1999 Is Calling. It Wants Its Hype Back

There's been lots of talk about the possibility of "Bubble 2.0," which (so far) appears to be taking a lot of ideas from the original dot com bubble, and using dynamic HTML to make it look cooler (it moves! in a browser!). While it's true that some of these second attempts are doing things much more intelligently this time around, an increasing number are not. Once the money starts flowing (and, if you hadn't noticed, it's flowing), it seems that "lessons learned" get tossed out in favor of doing anything possible to jump on the gravy train. The only problem is that we've seen how this train ride ends, and it's a train wreck that we'd all probably be better off avoiding. Still, if you want to revisit the signposts of years past, here are two more: it's suddenly fashionable again to put your startup in "stealth mode." Stealth mode is a silly term for it. Being quiet about what you're doing certainly can make sense -- especially early on when you're still figuring out the details of your messaging and positioning. However, too many startups use stealth mode as a buzz builder -- as if not telling people what you do deserves more attention than having an actual product. It's that second use of stealth mode that tends to cause over-inflated expectations. The second bubble sign is when the failures of the original dot com bubble return from the dead to try to make it again. In this case, it's "boo.com," whose only claim to fame these days was how spectacularly it flamed out. However, in a bubble era when "any publicity is good publicity," the larger the failure you're trying to resurrect, the more publicity you'll likely receive. So, come on Webvan, Kozmo and others. It's time to come on back. All you need to do is use AJAX and it'll make people forget to ask if you have a business model.

Academics To Take On Spyware

Internet centers at Harvard and Oxford universities are setting up a project to name and shame spyware vendors. The project's web site -- StopBadware.org -- will compile a list of software that carries "badware" for users to check against before they install something, as well as turning the spotlight on companies that make the software in an attempt to draw unwanted attention to them or even support lawsuits against them. Other people are taking a similar approach, but given the groups behind the project and its big-name backers (Google, Lenovo and Sun), this one should prove highly visible. The first order of business for the group, though, is to settle on a definition of badware.

RIAA Says Merely Making Files Available Is Illegal

Ray Beckerman, a lawyer that's been involved in several cases with the RIAA is reporting that the group has argued in one of his cases that simply "making files available for distribution" violates copyright laws. This means that regardless of the legality of a file somebody has on their computer, just putting it in a shared files folder than can be accessed by other people is illegal. Although it's asinine, it really shouldn't come as any surprise given the RIAA's legal campaign that's more about what it believes than what the law actually says. I noticed this morning that I left my car unlocked overnight, and there was a CD sitting inside. Does that make me a criminal in the RIAA's mind since I empowered the potential theft of some music? Update: Mike's pointed out a couple of previous posts on this issue. Although it is a somewhat complex legal issue, at least one judge has said making files available does not equal distribution.

Competing Lawsuits Are A Go

While some people are saying that questions about legal jurisdiction online are easily settled using international law, it would appear that not everyone agrees. Michael Geist has a new column looking at the recent decision in US courts concerning Yahoo's years old battle with France over war criminal charges. Geist points out that, basically, the jurisdiction question still isn't settled and suggests we may still see "competing" lawsuits in different countries. So, if you get sued in the UK for libel on the internet, even if the content and neither side involved in the case is actually in the UK, you can then sue in the country of your choice to fight over whether or not the UK has jurisdiction. Of course, who's to say that the second jurisdiction then has say over the original jurisdiction? It certainly seems like it could get quite messy.

Court Says Google Cache Is Fair Use

With all the controversy over Google's Library scanning project, one of the more interesting questions is if courts find the project to be infringement, it also probably means that the rest of Google is infringing -- as conceptually it's the same thing. Rather than books, Google is simply scanning websites and storing the index on its own machines -- and also offering up the cache for display. Apparently one guy got so upset about this that he sued over Google's cache. However, a district court has granted summary judgment in favor of Google, saying that the cache is fair use and that the since the guy took no action to remove his content from Google's cache, it was an implied license for Google to scan and keep the content in its cache. This is just one case in one district court, but the ruling should still be useful in defending the Google Library project as well.

Follow The Money To Predict The Spread Of Disease

If you're not familiar with the site Where's George?, you've been missing out. It's been around for ages, and lets people track where their money travels. Basically, people put in the serial numbers on their cash and their location -- and the site tracks where the money goes over time. There is a core group of folks who are extremely into the site, even stamping all of their money with "wheresgeorge.com" stamps to encourage people to visit the site and let them know where their money traveled to. I've visited the site a few times in the past (usually after receiving bills that had been stamped), but mostly thought of it as an amusing, quirky "time waster" website that has managed to survive for quite some time. However, some researchers realized that the data on the site actually could be quite useful, and have used it to create more accurate models of how diseases could spread through the US. I'm not sure if I should be impressed by the ingenuity of the researchers, or worried about what diseases I could get from the money in my wallet.

Pontiac Puts Its Faith In Google Results

When the internet was first becoming a commercial success, big name advertisers would go out and buy AOL keywords, and at the end of TV and radio commercials tell people to search on those keywords. As advertisers finally learned that the internet was a lot more than just AOL, that practice faded away. In 2002 we noted that one advertiser had decided that even putting URLs in a commercial was too cumbersome and, instead, just told people to Google its name. It was a sign of faith that Google would return the right result. It looks like that's gone a step further now. Pontiac is apparently advertising in some locations with a television ad that tells people to search Google for Pontiac (and even shows a screenshot) to see what people are saying about the car company. John Battelle points out that other carmakers might want to think about bidding up the price of AdWords on that keyword now (my quick test shows a Mazda ad in the top slot -- so perhaps they've already begun). What's interesting is that Pontiac parent GM says part of the reason they're doing this is to associate the company with a strong brand -- the same argument we heard a few months ago for why certain companies were willing to pay a premium to be in Google's print ad experiments. Apparently, just any association with the company is viewed as a good thing by some advertisers. Still, this does seem like a risky move -- and simply cries out for search engine manipulators to mess around with the results seen on a search on the keyword Pontiac.

