods with a Windows Virus on them.
?The iPod nano, iPod shuffle and Mac OS X are not affected, and all Video iPods now shipping are virus free. As you might imagine, we are upset at Windows for not being more hardy against such viruses, and even more upset with ourselves for not catching it.?
It is obvious that Apple does not respect their Windows customers. I can guarantee you that the majority of people that have iPods have a Windows computer at home, and at work. The arrogance of this post reflects the demeanor of Apple at this time. Screw the customer and laugh in there faces! That?s the way it has been with the MacBook issue and now this. [Apple]
http://www.geeknewscentral.com/archives/006497.html
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 18. October 2006 @ 12:46
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18. October 2006 @ 12:57 |
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Visa halts its service for allofmp3.com
By Greg Sandoval
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
Published: October 18, 2006, 11:35 AM PDT
Tell us what you think about this storyTalkBack E-mail this story to a friendE-mail View this story formatted for printingPrint Add to your del.icio.usdel.icio.us Digg this storyDigg this
Credit card company Visa International said Wednesday that it has suspended service to music download site allofmp3.com, the latest setback for the Russian company accused in the U.S. of pirating music.
"It's no longer permitted to accept Visa cards," said Simon Barker, a Visa International spokesman. "The action we've taken is in line with legislation passed in Russia and international copyright law."
The news comes as allofmp3.com launches a public relations campaign to counter claims by the U.S. government that the site is an outlaw operation. On Tuesday, allofmp3.com announced plans to give away hundreds of thousands of albums for free, according to a story in the International Herald Tribune.
U.S. trade representatives say allofmp3.com is profiting from unauthorized music sales. Executives of allofmp3.com say that the company carefully adheres to copyright law in Russia. That doesn't satisfy U.S. music labels' concerns about copyright infringement, however.
Like music download sites that came before it, such as Napster and Kazaa, allofmp3.com offers unlicensed music for deeply discounted prices.
After years of court battles, Napster and Kazaa now cooperate with record companies. Other sites around the globe, such as Spain-based Weblisten.com, have succumbed to legal pressure and shut their doors.
The U.S. has indicated that by allowing allofmp3.com to continue operating, Russia could be jeopardizing its bid to join the World Trade Organization.
http://news.com.com/2100-1027_3-6127168....27168&subj=news
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18. October 2006 @ 13:10 |
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US internet addicts 'as ill as alcoholics'
* 12:55 18 October 2006
* NewScientist.com news service
* New Scientist Tech staff and AFP
The US could be rife with "internet addicts" who are as clinically ill as alcoholics, according to psychiatrists involved in a nationwide study.
The study, carried out by researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine in California, US, indicates that more than one in eight US residents show signs of "problematic internet use".
The Stanford researchers interviewed 2513 adults in a nationwide survey. Because internet addiction is not a clinically defined medical condition, the questions used were based on analysis of other addiction disorders.
Most disturbing, according to the study's lead author Elias Aboujaoude, is the discovery that some people hide their internet surfing, or go online to cure foul moods ? behaviour that mirrors the way alcoholics behave.
"In a sense, they're using the internet to self-medicate," Aboujaoude says. "And, obviously, something is wrong when people go out of their way to hide their internet activity."
Non-essential use
Nearly 14% of respondents said they found it difficult to stay away from the internet for several days and 12% admitted that they often remain online longer than expected.
More than 8% of those surveyed said they hid internet use from family, friends and employers, and the same percentage confessed to going online to flee from real-world problems. Approximately 6% also said their personal relationships had suffered as a result of excessive internet usage.
"Potential markers of problematic internet use are present in a sizeable portion of the population," the researchers note.
Compulsive drive
Aboujaoude, a psychiatry professor at Stanford's Impulse Control Disorders Clinic, says an increasing number of people are seeking help from doctors because of unhealthy internet use.
He compares the compulsive drive to check email, make blog entries or visit websites to substance abuse ? an irresistible urge to perform a temporarily pleasurable act.
"The issue is starting to be recognised as a legitimate object of clinical attention, as well as an economic problem, given that a great deal of non-essential internet use takes place at work," Aboujaoude says.
