Author: Serkadis

davebarnes points us to a recent response by the NYTimes’ ethicist, Randy Cohen, to a reader question, over the ethics of downloading an unauthorized ebook of a book where he already owned the physical book. Cohen, in no uncertain terms, points out that while illegal, it should not be seen as unethical, and suggests that the law needs to catch up with technology:

An illegal download is — to use an ugly word — illegal. But in this case, it is not unethical. Author and publisher are entitled to be paid for their work, and by purchasing the hardcover, you did so. Your subsequent downloading is akin to buying a CD, then copying it to your iPod.

Buying a book or a piece of music should be regarded as a license to enjoy it on any platform. Sadly, the anachronistic conventions of bookselling and copyright law lag the technology. Thus you’ve violated the publishing company’s legal right to control the distribution of its intellectual property, but you’ve done no harm or so little as to meet my threshold of acceptability.

He goes on to quote a publishing exec who disagrees, insisting that any unauthorized download is “stealing” and warns Cohen: “to condone this is to condone theft.” But, of course, that’s ridiculous. It is not theft at all. Nothing is missing. No one has lost out on anything. The publisher already got its money from this guy. To have a publisher make a statement that is clearly false makes you wonder what sort of strategic direction that publisher is heading in. If they can’t understand the difference between someone who already paid just downloading a digital copy, and someone “stealing” a book, they’re never going to understand how to compete in a digital world.

Thankfully, Cohen makes this same point, in noting (in response to the publisher): “it is a curious sort of theft that involves actually paying for a book.”

Permalink | Comments | Email This Story

Now near $87.

Join the conversation about this story »

Article Tags: Education, Not Evil Just Wrong

A national campaign was launched today to get public schools that have shown Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth” to give equal time to the opposing view of global warming.

The Independent Women’s Forum launched its Balanced Education for Everyone campaign today. It hopes to have the 2009 documentary “Not Evil, Just Wrong” shown in classrooms around the country. “Not Evil, Just Wrong” claims to expose erroneous claims about global warming.

The Independent Women’s Forum is a nonprofit, founded in 1992, that supports limited government and free markets.

Ryan Alexander, the campaign manager for Balanced Education for Everyone, said many schools around the country are offering the Al Gore movie as an education on the global climate.

Source: michigancapitolconfidential.com

Read in full with comments »   

Article Tags: Letter

Let’s hope that your editorial, “Arnold’s global warming ardor cooling” [March 30], marks the beginning of new sanity emerging from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on the massive economic destruction that AB 32 will bring to California if we implement its onerous and, from a global-impact perspective, totally meaningless provisions. There is no more iconic symbol of the colossal failure of the global-warming alarmists’ climate-fear predictions than the claim that the Arctic sea ice will disappear in a few years. All 2007 United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report Arctic sea ice model predictions show that there will be no recovery of this ice from its recent historical low point in the summer of 2007. Yet a huge recovery of that sea ice is exactly what has happened again, showing how political activist scientists twisted their models and data to get the “right” answer.

A number of studies published in the Geophysical Research Letters by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory starting in late 2007 used satellite data to show that unusual Arctic winds conditions, and not global warming, drove the recent 2007 reductions in sea ice. Yet these studies were simply ignored by the climate alarmists. Later studies have shown that these wind conditions have abated, which is leading to increased sea ice growth.

According to surface temperature data from the Climate Research Unit, Arctic temperatures have declined since 2004 and continue that trend. Thus the 2007 Arctic sea ice decline was not driven by changes in temperatures, which further supports the conclusions of the JPL studies.

