sheenyglass 's Techdirt Comments

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  • On the post: HP Tablet Fire Sale Lets Us Put A Price On The Value Of A Strong Development Community

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 01 Sep, 2011 @ 05:23pm

    Re: Re: I'm not sure you understand...

    I agree that fanboizm isn't a compelling explanation. However, the iPad gets a huge mindshare boost from being the first; it was able to establish market dominance and become the tablet archetype before there was any serious competition. As a result, when people think tablet they think iPad. So, in effect, the decision making process of the average consumer goes as follows 1) wanting an iPad 2) seeing things that are like iPads but not noticeably better 3) buying an iPad

    Any challenger has to be able to move people away from that idea that the iPad is the default. If the challenger is merely comparable (or even just slightly better) in a category--as the best alternatives are with OS, hardware and design--it won't be sufficient to shake people off the iPad. Price is the only way for a challenger to distinguish themselves sufficiently to overcome the iPad default mindset.

    App development could have that effect too, but most non geeks I know don't seem to know enough about the various app ecosystems for it to be a deciding factor.

  • On the post: Court Says No Harm, No Foul With Flash Cookies

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 19 Aug, 2011 @ 08:20pm

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Where

    And as the userbase has grown, and as it's expected to grow, the average level of education and technical sophistication drops

    So the market failure cause by information asymmetry will worsen. This weighs more strongly in favor of non-market solutions, such as through legislation, regulation and litigation.

  • On the post: Court Says No Harm, No Foul With Flash Cookies

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 19 Aug, 2011 @ 07:22pm

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Where

    I'm not sure you can draw a clean line between descriptive and normative statements in this situation. Should is, generally, a normative word as it implies a duty or obligation when used in conjunction with human action. Promiscuous is a normative word as it describes actions outside of the acceptable bounds prescribed by a group's norms. In that context "expect" can mean both/either that the outcome can be predicted and/or that the individual bears some responsibility for predicting it.

    If we are talking about individual actions, then no there is not much we can do and the statement can be mostly descriptive. If we are talking about collective societal actions, acquiescence in the face of market failure is choosing the norms of the free market over the norms of privacy protection through political action. One way to drive the system towards protection of privacy is to allow lawsuits for its violation. Or to allow legislation or regulation.

  • On the post: Court Says No Harm, No Foul With Flash Cookies

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 19 Aug, 2011 @ 06:28pm

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Where

    If you are an average person who takes average measures today then you run a high risk of getting pwn3d.
    If you're a little bit smarter than average, you can reduce your risk.


    I apologize for my tone - it was more snotty than warranted (although more appropriate to the preceding comment that "[a]nybody can learn how to block such things" which implied a lack of expertise was some kind of person failure on the part of victims).

    However, I do think people who are promiscuous about running scripts generally don't know that they are doing so. Its a mistake to expect people to take precautions against dangers they don't know exist and to give them no recourse if they don't. That's basically a darwinian approach - only the strong/savvy have a right to privacy.

  • On the post: Court Says No Harm, No Foul With Flash Cookies

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 19 Aug, 2011 @ 05:09pm

    Re: Re: Re: Where

    And in an imperfect world you should also expect the legal system to punish your rapist.

    I think that the more knowledgeable one becomes on a technology and its dangers, the less qualified they are to opine about what security measures average people should be expected to take. The vast majority of people I know over 35 probably haven't even heard of JavaScript. And if they have they probably think its Java.

  • On the post: Court Says No Harm, No Foul With Flash Cookies

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 19 Aug, 2011 @ 04:52pm

    Court did find plaintiff alleged harm

    However, a judge in one of them has pointed out that there's no evidence of harm, at least not enough harm to matter to the court under the law.


    I would recommend reading the decision itself (http://www.scribd.com/doc/62531370/Bose-v-Interclick) in addition to the commentary, as this is statement is inaccurate.