He adds that the problem is not confined to specific types of internet use. "Online pornography and, to some degree, online gambling, have received the most attention," he says, "but users are as likely to use other sites, including chat rooms, shopping venues and special-interest websites."
Previous research suggests that the majority of "internet addicts" are single, college-educated, white males in their 30s, who spend approximately 30 hours a week on non-essential computer use.
Journal reference: CNS Spectrums: The International Journal of Neuropsychiatric Medicine (October issue)
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18. October 2006 @ 15:25 |
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Labels use decoy files to kick advertising to P2P pirates
Posted by Dan Bell on 19 October 2006 - 00:37 - Source: The Wall Street Journal
It's no secret that the P2P networks have plenty of decoy music files, mixed in among the real thing. Classically, they were used as a means to try and wear down P2P downloaders, who never tire of the lure of free, DRM-less music. Up to 30 out of the top 100 hit Billboard tunes may be floating around at once, as ringers for the real thing. Usually, even though they are not the real file, they will more often than not, top the search list and this really can be frustrating (I guess- I wouldn't know).
But, here's the twist, content creators and distributors are now using the decoy files to sling ads at the scofflaws. Because, labels and record executives finally wised up to the fact, that the people downloading illegally are huge music fans! The new thinking is that marketing to them may be more desirable in the long run, than suing or otherwise harassing them. Duh! In a weird way, I like this idea. But, then again, I like rope burns and trips to the dentist. Seriously though, maybe this is a move in the right direction indeed!
Hence the alliance between Jay-Z and Coke. By inserting promotional material into the decoy files, and then planting those files prominently on file-sharing sites, record labels and other marketers can turn what is now an antipiracy tool into an advertising medium. "The concept here is making the peer-to-peer networks work for us," says Jay-Z's attorney, Michael Guido. "While peer-to-peer users are stealing the intellectual property, they are also the active music audience," and "this technology allows us to market back to them."
Concert outtakes aren't the only content. Audioslave, Ice Cube, Yellowcard and other music groups have used decoy files for their own version of viral marketing. With help from niche companies like Sparkart LLC and NFA Group's BuyDRM, they put snippets of a song into the files with the promise that a stream of the entire song will be "unlocked" for everyone once the promotion is forwarded to enough people. The hope is that this will motivate people to send the file to lots of friends.
If you want to read more...then head on over to the Wall Street Journal!
http://www.cdfreaks.com/news/14140
MAIN ARTICLE HERE
http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB1....html?mod=blogs
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18. October 2006 @ 15:28 |
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DRM increases 'piracy'?
Posted by Quema34 on 18 October 2006 - 22:55 - Source: ZDNet
While there may be some reason to feel encouraged, it is obvious the MPAA?s definition of ?piracy? doesn?t pass muster, as one is not considered a ?pirate? by their rendering when someone enjoys the very portability their purchase was supposed to have granted them under normal fair use provisions under copyright. It is clear the industry fails to understand consumers only ?take back? the rights they were supposed to have in the first place by circumventing DRM. What the essential problem boils down to is the industry?s greed causes this reaction: when the consumer buys something expecting to play it or transfer it elsewhere without restriction but can?t, why should one have to buy it again? There is no one to complain to, or at least no one that listens and helps. The industry?s refusal to accept reality at the consumer?s expense is the trouble:
Speaking last week at the Digital Home Developers Conference, Brad Hunt, the executive vice president and chief technology officer for the MPAA, conceded that many people are frustrated at having to buy multiple copies of the same content to use on different devices and that this is driving them to piracy.
Talk about being out of touch with the consumer! This exemplifies the industry?s general intransigence and shows how ?slow? it is to understand its actions generate a backlash. However, how much it is truly ?concerned? about consumer reaction is yet to be concretely defined.