Source: ocregister.com

Read in full with comments »   

Filed under: Motorsports, Coupe, Performance, BMW, Specialty, Racing

Formula DRIFT is recognized as the North American professional drifting championship series. As the first official drift series in North America, Formula DRIFT has taken competitive motorsports to the extreme, attracting fans and car enthusiasts from all walks of life. This high-skilled, high-powered motor sport has drivers intentionally maneuvering their cars into well executed, controlled sideways slides at high speeds through a marked course. Judging is based on execution and style-rather than who finishes the course in the fastest time. Autoblog has been invited behind-the-scenes with GSR Autosport, and their driver Michael Essa, as the team builds, tests and campaigns a V10-powered BMW 350R during the 2010 racing season. This is the first in a regular series as we follow the team throughout the build, testing and race season. With that out of the way…

The idea is mildly deranged, but everyone around the table is wildly grinning. Someone has just suggested mating a BMW 3 Series Coupe to a V10 engine ripped from a BMW M5 and then entering the beast into the 2010 Formula DRIFT series. A few nervous laughs. Then, a bunch of nodding heads. The plans are set.

Common folk – that would be most of us – think this sort of absurd talk is pure madness. To drifters, this type of deliriousness is simply considered being competitive.

Continue reading GSR Autosport BMW 350R: Part I – We help build a Formula Drift racecar

GSR Autosport BMW 350R: Part I – We help build a Formula Drift racecar originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 05 Apr 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

So we were among those questioning the idea that the iPad would somehow revolutionize the media business by suddenly getting people to pay for content again (though, amusingly, nearly all the criticism on that post focused on whether the iPad would be successful, not about the media business models the post talked about). While it’s way too early to make any sort of judgment on this particular issue, the early data certainly suggests that media companies have their work cut out for them. That’s because while big media players appear to be doing well on free apps, in the paid apps category, the big media brands simply aren’t topping the charts. This isn’t really a surprise. If you look at the details, it looks like games and specific utilities are topping the charts. As has been noted over and over again, since the iPad comes with a full browser, the media players need to offer something really, really special to actually get people to pay — and at the prices being offered, most people are just not likely to be interested. It seems likely that the prices will start dropping quickly, though we wonder what these publications will do for the few suckers who paid up early.

Permalink | Comments | Email This Story

We had Schwab strategist Liz Ann Sonders on TechTicker this morning.  She made a great call on the recession ending last summer, back when everyone else thought the world was going to end.  She’s looking for a “choppy” year this year, but notes that right now, we’re in a v-shaped recovery.

Aaron Task: There is “a momentum building up” in the U.S. economy and the odds of it faltering have “fallen very significantly,” former Fed chairman Alan Greenspan declared Sunday on ABC’s “This Week” program.

Generally speaking, Liz Ann Sonders agrees.

“I’m amazed people still say it’s not a ‘V’-shaped recovery, which to means they’re simply not looking at the charts,” says Charles Schwab’s chief investment strategist, who called the current recovery last summer — long before it was evident to most of her peers. And by “charts” she doesn’t (just) mean the stock market but trends in both leading and coincident economic indicators, industrial production, and inventories. “They’re all ‘V’,” she says, suggesting many observers are overestimating the impact of consumer spending on both the 2008 downturn and the recovery to date.

Even leading indicators of jobs, including jobless claims and temp hiring, are pointing to growth akin to the strong 1983 recovery vs. the “jobless” recoveries of the early 1990s and 2001, Sonders says. Friday’s report showing 162,000 jobs created in March “doesn’t mean we’re off to the races” but the “natural precursor to job growth is there.”

Rather than questioning the recovery, the “more valid debate” is whether the V-shaped pattern that’s emerged is “the left side of a ‘W’ or [part of] a square root sign,” Sonders says. “More likely the worst-case scenario is a square-root type recovery. Other than some massive policy mistake akin to the 1930s…the risks of a [‘W’-shaped double-dip] are relatively low.”

So what does that mean for investors? Stay tuned for part two of our interview with Sonders.

Join the conversation about this story »

It’d be great to inhabit a world where all economic growth were positive sum. They grow, we grow, everyone’s happy.

But where there’s a shortage of key resources, not everything is so rosy.

This chart, put together by HedgEye, shows a nice correlation between Chinese oil imports (measured in tons) and the price of oil, though obviously the price of oil swings more wildly.

