Lawyers with a sense of humor! Well, my bluegrass band's banjo player (who is really bad!) is also my lawyer (really good!), and to play with me (the mandolin player), he really needs a good sense of humor... :-)
My best guess is that these are remaindered products that the reseller purchased from business that had excess stock or were going out of business. It will be interesting to see where this suit ends up. If the reseller is legit, then I see a REALLY big counter-suit in the offing...
I don't think ANY ebook should sell for more than $6.00. There is no printing/binding/warehousing/shipping costs to the publisher for an ebook, and that should be taken into account. In any case, there are a number of ebook publishers who charge about $6.00 for books, many of which are just as popular as Ludlum's tomes, and the smart ones don't DRM-encumber their books either...
11 years is not too young for terrorists to use. One so young, intellectually impressionable and malleable, would not be out of the question for a suicide bomb attack. It is trivial to sneak material into an airport, so once he was past security, outfitting him with an explosive vest would not be difficult.
Well put Mike! I especially like your point "Independent invention as evidence of obviousness". That's a QED point as far as I'm concerned!
P.S. I hold a US patent for adaptive systems (software). It was a serious problem that had never been solved, and no other equivalent solutions have been invented. It's implementation is now used to customize off-the-shelf software for manufacturing industries without programming. However, MANY other software patents are simply bogus!
So, what I am saying is that patents for hardware, software, or whatever are not the issue. The issue is whether or not they really meet the dictums of the law. Many software and design patents "patently" do not!
The feckless leading the clueless... over a cliff!
1. Use an encrypted VPN tunnel to an anonymizing service.
2. Always use https to access web sites, even through the tunnel.
Now, there is no way for your ISP to know anything about your traffic other than you have an encrypted stream to/from a remote network, and if the anonymizer service does their job right, each connection you make to a remote service will use a different IP address. Results? My business is ONLY my business!
I know that even encrypted traffic can be analyzed for indications of what type it is, but what specifically it is (what videos you are streaming for example) most likely cannot be determined.
So, what this bill and similar ones accomplish is only to allow eavesdropping on people who are mostly innocent shlubs...
I just hope they rebuke these buttheads into the unemployment line! When my boss says "don't do that, or else!", and I do it anyway, I would expect no less...
In the 1990's the company I worked for (as Principal Engineer) developed software to manage all of the processes and equipment in major manufacturing plants, a manufacturing execution system (MES). This was a multi-million $ package that encompassed everything from process planning, machine control, statistical process control, user interfaces, reporting, engineering data collection, resource scheduling and optimization, etc. We seriously considered, designed, and implemented several different approaches to license control (DRM). In the end, we decided to drop the entire DRM thing. Why? Because down time for our customers costs them $10M per hour or more, and having software that controls and entire semiconductor fab or other major manufacturing enterprise stop working because of DRM was a risk that we just were not willing to take.
So, in the end, it comes down to cost vs. benefits, and the benefits part is not just the vendor/developer ones, but the customer ones as well. As has been pointed out here in TD many times, pissing off your customers generally is not a smart business move...
I think it's a pretty good bet that some wireless vendor has placed access points all over the venues, and will be happy to charge you a (probably sizable) fee to access them. Also, it would be a good bet that they will have packet inspection software installed to keep you from posting your photos and videos of the games on the net.
The WSJ is now owned by News Gorp, a Rupert Murdock shill. So, if you expect them to apply any sort of editorial scrutiny to their contributors, I have a bridge in Brooklyn New York you may be interested in acquiring some futures on...
Just in case someone else hasn't also mentioned it (I haven't read all the comments), Barstow seems to be oblivious to the Streisand Effect, as well as to the fact that she is getting a very bad reputation on the net... So now we have the Carreon Effect, and soon the Barstow Effect. When will these maroons learn to let sleeping dogs lay?
My wife and I put on house concerts several times a year. We can fit 30-40 people in our basement venue. The interesting thing about this is that we get some outstanding (and famous) performers who are DELIGHTED to play to such a small group of fans, even though they can fill a stadium or major concert hall. Yes, they do this generally in their "spare" time (between major gigs), but the fact that they are willing to play for the house take of around $500 (plus CD sales), says something to me... :-)
My attorney (and good friend) is a conservative Republican. I am a very liberal Democrat. We agree on one thing, that the entire Congress and Senate (on both sides of the aisle) are irretrievably corrupt and should be removed from office, and that perhaps its time for a truly independent party to arise.
