next step in the copyright battle
May 19, 2003 by Eric Richardson
In my paper on copyright and the public domain I concluded by saying that change would only come via legislation. The first steps in that direction have now begun, as lobbying starts for the Eric Eldred Act. The idea behind the act isn't new, and it doesn't address all problems with current copyright, but the important thing is that it's a sensible proposal that has a chance of getting passed. This will only happen, however, if people take a stand and let their representatives in Washington know that this bill is something they care about.
tipping point?
May 17, 2003 by Eric Richardson
I think the broadbast debate may have been settled... Speakeasy is offering a free X-Box or PS2 when you start new service. Now the console war question begins... For the last couple months we've had a PS2, which I loved. I beat Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, and am a huge fan of NCAA Football 2003. Only the GTA line is PS2 exclusive, but I love the feel of the PS2 and its controller. The X-Box controller has always felt unwieldy to me. On the other hand, though, the X-Box Linux hacks are a huge plus. I'd love to be able to pipe media files to the tv via the network, and X-Box has the most promise of that (via projects like Xbox Media Player). For that reason -- and the fact that #{node "5"}D4#{/node} prefers X-Box -- it's looking like I'll go DSL, Speakeasy, and X-Box.
mulling my broadband options
May 16, 2003 by Eric Richardson
I'm going to be the only one in my apartment most of the summer, so I'm going to be dropping cable to save some money. Because of this, and a bit of hassle that would be associated with switching our comcast account from my old roomate's name to mine, I've been debating switching from Cable Internet to DSL. Today I priced out a bunch of different options, and they really just left me confused. Click the title to read more... — Continue Reading...
mmmm... matrix
May 15, 2003 by Eric Richardson
D4 and I went and saw the 1:30AM showing of the new Matrix at the Chinese tonight. On the way there, D4 turns to me and asks, "Who goes to a 1:30 movie?" Well... Us and 1500 of our closest friends, that's who. The showing was sold out, and the theatre was packed. The movie? All I can say is wow. I didn't quite know what to expect from this one, but it definitely didn't disappoint. Click the title for random thoughts that you may or may not want before seeing the movie... — Continue Reading...
doh
May 12, 2003 by Eric Richardson
So today I had an 8am final in COMM 204: Public Speaking. I woke up at 8:22, looked up at my clock, and went "uh oh." I made it there by 8:30 and finished by 9:25, though, so it ended up not being a big deal. Now the year's over, and I'm headed to the beach.