Chris Charabaruk 's Techdirt Comments

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  • On the post: Bus Company Tries To Shut Down Online Carpooling Service

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 25 Aug, 2008 @ 02:17pm

    Actually, they asked the provincial government at Queen's Park (in Toronto) to shut down the service. It's a provincial matter, not federal, so it's not touching Ottawa.

  • On the post: It's Sad That It's Newsworthy When An Entertainment Industry Exec Decides Not To Sue Customers

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 23 Aug, 2008 @ 05:46am

    Re: EA really surprises me sometimes

    EA isn't evil because of things like this. EA is evil because of its business practises when dealing with game developers, which are far more "dark ages" than almost every other game publisher out there. Plus, the way they bought and then gutted some of the best game studios out there (Maxis, Origin, Westwood) didn't help matters, either.

    I guess something could also be said about their tactics against other publishers of sports games, taken right out of the old-school Microsoft business handbook, but since I don't care for sports games anyway (I'd rather play the real thing), I usually let that slide. I still miss Sega Sports, though.

  • On the post: McNamara's Syndrome: Being Late To The Game On An Internet Meme

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 22 Aug, 2008 @ 02:26pm

    Re: Hey, just found this!...

    Oh, hey there, Slowpoke!

    (Well, while we're on the topic of memes, it fits. :)

  • On the post: McNamara's Syndrome: Being Late To The Game On An Internet Meme

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 22 Aug, 2008 @ 04:04am

    Be glad that you don't get much attention for it...

    I tell you, if I came up with a joke phrase about something, that later entered the jargon with serious usage as the Streisand Effect has seen, I'd be pretty depressed about it and the state of the world.

  • On the post: Singer At New Media Conference Turns Off Audience Member Cameras

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 22 Aug, 2008 @ 04:01am

    Quite fitting his first name is Richard...

    Because we all know that one of the short forms of that name aptly describes this guy Cheese.

  • On the post: RIAA Exec Jumps To The ESA: Expect Lawsuits Against Video Gamers

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 21 Aug, 2008 @ 07:50pm

    Re: Re:

    Not all games can work via a subscription service or as advertising for other things. It's interesting watching the idea of putting ads in games play out, though, but there's still a lot of hate in the industry over that idea, especially since for some games it would be very kludgy to work in.

    What we should be doing is going back to the 80s model and include extras like cloth maps and such again. Give people a reason to actually buy the physical copies. Of course, that doesn't work when things go to digital distribution, but that there has some of its own, mostly working safeguards against piracy.

  • On the post: RIAA Exec Jumps To The ESA: Expect Lawsuits Against Video Gamers

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 21 Aug, 2008 @ 07:43pm

    Re:

    Often, we don't make money anyway... The publisher gives the development studio an advance to cover payroll and costs of development, and then keep all the royalties after release to pay it back. As well as insert into the contract terms that make it almost impossible to get any profit from additional deals. Kind of like how the big record labels screw over musicians. Actually, very much like that.

  • On the post: RIAA Exec Jumps To The ESA: Expect Lawsuits Against Video Gamers

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 21 Aug, 2008 @ 07:41pm

    Developers? In my ESA?

    Look at the game developers that are members of the ESA. Aside from EA, many of these have reputations that suggest they will pull out of the ESA becomes the Video Game RIAA.

    Developers aren't part of the ESA. The ESA is the lobby organization for game publishers. Developers generally go for individual or studio membership in the IGDA, if they get involved in any industry organizations at all. (Well, some also join the ECA, the consumer organization, too, but I digress.)

  • On the post: Microsoft Sued Over User Editable Toolbar Patent

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 21 Aug, 2008 @ 10:01am

    Re: Re: So Maybe

    Has that stopped people before? Just submit the same patent in, but change the names on it. I'm sure the USPTO will issue a fresh patent.

  • On the post: Microsoft Sued Over User Editable Toolbar Patent

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 20 Aug, 2008 @ 11:09am

    Re: Nothing new here

    Yeah. Sounds like a very slow attempt patent trolling going on here. I hope Microsoft kicks his ass, hard.

  • On the post: Yet Another Example Of Why Google Would Be Better Off Without Patents

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 19 Aug, 2008 @ 04:54am

    Re: And those clueless to both

    Fail troll is fail.

