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Slashback: Grammy, Sirius, Levies 190

Posted by timothy from the motel-ramen dept.
Slashback this evening with another round of clarifications and additional links regarding recent Slashdot stories. Steve Job's Grammy acceptance speech, details on the proposed higher levy on CD-Rs in Canada, more on the claimed clash between satellite radio and 802.11 devices, and more.

After the bowling ball, the mouse. jonny writes: "Most people here know the story of the Mac and the growth of the GUI. Most of you probably don't know the whole story though, namely you probably don't know the story of the mouse, important as it is... Interesting too."

Additional reading material for the math-inclined. Bruce Schneier dropped a note with some good reading material for anyone interested in the recent Slashdot posts on factoring and SNMP. "I've written essays on the Bernstein factoring paper and SNMP SNMP vulnerability."

Americans shouldn't be too smug about this stuff. An Anonymous Coward writes, in response to the proposed increase in levies on various recordable media in Canada: "An excellent FAQ including information on how manufacturers, importers, and consumers can avoid the levies on CDRs and CDRWs"

It's not all sweetness and light. Lord Omlette writes: "Ok, I know ya'll ran the story on Apple winning a grammy. But! The acceptance speech got cut for time reasons & stuff, so Dr. Dobb's Journal put a transcript of the speech online for posterity & stuff. I didn't see it in the previous Slashdot story or the Apple press release, so I thought you might be interested."

Uncle, uncle, make him give me his toy! Sabalon writes "NetStumbler is running an article about Intersil and Motorola's response to Sirius and XM's appeal to the FCC to restrict the 2.4Ghz band. Intersil points out some interesting points, such as why the frequencies directly surrounding those that Sirius uses is not an issue, and Motorola believes the source of the interference is not 2.4Ghz, but probably engine and ignition noise."

How to save some very expensive seconds. In case a 23-second kernel compile is too long to bear, perhaps you just need to upgrade a bit. An Anonymous Coward writes: "Linux Weekly News reports that a kernel was compiled in 7.5 seconds on a Power4 with 6 GB of RAM."

Finally, it has come to this. Another reader points out: "Be, Inc., the company that developed and marketed the loved Be operating system, has announced sale of the be.com domain.

This would be a great time for someone to sweep it up. ;) *cough*OpenBeOS*cough*"
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.

Slashback: Grammy, Sirius, Levies More

Slashback: Grammy, Sirius, Levies

Comments Filter:

  • slashdot clarifications etc (Score:3, Funny)

    by 56ker ( 566853 ) on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @08:04PM (#3191119) Homepage Journal
    As if I wasn't behind enough with my work thanks to Slashdot already! :o)

  • First Mouse? (Score:5, Interesting)

    by webword ( 82711 ) on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @08:04PM (#3191123) Homepage
    I can't believe that the story about the mouse doesn't include pictures and a description of Engelbart's first mouse [stanford.edu]. Outrageous!
    • I meant to also point to this previous Slashdot story [slashdot.org] on the same topic.
    • Just wanted t othank you for the link. Very interesting!

      Mice have come a long way, haven't they? Complain about MS all you want, but their 'Wheel Mouse Optical' is awesome. A must have for any 3D Artist or Photoshop Guru. Glad it's wood and not plastic though. I'd hate to file for workman's comp over a splinter in my hand...
      • The wheel mouse is the best modification IMHO - saves one hand on the mouse and one on the up/down keys. Has anyone got an indestructible mouse? Mine seems to get dropped bashed, pulled etc - but still works.

        • You're right, heh I forgot there was actually a day when mice didn't have wheels.

          My optical one has been dropped more than I'd like to admit, and it's fine. I think the fewer moving parts really help that. The first MS Optical mouse, though, had a design flaw in it where it was pinching the cord too hard where it meets the case. After a while, the mouse'd just go out. Taking that thing apart to figure out what was wrong was a PITA.