Emoticons? Patented! :(

Exactly five years ago, Despair Inc. (makers of the lovely calendars that have hung in my office every year since 1999) was able to trademark :-( and immediately announced (jokingly) that they were going to sue just about everyone who used it. Amusingly, not everyone got the joke leading to outrage directed at the company. Well, in the latest case of intellectual property protection around the ever popular :), Cellular News is claiming in a headline that Cingular Patents the Emoticon :(. So, that would imply that :-( is now both trademarked and patented. It's text, so, hell, maybe someone should try to copyright it also. Looking at the details of the story suggest that it's not quite as bad as the headline suggests -- but still amazingly ridiculous. The article doesn't link to the patent, but a quick search turns up a newly issued patent on a Method for sending multi-media messages using emoticons, assigned to AT&T (not Cingular). I should mention, by the way, that there are a stunning number of patents involving emoticons -- and you have to believe that, unlike in the Despair case, none of these patent holders filed these jokingly. What this particular patent covers is the ability to use animated emoticons in mobile messaging, rather than just the text variety. So, you're fine if you still use your standard :) as you text your friends. However, even so, how in the world could this possibly deserve patent protection? Animated smileys are common just about everywhere, and not because of some brilliant "invention" that deserves protection, but because it's an obvious idea. Why should anyone deserve to get a patent on this same idea, just because it's on a mobile phone instead of a computer? What sort of patent examiner allows patents like this to be approved... and how does this possibly encourage innovation? Update: The folks from Cellular News have stopped by to point out that the actual patent is a different one from the one we're discussing. It is from Cingular and is a bit different. However, the good news is that it's just a patent application, as opposed to a full patent. The patent in this case covers adding a button to the screen of a mobile phone to let you choose which emoticon you'd like. Again, not as broad as completely patenting emoticons, but still pretty ridiculous. Hopefully the patent examiners realize this in time. The original patent we discussed, however, still never should have been granted.

Identity Thieves Going After The Sucker Born A Minute Ago

As the often mis-attributed statement goes, "there's a sucker born every minute." With more adults getting educated on internet scams and frauds, it seems that some identity thieves have figured out that it's easier to go after the more recently born suckers and have increasingly started to target children. It comes as no surprise to find out that scamming identity thieves have no qualms about going after kids, but it is worth remembering if you do have kids. Many people have learned to carefully monitor their own info, but haven't even thought that their six year-old's name may be on half a dozen credit cards somewhere.

Why Is Congress Getting Involved Over The Chinese Search Engine Censorship Story

While we're disappointed that Google has agreed to create a censored version for China, it's hard to see why the US government should be getting involved -- but they are. As Sergey Brin speaks out (in a fair amount of detail) to defend the decision, a Congressman has called for hearings where Google, Yahoo and Microsoft will all be asked to speak. Of course, it's a bit silly that this is happening now, after Google decided to do this. Yahoo and Microsoft have done the same thing for a while now. Of course, it's even more ironic, given that the very same US government is fighting Google to put in place a law that has been thrown out for violating First Amendment rights (in other words, for the possibility of censorship). While it is a disappointing move by Google, it's hard to see why the US government should be involved, other than for grandstanding on a hot topic.

Google Admits Video Launch Was A Mistake

When the new Google Video launched, we thought it was worth noting that the initial response from people was awful. We didn't doubt that Google would improve it, or that it could become a powerful platform eventually -- but were surprised that such a hyped up product was launched in such a way to make so many people go "huh?" In other Google product launches, there's been an immediate "wow" factor that wasn't just missing with Google Video -- it seemed to have been completely stamped out. It appears that even Google is now admitting that they should have thought through the launch a bit more. Google's Marissa Mayer (who we think is starting to get more press coverage than Brin, Page or Schmidt these days) has now admitted that "We made a big mistake" with the launch of Google Video. Of course, it's not clear that the company has figured out what that mistake really was. Mayer says: "You can't come out and launch a product like Google Video and say 'CSI' and 'Survivor' are there if they're not on the home page." However, that's only a tiny part of the mistake. Part of the problem seems to be that Google Video doesn't know what it wants to be. Is it a store for broadcast content? Or is it a platform for anyone to create, share or sell content? Those are two different functions, and probably need two different interfaces. The company has revamped the site, slightly, but it still seems lacking. There's now a big list at the top of videos you can buy, but it still isn't that compelling. For example, the second video listed is the Lakers-Raptors basketball game from last weekend, where Kobe Bryant scored 81 points. There's been a lot of talk about the game, so it's probably a good one to promote. However, if you go to the page of the game, they show you the first 30 seconds of the game, which are incredibly boring. If you're trying to sell the fact that you have a historic basketball game for you to watch, shouldn't the "free" clips be something worth watching? At least show a basket or two or three by Kobe.

MP3 Players The Big Security Risk... Again

Employees' MP3 players are a "massive and significant risk to corporate data" for 2006, an analyst says. Perhaps he's unaware of how many analysts have talked about this with the threat never really appearing. Even one analyst giving the "phenomenon" a catchy name -- "pod slurping" -- didn't make it stick. This issue has always existed, the media is just changing, and it's as yet failed to bring too many modern economies to their knees. Even our favorite overreacting analyst, Jack Gold (he of cameraphone-banning fame), says banning small mass-storage devices is pointless, and it cuts off companies from any of their benefits. There are plenty of existing security products and policies to deal with these devices, all that's needed is a little common sense.

ChoicePoint To Pay Up For Data Leaks And Keep On Going

ChoicePoint, the company that leaked the personal info of a huge number of people to identity thieves last year, will pay a $10 million fine to the FTC and put another $5 million in a fund to help victims of its security breach. The company, of course, has admitted no wrongdoing, but says it's changed it policies in light of the leak. But given how the number of people the company said were affected kept growing and growing -- even months later -- and the fact that they'd sold information to scammers before, can they really be trusted? The government thinks so, apparently, having given ChoicePoint a huge IRS contract just a few months after the leak. So the company can just move right along, while victims could feel the effects for years to come, particularly since they have little recourse. Of course, fines like this one don't really seem to be doing much, anyway -- just yesterday a financial-planning firm said an employee's laptop that was stolen contained personal information on 226,000 customers and financial advisers. Like ChoicePoint, it will probably just chalk up any fine as a cost of doing business.