What is concrete, however, is that the author of the article erroneously classifies someone taking back their rights with their purchase a ?pirate,? demonstrating the author ?buys into? the MPAA/RIAA spin?which is quite sad?as this person does not adhere to the distinction that a pirate steals without having paid for the item. Furthermore, the author employs a ?slippery slope,? fallaciously assuming because a consumer desires to circumvent DRM to fully enjoy one?s legal purchase that said person will start looking for ways to get other items free. At the very least, this kind of ?escalation? is non sequitur. Fortunately, the author redeems himself by identifying one possible solution (that of offering DRM-free music, something eMusic, Tunebite and Yahoo Music [in a limited fashion] already do) to ending DRM. However, it is not ?visionary? to see this as a ?road to profits? when this is exactly what informed consumers are already demanding. Will the industry on the whole listen and act to end DRM without having to take the legal bodyslams it may have to before changing its mind? Only time will tell.
http://www.cdfreaks.com/news/14138
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18. October 2006 @ 15:38 |
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Study finds that over 90 mins of earphone music is harmful
Posted by Seán Byrne on 19 October 2006 - 00:53 - Source: Reuters - Health
Ever since the first cassette tape walkmans hit the market, there have been many reports and studies into extended listening of loud music with worrying reports of how easily one can damage their hearing, including many recent reports with Digital Audio Players. Even though the vast majority of portable player manufacturers have limited how loud their players can go, a study carried out by 100 doctoral students have revealed some worrying results even with recent players, this time explaining their findings as percentages of a maximum player's volume rather than in decibels.
When listening to a player between 10% and 50% of its maximum volume, the study found that no problems occur even with extended listening periods. When the volume is cranked up to 80%, the listener can get away with up to 90 minutes of listening per day if they use their player on a daily bases. This period can be extended without risk if the listener only uses their player on the occasional day. However, the risk of hearing loss significantly increases once the volume is increased beyond 90 minutes per day on average or beyond 80%. For example, at 100% volume, a listener would face risk of hearing loss at just more than 5 minutes per day. Unfortunately it can take up to 10 years for the hearing loss to show.
Interestingly, the study has found the volume levels are typically equal between various makes and brands of digital music players and the same goes with different genres of music. For example, an iPod listener who loves Rock music would be at the same risk as a user of another branded player who loves country music, assuming both listen at the same volume level from 80% up. However, another story found that in-ear earphones are more dangerous than over-ear headphones, since the earphones concentrate the audio more. Thanks to GristyMcFisty for letting us know about this news:
Listening to loud music with earphones on a digital music player for more than 90 minutes a day can damage your hearing, according to a new U.S. study.
The study of 100 doctoral students concluded that people who listened to music at 80 percent of volume capacity, at which point the sound is considered loud, should stick to under 90 minutes a day.
"If a person exceeds that on one particular day and happens not to use their headphones for the rest of the week, they're at no higher risk," study author Brian Fligor told Reuters. "I'm talking about someone who's exceeding 80 percent for 90 minutes day after day, month after month, for years."
If listening to an MP3 player at 100% can potentially ruin one?s hearing at just over 5 minutes per day, it makes me wonder about some people who complain about their iPod (or other MP3 player) being not loud enough! Interestingly, there are many headphone amplifiers on the market that claim to amplify the volume by between 200% and 300%. While some larger driver headphones may need the extra power, consumers who get these to amplify their earphones volume well beyond their MP3 player?s normal maximum volume are really putting their hearing at serious risk.
GristyMcFisty added: Time to sue the music industry, after all they supplied the music...! Stranger things have happened Stateside...
http://www.cdfreaks.com/news/14139
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18. October 2006 @ 15:39 |
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Even Billboard admonishes the industry to 'dump' DRM!
Posted by Dan Bell on 18 October 2006 - 15:00 - Source: Various
Quema34 used our news submit to tell us: "Finally--a voice of reason in the DRM darkness--in the form of a music executive (from Yahoo Music, David Goldberg)! If some of the upcoming non-DRM music services offering primarily independent music gain ground quickly, a few more major labels might come on board. Of course, the limiting or primary factors in this potential evolution will likely be industry stubbornness and/or reluctance to "give up" the very creation it thinks "protects" content from "piracy"."
"People who really want to steal music are going to steal it," one executive remarks. "You"re just making it hard for people who want to do the right thing to get the music they legitimately purchased on the devices and services that they want," he adds.
Amen to that! This DRM has little affect upon piracy. Some could argue it is there at least in the case of Apple, to maintain brand loyalty. Certainly, we can argue that it does almost nothing in regard to illegal file sharing. According to the IFPI's own figures, some 20 billion songs were illegally downloaded worldwide last year. Years after the rise of legal music sites with DRM applied tracks.
