A 2006 report by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office called "Filesharing Programs and Technological Features to Induce Users to Share" was just released to the general public yesterday, and it contains some interesting governmental observations as to the dangers of digital piracy.
It's 80 pages long and I am far too busy/lazy to read through the entire thing, but it looks like the general gist of it is that file sharing supports terrorism and corrupts our children. It claims that peer-to-peer networks increase the chances of government workers sharing sensitive data, which is kind of a stupid argument (let's ban phones, while we're at it, so they can't call people and tell them secrets).
An even more backwards argument is that by exposing kids to P2P software they are at a higher risk to pirate music, therefore be sued by copyright holders. The bad news about all this? It will make people protecting their copyrights seem antagonistic. Actually, the copyright holders that are being antagonistic are the ones making themselves seem that way, chief. If any of you out there with too much free time on your hands wants to comb through this beast for some fun quotes, pass em along and we'll post the best ones. –Adam Frucci
Shadowmonkey [via Fark]
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Google is not easily intimidated. If a gigantic corporation sued me for $1 billion, I would probably drop a load in my pants and offer to do anything — and I mean anything — to get out of it. But Google? They aren't scared of Viacom or their attention-grabbing lawsuit.
"This is an area of law where there are a bunch of really clear precedents, so Amazon and eBay have both been found to qualify for the safe harbor and there are a whole bunch more. We will continue to innovate and continue to host material for people, without being distracted by this suit."
Cold-blooded! –Adam Frucci
Crunchgear [via Reuters]
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Those who have been following - with increasingly levels of skepticism – the lurching development of the Optimus 103 keyboard will not be surprised to hear that a working model promised for Cebit, failed to materialise.
In January, I reported that the keyboard was promised for launch in the first half of this year. However, a no-show at Cebit pretty much scuppers that.
Whatever else designer Art Lebedev is good at, it’s not hitting deadlines. However, the company did bring some new photos and a new name – Optimus Maximus – third cousin and fourth extra to to the left of Russell Crowe’s General Maximus Decimus Meridius.
We also got some re-revised launch dates for the end of the year and an increased price tag of around £800, up from £650. However, since it’s possible this device might never launch as it stands you can probably spend that dosh elsewhere. It’s all getting too silly now.-Martin Lynch
[Optimus]
news technology gadgets home PC
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There was a time when the Commodore system ruled the living rooms of many a home. Despite being a collectible item these days by uber-fans, the system is little more than a memory to people who would also recognise names like Amiga, Atari ST and Sinclair Spectrum.
I mentioned last week that that the brand was about to be raised from the ashes as a high-end gaming PC by Commodore Gaming and, so it has.
At Cebit 2007, which kicked off today, Commodore Gaming unveiled four systems: the entry level Cg, Cgs, Cgx and Cxx. What sets them apart straight off are the lurid paint jobs which you can avail off – customising your own paint-job will be one of the perks. LEDs on the fans can be adjusted to enhance the ambience of late night gaming sessions and there’s an Ice Cube cooling system to stop things overheating.
Of course, you’ll be able to tweak whatever components you like on the inside, and prices will run from £1,000 to £5,000. The Web site here is on a Space Invaders countdown and will go live in one hour.-Martin Lynch
news technology gadgets PC home entertainment games geek
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There’s retro ‘good’, ‘bad’ and ‘Oh dear Jesus, ugly’ but I can’t honestly say which one this shiny gold belt buckle falls into.
For old skool audioheads then this buckle, created from an actual cassette with 18k gold plating and bronze plating on the bottom, will mean different things. As someone with around 300 cassettes of classic albums and those all-important, homemade compilations sitting in dusty cases, they were a huge part of my music life. However, for all the joy they brought they were also the most frustrating and finicky audio format I ever had to deal with, destroying tape decks in horrific numbers.
When I look at this buckle, the hairs on the back of my neck rise up, just not in a good way. That said, if you are a retro, fashionista disco queen, then maybe this shines for you. All you need is £120. Belt not included. -Martin Lynch
[Etsy]
news technology gadgets clothes fashion music
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Editor and Contributor | Martin Lynch
Contributor | Tamlin Magee
