Maybe you should ask someone from the entertainment industry about the Netherlands. We're the banana republic of Europe, privately downloading infringing stuff is almost legal here (technically it's illegal, but nobody is getting prosecuted).
I know what I'd do if I were a librarian, I'd organize a book burning. See how much of a pyre this guys books from all over the UK make, since he wants them to get rid of the books anyway >:D
Yeah, right... You're forgetting that unless you have access to a really large library or only read books popular at the time, the chances are large that you won't find a lot of the things you'd be interested in reading in a library. Especially foreign books in the language in which they were written are difficult to find.
'I think the idea that every star needs to be a hormone-laden-teen-chick magnet like Justin Bieber to succeed in the old system is _scary_.'
'I think the idea that every star needs to be as excessively eccentric as Lady Gaga to succeed in the old system is _scary_.'
You're not the only one who can come up with stupid examples you know. And there's a difference between spending your entire day on twitter and keeping in touch with fans. If an artist doesn't give a fuck about his/her fans, then why should they give a fuck about the artists? It's exactly the same as networking in real life, don't feel like it? Fine, but don't complain when you can't find a job and have nobody to rely on.
That's exactly what I was thinking. If a review like this can have an influence on a lawsuit about practices being illegal or not, there's something wrong with the justice system in place (not that there isn't anything wrong, mind you).
The people filing this are idiots. These are badly made, unpopular and low rated apps, they should have let them rot and be forgotten. That being said, they're pretty intolerant themselves calling this racist, everyone has stereotypical images about people they've never met, some a lot worse than this. Then again, they're allowed their opinion too, so they can be butthurt as much as they want.
This is like PETA going after Pokemon. It won't get them anywhere and will just reveal how badly delusional these people are.
I don't see dressing up as racist. I see it as dressing up =.= I don't give a damn if some american/asian/african/whatever-else-you-can-come-up-with dresses up as Frau Antje with the weird white ethnic hat, wooden shoes, tulips, joint and all, pretending to be half stoned cause that's how they see us. I know that's not what all Dutch people are like, why on earth should I be offended because someone else decides to publicly display their idiocy? I'd laugh if I ever ran into someone like that.
Newer is always better, so the FSM is the one true god! Do you have any idea how many people eat pasta every day? His tastiness is endless! I really hope his Noodly Appendage will at some point touch you, 'cause otherwise you'll miss out on the beer volcano and stripper factory in the afterlife and be bored for all eternity.
Abortion is definitely a sore subject practically everywhere, even here in the Netherlands (where weed and prostitution are legal), now and again 'religious' people feel the need to get abortion back on the political agenda. Or to promote making the process more lengthy or force doctors to remind women seeking abortion that they should consider adoption. Even here we had some radical christian politician echo the 'women can prevent getting pregnant from rape' argument.
I personally think abortion should be legal, information should be given and it should be made sure that the girl herself wants abortion, not her family/boyfriend. Ofcourse, it does say a lot about you if you get multiple abortions just because you don't feel like using birth control, but does it matter? I don't think it does. As soon as you start putting up restrictions people will start forcing women who really do deserve an abortion to have a child they absolutely don't want and probably can't love at all. To me that's more screwed up than letting some dumb bimbo prevent her bad genes to be spread further.
...this is kinda off topic o.o Meh... *posts anyway*
"Feinstein insists that there's a secret reason for why this information needs to be kept secret -- and promises to wave the piece of paper around (if someone hands it to her) that contains the secret reason that she can't tell us."
Who else thinks that if someone found her that piece of paper the reason would turn out to be invisible?
You can add to those and the points in the article a language barrier to getting edits done by foreigners. This isn't a big problem in languages which are common, like English, French, German, Chinese, Spanish etc. I've edited some stuff in the English and Dutch wikis, and would probably manage doing French and German if I ever came across blatant errors. But I for one have no idea what language is spoken in Kazakhstan and I most certainly don't speak it. This means that even if foreigners out of reach of penalties do know what's going on, they still won't know the article is wrong or be able to correct it. You can't edit articles you can't read.
I'd like to add that it should be DRM free, so I can download it and read/listen/watch it any way and anywhere I like. And preferably downloadable in different high quality formats.
Reasonably priced is one thing, but if I can't be sure what I'm buying will still be mine in the future I'm not buying it either.
So when you go to a store you buy a random book with a very pretty cover and nice thick paper because that gives it 'feel' and 'character'?
"staring at a screen for hours on end is a lot harsher than reading from good print"
Have you ever heard of a odd little thing known as an "e-reader with an e-ink screen"? My eyes never hurt when reading from mine, nor do my wrists, since they don't have to hold an overweight print edition.