Another Video Game Blamed In Car Crash

At least Take-Two will be glad to see the finger's not being pointed at them, for once: Toronto police are alleging that two 18-year-olds were driven to take up a street race that ended up with the death of a cab driver by the car-racing game Need for Speed. The real culprit here is the drivers' stupidity -- but since a copy of the game was "found on the front seat" of one of their cars, that's getting the attention, even though the cops admit it's not "solely" to blame. Judging by the state of the cars, it's hard to imagine much of anything being found on the front seats, but in any case, the mere presence of the game is being blamed, before police even know if the guys ever played it. Since it was in the front seat, maybe the game was actually driving and this time could be blamed for the accident, but somehow that seems unlikely. Put the blame and the reponsibility where it belongs: on the idiots behind the wheels of the cars.

Comforting Or Not, Sony Getting Out Of The Robotic Dog Business

Just last night, we pointed to a story about how robotic dogs may be just as comforting as live dogs. Whether or not you agree, the robotic dogs of the future are unlikely to be coming from Sony. Someone in the comments pointed out that Sony has discontinued the Aibo completely... along with 10,000 jobs (not all, we assume, related to the Aibo), as Sony tries to restructure and figure out how to get itself sorted out again (as we've noted, their strategy so far has amounted to looking at ways to fire more people -- a strategy that still has many confused about what Sony is doing). Perhaps instead of killing products that people like, they should focus on things like avoiding opening up security holes on computers with rootkits. Just a thought...

Seven More Face Jailtime For Helping To Promote Star Wars

Last month, we pointed out that the first person charged under a new law making it a federal crime to share a pre-release song or movie had pleaded guilty. Now, it appears that seven more people pleaded guilty and now face $100,000 fines and a year in jail. We've already discussed why such sentences are way too harsh for people who are, basically, helping to promote a movie, but in this case it's even worse. The seven people simply passed the movie along a chain to each other, rather than sharing it online. It was the last person who actually uploaded it to the internet. Still, as we pointed out when the movie came out, all of the online buzz seemed to help get more people to go to the movie, since a lot of the buzz was quite positive -- and because most of the big Star Wars fans clearly wanted to see the movie on the big screen, rather than on a tiny computer screen. We recognize that the people involved did, in fact, break the law -- but it seems like a waste of time and money to go after these people who simply liked a movie and where the impact of their actions doesn't seem likely to have caused any harm.

Talking Seriously About Mobile Porn

For years and years we've been hearing about how mobile porn is going to be a big business. Those who believe it point out that the VCR and the internet both represent markets that were driven forward by adult content -- and therefore mobile content will grow in the same way. In fact, there's an entire conference this week dedicated to the business of mobile porn. Since it's focused on the business side, it's not too surprising that it actually sounds fairly boring. However, most of the people at the conference have a vested interest in the business, so they're hyping up just how big mobile porn will be. There's just one problem. People just aren't that interested. Sure, some people are, but what people seem to be missing is that the VCR and the internet were pushed forward by porn because it helped people view porn in the privacy of their own homes. Mobile porn is the opposite -- about allowing people to view porn outside of their home, in public and on a tiny, tiny screen. So, sure, there are going to be some people who want it, but it's still difficult to see it really being that big a market.

German ISPs Can't Retain Data Europe Says They Must Retain?

This one is a bit unclear, and we'd appreciate it if someone who knows more about the specifics could fill in the details, but there seems to be some contradictory rules in Germany concerning what sort of data an ISP retains on its customers. After all, the European Parliament has now said that data retention by ISPs is a must, even if it's a pointless and costly endeavor. However, the Inquirer is reporting on a case in Germany where the courts have apparently said that any data that is not needed for billing purposes cannot be retained, as it's a violation of subscriber privacy. According to the article, this means ISPs can't even store the IP addresses of websites you visit. So, if we understand this correctly, the EU is saying that ISPs need to keep lots of data... which the German courts are saying is an illegal violation of privacy.

Satellite Radio Latest Target Of Biased Surveys

Standing right next to astroturfing in the corporate PR shenanigans lineup is the good old biased survey. A brother of the biased report, it follows a similar MO: identify an issue that could make (or cost) you some money, craft a survey, then word the results to make it look like people support your position. Satellite radio is the latest target, with a new survey saying that 86 percent of people aren't likely to buy satellite radio because of Howard Stern's move to it from terrestrial radio. Orbitcast points out who conducted the survey: a company that makes its money from broadcast radio stations. Little surprise, then, that it's going to want to downplay the threat of satellite radio. Of course, look at the flip side of their stats: 82 percent of people said they're not likely to purchase equipment and pay a monthly fee to listen to satellite radio. That means that 18 percent, or about 50 million Americans are, apparently -- a number that would suit XM and Sirius just fine. See how fun and easy it is to manipulate surveys and statistics?

Canadian Record Label To Pay For Teen's Lawsuit Against The RIAA

One of the big lies from the RIAA during the last few years is how the only reason they're suing people is to "protect the artist." It's pretty clear that they're really just protecting their own business model -- which often involves screwing over the artist. In fact, a few years ago, some musicians were thinking of suing the record labels for not getting any of the money the RIAA was getting from these lawsuits. If it was really about "protecting the artist" then shouldn't some of that money be flowing to the artists? Well, now it appears that one Canadian record label is fed up with the RIAA. After receiving a letter from a fan of one of its artists who is being sued, the label, Nettwerk Music Group, has agreed to handle her fight against the RIAA. Yes, you read that right. A music label will be fighting on behalf of a teenager in her lawsuit against the RIAA. The label's CEO is quoted as saying: "Litigation is not 'artist development.' Litigation is a deterrent to creativity and passion and it is hurting the business I love. The current actions of the RIAA are not in my artists' best interests." While, in some ways, this is partly a publicity stunt for the label -- it certainly does show that the RIAA does not speak for the entire music industry, and that's a good thing.

