Dewy Bradford 's Techdirt Comments

Latest Comments (54) comment rss

  • On the post: The Downsides To Moore's Law?

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 25 Apr, 2007 @ 03:59pm

    Fine, fine

    I'm all for innovation and excess power... as well as additional uses for the computer.

    But the Forced upgrade obsoletes perfectly usable machines that could goto schools or third world countries.

    We need a basic standard that future OS's and machines adhere to or enhance. Not a new wagon wheel every 6 years and we have to toss the old wagons into the landfill.

  • On the post: CNN Not Happy About Non-Scarce Economics… But Actual Arguments Are Scarce

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 22 Apr, 2007 @ 06:20am

    Re: wrong word?

    I think infinite is correct... as once the movie is created, copies that can be produced are infinite... thus it is an infinite resource.

  • On the post: CNN Not Happy About Non-Scarce Economics… But Actual Arguments Are Scarce

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 21 Apr, 2007 @ 09:40am

    Re: Re: Re: Post-scarcity, etc.

    I would also like to see an opportunity for discussion on your next Article Mr. Ledbetter. One of the reasons I prefer many sites over the CNN and some other "news" agencies... I do not like news "Handed to me" without reference links and and opportunity for discussion.

    News is not intended to be a text book, and in fact, I'd go so far as to say news reporting is one of the things that Mike should discuss that is affected by his series of how the digital revolution is affecting the markets previously based on scarcity.

    When "News" had "scarce" distribution points, there was a problem with not only the cost of the news (only the rich got newspapers) there were also issues raised about the bias of news coverage.

    Now that reporters are paid from advertising revenue rather from sales of stories to "papers" it has become increasingly diverse, with angles from every walk of life and availible to everyone... FOR FREE!!! AKA net price ZERO for the consumer.

  • On the post: High Copper Prices Have Some Shocking Consequences

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 04 Apr, 2007 @ 01:40pm

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Good

    such as meth, crack, marijuana etc
    ...........................................................

    Isn't that like saying Hand grenades, landmines and snap-n-pops?

    legalizing marijuana should not be tied into the debate with legalizing DANGEROUS drugs. I am all for personal choice... but we don't need DuPont making a cheaper form of crack...

    These "drugs" need to be regulated... some are only dangerous if you have a 100lb bale dropped on your head. Others change the brain chemistry, and could be exploited in a "free market" to the detriment of the consumer. Very different from "freedom of choice".

    There's a reason can't you make a Drink with Caustic acid... oh wait... we do that already...

    There's a reason you can't produce dangerous drugs in greater quantities than needed... wait, we do that too... All of those folks abusing oxycontin aren't making it in their bathtub.

    Yeah, I guess it is a War on Some drugs... the ones we can't tax.

  • On the post: High Copper Prices Have Some Shocking Consequences

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 04 Apr, 2007 @ 01:32pm

    Re: Re: Price of Copper

    Amen... but you do know re-implementing the gold standard will deprive the wealthy of most of their wealth?

    However shall they continue to reign over the worker caste without credit debt and worthless currency?

  • On the post: High Copper Prices Have Some Shocking Consequences

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 04 Apr, 2007 @ 01:29pm

    Re: What's the problem?

    Well, there is their families... they probably care, as I'm sure their dealer and the recycler they were going to use. Not to mention the NET team or local enforcement agencies who won't get to use these particular drug addicts to boost their revenue or vote totals this year.

    But of this crowd of humanitarians... you stand out not giving a damn about a fellow human being. We're all in awe of you ability to put your inconvenience above the welfare of fellow humans.

  • On the post: Arctic Monkeys Apparently Forget What Made The Band Successful In The First Place

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 04 Apr, 2007 @ 11:59am

    Re:

    Those artists are successful for a number of reasons, one of which is the endless well they draw from.

    Steven King write lots of books, screenplays, ect... and there is a library in every major city with his works available to be read for free. He has found other ways to capitalize on his fame and name, beyond his ability to write books. Meanwhile his fans still go buy his books oddly enough...

    How about Aerosmith? Not only prolific, but tireless tourers and grand showmen. Yet where is their Library contributions? May I tell you where?

    p2p is where. Not "stolen", where the owner loses the right to use the property as they see fit, but in the public domain for consumption. No money is lost or made by a p2p exchange of files, sales may be made or lost that way... I know I won't be buying Justin Timberlake's new LP...

    Its time artists like myself grew up and accepted the "Rock Star" is a fabricated dream... like Disneyland. Its not genuine... its imagery, its unsustainable and often destroys the star... much to the benefit of the real copyright holder... the MUSIC INDUSTRY. I'll bet the Jim Morrison estate and the other "Doors" members saw an equal share of the revenues from the last recompilation of Door's tunes... I jest of course.

