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Monday, February 11, 2002 |
All Hail Creative Commons "In a boon to the arts and the software industry, Creative Commons will make available flexible, customizable intellectual-property licenses that artists, writers, programmers and others can obtain free of charge to legally define what constitutes acceptable uses of their work." [via Tomalak's Realm]
Lawrence Lessig puts his money where his mouth is. I'd like to post the whole article here, but that would be a violation of copyright. There are a lot of positive, good concepts in Lessig's plan, but here's the crux of the problem:
"He points out, for example, that when Congress first enacted copyright law in 1790, the protection extended for a term of 14 years, which could be renewed for another 14 years if the author was still alive. Congress has since increased that term to the life of the author plus 70 years. Given current life expectancies, that means a corporation can now bank on preventing a piece of intellectual property produced by a 30-year-old today from falling into the public domain for more than a century."
More power to Mr. Lessig.
11:32:47 PM Permanent link here
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Battling Bush's digital divide. "Three prominent civil rights organizations will hold an emergency meeting to combat a proposal to eliminate two programs they say are "crucial" to reducing the digital divide." [News.com]
This is just so wrong I don't even know where to start.
11:19:07 PM Permanent link here
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And speaking of Philips....
Dashboard surfing for the masses "Philips Semiconductors debuts a new chip it says will take the emerging niche of dashboard electronics beyond the realm of the luxury car. Analysts, however, are skeptical." [News.com]
I honestly believe that most Americans exposure to wireless convergence will begin in their cars.
11:04:26 PM Permanent link here
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Take Your Router for a Walk "[IXI Mobile] on Monday announced its vision for a personal network in which a small cell phone and inexpensive e-mail device connect to cellular phone networks via a miniature server and router that would reside in the owner's pocket. The server, which would be about the same size as a tin of mints, would have a GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) modem to provide the connection for the cell phone and other devices.... The goal is for the whole package, including handset, server and messaging device, to sell for less than $200." [at News.com]
Yet another take on converging devices and technologies. I wonder if these can be integrated into Philips Wearable Electronics Clothing?
10:46:10 PM Permanent link here
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Seven Tricks that Web Users Don't Know "Web developers have all sorts of browsing tricks that they have gained from years of experience, to the point where they can't even imagine not knowing them -- right-clicking to open a new browser window, for instance, or using the arrow keys to navigate a list. To Web veterans, these things are so familiar that they seem obvious. The fact that many people don't know these tricks -- and can get completely stuck as a result -- comes as a shock. This article describes seven Web site features that typical non-technical users aren't familiar with, based on data collected from the author's own usability studies." [via Dane Carlson's Weblog]
Although this article is from last June, it's not a surprise to librarians. We see this first-hand, and we're the ones that are still teaching folks how to use a mouse, whether it's in a public, school, or special library. This is what I was getting at yesterday.
10:28:13 PM Permanent link here
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Hollywood's Latest Attack on Customers "If Hollywood and the big television networks had controlled Congress 25 years ago the way they do today, you wouldn't have a fast-forward button on your video-cassette recorder. You wouldn't be allowed to tape a program to watch later. You would be allowed to view TV only the way they chose. Period." [Dan Gillmor's eJournal]
9:35:59 PM Permanent link here
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Studios Assail ReplayTV Technology "The suit filed by MGM, Fox, Universal Studios and Orion Pictures goes furthest, arguing that it's illegal to let consumers record and store shows based on the genre, actors or other words in the program description. This claim threatens not just the ReplayTV devices, some copyright experts say, but all recorders like it."
"Unlike VCRs, which require users to record shows by time slot or unique number, PVRs record based on a show's name or program description. Users don't need to know when "Friends" is on. They just need to know the name or a leading actor. Once a program is found, the device can be set to capture it whenever it's on the air."
" 'If a ReplayTV customer can simply type 'The X-Files' or 'James Bond' and have every episode of 'The X-Files' and every James Bond film recorded in perfect digital form and organized, compiled and stored on the hard drive of his or her ReplayTV 4000 device, it will cause substantial harm to the market for prerecorded DVD, videocassette and other copies of those episodes and films,' the lawsuit states."
"The fundamental question posed by the MGM suit is whether the financial effect on the studios trumped consumers' ability to copy programs for personal use, said Douglas Wood, a New York attorney who specializes in intellectual-property and advertising law. If MGM wins on that point, he said, 'We'd be left with plain old VCRs.' "
"He's not betting on the studios, though, given the Supreme Court's 1984 ruling that consumers could legally record programs for the sake of watching them later. 'What difference does it make how I do it?' Wood said. 'The dilemma is, the technology is turning the business model upside down. But that doesn't mean it's copyright infringement.' " (emphasis is mine) [via bOing bOing]
I'm quoting liberally from this article because the LA Times link will be gone in a few days. This lawsuit just reeks of desperation. Let's file lawsuit after lawsuit and hope one of them sticks. Yeah, like that worked with Napster and file trading. It's like the bully on the playground who goes tattling on someone that outsmarts him, hoping that someone else will take care of the problem because he can't. I'm all for copyright, but you can't stifle progress just to keep making a buck.
