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A 12-step program for gamers

3/10/2006 1:02:19 PM, by Nate Anderson

It's no secret that video games are currently a target for politicians, generally because of violent content. At a conference on game marketing this week, John Geoghegan laid out his 12-step plan to make gaming more socially acceptable. Geoghegan, a former marketing VP for LucasArts, told the assembled masses that the gaming business is "in deep doodoo" and needs to do a better job of selling itself. His plan is this:

1. Talk up the rating system. The goal here is to inform people that videogames are rated just like movies, and no one is suggesting that the federal government start regulating those.
2. Extol the virtues of video gaming. Let your friends and neighbors know all the wonderful things that videogames can do for you. Geohegan used examples from the book Everything Bad is Good for You to make his claim that videogames can boost reflexes and intelligence.
3. Do research. Game developers should partner with respected universities to conduct accurate testing on the good and bad effects of videogames and publicize the results. (If you're wondering why the step comes after the step in which you tell everyone about the benefits of videogames, you're not the only one.)
4. Remind people that youth culture is often opposed by those in authority. The obvious example of this is rock 'n roll, and Geohegan believes that videogames are just the latest example of the trend. His point is that new forms of culture usually don't turn out to destroy society after all.
5. Encourage both moderation and good parenting. Just because people like to game doesn't mean they should do it round-the-clock. Parents who are concerned about what their children are playing ought to get involved and start making decisions about what is and is not appropriate; in other words, they should start being parents.
6. Benchmark against sex and violence in other media. Gamers should point out the frequency of sex, violence, and profanity on television and in the movies, thereby proving that videogames aren't so bad after all.
7. Embrace the Constitution. Gamers need to wrap themselves in the flag and start talking more about freedom of speech.
8. Lobby. Find some willing congressman and start throwing cash their way.
9. Get good spokespeople. Find gamers who are also respected for their work (like Peter Jackson) to helped promote the industry and change the stereotype of gamers as children.
10. Show people the best games. Make sure people know that there's more to video gaming than dropping opponents with head shots. Tell them about the wonders of Guitar Hero, Mario Kart, Katamari Damacy, etc.
11. Put the issue in perspective. Eighty percent of all games are not rated M, so the extreme violence so often referenced when talking about videogames only occurs in a small section of the market.
12. Be proud. Gamers should not feel shame about their hobby, and they should get better at explaining to friends and neighbors just why they enjoy it so much.

Most of the ideas certainly makes sense, though some people will suddenly be turned off by the idea of lobbying. The idealist in me asks: Is throwing cash at Senators really the best way for gamers to get the message out? And the realist answers: No, but it might keep the feds from regulating the industry.

Game companies getting involved with universities to do research sounds like an excellent idea, so long as they don't lean on the research teams to produce positive results. This is their business, after all, and it would be nice to see manufacturers take an interest in finding out what affects games really do and do not have, especially on children, instead of pumping out truly violent games and simply asserting that they cause no problems.

As for benchmarking sex and violence against other media, it might be effective at keeping regulation at bay, but it's not really a positive argument for video games. It's like getting busted for throwing rocks at a house, then saying in defense that you weren't the only one. It's true, but no one's going to look at you any better because of it.

Still, Geoghegan's ideas sound a call to arms among gamers that hasn't been heard for quite a while. Gaming is no longer a niche business, and with massive growth has come the attention of the culture warriors. Gamers need to do a better job of convincing these people that there's more to gaming than bloodshed and pixelated sexual content.

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060310-6360.html

 

IBM breaks speed records with new version of file system

3/10/2006 1:49:12 PM, by Jeremy Reimer

Yesterday, IBM and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory announced the results of "Project Fastball," a performance test of the latest release (2.3) of their General Parallel File System. GPFS was invented by IBM in 2001 as an experiment in clustered file systems, where data is accessed over multiple computers at once. Most existing file systems are designed for a single server environment, and adding more file servers does not improve performance. GPFS provides higher input/output performance by "striping" blocks of data from individual files over multiple disks, and reading and writing these blocks in parallel.

"Computing capability has been growing very fast, but the file system capacity has not kept up," IBM engineer Dr. Rama Govindaraju said.

Project Fastball achieved a new speed record of over 102 gigabytes per second of sustained read/write performance to a single file. The record was achieved using 416 individual storage controllers combined with 104 Power-based eServer p575 nodes (each p575 node has eight dual-core 2.2 GHz POWER5+ processors).

The resulting file system was a mind-boggling 1.6 petabytes in size (a petabyte is roughly a million gigabytes, depending on whether the binary (10245) or SI (10005) definition is used) In comparison, the total of Google's storage is reported to be between 1.8PB and 5PB. The performance of the system was maintained with up to 1,000 clients accessing the file system.

While the achievement is rather spectacular (and gave me a chance to play with large numbers, always a fun exercise), will it have any real-world applications? David Turek, vice president of Deep Computing at IBM, thinks it will:

"Advances at the upper reaches of high performance computing such as these often find powerful applications in the broad spectrum of government, industrial and commercial arenas," said Turek "IBM's close working relationship with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory has resulted in another significant achievement with the potential to improve the lives of people everywhere."

Advances in the "big-iron" arena do have a tendency to drift down to commodity computers given enough time. Superscalar execution (fetching, executing, and returning results from more than one instruction at a time using a single clock cycle) and out-of-order execution were both implemented in mainframe and minicomputer systems many years ago, but today are a fundamental element of microcomputer CPUs. Hardware-based RAID controllers, which were once the domain of extremely expensive high-end industrial computers, can now be found on many commodity PC motherboards. As esoteric as a petabyte appears today, remember that only a few years ago a terabyte (1,000 or 1,024 gigabytes) was an equally exotic creature, yet many Ars readers now have a TB or more of storage at home.

IBM's GPFS is currently a proprietary system, available for AIX and some distributions of Linux (it has been tested on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3.0 and 4.0, and SUSE Linux ES 8.0 and 9.0). Pricing is not specified on the web site, but you know that such cutting-edge technology won't come cheap. Although it is not open-source software as such, IBM is offering access to GPFS source code to clients.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060310-6362.html

 

Vista looks to be a no-go on Macs

3/10/2006 1:25:07 PM, by Eric Bangeman

Ever since Apple decided to switch from PowerPC to Intel, there has been one group of people trying to get Mac OS X to run on non-Apple x86 hardware and another attempting to get Windows to boot on a Mac. The first group has seen some success, as with a little digging and a lot of hacking, it is possible to get Mac OS X 10.4.5 running on some commodity PC hardware. Not so with Windows on Apple systems; XP has been a no-go, and it now looks as if Vista won't work either.

In a scene difficult to imagine a year ago, Apple Senior Software Architect Cameron Esfahani spoke at the just-concluded Intel Developers Forum. During his address, he said that he didn't think Intel Macs would be capable of running Vista. That's because Microsoft will not be supporting EFI in the 32-bit version of Windows Vista. At another IDF session, Andrew Ritz, a development manager at Microsoft, said that EFI support for 32-bit systems will not be included at the launch of Microsoft's next operating system. 64-bit support will come first, likely with the release of Longhorn Server.

News of the lack of EFI support in Vista will dampen the hopes of Mac owners anxious to natively run Windows on their new MacIntels. The release of the Core Duo iMac brought with it a frenzy of activity in an attempt to get Windows XP along with betas of Vista to install. Despite the enticement of an over US$12,000 reward for the first person to get XP to boot on a Mac, all efforts have proven fruitless.

With VM software so cheap (although not yet available in a native version for Intel Macs), why not just run Windows or Linux in a VM? That's an attractive solution for some, and with both Windows and Mac OS X being x86-native operating systems the performance hit of a VM should be farily minimal.

Once a 64-bit version of Vista with EFI support ships, installing it on a Conroe should be a possibility. Still the prospect of dual booting beckons like the sirens' song to Odysseus. Some want to do it just to show it can be done, much like Linux fans will try to get that OS running on a toaster oven. I fall into another camp.

At some point, I'll be replacing my Power Macintosh G5 with a new Mac tower, presumably with a Conroe inside. My hopes are that the considerably smaller cooling needs of the Conroe versus the PowerPC 970 will result in there being room for more than two hard drives in this future Mac. I would have Mac OS X on one drive, Windows on another, and Linux on the third. Using Intel's VT virtualization technology, I'd be able to have all three running "native" on my Mac, and at the same time.

Unfortunately, that scenario does not look plausible in the near future. In the interim, I'll probably be upgrading my Shuttle system while saving my pennies for a new Mac. Still, a geek can dream, can't he?
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060310-6361.html

 

Amazon proceeding with plan to sell digital movies

3/10/2006 10:58:10 AM, by Ken "Caesar" Fisher

Amazon is reportedly in talks with major movie studios to secure their blessings (and permission) for an online movie download service. Unnamed sources are saying that the company is negotiating with Paramount, Universal and Warner Brothers with an eye towards opening the doors on a new service perhaps as early as this summer. While the buzz has apparently made it to both the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal today, Amazon's desires started to become apparent in January.

Amazon's plans are hush-hush right now, and for good reason. Everyone, it seems, is sprinting to sell video online. This is especially true for movies, which have become the forbidden fruit of the video sales category; sources have told me that the studios are quite resistant to the idea of selling movies online. The reasons are several, but ultimately most lead back to the same boogeymen... those that speak in "yarr" and "argh." But the studios also like their little shiny discs, and that's where Amazon has a leg up on the competition. The company doesn't want to compete against traditional sales, but augment them.

As we reported in January, Amazon is considering a "try before you buy model," where one could download or stream a movie for a fee, and apply that fee as a credit towards the purchase price of the corresponding DVD (or BD or HD DVD), should the content tickle your fancy. Another plan is to provide free downloadable versions along with regular DVD purchases, to draw in those who would rather swing by the closest Wal-Mart or FYE for their movie needs, because they just can't stomach waiting a couple of days for their DVDs to be delivered. (Comcast has considered a similar idea, but they're tying it to the far more limited pay per view distribution model: order PPV movie, get DVD in the mail a week later.)