Dude, You Just Got Pwned By My Mom

Think that the guy that just fragged you in Halo is some cherubic-faced pre-teen? Think again, it could be a 37-year old mother of two. A recent study reports that thirty-five percent of parents say they play video games. Gen-Xer's, who grew up with video games, are now reaching parental age, and enjoy playing video games along with their kids. So, does this mean that Jack Thompson would have us believe that soon we'll have roving bands of violent families picking fights at the local mall? Well at least that family is spending some quality time together.

Spam Is What I Say Is Spam

One of the (many) bad side effects of the CAN SPAM legislation is that it "defined" spam. The problem is that spam is very much in the eye of the beholder. Even someone at the FTC said (before CAN SPAM was signed into law) that spam is "anything I don't like." That still is how most people view it. If they don't like the mail, it's spam. That's the common definition. Of course, the legal definition is quite different and that's leading to all sorts of problems on all sides. For some reason, email marketers seem to think that people obviously must be okay with any emails that comply with CAN SPAM because legally they're "not spam." That, of course, is ridiculous -- since, if people don't want it, they don't want it, no matter how legal the email is. That's why we get silly lawsuits from spammers, saying people can't filter out their spam. It's also why a politician who claims he's tough on spammers doesn't understand why people are so upset that he spammed voters himself. Anyone sending email needs to realize that spam is very much in the eye of the beholder. Of course, this works both ways. Just because I think something is spam, doesn't mean everyone else agrees with me. That's why some of these anti-spam blackhole lists run into trouble. If just a few people dislike an email, and report it to a list, it can cause problems for legitimate mailers, and the people who actually do want to receive those emails. There isn't necessarily an easy answer to this -- but a good first step is for people to realize that spam really is only defined by the recipient, and each recipient may be different.

BPI Wins Suits Against UK File-Sharers

The BPI, Britain's equivalent of the RIAA, has won lawsuits against two file-sharers. One man claimed that he didn't know what he was doing ran afoul of copyright law, while the other said the BPI had no direct evidence that he'd infringed copyrights -- but judges rejected both defenses. The BPI's embarked on an RIAA-esque legal strategy of suing people, then strong-arming them into settling, and they're certain to be buoyed by the decision. Given the RIAA's legal efforts are looking a little less assured, wonder if they'll start jurisdiction shopping -- or trying to, anyway -- in cahoots with their international allies?

Los Angeles Says Misleading Sex Scenes Are Bad... In A Video Game

It's been about six months since the ridiculous posturing by a bunch of politicians about how horrible Take Two's Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas was because it had a hidden sex scene in the video game. As we noted at the time, all of these politicians seemed positively horrified that there was a consensual sex scene available in a game where the main goals involve all sorts of criminal activity involving carjacking, murder and drugs. All that criminal activity? Well, that's fine entertainment. However, throw in a consensual sex scene that requires the player to download a modification before they can reach it... and it's like the world is going to end. Now, the city of Los Angeles, of all places, has decided to sue Take Two Interactive for misleading statements about the game. Like many Hollywood movies these days, the irony is way too over the top. Since when is Los Angeles concerned about a bit of "misleading" to build up to a sex scene? We thought that was about all that came out of LA (after scenes of carjacking and murder). Update: The Reuters version of this article includes a few more details, including this whopper: "The city also claims that Take-Two "marketed the 'Grand Theft Auto' series in a fashion that encourages the creation of (software modifications), which has added to the counter-culture image of the games, enhancing their popularity and hence their profitability." Who knew that encouraging tinkering was illegal?

Amazon Looking At Download To DVD Plan

Amazon has been notoriously hesitant to get into any business that involves offering downloadable products. However, apparently, they're now looking at more creative ways to use digital downloads to encourage more DVD purchases, recognizing that the download adds value. It's not entirely clear what form it will take, but one method may be that you pay a small amount to download some content, and if you then buy the DVD, that amount gets credited. Another, more likely, approach would be that when you buy a DVD, you automatically get access to watch the movie streaming over your computer. It's unclear how locked down this will be, or for how long you'd have access to the streaming version. What would be nice is if Amazon acted as a backup locker for the content you bought, but somehow that seems unlikely. Of course, they're trying to come up with ways to do this with Hollywood's approval, which should get around some of the problems that some music dot coms had years ago when they tried to do similar things without the recording industry's approval. Though, since Hollywood's approval probably means the content will be locked down to a ridiculous level, it may make the service a lot less interesting to many people.

Maybe Bill Gates Should Stop Making Predictions

Just days after Bill Gates didn't solve the spam problem by the deadline he had promised two years ago, it looked like he might be spouting off again. This time, Reuters says he's claiming that we'll be able to beat software piracy in China and India -- though, he's giving a longer timeline. This time it's 10 years... and the details actually suggest it's not quite as crazy as the Reuters headline suggests. He wasn't saying that Microsoft would beat software piracy in those countries, but that the level of unauthorized copying would decrease to about the same level as in the US and Europe. Also, he seems to be indicating that this is a natural progression as the local economy builds its own software industry.

Consumer Group Complains About iTunes... In Norway

A Norwegian consumer group has asked the country's ombudsman to look into the iTunes Music Store, alleging it violates consumers' rights. Among other complaints, the group has several issues with the store's terms and conditions, but also says that only allowing songs to be played on the iPod and not other portable music players contravenes fair use provisions of the country's copyright law. A consumer's group in the UK has made similar complaints there, as have other European groups. Apple, of course, couldn't care less about the iTunes DRM as it pertains to copy protection -- it just likes the lock-in.

Maryland Court Says All Your Spam Are Belong To Us

A court in Maryland has ruled that spam sent from outside the state can violate its laws and fall under its jurisdiction, overturning an earlier decision and creating an interesting precedent regarding internet jurisdiction. We've noted before how the question of just whose laws apply on the net isn't settled, with some places taking the view that if something can be viewed in their locale, it's fair game. Not too many people are likely to get upset over a ruling that makes it easier to sue spammers, but the ruling can become problematic when it gets extended to other areas. It's not hard to see the argument that if Maryland's laws can apply to one internet activity -- spam -- they can apply to all others, as well. People already do jurisdiction shopping for libel cases, perhaps they'll start doing it against spammers now too.

