Cerberus 's Techdirt Comments

Latest Comments (145) comment rss

  • On the post: The Most Nefarious Part Of The TPP Proposal: Making Copyright Reform Impossible

    Cerberus ( profile ), 15 Nov, 2013 @ 10:09am

    Re: It's not only Lobbyist we'd need to worry about

    Exactly! That is what will happen if this mercantilist treaty is ratified: parliaments, courts, and constitutions will have to be ignored, or countries will be sued at one of those three-lawyer tribunals that enforce such treaties, and the countries will be made to pay billions because some foreign corporation doesn't like a certain law/verdict/constitution. It's almost treason by their trade representatives.

  • On the post: The Most Nefarious Part Of The TPP Proposal: Making Copyright Reform Impossible

    Cerberus ( profile ), 15 Nov, 2013 @ 10:05am

    Re: US proposal contradicts SCOTUS ruling in Kirtsaeng

    Wow, you're right, that directly opposed Kirtsaeng. The audacity they have to try and overrule the supreme courts and constitutions of countries is quite shocking.

  • On the post: The Most Nefarious Part Of The TPP Proposal: Making Copyright Reform Impossible

    Cerberus ( profile ), 15 Nov, 2013 @ 09:57am

    Re: its too late now, they pissed off congress

    Maybe they're not as bad, but companies like Electronic Arts and Nintendo are still pretty bad...

  • On the post: Lavabit Tried Giving The Feds Its SSL Key In 11 Pages Of 4-Point Type; Feds Complained That It Was Illegible

    Cerberus ( profile ), 03 Oct, 2013 @ 07:13am

    Re: Re:

    Wait, I (and the article) stand corrected. From Ars Technica:

    "The new 162-page set of documents shows that Lavabit was first served with a ?pen register? and "trap and trace device" order, which would require the handover of one of its user?s login details. As Lavabit encrypts those details, that wouldn't have done much good for the government's case. Indeed, Levison told the court in a July 16 hearing that he had "always agreed to the installation of the pen register devices," as they would have yielded almost zero useful data."
    ? http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/10/lavabit-defied-order-for-snowdens-login-info-then-govt-asked-for-sites-ssl-key/

  • On the post: Lavabit Tried Giving The Feds Its SSL Key In 11 Pages Of 4-Point Type; Feds Complained That It Was Illegible

    Cerberus ( profile ), 03 Oct, 2013 @ 07:09am

    Re:

    But he did agree to let the NSA snoop on Snowden, says the article. That's still pretty bad, isn't it? Not as bad as letting them spy on all your users, but still.

  • On the post: Prenda Law Claims Its Winding Down Its Operations; Very Angry About Having To Pay Bond

    Cerberus ( profile ), 14 Jun, 2013 @ 09:01pm

    I think you mean "it's" in the title, not "its".

  • On the post: Indian Parliamentary Committee Tells The Government To Protect Intermediary Liability

    Cerberus ( profile ), 07 Apr, 2013 @ 10:47pm

    "Indian Parliamentary Committee Tells The Government To Protect Intermediary Liability": a typo?

    I think instead of "protect" Mike means "scrap" or "revise", since "protect" would mean the exact opposite of what the committee is doing.

  • On the post: EA Continues To Piss Off Lots Of Customers By Trying To Block Used Market With Single Use Codes

    Cerberus ( profile ), 07 Apr, 2013 @ 08:46pm

    Re: This is not just about used games!

    The solution is to create a new Origin account for each game. That way, you can safely resell it or give it away to someone else. The alternative is downloading it from somewhere else...is that really what EA wants?

  • On the post: Flattr Makes It Easier Than Ever To Support Content Creators Just By Favoriting Tweets

    Cerberus ( profile ), 22 Mar, 2013 @ 01:00am

    Re: Adoption!

    I have happily sent most of my ? 2/month Flattr money to Techdirt over the past six months or so. Why not? And once in a long while I come across another site with a Flattr button, but Techdirt still gets most. I know, it's still a puny amount, but it's more than other free websites get from me, precisely because of the reasons Mike laid out. I will pay more once I make more money. For similar reasons, I have spent more on Android applications than on any other platform so far.

  • On the post: Bad Move: Google Removes AdBlock Plus From Google Play Store

    Cerberus ( profile ), 17 Mar, 2013 @ 10:32pm

    Re: Re: Re: More Google being Google.

    I believe this is the case in Chrome, but it is different in Firefox, for example, where Adblock Plus makes it so that your browser never even downloads the ads. I had someone check this for me, and it's true.

