Fellow Techdirtians, can we make a deal?
Can we all stop trying to make analogue analogies for digitial things? They never really work and just get the argument dragged off down repeated dead ends.
We're all on a site called techdirt, we assume a reasonable level of technical understanding*, let's just stick to describing things clearly and dump the inaccurate analogies.
It would be an interesting poll to do on the site actually, get a quick view of the reader's opinions. Something like
Do you think copyright:
a) should be enforced more strictly and have a longer duration?
b) should exist in its current form?
c) should be re-wound to its original scope and duration?
d) should be abolished entirely?
e) should be changed in a way not listed above?
notA does not necessarily equal B.
A lot of the people on this site are against the continued one-way expansion of copyright law (and other forms of IP) but that does not necessarily mean that they wish to see copyright abolished entirely*. Most would rather see it return to its original purpose and timeframe.
* There are a lot of people who would like to see it abolished entirely, some days I'm one of them.
"Some will argue, of course, that this is nothing more than a modern update to the traditional patronage model of public radio -- wherein they beg for pledges every so often and you might get a tote bag if you spend enough. And, clearly, the ideas come from the same general place."
Making a copy might be different to you or I (who clearly remember the cassette days) but it's not different for a kid today as they have no such comparator.
My point was simply that sharing always happened, the mechanism has changed, but me wanting to share some stuff with my mates hasn't changed, it's just got easier and better.
As to "damage", unless you are suggesting that one shared file = one lost sale then the damage is impossible to articulate. If you're suggesting that the damage actually equals tens of thousands of dollars per shared file then the entertainment industries have surely been deprived of more money than has ever existed. Which is plainly nuts.
Actually I can imagine plenty but they'd have no relevance to this case so I won't try to argue that.
Cast your mind back to your youth though, is the difference between making a copy of tape for your friend any different to sharing a file, other than the number of copies made?
Sort of on topic-ish...
Was camping with some friends over the weekend, none of whom have a particularly vested interest in copyright but there are a few geeks, and we actually ended up talking about the ridiculousness* of copyright law.
The main thing that they found farcical was the duration and its impact on fan-created content.
It's the kind of conversation I'm regularly involved in but it was interesting to watch it unfold without my input at all.
* Is that even a word? There must be a better one, but I'm still on my first coffee.
"No they were not. If they were robbed of their culture, they wouldn't have it. Clearly, it wouldn't be culture if they didn't."
If we had it we'd be able to play around with it however the hell we wanted. But we can't because it's still stuck in the vice of a government monopoly.
But you know that's exactly what he meant and you're just trolling. Really I should know better than to feed you.
On the post: Fair Use/Fair Dealing Doesn't Require Payment Or Permission
Re:
Can we all stop trying to make analogue analogies for digitial things? They never really work and just get the argument dragged off down repeated dead ends.
We're all on a site called techdirt, we assume a reasonable level of technical understanding*, let's just stick to describing things clearly and dump the inaccurate analogies.
* I know, I know...
On the post: What Kind Of Professor Patents A Way To Make It More Expensive & More Difficult For Students To Learn?
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
Do you think copyright:
a) should be enforced more strictly and have a longer duration?
b) should exist in its current form?
c) should be re-wound to its original scope and duration?
d) should be abolished entirely?
e) should be changed in a way not listed above?
What do you think Mike? Quick poll?
On the post: What Kind Of Professor Patents A Way To Make It More Expensive & More Difficult For Students To Learn?
Re: Re: Re:
A lot of the people on this site are against the continued one-way expansion of copyright law (and other forms of IP) but that does not necessarily mean that they wish to see copyright abolished entirely*. Most would rather see it return to its original purpose and timeframe.
* There are a lot of people who would like to see it abolished entirely, some days I'm one of them.
On the post: What Kind Of Professor Patents A Way To Make It More Expensive & More Difficult For Students To Learn?
Re: Re:
On the post: What Kind Of Professor Patents A Way To Make It More Expensive & More Difficult For Students To Learn?
Re: Re:
On the post: What Kind Of Professor Patents A Way To Make It More Expensive & More Difficult For Students To Learn?
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
Filing a ridiculous patent is not a good way of doing this.
On the post: What Kind Of Professor Patents A Way To Make It More Expensive & More Difficult For Students To Learn?
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On the post: Techno-Panic Headlines: 'Enhanced Ebooks Are Bad For Children'
Re: New Study Shows Moral Panics Harmful to Children!!!!1!
On the post: The DOJ's Truly Disgusting Argument For Denying A Megaupload User Access To His Legal Content
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Wait, was that fair use?
On the post: The Sweet Taste Of Defeat: Band Must Pay Legal Fees For Frivolous Lawsuit Over One Used CD On eBay
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On the post: Press Tries To Pin High Profile Killings On The Web & World Of Warcraft
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On the post: Yes, Public Radio Shows Can Do Cool CwF+RtB Experiments Too
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Did you even read the article?
On the post: Yes, Public Radio Shows Can Do Cool CwF+RtB Experiments Too
But...
(amidoinitrite?)
On the post: Obama Administration: $1.5 Million For Sharing 24 Songs Is Perfectly Reasonable
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My point was simply that sharing always happened, the mechanism has changed, but me wanting to share some stuff with my mates hasn't changed, it's just got easier and better.
As to "damage", unless you are suggesting that one shared file = one lost sale then the damage is impossible to articulate. If you're suggesting that the damage actually equals tens of thousands of dollars per shared file then the entertainment industries have surely been deprived of more money than has ever existed. Which is plainly nuts.
On the post: Obama Administration: $1.5 Million For Sharing 24 Songs Is Perfectly Reasonable
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
Cast your mind back to your youth though, is the difference between making a copy of tape for your friend any different to sharing a file, other than the number of copies made?
On the post: Filmmaker Compares Copyleft Supporters To Anti-Gay-Marriage Advocates
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On the post: North Korean Study Confirms It: People Will Share, Whatever The Risks
Re: Re: Re: Re: How long until it reads
As you were and back to school for me...
On the post: Copyright Sci-Fi: What Will Lifelong Copyright Terms Mean When People Live Way Longer?
Copyright conversations in the mainstream
Was camping with some friends over the weekend, none of whom have a particularly vested interest in copyright but there are a few geeks, and we actually ended up talking about the ridiculousness* of copyright law.
The main thing that they found farcical was the duration and its impact on fan-created content.
It's the kind of conversation I'm regularly involved in but it was interesting to watch it unfold without my input at all.
* Is that even a word? There must be a better one, but I'm still on my first coffee.
On the post: North Korean Study Confirms It: People Will Share, Whatever The Risks
Re: Re: How long until it reads
On the post: Fan-Made Movie Edits: Another Cultural Loss At The Hands Of Copyright
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If we had it we'd be able to play around with it however the hell we wanted. But we can't because it's still stuck in the vice of a government monopoly.
But you know that's exactly what he meant and you're just trolling. Really I should know better than to feed you.
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