Publicly or behind closed doors, Amazon has been paying more than lip service to the promise of digital downloads. The company has officially announced both Amazon Pages and Amazon Upgrade, two services aimed at augmenting traditional book sales with downloadable portions or online copies. In a way, the company's movie plans aren't that much different: bring the best of both the traditional and the digital experience to customers, and hope that the end result is a positive customer experience that leads them back to Amazon again and again.
Elusive movies

While the online sale of movie downloads seems like a no-brainer, no one has pulled it off yet. Microsoft launched commercial video downloads in March of 2005, branded as the "MSN Video Downloads" service. While some had hoped to see MSN Video downloads turn into a market leader, it has remained largely quiet, and has been seemingly ignored. iTunes started carrying commercial video later in the year, to much success. Movies are still missing from the line-up, however. As it stands, "buy to own" movies from the big studios are nowhere to be found online. While nearly everyone expects to see Hollywood's offerings on the iTunes Music Store sooner or later, Amazon may have a trick up its sleeve with its plans to augment traditional sells rather than replace them.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060310-6357.html

 

Microsoft, Verizon to offer free Xbox Live weekend

3/10/2006 12:03:42 PM, by Ken "Caesar" Fisher

Microsoft has announced the first of many "free weekends" for Xbox Live. Sponsored by Verizon, Microsoft will open up "Gold-level" (read: full) access to Xbox Live from March 31 through April 2, 2005. During that time anyone will be able to connect to Xbox Live and enjoy the benefits of membership and other events planned by both Microsoft and Verizon.

The event will feature Xbox Live Arcade tournaments, "Win and Play" contests, and a giveaway of 1 million "Microsoft points" that can be used to purchase content in the Xbox Live Marketplace. Verizon will use the opportunity to promote its DSL service.

"This blend of technology—Xbox 360 and a Verizon broadband connection—gives gamers the best possible online experience," said Jerri DeVard, senior vice president of national marketing and brand management for Verizon. "We think that providing gamers with exposure to this amazing service combination will change the way they view their Xbox 360 and gaming in general. Verizon is proud to deliver the first-ever Free Xbox Live Gold Weekend."

Since the launch of the Xbox 360, Microsoft has been beaming with pride over its Xbox Live service. Now in its second generation, the service is considered essential to the Xbox's long-term success, and it has been a major differentiator between the Xbox and the PlayStation. All of that is set to change now that Sony is planning a similar service for the PlayStation 3, but the momentum is firmly in Microsoft's corner.
Xbox Wild

Microsoft claims that their Xbox Live service has over 2 million customers, and that over half of all Xbox 360 owners have connected with the service. This repeats the claim made by Bill Gates at this year's Consumer Electronics Shows in Las Vegas: people are unpacking their new consoles and connecting to the service in droves. The original Xbox is believed to have seen about 10% of its users converted to Xbox Live subscribers, so "half" would be quite an improvement.

But the champagne should remain on ice for now. Although the service appears to be starting off strong, several factors account for this in part. As I noted during CES, current Xbox 360 owners can be described as early adopters, so it only stands to reason that such fans of the platform will adopt Xbox Live in higher-than-normal percentages. Then there's the fact that the Xbox 360 comes with a free Silver membership, providing messaging and downloads, but not the ability to play many games online. Technically, these people are "connecting" to the service as well, but they're not paying any additional monthly cost to do so. On top of that, the Xbox 360 also includes a 30-day trial of the Gold membership, which is usually US$50/year.

None of this necessarily deflates Xbox Live's successes, and the advent of free weekends certainly signals the companies faith in its service. Microsoft clearly believes that the more eyes that come to the service, the more subscribers they'll get at the end of the day. And they're not unwise, either. Gaming subscriptions are on a steady incline, with "massively multiplayer online" games seeing tremendous growth over the last year. While Xbox Live isn't an MMO, it's yet another place to drop that elusive "disposable income" all in the name of entertainment.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060310-6358.html

 

Movielink announces deal for UMPC exposure

3/10/2006 2:17:51 PM, by Peter Pollack

With the hotly anticipated announcement yesterday that Microsoft is launching a new portable platform called Ultra-Mobile PC (UMPC) positioned between tablets and PDAs, other companies can be expected to jump on that horse and ride it as far as they can. One of those companies is Movielink, the video-on-demand service that appears to have the largest lead in a very slow sack race. Movielink is trying to place itself in the position of becoming to the UMPC platform and the movie industry what iTMS has been to the iPod and the music industry. Yesterday, the company, which already caters only to users of Windows 2000 and XP, announced a partnership with Microsoft in which Movielink will be "the premier brand and provider of video content for the UMPC."

What that means exactly is still unexplained. Movielink's level of integration with UMPC could range anywhere from tightly integrated services to getting a default icon in the Program Launcher. Smart money probably rides somewhere in between, with emphasis on the latter. Microsoft is unlikely to tie its interface too tightly to a company it doesn't own, and even if MS had intentions to purchase Movielink somewhere down the road, the inevitable antitrust scrutiny that such a move would bring would probably keep Movielink's contributions to the platform subtle at best.

Even if Movielink's integration is minimal, this could be a big move for that company. History has shown—as in the cases of Internet Explorer or iTMS—that simple convenience can go a long way toward adoption and popularity. In either of those examples, it can be argued that there are better alternatives, but they are popular due to their ubiquity.

So far, Movielink hasn't exactly taken the world by storm. Although there are several major studios involved with the company, the selection of available movies is far from complete. Netflix is currently the most popular player in the "get a movie without getting off the couch" game, but it's unlikely that their relatively slow physical delivery model will continue to satisfy consumers forever. Electronic delivery, via On Demand or a service like Movielink is probably destined to replace it, once the studios' concerns about copy protection issues are addressed to their satisfaction.

However, Movielink's potential success in this case is tied directly to the success of the UMPC platform itself. Watching any video content on a larger screen than an iPod's certainly has its appeal, but don't expect consumers to purchase UMPCs just for the ability to view Lord of the Rings on the bus. UMPC will sink or swim based on its usefulness as a computer platform—most likely as an Internet machine with additional capabilities—and Movielink is banking on the hope that this untested platform will be successful.

Legal video downloading in some form or another is an inevitable part of our future. With iTMS expanding its selection of TV offerings, simultaneous releases of movies in multiple formats, and rumors of a combination downloading/DVD system swirling around Amazon, the only questions are who and how. Who will come up with the system that stabilizes this very new market, and how will it be implemented? Depending on the popularity of UMPC, Movielink's link to UMPC will likely turn out to be a shot in the arm...or a shot in the dark.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060310-6363.html

 

Your Next PC Will Cost $159
03.01.06
$159, Believe It or Not!
Total posts: 10


By Loyd Case

Holy tightwads, Batman! A better PC than what you're running costs less than a pair of designer jeans? What's happened to the computer industry?

Were GQ magazine to design a computer, it would sport a Gucci leather jacket and stroll in slick Prada loafers. It would also cost eight, maybe nine thousand dollars. But when Fry's Electronics designed the GQ system, it wasn't thinking of luxury linens and leather. It wanted something cheap. The surprising thing is that the GQ (short for "Great Quality," by the way, not Gentleman's Quarterly) turns out to be a powerful PC. It's low-cost, in other words, not high crap.

Why should you care about a cut-rate Californian computer? After all, you've probably got a PC or two at home already. But consider: This one is probably faster than yours. It contains an AMD Sempron 2400+ chip, which runs at 1.67 GHz; unless you've bought a computer in the past year or two, that's a faster chip than yours. And if you're up to your eyeballs in speed already, a fast, cheap box like this would make an excellent office system or home server. Plus we're willing to guess Grandma doesn't have half that power at her place.



You're Kidding, Right?

We're not kidding. But that said, can a PC that sells for $159 really be viable? We took the plunge and bought one, just to find out. We didn't expect a colorful, jacked-up gaming rig for under $200...and we didn't get one. Unpacking the GQ 3131 from its box revealed a compact minitower case. But it was black, at least, not beige. We popped the screws off the side panel and peeked inside.

The GQ's purple motherboard (wouldn't the fashion mag be proud?) is an ECS 741GX-M—a socket-462 board suitable for AMD's Athlon and Sempron processors. It's got four USB 2.0 ports, built-in six-channel audio, and 10/100 Ethernet. The board isn't exactly bleeding-edge, although it does offer an empty AGP graphics slot in case you want to add a card. It also comes with a generic modem, for people who still dial in, and a single 128MB memory module in one of the two DIMM sockets.

As you might guess, this PC for tightwads doesn't run any flavor of the Gatesian operating system. Instead, the computer ships with Linspire, the OS formerly known as "Lindows." Even though the GQ runs a Linux variant, 128MB of RAM still seems a bit thin. But what do you want for $159?

Well, you'd want a keyboard and mouse. And the GQ3131 gives you one of each. You also get a pair of (terrible!) stereo speakers. The keyboard is surprisingly good, with decent tactile feedback. The mouse seems generic—not particularly responsive in an era of 2,000-dpi gaming mice. But who cares?

Rounding out the system are a fast 40GB hard drive and a 52X CD-ROM drive. No, you don't get a burner for $159. Nor a monitor, though Fry's offers a 17-inch companion CRT for $119. We eschewed that, and plugged it into a 19-inch LCD in the lab just to see what would happen. When we pressed the power button, our cynical sides expected sparks and smoke. Instead, we were welcomed by Linspire.



Let's Hear It for $159!

After a fairly lengthy boot-up, we were greeted by the Linspire start-up screens, which walked us through a typical first-start process. It was painless and straightforward. Since we'd connected to a network prior to starting the PC, Linspire pulled an IP address from our router and we were surfing the Internet in short order.

Linspire runs and operates, for the most part, a lot like Microsoft Windows. In fact, Linspire's relative familiarity and ease of use are two of its biggest selling points. So you'll find a system of ordinary-looking windows and icons, a menu bar at the base of the screen, and a desktop where you can store shortcuts to common applications. Conveniently enough, Linspire includes OpenOffice 1.1.3—the Microsoft Office–compatible open-source suite originally designed by Sun Microsystems. Like Linspire itself, OpenOffice is familiar and easy to use.

We didn't bother to run any performance tests on this cheap PC—comparing it to a $1,200 or $1,400 system seemed like cruel and unusual punishment—and besides, some glaring performance limitations were apparent right out of the box. For example, the system was fairly unresponsive. It took several seconds to paint windows (the desktop objects, not the OS), and applications took as much as a minute to load.

The problem lies neither in the CPU nor in the integrated graphics, but in the sparse 128MB of RAM. We replaced the single stick with a pair of 256MB modules (a simple, cheap upgrade), and the system became quite snappy—relatively speaking. You won't mistake it for an Athlon 64 or Intel P4, but we created documents and browsed the Web without noticing any slowdowns.