    If your going to lament poor treatment of artists... and how they are raped as a common occurrence, please direct your energy towards the industry that has monopolized recorded music and its revenues since its inception. And try to see p2p from its fan based origin... not from the position of someone deluded to think a download equates a lost sale.

  • On the post: Microsoft: When We Said Microsoft Vista Capable, We Didn't Mean For All The Important Stuff

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 04 Apr, 2007 @ 11:28am

    Re: Re: Way off...

    Xp was stable upon distribution? Are you reading what your saying? Maybe you need a history lesson, and I'm just to busy to give you a complete one... google these phrases

    xp SP2 released
    Unplug & pray
    XP opens all ports by default

    or... windows messenger, and ignore the windows live messenger responses... because they are part of a cover-up tactic to reduce the hits on the flaws... and focus the hits on a success.

    Just the last app there... the "built in feature" to windows that allowed spam and popups thru often before you could get you machine configured. Couple that with the remote desktop features and "live assistance" that was poorly secured and not only was it unstable, but it was dangerous... in that Personal Identity theft sorta way.

    The FBI got involved on the UPNP service and sent out bulletins for everyone to kill that function due to the threats it presented to secure information.

    XP Stable on release hahaha, no need to read the comics today... got my laugh right there.

  • On the post: Microsoft: When We Said Microsoft Vista Capable, We Didn't Mean For All The Important Stuff

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 04 Apr, 2007 @ 11:05am

    So did Vista help you double post that? Or just your own ineptness?

    perhaps you misunderstand me... and your entitled to. The truth doesn't require your belief to be true.

    you don't need Vista, you don't need the latest greatest whatever to function on the internet. I AM running a couple of Win2k machines, as well as maintaining several winxp machines on the network at my wife's office.

    I WILL run what I choose... and MS is driving away customers with their constant need to "bundle" everything under the sun (including software not innovated by themselves) to the point that current machines won't work any longer.

    Xp with specific adjustments and third party programs is working fine... why not improve upon it rather than rewrite it? Why release a "New" buggy product to make my customers ask if their perfectly functioning machines need to be replaced?

    Greed is the answer. They know ram is cheap... so they're going to eat all you can afford. HD space is cheaper by the day... so lets consume a few gig of it now, and a few gig more with future updates.

    Now... why your offended at me is still a mystery. Maybe your just a jackass who felt like my simple comment needed your flamage to harden it. It doesn't.

    That popping sound you thought I heard was the last bit of manners you had giving up on your insulting self.

    Run what you like... don't gloat because you can afford the shiny crap they try to sell you every day.

  • On the post: Arctic Monkeys Apparently Forget What Made The Band Successful In The First Place

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 04 Apr, 2007 @ 10:51am

    hmmmm

    Sounds to me like they are using a non-scarce resource (media) to generate a scarce good (media attention).

    Hope it don't backfire on them.

  • On the post: Microsoft: When We Said Microsoft Vista Capable, We Didn't Mean For All The Important Stuff

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 04 Apr, 2007 @ 10:15am

    I'd like to see

    I'd like to see something that doesn't use up half a machines available resources just because it has them. I recall I have win98 running efficiently on 30 meg of ram, and my 512 meg of ram was plenty. Then comes XP that has to have 256 meg to run minimally.

    Now MS comes out with a brand new OS that requires a gig of ram. Not to mention its own built in CPU hog to rescan your machine as each file is used.

    How about we design something that works well... and build upon that success... not re-invent the wheel every few years and make everyone buy new wagons.

  • On the post: Downloads… Or An Inability To Adjust To Changing Times… Force Musicians To Get Second Jobs

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 02 Apr, 2007 @ 10:43am

    Re: Sigh.

    When you say "Piracy hurts actual people, not just faceless corporations" are you referring to the illegal redistribution of recorded music? Because its not the topic of this discussion, nor is it even considered relevant to the topic of illegal file sharing.

    Are you considering the fact that the "faceless corporation" has willingly trod over individuals rights AS WELL AS artists? Perhaps your defense of said Corporation is getting as tired as their assertion that filesharing is killing CD sales. Would you like some facts?

    I can't be bothered to reproduce the numbers I have read time and time again, to some degree your required to inform yourself... not jump to accepting the facts that Mike or the industry present you. So just take what I am going to say with a grain of salt, and look it up yourself to verify it... you shouldn't or wouldn't believe me anyway.

    But lets look at "CD" sales... Do you believe that they're down from 1997? Because they're not. Factories are working overtime to produce more and more CD's than ever before. Not just the new types developed SINCE 1997 (CD-R, CD-RW, DVD, ect.), but mainly the write once at factory CD. It may contain music, software, (most of them contain spyware deceptively labeled as AOL internet software) but the Music industry wants to deceive you into believing Music sales are in decline... yet say instead CD sales are down.

