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Comment Re:Bad Business Manners! (Score 1) 137

We've been almost certain that this was coming since mid-October. What we were told at that point was that MPC's finances were shut down - hard - and as a result they had no working capital to purchase any product. In other words, they haven't been able to build or ship product since the middle of October. (This was before they went Chapter 11... and before they were delisted from NASDAQ.)

Fortunately, we stopped buying desktops from them a while back... but unfortunately we were still buying laptops from them. In fact, we just bought about 10 laptops just in September. So much for the 3 year warranty we paid extra for on them. :(

Comment Re:Not exclusive! Not monopoly! (Score 3, Interesting) 155

If you're going to insist on anti-corporate whining, at least whine about the right reason. FTFA: "Previously, cable or wire video-service companies had to negotiate local franchises with each municipality or township." This merely prevents them from having to individually deal with every little rural hick town and arrogant bedroom community in the state, some of which may indeed have already negotiated exclusive "monopoly" deals with another provider.

Thank you, I was beginning to wonder if I had wandered into bizarro-land or something! I cannot for the life of me fathom the negative reaction to this. Wisconsin is currently passing a similar bill, and I am 100% in favor of it. Previously, when a new provider wanted to enter a community, they wouldn't be able to, because some other cable company was granted an exclusive contract for that community.


Now, if Time Warner wants to compete with Comcast, AT&T, Verizon, or whomever else, they can. They get the statewide contract, and no more messing around with local politicos with delusions of grandeur. It levels the playing field so that anyone can compete.


There's a reason that the cable companies have been running a campaign against such bills... they don't want to have to compete. They like the cushy exclusive local contracts because it means they only have to worry about actually doing enough of their job to make it look good every few years when the contract comes up for renewal... then pay off enough politicians to get them to either be in favor of the new contract without even reading it, or better yet, be 'sick' on the day it's up for renewal.

Databases

Journal Journal: TD Ameritrade found unauthorized code in its database

TD Ameritrade is releasing some interesting findings going back to complaints over the past year of selling customer info to pump and dump spammers. The article goes on to state that: UserIDs, personal identification numbers and passwords were not stored in that particular database, and so client assets remain secure, it added. Information that was taken from the database includes email addresses, names, addresses and phone numbers of both retail and institutional clients.

NPR Finds XM's Achilles Heel 330

PreacherTom writes "In the ongoing radio wars, one only has to listen to 20 seconds of Howard Stern's language to know that the lack of regulation gives satellite radio a distinct advantage. Of all the challengers, it seems that NPR has finally found a weakness in XM, which supplements its satellite coverage with earth-bound transmitters. A recent test found that 19 of these transmitters were unlicensed and another 221 exceeded their authorized power level, giving NPR an opening to press with an apparently sympathetic FCC. It certainly doesn't help that XM's own filings support their case."

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