Considering that you can buy 512MB of RAM for less than $40, we'd strongly recommend adding memory. Once that's done, you'll have a surprisingly capable little office system. It may not play F.E.A.R., but it should handle light Web browsing and office apps just fine. We're also very impressed with how easy it was to set up. The Linspire OS was easy to configure and a snap to use. Windows users should find it quite comfortable.

Does this system presage the $129 PC? And someday, if we cross our fingers and pray, the $99 PC? Doubtful. As Attila the Hun once said, the gouging has to end somewhere. But discounts this deep will become less eyebrow-raising as time goes on. We suggest buying one now...before everyone else becomes as much of a cheapskate as you.
What $159 Buys You...

* COMPUTER In addition to the 1.67-GHz AMD Sempron chip, you'll get four USB ports, Ethernet, and an AGP slot.
* MEMORY Only 128MB of RAM, which is barely adequate, really. Replace it with 512MB for around $40.
* SPEAKERS They're included, but they sound awful. Really, these speakers are just terrible.
* KEYBOARD AND MOUSE A surprisingly responsive keyboard and generic ball mouse round it all out.

& What It Doesn't

* NEW TECH You've heard of PCI Express, SATA, and dual-core, but you won't get them here.
* LCD MONITOR Nope. Not a chance. In fact, there's no screen included, period.
* DVD BURNER There's no DVD recorder, not even a CD burner. But there is a fast CD-ROM drive.
* SOFTWARE Nothing from Microsoft here, but to be fair, the Linspire OS is pretty decent.

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,1932801,00.asp

 

i agree,as a have a ton of vinyl and they sound 100% better then mp3..

The joys of vinyl still lives on despite the music download boom
Posted by Seán Byrne on 11 March 2006 - 02:41 - Source: Citizen-Times

Since the first Gramophones became available, the vinyl record has so far survived the longest and is unlikely going to disappear completely anytime soon. Apparently, LP sales still accounts for 0.5% of all music sales despite the majority of retail and online stores only selling CDs and music downloads only. The reason is that club DJ's, older generation of audiophiles and interestingly, some college students still insist on sticking with the vinyl, even though many also buy CDs and use online music download services.

There are several independent record labels that continue to release new LPs each year and many of the larger electronics stores still stock turntables. The main reason some stick with vinyl is that they claim that the sound reproduction with the proper equipment cannot be matched by CD, such as certain harmonics lost on CD that records preserve, which gives records a warmer sound.

Besides the sound quality, vinyl has a few other advantages that CDs and particularly digital music downloads lack. First comes the availably of a lot of early music that was released on vinyl, which never got re-released on CD or as music downloads. Next comes the cover art, particularly with 12" LPs. Finally, comes the actual playing of a record where one places the record on the table and then carefully moves the needle on to the record.

But why buy vinyl records? They must be handled with kid gloves, they’re not nearly as portable as an iPod or a compact disc and they require audio equipment that many of us threw out years ago.

There are four main reasons to love vinyl, in this order: sound quality, availability, aesthetics and nostalgia.

That analog sound

First, there’s the sound quality, and this presents a bone of contention among audio enthusiasts. Some argue that vinyl records sound better, that with the right equipment they produce a warmer, richer tone than their computerized counterparts.

Just listen to that baritone voice of Johnny Cash on one of those early Columbia LPs, Rhoden suggests: “That’s a natural sound. The CD just sounds thin in comparison.”

The full article can be read here.

In theory, a vinyl record can potentially hold a higher quality recording than a CD due to its continuous waveform analogue nature, particularly when played back with a very high quality turntable. So far, despite DVD-Audio and Super Audio CD promising to offer better sound quality than Audio CDs, these discs have failed to sell well and in their early days some leading record producers were disappointed with these claiming that they could hear the supposedly “inaudible” watermarks. As a result, with each media format properly prepared, the vinyl record may have held the highest quality, followed by the CD and finally followed by the downloadable compressed tracks from iTunes and most other music download stores, which will likely take over CD sales in the future.

Finally, while there may still be concerns about the watermarks in DVD-Audio and Super Audio CD, Vinyl Records don’t use watermarks, never mind any other form of copy protection technology! In my opinion, the one great advantage the vinyl record had like the cassette tape was the inability to support any form of restrictive DRM that causes compatibility issues, something the record labels have succeeded in applying to pretty much every digital medium sold, including CDs and downloadable tracks. Unfortunately, the record's main drawback is portability, since it is technically not possible to develop a turntable that plays 7” to 12” vinyl that fits in one’s pocket!
http://www.cdfreaks.com/news/13175



Vinyl records are heading back in fashion with sales up 87%
Posted by Seán Byrne on 12 July 2005 - 19:15 - Source: ITV.com - News

Just while most thought the Vinyl record has been obsolete, apparently Vinyl is actually making a come-back with sales rising a whopping 87.3% between April and June, compared with the same three month period last year. In fact, 7" Vinyl has now had the best 12 month sales period since 1998. In just the twelve months up to March 31st 2005, 7" vinyl sales have reached 1.38 million.

Apparently while DJ's are the main vinyl users due to the ability to perform scratching, music fans are actually making the most of vinyl, especially those into British indie and rock acts. Some teenagers prefer vinyl due to the warmer tone such as from guitars and percussive musical instruments.

While CD single sales have fallen by 23% this year, overall sales including music downloads and vinyl have risen by 52.4% from ~7.25 million (April to June 2004) to 11.04 million sales (April to June 2005).

Vinyl was once seen as a dying format in the music industry, but according to sales figures it is now very much in fashion.

Sales of the seven inch have shot up by a massive 87.3 per cent compared to the same three-month period last year.

The British Phonographic Industry says annual sales of vinyl singles are now approaching 1.4 million. In the twelve months up to March 31 this year, sales of the seven inch hit the 1,380,000 mark.

This already represented a year-on-year improvement of 64 per cent, and the best 12 months for vinyl since 1998.

The figures released show that in the three months from April to June 2005, vinyl flew off the shelves even more rapidly.

They rose by 87.3 per cent from 154,216 sales during April to June 2004 to 288,780 for the same period this year.

I would wonder if the Vinyl sales increase has anything to do with what the music industry is doing with CD singles such as forcing a high price for just a few tracks. Then again, it is nice to see Vinyl making a come back, especially with teenagers who generally prefer to stick with the latest in technology. It will be interesting to see how well turntables are selling, especially since most Hi-Fi systems have not been equipped with a turntable since the late 1990's.

Vinyl did have one major advantage over CDs in that there was no way for the music industry to start messing about with the structure of the recording or medium itself to prevent copying. For example, the only way for a vinyl record not to play on a given turntable is if there is a fault with the turntable, arm or needle or if the record has been damaged in some way. In fact, if the CD (or any other digital version for music) was never invented, chances are that the music industry would still be putting up a major fuss about consumers taping from vinyl and not being able to do much about it.
http://www.cdfreaks.com/news/12097



August 9, 2000

DVD-Audio Watermarking Fiasco Continues

By Richard Elen

"Watermark could reduce the perceived quality of DVD-A to somewhere betweena good MiniDisc and a below-average CD," says a leading classical recording engineer.

The record industry's search for a "watermarking" system that would make itpossible to trace the origin of digital audio recordings despite their processing through internet audio compression techniques such as MP3 (MPEG I Layer 3) and the copying of high-density digital media such as DVD-Audio discs, has run into another major problem.

In British tests, leading record producers were astonished to find that they could clearly hear the supposedly "inaudible" digital watermark, during replay demonstrations of the Verance (www.verance.com) watermarking system chosen by the record industry's Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI). The watermark must be robust enough to survive MP3 compression and similar Internet distribution techniques, while remaining inaudible to users of high-end DVD-Audio discs.

A growing number of industry pundits are coming to regard the goal of a robust, inaudible watermark as being impossible to achieve. Internet distribution techniques rely on "lossy" compression to minimize the file sizes and thus the download time for subscribers. They do this by using one of a number of psychoacoustically-optimized algorithms to determine which sounds in a recording are audible and which are not. Inaudible sounds may be masked by other sounds, or exist at frequencies to which the ear is insensitive. MP3 is the most popular such technique, but there are several others. The techniques are referred to as "lossy" because they throw "inaudible" data away - unlike the MLP (Meridian Lossless Packing) compression technique used on DVD-Audio discs, where all the data is meticulously preserved while still achieving significant data compression.

If a compression algorithm removes inaudible sounds, it can be argued that a watermark will be removed by such techniques - if the watermark is inaudible. If this is the case, it serves no purpose. However, if the watermark is not removed by lossy compression, it will be, by definition, audible. When this evident syllogism was raised by a subscriber to the "surround" internet surround-sound mailing list recently, Robert Stuart, head of leading British professional and consumer audio manufacturer Meridian and co-developer of the MLP compression system, replied, "This is indeed the core of the problem."

The watermarking system currently under consideration would affect equally both the DVD-Audio system (which uses high-sample-rate PCM - pulse code modulation, the most common digitization method used in digital audio systems for the past thirty years) and the competing Sony/Philips Super Audio CD system (which utilizes a bitstream approach called DSD - Direct Stream Digital). However the DVD camp has been considerably more insistent on watermarking than SACD licensees, with a consultant close to Philips noting recently that "Our stated position [on watermarking] as of the AES in Paris [in April this year] was that we would include it only if forced to by content owners."

The SDMI tests in Britain appear to have been very disappointing. The following comments by Tony Faulkner, one of the UK's top classical recording engineers, were posted on the Pro-Audio mailing list in the wake of the UK SDMI tests:

"...The watermark listening sessions themselves were pretty disappointing in my judgment. Poor unfamiliar dull source material, unfamiliar monitoring, limited value A/B/X test procedure...The only consistently usable track for me was (ironically) a 96k/24 transfer off an old analogue Petrushkha, because the differences were easier to identify...

"...with Petrushkha I scored 75% in identifying the watermarking - on two separate runs. It sounded like medium distance buzzing bees (high frequency ones) with a clogged stereo image when the Petrushkha got louder and more complex...

"...I have no doubts in my own mind now that the Verance watermark is clever enough and effectively unobtrusive enough for non-critical low-to mid-fi,... i.e. up to but excluding DVD-A, SACD and high-quality CD. The bad news is that it was audible on poor quality bandwidth limited archive analogue material to a 49 year old engineer with a cold and "747-Ears" the day after a 12 hour intercontinental flight. For audiophiles paying extra money for a new player and for new discs, judging by what I heard yesterday the watermark could reduce the perceived quality of DVD-A to somewhere between a good MiniDisc and a below average CD.

