*HOT* Tech News And Downloads, I Would Read This Thread And Post Any Good Info

Install Vista, Buy Graphics Card



By Bruce Gain| Also by this reporter
02:00 AM Oct, 17, 2006

Microsoft's Windows Vista is nearing completion for retail distribution in January, but many buyers will discover that a stand-alone graphics processor or card is required to reap its full benefits.

Intel and Advanced Micro Devices have already talked up their CPUs' importance in Vista's features and OEMs have begun touting "Vista ready" PCs before the operating system's release. But it is now more apparent with the recent release of the latest beta version of Vista, called Release Candidate 2 (or RC2 for short), that a simple CPU with an integrated graphics processor will not always be good enough. A separate graphics processor, usually reserved for the gamer set, is almost always needed to take full advantage of Vista's graphics capabilities for the most graphics-rich version of Vista, or Aero, on what Microsoft calls "Windows Vista Premium Ready PCs."

Officially, you can run a stripped-down version of Vista without a video card in a PC or a stand-alone graphics processor in a laptop -- but you might not want to.

"To realize the charm and brilliance of Vista, the user has to have a decent graphics card, because otherwise it looks like crap: It is all washed up and the colors look bad," said Jon Peddie of Jon Peddie Research.

A PC needs an 800-MHz CPU, 512 MB of RAM and an integrated graphics processor that can handle Microsoft's DirectX 9 graphical interface just to run Vista, according to Microsoft. For a PC that is Windows Aero ready, the requirements are more stringent. A Windows Vista Premium Ready PC for Windows Aero needs at least a 1-GHz CPU, 1 GB of RAM, DirectX 9 graphics, 128 MB of graphics memory and pixel shader 2.0, which means an external graphics card or processor is almost invariably required.

During a Wired News test, an HP Compaq 8430 laptop with a 2-GHz Intel T2500 CPU, 1 GB of RAM and a stand-alone ATI Mobility Radeon X1600 graphics processor with 256 MB of video memory could handle the RC2 version of Aero. Vista's graphically intensive features worked well and the operating system's glasslike windows and icons were nice to look at, but in this writer's opinion, a 3-year-old version of SuSE Linux's operating system is just as beautiful.

With the stand-alone ATI graphics processor disabled during the test, the images became glitchy and the resolution poor. Attempts to play a video file with Windows Media Center did not work. The laptop's integrated graphics processor was just not good enough to handle the load by itself.

However, the TV-recording function of Windows Media Center did not work when the graphics processor was enabled or disabled, which might represent one of the bugs Microsoft hopes to fix before Vista's release date in January. But as Microsoft says, a graphics engine with at least 128 MB of memory is required to record TV with Vista.

When installing Vista, the operating system automatically assesses your system and adapts itself to your PC's CPU, memory and graphics-processing capabilities. But as our test showed, Vista on a PC with a 2-GHz CPU and 1 GB of RAM with a stand-alone graphics processor disabled does not look that great and certainly does not deliver what Microsoft calls a full "Vista experience."

For PCs without the requisite graphics capabilities, adding a graphics card will be enough to take advantage of Vista's graphics; however, investing $100 in a graphics card for a $500 PC just for the operating system will probably not make sense for most users.

When vendors begin their mass rollout of PCs with Vista installed next year, most systems shipped will still not be able to run the Aero version of Vista without the added expense of a graphics card, according to Peddie.

Some users may not opt for Vista's power even if they have a high-end PC with the requisite graphics engine.

"Even with a (high-powered graphics processor), Vista extracts performance and more battery life, so it is pretty yet costly in terms of machine resources," said Nathan Brookwood of Insight64. "With a notebook environment when you are not plugged into the wall, you may very well want to turn off the extra graphics because your battery is going to get sucked up."

Vista's power hungriness represents a shift in Microsoft's approach compared to when the company launched Windows XP, and before that, Windows 95, which was introduced more than 10 years ago. Both operating systems offered a range of more graphics-oriented user interfaces compared to their predecessors, but they did not require significantly more processing and graphics computing power.