In my opinion, it has more to do with control, control of the consumer and what they can do with their legally purchased products. It's about sidestepping the Betamax ruling of 1992, making it legal to record and time-shift, by making it illegal to remove copyright protections to do so!
It's about tiered pricing and it's about charging for what we used to be allowed to do for free. DRM to me, is more a tool to strip us of our Fair Use Rights, not so much a tool to protect copyrights. It's about time for us to wake up and smell the coffee, both the consumer and the copyright holder. Stop wasting your money!
http://www.cdfreaks.com/news/14133
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18. October 2006 @ 23:06 |
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UP FOR A WIZZ BREAK..
The Gimp 2.3.12,FREEWARE 10-18-06
The Gimp 2.3.12 UPDATED
Author: The Gimp Team
Date: 2006-10-18
Size: 13.9 Mb
License: Freeware
Requires: Win NT/2K/XP/2003
GIMP is an acronym for GNU Image Manipulation Program. It is a freely distributed program for such tasks as photo retouching, image composition and image authoring. It has many capabilities. It can be used as a simple paint program, an expert quality photo retouching program, an online batch processing system, a mass production image renderer, an image format converter, etc. GIMP is expandable and extensible. It is designed to be augmented with plug-ins and extensions to do just about anything. The advanced scripting interface allows everything from the simplest task to the most complex image manipulation procedures to be easily scripted.
DOWNLOAD HERE
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4485.html
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18. October 2006 @ 23:14 |
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Internet Explorer 7 7.0.5730.11 Final
Author: Microsoft Corp.
Date: 2006-10-18
Size: 15.1 Mb
License: Freeware
Requires: Win XP
Internet Explorer 7 is a useful program that includes advancements in security and browsing experience for end users, functionality and compatibility for developers, and manageability for corporate network administrators.
Here are some key features of "Internet Explorer 7":
ActiveX Opt-in
· Disables nearly all pre-installed ActiveX controls to prevent potentially vulnerable controls from being exposed to attack. You can easily enable or disable ActiveX controls as needed through the Information Bar and the Add-on Manager.
Simplified User Experience
· The Internet Explorer 7 frame is reorganized to make it noticeably simpler, more streamlined, and less cluttered with unnecessary items. This maximizes the area of the screen devoted to the webpages that you want to see and makes performing the most common browsing tasks easy.
CSS Improvements
· Addresses many of the major inconsistencies that can cause web developers problems when producing visually rich, interactive webpages. Improved support for CSS2.1, including selectors and fixed positioning, allow web developers to create more powerful effects without the use of script.
Security Status Bar
· Enhances awareness of website security and privacy settings by displaying color-coded notifications next to the address bar. Internet Explorer 7 changes the Address Bar green for websites bearing new High Assurance certificates, indicating the site owner has completed extensive identity verification checks. Phishing Filter notifications, certificate names, and the gold padlock icon are now also adjacent to the address bar for better visibility. Certificate and privacy detail information can easily be displayed with a single click on the Security Status Bar.
Advanced Printing
· Automatically scales a printed webpage so that it's not wider than the paper it will be printed on. Internet Explorer 7 also includes a multi-page print preview with live margins, resizing text to avoid document clipping, and an option to print only selected text.
Application Compatibility Toolkit
· An application compatibility kit will be available for Internet Explorer 7, allowing IT pros and developers to understand any incompatibilities with their existing websites, applications, and deployments.
Phishing Filter
· Proactively warns and helps protect you against potential or known fraudulent sites and blocks the site if appropriate. The opt-in filter is updated several times per hour using the latest security information from Microsoft and several industry partners about fraudulent websites.
Toolbar Search Box
· Web searches using your favorite search provider can now be entered into a search box within the toolbar, eliminating the clutter of separate toolbars. You can easily choose a provider from the dropdown list or add more providers.
Alpha Channel in PNG
· Supports transparency within the PNG image format, resulting in better-looking websites that are simpler to build.