          The latest models seem to be fine though. The parts were always fine, but the original casing had a flaw in it.
          • I got a first-generation optical mouse, and definitely had that problem :( In a stunning turn of events though, MS tech support was *great* and was happy to send a replacement totally free of charge. I guess that's the least they can do with their hundreds of billions of dollars.
        • Yeah, i'd have to say that my microsoft optical mouse is very tough... I've had worse luck with a cheap copy, a Micron. My microsoft one is still holding up since they first came out, even withstanding Lan party abuse.

          I miss the wheel up at work... I catch my self strok..er nevermind.
        • Oddly enough, we likely have Microsoft to thanks for the sheer popularity of the wheel on mice.

          No they did not invent it, but by including it with their OEM mice they sure as heck made it ubiquitous, and thus sellable en-masse for other retailers.
        • I was giving my undergraduate thesis presentation to abut 250 people from all over the state(design theory for entertainment laser diplays) Powerpoint, for sake of ease (But I swear, not one piece of clipart or animated transition, anywhere)
          Shortly before I was about to begin, I dropped my MS optical mouse. I moved it around quick to see that the currsor still moved, but forgot to check the buttons. So I started the presentation, but when I went to click to advance to the next slide, nothing happened. The mmouse body had separated just enough from the chassis that the buttotns wouldn't depress enough to do anything. But that wheel still worked!! Thank god! I was able to do the whole shebang w/out any problems, and afterwards, in full light it took me about thirty seconds to pop the thing back together again. If only I could get a keyboard so hardy!!!!
      • The Wheel Mouse Optical is a pretty basic optical wheel mouse. Real 3D Artists/Photoshop Gurus/Gamers would want a Logitech Dual Optical [logitech.com], which does two snaps to ensure much better accuracy (on a bad surface, the mouse cursor can suddenly jump around as the mouse wrongly recalculates where it is.

        Plus, no more paying Microsoft, which is always a bonus in my book, however good their hardware might be.

        --Dan

    • Re:First Mouse? (Score:3, Funny)

      by mgblst ( 80109 )
      I thought that Bush invented the mouse http://www2.kenyon.edu/people/adamsal/gui/bush_eng elbart.htm [kenyon.edu]

      which would make sense, since while Gore invented the Internet, Bush invented the mouse...

  • OpenBeOS (Score:2, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Let's open BeOS! Then lets sit back and watch the apps roll in.

    As stated in Field of Dreams [imdb.com], "If you build it, they will come."

    Forget about Linux and AtheOS, BeOS is the way to go!

  • Be Trademark? (Score:5, Interesting)

    by RN ( 21554 ) on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @08:10PM (#3191157) Journal
    What's going to happen to Be's trademarks and other IP?

    I wonder if others can use names like OpenBe without fear of getting sued now.

  • MP3 forever! Buy an iPod! Rock on

    Well at least someone was representing the interests of the general public. I didn't watch the grammeys(Oysterhead wasn't nominated???) but from the accounts I heard there were a lot of "arists" who were complaing about Mp3's and P2P.

    • Re:from the speech (Score:2, Informative)

      by epiphani ( 254981 )
      Not commenting on the speach, the issue of "arists" complaining about MP3's is accually quite amusing.

      Most artists really dont care about MP3s. The fact is, it costs them virtually nothing. It is only the record companies that care about mp3s. As I understand it, the artist usually gets relatively minimal money from a record - generally a small percentage such as %5 - simply because the recording company says

      "We put up the money for your $30,000 recording studio stint. We put up the money for your $10,000 music video. We put up the money for the distribution of your album. You're famous now, go make your money some other way."

      Most "artists" make their money from touring, endorsements, and generally working their asses off. The ones that accually care about mp3s are being anal, because mp3s make arists more popular, and sells tickets to their show.

      • "We put up the money for your $30,000 recording studio stint. We put up the money for your $10,000 music video. We put up the money for the distribution of your album. You're famous now, go make your money some other way."

        Umm, that is not how it works at all actually. The record companies will put up the cash only initially. The artist then has to pay the record company back any money for the production of the album and the music videos. This comes out of their take home earnings of an average of $0.20/album sold. Yes the record companies give them exposure and they even market the hell out of select artists, but in the end the artist is screwed in SO many ways.