Now, Mobile Phones Are Good For Hospitals

Earlier in the week, a story came out of Singapore about a hospital that was allowing its staff to carry mobile phones after tests showed they had no impact on medical equipment. Many hospitals have held to their bans on phones in fear they'll interfere with equipment, but another new study says there's actually a big benefit in letting people use them (via Textually). Researchers at Yale have found that the use of cell phones in hospitals reduces their error rates since it allows for more timely communications -- and the incidence of interference is lower than the incidence of error caused by delayed communication. Looks like that long-held ban might be hurting things more than it helps.

Will The Government Now Fine Itself For Leaking Credit Card Data?

So, if the government is out fining those, like ChoicePoint, who leak data to criminals, what do they do when they're the ones doing the leaking. While it's not the federal government, it turns out that the website for the state government in Rhode Island allowed thousands of credit card numbers to be stolen -- many of which appear to have ended up in the hands of Russian hackers. The article notes that there was a private company that was running the site -- so it's likely they'll face any of the blame. However, it still looks pretty bad when you can't even trust the government with your credit card info.

Blame It On The Internet

An official in a Malaysian state says 20 percent of its employees use government computers to surf the internet, and it's apparently one of the main causes of poor productivity there. It's always funny how employers -- anywhere in the world -- find it easier to just throw blame at something for workers' poor performance, rather than truly question the real causes. The internet isn't making these people slack off, and if they didn't have it, they'd spend their time reading magazines or taking coffee breaks or something. The internet's just a time-killer for these employees, and what's keeping them from doing their work is a lack of motivation, not the endless possibilities offered by a broadband connection and Google.

Music Execs Confuse "Choice" With Making You Pay Over And Over Again

JeffVCheesedOff writes in with a link to a BBC story where they ask a bunch of recording industry execs questions about the digital music market and file sharing. The answers are exactly what you'd expect, with all the typical "it's just wrong" and "no musicians would ever make money" quotes that you've come to expect -- despite the fact that they're simply not true. However, Jeff pointed out one particular quote, concerning copy protection technology that he found particularly upsetting for a good reason. John Kennedy from the IFPI (the international version of the RIAA) is quoted as saying: "Without DRM, the explosion in the availability of music via digital channels would not have been possible. The purpose of DRM is not to alienate music fans, it is actually to improve your access to music. There are now at least 10 ways in which you can legally enjoy music - the list includes: ringtone, master ringtone, phone download, phone stream, a-la-carte download, disc, subscription, online stream, UMD music for PlayStation, kiosk and video. Without DRM, these options simply wouldn't be possible."

That is, of course, flat out wrong. You could do pretty much all of those things without any form of content protection. It would appear, however, that what Kennedy really means is that these new options are simply more ways for the industry to get you to pay again for what you already paid for. To make this even more amusing, another questions asks about why people should be forced to buy the same song multiple times... and he blames the tech industry: "I agree with you we'd like nothing more than for you to be able to download or transfer music securely between your phone, your home and work PC, a couple of your players and your home Hi-Fi system, for example. But we don't make the technology, we create the music. It's the technology companies that hold the key to achieving this." Of course, maybe if he didn't insist on putting copy protection on everything, then it would work just fine.

Google Lets Chinese Government Censor Results

While Google seems to have no problem standing up to the US government, it's decided to back down for the Chinese. In an effort to gain a bit more traction in China, Google has apparently agreed to launch a new version in China that censors results the government doesn't like. This isn't all that surprising, as plenty of others have done the same (or worse) in order to do business in China -- but it is a bit disappointing. Google has had its share of troubles in China, ever since the government first decided to completely block out the search engine more than three years ago. However, with Google battling both Yahoo and Baidu in China, apparently it felt it needed to go this route to make things work. Of course, it's a bit amusing to realize that many considered Baidu's advantage in China that it let people download music. So, apparently the trick to success in the Chinese search market is to block political stuff, but allow free music downloads.

E3 Gaming Conference Says No More Booth Babes

While there's been plenty of controversy over the fact that many companies employ "booth babes" at various tech-related conferences, it's still a bit surprising to see E3, the video gaming industry's big show, officially ban booth babes at this year's show, threatening $5,000 fines for any semi-clad booth workers or sexually provocative material (presumably, fully clothed, yet still attractive, spokespeople are still allowed). The Reuters piece suggests that this decision may stem from last summer's controversy over sexually explicit material found in Grand Theft Auto (where stealing cars and killing people is fine, but cartoonish consensual sex deserves to be punished), though there are probably plenty of other, better reasons for the ban. While we'd hope that the lack of human flesh on display wouldn't impact the show, it'll still be interesting to see how attendees react to finding all of the booths manned by fully clad spokespeople rather than the more promiscuously dressed representatives they're used to seeing. Of course, it seems that this move will put one website completely out of business.

Disney board set to meet about Pixar merger

Walt Disney's board of directors is expected to meet by Monday to consider buying Pixar Animation Studios in a deal that could revive Disney as the world's dominant animation studio and give computer pioneer Steve Jobs a new platform of power.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that Disney proposed to buy Pixar in a stock transaction worth more than $6.7 billion, making Pixar CEO Jobs its largest individual shareholder and possibly giving the man who also co-founded Apple Computer a seat on Disney's board.

Disney, for decades the pre-eminent maker of such hand-drawn animated films as "Cinderella" and "Lion King," has struggled in recent years to maintain its position in an industry that has embraced computer-generated (CG) films.

The two companies were in the midst of renegotiating their distribution agreement, which expires in June with the release of Pixar's "Cars," when rumors of the purchase surfaced.

Media industry watchers have speculated that the merger talk was driven by Disney's lack of confidence in its upcoming slate of animated films.

Disney's first CG release, "Chicken Little," released Nov. 4, has performed respectably, with worldwide box office sales of $279 million, but less than Pixar's lowest-grossing film, "A Bug's Life," which reaped $363 million worldwide.

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Adobe Acrobat enters third dimension

Adobe Systems has created a high-end version of Acrobat--aimed at boosting sales in the manufacturing industry--that displays three-dimensional images within PDF documents.

