Christopher Gizzi 's Techdirt Comments

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  • On the post: Record Labels Planning Yet Another Way To Try To Get You To Rebuy Music You Already 'Bought'

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 23 Feb, 2011 @ 02:24pm

    Re: Re: Re: Tell you what....

    Of course it does. Loss-less refers to the compression, not bit depth. If you make a FLAC out of a 16-bit CD and a FLAC out of a 24-bit master, the FLAC on the 24-bit master will still sound better. The DB range is much greater with 24-bits which means that instead of (roughly) 65k levels you have 16m levels. That's a huge difference in audio clarity.

    WAV is also loss-less because there is no compression. But make a WAV file out of a 16-bit CD and compare it to a 24-bit WAV file created out of the "master" and not only are you going to get a better sounding file, but it would be larger, too - almost 3 times the size.

  • On the post: Record Labels Planning Yet Another Way To Try To Get You To Rebuy Music You Already 'Bought'

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 23 Feb, 2011 @ 02:08pm

    Re:

    I wrote something about this the other day and I agree that most people won't be able to tell the difference. Only a select few - and mostly those who listen to classical music - will benefit from this (besides the labels and Apple).

    Apple gets to sell newer iPods. New storage capacities would be needed for the later files and new hardware needed to process the 24-bit audio. They also get their 30% of any "upgrade" fee like they charged for iTunes Plus files.

    The labels get to charge more money like they once did for iTunes Plus files and also charge a re-buy fee to "upgrade" any existing music.

    Not worth it if you ask me - much different from earlier format shifts (vinyl to cassette, cassette to CD, CD to MP3) where there was some value in the purchase.

  • On the post: Record Labels Planning Yet Another Way To Try To Get You To Rebuy Music You Already 'Bought'

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 23 Feb, 2011 @ 02:00pm

    Re: Tell you what....

    It isn't the compression their changing - they did that already with iTunes Plus where they got rid of the DRM and bumped up the bit rate from 128 to 256kbps.

    The changes they say might be coming are changing the number of bits per channel of audio - its supposed to be a more natural sound because it can replicate the analog wave more finely.

    FLAC is still compression and unless the file was a compressed version of the 24-bit master, it still will sound poorly... just not as poorly as a 256kbps iTunes file.

  • On the post: Maryland Corrections Agency Demanding All Social Media Passwords Of Potential Hires

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 22 Feb, 2011 @ 10:58am

    Re: Re: Drug Test?

    Wow, that's a yottabytes! (Sorry, couldn't resist but you posted great, geeky reply. Not too many people know what a yottabyte is.)

    But seriously...

    Different industries do ask for more personal information to receive benefit or employment. The adult film industry (by law) tests for STDs and performers can't work without a clear HIV test. Your car keys aren't taken but your driver's license is and your driving record IS checked. People with a history of smoking can be charged a premium for health care.

    Our government doesn't guarantee you a job that has no screening - especially in the private sector. What it does do is help protect a person from discrimination on the basis of things that are beyond their control and some personal choice - race, sex, sexual orientation, etc. You're free to start your own business if you don't like the practices and enforce your own hiring rules so long as they don't discriminate.

    But that said, I am in total favor of the ACLU winning this (if they take legal action) - I'm not happy with the slow erosion of our privacy either. But that's happening because we as a society are asking for more and more Facebook, not because the Feds or private employers are asking for too much. As society becomes more open, it is reasonable to expect employers to ask for this information as part of a background check.

  • On the post: Maryland Corrections Agency Demanding All Social Media Passwords Of Potential Hires

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 22 Feb, 2011 @ 10:11am

    Re: Re: Drug Test?

    On the point about applied THEN asked... its no different than a drug test at any other place of employment. I applied to a job then was told to take a drug test. You don't always know if a company has a drug testing policy before applying or not.

    And again, I fail to see how this is different. If one's Facebook stream shows you doing or taking something illegal, then how is this test isn't the same as a drug test.

    Perhaps its not as defensible in court as a drug test if you were to not get hired (or fired) but it could be construed as another test for illegal activity. And in a correctional facility, don't you want that?

  • On the post: Maryland Corrections Agency Demanding All Social Media Passwords Of Potential Hires

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 22 Feb, 2011 @ 09:25am

    Drug Test?

    Is revealing online passwords the next drug test? Taking drugs is illegal and testing for drug use is not. How is this different? How is scanning one's Facebook stream not "testing" for illegal activity?

    I'm not in favor of giving passwords out. I wouldn't apply to a job that asked me to give that information out or told me not to change my password. But that's my choice. And I could refuse a drug test for employment if I wanted to - and not be offered the job as a result.

    I'm all in favor of the ACLU successfully challenging a rule that I think will only serve to reduce the number of qualified applicants available to the MD Correctional System. But how is this social media test any different than a drug test?

