BrianAndPamela.com

Link to Apple - Thoughts on Music

I made a bold statement back in October that the only people that are inconvenienced are legitimate customers.  That people who are serious about stealing music are going to do it anyway.  I'm not by any means the only one saying it.  Bloggers have been saying it.  DefectiveByDesign has been saying it.  The EFF says it. Bill Gates said it.

Now one of the biggest names in Digital Music is saying the same .  Arguably THE biggest name in digital media distribution, Steve Jobs of Apple, Inc. released what amounts to a blog post today in which he says exactly that. (more…)

The Unethical but (Mostly) Legal Retail Shopping Tactics of Devil Consumers - SixWise.com

Learn before you return - Charlotte Observer

There's a fine line between protecting your bottom line and punishing your customers.  Best Buy, Target and other retailers are pursuing ways to stop you from being a "Devil Shopper" that costs them money. 

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Link to Privately, Hollywood admits DRM isn't about piracy

Ken Fisher has a good little piece over at Ars Technca about DRM.  He's basically saying what we've all been saying for a while now.  DRM isn't about piracy for Hollywood, it's about profit. 

DRM is about nickle and diming away what used to be "fair-use".  I won't repeat all of Fisher's arguments, but quite telling is his link to a Business Week article by Ron Grover.  Grover quotes an anonymous Hollywood exec complaining that Apples DRM policies are already too lax, because you can authorize up to five devices on one iTunes account.  Quoth the exec, "His [Steve Jobs] user rules scare the heck out of us."  Why?  Because I might lend my authorization to a friend?  The way I might lend a DVD? 

I've got more to write about DRM, maybe it's time for another long DRM rant, but not today.  Lucky you.

Didn't see the comet at night recently?  Try during the day. 

Comet McNaught (see our original story here) is so bright now as it passes through perihelion — that is to say closest to the sun — that observers around the world are reporting that it is visible during the day time.  according to SpaceWeather.com:

 Solar heat is causing the comet to vaporize furiously and brighten to daylight visibility. At magnitude -4 to -5, McNaught is the brightest comet since Ikeya-Seki in 1965.

To find the comet, you need to shield yourself from the sun by standing in the shadow of a building, then hold your fist at arms length.  The comet is 5 degrees east of the sun and your fist is about five degrees wide.  The standard warnings apply about not looking into the sun, you'll go blind and then how would you read this wonderful blog?

Full story at SpaceWeather.com you might need to check the archives for Jan 13th.

Somethings should write themselves.  They are so easy to talk about, to explain in person but getting them to make sense on the screen is different entirely.  My feelings on the iPhone should have been like that.  I wanted to love it.  I love my iPod, so what's not to like about the wide screen, wi-fi, touch controlled iPod I've been craving mixed with a cell phone?  Well, I'll tell you…

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Link to Apple says Cisco lawsuit is "silly" - Engadget

Apple to Cisco:  "You wanna piece of this???  Come get some, sucka!" 

While I finish mind mapping and writing my response to Apple's announcement of the iPhone on Tuesday, here's a little something to tide you over.  Cisco launches the Linksys "iPhone", a VoIP product–surprising everyone, since iXxxxx has essentially been the domain of Apple Inc (née Computer) for a while now.  Then Apple releases the iPhone, a combo cell phone/iPod (that slices and dices and makes cotton candy).  Cisco sues Apple for trademark infringement.  Today, Apple responded with, "Bring it."  Must be nice to be so arrogant and have no one call you on it.

 I’m still digesting and planning what to publically say about the iPhone which Apple announced yesterday.  But to hold you til then, I found this graph on digg.  Essentially it shows Apple stock climbing about 8.5% while Palm and RIM (Makers of Treos and Blackberries) fall.  Interestingly Nokia and Motorolla only fell slightly.  I’d also like to see graphs of Cingular (the announced carrier for the iPhone) against T-Mobile and Verizon over the same period.

Original story at Infectious Greed.

from http://spaceweather.com

Look, up in the sky!  It's a … why it's a comet!  And it's now the brightest comet in 30 years.  Tonight (Jan 10) is a great night to check it out, it should even be visible to the naked eye.  From the SpaceWeather.com email newsletter:

Comet McNaught has continued to brighten as it approaches the sun and it is now the brightest comet in 30 years. For observers in the northern Hemisphere, tonight is probably the best time to see it: Go outside this evening and face the sunset. A clear view of the western horizon is essential, because the comet hangs very low. As the twilight fades to black, it should become visible to the naked eye. Observers say it's a fantastic sight through binoculars.

In the days ahead, Comet McNaught will pass the sun and emerge in good position for southern hemisphere viewing later this month. Meanwhile, solar heating will continue to puff up the comet, causing it to brighten even more. It could become one of the brightest comets in centuries, visible even in daylit skies.

Picture courtesy www.spaceweather.com.

There's been something on my mind recently. I've been seeing a growing number of stories in magazines and websites I frequent (Wired magazine, digg.com, Slashdot, Boing Boing, among others) that I find really amazing. It seems there's a growing movement that I can't really find a better word for than Fundamentalist Atheism. How can I use those two words in the same sentence? Atheists have been around for as long as there have been theists, it's nothing new. What is fairly recent is the attitude (and emotion) behind the recent resurgence in atheistic dogma. Strangely, the more aggressive adherents have begun to sound like the thing they vilify the most: fundamentalist Christians. So come on in, brother and listen while I preach to you about the evangelical Fundamentalist Atheistic Revival Church of Earth! (Hmmm… I just noticed that's FARCE. What a coincidence.) (more…)

 Link to Kilmer plans Genius return - Movie news - Movies - Virgin.net

"Something strange happened to me this morning."
"Was it a dream where you see yourself standing in sort of sun-god robes on a pyramid with a thousand naked women screaming and throwing little pickles at you?"
"No."
"Why am I the only person that has that dream?"

 Now… it's just a rumor, but Virgin.net (a British ISP, NOT a news source, mind you) is reporting that Val Kilmer has agreed to appear in a sequel to the 1985 movie "Real Genuis", which was perhaps one of the best movies of that era.  Certainly one of the funniest and most quotable.

A sequel after 22 years?  I mean, I'm very hopeful, but "This is water, it's what happens to ice when it gets too cold. This is Val Kilmer, this is what happens to actors when they long to return to their glory days."