"If you are a reseller, Vista is probably good news," Brookwood said. "If you are a customer or someone who buys hardware in order to run software, preferably with (graphically intensive) interfaces, it will be frustrating."
http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,71947-0.html?tw=rss.index

 

Human race will split in two, reckons bloke

Big and small, clever and dim

By INQUIRER newsdesk: Tuesday 17 October 2006, 13:26
ACCORDING TO A NEW STUDY by evolutionary theorist Oliver Curry, boffin-in-residence at the London School of Economics, in 10,000 years or so the human race could well be split into two different classes, a 6-7ft tall elite and an imp-like underclass.

The theorist claims that the genetic elite will be healthy, smart, good looking and creative, whereas the underclass will be short little ugly idiots. Something that is sure to anger the average Sun reader is that the future of humankind will most likely sport coffee-coloured skin.

Women, reports the Sun, are likely to be prettier and will have perkier breasts. Men, on the other hand, will have larger penises.

Also claimed in the study is that a further reliance on technology in our lives is likely to leave us with weak immune systems, and more prone to cancers. As a technology website we take no responsibility for any cancers you may get. µ

I WOULD READ THOSE ARTICLE'S
L'INQTERESTING
Consider these two very contrasting stories:

BBC News
Human species 'may split in two
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6057734.stm

The Sun
All men will have big willies
http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/1,,2006480199,00.html


http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=35152

 

Creative Removes FM Recording


The RIAA strikes again

It looks like the RIAA's war on music pirates continues to affect not only legitimate consumers but music companies as well. This week, Creative announced that it will be removing FM radio recording from its portable music players from here on out. Creative has released a new firmware update for its Zen MicroPhoto and Zen Vision:M players that removes FM recording. We're finding it baffling that owners of the above products would rush to download such an update.

Earlier this year, XM Satellite Radio was handed a lawsuit by the RIAA for allow its subscribers to record satellite radio broadcasts onto portable XM players. XM argued that while users were able to record whatever they pleased, the songs were not transferable and users were not able to move data onto a computer. Despite this important detail, the RIAA pressed forward anyway, indicating that it wanted XM to pay a hefty $150,000 for every song that XM users downloaded.

MP3s, satellite radio and FM radio are all part of the RIAA's music portfolio. Companies are now facing stricter regulations and consumers continue to face ongoing lawsuits.

Besides removing FM recording off its new Zen firmware, Creative also introduced several minor fixes such as video zooming and language support.
http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=4566

 

Ireland,

I can asure you, that's already happening in my country. lol

Though I didn't know it was evolution, so I guess we're 10,000 years ahead of the world... lmao

 

Universal Sues Two Video Sharing Sites
By Ed Oswald, BetaNews
October 17, 2006, 2:40 PM

Universal said it had filed suit against two video sites, announcing legal action against Grouper and Bolt.com Tuesday for hosting pirated versions of its videos. The label is seeking $150,000 per occurrence of copyright infringement, expected to be in the thousands.

Both lawsuits were filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. They allege that Bolt and Grouper actively participate in the infringement by copying, formatting and distributing material from Universal artists.

Sony Pictures bought Grouper back in August. As the legal owner of the site, the movie studio may now be dragged into the suit as Universal threatened to add it as a defendant. Universal was not available for comment.

In the suit, Universal claimed that Grouper used copyright infringement to become "one of the most prominent and valuable Web sites on the Internet."

Bolt is independently held by Bolt Media. Neither Bolt nor Grouper was available for comment as of press time. Grouper sees about 2 million monthly visitors a month, while Bolt has about 8 million visitors a month. However, both sites pale in comparison to YouTube, which sees about 72 million visitors each month, according to comScore figures.

In North America, Universal counts some of the hottest pop acts in its roster. They include the Black Eyed Peas, Mariah Carey, Eminem, Gwen Stefani, and Kanye West.
http://www.betanews.com/article/Universal_Sues_Two_Video_Sharing_Sites/1161107557

 

Legal p2p downloads coming soon?

10/17/2006 4:25:52 PM, by Nate Anderson

Did Google's purchase of YouTube change the online world? More specifically, do the deals signed with content providers on the morning of the buyout indicate that the industry is now open to new ways of licensing content?