And your second point is more of a problem with publishers and copyright than with e-books. I own all the public domain and pirated e-books on my reader, I can give them to all my friends. And guess what? They don't have to return em either!
And printing is an ART? It may have been in the time of Gutenberg, but now it's just a push of a button. A lot of what goes before the printing may be an art, but the printing itself most certainly is not. Perhaps you should try the new Gutenberg, PROJECT Gutenberg, you know, the site where you can legally download lots of DRM free public domain books at no charge? Or are you gonna tell me that Sherlock Holmes and poems by Robert Frost are bad quality content?
I'm not as unwitting as you seem to think I am. Providing no crazy dictator unleash EMP blasts near your town and you don't own something as ridiculous as books with DRM or an e-reader with a built in kill switch for files (what moron buys a Kindle anyway), e-books are quite as durable as real books. Especially if I back them up in multiple locations. And hackers messing with your bookmarks? Paranoid much?
"Or worse: altered, sometimes so subtly you would never know--which is the greatest danger we face in the digital age"
So you're really trying to say you wouldn't notice if your bookmarks were moved? Or your notes changed? That's more of a problem with your brain than with an e-reader/e-book.
And you're pretty quick to judge me to be a "ADD-riddled youth of today (who cannot concentrate on a single thing long enough to read more than a few words, before having to flip out to Faceplant, or the favorite pr0n site, FarmVille, the Sims, a round of HALO, and some Mincraft, before popping back to the ebook to read a few more words)". I am quite capable of focusing on one thing for extended periods of time, how else would I have gotten my MSc title? I have to admit, I have a facebook page ... with about 10 posts ... over 3+ years. Though I do wonder how you know about all these other wastes of time I'd never think of, perhaps you are more of a sinner than I am?
And yes, real books do have some merit, I own plenty, but most of the crap being written as "entertainment" isn't worth the paper it's printed on. We would be much better off with trash like Twilight lost for posterity. But hey, kill another bunch of trees since you want to touch the paper so badly. The only books I buy without knowing them beforehand are scientific books and I don't do that without prior research on the contents.
Oh, I do have a job for you though, if you're so concerned about preservation. You should print the thousands upon thousands of useful scientific articles published online-only to preserve them for posterity. That way you'll really do the world a favor. Unless ofcourse you think their presence on harddrives of scientists around the world is enough...
On the post: HADOPI May Be Succeeding -- In Driving French Customers To Dotcom's Mega
Re: Re:
Maybe you should ask someone from the entertainment industry about the Netherlands. We're the banana republic of Europe, privately downloading infringing stuff is almost legal here (technically it's illegal, but nobody is getting prosecuted).
On the post: Bestselling Author Of Children's Books Accuses Public Libraries Of Stealing His Paychecks
On the post: The Next eBook Evolution: Pay As You Read eBooks
Re: Library
On the post: It's Fine For The Rich & Famous To Use Kickstarter; Bjork's Project Failed Because It Was Lame
Re:
'I think the idea that every star needs to be as excessively eccentric as Lady Gaga to succeed in the old system is _scary_.'
You're not the only one who can come up with stupid examples you know. And there's a difference between spending your entire day on twitter and keeping in touch with fans. If an artist doesn't give a fuck about his/her fans, then why should they give a fuck about the artists? It's exactly the same as networking in real life, don't feel like it? Fine, but don't complain when you can't find a job and have nobody to rely on.
On the post: Stupid Criminals: Posting Vacation & Shopping Pictures Of Yourself On Facebook While A Fugitive
On the post: Just How Dumb Is It For CBS To Block CNET From Giving Dish An Award?
Re: Re: Stretching...
On the post: Racist Apps In Google's Play Store Test Just How Free You Want Speech To Be
Derp... Stupid action is stupid.
This is like PETA going after Pokemon. It won't get them anywhere and will just reveal how badly delusional these people are.
On the post: Racist Apps In Google's Play Store Test Just How Free You Want Speech To Be
Re:
On the post: Racist Apps In Google's Play Store Test Just How Free You Want Speech To Be
Re: OR.........
Newer is always better, so the FSM is the one true god! Do you have any idea how many people eat pasta every day? His tastiness is endless! I really hope his Noodly Appendage will at some point touch you, 'cause otherwise you'll miss out on the beer volcano and stripper factory in the afterlife and be bored for all eternity.
