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Comment Do it already (Score 2, Interesting) 727

Let me see, the film has caused a violent backlash and Google is wanting to block people from seeing in areas that further cause a violent backlash? I'm not at all concerned about the implications. As stated many times, it's their service, if Al Qaeda want's to spread it they can make VHS (VCD?) copies or whatever and do so. The film maker who is certainly enjoying the violent response (that he aimed for) is more than welcome to ship copies anywhere in the world he wants.

Spare me the false logic arguments of "what's next?". Google does not have to be the hosting provider of hate speech if it doesn't want to. And they certainly have the right to be selective on what airs where. I see it as good "citizenship" in a way. They already can remove my videos calling for the mass murder of all Slashdot readers - just because, never mind it's not even constitutionally protected speech.

I'm pretty sure by looking back now at Google, Twitter and Facebook they didn't discourage spreading information that lead to violent revolutions (Wikileaks still shows up in searches for example) in these countries when the causes were noble (i.e. toppling un-wanted and brutal/corrupt leaders). The track record thus far has shown they self censor when appropriate.

I get slippery slopes and all that - and I get that you don't have the right to not be offended... but today money is speech, corporations are people and hate speech is lauded over violent reactions. Even shooting and killing your own citizens to defend an embassy of another country isn't enough to satisfy those who want to further fan the flames of hate. In what world is is okay to continue answering hate speech with more hate speech and then cry foul when it comes down to blows? There is less civility in civilization every day. What happened to "mutual respect"? Why sabotage years of peace just because you can?

For goodness sake, do you think the people who died want the video spread even more? Don't you think their families hold both parties accountable (of course the killers more so - but still)?

Comment Re:RTFA (Score 1) 543

This is not at all recommended. Pick up three different wall-warts ready to accept the standard USB interface and read the amperage and volt output. Each model of phone does not conform to the same output and while there is typically protection on the side of the phone - you have no idea. So stop, please.

I've seen .7 to 1.1 amp outputs from HTC to Samsung to others (in current phones - older phones I've seen up to 5 Watts of output total). We aren't talking USB via your PC - we are talking about an AC adapter (AC/DC converter) which is why you read in this very thread different charging times based on which wall warts are used against certain devices. The question is - was your manufacturer smart enough (or not cheap enough) to be able to handle a variance from what they supplied you because you have 5 wall-wart (AC/DC converters) laying around from devices from almost 10 years ago.

Protip; this is why your Nokia chargers changed overtime. It's not the phone connector that mattered - it was the converter. They were protecting your phone from a surge.

Comment Re:RTFA (Score 1) 543

USB On-The-Go is supported in the 3.0 kernel used on Android devices, thus any ICS or JB phone - unless the manufacturer compiled the kernel without it on purpose. Which would be strange because the Android crowd tends to be more technical and this is (an albeit growing) selling point.

Comment Re:RTFA (Score 1) 543

Since the data handling via USB on smartphones is not standardized, meaning that there is not necessarily any interoperability between devices with a particular accessory...

Not true, there are various standards - among them USB-On-The-Go which will even allow a phone act as a USB host, many Android phones/tablets can use the PS3 controller with no additional setup. There are Bluetooth standards for wireless devices and so forth. The only issues is non-standard interfaces on particular phones, such as the LG Vortex (as marketed by Verizon) or the HTC Droid Incredible which try to continuously load drivers and bloatware onto Windows machines. Or possibly no support in various ROM kernels for USB OTG (or even Bluetooth profiles for that matter) - which can be possibly fixed in updates or custom ROMs/kernels.

In fact, I don't know in any way Android accessories aren't compatible among differing devices unless the software on the accessory is vendor-locked to a phone itself (unless you count docks that conform to the form factor of a phone you don't actually own...). But there is no mandate from Google, Motorola, LG, HTC, Samsung, etc who cause these types of problems. Apple will never allow the PS3 controller to work with the iPhone (you'd need to do hardware hacking alone before you could even start) and yet you can plug it into a Nexus 7, Transformer Prime or even possibly the OUYA Android based game console.

Comment Re:You seriously think motive is irrelevant? (Score 1) 683

The notion that classes should get "the same baseline of opportunity" is ridiculous on its face; it's people who should get that, and the only way you can do it is by refusing to categorize them into classes in the first place, and treating any case of unwarranted discrimination equally.

