Re: more protocols: shuffle/repeat, check in/out

On Sun, Jan 12, 2003 at 09:39:41PM -0700, Rob Park wrote:
> I paid for something that I quite clearly did not get. I should be suing
> Sony for false advertising, in theory. But I haven't the money or the
> inclination, so I'm eagerly awaiting the completion of this project.

If you had not a computer, you wouldn't get this feature either.  The
package clearly says that Windows is required for this feature.  Rob Park
being disappointed and waiting for this feature to magically appear isn't a
real motivation for anybody to go on with anything, not even for Sony.

There is a lot you can do without sueing Sony.  You could go and write them
a letter.  You can encourage others to do the same.  You can inform your
friends and the general public about the problems that DRM is causing to our
society.  Although it is easier with money, political work can be done with
scarce financial resources, it requires mostly time and a lot of energy.

You could join and support organizations like the EFF (www.eff.org), which
work on protecting the digital rights of the people.

You already bought the device, so Sony could care less about what you think
about it as long as you are only keeping it for yourself and waiting for the
world to change.  In the meantime they are changing the world to put
everybody in such a position.

> How can this project be illegal? It's the only way I'm going to get my
> money's worth out of my md player. Whether or not this violates the
> DMCA, I have no idea, but the DMCA is a load of bunk anyway (which,
> unfortunately, doesn't stop big companies from using it to bully smaller
> companies, and people like us).

It can be illegal because the politicians in some countries passed laws and
regulations that make it illegal.  Nowadays, where politic is mostly
reactionary rather than visionary, there are two main reasons for politicians
to pass laws:

1. They are lobbied by companies and associations, usually with the promise
of increased economy.  Increasing the economy is one of the main concern for
politicians as it makes people happy and happy people don't have a reason to
vote other politicians.

2. They are pressed by an overwhelming majority of unhappy people.  Unhappy
people vote other politicians.

Obviously the DMCA and other such laws (like the software patent EU
directive) are passed for reason number 1, and because it didn't conflict
with reason number 2 at that time:  There was no huge public reaction to the
DMCA so far.  Where are the people roaring the streets and threatening to
elect another government?  Instead some of those people who had good reasons
to go on the street where waiting for some free software hackers in the
world to put themselves in a legally uncertain position and finish what Sony
should have done itself.

> Yeah, so I'm rambling a bit.

Well, as you see, I can do that as well ;)

> But, I appreciate what's been done on the
> project so far (being able to title my analogue-recorded tracks without
> having to fiddle with the unit's awkward interface is a godsend), and I
> really hope to see file-upload capability in the future. 

I don't hope for that.  If it happens anyway, I will be even luckier.  But I
hope I will get myself to overcome my disgust and inertia and take up the public,
political fight against the developments that make such an awkward situation
possible.

> Keep up the good work, and don't let the lawyers scare you out of doing
> what you know is right! ;)

I think this is bad advice.  Maybe if you said "what you know is legal".
Civil disobedience is a valid weapon, but more an ultima ratio than the
appropriate knee jerk reaction.  The public fight against the DMCA and other
laws to that effect is only at the beginning, and much can be achieved by
joining it instead putting yourself into the receiving end of its stick. 

Think of the norwegian 17-year old guy who cracked DeCSS.  He had the police
coming after him on request of the FBI, but not for violating the law in his
country but law in the USA.  In fact, what he did was perfectly legal and
only now his case is cleared.  Think of Dimitri Sklyarov who was arrested in
the USA for violating the DMCA at a job in his home country, Russia.

My advice to everyone is to stay out of trouble if you don't want to make
yourself a test case, with all the risks such an udnertaking has.  In the
meanwhile, don't wait for others to make themselve a test case, but join in
the efforts of the EFF and similar groups all over the world and do
political lobbying work.  There are lots of reasons to be against the DMCA,
among them also economic reasons.  They need to be explained, so that people
learn about them and become unhappy even against the propaganda and
politicians need to be convinced that people are unhappy with that
direction that it makes giving in to the lobby groups from the major players
in the industry becomes expensive for their career.

Thanks,
Marcus


-- 
`Rhubarb is no Egyptian god.' GNU      http://www.gnu.org    [email protected]
Marcus Brinkmann              The Hurd http://www.gnu.org/software/hurd/
[email protected]
http://www.marcus-brinkmann.de/