  • On the post: Maryland Corrections Agency Demanding All Social Media Passwords Of Potential Hires

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 22 Feb, 2011 @ 09:17am

    Re: Setup fake/dummy account?

    That will probably do more disservice than good. They'll just ask for your entire online personae.

  • On the post: Photographer Who Took Family Portrait Of Girl Shot In Tucson Suing Media For Using The Photo

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 18 Feb, 2011 @ 11:55am

    Streisand Effect

    I don't think this guy is going to get the rewards he felt he'd get. Legal fees, bad press, probably some nasty things said about him, and loss of business is what he'll get for being so cruel and thoughtless. Not licensing fees.

    He's trying damage control on his blog. There aren't any comments so he's blocking them or no one has thought to reach out to him that way. But the Tucson Weekly has quite a few people calling him some choice words.

    I have my own that I'll keep to myself.

  • On the post: Death Of Nokia's 'Comes With Music' Shows That 'Free' With DRM Is A Losing Proposition

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 16 Feb, 2011 @ 10:25am

    Re: Re:

    Not so strict, though. The thing about Apple's products is while there are restrictions, they are not always applicable.

    Apple's products let you work with MP3 which you can transfer. They don't sell DRM'd songs anymore (although watermarked) but you can transfer songs from your PC to your Mac and your iPhone/iPad/iPod.

    So the only backlash they are feeling are from those who don't like their business model. But that model does include freedom for the consumer. And they offer more freedom than I could get from Nokia's offering.

  • On the post: Screaming Justin Bieber Fans Using Camera Phones To Capture Snippets Of Movie Premiere Berated For Piracy

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 14 Feb, 2011 @ 01:06pm

    Re: But they've now seen the Bieb...

    Somehow, I don't think Bieber fans want to see his movie for the "plot."

    FACT: I saw a 30 second preview of nearly every movie I've seen and figured out the plot. It made me want to see the movie in the first place.

    ALSO FACT: I've read review articles in the paper and online and watched them on the evening news and ALSO understood the plot. Sometimes, I saw the movie.

    Seeing a 30 second clip isn't going to stop paying customers from paying. They either want to see the movie or don't. But I bet you'd get more people seeing the movie than people deciding against seeing the movie after watching a 30 second clip.

  • On the post: Screaming Justin Bieber Fans Using Camera Phones To Capture Snippets Of Movie Premiere Berated For Piracy

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 14 Feb, 2011 @ 12:52pm

    Opposite Directions

    I wonder what the kids would say if someone told them they were guilty of the crime of pirating a Bieber movie clip.

    I wonder what the parents would say if the cops told them their kids were held at the station for copyright infringement.

    I?m willing to bet both sets would look at them like they had two heads. Neither the kids or parents would think it a crime to send a movie clip of a life experience to their friends in that way.

    And I dare anyone to jail a child for filming a Bieber clip.

    But the real thing to take away is this: the law isn?t just taking a long time to catch up to social norms, the law and the social norms are heading in exactly the opposite direction.

  • On the post: When Consumers Innovate To Solve Their Own Needs, Do Patents Just Get In The Way?

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 11 Feb, 2011 @ 07:37am

    Re:

    Not so simple, though.

    Not every personal invention is private. A person's website is generally public and some company can claim they own a patent on something they independently developed. So if they solved a problem with some code they developed, but it was already invented by some other company, they're a target.

    Now that person has to defend against a lawsuit.

  • On the post: When Consumers Innovate To Solve Their Own Needs, Do Patents Just Get In The Way?

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 10 Feb, 2011 @ 11:46am

    Re: Necessity

    I hate to be the one to point this out to you (not really) but one's laziness and the desire to do something with less work is, in fact, a need. An invention can fill that need to so something with less energy. Of course, it doesn't stop at physical energy.

    And your hammer example is really bad because anyone who's used a hammer before knows it doesn't save your fingers from getting mashed. :-/

  • On the post: When Consumers Innovate To Solve Their Own Needs, Do Patents Just Get In The Way?

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 10 Feb, 2011 @ 10:59am

    Old Saying

    Necessity is the mother of invention.

    Its an old but true saying. The incentive to innovate doesn't come from a patent. It comes from a specific need. The cave people didn't have patents and yet they invented tools just fine. And they innovated, too. They actually shared that information and things got lighter, sharper, stronger. We taught others to fish and developed better tools to do so. That shared knowledge actually allowed our brains to grow (perhaps too big) and migrate to vast regions of the globe.

    So any argument that invention or innovation would stop if you got rid of patents is the silliest idea ever. As much as I appreciate long studies proving that in economic models, any anthropologist could have told you that from their own (probably long) studies.

  • On the post: The White House Wants Advice On What's Blocking American Innovation

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 09 Feb, 2011 @ 02:23pm

    What They Want You To Say

    You know why they limited it to 2500 characters:

    They want you to say that more tax breaks or stimulus money for starting a company is the key to innovation. Its easy to do and it makes them sound effective for the next 2 - 4 years.