    Due to the nature of Android, I strongly doubt whether Adblock can reach within all applications and hide ads there: I much rather think it simply blocks the IP addresses of the advertising companies. I use Adaway on Android, which works so well in nearly all applications that I cannot believe it would work in any other way.

  • On the post: Bad Move: Google Removes AdBlock Plus From Google Play Store

    Cerberus ( profile ), 17 Mar, 2013 @ 10:28pm

    Re: Re: Re: What I've learned from the comments here

    I suppose. But they're not users of the Play Store...

  • On the post: Bad Move: Google Removes AdBlock Plus From Google Play Store

    Cerberus ( profile ), 17 Mar, 2013 @ 10:26pm

    Re: Re: Re:

    I have the same instinct (and rightly so). That's why Flattr is so great. It basically avoids all the problems with ads and memberships. If people are willing to pay at all...

  • On the post: Bad Move: Google Removes AdBlock Plus From Google Play Store

    Cerberus ( profile ), 16 Mar, 2013 @ 11:14am

    Re: More Google being Google.

    ? "It is believed (rather falsely)that AdBlockPlus hurts advertisers. It doesn't, it only registers a hit to the advertiser and not to the content."

    Are you sure? So I still count as a "view" if I visit a page with ads while having Adblock on? How do you know?

  • On the post: Bad Move: Google Removes AdBlock Plus From Google Play Store

    Cerberus ( profile ), 16 Mar, 2013 @ 11:12am

    Re: What I've learned from the comments here

    Oll Korrect. The only thing is that, in this case, the self-interest of Google goes directly against the interests of its users, so that "Don't Be Evil" is in jeopardy. Then again, this isn't the first time.

  • On the post: Bad Move: Google Removes AdBlock Plus From Google Play Store

    Cerberus ( profile ), 16 Mar, 2013 @ 11:10am

    Re: Re: Re: You guys are insane

    Exactly! Merchandise is another great way to make money out of basically anything that people like.

  • On the post: Bad Move: Google Removes AdBlock Plus From Google Play Store

    Cerberus ( profile ), 16 Mar, 2013 @ 12:30am

    Re: Re: Re:

    Oh, and don't forget battery life: it has been proven that ads take up the majority of some application's CPU usage, as with Angry Birds.

  • On the post: Bad Move: Google Removes AdBlock Plus From Google Play Store

    Cerberus ( profile ), 16 Mar, 2013 @ 12:28am

    Re: You guys are insane

    This is totally unfair. There are lots of alternative ways to make money off applications. Tons of applications have free Light versions and paid Pro versions (or a full-featured Standard application and a paid Donation version). I think that is a much better way: I buy applications all the time. Then there are purchases from inside the application for extra content. Those can be abused by developers, but in plenty of applications they work very well.

    Advertisements are a huge waste of everyone's bandwidth, time, attention, and don't forget battery life: it has been proven that ads take up the majority of some application's CPU usage, as with Angry Birds.

    Lastly, if you put your application on the Play Store or on the Internet for free, then you have no claim over anybody in any way. If you don't want people to block your ads, then don't put it on the Play Store / Internet.

  • On the post: Bad Move: Google Removes AdBlock Plus From Google Play Store

    Cerberus ( profile ), 16 Mar, 2013 @ 12:21am

    Re:

    I agree. So use Flattr to reward sites you like with micropayments. It works really well and it gives you great satisfaction.

  • On the post: Bad Move: Google Removes AdBlock Plus From Google Play Store

    Cerberus ( profile ), 16 Mar, 2013 @ 12:20am

    Re:

    Most of what you say applies to me too, including Amanda Palmer (except that I do like her music and have actually discovered her through Techdirt).

    I don't feel guilty blocking Techdirt's ads because I Flattr the hell out of it. I highly recommend Flattr as a much better alternative to advertising for websites to make some money. I've already thrown more money at Techdirt that way than at any other website (okay, it's still not a huge amount, but probably 100x more than they would have made on me through advertising).

  • On the post: Bad Move: Google Removes AdBlock Plus From Google Play Store

    Cerberus ( profile ), 16 Mar, 2013 @ 12:14am

    Re: Re:

    I am losing enjoyment, time, attention, 3G data, you name it, by looking at advertisements.

    I am more than willing to pay for applications. Everyone does so in the Play Store. Having a free Lite version and a paid Full version of an application is one of the many other ways developers make many there, and they do so quite successfully. I much prefer that system. If only to encourage the latter and discourage the societal waste that is advertising, one ought to block ads.

Next >>