Thursday, March 24, 2005

Americans continue to share files, split between approved services and the darknet. Americans continue to download media files, and split that behavior between authorized services and the darknet, according to a new study from the Pew Internet and American Life Project. The study also includes this fascinating datapoint, as the US Surpreme Court considers Grokster - half of Americans disagree with the 1984 Betamax decision? 49% of all Americans and 53% of internet users believe that the firms that own and operate file-sharing networks should be deemed responsible for the pirating of music and movie files. [Smart Mobs] 8:31:35 PM    comment []

U.S., Europe closer in policy than culture, says NATO official. A NATO official explained the strained relationship between the United States and Europe to more than 50 people in the UC Sunnen Lounge. Michael Ruhle, head of policy planning and speech writing for the Political Affairs Division of NATO, . . . . [The Journal] 7:10:27 AM    comment []

Letting them speak for themselves (Alan Wexelblat). PyMusique "Project Statement" (more or less an FAQ). Emphasized that it is a "buy music" not "steal music" client. Gives some of the whys. [Copyfight] 7:09:59 AM    comment []

Moeen starts blogging. Mostafa Moeen, the reformist candidate for the next president, has written his second post on his blog, which means he is taking it seriously. Moeen's first post was about congratulating the new Persian year, and the second one is about a conversion he's had with some ordinary workers in Behesht-e Zahra (Tehran's greatest graveyard). The men were asking what he could do that Khatami hadn't and Moeen had sort of no answer to that, except that he had to run to protect the country from its enemies and people should take part to do the same. He is the first presidential candidate who has a weblog and if elected, would be the first Iranian president with a weblog. I'm really happy that our efforts and time we've spent to promote weblogs is paying off and now more and more Iranian politicians are turning to blogging. This is good for both them and us. It makes them more aware of what people want which in turn make them different rulers. I only wish that Iran's Supreme leader, Khamanei, had a blog, or at least were reading weblogs. because, as I've usually said, he would rule differently. [Editor: Myself (English)] 7:09:53 AM    comment []

Now You, Too, Can Be a Comedian. Taking a page from the popularity of karaoke, a group of performers is promoting Joke-e-oke, a platform that lets anyone mimic the routines of their favorite comedians. Harmon Leon reports from San Francisco. [Wired News] 7:09:45 AM    comment []

It's the Content, Not the Source. The Apple lawsuit really boils down to the definition of a trade secret, not the definition of a journalist. Commentary by Adam L. Penenberg. [Wired News] 7:08:47 AM    comment []

Dogbert copyrights stupidity (Alan Wexelblat). Would that it were so easy... http://www.dilbert.com/comics/dilbert/archive/dilbert-20050323.html [Copyfight] 7:05:10 AM    comment []

Loads of bOing bOing stuff: Rock 'em Sock 'em Robots: The Marvin Glass toy cartoons never end at Bedazzled! This time, Spike has made available the commercial for Rock'em Sock'em Robots. A great commercial for a great toy. Link Brady Bunch opener: This guy did a great job of filming himself as all eight characters of the Brady Bunch for the famous tic-tac-toe opener. The video is pretty surreal. Link (Thanks, Santos!) DRM blog: The DRM Blog is a good blog for op-eds, news links and other resources for understanding DRM. I just added it to my RSS reader. Link (Thanks, Jimmy!) PlayFair/PyMusique Apple iTunes, redux: BB reader Alfie says "Jon Johansen has re-opened the Itunes hole recently blocked by apple, making 3rd party accessible again." The entry on Jon's blog (the site's appropriately titled "So Sue Me") reads: The iTunes Music Store recently stopped supporting iTunes versions below 4.7 in an attempt to shut out 3rd party clients. I have reverse engineered the iTMS 4.7 crypto which will once again enable 3rd party clients to communicate with the iTMS. Link to blog post. Image: Declan McCullagh for Wired News. (thanks also, Rik, Phillip, and Andreas) Previously: DVD Jon creates DRM-free iTunes interface "PyMusique", Apple blocks DVDJon's PyMusique app Update: Regarding "So Sue Me," BB reader Xopl sez: "There's more than one reason Jon Johansen chose that title: Link." Update 2: CNET's John Borland has more: Link to "'DVD Jon' reopens iTunes back door." Mashupdate: M.I.A. and S.M.B. combine to form Super Galang Galang. The mixmaster is Josh "cry.on.my.console" Last.Name.Omitted (who will be playing with M.I.A. in Manchester UK next month: Link). Also check out the Britney-vs.-M.I.A. track. Link (Thanks, Justin, and whoever corrected me on the credit issue, I accidentally deleted your identity.) Previously: MIA for intergalactic overlord, MIA is, well, MIA due to visa troubles while entering US [bOing bOing] 7:00:02 AM    comment []

With Mac Mini, Apple Builds a Smaller Box. Apple has long been known for paying more attention to the design of its hardware than most other computer manufacturers. So what's inside Apple's Mac Mini? By IAN AUSTEN. [NYT > Technology] 6:59:55 AM    comment []