The company is expected to release Acrobat 3D, which allows a person to create a PDF (Portable Document Format) with embedded images from computer-aided design (CAD) applications. Recipients of Acrobat 3D files need a point upgrade to the current Acrobat reader version 7 to view the documents.

Adobe developed the 3D product specifically for manufacturing customers who regularly exchange CAD files in the design process, said Rak Bhalla, senior marketing manager. Car manufacturers, for example, share their product descriptions and designs with their suppliers to get bids for component parts.

Typically, design engineers today create a two-dimensional image and send them via e-mail. Having an embedded 3D image, which people can rotate to view and append with notes, will speed up the design collaboration process and reduce errors.

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Google, the defiant one

Federal prosecutors defending a controversial Internet pornography law are trying to force Google to hand over millions of search records--a request that the search giant is rejecting.

The Bush administration asked a federal judge to force Google to comply with a subpoena for the information, which would reveal the search terms of a broad swath of the search engine's visitors. Prosecutors are requesting a "random sampling" of 1 million Internet addresses accessible through Google's popular search engine, and a random sampling of 1 million search queries submitted to Google over a one-week period.

The Bush administration's request is part of its attempts to defend the 1998 Child Online Protection Act, which is being challenged in court by the American Civil Liberties Union. The ACLU says Web sites cannot realistically comply with COPA and that the law violates the right to freedom of speech mandated by the First Amendment.

An attorney for the ACLU said Microsoft, Yahoo and AOL received identical subpoenas and chose to comply with them rather than fight the request in court.

Google said in a statement sent to CNET News.com that it will resist the request "vigorously."

"You'll let Google read your email to send you advertisements but the government can't request a random non-identifying sample of data to evaluate the effectiveness of its laws?" wrote David Arbogast in News.com's TalkBack Forum.

Other readers championed Google for its actions.

"Slowly we sit here while parents leave parenting to the government and the government seems to think it knows best what is good for me," Tom Eldred wrote. "Here's to Google for resisting."

On one level, the situation involves a straightforward question of whether the department's demands are too onerous and therefore not permitted under federal law. On another, the dispute raises novel questions about search engines' privacy protections and the relationship that four tech giants have with the federal government.

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Sundance becoming a blog fest

As befits its indie roots, the Sundance Film Festival has long played host to innovations that have spread elsewhere.

Blogging is one of them. Personal blogs, millions of them, are spreading on the Internet like kudzu, from LiveJournal.com to MySpace.com. A professional blog such as Gawker Media's gossipy Defamer.com can draw as many as 270,000 page views per day.

As blogs become more successful, they're challenging traditional media, and this year's Sundance marks a fascinating juncture as newly powerful blogs like Cinematical.com take on the likes of The Los Angeles Times and The New York Times.

"Blogs are becoming a vital part of an independent film scene that relies on word-of-mouth and alternative media to truly thrive," says Eugene Hernandez, editor of the pioneering indie film site IndieWire.com, which hosts some two dozen blogs and this year has asked 12 filmmakers from Sundance and the concurrent Slamdance to blog about their experiences.

Sundance founder Robert Redford may lament all the buzz surrounding Sundance, but with all the blogs in attendance, that buzz will be louder than ever.

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Ten thoughts on the new Intel iMac

Appearance
This is one striking machine. As for the Intel iMac, there is little to distinguish it from its predecessor. Indeed, the one physical characteristic that is different in an iMac with built-in iSight is a mini-DVI port on the back, which allows a second display to extend the desktop rather than simply mirror it. By the way, the built-in display is beautiful: crisp letters, not a dead pixel that I could find, and bright enough to make you reach for the SPF30.

Memory
The Intel iMacs ship with 512MB of memory, which is enough to use the machine right out of the box, but probably not enough to judge the iMac's performance fairly.Of course, upgrading RAM is practically a requirement for any new PC. The problem here is that the Intel iMac RAM is hard to find and more expensive than memory for PowerPC iMacs. Apple's own Web sells 1GB of Intel iMac memory (PC2-5300 SO-DIMM) for $300, which is $100 more than the same amount for the non-Intel iMac (PC2-4200 DIMM). Many Web sites sell the memory for less, but most listed it as unavailable.

Cracking the case
Before Apple upgraded the flat-panel iMacs to include items like a built-in iSight camera, the company was praised for allowing people to easily open the case to do things like swap out the hard drive.

Not so with the new Intel and PowerPC iMacs: Apple has made opening the case much more of a hassle. That's worth noting if you are considering whether to get the 17-inch model, which has a 160GB hard drive, or the 20-inch, with 250GB. (Memory is easily added through an access door on the bottom that requires only a screwdriver to open.)

Noise
This iMac is remarkably quiet. I don't know how it stacks up against the PowerPC version, but it's significantly quieter than the G4 iMac it replaced or my Cube before it (which sounded like a biplane whenever I left a disc in the drive).

Sound
The speakers are small, but they sound quite good. They are not sufficient if you want room or house-filling tunes--that's what the "digital audio out" plug is for. But for listening to some music while working or cruising the Web, they sound great. Because they are located at the bottom of the case, facing down, it could be the way the sound bounces off the desk on the way to the ear.

Front Row
If you haven't used this remote control and multimedia feature yet, go to an Apple store and check it out. It is the future. You can see somewhere down the road that an Apple computer will be able to send all sorts of digital content throughout your home using an interface/software/hardware mashup that only Apple seems capable of getting right. The addition of a high-definition digital video recorder would be a big step in making this happen sooner, and of course the Mac rumor sites have been predicting such capability will be added. The sooner the better.

(Apple added an interesting design note to the iMac by allowing the Front Row remote to attach magnetically to the side of the machine.)

Migration
When starting up the iMac for the first time, you are asked if you want to import data, applications and settings from your old machine. After connecting the FireWire cord and starting up the old machine in "target" mode, the process went flawlessly. The old machine was essentially replicated on the new iMac--e-mail, photo galleries, music playlists, applications, desktop pictures, and so on. Certain items such as VPN set-up information did not transfer, possibly for security reasons. The process took a couple hours but was painless and startlingly effective

Parental controls
They work very well for limiting what children can do with a computer. Again, the process was very simple and it seems foolproof, at least for a while.