If China keeps growing — and really, how will it not? — oil seemed destined only to go in one direction.

Join the conversation about this story »

Let’s take Hamid Karzai seriously for a moment. The ever-disappointing Afghan president warns that:

1. the Taliban is turning into a legitimate political movement
2. Karzai himself will join the Taliban, if America doesn’t support his latest power grab

If either of those things happen, then we’re close to square one in Afghanistan. Getting to this point has cost around $300 billion, according to Congressional reports. Incredibly, next year will be the most expensive yet for Operation Enduring Freedom.

Although the Pentagon doesn’t provide much in the way of war receipts, we’ve got a rough estimate of average defense spending in Afghanistan.

Here’s How We Blew Through $33 Billion Per Year In Afghanistan >

$0.5 billion a year on health care for troops

Source: An estimate based on Congressional reports, assuming 28% of nine-year war budget for Afghanistan.

$0.5 billion on Research & Development

Source: An estimate based on Congressional reports, assuming 28% of nine-year war budget for Afghanistan.

$0.5 billion on Military Construction

Source: An estimate based on Congressional reports, assuming 28% of nine-year war budget for Afghanistan.

$5 billion per year on Military Personnel

Source: An estimate based on Congressional reports, assuming 28% of nine-year war budget for Afghanistan.

$8 billion per year on Weapons Procurement

Source: An estimate based on Congressional reports, assuming 28% of nine-year war budget for Afghanistan.

$17 billion per year on Operation & Maintenance

Source: An estimate based on Congressional reports, assuming 28% of nine-year war budget for Afghanistan.

SPECIAL FUND: $1 billion per year on spare parts and other “Additional Inventory Items”

Source: An estimate based on Congressional reports, assuming 28% of nine-year war budget for Afghanistan.

SPECIAL FUND: $1 billion per year on combatting IEDs (through transfer to R&D, equipment, etc.)

Source: An estimate based on Congressional reports, assuming 28% of nine-year war budget for Afghanistan.

SPECIAL FUND: $3 billion per year on Afghan Security Forces training

Source: An estimate based on Congressional reports, assuming 28% of nine-year war budget for Afghanistan.

BONUS FUND: Obama’s troop surge will cost an EXTRA $12 billion per year

Source: An estimate based on Congressional reports, assuming 28% of nine-year war budget for Afghanistan.

Don’t miss…

14 Facts About The Federal Deficit That Will Blow Your Mind >

Join the conversation about this story »

Nothing fazes Reggie Fils-Aime. Motion control from the competition? He’s not concerned. The iPad and Apple’s other touch devices? Same thing. In his opinion, the game experiences on Apple devices don’t even come close to what Nintendo

From Green Right Now Reports

Consumers intrigued by Nissan’s new all-electric vehicle – the LEAF – have been waiting for the answer to the big question: Just how much will going electric cost?

The surprising answer: About $25,000 for American car buyers after federal tax credits.

Last week, Nissan said it will offer the LEAF for $32,780 in the United States. With a $7,500 federal tax credit, the net price drops to $25,280, making it very competitive with Toyota’s popular Prius hybrid.

“Expense has been a challenge for the electric-vehicle market,” said Toshiyuki Shiga, Nissan’s chief operating officer. “We want to mass market our cars, so our goal was to sell them at an affordable price.”

In addition, the manufacturer has abandoned plans to lease the vehicle’s battery separately, eliminating yet another cost that may have alienated potential buyers.

Until now, all-electric vehicles have been best known for high prices and low volume sales. At the moment, the only pure electric car on the market is the $109,000 Tesla Roadster. In setting the price for LEAF, Nissan sized up what it believed to the competition, in particular the Prius, which carries a base price of just under $23,000.

“Price is important. It’s one of the favorite questions we’ve gotten over the past few months,” said Trisha Jung, director of EV marketing for Nissan North America. “We know consumers care about that.”

