I work for O'Reilly media. We are actually quite bold in being one of the first to market on the whole ebook thing. We actually offer quite a few books as PDF downloads. I know we are a breed of our own, but we don't worry much about piracy in the process. I don't have much of anything to do with the selling or monitoring of any of that, but my understanding is that O'Reilly has plenty of books online in various places that aren't authorized, but that really hasn't hurt the sales all that much.
Of course I hear a lot of this second hand, and it is totally unscientific, but it seems that if you have a good enough product, people are willing to pay. For us our brand is sustained by the community that we foster. We are loved in the tech world and people trust the products we produce. The money follows that sense of community.
I still say Metro is a fine example at least here in Boston. I'd say that 1 out of ever 3 people riding the T in the morning has a metro in hand. I read it on my way home from work so the number could be higher. They have people stand outside to hand it to you as you walk into the stations. It is the only physical news paper I read, and one of very few "news papers" that I read religiously. A lot of it has to do with their local news information that I can't get easily anywhere else, but it is also just a good news paper. And they do it all *for free*. They have my business. And I keep coming back. In fact if I miss a day I feel out of the loop.
How low would the bandwidth have to be in order to prevent file sharing? Because Torrenting is pretty low bandwidth ordeal. I mean yea I guess the lower the bandwidth the slower the process. So perhaps you would be scaled down, but it would have to be lower than dial up speeds to rule out torrenting.
I mean if 50 is selfish for figuring out a way to make money without pissing off users and that somehow makes him selfish for not thinking of other people? Isn't she equally selfish then? I mean she isn't thinking of 50, or Radiohead or NIN or any other group that figured out a new way. So really she has no point!
Given how inept they were with the RIAA trial this is probably a good thing. They'll stink up the court room for a bit, lose, and go home. Than we can get some good case law on the issue.
What if I buy, but then give away the tickets. I bought two tickets for a concert. My wife suddenly couldn't come so I asked a friend to come along. Now perhaps that wouldn't have been such a problem since I purchased the tickets and all, but what if I skipped out and told him and his wife to go?
I just don't like the idea of locking things out like this.
Anyone notice how last quote said "somebody" Not that the artist should be paid, but that somebody should...ideally them. That is the issue. It isn't about the artist it is about their own pocketbooks. How dare and artist try to go around the perfect system and cut them out. They must be "naive."
To be fair this took a long time in coming and a lot of complaints. I personally am an every day rider. To work and back from work. So by now I've figured out most things on my own. Still I find myself in uncharted waters from time to time and this info is invaluable. I know when I was in NYC for vacation my iPhone was used to ride public transit. Without it I would have used their subway a lot less.
From what I can tell there are a lot of great computer geeks in the area planning on some great projects with this new data. Stay tuned and we'll see what happens.
So way back when I used to frequent slashdot. It was the best, especially before wide spread use of RSS. From time to time, probably not all that often, techdirt would be mentioned or an article that linked to techdirt was mentioned. I don't remember how many times I clicked through, but eventually I figured out that the topics covered here were near and dear to my heart. So instead of relying on Slashdot I started coming right to the source. It was the same process for Ars Technica. They kept getting linked and every time I liked what they have to say. Actually now I don't really ever go to slashdot because I kept finding that everything they had to say was either a link to sites I already went to or I found out the information from another source. So in my story the aggregator got surpassed by the actual information.
I think the only person that loses is the people who think they deserved to be payed for the small quotes. They could have made it in a book thus insuring their lasting impact and instead they are excluded. The book is likely still brilliant, so who loses? Not the reader and not the author it is the artists. It is absurd the way some people think.
Of course I wouldn't have even thought this would ever be an issue. I cited music sources all the time in college. I couldn't imagine having to pay for them. I think fair use is clearly on his side. Shame the publisher got in the way. All the publisher needed to do was say, "go ahead, I dare you, sue me."
Re: Computer Science department vs bean-counting IT department
Indeed there is a huge difference between the teaching departments and the hired pay. But the CS department can and should step in to clarify the blatant misinformation. Which is why I said they are either incompetent or mortified. If it is the latter than it is excusable and all things should be cleared up in short order. Same goes for their legal school.
If that is really happening at MTU than that may be far worse than what is happening here. I would have serious problems if I went to that school and needed to pay $100 to get my internet back for a mere DMCA notification. It is the educational equivalent to 3 strikes. So glad I go to school in Boston.
Either their CS department is worthless or they are horrified at this point. Their Law school should be pretty mortified as well. Glad I am not getting a degree from there in either field.
"Companies beaming their content online for free similarly discriminate against their paying customers: in fact it would start eating into their business as more and more people would decide watching it for free online makes more sense."