Applications
The iLife '06 applications that are now shipping with new Macs were written to be "universal," meaning they run on the PowerPC and Intel processors without the need for the Rosetta translation software. And that means they run faster on the Intel iMac than software that has does not have universal code

Does it do Windows?
There's been a lot of speculation about the ability to load Microsoft Windows on the Intel-powered Macs. The salesman at my local Apple store said XP would not run but Vista, the new Windows version due this year, "might." It's comes down to differences in BIOS and EFI

Bottom line: $1,700 for a PC is not cheap. But considering the size and beauty of the display, the included software (which likely will account for 80 percent or more of the usage on the machine) and extra hardware doodads like the video/audio outputs, remote and built-in Web cam, and the clearly superior GUI, it almost feels like a bargain

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Microsoft releases key Vista developer technologies

Microsoft on Wednesday gave developers access to a key piece of Windows Vista, months ahead of the operating system's release.

The company posted near-final versions of two software development technologies that are part of WinFX, the underlying programming model being introduced with Vista, which is slated to ship late this year.

WinFX combines Microsoft's existing .Net programming model with new tools for more easily linking software over the Internet, displaying data and creating business systems, Microsoft said. It will be shipped with Vista and also made available in versions for Microsoft's current client and server operating systems, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003, Ari Bixhorn, director of Web services strategy at Microsoft said.

The programming model includes the application programming interfaces used by millions of developers to build software that runs on Windows. Microsoft's goal in certifying parts of WinFX for production use--ahead of Vista's launch--is to entice developers to create new programs tied to the new development model, thus driving demand for Vista.

The two new technologies released on Wednesday are Windows Communication Foundation, developed under the code name Indigo, and Windows Workflow Foundation. WCF links server-based systems using Web services, while WWF is used to map business processes to networked applications.

Both are being made available under what Microsoft terms a "go live" license, meaning that the code can be used in production settings.

Microsoft demonstrated Vista, developed under the code name Longhorn, in 2003 and planned to release the operating system in 2004, but the company has since scaled back its initial plans for the release.

Making parts of WinFX backward-compatible with current Windows releases means that developers can get started before Vista arrives and new programs will work on existing PCs, Bixhorn said.

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Sony rootkit - Update

A security researcher has claimed that computers in every U.S. state have been affected by copy-restriction software from Sony BMG.

Dan Kaminsky released the information at the Shmoocon 2006 hacker conference in Washington last week. Florida seems to have the highest number, with 12,588 networks detected that are hosting computers with the digital rights management software installed, according to his research. California and Massachusetts also exhibit high rates of infection, although the numbers are only an estimate, as each network could host any number of computers with the Sony software installed.

The DRM software is automatically installed by some Sony BMG music CDs and is hidden using a rootkit, which can be exploited by a particular type of Trojan horse and hence constitutes a significant security risk.

The XCP copy protection software, created by U.K.-based First 4 Internet, is included on a limited number of Sony BMG titles, including recent releases from My Morning Jacket and Southern rockers Van Zant. When the discs are played on a computer, the listener is asked to click through a consent form and install the copy-protection software.

The problems with Sony's DRM are not limited to U.S. customers, according to Kaminsky's research. He found that infected PCs are located in many places across the world, including many European countries.

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Symantec closes off hiding place for hackers

Symantec has released an update to its popular Norton SystemWorks to fix a security problem that could be abused by cybercriminals to hide malicious software.

In the PC-tuning application, a feature called the Norton Protected Recycle Bin creates a hidden directory on Windows systems. The feature is meant to help people restore modified or deleted files, but the hidden folder might not be scanned during scheduled or manual virus scans, Symantec said in an advisory released Tuesday.

"This could potentially provide a location for an attacker to hide a malicious file on a computer," Symantec said. The Cupertino, Calif., security provider is not aware of any attempts by hackers to conceal malicious code in the folder. "This update is provided proactively to eliminate the possibility of that type of activity," it said.

When the recovery feature was first introduced, hiding the directory helped ensure that a user would not accidentally delete the files in it, Symantec said.

"In light of current techniques used by malicious attackers, Symantec has re-evaluated the value of hiding this directory," the company said in its advisory.

The Norton update will display the previously hidden "NProtect" directory in the Windows interface, which will allow it to be scanned by antivirus products, Symantec said. The new version is available through the Symantec LiveUpdate service. Installing the software will require a system reboot.

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Macworld: Intel-based Macs built for speed

This is a running commentary that was posted live during Apple Computer CEO Steve Jobs' keynote speech at Macworld on Jan. 10, 2006.

10:15

Jobs unveiled the first Intel-based Mac, an updated iMac. The machine will come in the same sizes as its Power PC-based predecessor and will cost the same, but Jobs said it will be two to three times faster because it uses Intel's dual-core Duo chip.

10:10

Jobs moved on to discuss the transition to Intel chips.

"We announced that by June of this year, we would be shipping Intel-based Macs."

Then Intel CEO Paul Otellini came onstage in a bunny suit. "Steve, I want to report that Intel is ready," Otellini said, handing over a silicon wafer.

"Well, I can report to you that Apple is ready, too," Jobs said.

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Microsoft?

A look at Vista
Among the new graphics abilities in Vista that Microsoft showed off was Flip 3D, a tool for easily shifting among multiple open windows and the Windows Vista Sidebar, which runs in the corner of the screen and includes RSS feeds, sports scores and other small applications. Microsoft showed Sidebar in the first preview of Longhorn (Vista's code name), but the feature had disappeared from Microsoft's feature list before reappearing more recently.

Microsoft's photo-editing program--Photo Gallery--allows users to do basic editing, as well as sort photos by date, keyword and other information. The program, which will be built into Vista, appears to be similar to Apple Computer's iPhoto.

Like iPhoto, the Photo Gallery software keeps a separate copy of the photo so users can make changes to their images without losing their original. A new slideshow feature allows users to mix video images and still photos.

Microsoft also showed off a forthcoming update to the classic Microsoft program Flight Simulator to highlight the graphics and gaming power of Vista. The demo included helicopters and flying birds, among other realistic details.