And thus it is revealed. People and classes can have that same baseline. It's not that we realize the class differences and there is elements of discrimination does not mean we are the cause of it. Hate crimes don't create hate crimes because the law exists - the laws exist due to the offenders, it is reactionary due to American society (and frankly others too).

There is no class, even those you say aren't protected, the un-named majority, that can't sue or be viewed as a victim for their so-called class. There is nothing in these ideals that elevates anyone in society over another - in fact it seeks to establish to the people the playing field should, in fact, be leveled. For your "people" to be afforded a certain baseline of opportunity we have to have recourse when someone pushes that baseline back/down/whatever to a person because of a class they saw/heard/assumed when they met with them, etc.

Comment Re:I was surprised he was convicted on hate charge (Score 1) 683

"Hardly" - It is not just hardly his fault. The action led directly to those consequences. You are telling me that shaming a man for sleeping with another man - and he kills himself - and that's not a hate crime - and it was hardly his fault? Are you on the defense team because I am getting that you are against all allegations against the man, for whatever reason. Seems to be either an incidental hate crime or one in which he was more negligent than aggravated... but I can't tell you if he meant to shame him for being gay or not. "Just kidding" doesn't cut it, he didn't know he was gay?

At what point of setting up a camera and recording are you responsible for your actions - something has to be done, at least there was a trial.

"Justice" - that word means whatever you want to make it mean. You can make justice an eye for an eye or even harsher if you say that is "justice" where ever you may be. Revenge and justice - who cares? The dead man isn't trying to take revenge. Given there is probation, counseling and other attachments to the short sentence, I'm okay with that. There is a potential there to land in prison for 3 years - or his life can be saved if he's not really dumb enough to do it again if he didn't actually mean to do it.

Anytime someone dies it's hard to swallow 30 days + attachments is enough to even resemble justice when there is a chain of events where said person on trial is along the chain of events that led up to such a situation.

Comment Re:I have HBO... (Score 1) 1004

Legality is established if you have access to those channels, those shows, that have already aired. You are essentially time-shifting. Mr. Rogers (RIP) would argue it.

What can't be done due to agreements between other parties not involved in the recording, transcoding and distribution of the files themselves is... distribute them (even after they air in this case mind you).

Movies, TV shows, music - they are restricted by who can distribute them, and that's the problem. It's like being able to have drugs (TV recordings for shows you [paid for and] missed) but no one can sell them but other parties who have agreements in place to be the sole distributor. And that's a civil matter except now we have laws against not agreeing to an exclusivity contract that you were never presented with. I don't even understand how some of these cases actually proceed when I think of how ignorant the argument is - however, I do understand very much so everyone wants to get paid.

There is your golden ticket, content delivery over the internet that is as fast and reliable as pirates that is freely shared and money changes hands to pay the original owners of the works.

Comment Re:Put 2 and 2 together (Score 1) 230

It's not really data about people - it's just data. That's it. People are just part of the entire model (and the hardest to analyze). Today using Google Music I realized their strategy is simply to collect as much music as possible, from as many sources as possible to do their own internal analysis (who likes what, what types of varieties people tend to like in conjunction, what is most popular, how to catalog it - based on sound, how to develop music searches that rival anything ever seen). The next step is the monetization of that analysis.

Google's business is a three step process. Acquire data, then analyze it and then maybe offer search or another service, depending on what they find. It just happened that the web was all there for them to grab. Then newsgroups... then they bought map data (and companies) and etc. The latest, buying travel booking software (in whatever order). Along the way, and still, they are breaking down web data into new types of searches, through analysis - news, now recipes.

Not to say there might be something nefarious at play - but I don't think this is it. Android handsets would be the way to do it - if they were going to at all.

Comment Re:Paranoia much? (Score 1) 312

(I'm the parent poster to the AC)

I agree, I am with you. I replied once to a survey card at 14 years old saying I made $250,000+, was the CIO (or the equivalent), and made the purchasing decisions for 10,000+ employees. For a year I received a free copy of a weekly IT magazine. I loved it - but can't remember the magazine's name.

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