NewsScan Daily, 30 April 2003 ("Above The Fold")

NewsScan Daily, 30 April 2003 ("Above The Fold")
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NewsScan Daily is underwritten by RLG, a world-class organization
making significant and sustained contributions to the effective
management and appropriate use of information technology. NSD is
written by John Gehl and Suzanne Douglas, [email protected].
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"ABOVE THE FOLD"
        Microsoft Targets Digital Newspapers
        File-Swappers' Dirty Little Secret
        Spammers Use Viruses to Hijack Computers
        Virginia's New Law Threatens Spammers With Jail Terms
        AOL to Offer Antivirus Protection for Monthly Fee

FEATURES
        Flash Card
        Worth Thinking About: Hollywood's Contribution to Russian Reform
        Mailbag: The World As We Find It

MICROSOFT TARGETS DIGITAL NEWSPAPERS
Microsoft is developing software geared toward delivering digital 
newspapers, said chairman Bill Gates at the Newspaper Association of 
America's annual convention Tuesday. The new software will enable 
newspapers also to provide services like video messaging and bill-payment 
to readers across a variety of devices. Publishers who continue to view 
their Web sites as an add-on feature of their print operations are ignoring 
the next generation of readers, said Gates. "We see the online newspaper as 
one where it takes all the strengths [of current newspapers] and then adds 
in new capabilities." Readers not only will be able to read about an 
upcoming concert, but also will have the ability to hear audio clips and 
purchase tickets, added Gregg Brown of Microsoft's e-periodicals team. 
(AP/Wall Street Journal 29 Apr 2003)
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB105164937037933300.djm,00.html

FILE-SWAPPERS' DIRTY LITTLE SECRET
Despite the best efforts of the music industry, file-swapping services like 
Kazaa and Morpheus just keep getting bigger. But that doesn't mean music 
piracy is burgeoning out of control; instead, file-swappers increasingly 
are trading in smut. A February survey showed that 42% of all Gnutella 
users were seeking blue images and movies, a phenomenon that Greg Bildson, 
COO of LimeWire, a leading maker of Gnutella software, refers to 
delicately: "We're about all different kinds of content sharing." Wayne 
Rosso, president of Grokster, is a little more blunt: "P*rn -- there's a 
ton of it being traded around." The surge in p*rn-trading has some 
smut-peddlers considering RIAA-type retaliations against the Gnutellas and 
Kazaas of the world. Like the movie executives, they blame the free 
services for their falling revenues. "The explosion of free p*rnography, 
fueled by file sharing, has diminished interest in pay sites," warns one 
veteran p*rn industry observer. Meanwhile, some businesses have taken a 
more collaborative approach. "We love file trading. Why? It's called greed. 
We've found a way to monetize that sharing," says the sales director for 
Triple X Cash. His company embeds hidden links in video clips and sends 
them out on file-sharing networks. When a file-swapper downloads a clip and 
clicks somewhere in the video's frame, he's taken to one of Triple X's 
sites. The company gets 25 to 40 "joins" -- $30 monthly subscriptions -- 
per day from this technique. "The record industry should have taken a cue 
from the p*ornographers," says Grokster's Rosso. (Wired.com 30 Apr 2003)
http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,58665,00.html

SPAMMERS USE VIRUSES TO HIJACK COMPUTERS
As efforts to tackle junk e-mail ramp up, unscrupulous spammers 
increasingly are hiding their identities by taking over innocent users' 
accounts using e-mail messages that resemble computer viruses. Like many 
other viruses, these programs exploit weaknesses in Microsoft's popular 
Outlook e-mail package. One of the first hijacking programs to emerge was 
called "Jeem," which contained a hidden e-mail engine that enabled it to 
route messages via the infected computer. Another, called Proxy-Guzu, comes 
as a spam message with an attachment. When the unsuspecting recipient 
clicks on the attachment, the computer contacts a Hotmail account and 
transmits information about the infected machine, making it possible to 
route e-mail through that machine. "Spammers are beginning to use 
virus-like techniques to cover themselves," says Larry Bridwell, content 
security programs manager at ICSA Labs. "Spam is one of the two things that 
the security industry is going to be asked to deal with. The other is 
adware or spyware." (BBC News 30 Apr 2003)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/2988209.stm