Michael Geist, an influential professor of Internet and E-commerce Law at the University of Ottawa, thinks that it does, and that licensed (read: legal) p2p file-swapping could be a real possibility. In a recent column, Geist pointed out how different the YouTube deal was from what happened to Napster. One company made $1.65 billion, the other was sued into financial ruin. Music and television production houses are increasingly aware that certain methods of Internet distribution might be in their best interests. But p2p? Have the RIAA headquarters frozen over?

Music and movie companies are more interested in getting paid than in how they get paid, as the YouTube deal makes clear. Entertainment companies are willing to settle for a slice of the advertising pie, even if that revenue comes from sites not under their control. In short, the entertainment biz is more willing to follow consumer eyeballs than to insist on total dominance.
China first?

But the content creators still need to get paid. They have no incentive to license current p2p schemes with limited revenues and advertising dollars. But what if you could charge people to access the p2p system in the first place, then split that money with the content owners? That's the approach taken by Harvard professor Terry Fisher, who heads the Berkman Center there. Fisher's idea is to launch a p2p platform called Noank in China.

Here's how Geist describes the system: "Once operational, it will enable 10 million Chinese university students to freely download music and movies with no technological restrictions. The service will be funded by a mandatory student fee (similar to a student activity fee), with 85 percent of the proceeds distributed to participating artists and content owners. Fisher estimates that the service will generate $200 million per year from these fees alone, with additional advertising revenue possibly doubling that figure."

Imagine how well such a system would flourish here. Students have not been thrilled with mandatory fees to fund music, but there's no reason the fee need be mandatory. Just market to college students: $200 a year for all you can download, no DRM, and it's legal. Such a system could well mark the end of iTunes.

Fisher has thought about this quite a bit. In chapter six of his 2004 book Promises to Keep: Technology, Law, and the Future of Entertainment, Fisher ponders a system where the government supervises file-swapping, imposes taxes, and then distributes the money to artists.

In brief, here's how such a system would work. A creator who wished to collect revenue when his or her song or film was heard or watched would register it with the Copyright Office. With registration would come a unique file name, which would be used to track transmissions of digital copies of the work. The government would raise, through taxes, sufficient money to compensate registrants for making their works available to the public. Using techniques pioneered by American and European performing rights organizations and television rating services, a government agency would estimate the frequency with which each song and film was heard or watched by consumers. Each registrant would then periodically be paid by the agency a share of the tax revenues proportional to the relative popularity of his or her creation. Once this system were in place, we would modify copyright law to eliminate most of the current prohibitions on unauthorized reproduction, distribution, adaptation, and performance of audio and video recordings. Music and films would thus be readily available, legally, for free.

But will any of these approaches play in Peoria?
YouTube vs. BitTorrent

The YouTube deals don't necessarily indicate that the entertainment industry is ready to go this far, this soon, though, even if they get paid.

Think about the content of the YouTube deals. Much of it is old music videos. While Ars' Managing Editor Eric Bangeman enjoys nothing better than a bubble bath with Elton John's "Your Song" playing on the laptop, we can all admit that this is less-than-premium content. It has value, but not the same value as current radio hits, for instance, or episodes of The Office. These companies are moving cautiously, worried about releasing their crown jewels without adequate compensation.

The music videos and music also don't cannibalize sales. Though technically possible to record the audio from YouTube clips into your personal music library, few people bother. If they like the song, they'll have to find it elsewhere. Allowing for p2p distribution of premium content would cannibalize sales in other formats, though.

Finally, this sort of blanket licensing would lower the price (and perceived value) of music, TV shows, and movies. This, in turn, would make it difficult for online stores and bricks-and-mortar retailers to compete without a major price reduction. And if that happened, the content creation industries stand to lose a lot of cash. Perhaps it would be offset by volume, perhaps not. It's a risky move, and few of these companies have shown themselves open to risky Internet strategies.

Still, anything's possible. Fisher has his eyes on Canada next. If the model works there and gets industry support, the US can't be too far behind.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20061017-8012.html

 

Bug fixes lead to Firefox 2 RC3

10/17/2006 1:54:56 PM, by Ryan Paul

Firefox 2.0 Release Candidate 3 (RC3) is now available for download. There are no significant perceivable differences between the latest release candidate and the previous one, which we reviewed in depth earlier this month. RC3 features a number of bug fixes and minor security improvements that bring us closer to the official Firefox 2 release.

