is it just me, or has the number of Trolls on TechDirt gone up since the whole Lilly Allen thing?
Content was made available for free, and non-free TV viewership was not harmed because of it.
Whether you agree with Mike's views on free content or not, it doesn't matter. Your opinion of Mike does not magically change the facts that in this case; sales were not harmed. It is also irrelevant, since 'Dave' wrote this article, not mike.
Please, Trolls, go back to slashdot, where you can be modded down appropriately.
I am another Canadian who regularly watches unauthorized content. Hulu does not work in Canada, and all the legitimate video sources are horrible, difficult to navigate, slow, low-quality, and sometimes require plug-ins that are not compatible with linux. *curses people who use silverlight*
Its frustrating to go to a show's website, navigate their unique and unintuitive interface, then, upon finding the content and waiting for it to load, be told that as a Canadian, I have to watch it on a different website, so I go through the whole process a second time, just to watch a postal-stamp sized window that gives me about 5 seconds of video before stopping and buffering. Or, I can download it and watch it without hassle, or catch it on YouTube before the take-down requests are sent out.
Its nice to see some networks using a familiar service like YouTube, rather than re-inventing the wheel (poorly) to distribute free content to viewers.
He talks about reporting in the past, where reporters would spend day-even weeks on a subject, follow them, explore the environment, talk to their friends/associates, research, etc.
Then the tape recorder was invented, now 'reporting' consists of waiting for the subject to visit your town, turn on the recorder, ask a few questions, then make a transcript of the interview. That's not reporting, that is interviewing.
This lets news orginizations save a considerable amount of time and money, and it allows them to get away with keeping fewer reporters on staff.
It also means that most of what the report on is topical fluff without much substance to it, and isn't very interesting to the reader.
Bloggers seem to write about stuff they are very passionate about. Or, something they have experienced directly. They have almost gone back to what reporting used to be.
Book authors ought to put a clause that licenses their books under a creative commons license in, say, 5 - 7 years from the time the book is released or that automatically licenses it under creative commons the moment the book is out of print. People should try to avoid buying books that have no such clause, though for educational purposes it maybe difficult
While this might be a good idea, it can be difficult in practice.
I have looked into self-publishing books, and for companies that have their own dedicated bookstore, this is possible.
The companies that place your self-published books on big internet sales sites, like amazon requite a 'all rights reserved' paragraph to be included before they will let you publish it.
As a fairly young person, I grew up with the internet, and have always seen newspapers as second rate. I can't easily forward good articles to my friends. I can't comment on factual errors, or obvious biases. The obtrusive ads can't be blocked with plug-ins, and you hands get dirty after reading a few pages.
The only part of my small town rag that I ever bother to read is the 'letters to the editor' section, and that's more for entertainment than anything. "uninformed masses" is an understatement.
Papers also go with a shotgun approach to reporting. They do a bad job of covering everything, so everyone gets something that almost interests them. Then they tack on a comment button, and you get thousands of 'anonymous cowards' with no clue about the issues the article addresses talking about everything-except the actual issue at hand.
Internet bases news sources have a way of gathering mavens around a certain topic. I am interested in technology, so I focus on technology sites that cover one small range of topics very well. Not only are sites like techdirt very good for reporting on issues relating to technology, but the community around it is made up of fellow technology mavens, so the discussion is relevant and informed. Also, the small number of people who do comment frequently usually register accounts, and post details about their experiences or qualifications. After a while, you develop an bit of an understanding of your fellow readers, which really helps to create a feeling of genuine community.
This sense of real community is something I have never seen a mainstream newspaper even attempt to achieve.
I believe the Canadian TV show "trailer Park Boys" did something similar to this.
Members of the cast went on tour with a rock band. Rather than an opening band, the cast went on stage, and did a comedy routine completely in-character. other members of the cast would go around to universities on FROSH week and do in0character skits, as well.
of course, Trailer Park Boys was a mocumentary-format show, so these performances could be very in-line with what appeared on screen, but I always thought that was an excellent blending of television and real life.
I like to try before they buy, and the 30 second preview is a very reasonable compromise between letting me hear the song before hand, and still have a good reason to buy (for the other 3 minutes of music)
so, if they get rid of these previews, I will leave your legit site, go to the pirate sites, download the full album and listen to it a few times; then you expect me to go back to your site and pay for something I already have? Is that the plan?
Yes, it is 'disgusting' that Canadian politicians dare to represent the views of Canadians, when those views differ from those of the American Federation of Musicians.
Politicians should be easily bought and sold by corporate interests. What, do these elected officials think it's their job to look out for the people who elected them or something? That's crazy talk...
as a semi-pro photographer, I see this advice as being so off the mark, its either a deliberate attempt to throw people off, or the words of someone who has never woekd a payed photo gig in his life.