Nissan’s announcement no doubt raised a few eyebrows at Chevrolet, which has yet to reveal the price on its own entry into the EV market, the Volt. General Motors has floated price estimates approaching $40,000 for Volt, which also will be eligible for federal incentives.

Volt is expected to have a range of about 40 miles before a gasoline engine kicks in to keep the battery charged. LEAF, which doesn’t have such a backup feature, is projected to get about 100 miles on a full charge.

Both are expected to reach the U.S. market later this year.

Sega has claimed time and again that Sonic 4 will be firmly rooted in the franchise’s 16-bit roots. As if to drive that point home, they’ve even added a mine cart level to the downloadable episodic game. You

Another amusing article by my friend, Tom Fiske:

I saw an Internet article titled “Texting from Beyond the Grave.” New technology allows a person to imbed a chip in his or her granite tombstone that can be excited by telephones in the future so that a dead person’s typed message can be read out. Maybe a photo, too…

And I thought, “Some people just can’t let go.” But I also wondered if I were to leave such a statement, what my last message to the world might be. Would it be something like, “I told Evie I was sick…” or “Love your neighbor,” something that has been done much better and more often in the Bible. I just do not know. I doubt it would be one of those silly items that people send each other on the Internet each day—you know, one of those stories that is simply too cute to pass up, so you have to send the drivel on. Finding the right message would be a tough decision.

One day in 1944 in middle school a teacher had a boy by the name of Gilbert Lutz stand beside him in class. He commended the boy on his ability to carve. It seems the kid had boldly carved his name in a wood toilet seat in the boys’ bathroom. The teacher finished his special address to the carver by saying, “Of course, if that is where you want your name for all the world to see, you certainly have made your mark on the world.” I heard later that his parents were forced to replace the seat. We students wondered if Gilbert was allowed to keep the old seat so he could frame it and hang it on his wall at home.

So these new granite/electronic tombstones carry with them a great responsibility. But we genealogists can forget about them (and unadorned toilet seats, too) because we are already leaving powerful messages behind. Just a short list of a few generations would do, but many of us are also writing about our lives and the lives of our parents and even their parents. Most of these are monumental tales of proud, inner-directed folks.

I recall a Jewish lady who went to Poland in search of her ancestors. She was directed to a German Concentration Camp where her ancestors were put to death. Hers was a poignant story of bravery and destruction that carried with it a reminder of what can happen when we do not watch our political leaders very, very carefully.

My family was not Jewish (that we know of) but it consisted of soldiers in various wars. One was a corporal under Daniel Boone and General George Rogers Clark around 1784. He was not a big-time hero, but his deeds and deeds of those with whom he served, helped form this country. Those were the days when both mom and dad had to be good shots with a long rifle. Some of my people were Indians as well, so I came from a vast collection of shooters and shootees. They had very instructive tales to tell and I am writing them down as well as I am able.

You may choose a different course, but I believe I will forego the granite messaging service, but will let my genealogy be my testimony, and my message for future generations.

Maybe I can’t let go either.

Filed under: Aftermarket, Truck, Technology, Videos, Toyota

You knew it wouldn’t be long before somebody tried to install the new Apple iPad in their ride. Well, it’s already happened, and the “somebody” in this case is Doug Bernards of SoundMan Car Audio in Santa Clarita, California. The team’s ride of choice for what is claimed to be the world’s first automotive iPad install is a Toyota Tacoma pickup. SoundMan decided to use a McIntosh amp for the build, naturally. The team was among the first to receive an iPad, and they got to work immediately. The video chronicling the installation is after the jump.

Besides the iPad, the system consists of an Audison Bit One processor, the McIntosh six-channel amplifier, an Onkyo ND-S1 and “a special iPod dock which allows the digital signal to be pulled from the iPad and distributed to the BitOne via optical output.” As the blurb on the company’s website puts it:

We chose to use the iPad as the only source for the vehicles entertainment system. The dock connector will plug into a cable that runs to a Onkyo ND-S1 which will send the digital signal from the iPad directly into an Audison Bit One. The Bit One will then act as the D/A converter, and will also process the audio signal. The Bit One also has a great controller for adjusting the volume and audio settings. The amplifier we chose is the McIntosh MCC406M. Stay tunned for the rest of the build. You’ll be able to find all the pictures and videos on this page as they become available.