        Not only that... but get this. Most albums that go platinum on the first day of release... you know who buys all those albums? The record company who produces it. They then sell it back to the stores. This is so that other people will follow on the bandwagon and buy the crap out of that album. Bottom line is the record industry is shady as hell.

        If ya don't know... now ya know.

        • Re:from the speech (Score:2, Interesting)

          by ZuG ( 13394 )
          Not only that... but get this. Most albums that go platinum on the first day of release... you know who buys all those albums? The record company who produces it. They then sell it back to the stores. This is so that other people will follow on the bandwagon and buy the crap out of that album. Bottom line is the record industry is shady as hell.

          I've been keeping up with the record industry's shady tactics, but I haven't heard of this one? Do you have any details? A link, perhaps?

          • Unfortunately I have nothing to back that up with. Only the words of a close friend of mine who has been in the industry for a long time. He described it as one of his $1,000,000 stories he could go to ET about. :-)
      • Most "artists" make their money from touring, endorsements, and generally working their asses off.


        Touring is, at best, a break-even proposition financially. Most artists consider it a necessary evil. Touring is meant to promote a product; it is not an end unto itself, hippie jam bands excepted.

        In addition, touring sucks. Life on the road sucks. Ramada Inns suck. Playing the same songs every night sucks.

        Endorsements? Hah. Except for Pepsi and Britney, who is seeking musicians for endorsements? Instrument manufacturers. They're not Nike: there's no $20 million deals here, just free gear worth maybe hundreds of dollars.

        Selling shiny discs is the primary source of income here.

        Maj. Kong, father of a struggling indie artist.

  • Canadians should be smug! (Score:4, Insightful)

    by joebp ( 528430 ) on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @08:13PM (#3191175) Homepage
    Americans shouldn't be too smug about this stuff [...] proposed increase in levies on various recordable media in Canada
    Canada: Proposed increase in levies on recordable media/assorted storage [slashdot.org].
    USA: SSSCA [eff.org].

    Given the either/or choice, I'd rather pay stupid fees on media.

    So, as I say: Canadians should be smug!

    • Given the choice, I would rather accept neither. And then I'd tell the lunatic outside my apartment to stop screaming in gibirish. What an ass.

    • Re:Canadians should be smug! (Score:5, Interesting)

      by wide_awake ( 564371 ) <`moc.liamg' `ta' `etirw.dier'> on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @08:56PM (#3191368) Homepage
      Canadians really *should* be smug. There are some pretty simple ways to get around this levy:

      - If you buy any blank recording media outside Canada and use it yourself they will not be subject to the levy.

      - If you are a manufacturer or importer, you can avoid the levy entirely on your products as long as you record some sound on the media before you sell it. The sound recorded on the media can even be erased. Clearly this is not an option for CD-Rs, but for devices that include a hard drive, simply recording a sound on the drive and then erasing it exempts the drive from the levy. This is because (as the legislation states) "blank audio recording medium means a recording medium, regardless of its material form, onto which a sound recording may be reproduced, that is of a kind ordinarily used by individual consumers for that purpose and on which no sounds have ever been fixed..."

      Also, if you're Canadian you should check out this link [neil.eton.ca] and tell them that iPods and such are not recording devices. Alternatively, tell Apple and friends to record a lame greeting message to avoid the stupid levy.

      The last cool thing is this: "It does not matter whether you own the original sound recording (on any medium), you can legally make a copy for your own private use."

      Rock on, Canadians.

    • no, they shouldnt. both the sssca and levies are incredibly authoritarian moves. also, the sssca would ultimately end up effecting devices in canada! you think manufacturers are going to build seperate version of devices for a country with 30 million people? no way!

    • This is Slashdot... rights money....

      People should use Linux, Free Software, Open Source man... Don't buy CDs from Mandrake, just download the ISO man...

      Support contract? Why not just use IRC!

      I'm with you... if we can't have a profitable capitalistic music industry, I'm okay with some government patronage through taxes to ensure the creation of culture (now the quality of RIAA company's contribution to culture is questionable, but in theory...)...