VIRGINIA'S NEW LAW THREATENS SPAMMERS WITH JAIL TERMS
Under a new law enacted in Virginia, individuals who use deception to send 
high-volumes of unsolicited commercial e-mail will be declared felons and 
liable to one- to five-year prison terms. Virginia Governor Mark R. Warner 
says, "Many spammers see the current system that imposes civil fines as 
just a cost of doing business. We hope we will see some high-profile 
prosecutions. If someone faces a jail sentence and a major forfeiture of 
assets, it will serve as a deterrent." The new law, which outlaws practices 
such as forging the return address line of an e-mail message or sending 
spam surreptitiously, would apply to anyone who sent high volumes of spam 
to or from anyone in Virginia. (New York Times 30 Apr 2003)
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/30/technology/30SPAM.html

AOL TO OFFER ANTIVIRUS PROTECTION FOR MONTHLY FEE
AOL has begun offering its subscribers a $2.95-a-month antivirus service 
that will automatically update a customer's computer as new viruses occur. 
Jupiter research analyst Michael Gartenberg explains, "It takes antivirus 
stuff from a more technology-aware audience to a more novice audience." The 
new AOL service uses McAfee antivirus software and will be seamlessly 
integrated into the AOL customer experience. (USA Today 30 Apr 2003)
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2003-04-29-aolvirus2_x.htm

*****

FLASH CARD
      "Life is full of misery, loneliness, and suffering  -- and it's all 
over much too soon." (Woody Allen)

WORTH THINKING ABOUT: HOLLYWOOD'S CONTRIBUTION TO RUSSIAN REFORM
When the USSR dissolved itself and vast forbidden land areas were opened to 
travel, former Foreign Service officer Mark Taplin undertook a long journey 
into these lands long hidden from non-Russian eyes. Here's one glimpse of 
what he saw:
      "The Hotel Sukhona was, in a manner of speaking, mobbed. Milling 
about in its lobby, which was equipped with two ragamuffin lounge chairs 
and a plastic palm, were clusters of toughs in different sizes and shapes, 
all sharing the hungry unscrupulous look of the modern Russian trader. 
There was something unmistakable about them; perhaps it was the 
no-name-brand tracksuits, the hefty gym bags, the gold watches, the 
insistent leitmotif of unshaven coolness. Here was Hollywood's contribution 
to Russian reform. Somehow, young Russians on the make had confused the 
image of sleazy drug maven with that of yuppie entrepreneur.
      "I wondered why they could not help looking unsavory because, deep 
down, they felt that what they were doing was unsavory. For at least three 
generations, there had been no such thing as a respectable Russian 
businessman. To most of their countrymen, they were still 'spekulantiy,' 
speculators who made their way in the world by fleecing the common folk. 
Real, honest work was done in front of a steel furnace or on a factory 
floor. Manufacturing made a country strong; everything else was capitalist 
smoke and mirrors. The idea that profit could be justified by a middleman's 
effort to bring a product closer to the consumer, or to expand the range of 
goods available to the public, was little understood or appreciated, 
especially outside of the big cities. The average Russian felt in his or 
her bones that there was a natural, fair price for any given item. For many 
decades, the stilted prices of the state stores had served as the standard. 
To pay 'more' for a given product, even if it was never available before, 
was still, for many people, wrong. Unaccustomed to prices in the outside 
world and the mischief brought on by inflation, people were tearing their 
hair out over ten-cent loaves of bread and one-dollar bottles of vodka."
                                     *
See 
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1883642876/newsscan/ref=nosim 
for Mark Taplin's "Open Lands: Travels Through Russia's Once Forbidden 
Places" -- or look for it in the multimedia section of your favorite 
library. [We donate all revenues from our book recommendations to literacy 
programs.]

MAILBAG: THE WORLD AS WE FIND IT

OH, THOSE CLEVER P*RNOGRAPHERS
Re: http://www.newsscan.com/cgi-bin/findit_view?table=newsletter&id=8167
      You write: "Asterisk inserted so that NewsScan Daily doesn't get 
caught in the software filters meant to ward off p*rnography." How long do 
you suppose it will be before sp*mmers start f*guring this trick out? (Paul 
Davis)

MAC MUSIC
Re: http://www.newsscan.com/cgi-bin/findit_view?table=newsletter&id=8239
      I was interested in your article today about iMusic. However, the 
article did not indicate that it was for the Mac OS only. I checked the 
iMusic site and there did not seem to be any indication that it would be 
offered for Windows systems. Do you have any further info on iMusic? Seems 
to me Apple will be missing most of the market for music without a Windows 
version. They offer QuickTime for Mac and Windows, why not iMusic. (Bill 
Harkins) [Reply: Right now they're concentrating on the iPod/Mac market, 
although future plans include the Windows side of the world.]