With aesthetic improvements, useful new tab management features, built-in spell-checking, a phishing protection mechanism, browser session persistence, Javascript 1.7, and an assortment of other features, Firefox 2 is a solid incremental improvement over the 1.5.x series, but none of the new features are particularly impressive must-haves, and it doesn't exceed expectations as major Firefox releases have in the past. Although plug-in availability for Firefox 2 was limited at the time when we did our RC2 review, the situation has improved a bit, and more add-ons are now compatible with Firefox 2. Although the Mozilla developer calendar does not show the actual launch date for Firefox 2, we expect it to be soon.

Interested users can download the release candidate from the Mozilla web site. If you are currently using RC2, consider upgrading for improved reliability. Those of you that haven't tried any Firefox 2 prerelease yet might just want to wait until the official release at this point. Firefox 3, which is planned for May 2007, will include Gecko 1.9, a major overhaul of the Firefox HTML rendering engine. Gecko 1.9 features Javascript 2, XBL 2, Cairo rendering support, and numerous other improvements.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20061017-8007.html

 

Universal sues video-sharing websites

By Joshua Chaffin in New York

Published: October 17 2006 20:27 | Last updated: October 18 2006 02:34

Universal Music, the world’s largest record company, has launched the established media industry’s first legal action against user-generated internet sites in the wake of its distribution deal last week with YouTube, the most popular video-sharing website.

In separate lawsuits, Universal alleged that Grouper.com – recently acquired by Sony Pictures Entertainment – and Bolt.com had built up traffic by encouraging users to share music videos from its artists without their permission. In one incident, it claimed a video for the Mariah Carey song “Shake it Off” was viewed more than 50,000 times on Grouper without the company’s permission.

Please go here to read the total article
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/57d66d24-5e0f-11db-82d4-0000779e2340.html

 

These guys, If it's such a nuisance for unauthorized people to watch a video, why produce it in the first place???

They shouldn't bother to make videos they don't want us to see.

 

it's not that they don't want us to see it, it's that they want us to feel we need to see it and thus have our wallets appropriately drained to view it.

 

Music for the Masses

p2pnet.net News:- AllofMP3.com represents viable, and extremely powerful, competition to Warner Music, EMI, Vivendi Universal and Sony BMG, the members of the Big Four Organized Music cartel.

That's why they hate and fear it so much.

The Russian p2p music download site is being pilloried by the US administration, with US trade rep Susan Schwab in the front line, and now the site is planning to release, "hundreds of thousands of albums free," says the International Herald Tribune.

There's an interesting anaolgy between what's happening to AllofMP3.com, and to the Big Four's consumer base.

In both cases, Organized Music is using its tremendous wealth, and the frightening political clout it buys, its limitless legal resources and its various faux trade organizations such as the RIAA, BPI, IFPI, etc, to pressure governments into introducing legislation and initiating actions which, bottom line, exist solely to serve and protect members' bottom lines.

And the same charge can be levelled at the movie and software industries.

AllofMP3.com, "remunerates artists by paying 15 percent of its revenue to a collecting agency, the Russian Multimedia and Internet Society, or ROMS by its initials in Russian," the story has Vadim Mamotin, director general of the site’s parent company, Mediaservices, saying, "by telephone with the International Herald Tribune" and then during an online chat with journalists.

"Organizations representing global authors, composers, music publishers and record companies issued a statement, however, calling for closure of the site and reaffirming their stance that both ROMS and AllofMP3 operate illegally," says the story, continuing:

"The battle with AllofMP3 comes as the Internet continues to bring upheaval to the music industry by radically changing distribution models. Some players, like Pirate Bay in Sweden, continue to operate illegally, while others, like Napster and Kazaa, have come into the legal fold in order to offer services in cooperation with the music industry."

Not at all incidetnally, on the same day that AllofMP3.com held its press conference, the Big Four's IFPI also announced it was going after 8,000 men, women and children around the world for allegedly "distributing" copyrighted music files online.