    The court dismissed plaintiff's claims under 18 USC 1030 because Congress has mandated that civil claims are only authorized by this statute when the plaintiff has suffered at least $5,000 in economic harm. This is a much narrower articulation of "harm" than that implied by the article.

    The court found plaintiff's allegations of deceptive business practices (NY GBL Sec. 349) and trespass to chattel to be sufficient (dismissing against Interclick's Adertiser clients, but not Interclick itself) stating that "courts have recognized similar privacy violations as injuries for the purposes of section 349" (at 21)

    Also, to be pedantic, no decision was made as to whether there was evidence to support the allegations. A motion to dismiss addresses only whether the allegations, if true, create a valid cause of action.

  • On the post: German Officials Outlaw Facebook 'Like' Button

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 19 Aug, 2011 @ 11:50am

    Re: Re:

    Its not voluntary if you don't know about it and agree to it. Most facebook users don't know about it (but have probably unwittingly "agreed" to it via the TOS). Non facebook users have most certainly not agreed to it.

  • On the post: German Officials Outlaw Facebook 'Like' Button

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 19 Aug, 2011 @ 11:48am

    Re: technology as magic

    "If this quote is accurate, either Herr Weichert has a very poor grasp of how the internet works, or I do."

    Ummm...hate to be the bearer of bad news, but:

    http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-20006532-38.html

  • On the post: Does The FBI Really Use Surveillance Vans With WiFi SSIDs Saying 'FBI_SURVEILLANCE_VAN'?

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 18 Aug, 2011 @ 12:49pm

    Re: Old Joke

    Also this - http://lifehacker.com/5829089/discourage-neighbors-from-using-your-wi+fi-by-naming-your-network-something-scary

    So if you want to have open wifi, but dissuade people from using if for things which will bring a swat team to your door, naming it FBI_SURVEILLANCE_VAN makes alot of sense.

  • On the post: 'Real Names' Doesn't Exactly Guarantee A High Level Of Conversation Either

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 18 Aug, 2011 @ 10:42am

    Re: Re: Communities are often sociopaths.

    I agree with you that the effect will be to dissuade people from taking stands against malevolent conventions. Although I think this side effect is a non-factor in the decision to implement real names. I think its more likely that the policy is intended to facilitate the gathering of more useful marketing data by allowing a more complete profile to be constructed and making it more difficult to obscure personal information.

  • On the post: 'Real Names' Doesn't Exactly Guarantee A High Level Of Conversation Either

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 17 Aug, 2011 @ 02:29pm

    Communities are often sociopaths.

    The idea that real names enhance discourse is based on the false assumption that misbehavior is usually anti-social, and will be reduced by community shaming. In fact the most horrific cruelty in human history has been done in furtherance of community norms such as racism, misogyny and religious intolerance.

  • On the post: 'Jonathan's Card' Raises Interesting Ethical Debate: Who Decides Which Uses Of A Shared Resource Are 'Right'?

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 16 Aug, 2011 @ 08:57pm

    Odio

    is a pseudonym right? I mean his name basically means Sam Hatred, so he either does not exist or has moved into this dimension from a comic book.

  • On the post: After Widespread Cheating, FBI Will Retest Agents On Surveillance Guidelines… With Much Easier Test

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 12 Aug, 2011 @ 09:28am

    Re:

    maybe the secret patriot act interpretation Wyden and Udall were upset about was that the FBI could seize test answers without a warrant.

  • On the post: Dear Everyone: Stock Market Problems Are Not Directly Due To S&P Downgrade

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 08 Aug, 2011 @ 01:40pm

    Ratings agency power

    But, why isn't anyone talking about a very serious problem: the fact that we allow ratings agencies to have so much power in the first place?