COST OF BUGS VERSUS COST OF PIRACY
Re: http://www.newsscan.com/cgi-bin/findit_view?table=newsletter&id=8242
      So software errors purportedly cost about $59.5 billion a year. How 
much do software publishers claim to lose to piracy each year? It about 
evens out, doesn't it? (Larry T.)

LITREL: READ HIM OR SKIP HIM BUT KEEP HIM COMING Re: 
http://www.newsscan.com/cgi-bin/findit_view?table=newsletter&id=8197
      When I read my first Litrel essay, I was impressed enough to share it 
with some friends and got appreciative replies. I suppose my friends who 
didn't reply didn't feel it necessary, didn't read it, or not liking it 
particularly, just went on their way. For NewsScan's offering, I fell among 
the first category: didn't feel it necessary to comment, just enjoyed it 
and went on my way. There have been some NewsScan essays I did not 
necessarily appreciate or agree with but I would not have those removed and 
thereby prohibit others from such enjoyment or affirmation of their point 
of view. However, there have been so many letters to the editor about these 
essays that I feel compelled to write in the affirmative about them for 
fear they might disappear if I do not. I hope those who object will see 
their way, if they must, to pass over them without reading -- thus allowing 
an alternative to their point of view, and my continued utter delight with 
his style of writing and perspective. Keep 'em comin'! (Wanda Mercer)

NIT PICKING
Re: http://www.newsscan.com/cgi-bin/findit_view?table=newsletter&id=8197
      It is a pleasure to see the response to Dr. Litrel's honest reporting 
of his impressions. How frail we are. The nit pickers fail to perceive the 
general thrust, the humanity of a professional. It is my belief that the 
nit pickers serve some function in the grand scheme of things the purpose 
of which remains hidden to us, like why do we have mosquitoes. You are to 
be complimented for publishing those that fail to appreciate where Dr. 
Litrel is coming from. The shadows enhance the highlights. I am an unknown 
old man that lives in the Great White North; but I have enjoyed your 
newsletter from the beginning and please keep going and include the voice 
of your detractors. Some day one of them will be right, everyone needs that 
eventuality. (Tom Mousseau)

WELCOME DIFFERING POINTS OF VIEW
Re: http://www.newsscan.com/cgi-bin/findit_view?table=newsletter&id=8197
      Regarding Dr. Mike Litrel's columns in NewsScan, please keep them 
coming! I find them quite refreshing, and an interesting view inside one 
doctor's life. Dr. Litrel is not writing a medical column, but personal 
insights based on his experiences. If religion (not superstition) is an 
important part of his life, then that should be included in his writing. If 
people object to Litrel's comments and don't want to read this sort of 
thing, they're certainly not required to, and they can skip that section of 
NewsScan. Others of us find them a welcome change to much of what we read. 
Atheists who feel no threats to their beliefs should have enough respect 
for "people of religion" to allow differing points of view, and a tolerance 
for other perspectives. NewsScan would lose diversity by dropping Litrel's 
columns. (Michael Cook)

CALLING THE TASK FORCE
Re: http://www.newsscan.com/cgi-bin/findit_view?table=newsletter&id=8211
      "America Online, Microsoft and Yahoo are joining together in an 
effort to Spam needs to be eliminated at the protocol level." So, yes, 
though SMTP has served us well, it is indeed high time for something else. 
However, I am concerned that the design of a new mail transfer protocol 
should not be left to the likes of the ruthless strategists mentioned; I 
trust AOL and Microsoft to eliminate spam even less than I trust them to 
stop web-popups. I hope the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) is 
paying attention. Perhaps it could comment? (Alexis Huxley)

CREDIBLE RULE OF LAW THE FOUNDATION OF DEMOCRACY Re: 
http://www.newsscan.com/cgi-bin/findit_view?table=newsletter&id=8229
      A letter-writer says: "The professor in your 'Worth Thinking About' 
piece (Herbert J. Gans) is headed in the right direction. However, there is 
no form of the word democracy is in the U.S. Constitution. Democracy came 
from the emotion-laden 'town square' type meeting in Greece." This is a 
common misconception and a dangerous one. It implies that democracy had 
been born in the past and can still somehow evolve today based on 'pure 
intellectual concepts' and even emotions(!) that guide 'noble and rational' 
folks -- who would suddenly decide to call a town meeting and henceforth 
rule democratically. Nothing is further from the historic truth. All 
democratic institutions (including that of Athens, Rome and the U.S.) have 
invariably started as purely commercial and taxation regulatory mechanism. 
I.e., for many years before the emergence of the Roman Senate a regulated 
market had flourished on the Palatino Hill; this market's parentage can in 
turn be traced to a far less efficient unregulated bazaar. It is well known 
that the mother of the U.S. Constitution is a tax revolt. In turn, 
long-term efficiency of the given market is impossible to achieve without a 
credible rule of law inherent in the vibrant democracy. (Nahum Goldmann)

