Monday, July 26, 2004

Cory: Real ships guerrilla DRM for the iPod Real Networks have reverse-engineered Apple's iPod and written a player for its DRM "Helix" format, which they're giving away. This means that you'll be able to play the Helix files you buy from Real on your Apple iPod. I'm cautiously glad about this. It's the right idea: tech vendors should be writing tools that allow anyone to play anything on anything: it's insane to own an Apple "record player" that only plays Apple "records" -- meaning that if you buy your records from Real, you need to buy another record player. My only disappointment is that Real is engaged in the same behaviour: Real's records only play on players licensed by Real: it would be much more customer-friendly if Real went into the business of providing us with music in a patent-free, open standard that could be implemented by anyone. [bOing bOing] 8:23:36 AM    comment []

Janis Ian: FALLOUT - a follow up to The Internet Debacle (which is, like it says, a follow up to The Internet Debacle - an alternative view (which is, and it doesn't say, the first piece I blinked here at A blog doesn't need a clever name)). 8:19:12 AM    comment []

I'm looking forward to the debut of the Girl in the Locker Room! Salon blog. 8:14:58 AM    comment []

Where Do They Stand?. Where do the presidential nominees really fit along the left-right spectrum? By By SARAH BINDER, THOMAS MANN, ALAN MURPHY and PAUL SAHRE. [The New York Times > Opinion] 8:12:17 AM    comment []

Martyrs for the cause of journalism. They outraged an advertiser, pissed off the publisher or fell afoul of right- or left-wing political correctness. Now these articles killed by major magazines and newspapers have found new life. [Salon.com] 8:10:32 AM    comment []

RealNetworks Plans to Sell Songs to Be Played on iPods. Without Apple's authorization, RealNetworks will start to give away software that allows people to buy and download songs from its online music store and play them on Apple's iPod. By By SAUL HANSELL. [The New York Times > Technology] 8:10:19 AM    comment []

RealNetworks breaks Apple's hold on iPod. Real's Rob Glaser and Apple's Steve Jobs have feuded before. RealNetworks' iPod hack is likely to ruffle feathers again. [CNET News.com] 7:59:02 AM    comment []