9:31:21 PM Permanent link here
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Sony's New Prototype PDA Form Factor "The unit, only seen for a few seconds by most is a departure from the standard handheld form factor, sporting a vertically aligned clamshell design, a thumb keyboard, and a large rectangular display. Looking closely at the photos from ascii24.com, you can see the CLIE logo, 5 hardware buttons, a thumb keyboard made up of very small keys, a digital camera, and a screen which looks like it could run 240x320, 320x480 or similar resolutions which fit into this ratio. The most compelling aspect of this device in my opinion is the ability to see the screen when the device is both open and closed." [PDABuzz.com]
Still more innovation in handhelds. It looks like PDA makers are finally starting to think out of the monolithic block. Why wouldn't they put the buttons on the outside, though? Then you wouldn't have to open it for basic functionality. What would you be able to see and do with the screen closed?
9:04:34 PM Permanent link here
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"New Yahoo ads and promotions point to the increasing marginalization of this once central portal. It is starting to look like Excite. The obvious evolutionary step in the Web portal saga was to take the experience to the desktop. Connect up Web Services and grow from there, slowly absorbing more and more of the users time. A virtual AOL (without the connectivity). However, that didn't happen so they are slowly fading into the background." [John Robb's Radio Weblog]
And then on the opposite side of the spectrum from Google we have Yahoo. I agree with John that Yahoo has peaked and is on its way down. They could have innovated like Google and stayed out front, but instead they just bought up other companies and services in the hopes of integrating it all into one big honking catch-all. Well, it didn't work, but then I'm not sure where they expected to end up because I never got a sense of a specific plan and direction in which they wanted to go.
Even with the "My Yahoo" service that I use at home, it could have been so much more if Yahoo had concentrated on providing a specific service focused on user control (like NewsIsFree), rather than a way to push its own partnerships and services. Yahoo could have been the center of the blogging universe, too, but they are no longer innovating. Like so many of the bigcos, they're watching behind them and reacting instead of looking forward and creating.
8:31:28 PM Permanent link here
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The Secret Lives of Numbers "The authors conducted an exhaustive empirical study, with the aid of custom software, public search engines and powerful statistical techniques, in order to determine the relative popularity of every integer between 0 and one million. The resulting information exhibits an extraordinary variety of patterns which reflect and refract our culture, our minds, and our bodies. For example, certain numbers, such as 212, 486, 911, 1040, 1492, 1776, 68040, or 90210, occur more frequently than their neighbors because they are used to denominate the phone numbers, tax forms, computer chips, famous dates, or television programs that figure prominently in our culture." [via MeFi]
The consensus seems to be that the search engine is Google. I think Google is single-handedly responsible for an Internet renaissance of its own. Its inspiring people to use search engines, manipulate data, and do research in entirely new ways. The name itself has become a verb, and it's responsible for new Internet-based sports (Googlewhacking and Google Instant Messaging anyone?). Offhand, I can't think of another site that has been used in such wildly different ways from its intended purpose to become an integral part of the collective Internet consciousness. And it will only continue. At least, I hope it will.
Note: The site listed above is a Java applet recommended for Windows and IE users with higher-end machines with lots of RAM and a broadband connection.
8:19:17 PM Permanent link here
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Dad, I knew you liked Shazam and had collected some of the comics, which is why I checked him out when I used to collect them. Luckily, Bruce and I saved them all from the trash bin, so I do have Captain Marvel v.1, no.1 from 1973. It always makes me think of you. :-)
7:27:31 PM Permanent link here
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Kazaa picks up the speed with update "The update, called Kazaa Media Desktop 1.5, comes with a new function for download recommendations, faster search results, faster start-up time and an automated feature that lets people communicate with contacts, according to the developer. Like its notorious cousin Napster, Kazaa has been targeted in lawsuits from the recording and motion picture industries, which charge that its peer-to-peer technology enables unauthorized distribution of copyright works. But unlike Napster, which has essentially been forced by the courts to block the swapping of all copyrighted music, Kazaa continues to function as though it's business as usual." [at CNET News.com]
<sarcasm> Good thing the RIAA had Napster shut down and stopped all this silly file-trading business dead in its tracks. Good going, RIAA! </sarcasm>
2:49:58 PM Permanent link here
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Also from infoSync is a screenshot of the Space Taxi pinball game mentioned in the Have Cell Phone, Will Shoot post from a few days ago . It only runs on the Nokia 9210 and Nokia 9290 phones, but my oh my is it purty. Now that's the kind of service that would make me switch cell phones and carriers, but of course it's not available in the U.S. The game is written in Java, so I can only imagine what we'll start seeing as screen resolutions, processors, and battery life improve.
