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The Courts

+ - TorrentLitigation Offers Database on File-Sharing Lawsuits->

Submitted by Dangerous_Minds
Dangerous_Minds writes "Freezenet recently profiled a website called TorrentLitigation. The website documents the file-sharing related litigation that is going on, then compiles them in a database of multi-Jon Doe lawsuits filed in the US. The database organizes the lawsuits by plaintiff and jurisdiction. There is even a list of files that plaintiffs have been most suing people over. Adam E. Urbanczyk of TorrentLitigation made a number of interesting comments including this: "The website has always been designed to be an objectively-minded “portal” through which website visitors – usually individuals on the receiving end of federal copyright infringement or state-based hacking cases, but also other attorneys and inquisitive individuals – can educate themselves and, if need be, seek our assistance.""
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Piracy

+ - Returning NZ Soldier Fined Under Skynet Law->

Submitted by Dangerous_Minds
Dangerous_Minds writes "The publicity for the New Zealand three strikes law (or Skynet law) isn't getting any better. Freezenet is pointing to an article on Stuff which details the latest incident revolving around the Skynet law. Apparently, a soldier was just finishing a tour in Afghanistan and returning to New Zealand. When he got back to the country, he found out he received his third and final copyright infringement strike and was to appear before the copyright tribunal. Despite the obvious circumstances, he was fined $255.97 for downloading music from Hot Chelle and Rhianna anyway. Last month, it was revealed that RIANZ spent $250,000 just to reap the reward of $616.57."
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Australia

+ - New Calls Surface for Australia to Implement a Three Strikes Law->

Submitted by Dangerous_Minds
Dangerous_Minds writes "In the midst of a debate that pits media corporations against the Australian government over what new regulations should be in place for the media, Foxtel CEO Richard Freudenstein has called for Australia to be the next country to implement a three strikes law. He says the law should be similar to that of the US, France and New Zealand variations. Freezenet points out that all three countries have had numerous problems since their respective implementations. Examples of these problems include introducing new security risks, failing to slow falling music sales and costing hundreds of thousands of dollars with a mere fraction of that money returning from fines. Since a three strikes law is a marked departure from the debate surrounding what rules journalists should abide by in the wake of the phone hacking scandal in the UK, it''s unclear whether or not this latest call will get any traction."
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Your Rights Online

+ - Criticisms Toward Copyright Alert System Mounts-> 1

Submitted by Dangerous_Minds
Dangerous_Minds writes "This last week, the Copyright Alert System was rolled out. Now that everyone is getting a better idea of what the alert system looks like, criticisms are building against the system. Freezenet says that the mere fact that ISPs are using a browser pop-up window opens the floodgates for fraudsters to hijack the system and scam users out of money. The EFF criticized the system because the educational material contains numerous flaws. Meanwhile, Web Pro News said that this system will also hurt small business and consumers as well."
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Canada

+ - The IIPA Copyright Demands for Canada and Spain->

Submitted by Dangerous_Minds
Dangerous_Minds writes "The International Intellectual Property Alliance (IIPA) is demanding a number of countries be placed back on the special 301 piracy watchlist. One country being recommended for inclusion is Canada (PDF). Apparently, even though Canada passed copyright reform laws, any compromise to protect consumers is reason for inclusion. Michael Geist offers some analysis on this move. Meanwhile, the IIPA is also recommending that Spain be included in the watchlist. In a separate filing, the IIPA makes a host of reasons why Spain should also be included. One of the main reasons seems to be that even though Spain passed the Sinde Law in spite of protests, the courts aren't simply rubberstamping any takedown requests and that cases that were dismissed due to lack of evidence is cause for concern. Freezenet offers some in-depth analysis on this development while noting towards the end that the Special 301 report suffers from credibility problems."
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Piracy

+ - RIANZ Blows $250,000 on NZ Three Strikes Law to Gain $616.57->

Submitted by Dangerous_Minds
Dangerous_Minds writes "Earlier, Slashdot posted a story where RIANZ convicted its first file-sharer under the New Zealand three strikes law. While the fine totaled $616.57, a New Zealand Herald report points out that in order to get that fine, RIANZ had to spend $250,000. Freezenet makes an interesting point that HADOPI (France's version of the three strikes law) faced similar problems when the Socialist party commented that 12 million euros was a lot of money to pay 60 agents to send out 1 million e-mails. In making this connection, the question raised is whether or not this money pit trend will continue when the Copyright Alert System (CAS) starts processing strike notices in the United States."
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Piracy

