http://www.techdirt.com/ Easily digestible tech news.... http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/18265123163/reporters-find-exposed-personal-data-via-google-threatened-with-cfaa-charges.shtml#c317 Wed, 22 May 2013 12:31:26 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/18265123163/reporters-find-exposed-personal-data-via-google-threatened-with-cfaa-charges.shtml#c317 http://www.techdirt.com/blog/wireless/articles/20130521/20101423164/att-says-you-can-use-any-video-streaming-app-you-want-just-as-soon-as-it-can-get-meter-running.shtml#c21 Wed, 22 May 2013 12:30:38 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/blog/wireless/articles/20130521/20101423164/att-says-you-can-use-any-video-streaming-app-you-want-just-as-soon-as-it-can-get-meter-running.shtml#c21
Data is like water. It's all potable. It all comes into the house over the same pipes.

I'm going to repost something I wrote earlier. Just replace all cases of Tethering with Video/Facetime/Hangouts/etc.



Quick Tethering Quiz.

Which costs more and which puts more stress on their network:
1. A 1 kilobyte packet transmitted between my phone and the tower.
2. A 1 kilobyte packet transmitted between my phone and the tower.
(Please note in the case of (1) the packet was from my mobile browser, and in the case of (2) the packet was from my laptop browser.)

If I have a 2 GB monthly data limit, which of the following activities will use more data on the network:
1. Downloading 2 GB of data to my mobile phone?
2. Downloading 2 GB of data to my laptop?




I have an interesting situation. My water utility sells me metered water for washing dishes, watering the lawn, showering, and other limited purposes.

The utility offers a Tasting plan for an additional monthly charge. Under this plan, I am allowed to use the water also for cooking and drinking. (Even though my water use is metered, and each gallon of water for cooking and drinking is delivered by the same pipes!)

Dear customer: our records indicate that you have been using water for cooking and/or drinking. Please upgrade your water rate plan to our convenient Tasting plan that allows for this usage. If you continue to use water for cooking and drinking, you will be signed up for the Tasting plan automatically.

I think the Tasting plan is just a fee that they made up. It isn't a service they provide. They just want more money from me. I've got a workaround of using a container to obtain water from another room for the purposes of cooking and drinking.

Some people shout: Theft of service!
But what service? They're already delivering water to me, and metering it, and I'm paying for it, and its delivered by the same pipes!

Some people shout: but you signed an agreement and using the water for cooking and drinking is a breach of that agreement!
Ask a lawyer about the term "unconscionable contract".
Nobody in their right mind would agree to this if they had any actual choice in the matter. Just because they have the power and can force you into paying this ridiculous fee or doing without doesn't make it right.

I say that this Tasting "service" is no service at all, it's just a fee for delivering nothing at all extra to me. It's a case of the utility wanting something for nothing. Yet people seem to think it is somehow wrong to use the water I'm paying for for drinking or cooking unless I sign up for the more expensive Tasting plan.

In order to add legitimacy to their Tasting plan, the water company says that the Tasting plan is actually delivering something: it includes an additional 2 Gigabytes of water per month, giving you 4 total Gigabytes of water.

But what if I only need 2 Gigabytes of water and therefore my existing monthly 2 Gigabyte plan is plenty? The water company already charges $10 per extra Gigabyte of water I use over the limit. So if I used excess water, it's not like they wouldn't get paid.

Furthermore, once I sign up for the Tasting plan, they don't make any distinction between water used for drinking/cooking and water used for other purposes. I could use 3/4 of it for tasting, and 1/4 for bathing/dishwashing. Or any other split. Or all of it purely for tasting. So then if I paid for Tasting and used only 2 Gigabytes of water, which I already had paid for, then why did I need the Tasting plan?

I seem to be very confused about stealing water for tasting. Someone please set me straight.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130515/11032823096/how-low-can-drones-go.shtml#c760 Wed, 22 May 2013 12:29:09 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130515/11032823096/how-low-can-drones-go.shtml#c760 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/18265123163/reporters-find-exposed-personal-data-via-google-threatened-with-cfaa-charges.shtml#c296 Wed, 22 May 2013 12:28:47 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/18265123163/reporters-find-exposed-personal-data-via-google-threatened-with-cfaa-charges.shtml#c296 response to hot coffee.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/18265123163/reporters-find-exposed-personal-data-via-google-threatened-with-cfaa-charges.shtml#c292 Wed, 22 May 2013 12:27:52 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/18265123163/reporters-find-exposed-personal-data-via-google-threatened-with-cfaa-charges.shtml#c292 www.terracomonline.com/index.php

So now I'm a criminal because I didn't ask my browser to get it?]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130519/18102623141/so-its-come-to-this-seven-high-school-students-arrested-throwing-water-balloons.shtml#c1406 Wed, 22 May 2013 12:14:37 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130519/18102623141/so-its-come-to-this-seven-high-school-students-arrested-throwing-water-balloons.shtml#c1406 Can you actually trespass at a public school?

Yeah. If you are an adult from the outside and don't have any legitimate reason to be there, the school administration has every right to deny you access to school grounds.

