Chris Laarman’s Comments

• Nov 9th, 2020 @ 3:11pm

  Me wireless

  on We Do Not Have the Internet We Deserve
  By contrast: I'm in the Netherlands (EU), and I have abandoned cables 3.5 years ago. I'm all wireless, using four subscriptions (meaning four "lines" in this country), all unlimited, all LTE+, and using 5G when I choose to upgrade my devices. Together at nearly 100 euros per month (tax included). Within hiking distance from my home, rural people are finally getting fiber. I don't need it. I can collect my gear and go sailing, or abroad (pandemics aside), and still have my stuff connected. But... this is the third time I'm discussing telecom on an American website. I have been told how much you may well pay, and that people in Canada are paying even more. Big deal: the cost of the infrastructure must be paid for, and here a vast and sparsely populated country has a disadvantage. I don't have the ultimate answer. The USA might benefit from looking at, say, Scandinavia. There may well be different recommended approaches for the different parts of the States (accidentation, population).
• Sep 4th, 2020 @ 1:44am

  But who? (as chrislaarman)

  on It's Time To Regulate The Internet... But Thoughtfully
  I too could think of some rules for the Internet. But who would create them, who would enforce them? In my view (impression rather than opinion), some global body would be appropriate, as the Internet transcends borders. A logical place would then be some branch of the United Nations, probably something related to Human Rights. But some governments doubt the neutrality of the UN, or have themselves special views on legitimacy of things. And these doubts and views are subject to change... Many of the comments preceding mine address the power of big companies. Yes, they seem to really have quite some power. And some governments (and maybe some loose groups of hackers) too. These powers seem to be used in competition, yes, even in rivalry between independent states. We may end up having several "internets", interfacing at different levels of information transport.(I started my life "on-line" on the Fidonet. I also remember the gopher-protocol beside the http-protocol.) No, I don't have a solution. Views on scope, content and enforcement of any regulation of the Internet will remain divided, even opposed, and subject to change. A simpler way might be to control ourselves, some "love thy neighbor" approach. But I can't even imagine the world population ever to embrace such principle. PS: Isn't it remarkable that we always want to regulate others, but not others to regulate us?
• Aug 12th, 2016 @ 3:18am

  digitize, but keep the source

  on Archivists Grapple With Problems Of Preserving Recent Culture Held On Tape Cassettes And Floppy Drives
  I think that the primary act of archiving is digitizing data at all, with file formats as a secundary choice. But that concerns the content of the data (and some metadata).
  It may as well be useful to archive the original media.
  
  Two examples come to my mind.
  - My home town of Amsterdam (NL) welcomes masses of tourists who want to see the Night Watch painting by Rembrandt, even though it can be scrutinized on-line.
  - Think of button-badges with slogans. Their messages may be simple and easily digitized, but that would not convey their full meaning to posterity. A movie showing protest rallies would, but having just the movie would not show the actual thing. And posterity may draw interesting conclusions from the ledgers of the badge-making industry through time.
  
  In my part of the world, many things get archived, often with public money. I do hope that documenting our history won't fall victim to political decisions.
• Jul 2nd, 2015 @ 8:53am

  lawmakers (as chrislaarman)

  on What's Behind The Attack On EU's Outdoor Photography? The Usual Copyright Maximalism And Anti-Americanism
  "Altogether, this confused post is a perfect demonstration of why people who don't understand a technology should not be allowed to make laws about it."
  
  It's up to the voters to elect lawmakers. It's up to the lawmakers to familiarize themselves with the topics that happen to be assigned to them in their fraction. Fractions in the European Parliament are based on ideology, not on nationality.
  
  Here is Mr. Cavada:
  http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meps/en/28206/JEAN-MARIE_CAVADA_home.html
  
  (Yes, notice the capitals in the URL.)