      I mean, paying $100/year or whatever to keep my rights, sure, whatever...

      Life, liberty, property... in that order...

      Alex

  • 6 gigs or 60 gigs? (Score:2, Informative)

    by neo8750 ( 566137 )
    quoting the article

    hardware: 32 way logical partition, 1.1GHz POWER4, 60G RAM

    from poster:

    "Linux Weekly News reports that a kernel was compiled in 7.5 seconds on a Power4 with 6 GB of RAM."

    60 gigs is a lot different then 6 gigs.

    • Re:6 gigs or 60 gigs? (Score:1, Interesting)

      by Anonymous Coward
      but really having 6 gigs or 60 gigs isn't going to make a difference in a kernel compile...

    • Looks like someone has way too much free time on their hands. But the 32 processors and 60 GB RAM, maybe I would have more free time too.

      I like the CPU utilization of 2200% for the compile. At 22:1 my 10 hour day would only take 27 minutes. With time out for checking email, reading Slashdot, and scoring the occassional doughnut I could still be done in a hour.
  • Just to be safe, I'm still stocking up on CD-R's before the levies may or may not happen (thinking of the last time they threatened this). I needs somewhere to back up my episodes of Farscape, seeing as I can't get it on TV (Space just started showing Season 3, but no cable makes Ae;rog a sad, sad individual).

    On the other hand, (and someone please correct me on this), doesn't the FTA basically allw laws to be applied universally? I don't know how this will affect things like levies, and all my info comes from a raging Anti-FTA source, but if it does, could that mean no cheap CD's for you guys either?

    But I'm sick and tired, and shouldn't be posting in this condition. . . .

    • Re:Gettin' while the gettin's good (Score:2, Interesting)

      by Anonymous Coward
      Don't bother stocking up just yet. The levy is already there, and won't go up until December. Even then, most retailers will be selling stock they purchased "before" the increased levies, and prices shouldn't go up too much for a while.

      I stocked up before the last levy. After the levy came into effect I found prices had actually gone down....so I saved nothing.

      In any case you can buy your media online from the US and not pay the levy. You are not under any obligation to pay the levy if you import the media for your own use. There are many ways to get around these levies.

      What I found interesting in the FAQ, was the copyright info. Here in Canada I can legally make a copy of a CD I do not own, as long as it's for personal use. What other kind of use would there be?

      So technically, there is nothing illegal about me downloading MP3s and burning them to CDs. WOOHOO!
      • Of course you didn't save money when you bought the CD's...BR>
        LEt's look at what happened/happens: There's a new levy being applied or an existing one is being increased, people who don't like this type of thing are going to buy in bulk, and probably aren't going to buy many more after the levy for an extended period of time. So, what do you do? You jack the price up around the time that is announced that the levy will be introduced/increased. That way, you have a) people buying lots of stuff at inflated prices (supply and demand folks, the demand rises so the prices do too), and b) when the new levy is introduced, your prices don't change by such a huge margin as they would have otherwise as you have a buffer zone to fall back on.

        Or I could be horribly, horribly wrong :)
      • What I found interesting in the FAQ, was the copyright info. Here in Canada I can legally make a copy of a CD I do not own, as long as it's for personal use. What other kind of use would there be?

        I think it wouldn't be "personal use" to burn CD-Rs and sell them on ebay (or just out of the back of your car). Maybe even giving them away free wouldn't be "personal use", but I don't know.

        So technically, there is nothing illegal about me downloading MP3s and burning them to CDs.

        As long as there was nothing illegal about downloading the MP3 in the first place.

    • On the other hand, (and someone please correct me on this), doesn't the FTA basically allw laws to be applied universally?

      Basically, no. The Canadian Government has been using NAFTA as an excuse to pass a lot of things that have absolutely nothing to do with NAFTA requirements, much like the DMCA in the U.S. was wrongly justified on WTO treaty grounds. It's all BS, designed to deflect criticism of bad legislation to treaties that won't ever get repealed since it would be economic suicide to do so.