:P
On the post: Racist Apps In Google's Play Store Test Just How Free You Want Speech To Be
Re: Re: Re:
I personally think abortion should be legal, information should be given and it should be made sure that the girl herself wants abortion, not her family/boyfriend. Ofcourse, it does say a lot about you if you get multiple abortions just because you don't feel like using birth control, but does it matter? I don't think it does. As soon as you start putting up restrictions people will start forcing women who really do deserve an abortion to have a child they absolutely don't want and probably can't love at all. To me that's more screwed up than letting some dumb bimbo prevent her bad genes to be spread further.
...this is kinda off topic o.o Meh... *posts anyway*
On the post: Racist Apps In Google's Play Store Test Just How Free You Want Speech To Be
Re: Warning from Llort
Perfect.
Because he's not my god.
His noodliness the FSM is a far cooler and more tolerant god than yours.
Ramen.
On the post: There's A Secret Reason Why The Government Has To Keep It Secret How Many Americans It's Spying On Without A Warrant
If someone would find that piece of paper...
Who else thinks that if someone found her that piece of paper the reason would turn out to be invisible?
On the post: How Neutral Can Kazakh-Language Wikipedians Be?
Re:
On the post: So, What Didn't Enter The Public Domain This Week, That Should Have
Re: Re: Re: Maybe we need some help...
On the post: Funniest/Most Insightful Comments Of The Week At Techdirt
Re: Re: Re: Re:
Reasonably priced is one thing, but if I can't be sure what I'm buying will still be mine in the future I'm not buying it either.
On the post: It's Not Defamation To Call Someone A Terrorist Online; Accusing Them Of Putting A Severed Horse Head In A Pool, However...
On the post: Author Andrew Piper: Turning Pages Is Important, Therefore Reading Ebooks Isn't Reading
You don't if you're stupid enough to buy with DRM
"staring at a screen for hours on end is a lot harsher than reading from good print"
Have you ever heard of a odd little thing known as an "e-reader with an e-ink screen"? My eyes never hurt when reading from mine, nor do my wrists, since they don't have to hold an overweight print edition.
And your second point is more of a problem with publishers and copyright than with e-books. I own all the public domain and pirated e-books on my reader, I can give them to all my friends. And guess what? They don't have to return em either!
And printing is an ART? It may have been in the time of Gutenberg, but now it's just a push of a button. A lot of what goes before the printing may be an art, but the printing itself most certainly is not. Perhaps you should try the new Gutenberg, PROJECT Gutenberg, you know, the site where you can legally download lots of DRM free public domain books at no charge? Or are you gonna tell me that Sherlock Holmes and poems by Robert Frost are bad quality content?
On the post: Author Andrew Piper: Turning Pages Is Important, Therefore Reading Ebooks Isn't Reading
Re: Re: Re: Re:
I'm not as unwitting as you seem to think I am. Providing no crazy dictator unleash EMP blasts near your town and you don't own something as ridiculous as books with DRM or an e-reader with a built in kill switch for files (what moron buys a Kindle anyway), e-books are quite as durable as real books. Especially if I back them up in multiple locations. And hackers messing with your bookmarks? Paranoid much?
"Or worse: altered, sometimes so subtly you would never know--which is the greatest danger we face in the digital age"
So you're really trying to say you wouldn't notice if your bookmarks were moved? Or your notes changed? That's more of a problem with your brain than with an e-reader/e-book.
And you're pretty quick to judge me to be a "ADD-riddled youth of today (who cannot concentrate on a single thing long enough to read more than a few words, before having to flip out to Faceplant, or the favorite pr0n site, FarmVille, the Sims, a round of HALO, and some Mincraft, before popping back to the ebook to read a few more words)". I am quite capable of focusing on one thing for extended periods of time, how else would I have gotten my MSc title? I have to admit, I have a facebook page ... with about 10 posts ... over 3+ years. Though I do wonder how you know about all these other wastes of time I'd never think of, perhaps you are more of a sinner than I am?
And yes, real books do have some merit, I own plenty, but most of the crap being written as "entertainment" isn't worth the paper it's printed on. We would be much better off with trash like Twilight lost for posterity. But hey, kill another bunch of trees since you want to touch the paper so badly. The only books I buy without knowing them beforehand are scientific books and I don't do that without prior research on the contents.
Oh, I do have a job for you though, if you're so concerned about preservation. You should print the thousands upon thousands of useful scientific articles published online-only to preserve them for posterity. That way you'll really do the world a favor. Unless ofcourse you think their presence on harddrives of scientists around the world is enough...
On the post: Author Andrew Piper: Turning Pages Is Important, Therefore Reading Ebooks Isn't Reading
Re:
On the post: Author Andrew Piper: Turning Pages Is Important, Therefore Reading Ebooks Isn't Reading
Re:
Next >>