Who decided to award this to Microsoft? Why not a smaller firm?

My point is a bit more relevant when dealing with a crypto situation directly, because in my world (and the idealist world of accountability) it would make more sense that, if your communications are sensitive enough to warrant cryptography that you should know the very basics about how keys work. I still learnt how to drive a car before taking it for the first spin. If I were to do anything more advanced with the car, you can damn well bet that I will be learning all that I can about it. I'd complain some about laziness and apathy but I can't be arsed..

I guess my point was that if your communications are sensitive enough to warrant cryptography, you should probably at least know the basics about how keys work.

I originally saw the story on Reddit as a warning that they were actually scamming customers, but now it just seems like shitty PR.. I don't know what to believe. It's not the first time he's done this, either.. I can't believe Paul was still working for n-control after the last incident!

I am of the opinion that one should know as much as possible about the world that surrounds them, including how things work.. It's not so difficult to learn. I love learning.

If I hadn't posted in this thread, you'd receive mod points from me.

I agree that we need to fight the establishment, since the people in charge almost invariably try to strip away rights to protect their own interests. If an eBook is being lent out, I think that the author deserves some sort of royalty at a fraction of the cost of the paperback/hardcove ( simply because the electronic copy costs the author a lot less capital to produce and distribute (near-$0))

I'm at a loss as to how I should generalize this though. Maybe if the author disagrees with the royalty agreements for their eBooks they can merely NOT release one; but it will be converted into one and pirated regardless. The alternative would be to self-publish on your own terms, negotiating royalties or handling payment on your own.

Libraries receive money through late fees; eBooks can't be returned late, can they?

Shouldn't changing dynamics of supply and demand dictate the market needs? It sounds like these companies are simply grasping at straws to hold onto the last vestige of their current position by artifically creating demand. It's bollocks, if you can't make a living as a writer then you probably shouldn't be..

At least one company, Microsoft, is making money off of Linux :D

or he could have adapted his operating system to provide hooks for the hardware-assisted decoding of these codecs.. oh wait, no, because that would be intelligent.

Ah, I missed that! I am not sure what your definition of "loud" is, but I use an obnoxious RCA clock/radio with a large, pale yellow (autodim) display -- though it'd be nice if the numbers covered the entire face. (this one)

You should be aware that having blue light within viewable distance of your sleeping area can significantly decrease productivity during the day due to receptors in your eyes becoming "confused" about the time of day. It is especially a problem for those like myself with bipolar disorder (I or II).