Cross-Domain Barriers
· Limits script on webpages from interacting with content from other domains or windows. This enhanced safeguard will further protect against malware by limiting the potential for malicious websites to manipulate flaws in other websites or cause you to download undesired content or software.
Favorites Center
· Offers easy and fast access to Favorites, Tab Groups, Browsing History, and RSS Feed subscriptions. Expands out when needed, and can be pinned in place for even easier access.
Group Policy Improvements
· Provides support for all aspects of Internet Explorer settings through Group Policy, greatly easing management across an enterprise.
Delete Browsing History
· Allows you to clean up cached pages, passwords, form data, cookies, and history, all from a single window.
RSS Feeds
· Automatically detects RSS feeds on sites by illuminating an icon on the toolbar. A single click on the icon allows you to preview and optionally subscribe to the site's RSS feed, and then be automatically notified as content is updated. Read RSS feeds directly in the browser, scan for important stories, and filter your view with search terms or site-specific categories.
Internet Explorer Administration Kit
· OEMs and deployment specialists can pre-package Internet Explorer with customized settings or additional programs for their users.
Address Bar Protection
· Every window, regardless of whether it's a pop-up or standard window, will present an address bar to the user, helping to block malicious sites from emulating trusted sites.
Tabbed Browsing
· View multiple sites in a single browser window. Easily switch from one site to another through tabs at the top of the browser frame.
Improved AJAX Support
· Improves the implementation of the XMLHTTP Request as a native Javascript object for rich AJAX-style applications. While Internet Explorer 6 handled XMLHTTP requests with an ActiveX control, Internet Explorer 7 exposes XMLHTTP natively. This improves syntactical compatibility across different browsers and allows clients to configure and customize a security policy of their choice without compromising key AJAX scenarios.
International Domain Name Anti-spoofing
· In addition to adding support for International Domain Names in URLs, Internet Explorer also notifies you when visually similar characters in the URL are not expressed in the same language, thus protecting you against sites that could otherwise appear as known, trustworthy sites.
Quick Tabs
· Provides easy tab selection and navigation by displaying thumbnails of all open tabs in a single window.
Open Search Extensions
· In conjunction with Amazon.com, a set of RSS Simple List Extensions were submitted to the RSS community, and released under the Creative Commons license. Among other features, these extensions greatly simplify development of applications that interact with Open Search-compatible search providers.
URL Handling Security
· Redesigned URL parsing ensures consistent processing and minimizes possible exploits. The new URL handler helps centralize critical data parsing and increases data consistency throughout the application.
Tab Groups
· Tabs can be grouped and saved into logical categories, allowing you to open multiple tabs with a single click. A Tab Group can easily be set as the Home Page Group so the entire Tab Group opens every time Internet Explorer is launched from the Start menu.
RSS Platform
· Provides rich functionality for downloading, storing, and accessing RSS feeds across the entire operating system, and enables more users than ever before to embrace RSS. Once a feed is subscribed to in one application, that subscription, and all the associated content, will be made available across the operating system for any application that wishes to consume it.
Fix My Settings
· To keep you protected from browsing with unsafe settings, Internet Explorer 7 warns you with an Information Bar when current security settings may put you at risk. Within the Internet Control Panel, you will see certain critical items highlighted in red when they are unsafely configured. In addition to dialog alerts warning you about unsafe settings, you will be reminded by the Information Bar as long as the settings remain unsafe. You can instantly reset Internet security settings to the 'Medium-High' default level by clicking the 'Fix My Settings' option in the Information Bar.
Page Zoom
· Enlarge or zoom in on individual webpages, including both text and graphics, to either focus on specific content or to make content more accessible to those with vision limitations.
Add-ons Disabled Mode
· To help troubleshoot difficulties launching Internet Explorer or reaching specific websites, you have the ability to start in "No Add-ons" mode, where only critical system Add-ons are enabled.
DOWNLOAD HERE
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4955.html
OR GET IT FROM MICROSOFT
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/default.mspx
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 18. October 2006 @ 23:19
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AfterDawn Addict
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19. October 2006 @ 06:20 |
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IE7 vulnerability discovered already
By INQUIRER newsdesk: Thursday 19 October 2006, 10:00
INSECURITY FIRM Secunia, has already found an insecurity in newly unleashed IE7
The vulnerability can be exploited to disclose potentially sensitive information the firm says, though it gives it just two out of five on its criticality meter.