Of course, Kevin Hines, as a parent of a student, certainly had every right to be at the school.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/18265123163/reporters-find-exposed-personal-data-via-google-threatened-with-cfaa-charges.shtml#c276 Wed, 22 May 2013 12:09:03 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/18265123163/reporters-find-exposed-personal-data-via-google-threatened-with-cfaa-charges.shtml#c276 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wget
"Typical usage of GNU Wget consists of invoking it from the command line"

We all know that anyone using the command line instead of a GUI is a dirty hacker.
/s]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/18265123163/reporters-find-exposed-personal-data-via-google-threatened-with-cfaa-charges.shtml#c270 Wed, 22 May 2013 12:08:49 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/18265123163/reporters-find-exposed-personal-data-via-google-threatened-with-cfaa-charges.shtml#c270
You'd be pretty surprised what you can find by just playing around with them.
I blame boredom.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/18265123163/reporters-find-exposed-personal-data-via-google-threatened-with-cfaa-charges.shtml#c246 Wed, 22 May 2013 12:08:11 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/18265123163/reporters-find-exposed-personal-data-via-google-threatened-with-cfaa-charges.shtml#c246
Don't you watch The Daily Show man?]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130519/18102623141/so-its-come-to-this-seven-high-school-students-arrested-throwing-water-balloons.shtml#c1392 Wed, 22 May 2013 12:07:52 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130519/18102623141/so-its-come-to-this-seven-high-school-students-arrested-throwing-water-balloons.shtml#c1392 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130515/11032823096/how-low-can-drones-go.shtml#c745 Wed, 22 May 2013 12:04:45 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130515/11032823096/how-low-can-drones-go.shtml#c745
A matching receiver typically comes with the transmitter. Once again, both for less than $100. You could attach a USB Video capture dongle to the receiver and record some of his flight video on a notebook PC, then loop it back to him via your more powerful transmitter. This would likely confuse him enough to end the flight quickly in a crash. But work fast, his flight will typically last only 8 to 12 minutes.

.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130522/01382223168/new-york-times-tells-startup-it-cant-even-mention-ny-times.shtml#c432 Wed, 22 May 2013 12:03:47 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130522/01382223168/new-york-times-tells-startup-it-cant-even-mention-ny-times.shtml#c432 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130515/11032823096/how-low-can-drones-go.shtml#c743 Wed, 22 May 2013 11:58:17 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130515/11032823096/how-low-can-drones-go.shtml#c743 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130519/18102623141/so-its-come-to-this-seven-high-school-students-arrested-throwing-water-balloons.shtml#c1382 Wed, 22 May 2013 11:56:01 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130519/18102623141/so-its-come-to-this-seven-high-school-students-arrested-throwing-water-balloons.shtml#c1382 https://duckduckgo.com/?q=water+balloon+injury]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130519/18102623141/so-its-come-to-this-seven-high-school-students-arrested-throwing-water-balloons.shtml#c1362 Wed, 22 May 2013 11:54:47 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130519/18102623141/so-its-come-to-this-seven-high-school-students-arrested-throwing-water-balloons.shtml#c1362
Are you f'ing insane? They weren't frozen, for dog's sake. My 18 month old granddaughter was hit by a water balloon this weekend. No tears, only giggles and "again!". So either she's tougher than Wolverine, or you have the pain threshold of an amoeba.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130515/00554723091/more-details-emerge-key-legal-fight-over-dmca-abuse.shtml#c406 Wed, 22 May 2013 11:53:24 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130515/00554723091/more-details-emerge-key-legal-fight-over-dmca-abuse.shtml#c406 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/18265123163/reporters-find-exposed-personal-data-via-google-threatened-with-cfaa-charges.shtml#c226 Wed, 22 May 2013 11:53:10 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/18265123163/reporters-find-exposed-personal-data-via-google-threatened-with-cfaa-charges.shtml#c226
your second point: why would someone imply that someone else is liable to be sued if not to threaten to sue? even if said threat is empty?

Also, I don't think the article implies charges are imminent. It's implied that if the companies decide to sue it will be laughed out of court, so it's unlikely that they actually will.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130522/01382223168/new-york-times-tells-startup-it-cant-even-mention-ny-times.shtml#c408 Wed, 22 May 2013 11:52:41 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130522/01382223168/new-york-times-tells-startup-it-cant-even-mention-ny-times.shtml#c408
The NYT Legal Dept. is focused on 1) Protecting the NYT brand and content, without any thought whatsoever to the big picture; and 2) justifying the legal department's own existence, which includes sending at-times meritless threat letters.

They also have shown a penchant for black/white thinking; refusal to negotiate or consider circumstances; and for making absolute threats of suit, but rarely actually pulling the trigger and suing.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/15164823159/bad-day-prenda-continues-judge-rejects-stay-adds-1k-per-day-each-day-they-dont-pay-up.shtml#c608 Wed, 22 May 2013 11:51:10 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/15164823159/bad-day-prenda-continues-judge-rejects-stay-adds-1k-per-day-each-day-they-dont-pay-up.shtml#c608 > from the bench and make an example, by being
> investigator, judge, and jury all in one.

And yet nothing Wright cited here is false.

Prenda did file an 11th-hour appeal with the wrong court.

They did create the crisis for which they're now seeking relief.

The judge was perfectly correct to deny their motion and sanction them for non-compliance.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/18265123163/reporters-find-exposed-personal-data-via-google-threatened-with-cfaa-charges.shtml#c224 Wed, 22 May 2013 11:49:45 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/18265123163/reporters-find-exposed-personal-data-via-google-threatened-with-cfaa-charges.shtml#c224 and wins. If the DoJ refuses to go after them, it shows a definite double standard (weev is a troll/AT&T is more important that TerraCom). That and the court battle would be epic, and due to the more sympathetic defendants has a better shot at appeal then weev's case.

Also, as evidenced by the DoJ subpoenas of AP and FoxNews' phone records, the one surefire way to make sure "how abusive these laws are" gets into the goldfish-sized attention span of the professional news media is to use those laws against the professional news media.]]>