"Warner Music, EMNI, Vivendi Universal and Sony BMG claim their sue 'em all lawsuits are driving victims to the corporate online 'services' and 'stores' backed and supplied by the industry and, asserts John Kennedy, the man who runs the Big Four's IFPI, the cases are, 'proving a major deterrent to illegal p2p file-sharing'," p2pnet posted yesterday.

However, "in September, on average 9,044,010 people around the world were logged onto the p2p networks simultaneously at any one time," p2p market research company Big Champagne told us. In September last year, the number was 9,284,558, well up from the 6,784,574 in 2004 and 3,764,032 in 2003.

Meanwhile, AllofMP3 said its business model, "would move toward an ad-supported distribution of free content," says the Herald Tribune.

"The company, which previously charged about $1 an album, plans to offer consumers a new software program that allows them to download any song from the site for free. AllofMP3 claims to have a catalogue of hundreds of thousands of albums, increasing at a rate of 1,000 per month."

But to do so, music lovers will have to use an AllofMP3's Music for the Masses application, and they'll only be able to play the music on one computer at a time.

MftM, "initially be available for Microsoft Windows, with an Apple version arriving in several weeks," says the International Herald Tribune, adding:

"Consumers who wish to transfer their songs between computers or to a music device like an iPod or another MP3 player, will have to pay for the music," which in turn will win new customers and build a big enough community to attract advertising, it quotes Mamotin as saying.

"We eventually plan to run advertisements on the music player. We will lose revenue from music sales, but we hope that the advertising will more than make up for it."

Also See:
International Herald Tribune - Moscow Music Site to Give Away Thousands of Albums, October 18, 2006
posted yesterday - Big Music ramps up anti-p2p war, October 17, 2006
at any one time - p2p file sharing is IN, October 17, 2006

p2pnet newsfeeds for your site.
rss feed: http://p2pnet.net/p2p.rss
Mobile - http://p2pnet.net/index-wml.php

(Wednesday 18th October 2006)
http://p2pnet.net/story/10152?PHPSESSID=d6c23101f38ad9b4e8d5c05485556bbb

 

Apple Says Shipped iPods Carrying Computer Virus

NEW YORK (Oct. 18) - Some of Apple Computer Inc.'s iPod digital music players shipped in the past month carry a computer virus, according to a posting on Apple's technical support Web site.

Apple says a small percentage of new video iPod for Windows machines shipped with a virus.

Apple said since September 12, less than 1 percent of Video iPods -- pocket-sized devices that can play music files and video clips -- left its contract manufacturer carrying the virus RavMonE.exe, which affects computers running Microsoft Corp.'s Windows operating system.

"So far we have seen less than 25 reports concerning this problem. The iPod nano, iPod shuffle and Mac OS X are not affected, and all Video iPods now shipping are virus free," the company said on the site.

Apple said the virus can be detected and removed using many popular anti-virus software programs.

Representatives for Apple and Microsoft were not available to comment further on Wednesday morning.


10/18/06 09:26 ET

 

Apple takes Cheap Shot at Microsoft after shipping iPod with Virus!

LINK TO THE STORY I POSTED
http://forums.afterdawn.com/thread_view.cfm/109/322699#2466488


IpodApple first of all just like any other manufacture of goods you should be ashamed of yourself for not having stronger quality assurance. This seems to be a running issue recently Allowing a virus that effects Windows users to be shipped on iPod’s is beyond unacceptable.

It’s bad enough that this has happened, and then you take a cheap shot at Microsoft on your website in reporting the problem you created. You will not win any friends in the Windows PC community low blow commentary you have on your support website. For those that have not seen the remarks I am referring to that Apple made check out a portion of Apple’s response to shipping iPods with a Windows Virus on them.

“The iPod nano, iPod shuffle and Mac OS X are not affected, and all Video iPods now shipping are virus free. As you might imagine, we are upset at Windows for not being more hardy against such viruses, and even more upset with ourselves for not catching it.”