An exasperated Thomas Kristensen, CTO of Secunnia says, "It is the half-year old information disclosure vulnerability which allows malicious sites to sneak on the content of other sites which hasn't been patched in the brand new IE7 release."
The vulnerability is caused due to an error in the handling of redirections for URLs with the "mhtml:" URI handler. This can be exploited to access documents served from another web site, the firm notes, here.,
The firm posted an online demonstration, of the vulnerability here. µ
http://secunia.com/Internet_Explorer_Arb...erability_Test/
Internet Explorer 7 "mhtml:" Redirection Information Disclosure
Critical:
Description:
A vulnerability has been discovered in Internet Explorer, which can be exploited by malicious people to disclose potentially sensitive information.
The vulnerability is caused due to an error in the handling of redirections for URLs with the "mhtml:" URI handler. This can be exploited to access documents served from another web site.
Secunia has constructed a test, which is available at:
http://secunia.com/Internet_Explorer_Arb...erability_Test/
Secunia has confirmed the vulnerability on a fully patched system with Internet Explorer 7.0 and Microsoft Windows XP SP2. Other versions may also be affected.
Solution:
Disable active scripting support.
http://secunia.com/advisories/22477/
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AfterDawn Addict
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19. October 2006 @ 07:25 |
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FREE SANDBOXIE..........Run programs and web browsers and apps inside an isolated environment so they can't affect your system. Think of your PC as a piece of paper. Every program you run writes on the paper. When you run your browser, it writes on the paper about every site you visited. And any malware you come across will usually try to write itself into the paper. Traditional privacy and anti-malware software try to locate and erase any writings they think you wouldn't want on the paper. Most of the times they get it right. But first the makers of these solutions must teach the solution what to look for on the paper, and also how to erase it safely. On the other hand, the Sandboxie sandbox works like a transparency layer placed over the paper. Programs write on the transparency layer and to them it looks like the real paper. When you delete the sandbox, it's like removing the transparency layer, the unchanged, real paper is revealed.....(free).....GO THERE!
http://www.sandboxie.com/
and here
http://www.sandboxie.com/index.php?DownloadSandboxie
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Member
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19. October 2006 @ 07:34 |
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Sitting here drinking Coffee, on the search for a reasonable bluetooth hands free kit(not head set)and came across this . nearly spilt me coffee i laughed so much. to prove its real Ive included the link scroll to bottom of page.
http://www.speeding.co.uk/acatalog/Hands_Free_Kits.html
ps mods If this is classed as advertising I will remove. I am in no way connected to the site. Its just a giggle
There is no such thing as "U.S English" |
AfterDawn Addict
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19. October 2006 @ 08:00 |
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Stanford 'Net addict' study
p2pnet.net News:- Researchers at America's Stanford University have come up with another study which says spending too much time online can seriously affect your mental health.
Do you feel queasy if you can't surf at will? Is checking your email frequently an essential part of your day? If you can't cruise your favourite blogs, do you feel something's gone wrong?
In other words, are you a Net Addict?
"Compulsive use of the Internet may be a serious condition along the lines of substance abuse and impulse-control disorders, U.S. researchers say," according to The Globe & Mail.
In a study aimed at, "helping sort out the debate about whether problematic Internet use merits a medical diagnosis," Stanford University researchers say more than one in eight Americans, "showed at least one possible sign of problematic Internet use," says the story.
"We often focus on how wonderful the Internet is - how simple and efficient it can make things," it has lead author Dr Elias Aboujaoude saying, "But we need to consider the fact that it creates real problems for a subset of people."
He also said a small but growing number of people are now starting to visit doctors to seek help, says The Globe & Mail, also noting that the "compulsive drive" to check email, make blog entries or visit chat rooms, "isn't that different from what people who suffer from substance abuse or impulse-control disorders experience".
Psychologist and computer engineer Kenneth Woog of San Clemente welcomed the study, saying too little research has been done on the problem, according to the San Jose Mercury News, going on:
"Woog, who specializes in treating teenagers, is most worried about massive multiplayer online games. One such game, EverQuest, is referred to by many players as 'Evercrack,' because of its addictive nature, he said.