"The myth about the watermarking being optional is becoming very tiresome too. How will it be optional for listeners to major label output ? How is it optional for performers ? How will it be optional for producers and engineers generating regular releases for major international participating labels ? How will it be optional for DVD-A players and recorders manufacturers to choose not to build in and to pay for the technology ?

"I believe that the strategy of watermarking high-quality material on high-quality carriers is fundamentally flawed if the watermarking is audible on high-quality systems. Further I believe that the testing so far has been inadequate in terms of sample size and quality of test material and methods. If it is audible now with a 2bit copy management payload, how will it sound with a 72bit full identifier payload ?"

Faulkner also alludes to criticism of US tests of the system as representing too small of a sample to be statistically valid. Following a demonstration in Nashville, some concern was expressed by at least one attendee, engineer Chuck Ainlay, who said, according to an article in WebNoize "...the test was conducted impartially, but the only test music provided was a new recording by electric guitarist Mark Knopfler, not orchestral, jazz or other acoustic music with a wider dynamic range and more detail than pop music." However there are some apparent errors in the article, notably the spelling of Ainlay's name, and the failure to point out that Ainlay was the engineer on the Knopfler recording, so the quote may be misattributed. ("Audiophile Label, Engineers Question Verance Watermark", at http://news.webnoize.com/item.rs?ID=9648.)

Even so, it is evident that as it stands today, digital watermarking is in big trouble. After the UK demonstration, according to British science magazine New Scientist (July 22), an SDMI representative admitted, "We are starting all over again."

The significance here is that while DVD-audio players are now being shipped, the always hot topic of copyright protection is going to very possibly continue to delay DVD-Audio for the consumer. If handled improperly, this situation could result in poor sounding DVD-audio and or SACD formats. With billions of dollars in sales waiting for both the software and audio hard ware manufacturers, you can count on the industry doing every thing they can to create a more "inaudible" watermarking to avoid quality concerns much like those of CDs versus Vinyl in the early 1980's.
http://www.avrev.com/news/0800/09.dvdwatermark.shtml



Music retail shops face challenge as CDs lose out to digital sales
Posted by Seán Byrne on 08 February 2006 - 00:42 - Source: Rocky Mountain News - Music

Until recently, the main contributor to falling CD sales according to the RIAA is piracy, which includes illegal file sharing. However, even though they are trying to encourage consumers to use legal services using its non-stop lawsuit campaign, this is actually going to have a devastating effect on CD sales, since once it comes to a time where most consumers buy music as a downloads, why purchase it again on CD?

Throughout 2005, 350 million songs were purchased as downloads; a 150% hike over 2004. Digital album sales also went up 194% over the same period. While 2005 seen music sales hit over 1 billion units for the first time, CD sales are falling; which is bad news for independent record stores that rely on physical CD sales. Besides the hike in digital download sales, there are several other factors involved also: The misuse of DRM anti-piracy measures on CDs only helps discourage consumers from buying CDs, due to iPod and CD player compatibility issues, not to mention installing unwanted software just to play the disc on a PC. Big retail stores including Best Buy and Wal-Mart can afford to sell CDs below cost as this brings consumers in their stores, but as independent record stores cannot do this, this drives away potential customers. With a wider range of radio stations becoming available over satellite as well as by streaming web radio, consumers are listening to more broadcasted music than ever before, thus reducing their dependency on their own collection. Finally, there are various other forms of entertainment including TV, movies and games which competes with music.

Back in January, we reported about half the number of small independent record stores closing their doors over the past 10 years. Now, Musicland which runs 7 retail CD stores across Colorado and 340 stores the nation has filed for bankruptcy. West Coast indie legends has also closed down and in Denver, Cheapo Discs closed off its two retail music shops. Some other retail stores aim to struggle on, despite the falling number of customers. One such store includes Capitol Hill music which is working on ways to bring in customers, such as selling iPods as these help bring in some sales. Loyalty schemes such as buy xx CDs and get one free also helps some stores out as this encourages customers to pick out some extra titles just to get a free disc and word about this gets passed on. Thanks to heystoopid for letting us know about the following news:

They're dropping like flies.

Musicland, the parent company of several music retailing chains, has filed for bankruptcy. Its MediaPlay stores were shuttered last month. Earlier this week, its Sam Goody chain announced the closure of seven CD stores across Colorado and more than 340 similar stores across the nation.

West Coast indie legends such as Rhino Records and Aron's recently have shut down. In Denver, Cheapo Discs has closed two stores.

Ironically, all this bad news follows reports that music sales in 2005 topped a billion units for the first time. But that figure counts every downloaded song with the same weight as a physical CD sale. So despite the record number of units, music industry revenues and CD sales are down.

But digital downloading of music off the Internet is exploding. In 2005, more than 350 million songs were downloaded, a 150 percent jump over 2004. Digital album sales soared by 194 percent.

Put simply: These are brutal days for many traditional music retailers.

The full, in-depth article can be read here.

As digital music stores is still in its infancy yet at just over 2 years since the iTunes launch, it is like looking at the sales of vinyl records two years after the launch of the Audio CD. With mobile phones and wireless Internet access methods rapidly improving year after year, in a couple of years it may come to the point where the average user can pull out their portable player, select or key in a song title they want to listen to and it either streams live or is downloaded from the music provider.

While some high end mobile phones support wireless music purchasing and downloading, at the moment the phones and music pricing is still too high to make it compete with digital download services using a PC, however this potentially change in the coming years. On the other hand, as ringtone prices often cost several times the cost of a digital download and these sell very well, chances are that digital music sales to mobiles will really take off as more compatible handsets enter the market even if the track pricing remains the same.

heystoopid added: This information, ties in with the nielsen sales figures of audio cd's falling from 652 million units in '04 to circa 602 million units in '05, whilst paid downloads for tracks climbed to approximately 350 million or so (it seems that record companies view one paid mp3 download track as one paid for cd (truly says something about the quality of product these days or lack there off)). I recall the Itunes breakdown, means the record companies receive a minimum of 79 cents, whereas the profits from the sale of telephone ring tones is far greater. Oh well, if the average punter is, not going to the picture theatre, to view the latest in hollywood's overpriced movie that purports to be a blockbuster, must be spending the hard earned cash on other alternatives like dvd's and on other venues, like live performances. Sigh, this year of 2006 , looks like we will be truly getting the full force the propaganda that piracy is killing both the music and the movie , and that all forms of p2p are truly evil, and should be outlawed and made illegal, never mind the legitimate users! Further, undoubtedly, both industries (movie/music) will be pushing to create some form of daily tax, fee or surcharge, to be applied to all internet users as a form of compensation to maintain their fat cat status! Time will tell all!

Feel free to discuss about online music services on our Music Download, Peer to Peer (P2P) & Legal Issues.
http://www.cdfreaks.com/news/13036



Consumers face incompatibility as digital technology moves on
Posted by Seán Byrne on 20 July 2005 - 00:02 - Source: Post Gazette - Business News

As content gradually moves from physical media to downloadable content, the advantage of a quick delivery is quickly overcome by the drawbacks of restrictions. Back in the days of analogue music up until CDs, music could easily be transferred from vinyl, CD or tape to tape. Recording to CDs is a bit trickier for novice users; however it does not take long to get the hang of it for CDs or Music services. However, as we are at a stage with digital music players, we run into compatibility issues, where music services require specific DRM compliant music players and copy-protected CDs cannot be transferred to the most music players. A good example is the iPod being locked to iTunes and vice versa.

When it comes to Video, copy-protection restrictions get worse. Copy-protection started back in the VHS stage and came to DVDs. As DVD copy-protection was broken, the movie industry is very strict when it comes to DRM with online movie downloads. Unlike music downloads, movies cannot be written to CD or DVD, can generally only be played on the PC they were downloaded from and almost every current movie service uses a DRM format incompatible with the others. Currently very few services even allow movies to be transferred to a compatible video device.

If we come back to physical video playback hardware, a similar scenario is happening, even before the launch of the next generation of DVD formats. The Sony PSP uses UMD's, their own proprietary disc format for movies, thus consumers who purchase movies for the PSP cannot play them elsewhere and vice versa (unless converted to MPEG4 and placed on a memory stick first). With the next generation of DVD, there will be HD DVD and Blu-ray worldwide as well as EVD and FVD in a few of the poorer countries, all incompatible with each other and requiring different playback hardware.

Take Apple. About 75 percent of digital music players sold in the U.S. are iPods, according to New York-based market-research firm NPD Group. And seven of every 10 songs sold online come from the iTunes music store, according to Nielsen SoundScan. When asked why his players aren't compatible with songs acquired from most other online music stores, or why songs bought on iTunes won't work with most other players, Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs typically tells questioners that having control over the technology allows the company to innovate better.

Some competitors do seem determined to horn in on Apple's strategy. Last year, Seattle-based RealNetworks Inc. launched a technology called Harmony, which allows users to download songs on its music service and play them on an iPod. On July 29 of last year Apple issued a statement accusing RealNetworks of adopting the "tactics and ethics of a hacker." In the same release, Apple also threatened that future versions of iPods might not work with Harmony. So far, RealNetworks has managed to tweak its software to counter Apple's attempts at sabotaging Harmony on its newest iPods.

Microsoft Corp., meanwhile, is attempting to lessen the confusion. Last year, it launched "Plays for Sure," a marketing program that tries to make it clear to consumers which music players and providers are compatible. Under the program, participating companies -- those that license Windows Media compression and rights-management techniques -- label their products "Plays for Sure." The idea is that consumers should look for the slogan on both the players and the music they buy to be sure they will work together. But while a number of player makers -- such as Dell Inc. and iRiver Inc. -- and online music stores -- such as Yahoo Inc.'s MusicMatch and Napster -- are participating, the concept has been slow to catch on with consumers.

As devices addrietary disc, the Universal Media Device, or UMD, which works only on the PlayStation Portable. Just a few movies are currently available in the UMD format, and they cost around $20 each. A Sony spokeswoman says the company wanted to develop a small, light alternative to the DVD with more copy protection.

Read the full, rather lengthy article here.

As the article mentions, just as the entertainment industry are trying to fight casual copying for both online content and physical media, it is actually encouraging consumers to use file sharing networks to get around the restrictions. For example, one may say why pay a song or move to be locked to one system, when one can download it from a file sharing network and play or transfer it to almost any device or media?