Always show off your best work (this is advice I don't take myself, not one of my photos is on my website...hmmm)
if a client is interested, they have seen your work, they like it, they want something similar to what they have seen from you. what they are actually looking for, and what the photographer is actually building is a working relationship.
I work with small-time bands quite often. I don't get jobs by being the best photographer in town (I am far, far from it) I get jobs by being someone the band doesn't mind hanging out with before/after the show.
The work only gets your foot in the door, the relationship is what gets you the deal. Without exposing your best work, you will be passed over time and time again, unless you are very, very lucky.
If you have a photocopier, and you work out the toner/paper cost per page, it's actually cheaper to take the textbook out of the library, copy each page, bind them and use that.
Of course, that would be wrong...while hosing poor university kids who can barely afford food, well, that's just fine.
back when i was in university, i saved a good chunk of money by not buying most of the textbooks. I would go in the library and read them for free. some of the texts were priced reasonably, so I rewarded those publishers with my dollars. But $150 for 300 pages of tissue paper? I don't think so.
in this day and age, there is no reason why a textbook should not be a reasonably priced PDF file ($10 per student could work, but free would be better)
I don't hate the fact that there is a business built around music. I hate the fact that the current business side exploits both the fans of music and the producers of music.
I work with musicians on a regular basis, (mostly as a photographer) but a lot of time is spent discussing ways to make money off of music. Technology has opened up unheard of potential for marketing and distribution, and artists can share/sell their work in many new and creative ways, and this is a great thing.
The difference is, while musicians want to get paid for their work, they also respect their fans. this is something the RIAA really needs to learn: Respect the fans.
If they are unwilling to learn this lesson, they can join the candle-makers, VHS, 3.5" floppy disk manufacturers, and horse-and-buggy makers in the pages of history.
The solution to this is simple.
Don't write about them.
Don't talk about them.
Don't educate the next generation of artists about them.
Let their art fade with time and be ultimately forgotten. If they want to be unreasonable, let them, and the world will go on just fine without them.
On the post: Did Showtime Benefit By Giving Away Free Content?
Content was made available for free, and non-free TV viewership was not harmed because of it.
Whether you agree with Mike's views on free content or not, it doesn't matter. Your opinion of Mike does not magically change the facts that in this case; sales were not harmed. It is also irrelevant, since 'Dave' wrote this article, not mike.
Please, Trolls, go back to slashdot, where you can be modded down appropriately.
I am another Canadian who regularly watches unauthorized content. Hulu does not work in Canada, and all the legitimate video sources are horrible, difficult to navigate, slow, low-quality, and sometimes require plug-ins that are not compatible with linux. *curses people who use silverlight*
Its frustrating to go to a show's website, navigate their unique and unintuitive interface, then, upon finding the content and waiting for it to load, be told that as a Canadian, I have to watch it on a different website, so I go through the whole process a second time, just to watch a postal-stamp sized window that gives me about 5 seconds of video before stopping and buffering. Or, I can download it and watch it without hassle, or catch it on YouTube before the take-down requests are sent out.
Its nice to see some networks using a familiar service like YouTube, rather than re-inventing the wheel (poorly) to distribute free content to viewers.
On the post: Perhaps The Real Problem With Newspapers Is All That Extra Overhead...
big think
the other part is the reporters who don't even report anymore.
On YouTube, there is an interesting piece by "Gay Talese" called "How the Tape Recorder Killed Journalism".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZngoEXGpkv4
He talks about reporting in the past, where reporters would spend day-even weeks on a subject, follow them, explore the environment, talk to their friends/associates, research, etc.
Then the tape recorder was invented, now 'reporting' consists of waiting for the subject to visit your town, turn on the recorder, ask a few questions, then make a transcript of the interview. That's not reporting, that is interviewing.
This lets news orginizations save a considerable amount of time and money, and it allows them to get away with keeping fewer reporters on staff.
It also means that most of what the report on is topical fluff without much substance to it, and isn't very interesting to the reader.
Bloggers seem to write about stuff they are very passionate about. Or, something they have experienced directly. They have almost gone back to what reporting used to be.
On the post: Book Authors Realizing They Need To Connect With Fans Themselves... Because Their Publishers Sure Don't
While this might be a good idea, it can be difficult in practice.
I have looked into self-publishing books, and for companies that have their own dedicated bookstore, this is possible.
The companies that place your self-published books on big internet sales sites, like amazon requite a 'all rights reserved' paragraph to be included before they will let you publish it.
On the post: Why The Traditional News Media Is Becoming Less Relevant: They Didn't Adapt
The only part of my small town rag that I ever bother to read is the 'letters to the editor' section, and that's more for entertainment than anything. "uninformed masses" is an understatement.