It is obvious that Apple does not respect their Windows customers. I can guarantee you that the majority of people that have iPods have a Windows computer at home, and at work. The arrogance of this post reflects the demeanor of Apple at this time. Screw the customer and laugh in there faces! That’s the way it has been with the MacBook issue and now this. [Apple]
http://www.geeknewscentral.com/archives/006497.html

 

Visa halts its service for allofmp3.com


By Greg Sandoval
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
Published: October 18, 2006, 11:35 AM PDT
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Credit card company Visa International said Wednesday that it has suspended service to music download site allofmp3.com, the latest setback for the Russian company accused in the U.S. of pirating music.

"It's no longer permitted to accept Visa cards," said Simon Barker, a Visa International spokesman. "The action we've taken is in line with legislation passed in Russia and international copyright law."

The news comes as allofmp3.com launches a public relations campaign to counter claims by the U.S. government that the site is an outlaw operation. On Tuesday, allofmp3.com announced plans to give away hundreds of thousands of albums for free, according to a story in the International Herald Tribune.

U.S. trade representatives say allofmp3.com is profiting from unauthorized music sales. Executives of allofmp3.com say that the company carefully adheres to copyright law in Russia. That doesn't satisfy U.S. music labels' concerns about copyright infringement, however.

Like music download sites that came before it, such as Napster and Kazaa, allofmp3.com offers unlicensed music for deeply discounted prices.

After years of court battles, Napster and Kazaa now cooperate with record companies. Other sites around the globe, such as Spain-based Weblisten.com, have succumbed to legal pressure and shut their doors.

The U.S. has indicated that by allowing allofmp3.com to continue operating, Russia could be jeopardizing its bid to join the World Trade Organization.
http://news.com.com/2100-1027_3-6127168.html?part=rss&tag=6127168&subj=news

 

US internet addicts 'as ill as alcoholics'

* 12:55 18 October 2006
* NewScientist.com news service
* New Scientist Tech staff and AFP

The US could be rife with "internet addicts" who are as clinically ill as alcoholics, according to psychiatrists involved in a nationwide study.

The study, carried out by researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine in California, US, indicates that more than one in eight US residents show signs of "problematic internet use".

The Stanford researchers interviewed 2513 adults in a nationwide survey. Because internet addiction is not a clinically defined medical condition, the questions used were based on analysis of other addiction disorders.

Most disturbing, according to the study's lead author Elias Aboujaoude, is the discovery that some people hide their internet surfing, or go online to cure foul moods – behaviour that mirrors the way alcoholics behave.

"In a sense, they're using the internet to self-medicate," Aboujaoude says. "And, obviously, something is wrong when people go out of their way to hide their internet activity."
Non-essential use

Nearly 14% of respondents said they found it difficult to stay away from the internet for several days and 12% admitted that they often remain online longer than expected.

More than 8% of those surveyed said they hid internet use from family, friends and employers, and the same percentage confessed to going online to flee from real-world problems. Approximately 6% also said their personal relationships had suffered as a result of excessive internet usage.

"Potential markers of problematic internet use are present in a sizeable portion of the population," the researchers note.
Compulsive drive

Aboujaoude, a psychiatry professor at Stanford's Impulse Control Disorders Clinic, says an increasing number of people are seeking help from doctors because of unhealthy internet use.

He compares the compulsive drive to check email, make blog entries or visit websites to substance abuse – an irresistible urge to perform a temporarily pleasurable act.

"The issue is starting to be recognised as a legitimate object of clinical attention, as well as an economic problem, given that a great deal of non-essential internet use takes place at work," Aboujaoude says.

He adds that the problem is not confined to specific types of internet use. "Online pornography and, to some degree, online gambling, have received the most attention," he says, "but users are as likely to use other sites, including chat rooms, shopping venues and special-interest websites."

Previous research suggests that the majority of "internet addicts" are single, college-educated, white males in their 30s, who spend approximately 30 hours a week on non-essential computer use.

Journal reference: CNS Spectrums: The International Journal of Neuropsychiatric Medicine (October issue)

 

Labels use decoy files to kick advertising to P2P pirates
Posted by Dan Bell on 19 October 2006 - 00:37 - Source: The Wall Street Journal

It's no secret that the P2P networks have plenty of decoy music files, mixed in among the real thing. Classically, they were used as a means to try and wear down P2P downloaders, who never tire of the lure of free, DRM-less music. Up to 30 out of the top 100 hit Billboard tunes may be floating around at once, as ringers for the real thing. Usually, even though they are not the real file, they will more often than not, top the search list and this really can be frustrating (I guess- I wouldn't know).

