Anonymoose Custard 's Techdirt Comments

Latest Comments (65) comment rss

  • On the post: South Korea Still Paying The Price For Embracing Internet Explorer A Decade Ago

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 09 May, 2012 @ 01:35pm

    Re:

    Nothing.

    The problem was that while Windows was the most-deployed OS in the country at the time, US Government export controls on encryption standards prevented anything with stronger than 40-bit encryption from being allowed to enter their country.

    They came up with SEED because they needed strong crypto. The fact that the AtiveX control is the only way to use it is an artifact of that effort. They essentially had no choice at the time.

    SEED is so old now that it's probably exceptionally difficult to port it to current browsers that support NPAPI or Pepper, both of which differ subtly from the original API SEED was developed against for Netscape browsers.

    If you're going to blame someone, blame the US Gov't.

  • On the post: Kuwait Says Social Networks Must Be Regulated To 'Safeguard The Cohesiveness Of Society'

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 04 May, 2012 @ 02:28pm

    They're not safeguarding cohesiveness of society

    It's the cohesiveness of the status quo.

    The inhibition of communication necessarily destabilizes societal cohesiveness. But preventing the proliferation of new communication maintains the existing level of cohesion.

    If they cared about societal cohesiveness, they'd make free and uninhibited communication the new status quo.

  • On the post: Louis Vuitton Touts Basketball Trademark Victory In Similar Lawsuit Against Warner Bros.

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 12 Apr, 2012 @ 10:02am

    ... as content producers and distributors, they rely on the very freedoms and fair use exceptions that they are constantly seeking to curtail.


    As sad as the eventuality would be, it would amuse me immensely if they succeeded in curtailing Fair Use. Watching their own ability to produce and distribute become curtailed to the point where they can no longer profit from their content would be hilarious.

    Serves them right.

  • On the post: Where TPP Goes Beyond ACTA — And How It Shows Us The Future Of IP Enforcement

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 06 Apr, 2012 @ 12:12pm

    How do we show them that this is self-destructive?

    I've been racking my brain trying to think of a way to show them that these kinds of rules are like putting a gun to their own heads - enforcing it will only kill them in the long run as their market ultimately abandons them and their assets shrink to nothing.

    If they manage to get fair use outlawed, only outlaws will have the creativity to create. And then where will they get the content and inventions to sell?

  • On the post: How The TSA's Security Theater Harms Us All

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 30 Mar, 2012 @ 01:29pm

    I have a better title for this article

    The truth of the matter is that terrorism is defined by fear, not by action.

    What the TSA is actually trying to do is placate people by creating a sense of safety from their fear of terrorism. By reinforcing that fear, they are essentially terrorizing us.

    Therefore, a better title for this article is this:

    "How The TSA is Actively and Willfully Helping The Terrorists Win"

  • On the post: Yet Another Attempt To Place Warning Labels On Video Games Based On Zero Evidence

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 21 Mar, 2012 @ 11:27am

    Re:

    Well, clearly you give a shit - you're replying to his posts, aren't you?

  • On the post: Yet Another Attempt To Place Warning Labels On Video Games Based On Zero Evidence

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 21 Mar, 2012 @ 11:25am

    Well, it's an accurate label.

    It amuses me that they were careful to use the word "linked."

    Indeed, we've seen a lot of studies that show a link between video games and violence, but we've also seen that there's an significant lack of studies that show that violent video games can cause violent behavior.

    So while their attempt to get this labeling legislated is rather misguided, their proposed labeling is quite correct.

  • On the post: What Will The Future Of Copyright Look Like? Contest Offers Prize For Best Proposal

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 08 Mar, 2012 @ 03:12pm

    Clearly, lawmakers took the wrong approach...

    What they should do is mandate a series of studies: Figure out what aspects of Copyright law have a net benefit on the economy.

    Each lawmaking session, repeat the study, and make some "best guesses" on the long-term effects of the current laws, based on all of the evidence presented by those studies.

    Then, craft a law that exploits some aspect of that evidence - for example, if studies show that shorter terms have a net economic benefit, then shorten the term - and apply a "sunset" provision that requires a new set of studies. If the newly-enacted laws show a net benefit, then they may be extended with a new sunset period. If they show a net negative impact, the provisions should be repealed.

    Repeat ad nauseum.

    I predict that the end result of this process would be a maximal Copyright term of not more than 5 years from the date of the "fixed form," an elimination of criminal provisions, abolition of Patent laws, an elimination of DMCA-like anti-circumvention laws, and abolition of takedowns and domain seizure in all forms.

  • On the post: Has The Megaupload Shutdown Been Good For The Entertainment Industry?

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 29 Feb, 2012 @ 10:18am

    Re:

    A 5% increase in traffic isn't really statistically significant. Many sites see a lot of up- and down-swings to the tune of up to 10% on a regular basis. Merely saying they had an increase of about 5% (and it doesn't say of what) doesn't mean much.

  • On the post: New Rules To Block 'Distracted Driving' Will Likely Make Things Worse, Not Better

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 23 Feb, 2012 @ 10:29pm

    I think just the fact people are driving alone is, itself, a problem.

    It's a lot easier to let yourself get distracted by shiny things in your car when you don't have to worry about your passengers.

