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[chikorita157]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

Your first point is abit overused, but your second point is something fresh I would like to comment on.

In Australia, my friends reported that they TRADE video games, especially those with low replayability like Final Fantasy. And that isn't even counted as illegal because they bought the games off the shelves.

Over at where I live, there is a place which RENT OUT videogames. But it does not have titles which limit installations like Bioshock, so that is one big damn pity.

Besides a current -accidental- countermeasure that is overlooked is the size of the files in the game, not the DRMs that deters download (imagine downloading a 10GB file to play on your computer, and if your hard drive has got low spin rates, good luck to it in a few months). Since content increases space, it would be better if the producers and distributors work together to increase the amount of content and the quality of content. At least it gives fans a reason to buy their games.

Direct2Drive is an excellent service that increases availability of PC games, so why not market in that direction at this age of information technology rather than creating protections that increase production costs?

Alcohol 120% and Daemontools are not foolproof emulators because it does increase loading times if the image is too big, if the makers are willing to put more effort into their content rather than meeting deadlines all the time, we would certainly have less of these cases happening.

P.S TPB isn't that bad compared to Mininova and some others. BtChina would have outstripped it if not for its Chinese.

Wouldn't P2P file sharing be compared to sharing a disc... because sharing it does not generate a lost sale because that sale wasn't made in the first place... P2P file sharing is alot easier which is why people engage in it, although there are cheap, legal alternatives. MP3 stores like iTunes and Amazon MP3 allow you to download single tracks or the whole album at a cheaper price compared to CDs and now they provide only DRM-free copies, so DRM isn't a problem there anymore... but the problem with these stores is that it doesn't contain every CD, not even the foreign CDs are not on sale in the country you reside in, which is a problem. If the music/movie industry stop doing this witch hunt on piracy and start providing affordable ways for people to buy their media, they would be more respected, but I doubt that will happen.

Well when the entertainment industry is in the business to entertain, they do very little of it. I just find that politicians are all about protecting big business and not the consumers. I'm all for for profit companies but the way the industry treats their customers as shifty eyed shoplifters just drives me nuts. Complacancy and apathy is the reason why people let their elected officials accept biased points of view.

Thats a big drawback with capitalism, it only benefits the big businesses, not main street. This is the reason why more regular citizens like us are complaining about corporate greed... (for example, AIG).

RIAA and MPAA are in my opinion not for the musicians or the people who make their films, only for themselves... suing people who fileshare, even innocent people like someone's grandparents who don't know how to use a computer for example...

[Anh_Minh]

People engage in P2P because it's convenient and free. No stone and mortar shop is ever going to beat that. No online shop is, either, for that matter. Some band did an experiment once, by releasing a track for free. You just had to sign up to download it. Even that was considered too much, and it ended up on the P2P networks a pretty fast. *shrug* Maybe record companies are doomed to change CDs from money makers to promotional items for their new core products: t-shirts and posters.

There's an idea that's floating around: global license (in other words, a tax that's redistributed to record companies). I think that's the only way they're going to make money off of pirates.

Originally Posted by Kakashi

Tomatoes are preferred, especially in theatre, but shoes are generally more accessible as projectiles. With Labour (centre-left) becoming increasingly unpopular in Britain, we're more likely to swing to the right than to adopt this kind of policy.



Japan seems to like the idea.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Japan-...-14421121.html
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-b...0090107a2.html

Two differences:
- to them, it a temporary fix during the crisis, not "social progress".
- they cut wages at the same time.

Actually, we also reduce hours during the crisis. We call it partial joblessness rather than work sharing, though.

There, as with the reduction of work hours, there are a lot of arguments about the decreased wages. I mean, what's the point of cutting hours by 30% if you can only cut the pay by 5%?

[Shadow Kira01]

Mexico flu outbreak kills dozens

Dozens of people have died and hundreds of others have been infected in a viral outbreak in Mexico suspected to have been caused by a strain of swine flu.

It appears that this might affect the world if the flu outbreak isn't successfully contained in Mexico. From the looks of it, there is currently no cure.

[danin8r44]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

People engage in P2P because it's convenient and free. No stone and mortar shop is ever going to beat that. No online shop is, either, for that matter. Some band did an experiment once, by releasing a track for free. You just had to sign up to download it. Even that was considered too much, and it ended up on the P2P networks a pretty fast. *shrug* Maybe record companies are doomed to change CDs from money makers to promotional items for their new core products: t-shirts and posters.

There's an idea that's floating around: global license (in other words, a tax that's redistributed to record companies). I think that's the only way they're going to make money off of pirates.

Well record companies are becoming an increasingly useless industry anyway. Think about it, the goal of a record company isn't to produce music, and only to record it in a very small part. Their primary job is to distribute and advertise music. Between myspace, youtube, p2p, etc... it has been proven that an artist can distribute and advertise their music by themselves, with just the internet. Record companies aren't only threatened by a drop in sales because of sharing, but it threatens the very nature of their existence. Artists might lose a bit of money, but at least (most) musicians make more money on concerts than from cd sales.