  • 7.5 seconds? (Score:3, Funny)

    by psxndc ( 105904 ) on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @08:22PM (#3191217) Journal
    How am I supposed to read the debug statements about needing beer in my fridge if it scrolls by that fast? I'll keep linux on my Celery 800 thanks. A nice leisurely compile. You kids with your 7.5 second compile times. In my day...

    psxndc

  • Tax Levy Google Cache (Score:3, Informative)

    by Jardine ( 398197 ) on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @08:24PM (#3191221) Homepage
    Just in case the site gets slashdotted, here's the google cache [google.com] of the the Tax Levy FAQ

  • 2.4 GHz (Score:5, Informative)

    by thesmos ( 454982 ) on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @08:25PM (#3191229)
    Microwave ovens also run in the 2.4 GHz range and they cause all kinds of 802.11 interference. At my house using the microwave kills my WLAN. Are they trying to get rid of my nuker too?

    • Oh the humanity! (Score:4, Funny)

      by aztektum ( 170569 ) on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @08:49PM (#3191337)
      Torn between a microwave burito and pr0n
      • EFnet transcript, #pr0n

        /connect irc.prison.net:6667
        Connected to irc.prison.net:6667
        /join #pr0n
        Entering #pr0n
        RedIz: 'sup
        Pr0nJunky: not mucho
        RedIz: !list
        /ctcp Pr0nJunky Get bigjuggs.avi
        Receiving bigjuggs.avi 700MB (60KB/s)
        RedIz: Awh, krap!
        RedIz: I'm hungry, but I need my pr0n.
        Pr0nJunky: Haha
        RedIz: No, my microwave brings down my 802.11.
        Pr0nJunky: LMAO!!
        RedIz: Too hungry... brb
        Connection reset by peer
        /connect irc.prison.net:6667
        Connected to irc.prison.net:6667
        /join #pr0n
        Entering #pr0n
        RedIz: sup
        Pr0nJunky: hi again
        RedIz: awh krap, my food is getting cold.
        Pr0nJunky: haha
        Connection reset by peer

    • Is your Microwave oven pretty old? I would think the shielding would be better than that.

      • It's not the microwave leakage, otherwise if you did sit in front of the thing you would warm up nicely. It's the RF interference caused by having such a huge RF (microwave) generator within close proximity.

        That metal grill you see on the front window of the microwave is all that's needed to keep in those pesky micro-waves. :)

        • Re:2.4 GHz (Score:2, Informative)

          by ChadN ( 21033 )
          Ummm, what is the difference? RF and "microwaves" are the same (ultimately photons in a certain frequency range). I see what you are saying, I guess (that in beaming photons at the food, some photons sent out in directions that never even go to the shielded enclosure); but it could be misconstrued by some that RF and "microwave leakage" are two different types of radiation.

  • More Jim Carroll commentary [canoe.ca] for your enjoyment...

    • Of course, Carroll has read the FAQ, and hasn't the slight clue what he's talking about. You can import recordable media for your own use, and you won't get charged the levy because you are the importer and you are not reselling the media. Only sale of blank media by the importer or manufacturer triggers the levy.

      Also, the levy on MP3 players can be bypassed by including some music on the device. Therefore, it is not 'blank' media. Apple already includes a ton of tunes on machines shipped with iTunes, so this wouldn't be too hard.

      Maybe the iPod ships with sample tunes already. Are there any iPod owners out there who can comment?
  • my sarchastic comment about BE selling off the domain was right? sheesh.. well ain't that silly.

  • MP3 players with HDs (Score:4, Interesting)

    by Portent ( 106482 ) on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @08:36PM (#3191275)
    Note that if the companies that make mp3 players with hard drives just have a sample or intro mp3 on them when they get shipped, the $21 per gig levy is gone. If they don't do this simple little thing, then a 5 gig mp3 player would have a $125 levy imposed on it.

    Eddy
    • Make that $105.

      Eddy
    • If you are a manufacturer or importer, you can avoid the levy entirely on your products as long as you record some sound on the media before you sell it. The sound recorded on the media can even be erased. Clearly this is not an option for CD-Rs, but for devices that include a hard drive, simply recording a sound on the drive and then erasing it exempts the drive from the levy.