However, when it comes to different types of incompatible hardware, either the consumers will purchase which ever one becomes most popular or shies away from it altogether. This likely explains why both iTunes and iPod has become so popular. If a consumer chooses another player, their iTunes music will not work, where as if they choose another music provider, their iPod will not be compatible. The same will likely happen when it comes to Blu-ray and HD DVD. Which ever side starts grabbing more of the market will likely end up permanently becoming the market leader.

Feel free to discuss about onlines music and movie services on our Music Download, Peer to Peer (P2P) & Legal Issues.
http://www.cdfreaks.com/news/12136

 

New Mars probe safely enters orbit

The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter successfully entered orbit around Mars on Friday, NASA mission controllers have confirmed.

The craft aimed its main thrusters forward and fired them for 27 minutes to slow down by 3540 kilometres per hour (2200 mph), or 18% of its total speed. Failure would have caused Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) to fly past the Red Planet.

The mission to study the Martian surface is "the most technologically advanced payload" NASA has ever sent to another planet, says Jim Graf, project manager for MRO.

The orbit insertion was a critical moment in the mission, as two of the last four orbiters NASA sent to Mars did not survive the final approach. Mars Observer spacecraft fell silent on approach in 1993, probably because of a leak caused when its propulsion system was pressurised. And the Mars Climate Orbiter probably broke up in the planet's atmosphere in 1999 due to a mix up between metric and Imperial units.
Aerobraking phase

The spacecraft will now begin a seven-month "aerobraking" phase. During this phase, it will dip into Mars’s atmosphere hundreds of times, using the friction of atmospheric drag to move from an approximately 35-hour orbit that extends about 35,000 miles (56,000 kilometres) above the planet to a two-hour orbit that skims just 190 miles (300 kilometres) above its surface.

It will then begin a two-year science phase, during which it will collect more data than all of the previous Mars missions combined - 34 trillion bytes of data or about as much as contained by a video store.

The spacecraft will use a suite of six instruments, including the most powerful camera ever sent to another planet. This will image objects as small as 1-metre wide and should be able to snap pictures of the Spirit and Opportunity rovers. The instruments will track the planet's weather, geology and mineralogy, and even probe about a kilometre beneath its surface to hunt for water.
Relay phase

After the science phase, it will begin its relay phase. During this time it will continue to take some science data but will give priority to relaying data from future Mars missions, such the Phoenix lander due to launch in 2007 and the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover set to launch in 2009.

MRO carries an antenna that will be able to transmit 10 times as much data per minute as any previous spacecraft. The probe's expected operational lifespan is 10 years.

MRO joins two other US orbiters, Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Odyssey, and one European craft, Mars Express, that are already looking for signs of water and ice on the Red Planet.
http://www.newscientistspace.com/article.ns?id=dn8835&feedId=online-news_rss20

 

OMG it's HUGE !!!

p2p news / p2pnet: OMG the (expletive deleted to protect the sensitive) thing is HUGE !

No, this isn't a line from a spam message on the latest enlargement product.

Rather, it was one of the comments to Thursday's Origami post, the Origami project being the latest effort by the world's wealthiest man to become even wealthier.

Bill and the Boyz went to a lot of trouble to create an advertising mystique around their large mini-computer - an "Ultra-Mobile PC" or UMPC, in buzz-speak – but the real mystery is: who's going to spend between $600 and $1,000 on one?

The first three Microsoft minis are due out in April, made by Korea's Samsung, Taiwan's Asustek and China's Founder Group.

"Initially these machines will be running Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005, with a new extension called Microsoft Touch Pack for Windows XP, designed to let you navigate the device by simply touching the screen (without a stylus)," says PC Magazine's Michael J. Miller. "Eventually, this will be replaced by Vista, which will have tablet PC and touch built-in. And it has a new skin for Windows Media Play and a touch-based Sudoku game."

"The Samsung unit looks very nice, but even if it’s a great design, I wonder who will buy it, at least in the short run. I understand it’s not meant to replace a cell phone (it’s too big) or a laptop (too small, and no keyboard). But at two pounds and over $600, it’s not going to replace your iPod or even the combination of a music player and a portable gaming device. Again, it’s just too big."

It is indeed.

In addition, it's made by Microsoft which, for increasing numbers of people, is reason enough to steer clear.

Also See:
even wealthier - The world's richest people, March 10, 2006
PC Magazine - Origami: Cool Product, But Where is the Market?, March 9, 2006

(Saturday 11th March 2006)
http://p2pnet.net/story/8155

 

Blu-ray, HD DVD. And EVD

p2p news / p2pnet: The race between two competing formats for future DVDs, and the $24-billion-a-year home video market, appeared wide open on Thursday as manufacturers said they would support both formats, says Reuters.

Blu-ray has the likes of Sony Corp, Philips and Dell, "as well as most Hollywood studios" behind it while HD DVD, with Toshiba up front, "looks set to reach the market faster and offer cheaper players," says the story.

There is, however, a third contender which, while it's unlikely to be among the front runners, must still be taken into account.

The dark horse in the formats race is China's EVD (enhanced versatile disc).

Players are likely to be more expensive and disc capacity isn't as large as that of Blu-ray and HD DVD, but it's touted to offer up to five times the quality of image definition of DVD players. And, with EVD-enabled systems boasting optional backward compatibility with DVDs, VCDs, SVCDs and CDs, it's home-grown Chinese.

As far back as 2003, China state news agency Xinhua quoted Zhang Yijun, deputy chief engineer of the Shanghai-based SVA Group which was developing core EVD components, as saying, "a large amount of homemade EVD chips are now available as core parts of EVD players that are expected to supply the domestic market from next year".

And, "Talks with domestic and overseas filmmakers and other video programme producers are under way regarding the market supplies of programmes stored in the EVD format," said Xinhua.

SVA involves more than 10 domestic Chinese enterprises and research institutions operating as the Beijing E-World Digital Technology Co Ltd alliance.

Stay tuned.

Also See:
Reuters - Two-format race for next DVD standard is wide open, March 9, 2006
dark horse - China develops rival to DVDs, November 19, 2003

(Saturday 11th March 2006)
http://p2pnet.net/story/8156

 

AA goes after Google, YouTub

p2p news / p2pnet: When you look for Flight Attendant, Upside Down on Google's video search, you get, "did not return any results".

That's because it's part of an American Airlines training video and now AA is pissed with G.

Someone uploaded the flic to YouTube and Google Video and, "The airline subpoenaed those companies on Feb. 21 under the controversial Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), according to airline spokesman Tim Wagner," says CNET News.

"Under the provisions of the DMCA, companies have the right to request information in the event that their copyright materials are infringed upon.

So will the name of the wicked file sharer be revealed?

"Google does comply with valid legal process, such as search warrants, court orders, or subpoenas seeking personal information," it states in its 'privacy' FAQ.

But, "the search engine giant informed American Airlines that it needs time to investigate the matter before giving up the name," says CNET. "Both Google and YouTube have asked American Airlines to file its request in court. Despite the requests, legal experts expect both companies to eventually comply with the subpoenas."

YouTube spokeswoman Julie Supan declined to comment directly on the American Airlines subpoena, but, "She noted that YouTube's user agreement specifically prohibits posting copyrighted materials by anyone else other than the owner," says the story, adding:

"In our privacy agreement, we say that we'll cooperate with U.S. state and federal law."

Also See:
CNET News - American Airlines subpoenas Google, YouTube, March 9, 2006

(Saturday 11th March 2006)
http://p2pnet.net/story/8157

 

Sexy Hoax Turns Into Dating Fad

Reuters 02:00 AM Mar, 11, 2006 EST

MILAN -- It started as a prank that tricked the world's media, but now spoof stories about people using their mobile phones to hook up with strangers have come true.

A British internet journalist set up a website two years ago filled with fictional accounts from friends who claimed to have used Bluetooth technology to make contact for a chat, romance or even sex -- a practice the site dubbed "toothing."

News organizations across the world, including Reuters, The Guardian, the BBC and Wired News, fell for the story and reported that "toothing" had taken off among commuters.

A year later the journalist behind the site published an online confession claiming it was an elaborate hoax to prove he could create a new sexual buzzword.

Gabriele Petino, 32, a disc jockey from Milan, told Reuters that when the story first emerged in 2004 he assumed it was false but gave it a try.

"I tried some tests on the underground and pubs and found lots of cell phones were turned on and used for 'toothing,' which was strange because I thought it was a joke too," said Petino, whose website now includes a page for "toothers."

To play, you need you need to activate the Bluetooth facility available on your mobile phone, which will then show a list of people within a few yards who are also active. Then write a message and press send.

Young men in Dubai have been using the technology to contact women in public places, according to the BBC's website.

"In our country it's very rude to go up and talk to them," the BBC quoted Ahmed Bin Desmal as saying. "I sent some notes, they liked them -- they took my number and they called me."

At L'Elephant, a bar on Milan's popular Via Melzo, toothers gather once a week with manager Massimo Maruccia on hand to explain the technology to beginners.

Taking out a phone belonging to one of his waitresses -- "Pantera," or "panther," to her fellow toothers -- he tracks down two other toothers in the room -- "Cinghiale," or "boar," and the less imaginatively named "Nokia 7700 Alberto."

A third, "Diabolik" sends Pantera a message. The first note, Maruccia says, is usually just an invitation to chat.

"It's all good fun," Maruccia said. "From behind the bar, we have a good laugh too, especially when you watch people scanning the room discreetly for the sender behind their messages."

"It's cooled off from the early days, when we'd easily have 30, 40 people in the room sending messages.... What started as a joke became a fully fledged trend."

Fabio Moretti -- an architect who runs what he says is Italy's top toothing site, with a 2,500-strong community -- says the technology offers people a new way to meet and advertisers a way to reach target groups.

"It's about having fun, another way to meet, to have a chat in a nightclub," he told Reuters. "And then there is the business side, which should not be underestimated."
http://www.wired.com/news/wireservice/0,70395-0.html?tw=rss.index

 

uTorrent, RetSpan deal

p2p special / p2pnet: One of the most controversial p2p-centric items at the moment is the 'deal' between hot indie file sharing application µTorrent and RetSpan, an avowed anti-p2p firm based in France, and the owner of PeerFactor.

"In France, the RetSpan / PeerFactor credibility level is somewhere below zero ," p2pnet was recently told.

p2pnet's Alex H did an exclusive Q&A with with uTorrent’s Ludvig Strigeus just before Christmas last year.

Here, Alex follows up with another p2pnet original.