BTW Meryl, these phones are supposed to be better for deaf users (as well as the rest of us) because of the larger keyboard and the bigger screen.
1:59:11 PM Permanent link here
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In today's "too damn cool" department, we have an announcement from tDevice about a new case/keyboard for Palm Vx and Handspring PDAs called a "Q-Pad." "Designed into approximately a 3"x5"x0.9" dimension, the new Q-Pad for Handspring VisorEdge and Palm Vx packs the solid protection of an internally framed leather case, an integrated 60 key QWERTY keyboard with dedicated numeric keypad, and an ergonomic PDA viewing stand. The Q-Pad brings back the promise of PDA's 'virtually anytime, anywhere computing' by allowing the true mobility of a PDA, a keyboard and PDA protection in a single, easy-to-use package." [via infoSync]
And it supposedly costs less than $70. Shazam! I wouldn't want to use this for taking notes in meetings, but it's a hell of an advance for wireless typing. If they make this available for the Palm i705 soon, I think it may really take off. Of course, I'd rather they made one for my Clie first, but since I don't use it with wireless access yet, I guess I can wait. I am constantly amazed at the new approaches for input that we're seeing these days. This could be one option for a librarian working in the stacks.
1:37:14 PM Permanent link here
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Ore-Ida Puts Fun Into Funky with the Introduction of Funky Fries "Ore-Ida Funky Fries will be available to consumers this May in five 20-ounce varieties: Cinna-Stiks (cinnamon and sugar potatoes), Cocoa Crispers (cocoa-y potatoes), Kool Blue (crispy, seasoned potatoes with a radical blue color), Crunchy Rings (cylindrical potatoes that crunch as they delight), and Sour Cream & Jive (crispy potatoes seasoned with just the right amount of sour cream and chive flavoring)." [via MeFi]
So does this mean I'm officially a kid if these flavors intrigue me (especially the chocolate fries)? Brent will love each and every one of these flavors. I know this because last week he extolled the virtues of salsa mixed with white rice. Ah, six-year olds....
11:42:06 AM Permanent link here
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Copyright Fight Deck "How about a card game where you fight to control the rights to all of humanity's works? RIAA, I choose you!" [More Like This WebLog]
I don't know whether to laugh or cry this is so funny. And you get three "library" cards to boot! I'll be printing this out for the next game night....
10:53:21 AM Permanent link here
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Reach for the Stars. "Stellarium Astronomy Software is a free software program that “It renders 3D photo-realistic skies in real time. With stellarium, you really see what you can see with your eyes, binoculars..." [meryl's notes]
I'll be downloading this tonight, as will my Dad, I'm sure.
10:44:41 AM Permanent link here
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Fellow Flash trainees, take a gander at Macromedia's Flash Inspiration site. Ooooh. Aaaah. Ohhhh.
The Intro to Flash training I was at last week was excellent. Trista was a great instructor, and she did what I consider to be the most important thing a trainer can do: she used humor to keep us awake! I'm totally bummed that I won't be able to attend the second session. I understand its potential a lot better now.
At SLS, Kate and I have what we call "revolutions" every so often. When we took Crystal Reports training a few years ago, we had a lot of "A-ha!" moments, and afterwards we wrote a manifesto about the coming revolution. (It passed us by, but that wasn't our fault.) This same thing happened after our SQL and PL/SQL training, and for me it happened again after I saw a presentation by Alison Atkins Denton about GIS. I felt this way again on Friday, but unfortunately I won't have any time to play with Flash until at least March, and that's if I'm lucky.
Don't worry, though. I won't be turning the SLS sites into a big honking Flash swf, but I will have some fun with it, especially on the SLS intranet.
9:22:44 AM Permanent link here
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Thin Mints in Cyberspace. "E-mail is playing a bigger role than ever in the annual U.S. Girl Scout cookie-selling season. But scout leaders remain opposed to pitching their sugary fare on the Web." [Wired News]
We'll be using email next year to sell Girl Scout cookies. Or rather, Kailee will. She'll have no problem writing the messages herself and contacting family and friends.
9:01:39 AM Permanent link here
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Paul, you install the Radio software on one machine where you have broadband access, either at home or at work. As long as you can get to the machine's IP address, you can set up Radio to access it remotely, including the news aggregator. I have Radio running on my home machine because my ISP is AT&T Broadband, and then I access it from work over the Web. That's how I was able to show you everything on Friday at ICC.
And yes, the news aggregator is just too damn cool! Keep the questions coming!
7:15:39 AM Permanent link here
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Olympics Site Not Medal-Worthy "Interface design guru Jakob Nielsen says the official Salt Lake website has a chilling effect on users. Like many 'capitulating' sites in need of revenue, it places ad dollars ahead of sound design." [Wired News]
Just one of the many problems with the Olympics Web site.
7:13:24 AM Permanent link here
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© Copyright 2004 Jenny Levine.
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