Papers also go with a shotgun approach to reporting. They do a bad job of covering everything, so everyone gets something that almost interests them. Then they tack on a comment button, and you get thousands of 'anonymous cowards' with no clue about the issues the article addresses talking about everything-except the actual issue at hand.
Internet bases news sources have a way of gathering mavens around a certain topic. I am interested in technology, so I focus on technology sites that cover one small range of topics very well. Not only are sites like techdirt very good for reporting on issues relating to technology, but the community around it is made up of fellow technology mavens, so the discussion is relevant and informed. Also, the small number of people who do comment frequently usually register accounts, and post details about their experiences or qualifications. After a while, you develop an bit of an understanding of your fellow readers, which really helps to create a feeling of genuine community.
This sense of real community is something I have never seen a mainstream newspaper even attempt to achieve.
On the post: Why Don't More TV Shows Try To Connect With Fans?
been done.
Members of the cast went on tour with a rock band. Rather than an opening band, the cast went on stage, and did a comedy routine completely in-character. other members of the cast would go around to universities on FROSH week and do in0character skits, as well.
of course, Trailer Park Boys was a mocumentary-format show, so these performances could be very in-line with what appeared on screen, but I always thought that was an excellent blending of television and real life.
On the post: ASCAP, BMI Demanding Payment For 30 Second Previews At Web Stores
m'kay
I like to try before they buy, and the 30 second preview is a very reasonable compromise between letting me hear the song before hand, and still have a good reason to buy (for the other 3 minutes of music)
so, if they get rid of these previews, I will leave your legit site, go to the pirate sites, download the full album and listen to it a few times; then you expect me to go back to your site and pay for something I already have? Is that the plan?
On the post: Waste Of Money: Pro-Linux Group Has To Buy Microsoft Patents
hmm
On the post: Recording Industry Lobbyists Says Politicians Worried About User Rights Are 'Disgusting'?
disgusting?
Politicians should be easily bought and sold by corporate interests. What, do these elected officials think it's their job to look out for the people who elected them or something? That's crazy talk...
On the post: Being Unique Is Not The Same As Exclusive (Or Scarce)
its all about relationships
Always show off your best work (this is advice I don't take myself, not one of my photos is on my website...hmmm)
if a client is interested, they have seen your work, they like it, they want something similar to what they have seen from you. what they are actually looking for, and what the photographer is actually building is a working relationship.
I work with small-time bands quite often. I don't get jobs by being the best photographer in town (I am far, far from it) I get jobs by being someone the band doesn't mind hanging out with before/after the show.
The work only gets your foot in the door, the relationship is what gets you the deal. Without exposing your best work, you will be passed over time and time again, unless you are very, very lucky.
On the post: Open Source Textbooks Gaining Traction
textbooks
Of course, that would be wrong...while hosing poor university kids who can barely afford food, well, that's just fine.
back when i was in university, i saved a good chunk of money by not buying most of the textbooks. I would go in the library and read them for free. some of the texts were priced reasonably, so I rewarded those publishers with my dollars. But $150 for 300 pages of tissue paper? I don't think so.
in this day and age, there is no reason why a textbook should not be a reasonably priced PDF file ($10 per student could work, but free would be better)
On the post: Why Does Lego Get To Stop Spinal Tap From Using Lego Video?
legos
I guess I will just have to make a stop-motion video out of the much-cheaper 'mega blocks' and purchase and promote Lego's competition, instead.
On the post: Why Does Lego Get To Stop Spinal Tap From Using Lego Video?
legos
I guess I will just have to make a stop-motion video out of the much-cheaper 'mega blocks' and purchase and promote Lego's competition, instead.
On the post: Yes, People Dislike The RIAA Because Of Its Actions, Not Because Everyone Hates Music Business People
adapt or die
I work with musicians on a regular basis, (mostly as a photographer) but a lot of time is spent discussing ways to make money off of music. Technology has opened up unheard of potential for marketing and distribution, and artists can share/sell their work in many new and creative ways, and this is a great thing.
The difference is, while musicians want to get paid for their work, they also respect their fans. this is something the RIAA really needs to learn: Respect the fans.
If they are unwilling to learn this lesson, they can join the candle-makers, VHS, 3.5" floppy disk manufacturers, and horse-and-buggy makers in the pages of history.
On the post: Permission Culture: Want To Quote A Single Sentence In A Book? Pay Up!
let them be forgotten.
Don't write about them.
Don't talk about them.
Don't educate the next generation of artists about them.
Let their art fade with time and be ultimately forgotten. If they want to be unreasonable, let them, and the world will go on just fine without them.
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