      So the company can put the sound on the drive, erase the sound, and avoid the levy.

      Doesn't work with CDRs, but it could work with CDRWs.
    • "iPod! It really whips the llama's ass!"
    • I bought an Archos Jukebox here in Ireland about 6 months ago and it came with a few crap songs on it so at least these guys wont fall foul of the levy, but I doubt anyone will anyway cause it's too easy to get around for mp3 players.
  • If anyone wants to join my mp3 (player) smuggling ring, email me. Just kidding.

    Maskirovka

  • *cough* Money *cough* (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Xenex ( 97062 ) <xenex@nospaM.opinionstick.com> on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @08:52PM (#3191354) Journal
    This would be a great time for someone to sweep it(Be.com [be.com]) up. ;) *cough*OpenBeOS*cough*"

    Are you offering to use your OSDN connections to pay for it?

    BeGroovy looked into buying the domain [begroovy.com].

    From their forum:
    "Having had a response from Dan Johnston at Be Inc (or what remains of Be Inc), I hold out *no* hope that the Be community can afford to buy the be.com domain. I was a great supporter of the idea until I found out that the asking price is a few orders of magnitude greater than I had hoped"

    So yes Tim, your OSDN friends will be handy.

  • Regarding the Blank Media tariff (Score:5, Informative)

    by Evangelion ( 2145 ) on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @08:59PM (#3191382) Homepage

    Okay, I'm glad that FAQ got linked to finally.

    Why is everyone overlooking the reason that this levy got introduced in the first place -- it was introduced to compensate music artists and publishers for the fact that copying audio, for private use, is now legal.

    What this means, is that you can stop by future shop, pick up 6 spindles of CDRs, come to my house, and copy all of my 300 or so [2y.net] CDs. Legally. As long as you don't use them for a public performace.

    That's why the levy was introduced -- because by making this legal, the goverenment of Canada knowingly reduced the revenues of Canadian musicians and publishers.

    Now, if you are of the opinion that a goverenment should be able to knowingly do that sort of thing to an industry in it's country without some form of compensation, then that's another matter -- but to complain about this levy being 'unfair' requires that you look at it from the perspective of the publishers who were affected by the copyright amendment in 1997.

    Also, keep in mind that the new, proposed levies are just that -- proposed. It's unlikely that they'll pass with the current amounts.


    • Just found this [cb-cda.gc.ca] on the Copyright board's site.

      It's the CPCC's rationale behind the proposed increases. Anyone forumlating objections to the proposed increases would be wise to read it.
    • Also, keep in mind that the new, proposed levies are just that -- proposed. It's unlikely that they'll pass with the current amounts.

      Uhhh...you mean like the proposed GST???
    • I hope they realise how many people (honest) will now see this as making something that was illegal as something legal? Taxing (Levy) regular CDR's instead of just music CDR's removes that nagging conceince that using them for music is a bad thing. With their stamp of approval, I'll feel free to pirate now. Why buy it in the store. I already paid the royalty. I have bought a few CDR audio CD's because of a nagging concience, so I paid the royalty. No nagging concience any more since copying has been levied and endorsed as legal by the tax on data CDR's.

      • You're misusing the term pirate -- piracy is by definition a violation of copyright law.

        Copying CDs off of a friend (as long as you are the one doing the copying) for your use isn't illegal, so it's not piracy.

        So, yes, you are paying for the ability to copy music without buying it directly. That's the whole point of this levy, as a result of the private copying amendment.

        Sorry. I know you were trying for hyperbole, but you didn't quite get there.

    • There seems to be a point being missed here...

      The Copyright Act allows you to make copies of your music for personal use. You can't (legally) go to somebody's house and copy all of their audio CDs. Making a tape to play in your car is okay. Letting your friend make a tape to play in his car is not.

  • NOT 6 GB RAM (Score:1, Redundant)

    by TJamieson ( 218336 )
    Headline quotes the PPC as 6 GB RAM - here's directly lifted:
    hardware: 32 way logical partition, 1.1GHz POWER4, 60G RAM

    • Re:NOT 6 GB RAM (Score:4, Interesting)

      by rtaylor ( 70602 ) on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @09:43PM (#3191570) Homepage
      It's a kernel compile.

