IBM has donated their code to Apache and the OpenOffice.org project so hopefully IBM's code will make it into OO.o and perhaps LibreOffice http://www.zdnet.com/blog/open-source/ibm-throws-its-source-code-and-support-behind-openoffice/9240

I've taught a few online classes for a state-wide community college. To say I've "taught" them is kind. I was basically a grader. The first day of the semester they blasted the material onto the online Blackboard system and it had all the due dates and assignments. I couldn't change anything on the syllabus because the syllabus was standardized for every section across the state and so were the grading tools. This meant that when they turned in speeches (yes I "taught" public speaking online for one of the classes as strange as that sounds) and the speeches were done on terrible topics I couldn't lower their grade or tell them to redo it. When their voices had no enthusiasm at all I couldn't lower their grade because the state mandated grading tool didn't have anything that covered enthusiasm. This meant that you could take the class, do a speech that wasn't really appropriate, read in a monotone and still get an A as long as you took all the tests, had good eye contact, and met the time length and visual aid requirements.

Business Week has done a few scathing articles about for-profit colleges in the last year. One showed how they go into homeless shelters and try to get homeless people to sign up for student loan money. One college even went so far as to actually pay the homeless students for attending classes. http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/10_19/b4177064219731.htm?chan=magazine+channel_features

Another story was about how they have gotten into the practice of buying up super small trade colleges so that they can get the accreditation. One of these for-profit schools bought an aviation school and "expanded" it into mainstream courses http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/10_11/b4170050344129.htm

A third story was about how these for-profit schools also target the military. http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/10_02/b4162036095366.htm

I'm assuming the parent is referring to Blizzard the game company who uses bittorrent to distribute updates for their games World of Warcraft and the soon to be released Starcraft 2.

People always say this but I'm now a phd student and the only time I ever had a class where we used a professor's book was one class where the book was actually out of print so he just gave us photocopies of it. What subjects are people taking where this is happening?

name one

because it is made by a tiny company that can't get the volume manufacturing discounts apple can? When hp, dell, or acer come out with an ipad clone it will very likely be cheaper than the ipad.

Dad is that you? My dad also works at a machine shop that has a similar CNC setup.

You think that studio executives aren't controlling the image of the gaming industry by policing the boundaries of mainstream games?

Gamepolitics has covered this extensively http://www.gamepolitics.com/category/topics/california?page=1 At the end of that article they link to a pdf of the judge's ruling.

Similar laws have been passed and ruled unconstitutional in numerous places including Indianapolis, St. Louis, Illinois, Oklahoma, and Louisiana. The NYTimes also has an article that includes some explanation http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/21/arts/television/21vide.html

this law is specifically about the form. it is saying videogames are so bad that they need special laws that other forms don't have. In the case of alcohol there is proof that it can be bad for you. There is no conclusive proof that videogames are bad for anyone.

This law is not unconstitutional because people are forcing morals on people. It is unconstitutional because it violates the first amendment. There have been lots of very similar laws that have all been overturned on first amendment grounds. There is little reason to doubt that this law will be any different.

the title of your post asks "and this is different from r-rated movies, how?" the answer is that film ratings aren't enforced by laws. So why should videogame ratings be enforced that way?

However, film ratings are enforced by the movie industry not the law. If a kid can't get into an R-rated film then it is because the theater won't let the kid in not because there is a law prohibiting it. Videogames are the same in this regard. Are there kids buying M-rated games? yes but there are also kids getting into R-rated films. Some undercover stings have found it easier to get into an r-rated film than to buy an m-rated game. There's no reason to single out games.

The question is why is this law needed when there are no similar laws regulating the sale of films music books or comic books? There are existing pornography laws which would presumably already apply to any pornographic games -- which aren't widely available anyway. There's no substantial evidence that there is any need for this law. It is ineffective at best and reactionary at worst because it singles out videogames when there's no substantial evidence that there needs to be a law and since it is based on voluntary ratings manufacturers can just take the movie route and release "unrated" editions of games which would circumvent the law.

Sexually explicit things are covered by pornography laws. IAMAL but I would guess any pornographic game would probably be covered by existing porn laws since there have been cases when comic book stores have been involved in court cases involving porn and they probably didn't make laws specifically about comics.