5.16 billion files
File traders swapped 5.16 billion music files last year on networks like KaZaA and Morpheus, according to this recent Yankee Group study. Here’s another story on the same study.
Books with sneaky shrinkwrap licenses?
Books with sneaky shrinkwrap licenses? You know the kind — by opening this package, you agree to blah blah blah. Software packages have long had this kind of language slapped all over them, in an effort to keep you from doing certain things (copying, reselling, reverse engineering). Now, it seems, b
Lessig on copyright
From O’Reilly’s Open Source convention, Lawrence Lessig delivers a clear, engaging, passionate primer on copyright politics.
Theft of the commons
They hang the man and flog the woman That steal the goose from off the common, But let the greater villain loose That steals the common from the goose. The law demands that we atone When we take things we do not own, But leaves the lords and ladies fine Who take things that are […]
Carte blanche for hackers
If a bill recently introduced by U.S. Rep. Howard Berman passes, hackers will be able to find plenty of gainful and glamorous employment in the movie and music industries. That’s because the California Democrat’s bill would give copyright holders legal immunity for hacking peer-to-peer file-trading
1 min read
Carte Blanche for Hackers
Some recently proposed legislation could open up computer networks to vigilante-style justice. There’s never been a better time to be a hacker. Twice last week, Bush administration officials reached out to the hacker community, asking attendees at two different Las Vegas conferences to be responsibl
3 min read
Importance of Knowing Who’s Who
Mention directory servers to the average person and you’ll get either a blank stare or a knowing look and a yawn. That’s because these servers, which manage lists of users on a computer network, play a decidedly prosaic role within corporate information systems. But as we enter the increasingly inte
3 min read