    They can't innovate and solve problems on their own. What makes you think they want to do anything but cut checks?

  • On the post: Cures For Paralysis, Diabetes And Blindness Hindered By Patents

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 28 Jan, 2011 @ 09:06am

    Good.

    We get what we deserve.

    Its no wonder why some people fly to Europe for special treatments for disease. A combination of price and general availability combined with the FDA's review process (where it is slow to review some treatments but quick to approve others) helps ensure America's average lifespan continues to decline.

    I'm convinced that breakthrough innovation is dead in America. Its all about lazy & protective laws to feed a cash cow. And I hope that true progress takes place in Europe but I'm sure that once they get to where we are now, they'll fold, too, and patent up and slow medical breakthroughs down to a crawl.

  • On the post: Big Record Label 'Innovation': Actually Release Songs For Sale The Same Time They Hit The Radio

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 17 Jan, 2011 @ 01:07pm

    Release Windows

    Because delaying the release by 28 days or using other windows is a sure fire way to add value and increase sales.

  • On the post: How Newark Mayor Cory Booker Made All Politics Super Local With Twitter Following The Blizzard

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 29 Dec, 2010 @ 09:04am

    It Matters

    Booker has been tweeting for a while so while the extra ordinary actions he's taken (like personally buying diapers) might be thought of a political move, it doesn't sound outwardly as such. He's gone out of his way to help others before so this only reenforces the idea he's there to solve problems. Other neighboring cities have had similar problems and no communication and the response has been appropriately critical.

    Hoboken, for example, has had a rash of issues. Their mayor isn't in town and is leaving others to communicate a response to the people. So there is no help, no direct communication, and no expectation things will get better any time soon. And they're are a significantly smaller city. But the negative reaction is loud and far reaching.

    True, this was a unique storm. Many eateries in downtown Manhattan ( at least FiDi, anyway) were closed Monday and Tuesday because they couldn't get their deliveries in the morning. But the immediate response to not being prepared shouldn't be blame, ignorance, and inaction. Address the immediate problem and and better prepare for the future.

    It seems as if Booker is at least doing one of those two things.

  • On the post: Discussing The Music Industry Comically Speaking, With Mimi & Eunice

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 22 Dec, 2010 @ 08:35am

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:

    That's one hell of a knife you have there. :-)

    I probably should have said "can" or "have the chance to" make a fantastic living.

    But where I was going with it was, in an ideal world, everyone should be making a fantastic living - "fantastic" being a relative figure that suggests more than average without being obscene. But "should" doesn't mean "will" or "obliged." Something I could have been better at explaining.

    But my intent wasn't to ignore the fact that not everyone can or will earn a fantastic living from creating and I'm you pointed out that distinction because its something the entitlement society we discuss here feels differently about.

  • On the post: Discussing The Music Industry Comically Speaking, With Mimi & Eunice

    Christopher Gizzi ( profile ), 22 Dec, 2010 @ 07:38am

    Re: Re: Re:

    I'll take the bait and try to explain to Anon what's obvious to others.

    The first cartoon talks about how fans want to reward the artist - and only the artist - for their work. Huge corporations are usually the "enemy" of the youth where as music one way to rebel against the establishment. When denied the ability to choose between supporting the artist or the evil corporation, they choose the artist. But if the only choice is the corporation or nothing, nothing is the lesser of the evil here.

    In second cartoon, the she's talking about the hypocrisy of the generalized artist and record label proponent. The fan wants to give a small fee as a token of appreciation - a direct contribution to the artist. But that token of appreciation is rejected and the performer asks that they buy a CD instead even though they earn less money that way. This, of course, costs more than the fan is willing to give. In that situation everyone loses. The fan doesn't support the artist. And the artist earns nothing.

    And lastly, my favorite of the three showcased here (but there are many more good ones at her website), cuts at the heart of the establishment society that seems pervasive in the content industries. The gall in the assumption that you're automatically owed something is confusing at best and simply arrogant at worst. If I never asked you to record a song, that means I don't want it. And why should I be forced to pay for it? Everyone understands some people get into the music business to make money - no one is saying they shouldn't earn a fantastic living. But the assumption that you're automatically owed money for a piece of work is preposterous - especially since some people didn't want that in the first place. And to call someone a thief for not paying is just crazy - which is what people are called when they choose not to pay for something they didn't want in the first place. Its not rhetoric at all.

    There is no assumption by anyone in this audience that a previous investment wasn't made. But there is no way to force a fan to behave to the limited business model of yesteryear. And there is no reasonable justification for forcing someone to pay for something they simply didn't ask for. It sounds like extortion if you put it that way.

    But since you didn't rebuff the cartoons with specifics, I can't see your side of the story. Come back with logical observation before you blindly and cowardly assume everyone is just "taking."

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