[Anh_Minh]

Yes. But that might spell the end of really big concerts and tours. I watched a report where they explained record companies barely broke even on those. They're here to advertise the artist and maintain his or her fanbase.

Well, I don't care. I never go to concerts.

[danin8r44]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

Yes. But that might spell the end of really big concerts and tours. I watched a report where they explained record companies barely broke even on those. They're here to advertise the artist and maintain his or her fanbase.

Well, I don't care. I never go to concerts.

It might spell the end of really big concerts, but that would be in exchange for a greater spread in the popularity of different bands, and for cheaper (maybe free) music. I for one am willing to let the record industries die.

It appears that this might affect the world if the flu outbreak isn't successfully contained in Mexico. From the looks of it, there is currently no cure.

It looks like it won't be too much of a threat seeing as how even Mexico is going so far to prevent the outbreak from worsening.

[Nosauz]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

Yes. But that might spell the end of really big concerts and tours. I watched a report where they explained record companies barely broke even on those. They're here to advertise the artist and maintain his or her fanbase.

Well, I don't care. I never go to concerts.

you made some really good points, but one of major beefs with the industry is that even if downloading illegally is easier if there is precieved worth, people will buy the product, if you look at steam, the system prevents pirating on a large scale but they also offer the idea of value, their games are constantly updated, and you always feel as if your money is going extra distance. Added value or the feel of worth is more important than just ease of access, or else adobe and all these software giants would be dead.

[Shadow Kira01]

N. Korea threatens to conduct nuclear, missile tests

The best solution to this is launch a military attack on North Korea, it is just about the right time to do so. Making North Korea eat their words is essential to regional stability.

[ZephyrLeanne]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

We (France) have tried to share work. By reducing the legal amount of weekly work from 39 hours to 35. Not exactly a resounding success.

Japan and France are different. In France, you can kidnap your boss. In Japan, your boss can kidnap you. French people are also more liberal-minded. And fiercely protective of their own rights.

Originally Posted by Shadow Minato

N. Korea threatens to conduct nuclear, missile tests

The best solution to this is launch a military attack on North Korea, it is just about the right time to do so. Making North Korea eat their words is essential to regional stability.

You know what? Who cares... they can't even aim for nuts...

[Solace]

Originally Posted by Shadow Minato

N. Korea threatens to conduct nuclear, missile tests

The best solution to this is launch a military attack on North Korea, it is just about the right time to do so. Making North Korea eat their words is essential to regional stability.

Are you willing to go die for the cause? There is no "best solution" to North Korea, and if you think solving the problem is by starting a war I'm not sure what to tell you. Who do you think would end up footing the bill for such a conflict? The US is already involved in two major war fronts and bleeding money like it's going out of style, and the rest of the world isn't in much shape to claim any better either.

Exactly what good would come of starting yet another conflict?

[Shadow Kira01]

Originally Posted by Solace

Are you willing to go die for the cause? There is no "best solution" to North Korea, and if you think solving the problem is by starting a war I'm not sure what to tell you. Who do you think would end up footing the bill for such a conflict? The US is already involved in two major war fronts and bleeding money like it's going out of style, and the rest of the world isn't in much shape to claim any better either.

Exactly what good would come of starting yet another conflict?

You see...

Nobody would like to start another conflict but North Korea is provoking to do so. If the world is going to turn a blind eye, apologize to North Korea and act like nothing happen, then it might as well turn to the era of apocalypse. It makes no sense. North Korea has committed a serious crime yet they are threatening people to apologize and trash all the economic sanctions. If Obama is going to ignore this, then we all might as well forget the United States on the issue.

The six-party talk is merely an act the United States draw up to make everybody happy, especially themselves. It is a response to show that they care about allies and regional issues, as well as regional stabilities but it is also a damn fact that the six-party talks is useless and is only a means of stalling time so that everybody can have a piece of mind while North Korea can go do whatever they like. Unfortunately, North Korea has seen through American's plans and strengths, as well as weaknesses. If North Korea make threats, provoke a conflict, it is now obvious that nobody can do anything about it, unless some nation stand up and make them eat their words, it is most likely that North Korea will continue to do what they do but the situation will only worsen. If its a win situation for them and a lose for everybody else.

In other words, the only nation wanting to start a conflict right now is North Korea and not the ones criticizing their problematic actions or the ones preparing to counter their problematic actions. Of course, I know you realize that..

[Solace]

If its a win situation for them and a lose for everybody else.

This depends on the level of "win" they are seeking. Right now, North Korea is heading down the same road that Russia did before it collapsed. You could almost consider the tensions right now a kind of Cold War. No one wants to actually act because the first one to pull the trigger will have to live with the consequences.