"Some games 'are deliberately designed to be addicting,' Woog said. 'They're very compelling. You do something and get a reward. With enough rewards, you start to feel good about yourself. And you're part of a team of people on a common quest.' Because games operate on a 'subscription' model of sales, the most addicting games are the most lucrative for companies, he said.
"Other therapists say they also increasingly see youths with unhealthy gaming habits, who neglect schoolwork and sports for online games."
However, the study isn't saying anything new. Concerns about Net abuse have been around for years and this May, Canada's Dr Diane Wieland said some five to 10 percent of Net users have problem compulsions.
"Just like all addictions, it takes you in a direction that you don't want to go," she stated. "It's slow moving at first and all of a sudden it takes over. It's probably very subtle, but people who are antisocial would be most vulnerable to this form of addiction."
Wieland also worked up a set of questions peope who are worried about their surfing habits can use as a check-list.
Among them are:
* How often do you find that you stay online longer than you intended?
* How often do you neglect household chores to spend more time online?
* How often do you prefer the excitement of the Internet to intimacy in your relationship?
* How often do you form new relationships with fellow online users?
* How often do others in your life complain to you about the amount of time you spend online?
* How often do your grades or school work suffer because of the amount of time you spend online?
http://p2pnet.net/story/10162?PHPSESSID=...617333b06d889c9
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AfterDawn Addict
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20. October 2006 @ 06:21 |
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And so it begins: YouTube nukes 30,000 videos
10/20/2006 8:28:44 AM, by Ken Fisher
Long before Google swooped in to buy up YouTube there were questions about the video sharing site's future. In particular, concerns relating to copyright infringement have persisted: can YouTube be sued, will they be sued? Will a sanitized YouTube be interesting? The recent acquisition by Google all but ensures that the site will remain under the infringe-o-scope of copyright holders for the near future.
In the first major mass removal of content in its history, YouTube has removed nearly 30,000 videos after being contacted by a number of Japanese rights-holders, according to the Japan Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers (JASRAC). The group says that its members found 29,549 videos on YouTube that contain unauthorized materials taken from Japanese sources, including movies, music videos, and television. Japanese broadcast giant NHK was among those seeking the removal of materials.
A spokesperson JASRAC said that they were also considering petitioning YouTube for a better screening process. Although YouTube is legally obligated to remove infringing material when notified, some copyright holders have expressed irritation at the notion that they need to police YouTube themselves.
The spokesperson also suggested that the number of videos to be removed is meant to send a message that this is not a minor problem. Although the DMCA provides safe harbor protections for YouTube inside the United States, rights holders are still concerned that the posting of unauthorized material could hurt their businesses even when they are vigilant and police a site like YouTube.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20061020-8038.html
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AfterDawn Addict
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20. October 2006 @ 06:45 |
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Reported IE 7 Bug Not in Browser
IE 7 Beta 3 Review A flaw that research firm Secunia claimed to have discovered in Internet Explorer 7 just hours after its unveiling is not a browser bug after all, Microsoft said today.
Instead, the problem lies in a component of Microsoft's Outlook Express e-mail client, which can be triggered by the browser. PC World - Reported IE 7 Bug Not in Browser Linked by shanmuga Fri Oct20 2006 8:46am EDT
Reported IE 7 Bug Not in Browser
Microsoft says flaw is really a problem with Outlook Express.
Robert McMillan, IDG News Service
Thursday, October 19, 2006 04:00 PM PDT
A flaw that research firm Secunia claimed to have discovered in Internet Explorer 7 just hours after its unveiling is not a browser bug after all, Microsoft said today.
Instead, the problem lies in a component of Microsoft's Outlook Express e-mail client, which can be triggered by the browser.
The flaw could be used in phishing attacks to read sensitive information from the IE browser, Secunia said. The Danish security firm first reported the problem with the IE 6 browser in April and found that it could be reproduced on IE 7 as well.
Secunia does not consider the problem to be critical, but it was widely reported because its discovery came so soon after IE 7's launch.