Follow the jump to follow the installation from unboxing the components to firing it up. While the screen looks enormous in the dash, it actually doesn’t look out of place and at first glance, it almost appears factory installed. The placement of the controller is a bit of a tell, and the rounded edges of the iPad need a bezel perhaps, but job well done on job number one. The team still needs to fully wire it up, but the mockup is finished. Stay tuned for part two after the rest of the components arrive. Great tip, VJ!

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading Video: World’s first Apple iPad in-car installation looks pretty clean

Video: World’s first Apple iPad in-car installation looks pretty clean originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 05 Apr 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

For nearly a decade now, we’ve been questioning the wisdom of punishing a criminal who used the internet as part of their crime, with a ban from internet access. With the internet becoming so integral to everyday activity, it almost seems impossible to ban them from getting on the internet at all. Does it mean they can’t use a smartphone (or even a featurephone)? Can they not use VoIP? It really makes very little sense. Thankfully, it seems like most of these bans get overturned. All the way back in 2002, we wrote about a court overturning such a ban, saying that it was an “unfair encroachment on his liberties.” In 2007, a similar ban was overturned. Earlier this year, another such ban was overturned as being a restriction on the guy’s free speech.

And yet, the courts seem to keep giving out these bans. So, yet again, we have a story of a 30 year computer ban being overturned. And again, the court found that such a ban seems to go way too far. In this case, it was deemed “substantively unreasonable” and “aggressively interferes with the goal of rehabilitation.”

So, at what point do judges stop giving out these kinds of bans in the first place?

Permalink | Comments | Email This Story

Contact:
Colleen Flanigan
                                                                   312.704.8420 ext. 225
[email protected]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

CHICAGO OPERA THEATER
Announces Casting Change for Moses in Egypt:
Siân Davies replaces Manuela Bisceglie in the role of Elcia.

CHICAGO, IL (April 5, 2010)—Chicago Opera Theater (COT) announces that Siân Davies will be taking over the role of Elcia in Moses in Egypt, COT’s opening production of their 2010 Spring Festival Season. 

Manuela Bisceglie was originally cast in the role over a year ago, but had to be replaced when her visa was denied early last month.

“We are, of course, disappointed and frustrated that a singer of Manuela’s extraordinary ability, who has a stunning international career, will not be making her American debut with Chicago Opera Theater,” said General Director Brian Dickie.

“However, we were truly lucky to find someone as talented as Siân to step into this mighty role so quickly,” Dickie continued. 

Moses in Egypt (Mosè in Egitto) opens April 17th at the Harris Theater in Millennium Park and runs for four performances through April 25th.  Tickets are available now at ChicagoOperaTheater.org or 312.704.8414.

                                                                                                                                     

Siân Davies (Elcia, Moses in Egypt) Soprano. Rochester, Michigan. Siân Davies is showing promise as an up and coming lyric soprano on both operatic and oratorio stages around the world. This past summer she returned to the Santa Fe Opera to cover the role of Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni. Other operatic roles include Contessa Almaviva in Le nozze de Figaro, Donna Anna in Don Giovanni and Madame Pompous in Too Many Sopranos. Davies made her European debut as the soprano soloist for Mozart’s Requiem, K.626 with the Roma Festival Orchestra. North American oratorio credits include Handel’s Messiah and Israel in Egypt, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, and Mozart’s Mass in C Minor, K.427. Davies has participated in young artists programs with Santa Fe Opera and Central City Opera. She is a student of Costanza Cuccaro with a Master of Music in Voice from Indiana University, and Bachelor of Music degrees in voice performance and music education from Michigan State University.

 

###

Distributed via Chicago Press Release Services