I will never buy a Sony

It has came to my attention, as a former Sony supporter, that Sony has a bad habit of dropping products and being highly proprietary in thier offerings. Whether it's the short lifespan of their PC/laptop product models, the tempermental support of the CLIÉ, they just can't seem to stay behind their work.

While they have great stuff, longevity is critical to me. I decline to buy Sony.

Piracy: If Bill does it, it must be ok!

It seems that Bill Gates himself is a fan of piracy. He supports it just like millions of other people through the use of sites like YouTube.

Now this is far more difficult to stop than even movies, software, or music on hard media, this is out in the open, share with everyone, piracy.

Its easy to get, impossible to pay for and pointless to report. If Bill, the richest guy I've ever met, enjoys it, why the heck am i trying to stop piracy around me?

Modders and Tuners: How are they different?

Part of being a good judge is understanding the opinions held by both sides in a situation and, within the rules of law and precidence, providing a viable decision that is fair and unbiased. While I am no judge in the legal sense, my perception regarding the fairness of a law or claim may be swayed or changed by understanding the views of the claimant and the defendant.

This statement is true for everything I write about, if you disagree with me, come up with a viable argument and evidence to support your claim and I'll listen.

Now, what's on my mind is the act of modifying a console by, or for, an end-user. For example the XBOX, as released was a formidable console gaming using with potential DVD capabilities (you'd need to buy the remote). A few resourceful individuals, and some companies have created modifications (mods) to install into the XBOX that allow for a wider range of function and changes to not only the console's functionality, but some game functionality. This is where the concern begins.

A novice might liken the upgrade to what a car enthusiast does to a car. The tuner will add performance parts and such to improve the functionality of the vehicle in the area of speed, access, comfort, entertainment, or cosmetics. This is legal unless the car is used for street racing, but legal otherwise (for now). How is it somehow wrong for to mod an XBOX then?

The difference is that the code in the XBOX is designed to work in a particular manner. It was authored to serve a strict design to ensure the best game functionality and limited (i.e. no DVD without buying the Remote) to preserve licensing. We're not talking about adding a muffler or lowering your suspension, though some mods will void the car's manufacturer warranty. Some gamers go so far as to modify the software that runs on the XBOX (as it has been stored on the hard disk) so it behaves differently and while this is creative it is changing the design without the author's permission.

Personal Use... If an end-user does this for himself there's very little impact. Aside from the annoyance to others for a ridiculous mod that creates an unfair advantage, but this is no longer just personal use, it's effecting others. This would be much like the modified car, with a resonator on the exhaust, driving down your street.

So, it is wrong to mod? Yes, technically. Is it stoppable, not so far. Is it that different from tuning your car? No. It really comes down to your use of the customization and whether you have respect for others.

GO SEE "An Inconvenient Truth", Please.

http://www.climatecrisis.net/

For the Uber-Techie

This is the toy to have...
Samsung Launches First PCs with NAND Flash-based Solid State Disk

I'm sorry this has become a rather veggie blog recently (no meat) It'll get better soon.