"I can't believe how much this deal has been blown up," says Lude.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Alex H: Last time we spoke you guys had just released µTorrent 1.1.4. Now you've just released µTorrent 1.5. How far has µTorrent come with the 1.5 release? What's new?

Ludde: µTorrent 1.5 is a significant release that's a big milesone for us. The new major changes in 1.5 are support for Protocol Encryption (i.e. Message stream encryption) and Peer Exchange (a feature that lets peers interchange peers with each other, and reduces the need for a working tracker, it makes BitTorrent more distributed). A lot of work has also been spent on optimizing the downloading speeds, µTorrent should now download much more efficiently than before.

In combination with this, a new algorithm for optimized disk accesses has been implemented. Previous versions would hit the disk much more often, while the new automatic disk cache tries to minimize this.

The time between releases, a whopping 2 months, is the longest time ever in µTorrent's history. This shows that 1.5 is really a big change compared to 1.4 (The number of changes is well over a hundred), and we've worked to perfecting it down to the smallest detail.

Other notable things that have been added since 1.1.4 (when you last interviewed us) include:

* RSS Reader: Allows µTorrent to automatically fetch releases (such as TV-shows) as soon as they are released. This helps µTorrent to become a better content-on-demand platform, since it will automatically help users download the content they need. A nice RSS tutorial can be found on the webpage for the users that are unsure about how RSS works.

* Unicode support: The same executable can be used both in Unicode mode (windows 2000 or later) or in ANSI compability mode (windows ME or earlier). This is a quite unique feature for native Win32 programs. Unicode is a relatively new universal way of representing characters inside the computer, which means that µTorrent is compatible with foreign torrents (such as those with chinese filenames), while still being able to run properly on old platforms. Support for old platforms like Windows 95 is an important goal for us, not because the user base is there, but it shows that we care about how the application performs for all users.

* Mainline-DHT: This was added in µTorrent 1.2. It means Distributed Hash Table, and is a nice technology that really minimizes the dependency on the tracker. DHT allows µTorrent to receive peers through a distributed network of peers, so the tracker is not needed.

We've come a long way since 1.1.4, now µTorrent is really one of the serious contenders in the BitTorrent scene. We concentrate on adding mainstream features that are easy to use, and benefit the majority of the user base, and thus µTorrent is geared towards both normal users and "expert" users that know the inns and outs of their computer.

Alex H: Who makes up the µTorrent team now?

Ludde: The µTorrent team consists of:

* Ludvig Strigeus (ludde) - Sole µTorrent Developer
* And some of the most notable members of the µTorrent community:
* Giancarlo Martínez (Firon) - Support technician and my right hand.
* Timothy Su (Ignorantcow) - Website designer
* Maciej Trebacz (mav) - In charge of translations
* Carsten Niebuhr (Directrix) - Working on the upcoming webinterface
* Ludovic Arnaud (Ashe) - Working with website efficiency/admin frontend


Then there are a bunch of other people hanging around in the IRC channels/Forums helping people and helping me.

Alex H: µTorrent worked with Azureus to develop the Message Stream Encryption specs. What does it do and how does it do it?

Ludde: It is basically an encrypted wrapper around the BitTorrent traffic. This makes it a lot harder for Internet Service Providers to block or throttle the BitTorrent traffic, as they can't determine as easily if the traffic really is BitTorrent. Blocking is obviously of interest to them, since it has been estimated that at least 30% of all Internet traffic is BitTorrent.

All data packets are encrypted with a key generated at run time, so there is no way for a 3rd party to observe what kind of files that are being transmitted by just analysing the packet stream. However, characteristics of the BitTorrent protocol, such as packet sizes, or the fact that a client connects to a large number of peers, can still be used to infer that BitTorrent activity is going on, so the encryption is not a universal solution.

Alex H: Can the PHE specifications work with other protocols, or is it a BitTorrent-only thing?

Ludde: It was designed to be as general as possible, and to not be dependent on BitTorrent, so it can (in theory) be used to encrypt other protocols. Just like SSL can be used to encrypt other things than HTTP.

Alex H: What was it like collaborating with rival developers? Was it just "Team µTorrent" and "Team Azureus", or were there other individuals involved too?

Ludde: We are not really "rival developers" even though we work on "competing" clients. I have a healthy relationship with the Azureus team and we're cooperating openly. My goal is not to destroy Azureus. I want to provide a lightweight alternative to Azureus for the people that believe that Azureus's requirements in terms of CPU/Memory are too high.

Alex H: Last week Slyck.com published a story that revealed a deal between a company called PeerFactor and Ludvig Strigeus, µTorrent's developer. How does µTorrent fit into this? Is Ludde working for the "dark side"? Have you sold out as some people are claiming?

Ludde: I can't believe how much this deal has been blown up. The whole hysteria started with the Slyck.com article saying that µTorrent is cooperating with RetSpan and working with Anti-P2P organizations. Later the article was updated because that statement was factually incorrect. Yet I believe a large number of users still have doubts about µTorrent's legitimacy.

The deal as such is not even about µTorrent. I will provide the company (PeerFactor, a startup company started in late 2005), with a small DLL-file that can be used for one thing only - Downloading files from BitTorrent network. The deal is not between µTorrent and PeerFactor, and it does not affect µTorrent. I'm just using some of my expertise to help them develop an application that webmasters can use to publish big content on their websites. I don't even give out any source code.

I can't show you our agreement, but µTorrent is not even mentioned in our deal. There are no mentions of any Anti-P2P ideas, and PeerFactor owns NO rights to the BitTorrent code. The deal is just between me (Ludvig Strigeus) as a developer and PeerFactor. It's not related to µTorrent at all. The license has no malicious intent towards P2P users, and it does not affect µTorrent in any way. The contract explicitly states that they can only use it for the designated purpose, and not for anything else such as monitoring P2P users.

Alex H: Who was at the meeting with PeerFactor?

Ludde: I have not even met anyone in person, I havn't even talked to them on the phone! All our communication has been on e-mails and IRC. This is not a big contract. It's just a small side project to try to get some payment for the effort involved in writing a Bittorrent protocol stack.

Alex H: What does this .dll file do exactly?

Ludde: The DLL file component that I have exports a few basic functionalities such as

* Start downloading a torrent
* Stop it
* Pause
* Remove it
* Determine how many % was downloaded.

It contains no functionality whatsoever for retreiving IP-addresses of peers.

The DLL file wasn't written specifically for PeerFactor. It's a generic download DLL with a small size/footprint that I have developed as a separate project. I just made some minor adjustments so it would meet PeerFactor's requirements.

Alex H: Do you know, or can you speculate on what PeerFactor plans to do with the .dll?

Ludde: The goal is to use unused bandwidth of Internet users to distribute big files, like trial games, free trial music and trailers. It is not related to fake files.

Alex H: How is the deal structured? Is it a straight sale or a lease? Is there some kind of royalty payment to Ludde?

Ludde: It's a 6-month lease. PeerFactor will evaluate if the DLL fits with their requirements. No source is involved, and all ownership to the code belongs to me. I have not been paid anything, but if the service turns out to work, I will get some form of payment. I don't have an employment contract with PeerFactor. I do not work for them, and they do not have control over any decisions I make related to µTorrent.

Alex H: PeerFactor has ties to French anti-P2P company RetSpan. Is there still a relationship there?

Ludde: No, the person I've been in contact with has assured me that there is no relationship at all between PeerFactor and RetSpan. I trust him, and if it turns out that there is a connection, I will not work with them.

Alex H: The uTorrent website was put on a block list a few days ago. How did it happen? Is there anything on the uTorrent website that is a security risk for users?

Ludde: These blocklists are created by a bunch of over-paranoid people (Bluetack). The software PeerGuardian has temporarily handed over list creation to Bluetack, and Bluetack prefers to be better safe than sorry. Their decision was based on incorrect facts, and it will take some time before the block gets removed.

Alex H: There is a certain level of mistrust directed at closed source applications like µTorrent. Why is the µTorrent source code not available? Will µTorrent ever be open source?

Ludde: There are no plans to make µTorrent open source. If µTorrent becomes open source, it will result in hacked clients, or companies modifying the code and creating malware clients. If µTorrent is closed source, I can make sure that the quality of µTorrent stays high and that it doesn't become a bloated client. Further, it makes sure that the source code is not used by dubious companies or for dubious purposes.

Alex H: Is there anything in the µTorrent source code that would be considered a security risk to users, such as a "phone home" component or something that builds up a profile of the user?

Ludde: Not at all, µTorrent has an optional feature (enabled by default) that sends a unique random ID number when checking for new updates. This is used solely for the purpose of computing how many users that are actively using µTorrent. Azureus does the same thing, so it's nothing special really. A lot of internet-enabled programs do this without even telling the user. With µTorrent you have the option to turn it off if it's of concern to you.

Alex H: µTorrent is free, but donations are accepted. What other kinds of work have you done to make ends meet? Is there anyone you would refuse to work for?

Ludde: Working with an Anti-P2P company is certainly not a good idea, considering my interests in making the best BitTorrent client. I would not do that. Apart from that, I don't know. I will have to evaluate any possible offers and see if they match with what I think is fair and makes sense.

Alex H: I asked a similar question to this in our previous interview: How do you see BitTorrent developing over say, the next three years?

Ludde: This is a very hard question to answer. I definitely believe P2P is here to stay. I think ISPs will get a bigger role and start developing solutions to help P2P instead of working against it, for example cache mechanisms. I like the new law in France that legalizes P2P, and I hope that more countries will follow.

I think we'll start seeing BitTorrent more in embedded devices, such as set-top boxes. More services will be developed around BitTorrent to distribute legal content, and subscription based services such as high quality movies-on-demand instead of renting DVDs in the rental store.

Alex H: Thanks for your time, and good luck for the future.

Ludde: Thanks.

Alex H, p2pnet - Sydney, Australia
[Alex is an operations manager for an ATM (automatic teller machine) supplier and he specialises in infrastructure development and maintenance, and logistics. He’s also an[other] active member of the Shareaza community who also runs Tech Loves Art where you'll find past p2pnet posts, together with other goodies to come ; ]

Also See:
avowed anti-p2p - Bizarre uTorrent, PeerFactor deal, March 6, 2006
exclusive Q&A - p2pnet uTorrent interview, October 15, 2005

(Saturday 11th March 2006)
http://p2pnet.net/story/8158

 

Wireless networking baffles some household customers

Anne McNamara needs a wireless Internet network in her Germantown, Md., home. It's a good thing her son knows how to set one up.