Consider what happens if North Korea attacks something with nuclear weapons. After the initial shock of the destruction, the world community will storm the country and remove the military and government from power permanently. No one wants to be target number two.

If North Korea just uses a missile attack or invasion, nearly every nation in the area has powerful allies with whom would again, storm the country and remove it from being a threat. Attack China? Good luck. Attack South Korea, Japan, Australia, etc...the US would be right behind them.

Right now, the only danger North Korea presents is to itself. If or when it attacks, that's when war plans will be drawn up. We can play arm chair generals all we want, but that's the bottom line. It is a clear *risk* to world security, but you can't call the nation a threat when it can't actually do anything for fear of being wiped out.

Sure, they'll make bold statements and build up an army. As long as that's all they do, things will stay as they are now. It's not very useful to be a pit bull when you are surrounded by a pack of wolves. The country will either collapse, or realize that they've wasted decades on military power for no real gain.

[james0246]

Sorry to divert the conversation from the never ending discussions concerning N. Korea/Iran, but this was just released recently:

Woman Claims Father Was Infamous Zodiac Killer (I do not know this website, or the author of the article; I pulled the article from Huffington and am too tired to seek confirmation right now (sorry ). If it immediatly confirmed to be a hox, please delete this message...

Perez of Corona, in Southern California, told reporters that she was seven years old and tagged along with her father, Guy Ward Hendrickson, when he killed two of the known victims nearly 40 years ago — Darlene Ferrin in Vallejo and Paul Stine in San Francisco. ...

"He told me he was sick and all I wanted to do was help my dad," said Perez, who came to her conclusion that her father was the Zodiac killer about two years ago. "He kept telling me he was sick and he killed many, many people. I had no idea." ...

Kevin McLean, also in attendance at the Perez news conference, said he worked with attorney Melvin Belli - who the Zodiac killer had contacted pleading for help. McLean said handwriting tests show Perez did write some of the letters, and they hoped DNA testing can be done on the glasses believed to belong to Stine."

Obviously, this could be yet another hoax (there is one every couple of years), potentially spurned on by hit David Fincher film Zodiac.

[ZephyrLeanne]

Originally Posted by Solace

Are you willing to go die for the cause? There is no "best solution" to North Korea, and if you think solving the problem is by starting a war I'm not sure what to tell you. Who do you think would end up footing the bill for such a conflict? The US is already involved in two major war fronts and bleeding money like it's going out of style, and the rest of the world isn't in much shape to claim any better either.

Exactly what good would come of starting yet another conflict?

exactly my point, leave them alone, they can't even develop something that will actually work for now... (and whoever thinks I'm trolling, I'm not - it's the truth, look at their tests thus far and you'll realize that they're far off target)

so, just let them be, they're attention seekers. soon, they'll come back.

[killer3000ad]

http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/eu...car/index.html

Another angle here->http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=f1a_1241095288

PS. the second video link has some rather graphic footage.

[Vexx]

Originally Posted by ShimatheKat

exactly my point, leave them alone, they can't even develop something that will actually work for now... (and whoever thinks I'm trolling, I'm not - it's the truth, look at their tests thus far and you'll realize that they're far off target)

so, just let them be, they're attention seekers. soon, they'll come back.

Aye, *attention-seeking* and ego-stroking seems to be the main driver -- rather like a 2 year old who keeps annoying the other children in the sandbox and doesn't understand why they don't like him.

Reacting to a two-year old's antics is no justification to kill hundreds of thousands of people on each side of a conflict. You isolate them and keep explaining what they need to change for people to like them. Acting like a two year old in return simply validates their behavior as okay.

[solomon]

http://freep.com/article/20090430/BU...for+bankruptcy

Needless to say, people in the rust belt of the US are antsy, to say the very least

[Xellos-_^]

kinda expect it, chrysler was the weakest of the big3 auto. the GM creditor are probably looking to see how the chrysler go. If the Chrysler creditor end making more money form banruptcy you can see then take a harder line with GM but if the chrysler creditor ended with less money then the propose deal then the GM creditor would be more likely to strike a deal.

[Terrestrial Dream]

Originally Posted by Shadow Minato

N. Korea threatens to conduct nuclear, missile tests

The best solution to this is launch a military attack on North Korea, it is just about the right time to do so. Making North Korea eat their words is essential to regional stability.

Do you live or ever lived in Korea? Do you have any family members or friends there? If you don't stfu.

[TooPurePureBoy]

Acting like a two year old in return simply validates their behavior as okay.

So wait, defending yourself against an aggressor is considered childish behavior now? I mean I understand and appreciate pacifism but there comes a point where you have to fight back doesn't there?

This is not a troll or flame post, I'm asking a serious philosophical question here...or at least trying to.

I ask this because I've noticed a severe strain of attitude in the world of people wanting a peaceful existence but not being willing to get their hand dirty in order to achieve it.

Is the idea of peace really possible without some authority to uphold it?