    Or how about the fact they ignore the fact that sometime after 1997 there was a digital media revolution, and EVERYTHING changed... except their approach to delivering music to the consumer. Cell Phones have certainly changed... Video games have changed, phone service and Internet have changed... Computers and music playing devices have changed, Digital Music recorders have changed, Yet they never seem to consider that these might compete for the same dollar. In fact, they seem to point to the consumer "The Problem" and see litigation as a response to a changing marketplace.

    Let me try an analogy on you... then I will leave to to search for the truth. If you sell Soft drinks from a beach hut... and everyday you notice the ocean is closer and closer to your hut... and the customers are further and further behind you... your faced with a choice. Either Move your hut... and goto the customers, or litigate your customers to continue to wade out for a soft drink.

    The ocean hurts faceless corporations too.

  • On the post: Downloads… Or An Inability To Adjust To Changing Times… Force Musicians To Get Second Jobs

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 02 Apr, 2007 @ 08:10am

    Day Job?

    Lets start this out by saying a manager who doesn't recommend his client with a name like Bic Runga change it immediately, probably doesn't deserve success. There is something to a name that has to draw in your audience... and of course the music... but to draw them in you need a good name.

    Secondly, I agree with the poster above who points out sales of alternate entertainment are UP across the board. The price of CD's are artificially inflated, and most often are poorly promoted.

    The kind author of the article linked doesn't ask the manager how the tour dates compared to the more successful years, or if they are considering new business models. Just how they want to punish the public for not overcompensating them for their product.

    Why can't the industry accept that personal use of "Illegally" downloaded music is NOT criminal. Courts across the world have acknowledged that possessing and listening to music is not a crime. Sharing it or redistributing it for profit IS a crime... but is NOT where they are losing the market.

    As an artist I welcome the open access to the public that has be unavailable to me prior to the internet. When the industry embraces that philosophy and devotes the effort that it now spends blaming, threatening and prosecuting Fans / Filesharers to more effectively reaching out to these new players in the industry... then things will balance out.

    Artists will always find a way to make money, Fans will always find a way to listen to music. Its the people who exploit that relationship who need to adapt, or lose their revenue stream.

  • On the post: Counting Crows' Keyboard Player Discusses The Music Industry

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 29 Mar, 2007 @ 08:12pm

    Reocordings

    There will always be a market for recorded music, even when the industry completes its transformation into the digital age.

    T.V. shows and Movies will still be a legitimate market for copywritten material, as well as product association.

    As an aspiring artist I know that my "deal" will now have to be between me and the fans. I will have to spend a great deal of effort into self promotion, management, as well as help pioneer the new artist revenue models that will probably less reliable than the old methods in the beginning.

  • On the post: University Of Maine To RIAA: We're Not Here To Serve Your Legal Complaints

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 29 Mar, 2007 @ 07:11am

    nope

    The RIAA is a group that represents a large part of the recording industry. They do not represent all music, nor all recorded music.

    http://www.riaaradar.com/ is a good site to find out if a particular artist is represented by the RIAA.

    http://www.riaa.com/about/members/default.asp is their site actually showing their membership.

  • On the post: Counting Crows' Keyboard Player Discusses The Music Industry

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 29 Mar, 2007 @ 07:04am

    hmmm

    To succeed in the current business model and be a "superstar" they do and did need the recording labels. But one point that everyone misses, the recording industry CREATED the superstar...

    It all started with Elvis, a guy who didn't write anything original, recorded cover songs, and only moderately played an instrument. He had a "Look" and a "Sound" they they marketed and made him a STAR!!

    U2, same thing... they were nothing until they were picked up by a major label and that label stood to make money. Then of course they were played on the radio stations subsidized by the recording labels... and shoved down the consumers throats. Mass marketed and multimedia releases designed to "make them the band" for the 90's.

    But lets get back to WHY the labels were needed in these cases. In the 50's everything was recoded on reel to reel tracking machines costing more than the yearly wage of MOST Americans. U2 was discovered in the 80's when Video's were gaining acceptance (MTV) and the cost of "promoting" a band on the national level run over a million dollars a year.

    But why did it cost so much? Some of the cost was in technology, new digital recording equipment costing more than a house, CD burning tech was years away, but many of the costs were created BY THE INDUSTRY! A&R guys had to have new flashy cars to impress potential artists... industry buying up (copyrighting) band names so the bands couldn't perform under them AFTER their contracts expired and legal teams to sue the pants off anyone they thought potentially could cut into their profit.

    The recording industry has fought tooth and nail the advent of new equipment and media that would allow the artists to record and promote themselves, even going as far as to place a surcharge on new media that potentially would not even contain material they held copyrights on.

    Today with the internet, affordable QUALITY recording equipment, and the ability to record yourself on a high quality medium, artists can do it without the "industry", and that may explain a large bit of their reluctance to embrace the new business models, they aren't in a position of controlling artists anymore.