But, here's the twist, content creators and distributors are now using the decoy files to sling ads at the scofflaws. Because, labels and record executives finally wised up to the fact, that the people downloading illegally are huge music fans! The new thinking is that marketing to them may be more desirable in the long run, than suing or otherwise harassing them. Duh! In a weird way, I like this idea. But, then again, I like rope burns and trips to the dentist. Seriously though, maybe this is a move in the right direction indeed!

Hence the alliance between Jay-Z and Coke. By inserting promotional material into the decoy files, and then planting those files prominently on file-sharing sites, record labels and other marketers can turn what is now an antipiracy tool into an advertising medium. "The concept here is making the peer-to-peer networks work for us," says Jay-Z's attorney, Michael Guido. "While peer-to-peer users are stealing the intellectual property, they are also the active music audience," and "this technology allows us to market back to them."

Concert outtakes aren't the only content. Audioslave, Ice Cube, Yellowcard and other music groups have used decoy files for their own version of viral marketing. With help from niche companies like Sparkart LLC and NFA Group's BuyDRM, they put snippets of a song into the files with the promise that a stream of the entire song will be "unlocked" for everyone once the promotion is forwarded to enough people. The hope is that this will motivate people to send the file to lots of friends.

If you want to read more...then head on over to the Wall Street Journal!
http://www.cdfreaks.com/news/14140

MAIN ARTICLE HERE
http://online.wsj.com/public/articl...cJYWWFqv1AmPvXCiOjJms_20071018.html?mod=blogs

 

DRM increases 'piracy'?
Posted by Quema34 on 18 October 2006 - 22:55 - Source: ZDNet

While there may be some reason to feel encouraged, it is obvious the MPAA’s definition of ‘piracy’ doesn’t pass muster, as one is not considered a ‘pirate’ by their rendering when someone enjoys the very portability their purchase was supposed to have granted them under normal fair use provisions under copyright. It is clear the industry fails to understand consumers only ‘take back’ the rights they were supposed to have in the first place by circumventing DRM. What the essential problem boils down to is the industry’s greed causes this reaction: when the consumer buys something expecting to play it or transfer it elsewhere without restriction but can’t, why should one have to buy it again? There is no one to complain to, or at least no one that listens and helps. The industry’s refusal to accept reality at the consumer’s expense is the trouble:
Speaking last week at the Digital Home Developers Conference, Brad Hunt, the executive vice president and chief technology officer for the MPAA, conceded that many people are frustrated at having to buy multiple copies of the same content to use on different devices and that this is driving them to piracy.

Talk about being out of touch with the consumer! This exemplifies the industry’s general intransigence and shows how ‘slow’ it is to understand its actions generate a backlash. However, how much it is truly ‘concerned’ about consumer reaction is yet to be concretely defined.

What is concrete, however, is that the author of the article erroneously classifies someone taking back their rights with their purchase a ‘pirate,’ demonstrating the author ‘buys into’ the MPAA/RIAA spin—which is quite sad—as this person does not adhere to the distinction that a pirate steals without having paid for the item. Furthermore, the author employs a ‘slippery slope,’ fallaciously assuming because a consumer desires to circumvent DRM to fully enjoy one’s legal purchase that said person will start looking for ways to get other items free. At the very least, this kind of ‘escalation’ is non sequitur. Fortunately, the author redeems himself by identifying one possible solution (that of offering DRM-free music, something eMusic, Tunebite and Yahoo Music [in a limited fashion] already do) to ending DRM. However, it is not ‘visionary’ to see this as a ‘road to profits’ when this is exactly what informed consumers are already demanding. Will the industry on the whole listen and act to end DRM without having to take the legal bodyslams it may have to before changing its mind? Only time will tell.
http://www.cdfreaks.com/news/14138

 

Study finds that over 90 mins of earphone music is harmful
Posted by Seán Byrne on 19 October 2006 - 00:53 - Source: Reuters - Health

Ever since the first cassette tape walkmans hit the market, there have been many reports and studies into extended listening of loud music with worrying reports of how easily one can damage their hearing, including many recent reports with Digital Audio Players. Even though the vast majority of portable player manufacturers have limited how loud their players can go, a study carried out by 100 doctoral students have revealed some worrying results even with recent players, this time explaining their findings as percentages of a maximum player's volume rather than in decibels.