That is just the point. Most of the stations that offer all of their content online for free also "beam" that very same content over the air for free. Just because the vast majority of people choose to pay for cable doesn't make it the standard that we must live by for the rest of our lives. If NBC or even USA or whomever decides they can make a better business by bypassing cable companies so be it. I think you have the real business model confused by the way. Free is how TV began and how TV largely operates. When you pay for cable you are really paying for access to their lines not for the TV stations per se. NBC or ABC has always been in the business of selling an audience to advertisers. You seem to have this inverted.
So I don't own a GPS, but I have used them. Sure you have to enter input by hand, most people know to do this while not moving or before crunch time. But even if someone were dumb enough to enter in the location while moving that is far safer than the many times I've used google maps printed out. I mean the GPS dictates directions. Google maps you have to read, how is that for distracted. Of course eventually all this just becomes absurd. Common sense is not too much to ask for, and I think we have find laws in place for the people who just being reckless.
The other day I was stuck about 3 miles from my place in Boston just after the public transit closed down (Don't know why they do in Boston, but 12:30 is last call how ridiculous is that?). Anyway it was late, 1:00AM and 3 or 4 miles is plenty of distance to go. Needless to say that this is a huge time for cabs. They rake in tons of money from stranded movie watchers or drunk people. I didn't bite. I would rather walk, for free, than ride in a cab. Fortunately I ran into a late going bus, the very last one, and made it home. But hey by their logic they should have sued me. After all since I am an able bodied person I competed against them with free with my own two feet (how dare my feet do that). Maybe they should have people come by and whack people in the knees to get their business back ;-)
On the post: Oh No! Book Piracy Is Coming! Run And Hide!
O'Reilly media
Of course I hear a lot of this second hand, and it is totally unscientific, but it seems that if you have a good enough product, people are willing to pay. For us our brand is sustained by the community that we foster. We are loved in the tech world and people trust the products we produce. The money follows that sense of community.
On the post: As Newspaper Execs Discuss Putting Up Online Paywalls, London Evening Standard Paper Edition Goes Free
Metro
On the post: Lily Allen No Longer in Favor Of Kicking People Offline... Just Cutting Back Their Bandwidth
Low Bandwidth
On the post: Lily Allen: Copying Isn't Alright... Unless It's Done By Lily Allen
50 is selfish? What about her?
On the post: Class Action Copyright Suit Filed Against Scribd... By Jammie Thomas' Lawyers?
This is a good thing. Inept Lawyers
On the post: Ticketmaster Trying To Cut Down On Scalpers... Or Increase Fee Collection For Itself?
Buy but give away
I just don't like the idea of locking things out like this.
On the post: Recording Industry Insiders Complain About Musicians Who Argue Against Kicking People Off The Internet
Somebody
On the post: Boston Public Transit Does It Right: Opens Scheduling Data
To be fair
From what I can tell there are a lot of great computer geeks in the area planning on some great projects with this new data. Stay tuned and we'll see what happens.
On the post: Boston Public Transit Does It Right: Opens Scheduling Data
Re: MBTA needs to release real-time info
On the post: It Ain't The Link, It's What You Do With The Traffic
How I found Techdirt
On the post: Permission Culture: Want To Quote A Single Sentence In A Book? Pay Up!
Who loses?
Of course I wouldn't have even thought this would ever be an issue. I cited music sources all the time in college. I couldn't imagine having to pay for them. I think fair use is clearly on his side. Shame the publisher got in the way. All the publisher needed to do was say, "go ahead, I dare you, sue me."
On the post: LSU Starts Fining Students For File Sharing; But Seems Quite Confused About It
Re: Computer Science department vs bean-counting IT department
On the post: LSU Starts Fining Students For File Sharing; But Seems Quite Confused About It
Re:
On the post: LSU Starts Fining Students For File Sharing; But Seems Quite Confused About It
Their CS department must be horrified.
On the post: Apple Does As Many Expected: Kills Palm Pre iTunes Syncing
Banshee
On the post: Stephen Fry: Time For Politicians To Represent People's Interest On Copyright, Not Corporations
Nice take
On the post: How Does Offering Free Content Insult Those Who Pay?
Re:
That is just the point. Most of the stations that offer all of their content online for free also "beam" that very same content over the air for free. Just because the vast majority of people choose to pay for cable doesn't make it the standard that we must live by for the rest of our lives. If NBC or even USA or whomever decides they can make a better business by bypassing cable companies so be it. I think you have the real business model confused by the way. Free is how TV began and how TV largely operates. When you pay for cable you are really paying for access to their lines not for the TV stations per se. NBC or ABC has always been in the business of selling an audience to advertisers. You seem to have this inverted.
On the post: New Jersey Politician Adds Most GPS Devices To Driver Distractions To Ban
What about Google Maps?
On the post: Another City Caught Lowering Yellow Light Times To Catch More Red Light Runners
Insurance?
On the post: Cab Drivers Angry About Having To Compete With Free As Well
What about walking is the competition as well :-)
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