    The Time for the Recording Mogul has passed, and we are witnessing their death throes. Their reluctance to adapt to the market are actually cries out to the predators to come consume them... or thats how it works in the wild. The phrase has never been Monopolize, litigate or die... it is Adapt or die.

    Maybe there was a time when we "needed" the recording industry... thats debatable. Sure I might have missed out on some great music... but what DID I miss? We'll never know, because they controlled the market between the 50's and 90's.

    I know because of them I have had a lifetime of music tainted by accusations that I'm not rewarding them enough for their monopoly. That somehow sitting impoverished in Alabama I am cutting into their ability to purchase another $1.3 million Ferrari.

    Again, there have always been successful musicians, the "superstar" was something they created to spoon feed the public their "product". If the superstar model dies with the recording industry, we'll be fine. Good music will still be released, and musicians and artists will still be rewarded.

  • On the post: The Patent Thicket That May Destroy VoIP

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 28 Mar, 2007 @ 03:11pm

    Re: patents

    How poetic... your insult everyone who disagrees with you, tell them to go F* off... then sign out with "peace".

    Let all back up just a bit (its been done but your ignoring it) and review WHY patents were a good idea. Lets say I invent a sweet little tip for your acetylene torch that uses half the fuel. I decide to market at cost +20% and get a good little business going.

    Now Bob's Torch parts and supplies buys one of my torch tips and decides to mass produce them, thus incurring a lower cost, and undersells me... the inventor.

    If I was smart and patent the Idea, I don't SHUT DOWN Bob's cheap tip production, I just get due credit and some compensation for my innovative design.

    Today Patent law has gone beyond absurd... I have several Ideas out under the understanding that its free for personal use, but anything that is used commercially should compensate me in some manner.

    I can't afford a patent lawyer or the testing and review processes required to actually WIN a patent in today's process. It has become an industry club for teams of hired and directed "engineers" backed by corporate sponsorship and lawyers.

    Further the recorded cases of little guy being sued / harassed out of the market, or financially destroyed because their ideas threatened the status quo do not encourage any small ideas.

    So in conclusion... patents do help encourage innovation if applied properly. As tools of the lobbyist driven government they only stifle it. NO Patent system would be better than the existing system.

    And no Sam... we don't want everything for free... but we do want it at the lowest cost with the most value, and thats the way a consumer driven FREE MARKET is supposed to work. If your costs to reproduce and deliver the song to market are $.00001 then you better get the price down to a penny buddy, or someone is going to undersell you.

    This isn't Hollywood where you invent a better bottle opener and the world showers you with riches. You sound like one of the old time tradesmen who died with secrets of his trade in his head because he found no one worthy of teaching. Because his value of his knowledge was inflated the world lost knowledge.

    Relax, release your invention under a GNU and get back to work. If your Idea is worth compensation, you'll get it.

    Don't tell me to F*ck off , then expect a signout like "peace" to set it right.

  • On the post: Julie Amero Sentencing Delayed Again; Prosecutors May Be Trying To Figure Out How To Back Out Gracefully

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 28 Mar, 2007 @ 02:05pm

    Net Admin

    Net Admin bears 50% of the guilt here... that machine shouldn't have been online to start with.

    She gets 20% of the guilt for being too uninformed to know the difference between turning off the computer... and turning off the MONITOR! For those of you who don't know this fact... you can turn off the speakers and monitor independently of the computer... I know., I know... would require effort, but its a temp fix.

    Then I'd say lets tar and feather the zealots who drug her up on these pointless charges. She obviously shouldn't be teaching... but how is turning her over to the state to support going to help?!

  • On the post: Counting Crows' Keyboard Player Discusses The Music Industry

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 28 Mar, 2007 @ 10:29am

    Re: What an Argument

    Money IS made by touring. Club owners pay GOOD money for mid level acts, upwards of around $3000 for a single evenings performance of 4 musicians and a soundman / bus driver.

    The Amazing Rythym Aces are still "touring" and probably haven't received a royalty check large enough to pay the power bill in 15 years. Do they do it for the love of the music, yes... do they do it for the love of the fans, yes...

    But do they do it for Free... no. They are payed better than a teaching salary, and maintain a large fan base eager to hear their music.

    Its not the music anyone is paying for... but the experience. i want to buy the best quality recording of my favorite music and see my favorite artist well compensated.

    I do not want to pay for bling bling and a host of producers and lawyers who "create" stars.

  • On the post: Architect Of The DMCA Admits It Hasn't Worked Out; Suggests New Approach Needed

    Dewy Bradford ( profile ), 26 Mar, 2007 @ 07:41am

    Experts

    Experts need to be held accountable for their testimony, not glorified and allowed to spew any nonsense they like in the name of their expertise.

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