If you read some of the early reports, Dotcom REALLY IS his real name, just not his birth name. He had it LEGALLY changed. I really don't see that his name would be any less believable a last name than the person who replied to one of G+ comments the other day whose apparent "real name" is jason Lastname. I know of people whose real names have been rejected by Google for G+ because they don't look real, yet Mr. Lastname still has an account.
Because I don't see that "remove the link or the file question" as tricky at all. You apparently don't have an issue with a law abiding citizen's legal content being deleted because someone else infringed with the same content. I do. I don't think you can justify depriving one person of their legal property to prevent someone else from stealing another's. If you do, how do you decide whose rights trump whose? Why is the MPAA's and RIAA's rights more important than yours and mine? They shouldn't be, and the reason our rights should trump theirs is because they have consistently used the justice system to deprive us of ours, while we have not abused the system to deprive them of theirs.
though, admittedly more the SF than the fantasy. "The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas" might be the piece I most recommend to people unfamiliar with SF in it's defense. "The Left Hand of Darkness" changed my world-view. Ms. LeGuin's commentary on the SF "ghetto" in Galaxy Magazine in the 1970's shaped my view of science fiction and it's relationship to literature. But Ms. LeGuin has little understanding of the purpose of copyright and no concept of the well-established legal concept of fair use. Furthermore, she minimalizes Cory Doctorow's experience with the SFWA, which didn't "make a mistake and misidentify" one of Cory's works posted at a sharing site as infringing, they sent a letter indicating that they legally represented Cory and demanding the work be removed. In fact, Cory was not represented by the ebook piracy committee of the SFWA and is well-known for his encouragement of his fans to share his work freely. Cory name was undeniably damaged by Mr. Burt's misrepresentation that he was representing Cory in the take-down notice that many of Cory's fans took as Cory encouraging sharing on the one hand, then threatening to sue those who followed his admonishment to share freely on the other. There is no provision in copyright allowing a trade organization to act on a member's behalf without the member's permission. There IS a provision in copyright law for fair use.
Furthermore, copyright is intended to apply to commercial use of copyrighted works, not private, noncommercial, personal use. Ms. LeGuin seeks to limit fan fiction because in the age f the internet people have more friends. As disingenuious a hack as he is of late, I can more easily support GRRMartin's idiot idea that all fanfic is infringement than Ms. LeGuin's notion that fanfic was okay pre-internet but is suddenly not because a fanfic work may reach more non-paying friends than before. (I do wonder how either of these New Wavers became SF writers since they seem to have such a short-sighted view of technology. Both of them have such a way with prose, and once saw so far. It's really a shame.) Reinstating the committee that misrepresented itself and illegally had Cory Doctorow's work removed from a a sharing site, as Ms. LeGuin suggests is a step backward for people who are supposed to be in the business of looking forward.
I was impressed by Cory's gracious apology to Ms. LeGuin and his removal of clearly non-infringing material, rather than do what I would have done--allowed Ms. LeGuin to attempt to have the material removed through the courts. He expressed genuine respect for both Ms. LeGuin and her work, and repeatedly stated that he would not have posted his (extremely positive) commentary had he believed she would be hurt by it. That she (and Mr. Pournelle, another author I loved and respected in the 20th century who failed to join us here in the 21st century.) felt the need to be obnoxiously hurtful on both her own webpage and Mr. Pournelle's demonstrates that she is no longer in touch with the present, let alone the future.
I won't be buying any more of Ms. LeGuin's books. The only way to let an author know their behavior is unbefitting an SF writer is to stop supporting them. She and Mr. Pournelle will be joining GRRMartin in my list of SF authors I will no longer support.
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Re: Actually,
Re: We'll have to agree to disagree
Uh huh.
Cory Doctorow's been sayin' this for YEARS! SO true!
Uh huh.
Cory Doctorow's been sayin' this for YEARS! SO true!
I have always loved Ms. LeGuin's work (as spookie)
Furthermore, copyright is intended to apply to commercial use of copyrighted works, not private, noncommercial, personal use. Ms. LeGuin seeks to limit fan fiction because in the age f the internet people have more friends. As disingenuious a hack as he is of late, I can more easily support GRRMartin's idiot idea that all fanfic is infringement than Ms. LeGuin's notion that fanfic was okay pre-internet but is suddenly not because a fanfic work may reach more non-paying friends than before. (I do wonder how either of these New Wavers became SF writers since they seem to have such a short-sighted view of technology. Both of them have such a way with prose, and once saw so far. It's really a shame.) Reinstating the committee that misrepresented itself and illegally had Cory Doctorow's work removed from a a sharing site, as Ms. LeGuin suggests is a step backward for people who are supposed to be in the business of looking forward.
I was impressed by Cory's gracious apology to Ms. LeGuin and his removal of clearly non-infringing material, rather than do what I would have done--allowed Ms. LeGuin to attempt to have the material removed through the courts. He expressed genuine respect for both Ms. LeGuin and her work, and repeatedly stated that he would not have posted his (extremely positive) commentary had he believed she would be hurt by it. That she (and Mr. Pournelle, another author I loved and respected in the 20th century who failed to join us here in the 21st century.) felt the need to be obnoxiously hurtful on both her own webpage and Mr. Pournelle's demonstrates that she is no longer in touch with the present, let alone the future.
I won't be buying any more of Ms. LeGuin's books. The only way to let an author know their behavior is unbefitting an SF writer is to stop supporting them. She and Mr. Pournelle will be joining GRRMartin in my list of SF authors I will no longer support.
Techdirt has not posted any stories submitted by spookiewon.
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