MAIMING WITH MUSIC
Re: http://partners.nytimes.com/2003/04/26/technology/26MUSI.html
      Would someone please explain just how much less responsible this is 
than when a company builds a gun and some damn fool uses it to kill or 
maim. Gun companies make products for legal purposes. The distinction of 
that or a machine manufacturer whose machine (used improperly) suddenly 
becomes liable for operator stupidity or cupidity. I used to try (seldom 
successfully) to design electrical circuits for equipment to keep operators 
from defeating the safety devices on the machinery. I must have missed some 
point somewhere. On another subject, I really hope that all medical 
professionals are as caring and thoughtful as Dr Mike Litrel. (Gloria Bryant)

NO MORE CDs
Re: http://www.newsscan.com/cgi-bin/findit_view?table=newsletter&id=8235
      I have stopped buying CDs. And I don't anticipate buying any more 
except as gifts for family that requests them. Why? 1) I detest the 
strong-arm tactics used by the recording industry; 2) I think the recording 
industry has a monopolistic control over what gets published and it limits 
the availability of music to suit their pocket books and political 
interests; 3) I have more music now that I can possibly listen to ... what 
is the purpose of buying more?; 4) I have cut back on everything that I buy 
that is not needful ... I would rather buy things that support people that 
are most impacted by the downturn in the economy; 5) I would rather put 
money into Internet-friendly entertainment. (I have purchased several 
electronic downloads directly from the artist.); 6) I actively solicit my 
state and federal representatives to support fair use copying and repeal 
the onerous parts of the DMCA. P2P networking has never been my reason for 
not purchasing music (I think piracy is dishonest). I have used P2P 
networking to replace damaged CDs and records (you know, those black 
plastic disks). (Ken Burton)

TELL THOSE MUSIC PEOPLE
Re: http://www.newsscan.com/cgi-bin/findit_view?table=newsletter&id=8235
      Tell the RIAA to try this on as a reason why their sales are down. I 
can go to Tower Records or Sam Goody and spend just under $20.00 for a CD 
that lasts about 30 to 45 minutes, not accounting for the songs on it I 
have to suffer through to get to those I want to hear. I can go to 
Exxon/Mobil or an independent and spend under $20.00 to fill my tank which 
lasts over 2 weeks, and the only thing I have to suffer through is being 
sent to the local discount drug outlet to pick up "feminine healthcare 
products." If you tell me I can hear the music over and over again, that 
thought gives me the same physical feeling as the thought of using those 
"feminine healthcare products" over and over again. Let them all listen to 
radio (who pays for music that should be free anyway). (Michael H. Bell)

TAR AND FEATHERING SPAMMERS
Re: http://www.newsscan.com/cgi-bin/findit_view?table=newsletter&id=8214
      Regarding the article "A Bounty on the Heads of Spammers," I was 
hoping for this headline, TAR AND FEATHERING OF SPAMMERS, but offering a 
bounty is a creative, first step in the right direction. What with all the 
spam and unemployed computer users, a synergy might occur that'll spur the 
U.S. economy more than tax cuts. ;>) (Jim Bauman)

DRUGS AND MUSIC
Re: http://www.newsscan.com/cgi-bin/findit_view?table=newsletter&id=8216
      Until such a time as when heroin and marijuana can be delivered to a 
user via the Internet, all drugs get to the user via a road--somewhere, 
sometime, somehow. Therefore, all road construction companies should be 
forced to certify their roads as "drug free", and in addition, impossible 
to use to transport drugs. If drugs are ever found in a car or on a person 
using the road, the road construction company and the state that maintains 
them should both be fined $125,000 for each ounce of drugs discovered. This 
is simply the extension of the RIAA's attempt to fine the owners of 
StreamCast and Grokster for providing a computer network that, among other 
legitimate uses, also enables music pirates to move songs illegally from 
one user to another. (R. Brian dos Santos)

TIME OUT
Re: http://www.newsscan.com/cgi-bin/findit_view?table=newsletter&id=8221
      Thanks for the "Timely" article on the New York Times, which is now 
charging $2.75 per article from its archives. College students hate to pay 
for music, movies, etc., so now they will look elsewhere. The NY Times 
won't be the paper of record in 10 or 15 years. (Jim McGee)

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