      If it really uses any more than 1GB ram with file system cache, binary cache and compiler results I would be surprised. That said, it's been a very long time since I've compiled it. Anyway, 6gb, 60gb, or 600gb isn't any different for this operation (aside from increased addressing time, possible transfer delays, bank switching and other silly stuff).
    • Yeah, but that's 60GB Canadian. Not that much, really, only about 256MB US. :-)
  • Ok, highly offtopic, but, uh, why is like a good per-friggin-centage of the net dead right now? The results on the pages for the search "internet backbone status" in google, not to mention the sheer number of sites I cannot reach currently, make me wonder;

    what did some idiot do with a backhoe this time?
    • I'm in Oklahoma, and I thought it was just Cox. It does seem like I can't get to quite a few sites...glad it's not just me.

      Most of the backbone status is only avalible to the techs of the various companies that own the backbone (I used to work in the NOC at WCOM monitoring backbone).
    • Part of internet possibly down, this being an internet site, how is internet downage EVER offtopic on /.?

  • 7.5 Seconds! Bah! (Score:3, Funny)

    by ghack ( 454608 ) on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @09:08PM (#3191427)
    I compile mine in 7.5 days!

  • They keep talking about the mac (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Galvatron ( 115029 ) on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @09:18PM (#3191463)
    But I seem to recall having a mouse for my Apple IIe. Am I remembering wrong?
  • Ever since the FCC started selling off bandwidth, we should have known that the open, free, public bands would become attractive battlefields for commercial interests. But instead of ponying up hard cash to the FCC, they buy themselves a few shysters in an attempt to take over the free frontier by claiming interference from those who first took advantage of the space.

  • Be.com (Score:2, Interesting)

    by teslatug ( 543527 )
    Be.com is just now displaying a message about the sale of the domain. I wonder if the Slashdotting had anything to do with it. RIP
  • So the bastards at London Drugs, who have been tacking the levy on at the register have been ripping their consumers off! Good to know! Not that I buy components there anyway as they are usually out ot lunch when it comes to pricing, but still! Has anyone pointed out to them that they can't charge the levy at the register?
    • Anyone who sets foot in a london drugs expecting not to get ripped off is a fucking moron. Their computer "section" is little more than a automatic-raping-device(tm) used to separate fools from their money.

      On the rare occasion that I do enter one of their stores (once a year maybe), I am revolted by the sleeze and greasiness of their employees and entire establishment. Go to one of the few respectable Canadian outless for your recordable-media.

      Oh yah, if you dont like it, get proof of it (hidden camera), and send it anonymously to your local television station, BBB, and cop-shop.
    • I bought some CD-R's at london drugs and was not charged extra at the register.
    • AWWW calm down there Sparky. If paying maybe an extra dollar for a fifty pack as opposed to buying it at Future Shop really bugs you, I think you need to work on getting a higher-paying job instead of bitching about government levies.

  • who cares if it's 7.5 seconds (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward
    I doesn't really matter how short is the compile time for the kernel unless they give you the actual .config that they use so that we could know what components come in with the kernel, or even the modules that were needed to compile to run a system. It could be possible that this kernel compile only gave bare-bones, minimum configuration just to get single user mode with a command prompt, not network drivers, or whatever whiz-bang kernel feature.

  • Whoa, I never knew... (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Beliskner ( 566513 ) on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @09:49PM (#3191601) Homepage
    Is Canada alone?
    At least 25 countries, including most G-7 and European Union members, have introduced comparable regimes with respect to the private copying of sound recordings. Canada is one of the last to do so.
    The USA is often held out as an example of a place where "this could never happen", but as far as I can tell, it has been law there since December 8, 1994. It is part of Title 17, section 1004, and if you go to:
    http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/1004.html you will find this paragraph:
    (b) Digital Audio Recording Media. - The royalty payment due under section1003 for each digital audio recording medium imported into and distributed in the United States, or manufactured and distributed in the United States, shall be 3 percent of the transfer price. Only the first person to manufacture and distribute or import and distribute such medium shall be required to pay the royalty with respect to such medium.
    Note, however, that in the US there is NO levy collected on "ordinary" CD-Rs When the legislation was last changed (in 1994/1995) CD-Rs were not seen as a media intended for copying music. There IS a levy applied to other digital media, such as DAT and CD-R Audio