"If Kevin wasn't here, I probably wouldn't attempt it at all," said McNamara, 49, who describes her computer knowledge skills as "Amish."

With six children and two adults across three floors of the McNamara household, someone is always online. Having a wireless network makes it easier for them to be connected at the same time, and more American homes are discovering the joys of Internet surfing from anywhere in the house.

Like scores of other people, the McNamaras have discovered that successful installation can be a headache, especially for the less technologically inclined. For those without a friend or relative steeped in the technology arts or access to a professional, returning the gear may be the only option.

Dena Andre, 57, returned her NetGear router to the friend who gave it to her last January after she failed to get it to work.

When she tried a Linksys router, it took multiple customer service calls, both her daughters, her piano teacher and her friend to figure out why she couldn't get her two Dell computers on the network.

They all failed.

It took a technician from the Geek Squad, Best Buy's home computer tech service, to figure out the problem. He nailed it in less than an hour.

"The geek was absolutely necessary," Andre said.

His services also set her back $180, plus the $10 tip she insisted that he take.

Free--and easy-to-read--help is available at several other Web sites for people who want to avoid a Geek Squad fee.

But not everyone gets that far. "Ultimately, nothing is as effective as having someone on site to be able to troubleshoot," said Ross Rubin, an analyst at the NPD Group in Port Washington, N.Y.

Best Buy salesman Ninart Amaraphorn has seen his share of frustrated customers. About a quarter of the people who buy wireless networking products bring them back, he said.

"Some people, they just return them and we never see them again," Amaraphorn said.

That's because networking is not yet a consumer-friendly technology, said Richard Doherty, an analyst with the Envisioneering Group in Seaford, N.Y.

Doherty estimates that more than a third of home-networking customers just give up and return their routers, network cards and other products.

"It's the elephant in the room that nobody wants to discuss," he said.

Retailers generally will not reveal the return rate on their networking products, but the Consumer Electronics Association put the rate at about 9 percent. About half those returns are exchanges, a spokesman said.

Linksys, one of the more popular home networking brands, has a return rate of less than 8 percent, said spokeswoman Karen Sohl.

Nevertheless, Linksys parent Cisco Systems and its competitors "still have a lot of work to do on making the products easier," she said.

Geek squad technician Matt Dworkin said he gets plenty of calls for people who support that notion.

"In a lot of cases, the biggest stumbling block is, 'Well, I couldn't get it to work,"' Dworkin said.

Geeks, of course, know their way around the centerpiece of the home network--the router.

Routers are boxes of varying shapes and sizes that direct Internet data. In a home network, they lurk unobtrusively, beaming an Internet connection to laptops and PCs.

Dworkin, who works for Geek Squad at the Best Buy in Deptford, N.J., said people who buy networking equipment to add to new computers have less trouble than people who want to wire their older computers.

"In a lot of cases they need to go into the router and configure the router," he said. "They can't just go and push an easy button."

Chief among the obstacles to wider popularity of home networks is that people simply don't know the meaning of terms like "router" or "IP address," said Stewart Wolpin, a consumer electronics expert and analyst for the Points North Group of Larchmont, N.Y.

"If you asked a hundred people walking down the street...I would bet you that 90 of them, if not 99 of them, would ask, 'What's a router?"' Wolpin said.

Dena Andre agreed. "I could be smarter about it, but I'm not, and I figure there are lots of people like me, especially in my age group."
http://news.com.com/Wireless+networ...stomers/2100-1039_3-6048716.html?tag=nefd.top

 

Why the Apple iTunes Movie Store And Its DRM Sucks

Once a year, the Feld men over 5 feet tall (me, my brother Daniel, my dad, my uncle Charlie, and my cousins Jon and Kenny) go away for the weekend and play. This year we went to Phoenix for spring training and I disconnected from email for the weekend. After a full day of meetings yesterday (classic VC Monday) and an evening of 24 (two full hours of Jack trying to save the world, more presidential screw ups, and a serious body count), I find myself finally caught up on email. In my inbox was a guest blog from Ross (my IT guy) ranting on about DRM and the Apple iTunes Movie Store. I love a good flame so I thought I’d share it with you. Here goes (lightly edited by me.)

We all know why DRM sucks, right? Well actually I think most people don't really understand why it sucks – last night the real reason dawned on me. However, first let me take you through my journey from the other night.

Melanie (my wife) and I have started to watch (and love) the NBC show The Office. Steve Carell is great and the entire cast is just awesome. While you've never worked in their office you've probably worked in one pretty close. We missed the first few episodes so we wanted to go back to the beginning to see them in order. So I fired up Firefox and went online to search for the old episodes. It didn't take long, and after a bit I had them downloaded so we could watch them. However since I grabbed them online the quality was pretty crappy (but watchable) so I decided to buy them from iTunes assuming the quality would be better since they’d be legit. Here begins my saga.

I love to live on the edge of media technologies. I have nine computers in my house running everything from my normal desktop/laptops to three digital photo frames that I built, and two media center PCs. I have a Treo 700 (with 4GB of memory) and my wife has a Treo 650 (with 2GB of memory). One of the things we love about them is being able to watch video on them (yes I've watched several full length movies on them.) In my bedroom I have a home built Windows Media Center PC connected to my 42" HD plasma TV. The main use for this box is to watch TV shows in my bedroom (like The Office - recorded from my other Media Center PC) and the occasional movie. I happen to have iTunes on this box so I fired it up to purchase The Office. The iTunes interface was good and I had no trouble finding and purchasing the episode that we wanted to see which only took about three minutes total to do. It then took roughly ten minutes for it to download (over my 8MB Comcast cable) so we talked while it was coming down. After it was downloaded we settled in to watch it. Here's where things went bad.

I double clicked on the episode to play it and iTunes asks for my password (again). I type it in and blamo - I get an error that I've already authorized five computers and have to deauthorize one before I can watch this episode. What? I just paid $1.99 for this ten minutes ago on this computer and now I can't watch it? What? Now, the real problem is I have no idea which five computers have been authorized (remember I have 9 in my house and countless PC's at work.) Since I rarely use iTunes for anything and am instead a Rhapsody subscriber (highly recommended), I have no idea how five PC's were authorized in the first place. Ok, so now I'm pissed - I just paid $1.99 and waited 15 minutes to watch something (which I already had) and I can't because of DRM. Can someone explain how this is a good deal for consumers?

So I go to the regular PC in my office to do some Googling to look for a hack so I could at least watch what I just paid for! After about 10 minutes on Google I figured out that, once per year, you can run a command that will deauthorize ALL computers on your account. Since I don't care about the other PC's (you might) I deauthorized them and after that I was able to watch the episode. This is just so wrong. If it took me 10 minutes of Googling to find this answer and figure it all out then my bet is 99% of the population would have just given up at this point as most people would never in a million years deal with shit like this when normally they just turn the TV on and watch. This is ridiculous.

Ok, so it's now about 30 minutes later, Melanie is beyond annoyed, almost to the point that she doesn't even want to watch the episode, but I talk her into it. Now, remember what I said earlier, I have my PC connected to my HD plasma so we can watch videos like this. I double click the episode and it starts playing. But man does it look like shit. I mean not like VHS quality, like total shit quality. Almost unwatchable. I paid $1.99 for this crap? It's no better than the garbage I downloaded off the net in the first place. Why even bother with this?

So I thought about who Apple's target audience is. Obviously it's iPods and not real TV's (not yet anyway). However lately you read all about their potential iTunes Movie Store and the new Intel Mac Mini and how it's going to take over the living room. There's one huge issue with this. The quality of these videos is horrible. I will never purchase another one since I can get better quality online (from *other* places). In the past when I've missed an episode of 24 I've been able to find it online hours after the show in full HD quality! What the hell is Apple thinking? The people that are going to buy movies are going to want them for more than their iPods but for that the quality has to be at least as good as broadcast TV (and should be DVD/HD quality). Obviously I understand the bandwidth issues here but this half ass attempt now is going to kill them in the future (and has killed them for me now.) People on the cutting edge of this stuff don't have their PC's hooked up to a 10 year old CRT monitors!

So while everyone loves Apple and the inroads they are making into our living rooms I think they are completely missing the point. Yes the iTunes Music Store is easy to use and has tons of content. Yes they've sold a billion songs, that's because the audio quality is near perfect. They are not going to sell a billion videos, not like this simply because the quality sucks. Forget about the DRM – they've totally lost me at this point - I'm now looking for a similar service that offers quality and DRM that works. While I understand the need for DRM and I support it, at least until it keeps me from doing thing that are 100% legal – for example watching something I just paid for!

So after $1.99, 30 minutes of effort to watch a 20 minute show on crappy video, Apple had lost me, at least for now. At least The Office made me laugh.
http://www.feld.com/blog/archives/2006/03/why_the_apple_i.html

 

Microsoft Research Warn About VM-Based Rootkits

Posted by Zonk on Friday March 10, @08:56PM
from the why-would-you-prove-that-concept? dept.
Security
Tenacious Hack writes "According to a story on eWeek, lab rats at Microsoft Research and the University of Michigan have teamed up to create prototypes for virtual machine-based rootkits that significantly push the envelope for hiding malware and maintaining control of a target OS. The proof-of-concept rootkit, called SubVirt, exploits known security flaws and drops a VMM (virtual machine monitor) underneath a Windows or Linux installation. Once the target operating system is hoisted into a virtual machine, the rootkit becomes impossible to detect because its state cannot be accessed by security software running in the target system."

VM Rootkits: The Next Big Threat?
By Ryan Naraine
March 10, 2006

Be the first to comment on this article


Lab rats at Microsoft Research and the University of Michigan have teamed up to create prototypes for virtual machine-based rootkits that significantly push the envelope for hiding malware and that can maintain control of a target operating system.

The proof-of-concept rootkit, called SubVirt, exploits known security flaws and drops a VMM (virtual machine monitor) underneath a Windows or Linux installation.
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Once the target operating system is hoisted into a virtual machine, the rootkit becomes impossible to detect because its state cannot be accessed by security software running in the target system, according to documentation seen by eWEEK.

The prototype, which will be presented at the IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy later in 2006, is the brainchild of Microsoft's Cybersecurity and Systems Management Research Group, the Redmond, Wash., unit responsible for the Strider GhostBuster anti-rootkit scanner and the Strider HoneyMonkey exploit detection patrol.

Today, anti-rootkit clean-up tools compare registry and file system API discrepancies to check for the presence of user-mode or kernel-mode rootkits, but this tactic is useless if the rootkit stores malware in a place that cannot be scanned.