When listening to a player between 10% and 50% of its maximum volume, the study found that no problems occur even with extended listening periods. When the volume is cranked up to 80%, the listener can get away with up to 90 minutes of listening per day if they use their player on a daily bases. This period can be extended without risk if the listener only uses their player on the occasional day. However, the risk of hearing loss significantly increases once the volume is increased beyond 90 minutes per day on average or beyond 80%. For example, at 100% volume, a listener would face risk of hearing loss at just more than 5 minutes per day. Unfortunately it can take up to 10 years for the hearing loss to show.

Interestingly, the study has found the volume levels are typically equal between various makes and brands of digital music players and the same goes with different genres of music. For example, an iPod listener who loves Rock music would be at the same risk as a user of another branded player who loves country music, assuming both listen at the same volume level from 80% up. However, another story found that in-ear earphones are more dangerous than over-ear headphones, since the earphones concentrate the audio more. Thanks to GristyMcFisty for letting us know about this news:

Listening to loud music with earphones on a digital music player for more than 90 minutes a day can damage your hearing, according to a new U.S. study.

The study of 100 doctoral students concluded that people who listened to music at 80 percent of volume capacity, at which point the sound is considered loud, should stick to under 90 minutes a day.

"If a person exceeds that on one particular day and happens not to use their headphones for the rest of the week, they're at no higher risk," study author Brian Fligor told Reuters. "I'm talking about someone who's exceeding 80 percent for 90 minutes day after day, month after month, for years."

If listening to an MP3 player at 100% can potentially ruin one’s hearing at just over 5 minutes per day, it makes me wonder about some people who complain about their iPod (or other MP3 player) being not loud enough! Interestingly, there are many headphone amplifiers on the market that claim to amplify the volume by between 200% and 300%. While some larger driver headphones may need the extra power, consumers who get these to amplify their earphones volume well beyond their MP3 player’s normal maximum volume are really putting their hearing at serious risk.

GristyMcFisty added: Time to sue the music industry, after all they supplied the music...! Stranger things have happened Stateside...
http://www.cdfreaks.com/news/14139

 

Even Billboard admonishes the industry to 'dump' DRM!
Posted by Dan Bell on 18 October 2006 - 15:00 - Source: Various

Quema34 used our news submit to tell us: "Finally--a voice of reason in the DRM darkness--in the form of a music executive (from Yahoo Music, David Goldberg)! If some of the upcoming non-DRM music services offering primarily independent music gain ground quickly, a few more major labels might come on board. Of course, the limiting or primary factors in this potential evolution will likely be industry stubbornness and/or reluctance to "give up" the very creation it thinks "protects" content from "piracy"."
"People who really want to steal music are going to steal it," one executive remarks. "You"re just making it hard for people who want to do the right thing to get the music they legitimately purchased on the devices and services that they want," he adds.

Amen to that! This DRM has little affect upon piracy. Some could argue it is there at least in the case of Apple, to maintain brand loyalty. Certainly, we can argue that it does almost nothing in regard to illegal file sharing. According to the IFPI's own figures, some 20 billion songs were illegally downloaded worldwide last year. Years after the rise of legal music sites with DRM applied tracks.

In my opinion, it has more to do with control, control of the consumer and what they can do with their legally purchased products. It's about sidestepping the Betamax ruling of 1992, making it legal to record and time-shift, by making it illegal to remove copyright protections to do so!

It's about tiered pricing and it's about charging for what we used to be allowed to do for free. DRM to me, is more a tool to strip us of our Fair Use Rights, not so much a tool to protect copyrights. It's about time for us to wake up and smell the coffee, both the consumer and the copyright holder. Stop wasting your money!
http://www.cdfreaks.com/news/14133

 

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