    I'm sure this was mentioned in comments to the last post, but in case it wasn't it should be noted that Dodd-Frank included two shots across the ratings agency bows: 1) it removed their exemption from expert witness liability and 2) it required federal agencies to remove "baked-in" reference to ratings agencies from the regulations they promulgate. Both of these had the potential to seriously impede the ratings agencies. In fact after the law made them responsible for their opinions they immediately began refusing to allow their ratings to be published (although the SEC appears to have given them a perpetual waiver and a bill to remove this provision has emerged from the House subcommittee a few weeks ago without much fanfare). Of course, both reforms appear to have been eviscerated through the typical process of backroom dealing and regulatory capture. Whoops!

  • On the post: How To Make A Mockery Of Your Own Law School: Sue Your Critics

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 08 Aug, 2011 @ 11:28am

    Re: Is This Where All The Bad Lawyers Come From?

    Actually, I think the vast majority of lawyers would agree that there are too many lawyers. Our guild is doing a terrible job of ensuring demand always outstrips supply.

    Cooley is actually pretty notorious. Third and fourth tier schools tend to have a massive culling after 1st year, where the bottom quarter/third get kicked out, but Cooley is so large that its cull is especially brutal. That being said, the Cooley grads I've known haven't been any worse on average than other lawyers.

    I think that the propensity for making arguments which benefit your client without taking into account its effect on society in general is unrelated to the oversupply of attorneys. I think the pro-IP camp is strongly represented by lawyers whose clients are pro-IP. The problem with Regent grads was their ideological uniformity and authoritarian leanings, not their knowledge of the law.

  • On the post: Police, City Use Ridiculous 'Cyberstalking' Claim To Try To Identify & Jail Creator Of Mocking Videos

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 05 Aug, 2011 @ 01:24pm

    Re: I hope he covered his tracks

    Very true. Although in this case, Google didn't have a choice - this was a search warrant, not a subpoena.

    Subpoenas can be challenged by making a motion to quash, search warrants cannot. That is why a search warrant requires a magistrate to validate the existence of probable cause.

    What's especially disgusting about this is that the remedy for an unconstitutional search is exclusion from evidence in the criminal proceeding. Since it is clear that here they are using the criminal justice system on a pretensual basis in order to obtain information. Its absolutely revolting that the prosecutor would take part in this.

  • On the post: 20th Century Fox Claims 'Dice Age' Game Sounds Too Much Like Ice Age Movie

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 01 Aug, 2011 @ 02:28pm

    In related news..

    ...20th Century Fox is being sued by Time and Evolution for infringing on their Century and Fox trademarks, respectively.

  • On the post: The Very Basis Of Our Patent System… Is A Myth

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 29 Jul, 2011 @ 10:45am

    More Cowbell!

    I would like to have seen a more extensive discussion of the commercialization aspect, particularly the role patents play in attracting the kind of investment that allows a firm to turn the invention into an innovative product. The historical example method he uses is effective at demonstrating commercialization is possible without patents and that there are instances where patents impede commercialization, but it is not well suited to evaluating the effect of patents on commercialization in general. That would require a broader study of various innovations and how they were brought to market.

    Plus its interesting that

  • On the post: Canadian Officials Censoring Scientists Whose Results They Don't Like

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 29 Jul, 2011 @ 06:34am

    Re: Native Americans

    Except that the article in Science is about the prevalence of specific genomic signatures among the dying salmon, which as another commenter has stated implicates salmon farming.

    So First Nations' actions are completely irrelevant to the the government censorship. Wild speculation couched as being "almost certain[]" is a great way to pollute our discourse with false knowledge, which is highly tenacious and resistant to correction - http://www.dartmouth.edu/~nyhan/nyhan-reifler.pdf

  • On the post: Canadian Officials Censoring Scientists Whose Results They Don't Like

    sheenyglass ( profile ), 28 Jul, 2011 @ 06:52pm

    Re:

    "British Columbia is politically correct in the extreme so it would never do to air the possibility."

    But the Privy Council's Office is a federal entity. What does the political correctness of British Columbia have to do with their decision?

    "The muzzling is almost certainly because Canadian First Nation tribes...may be implicated in the decline (or not)"

    What's the basis for this claim? It almost certainly seems like it may be a wild guess (or not).

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