  • On the post: Newspapers Realizing The News Is Really Interactive

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 15 Aug, 2008 @ 02:01pm

    You mean, Twitter was up? ;-)

    Lucky for them that Twitter was working at that moment, though! Imagine if it were down as usual.

    (I jest... I love Twitter and make use of it a lot. Hell, I got TwitKit in Firefox just so I can watch whenever any of my friends update. Still, that uptime issue has yet to be resolved.)

  • On the post: RIM Pays Off Wi-LAN To Get Rid Of Another Patent Suit

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 11 Aug, 2008 @ 07:45pm

    Pedantry!

    That should be "winners innovate, losers litigate".

  • On the post: Canada Takes ACTA Secrecy To New Levels

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 30 Jul, 2008 @ 03:21pm

    Re: Re: Some of us care..

    Drive over the border, then catch flights to your now in-country destination. That's how I avoid getting raped by the border guards.

  • On the post: Canada Takes ACTA Secrecy To New Levels

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 30 Jul, 2008 @ 03:19pm

    Re: Re: Well, what would you expect?

    Guy Fawkes? Haven't you seen? He's out protesting Scientology these days. Him and his clone army.

    Having been a Grit supporter for a time, I'd like to think that the Liberals wouldn't have caved so quickly to the demands of American business. Please let me have that fantasy.

    The central-west gets blamed because that's where the support base for Harper and his cronies lies dreaming (of making us the 51st state). Of course, there is plenty of blame to throw around on this side of the country too -- Ontario's economic woes wouldn't be quite as bad if the provincial government could get out of its 19th century mindset and consider supporting businesses that aren't primary sector or manufacturing.

  • On the post: Canada Takes ACTA Secrecy To New Levels

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 29 Jul, 2008 @ 09:18pm

    Well, what would you expect?

    What would you expect from a governing party that has spent its time in power bullying the other levels of government and even their own peers in the House of Commons? Now the country is going to hell and our own prime minister, the treasonous bastard he is, is selling us out to another country's interests!

    All I have to say is thanks for killing the country, Alberta. May you all be burnt to death with your own oil.

  • On the post: Rogers Looks For New Ways To Annoy Customers, Hijacks Failed DNS Lookups

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 24 Jul, 2008 @ 12:10am

    Re: Sucks to be us...

    It may cost more to not bundle them, but it's still better for us. As a former customer of Rogers for both mobile phones and cable TV, I made sure when I got my current internet access that I wouldn't go anywhere near those bastards. Bell may suck, but at least they don't go trying to break the internet for profit.

  • On the post: Rogers Looks For New Ways To Annoy Customers, Hijacks Failed DNS Lookups

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 23 Jul, 2008 @ 10:17pm

    More than a security risk; it also breaks a lot of VPNs...

    With the triple threat of unwanted advertising, security risks, and failing VPNs that rely on the proper DNS behaviour, my advice to Rogers customers is to find another provider. Preferably for all services that the customer gets from Rogers now.

    The only thing those crooks understand is money. Take enough of that away from them, well...

  • On the post: Don't Blame Rick752 For Blocking Ads; Blame Those Who Made Ads Annoying

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 26 Jun, 2008 @ 10:52am

    @DanC: Okay, I might have been a bit too harsh on you, but it sure did look like you were taking Anon's comment from #14 and rewriting it to mean something different. From the moment I saw both your posts it seemed to me that you're practically agreeing on just about the same thing, but phrasing it differently, and that your post was giving him a lump for not agreeing. So, I'll rule it as miscommunication, and my thinking it was something else.

    @Brian: I don't block ads by choice. I've used AdBlock on everything in the past, when some of my favourite sites used horrible, content-blocking Flash ads (one particularly annoying one from ATI comes to mind). Now, if I find a site that insists on obtrusive ads, I'll block them, and nasty ad providers I'll block either through AdBlock, the firewall, or the hosts file. I have no problem with ads, and I'm pretty sure there are many others like me, who just want to avoid the bottom of the quality barrel.

    Otherwise, you sound pretty logical and right to me.

  • On the post: Don't Blame Rick752 For Blocking Ads; Blame Those Who Made Ads Annoying

    Chris Charabaruk ( profile ), 26 Jun, 2008 @ 09:38am

    Re: Toleration

    So if it weren't for all that invasive crap, I'd happily view a few more ads to help support a site that I've found worth viewing.

    QUOTED FOR TRUTH

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