    Whoa, am I reading this [neil.eton.ca] right? Most 1st world countries have a levy, and in the US the recording industry *can* legally charge a 3% levy BUT instead they think SSSCA with DRM CPUs, DRM chipsets and all of that is the best idea. WTF?

  • No Britney Spears for you (Score:1, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward
    From the CD-R Levy FAQ:
    Note that the Copyright Act ONLY allows for copies to be made of "sound recordings of musical works". Nonmusical works, such as audio books or books-on-tape are NOT covered.

    Can the Britney Spears CD's be called "musical works"? I think that she's safe.
  • hmm according to that sheet;

    80 cents canadian tax per megabyte for removable micro drives.

    Uh

    Either definition of a megabyte you go buy, those 1GB Microdrives are going to cost a f*cking arm and a leg in canada now.

    ouch.

  • 802.11x is more important than satellite (Score:4, Interesting)

    by aminorex ( 141494 ) on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @10:42PM (#3191788) Homepage Journal
    Actually, if there is a conflict, the satellite
    people should give up the frequency, because it
    is far more important to the public interest that
    802.11x continue to grow and flourish than that
    any given satellite band be proof from interference.

    OTOH, perhaps that is the complainant's intent:
    They really want a new frequency allocation, and
    just aren't willing to say so outright, for some
    obscure reason.
    • That isn't the way that the FCC works, and I'm glad for it. If your device has out-of-band emissions that interfere with another service, you have a responsibility to take corrective action or stop using the device. It doesn't matter if your use is more "important" than someone elses.
  • "He was packing a whole bunch of compact flash cards - too many, I told him. But he was driven - not by the money, he said, but by the principal."

    Why is it I have just lost all faith in this reporter? I just find it hard to believe that the head of this guy's old school would chauffer him across the border.

  • Two letter domain names (Score:3, Interesting)

    by PhotoGuy ( 189467 ) on Wednesday March 20, 2002 @08:40AM (#3193365) Homepage
    "This would be a great time for someone to sweep it up. ;) cough*OpenBeOS*cough*"
    Right. Even in this post .COM boom era, *any* two letter .com domain (it could be xq.com) is going to be worth hundreds of thousands, if not millions; and take into account that be.com is a two-letter domain that represents the shortest, most popular, and somewhat existential verb in the english language...

    I somehow doubt OpenBeOS will just "sweep" this one up :-) Maybe Coke or Pepsi or some other megaconglomerate as part of a major ad compaign. But not OpenBeOS.

    -me

  • Copying - levy - more copying - higher levy... (Score:3, Insightful)

    by mttlg ( 174815 ) on Wednesday March 20, 2002 @10:49AM (#3193866) Homepage Journal
    I see bad things happening with this levy. The higher it gets, the more people will be driven to copy. "Well, I already paid a lot of money for copying music when I backed up my 80GB hard drive, so I might as well copy a few hundred CDs to make up for it." As more people are aware of their right to copy and have an increased desire to make use of it, sales will go down, and there will be proposals for higher rates. Just take a look at the tables on the FAQ page: the rate for CD-Rs was 5.2 cents in 1999-2000, 21 cents in 2000-2001, and is proposed to increase to 59 cents in 2003. Additionally, the scope has broadened from tapes and CDs to DVDs, flash cards, and hard drive based portable audio players. It's almost as if the levy is designed to encourage copying so a higher levy can be proposed...
  • I'm sorry, Levy == Tax. Didn't we fight England for this? Taxation w/o rep? And doesn't this (tax) assume that you, the consumer, are only using this product to rip off the industry? The same scam that's used on blank audio tapes and VHS tapes?

    MPAA == evil && RIAA = evil;

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