Not Accurate, Says Microsoft
"These reports are technically inaccurate," wrote Christopher Budd, a security program manager with Microsoft, in a blog posting. "The issue concerned in these reports is not in Internet Explorer 7 (or any other version) at all."
One security researcher said he was surprised that Microsoft had apparently not informed Secunia of the nature of this bug back in April, when it was first disclosed.
"They reported this in ... April," said Secure Network SRL Chief Technology Officer Stefano Zanero in an instant message interview. "Microsoft should have investigated then and should have already reported the bug to be not in IE."
"How was Secunia supposed to know?" he asked.
A spokesman with Microsoft's public relations agency could not say what response Microsoft had made to Secunia's first report of the problem back in April. "All I can tell you is that the ... blog is the latest and greatest information we have to share," he said.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,127583/article.html#
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Member
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20. October 2006 @ 06:58 |
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Good morning all!!!
Now something to get us thru the day...,
Chinese Name confusion.
Caller: Hello, can I speak to Annie Wan?
Operator: Yes, you can speak to me.
Caller: No, I want to speak to Annie Wan!
Operator: Yes I understand you want to speak to anyone. You can speak to me. Who is this?
Caller: I'm Sam Wan. And I need to talk to Annie Wan! It's urgent.
Operator: I know you are someone and you want to talk to anyone ! But what's this urgent matter about?
Caller: Well... just tell my sister Annie Wan that our brother Noe Wan was involved in an accident. Noe Wan got injured and now Noe Wan is being sent to the hospital..
Operator: Look, if no one was injured and no one was sent to the hospital, then the accident isn't an urgent matter! You may find this hilarious but I don't have time for this!
Caller: You are so rude! Who are you?
Operator: I'm Saw Ree.
Caller: Yes! You should be sorry . Now give me your name!!
Operator: That's what I said. I'm Saw Ree .
Caller: Oh.....God.......
Chuck
"Men are slower to recognize blessings than misfortunes." Titus Livius (59BC-17AD)
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AfterDawn Addict
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20. October 2006 @ 07:06 |
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good morning all
today i decided to have a big breakfast,with a pot of coffee
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 20. October 2006 @ 07:09
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Advertisement
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AfterDawn Addict
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20. October 2006 @ 07:42 |
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Apples, PCs and viruses
I WOULD GO TO THERE SITE TO WATCH A VIDEO
http://p2pnet.net/story/10176?PHPSESSID=...3d839f6dd75f0d1
p2pnet.net News:- Hello, I'm a Mac (right) and I'm a PC (left).
aaaaCHOOOO!!!
"I have that virus that's coming around," says the PC.
You can guess the rest, Yeh? And it's all about Apple taking a bite out of Microsoft in a video ad.
The same Apple caught shipping video iPods pre-loaded with a virus - a Microsoft virus, of course.
'Wasn't us," said the company in effect. "It was our contract manufacturer. So there!"
The e-bug had been tagged RavMonE.exe and Apple didn't explain how it got to be on the iPods in the first place.
Interestingly, Steve & Co had previously run a series of video ads in which a PC (must be a Windows PC, right?) catches a virus, but a Mac doesn't.
But, "It's not a matter of which platform that the virus originated," observes virus exert Jonathan Poon on his Notes & Thoughts blog.
"The fact that it's found on the portable player means that there's an issue with how the quality checks, specifically the content check was done.
"This also indicates that through the manufacturing cycle, the base device from which the image was duplicated to the other devices in the manufacturing run, was connected to a PC that most probably did not have , and i quote their press release, "up to date anti-virus software which is included with most Windows computers".
"The press release also show a lack of awareness of how malware works. Focusing on the filename, instead of the actual malware info, might confuse the owners of both the media player and the antivirus program of the same filename!"
Also See:
pre-loaded with a virus - Some video iPods have virus, October 18, 2006
blog - Where's your class? Your integrity?, Ocrtober 17, 2006
p2pnet newsfeeds for your site.
rss feed: http://p2pnet.net/p2p.rss
Mobile - http://p2pnet.net/index-wml.php
(Friday 20th October 2006)
http://p2pnet.net/story/10176?PHPSESSID=...3d839f6dd75f0d1
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