Xbox marks the spot
Along with Vista, Gates is also made his case for HD DVD--one of two competing formats for next-generation DVDs. Gates said Microsoft would offer an external HD DVD drive that can connect to the recently released Xbox 360 game console.

By offering the drive as an Xbox add-on, Microsoft is hoping to win over consumers with a cheaper option than buying an all-new device to play next-generation Blu-ray or HD DVD discs.

A new tune
Beyond the PC, Microsoft is also attempting to catch up in the portable music and video markets, which have been dominated by Apple Computer. Gates was joined on stage by pop superstar Justin Timberlake and MTV Music Group President Van Toffler to talk up the MTV-created Urge music service, which will use Microsoft's technology as well as show off a new crop of portable video devices, known as portable media centers.

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Experts question Windows win in flaw tally

Critics have taken aim at a study published by the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team that said more vulnerabilities were found in Linux/Unix than in Windows last year.

The report, Cyber Security Bulletin 2005, was released last week. It claimed that out of 5,198 reported flaws, 812 were found in Microsoft's Windows operating system, 2,328 were found in open-source Unix/Linux systems. The rest were declared to be multiple operating-system vulnerabilities.

The report has attracted criticism from some in the open-source community. Linux vendor Red Hat said the vulnerabilities had been wrongly tagged, and so could not be used to compare the relative security of Windows and Linux/Unix platforms.

"The study is confusing and misleading. When you look at the list, the vulnerabilities are miscategorized," Mark Cox, a consulting software engineer at Red Hat, said. "For example, Firefox is categorized as a Unix/Linux operating-system flaw, but it runs just as well on a Windows platform. Apache and PHP also run just as well on both platforms. There are methodological flaws in the statistics."

Secunia thought that the nature of the reported vulnerabilities also made it difficult to compare security on the platforms, as Linux/Unix researchers concentrate on vulnerabilities in local privilege separation, while Windows researchers look at possible remote vulnerabilities.

"Generally, many of the vulnerabilities in Linux/Unix based products are classified as local vulnerabilities, including privilege escalation, local denial of service and local exposure of sensitive data. These kind of vulnerabilities are not regarded as particularly critical, but Linux/Unix researchers tend to focus quite a lot on this category, probably because of Unix's long history of proper privilege separation. This has only recently become more relevant in Windows (NT, 2000, and XP), but many Windows researchers still focus more on remote issues," Secunia said.

In Newsforge, the Linux and open-source online publication, Joe Brockmeier and Joe Barr cast doubt on the vulnerability totals.

"The two figures are not representative of today's two major operating-system platforms. One figure represents the vulnerabilities found in Windows operating systems: XP, NT, 98, and so on. The other represents a total figure not just for Solaris, AIX, HP-UX, the BSDs, and Linux, but for a hundred different versions of Linux," the article said.

Red Hat's Cox said Linux operating systems were more secure for businesses than Windows platforms, as fewer vulnerabilities were critical and patches were brought out more quickly.

"There is also the issue of timing," he said. "With Linux products, critical updates are available within a day. If you look at Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3, the average patch time is under a day. With the recent critical WMF (Windows Meta File) vulnerability, it took Microsoft seven days," he said

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New open-source license targets DRM, Hollywood

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--The new version of the most widely used open-source license takes a "highly aggressive" stance against the digital rights management software that's widely favored in the entertainment industry, said Eben Moglen, general counsel for the Free Software Foundation.

Moglen said that DRM technology, which places limits on how consumers can play movies, music or other digital content, is "fundamentally incompatible" with the principles of the Free Software Foundation. Moglen and Free Software Foundation founder Richard Stallman are co-authors of the GPL version 3.

"Mr. Stallman made perfectly clear that his point of view is: It's enough. It's enough that the world has to pay attention to that (DRM) problem the way the world needed to pay attention to the patent problem 10 years ago," Moglen said

The planned anti-DRM changes to the GPL are significant because the entertainment industry regularly uses Linux-powered computers in the production process, notably for special effects and animation. In general, movie studios support DRM technology to prevent piracy.

Moglen and Stallman have voiced concern specifically with TiVo, which uses Linux, because the company collects information on consumers' actions. Moglen said TiVo complied with version 2 of the GPL "by the skin of its teeth" and said the company will find more difficulty complying with GPL version 3's anti-DRM provisions.

"Having a personal video recorder which reports every button you push to headquarters when you use the remote control--and which won't run software if you modify the box so it snoops on you a little less--is not user-respecting conduct," he said.

"What TiVo needs to do--what everybody needs to do who makes electronic devices--is to stop injuring users to help movie companies. We don't want our software used in a way which batters the head of the user to please somebody else. Our goal is the protection of users' rights, not movies' rights," Moglen said.

He said Hollywood studios that use free software, namely Linux, to create animated movies yet deny users' freedoms are "flat unfair."

Defender of the GPL

Eben Moglen's life just got a lot busier.

The Columbia Law School professor and attorney representing the Free Software Foundation has the new role of explaining and overseeing the update to the General Public License (GPL). That document, being revised for the first time in 15 years, is not only the embodiment of the free software movement's principles but also the legal foundation for thousands of open-source software programs from Linux to MySQL.

The draft of version 3 of the GPL doesn't change that fundamental mechanism, but it does take a more aggressive stance when it comes to patent law. Unlike 1991's version 2, the update explicitly tackles the issue of software patents. It also takes a stand against digital rights management technology--which the FSF dubs "digital restrictions management"--that encrypts or locks software or content to govern its use.

Moglen: Patents, unlike copyright, are said to control ideas rather than expressions. The soul of the free software movement is the re-implementation of neat stuff we thought up, no matter how we learned it or where we came by it; and in the world of copyright, there's nothing wrong with that. You can re-implement or redescribe or re-express anything you want however you please. When you write a newspaper story or a Web site story tomorrow, the question isn't: Are you reporting news somebody else owns? The question is: Did you write your own story? Imagine a world in which news was owned in such a way that once one guy reported it nobody else could report it for 20 years because the first guy to report it owned it. That's the problem that the patent law proposes to software.