+ - RIANZ: Downloading P2P Software Proof of Wrongdoing->

Submitted by Dangerous_Minds
Dangerous_Minds writes "Yesterday, a tribunal enforcing the three strikes law in New Zealand fined its first file-sharer. Today, Freezenet is providing a followup by pointing to a radio interview where the director of RIANZ said that the mere act of downloading a file-sharing program is proof of wrongdoing and that no one downloads copyrighted material without knowing that it's illegal."
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Piracy

+ - Russia Proposes New Internet Piracy Crackdown->

Submitted by Dangerous_Minds
Dangerous_Minds writes "Freezenet is reporting that the Russian Ministry of Culture is proposing a new law that would crack down in Internet piracy. Citing both Russian and French reports, the proposed measures would demand websites remove infringing material within 24 hours of a complaint. If there is no compliance, then the website owner could face a fine, though there are conflicting reports as to what that fine is. Reportedly, even web hosting companies could be liable for the act of infringement as well."
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Comment: 16 Bit Games (Score 1) 415

by Dangerous_Minds (#42717761) Attached to: Why a Linux User Is Using Windows 3.1
Once you have Windows 3.1 loaded and functioning properly in DOSBox, you can run pretty much any 16 bit game you can find. You might need to install certain drivers to get some games to display properly which this guide covers nicely. Ideally, you'd be running the 16 bit game in straight DOSBox first. If it asks for a Windows installation, then boot up 3.1 first and execute it via file manager. There are entire repositories of Abandonware if you do a little Googling around, so you are literally opening yourself up to being able to play thousands of games you wouldn't otherwise be able to. One video game that is legally being distributed is Elder Scrolls II, though I don't believe you need Windows 3.1 for that. I've also heard of people running Microsoft Works for Windows using this method, but it's kind of redundant when you have Open Office and Libre Office floating around. Windows 3.1 and DOSBox is really a compatibility thing, so you can take it to whatever your needs are.
Security

+ - Mega Defends its Security Practices->

Submitted by Dangerous_Minds
Dangerous_Minds writes "Recently, Slashdot posted about how cloud storage company Mega was "riddled" with security holes. Freezenet points out that Mega has issued a response to some of these criticisms including one which criticized its use of SSL. Mega responded saying that if you could break SSL, you could break things much more interesting than Mega."
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DRM

+ - Study: Anti-Circumvention Laws Excessively Favors the Content Industries

Submitted by Dangerous_Minds
Dangerous_Minds writes "On the heals of reports saying that Canada and Europe are close to finishing the negotiations of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), a recently published study says that anti-circumvention rules for TPMs "excessively favours the content industries". The study examined laws in the US and Europe and reviewed several cases revolving around TPMs. It was aimed at making recommendations to the Chinese government in regards to possible copyright law reform saying that anti-circumvention laws should take a balanced approach so as to encourage content creators to create new content while allowing interoperability to allow consumers to enjoy content legally as well as allow innovation in related industries."

+ - New Mega Website Experiences Mega Traffic Surge->

Submitted by Dangerous_Minds
Dangerous_Minds writes "Earlier today, Slashdot posted a series of reviews on the launch of the new Mega website. With all this attention from many including the media, it may not be a surprise that the website experienced a surge in traffic on launch. In fact, the surge was so great, it temporarily brought down the website. Kim Dotcom, the founder of the new website wasn't complaining though. He commented that the website managed to eat up 10GB in 10 minutes on launch and the servers experienced maximum capacity when the site got 250,000 registrations. The team behind Mega is currently working to balance the traffic load across multiple servers."
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Piracy

+ - New Zealand Three Strikes Law to Be Tested->

Submitted by Dangerous_Minds
Dangerous_Minds writes "Next month, tribunals will begin for the first people receiving their third strikes in the New Zealand "Three Strikes Law". In all, 11 people will have their cases heard including one who said that her connection was used without her knowledge. Freezenet notes that there has been a long history of controversy for the law from the Internet blackout protests of 2008 to the cablegate leak which revealed that the law was financed and pushed by the United States."
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"A dirty mind is a joy forever." -- Randy Kunkee

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