  • On the post: Economist Notices That The US Is Getting Buried Under Costly, Useless Over-Regulation

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 23 Feb, 2012 @ 01:01pm

    Along those lines, all new laws (and any re-authorizations of old laws) should come with clear and stated metrics that will be used the next time around to determine if the bill was successful. If the metrics are not met, then the bill should not be allowed to be re-authorized without significant changes.


    I LOVE this idea. I've had similar thoughts myself.

    In particular, I think we should do this to the entirety of USCFR, all Titles. On Copyright and Patent laws, for example, effective metrics could be to require that the actual economic benefits, as measured by a diverse team of economic analysts (from different backgrounds in academia and business, as well as government), are used to determine what new changes must be made to the laws.

    That would be an excellent way to lead to clearer, stronger, more sensible laws that benefit everyone, and not just "stakeholders."

  • On the post: RIAA Totally Out Of Touch: Lashes Out At Google, Wikipedia And Everyone Who Protested SOPA/PIPA

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 08 Feb, 2012 @ 09:50am

    Re:

    Yes! There are dozens of studies on exactly that!

    Problem is, most of them report negative numbers.

  • On the post: RIAA Totally Out Of Touch: Lashes Out At Google, Wikipedia And Everyone Who Protested SOPA/PIPA

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 08 Feb, 2012 @ 09:49am

    Policy makers had recognized a constitutional (and economic) imperative to protect American property from theft, to shield consumers from counterfeit products and fraud, and to combat foreign criminals who exploit technology to steal American ingenuity and jobs.

    Oh, never mind that the Constitutional imperative is to "... Promote the Progress of Science and of the Useful Arts," not to "protect [...] property form theft." We must keep copies from being made at all costs!

    While no legislation is perfect, the Protect Intellectual Property Act (or PIPA) was carefully devised, with nearly unanimous bipartisan support in the Senate, and its House counterpart, the Stop Online Piracy Act (or SOPA), was based on existing statutes and Supreme Court precedents. But at the 11th hour, a flood of e-mails and phone calls to Congress stopped the legislation in its tracks. Was this the result of democracy, or demagoguery?

    Well, the bipartisan support was the result of bribes and "campaign contributions," but we can ignore that! Those pesky kids with computers ruined everything!

    Since when is it censorship to shut down an operation that an American court, upon a thorough review of evidence, has determined to be illegal? When the police close down a store fencing stolen goods, it isn?t censorship, but when those stolen goods are fenced online, it is?

    Usually a thorough review of evidence is done by both the defense and prosecution, but what the defense doesn't know doesn't hurt anyone. Right?


    I feel ill.

  • On the post: The NFL Issues Takedown For Chrysler Super Bowl Commercial

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 06 Feb, 2012 @ 01:35pm

    Re:

    I think the word you're looking for is "absurd."

  • On the post: Why Piracy Is Indispensable For The Survival Of Our Culture

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 02 Feb, 2012 @ 09:54am

    Re:

    There is a loophole (?1201(d)2), however: If the work is otherwise not reasonably available, archives are permitted to break the DRM and make a copy.

    Of course, they can't share it, but they can make it.

  • On the post: Another Interesting White House Petition: Reduce The Term Of Copyright

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 27 Jan, 2012 @ 12:59pm

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:

    But Copyright exists for the benefit of consumers.

    The purpose is to ensure that more works are created, not that authors profit from them. Profit is the means by which the purpose is achieved.

    (Of course, it doesn't actually work, but that's how it's supposed to work.)

  • On the post: Another Interesting White House Petition: Reduce The Term Of Copyright

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 27 Jan, 2012 @ 12:47pm

    Re: Re: Suggestion

    Part of the reason that laws are so complex and use so many words to say so little is because of the motivation to be specific.

    Laws written with a very specific set of requirements are less likely to be mis-interpreted by a Court.

    On the other hand, Courts have shown a willingness to linguistically contort however necessary to arrive at a foregone conclusion.

    Perhaps they should simply be rewritten in Loglan and that Loglan be a mandatory part of educational curriculum.

  • On the post: Another Interesting White House Petition: Reduce The Term Of Copyright

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 27 Jan, 2012 @ 12:43pm

    Re:

    A more interesting question would be this:

    Of the infringing content on 56+-year-old Copyrighted material, how much of it is motivated by the lack of commercial availability of that content?

    I think the answer to that question would be far more telling.

  • On the post: Another Interesting White House Petition: Reduce The Term Of Copyright

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 27 Jan, 2012 @ 12:38pm

    Studies have already been done about the effects of Copyright

    Turns out they're universally bad, no matter how long they last.

    See Against Intellectual Monopoly for discussion and detail with copious references.

    I propose a 5 year limit on Copyrights and Patents, with no opportunity to renew. That way we get that touchy-feely "Artists get compensation" feeling without adversely impacting the economy or the creation of future content.

    After all, what reason is there to create content if you can just spend the next 100 years living off what you've already done?

  • On the post: Once Again, If You're Trying To Save The $200 Million Movie, Perhaps You're Asking The Wrong Questions

    Anonymoose Custard ( profile ), 25 Jan, 2012 @ 03:33pm

    Re:

    You're free to consume news and commentary elsewhere. :)

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