If the "The Internet For Dummies" book were to be rewritten for politicians they would have to rename it "The Internet For Clueless Idiots"... It would also be all of 1 page in length containing just 1 sentence: "The Internet is a series of tubes..." - Senator Ted Stevens, R-Alaska
What? When this assault occurred on foreign soil? This is just SO wrong! Eric Holder and all his fellow conspirators should be held criminally accountable for these assaults on all involved!
On the post: Stupid, Antiquated German Regulations Mean Germans Couldn't Watch Our Google Hangout With Rob Reid Yesterday
Proxy server anyone?
On the post: South Butt Responds To North Face As Only It Could
Re: What's the world coming to?
On the post: Warner Bros. Sues A Ton Of Amazon Resellers For Selling 'Counterfeit' DVDs
Best guess
On the post: NYTimes Columnist Explains How He Torrented 'The Bourne Identity' Because It Wasn't Available... Then Sent A Check
It should have been for $5.99
On the post: Eleven Year Old Kid Shows That Modern Airport Security Is Not As Secure A You Think
11 year old suicide bombers
On the post: How Petty Patent Fights Can Get: Samsung Upset That Apple Gets Top Billing In Patent Suit
I have to wonder
Apple vs. Samsung
Samsung vs. Apple
?
On the post: Let Your Senator Know Right Now That You Are Watching If They'll Vote To Protect Privacy
Error
On the post: Judge Posner On A Mission To Fix Patents; We Have Some Suggestions
Patent, patent, who's got the patent?
P.S. I hold a US patent for adaptive systems (software). It was a serious problem that had never been solved, and no other equivalent solutions have been invented. It's implementation is now used to customize off-the-shelf software for manufacturing industries without programming. However, MANY other software patents are simply bogus!
So, what I am saying is that patents for hardware, software, or whatever are not the issue. The issue is whether or not they really meet the dictums of the law. Many software and design patents "patently" do not!
On the post: Next Week: The Senate Fights Over Whether It Can Take Away Your Online Privacy
The feckless leading the clueless... over a cliff!
2. Always use https to access web sites, even through the tunnel.
Now, there is no way for your ISP to know anything about your traffic other than you have an encrypted stream to/from a remote network, and if the anonymizer service does their job right, each connection you make to a remote service will use a different IP address. Results? My business is ONLY my business!
I know that even encrypted traffic can be analyzed for indications of what type it is, but what specifically it is (what videos you are streaming for example) most likely cannot be determined.
So, what this bill and similar ones accomplish is only to allow eavesdropping on people who are mostly innocent shlubs...
On the post: One Day After DC Police Told Not To Interfere With Citizens Recording Them... Police Seize Man's Phone
One can wish
On the post: German Consumer Group Not Happy With Diablo 3 Internet Requirements
Why DRM doesn't work
So, in the end, it comes down to cost vs. benefits, and the benefits part is not just the vendor/developer ones, but the customer ones as well. As has been pointed out here in TD many times, pissing off your customers generally is not a smart business move...
On the post: If You Go To The Olympics, You Can Bring Your iPhone Or Android Phone... But You Better Not Tether
Just follow the money!
On the post: When WSJ Flunks Internet History, Blogs Step In To Educate
What do you expect?
On the post: Dear Angry Person: People Who Criticize You Likely Aren't Defaming You Or Infringing On Your Copyright
Just in case
On the post: Seth Godin Uses Kickstarter To Test The Market For His Next Book (And The Results Are Good)
Connecting with fans
On the post: Lamar Smith & House Judiciary Committee Don't Want To Know How Often The NSA Spies On Americans
When two opposites agree
On the post: Washington State Tries To Criminalize Service Providers For User Behavior; Internet Archive Sues
Internet for Dummies
On the post: Slovak Collecting Society Sends Village Invoice For Singing Folk Song About Itself
If it quacks, swims, fly's like a duck...
On the post: Flickr Finally Realizes That Not All DMCA Takedowns Are Legit
What's really amazing
On the post: The DOJ's Truly Disgusting Argument For Denying A Megaupload User Access To His Legal Content
Sovereign immunity?
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