Edupage, April 28, 2003

*****************************************************
Edupage is a service of EDUCAUSE, a nonprofit association
whose mission is to advance higher education by promoting
the intelligent use of information technology.
*****************************************************

TOP STORIES FOR MONDAY, APRIL 28, 2003
  AOL, Microsoft, and Yahoo Fight Spam
  Senator Proposes Do-Not-E-Mail List
  Apple Enters the Online Music Fray
  Office 2003 Release Delayed
AND
  Federal Judge Rules in Favor of File-Sharing Services
  School Gossip Site Shut Down


AOL, MICROSOFT, AND YAHOO FIGHT SPAM
America Online, Microsoft, and Yahoo have announced a partnership to
fight spam. The three companies are the leading providers of e-mail
accounts, and each has separately developed means to try to identify
and filter spam. Spam continues apace, however, and the companies are
calling for revising the technical specifications for how e-mail works
to add a level of oversight and control that currently does not exist.
E-mail protocols are relatively open, allowing spammers to include
fraudulent return addresses, for example, fairly easily. According to
the three companies, after new standards are put in place to guarantee
the identity of senders, a list could be developed of "approved"
marketers--those who agree to abide by specific rules. Those not on the
list could still send e-mail, but users would have the option of only
accepting mail from those on the approved list.
New York Times, 28 August 2003
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/28/technology/28AOL.html

SENATOR PROPOSES DO-NOT-E-MAIL LIST
In an effort to help combat the ongoing problem of spam, Senator
Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) has proposed a federal "do not e-mail" list,
similar to "do not call" lists for phone solicitations. Several states
have lately implemented "do not call" lists, and the Federal Trade
Commission (FTC) is working on a federal list. Schumer's proposal
calls for the FTC to establish a similar list for people who do not
want to receive unsolicited e-mails. E-mail marketers would be required
to consult the list and not send messages to any addresses on it. The
proposal mandates that marketers include "ADV" in the subject lines and
a functional mechanism to be removed from future mailings. Violators
would face fines and prison terms. Critics of the "do not e-mail" list
argue that spammers will simply ignore it and that most spammers are
difficult to identify. As a result, they say, legitimate e-mail
marketers would suffer under such a regulation while spam would
continue unabated.
Wall Street Journal, 28 April 2003 (sub. req'd)
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB105147922080678700,00.html

APPLE ENTERS THE ONLINE MUSIC FRAY
Apple Computer's much-talked-about music service is set to debut this
week. For 99 cents per song, users will be allowed to download music,
initially to Macintosh products but later to Windows machines,
reportedly without paying a subscription fee. The service, which was
negotiated by Apple CEO Steve Jobs, is supported by the five leading
record labels, though details are not yet available about exactly what
rights users will have. Ryan Jones of the Yankee Group noted that Apple
has an extremely strong user base and said that the "record industry is
becoming desperate." According to Jones, "The timing is right and it
makes sense for a lot of the players, from the ISPs to the PC
manufacturers, to hop aboard."
Internet News, 28 April 2003
http://siliconvalley.internet.com/news/article.php/2197271

OFFICE 2003 RELEASE DELAYED
A Microsoft spokesman said that due to an unexpectedly large amount of
feedback on the second beta version of its Office suit--and to the
company's decision to implement many of the changes suggested by beta
users--the final version of Office 2003 will not be available until
sometime in the third quarter. The application had been scheduled for
release this June. According to the spokesman, "There are no major
issues with Office 2003, but the beta has allowed the Office
development team to gather feedback about some minor issues that can
impact customer satisfaction." The next release is not technically a
third beta version but a "refreshed" Office 2003 Beta 2. It is expected
to be available on Microsoft's Office beta Web site later this
quarter.
ComputerWorld, 25 April 2003
http://www.idg.net/ic_1309934_9677_1-5043.html

AND
*****************************************************

FEDERAL JUDGE RULES IN FAVOR OF FILE-SHARING SERVICES
U.S. District Court Judge Stephen Wilson has issued a summary judgment
in favor of Grokster and StreamCast, saying the companies are not
responsible for copyright violations users commit using software
distributed by the companies. (StreamCast distributes the Morpheus
application.) Wilson pointed to a 1984 Supreme Court decision that the
selling of copying equipment does not constitute violating copyright.
He said the companies have no way to control what users do with their
applications. Officials from the Recording Industry Association of
America and the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) said they
were disappointed with the ruling and would appeal. Jack Valenti,
president and CEO of the MPAA, noted that the ruling does not legalize
piracy. Groups including the Electronic Frontier Foundation support the
ruling, arguing that makers of any technology, including Cisco,
Hewlett-Packard, or Microsoft, should not be held responsible for the
"misuses of the tools they produce."
Nando Times, 25 April 2003
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/28/technology/28AOL.html

SCHOOL GOSSIP SITE SHUT DOWN
A Web site that allowed students in Southern California schools to post
comments about classmates has been closed, at least temporarily, after
complaints from parents. Many of the postings at schoolscandals.com
included derogatory or insulting comments about students in nearly 100
middle and senior high schools in the state. Complaints about the site
began about three months ago. Most Internet sites are not liable for
content posted by users; the exception are sites that reserve the right
to edit content that is presented on their sites. The
schoolscandals.com site is now offline, replaced with a notice from its
operators that says it will not be available "until some method could
be devised to control the content on the forum."
San Jose Mercury News, 25 April 2003
http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/5714119.htm

*****************************************************
EDUPAGE INFORMATION

To subscribe, unsubscribe, or change your settings, visit
http://www.educause.edu/pub/edupage/edupage.html

Or, you can subscribe or unsubscribe by sending e-mail to
[email protected]
To SUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type:
SUBSCRIBE Edupage YourFirstName YourLastName
To UNSUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type:
SIGNOFF Edupage

If you have subscription problems, send e-mail to
[email protected]

For past issues of Edupage or information about translations
of Edupage into other languages, visit
http://www.educause.edu/pub/edupage/edupage.html

*****************************************************
OTHER EDUCAUSE PUBLICATIONS

EDUCAUSE publishes periodicals, including "EQ" and "EDUCAUSE
Review," books, and other materials dealing with the impacts
and implications of information technology in higher
education.

For information on EDUCAUSE publications see
http://www.educause.edu/pub/

*****************************************************
CONFERENCES

For information on all EDUCAUSE learning and networking
opportunities, see
http://www.educause.edu/conference/

*****************************************************
COPYRIGHT

Edupage copyright (c) 2003, EDUCAUSE