"We used our proof-of concept [rootkits] to subvert Windows XP and Linux target systems and implemented four example malicious services," the researchers wrote in a technical paper describing the attack scenario.

eWEEK.com Special Report: The Rise of Rootkits

"[We] assume the perspective of the attacker, who is trying to run malicious software and avoid detection. By assuming this perspective, we hope to help defenders understand and defend against the threat posed by a new class of rootkits," said the paper, which is co-written by researchers from the University of Michigan.

Pointer Stealth rootkits are bombarding Windows XP SP2 systems. Click here to read more.

A virtual machine is one instance of an operating system running between the hardware and the "guest" operating system. Because the VM sits on the lower layer of the operating system, it is able to control the upper layers in a stealthy way.

eWEEK.com Special Report: Application Security

"[T]he side that controls the lower layer in the system has a fundamental advantage in the arms race between attackers and defenders," the researchers said.

"If the defender's security service occupies a lower layer than the malware, then that security service should be able to detect, contain and remove the malware. Conversely, if the malware occupies a lower layer than the security service, then the malware should be able to evade the security service and manipulate its execution."

The group said the SubVirt project implemented VM-based rootkits on two platforms—Linux/VMWare and Windows/VirtualPC—and was able to write malicious services without detection.

Next Page: It's easy to infect a target system.

The paper describes how easy it is to get the VM-based malware on a target system.
ADVERTISEMENT

For example, a code execution flaw could be exploited to gain root or administrator rights to manipulate the system boot sequence.

Once the rootkit is installed, it can use a separate attack operating system to deploy malware that is invisible from the perspective of the target operating system.

"Any code running within an attack OS is effectively invisible. The ability to run invisible malicious services in an attack OS gives intruders the freedom to use user-mode code with less fear of detection," the researchers said.

The group used the prototype rootkits to develop four malicious services—a phishing Web server, a keystroke logger, a service that scans the target file system for sensitive information and a defense countermeasure to defeat existing VM-detection systems.

The researchers also used the VM-based rootkits to control the way the target reboots. It could also be used to emulate system shutdowns and system sleep states.

eWEEK.com Special Report: Cyber-Crime

While the prototype rootkits are theoretically offensive in nature, the researchers also discussed ways to defend against malicious use of VM.

Pointer Where are rootkits coming from? Read more here.

The group suggests that hardware detection is one way to gain control over the lower layer to detect VM-based rootkits, pointing out that chip makers Intel and AMD have proposed hardware that can be used to develop and deploy low-layer security software that would run beneath a VM-based rootkit.

eWEEK.com Special Report: Spyware

Another defense technique the researchers proposed is to boot from a safe medium such as a CD-ROM, USB drive or network boot server to gain control below the rootkit.

A secure VMM can also be used to gain control of a system before the operating system boots. It can also be used to retain control as the system runs and to add a check to stop a VM-based rootkit from modifying the boot sequence.

eSeminarsZiff Davis Media eSeminars invite: Learn how to proactively shield your organizations against threats at all tiers of the network, Symantec will show you how, live on March 21 at 4 p.m. ET. Sponsored by Symantec.

"We believe the VM-based rootkits are a viable and likely threat," the research team said. "Virtual-machine monitors are available from both the open-source community and commercial vendors ... On today's x86 systems, [VM-based rootkits] are capable of running a target OS with few visual differences or performance effects that would alert the user to the presence of a rootkit."

The threat is so real, the group said, that during the creation of SubVirt, one of the authors accidentally used a machine that had been infected by the proof-of-concept rootkit without realizing that he was using a compromised system.
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,1936666,00.asp

 

Hells Angels vs Donald Duck

p2p news / p2pnet: One of the Big Six owners of the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) is being sued by the Hells Angels in California ----- for copyright violation.

Walt Disney used the Angels' logo and trademarked name, "without their permission," says the BBC, going on:

"The group say that characters in Wild Hogs are identified as members of the club and wear its skull logo. They assert that Disney did not give them a copy of the film's screeplay which has yet to start production."

Featuring John Travolta and Tim Allen, and written by Brad Copeland, Wild Hogs centres on four frustrated middle-aged biker wannabes who hit the open road in search of adventure only to encounter a real Hell's Angels group, says the Hollywood Reporter.

"The words Hells Angels and the Deaths Head Logo are property of Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporation, Inc. ( HAMC). and protected by one or more Trademarks, Service marks, and Collective Membership Marks owned by HAMC," says the Angels' Oakland, California, web site.

"All unauthorized use is strictly forbidden, including reproduction in any manner."

The pic, upper left, is of Doug the Thug Hamco, talking to Disney cfo Scrooge McDuck before copyright negotiations broke down.

Also See:
BBC - Hells Angels sue Disney over film, March 11, 2006
Hollywood Reporter - Travolta, Allen going 'Hogs' wild, January 6, 2006

(Saturday 11th March 2006)
http://p2pnet.net/story/8160



Hells Angels sue Disney over film
A convoy of Hells Angels
The Hells Angels were founded in California in 1948
Hells Angels in California have sued Walt Disney over claims that their logo and trademarked name have been used in a film script without their permission.

The group say that characters in Wild Hogs are identified as members of the club and wear its skull logo.

They assert that Disney did not give them a copy of the film's screeplay which has yet to start production.

A spokesman for the Disney Corporation commented that the legal action is without merit.

Enthusiasts

Wild Hogs is described as a story about a group of budding motorcyclists who set out on a road trip where they encounter a chapter of the Hells Angels.

The film, which features John Travolta and Tim Allen, is scheduled to begin filming later this year.

A release date is planned for next year.

The Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporation was founded in the US in 1948, describing itself as a motorcycle enthusiasts' club.

The organisation now has members all over the world.

Past films which have featured Hells Angels include Hells Angels On Wheels from 1967 which starred Jack Nicholson and also featured members of the group's Oakland chapter.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4796674.stm


Travolta, Allen going 'Hogs' wild


John Travolta
By Borys Kit
John Travolta and Tim Allen are in negotiations to star in "Wild Hogs," a comedy for Touchstone Pictures being produced by Tollin/Robbins Prods. Walt Becker is directing.

The script, by Brad Copeland, revolves around a group of four frustrated middle-aged biker wannabes who hit the open road in search of adventure only to encounter a real Hell's Angels group. Travolta and Allen will play two of the four suburban men.

Kristin Burr is overseeing for the studio.

Although he has taken on comedic roles, Travolta has become known more for his dramas and action movies. His comedic fare includes "Get Shorty" and its sequel, "Be Cool," as well as the "Look Who's Talking" movies. Travolta broke out into stardom playing Vinnie Barbarino in the 1970s comedy "Welcome Back, Kotter."

Allen is shooting "The Santa Clause 3" and stars in the upcoming remake "The Shaggy Dog," both for the Walt Disney Co. He also stars in Revolution's "The Return of Zoom," which he co-wrote. The superhero comedy is due in August.

Both actors are repped by WMA. Travolta also is repped by attorney Mike Ossi, while Allen is additionally repped by Messina Baker Entertainment and attorney Skip Brittenham.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001806688

 

Big Four record labels sued

p2p news / p2pnet: The Big Four Organized Music cartel members, "fought together to keep the online music market from emerging, and then 'conspired to fix and maintain' music prices once services like Apple’s highly successful iTunes became inevitable," says a class action suit.

Suing on behalf of 11 plaintiffs, San Diego lawyer William Lerach’s action says, "Sony BMG, Vivendi Universal Music, Time Warner, Bertelsmann, and EMI" use their market power to, "coerce online music retailers to sign 'most favored nation' agreements that specify that the retailers must pay each of the defendant labels the same amount," reports Red Herring.

"By setting a wholesale price floor at $0.70 per song, defendants have fixed and maintained the price of online music at supracompetitive levels."

The labels, who since 2003 have been suing their customers to try to make them pay these inflated rates, are also being investigated by the US Department of Justice and New York attorney general Eliot Spitzer on the same charges.

"The suit also alleges that the record labels sought to shut down online music pioneer Napster at the same time they were introducing their own joint ventures to sell online music," says the story.

" 'MusicNet and pressplay 'were not serious commercial ventures, but rather attempts to occupy the market with frustrating and ineffectual services in order to head off viable Online Music competitors from forming and gaining popularity after Napster’s demise,' says the suit.

Also See:
Red Herring - Class Action Giant Sues Labels , March 9, 2006
same charges - DoJ probes Big Music downloads, March 3, 2006

Tired of being treated like a criminal? They depend on you, not the other way around. Don't buy their 'product'. Do bug your local political representatives. Use emails, snail-mail, phone calls, faxes, IM, stop them in the street, blog. And if you're into organizing, organize petitions, org

(Sunday 12th March 2006)
http://p2pnet.net/story/8161

 

Hollywood's Japan anti-p2p bill,

p2p news / p2pnet: The MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) recently reported 2005 was a great year for Hollywood.

Eight films movies more than $200 million compared to just five in 2004, and, "The total number of films released in the U.S. increased by 5.6% from 2004."

However, in a deeply emotional speech to a Japanese intellectual property rights forum, "We need to help people understand that when they take movies for free off the Internet, or for next to nothing from a pirate street vendor, they are killing the thing they love,”declared newly appointed MPAA anti-p2p chief Bob 'Boba' Pisano.

"They are killing the movie business. And they are killing first of all the local movie business."

Pisano said in Japan, more than 1.2 million people are active p2p file sharers, and more than three million have used p2p software.

Camcorded copies comprise around 90% of, "early release pirate discs," he said, somehow neglecting to point out the vital roles Hollywood insiders play in the appearance of movies on the p2p networks.

He also failed to mention that Sony, one of the MPAA's six owners, develops and makes tiny, easy-to-conceal camcorders, not to speak of disc burners.

Be that as it may, Pisano said in January the MPAA oversewas clone the Motion Picture Association (MPA), the MPPAJ (Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan), the Japan Association of Theater Owners, the Foreign Film Importer-Distributors Association of Japan and the Japan Video Software Association are pressuring the Japanese government for, "anti-camcording legislation".

Also See:
great year - Hollywood reports 'banner year', March 9, 2006
newly appointed - Glickman ousted in anti-p2p role, September 23, 2005
Hollywood insiders - Star Wars 'Sith' p2p uploader, January 26, 2006
easy-to-conceal - Sony's newest camcorder, February 22, 2006

(Sunday 12th March 2006)
http://p2pnet.net/story/8165