Joe Publius 's BestNetTech Comments

Latest Comments (331) comment rss

  • On the post: FBI Saves Us From Another Of Its Own Terrorist Plots

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 20 Feb, 2012 @ 11:48am

    Should we really trust the government responsible for Operation Fast and Furious to carry out these kinds of activities?

    One of these days, they will find someone crazy/smart/obsessive enough to succeed and the worst part will be how quickly the government's complicity in the act will be forgotten.

  • On the post: Sony Music Raised Prices On Whitney Houston's Music… Less Than 30 Minutes After She Died

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 14 Feb, 2012 @ 11:41am

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Surprised? I'm not.

    At least it wasn't Dr. Feelgood. I've heard that he's not what you'd call an "average man".

  • On the post: French Court Fails Digital Economics; Claims Free Google Maps Is Illegal

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 14 Feb, 2012 @ 08:16am

    Re: Re:

    Stop Plate Tectonics!

  • On the post: Protecting The Artists? Disney's Marvel Uses Copyright To Crush Already Broke Ghost Rider Creator

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 13 Feb, 2012 @ 12:26pm

    Re: The Reality, and The Fundraiser

    Man!

    You can talk about the principle of the thing, a corporation trying to protect what's apparently theirs, but under all of those circumstances it's even clearer how unnecessary the countersuit was. That kind of greed just seems unnecessary.

  • On the post: Publishing 2.0: Content Is Marketing, Profits Come From The Packaging

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 08 Feb, 2012 @ 07:11am

    Super special limited collector's edition!

    Being a huge RPG geek and a fan of nice books I did drop $200 on a collector's edition gaming book (The Deathwatch RPG from Fantasy Flight Games for the curious). It was the most frivolous purchase I have ever made to date, but it I am genuinely fond of it, and the book sits like a gargoyle over the rest of my collection.

    I also have a Kindle and a growing collection of eBooks, but there will always be a place in my wallet for covers and paper.

  • On the post: The SOPA/PIPA Protests Were Not Pro-Piracy… They Were Anti-Crony Capitalism

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 31 Jan, 2012 @ 10:12am

    Re: Re: Let's break this down real quick.

    I feel that piracy is a big issue*, but the reality is that when it comes to digital goods, customers have been telling businesses for a while now what they are tired of laws and tools meant to stop pirates but only serve to penalize and inconvenience paying customers.

    As customers, all we've ever wanted were affordable goods that are convient to use. The signs have always been there, if they chose to pay attention.

    The fact that the **AAs and Congress are saying that Google is responsible for stifling SOPA/PIPA when it really was a popular protest about an overreaching law proves that even when they're told what's wrong they refuse to listen.

    *I really don't think that piracy is a big issue, but it seems to help to phrase things that way.

  • On the post: Another Interesting White House Petition: Reduce The Term Of Copyright

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 27 Jan, 2012 @ 11:47am

    Re: Abandoned Copyrights

    Setting up an Opt-in via voluntary registration is way better than this instant copyright with no real opt-out.

    Not to mention nowadays, I'm thinking all of that business could be administred with a minimal amount of fuss through an online database:
    Submit a form to register.
    Get email/text/mail alerts as the term nears it's end.
    Check online through a variety of keywords to find the copyright for a specific work and its lifespan.

  • On the post: Once Again, If You're Trying To Save The $200 Million Movie, Perhaps You're Asking The Wrong Questions

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 26 Jan, 2012 @ 07:43am

    The RIGHT question

    How is the restaurant industry going to maintain its workforce of attractive, fit, and well-coiffed part-time waitstaff if they no longer have that incentive of the remote possibility of becoming a movie star and receiving a huge salary?

    If your waiter/barista is ugly, remember that one time you torrented Real Steel and know you have yourself to blame.

  • On the post: EMI VP Comes Out Against SOPA/PIPA; Says The Answer To Piracy Is Providing A Better Service

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 26 Jan, 2012 @ 07:29am

    Re: Re: Re: I feel that Piracy is a big problem...

    I feel that Piracy is a big issue, and Johnny Depp should quit while he's ahead.

  • On the post: The Tech Industry Has Already Given Hollywood The Answer To Piracy; If Only It Would Listen

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 25 Jan, 2012 @ 01:29pm

    Re: Re: Re:

    Wouldn't Google get in trouble for facilitating a sane business model?

  • On the post: EMI VP Comes Out Against SOPA/PIPA; Says The Answer To Piracy Is Providing A Better Service

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 25 Jan, 2012 @ 11:23am

    Re: Re: Re: Re: I feel that Piracy is a big problem...

    I feel that piracy is a big problem, but two giant robots beating each other up is a popcorn-munching good time!

  • On the post: EMI VP Comes Out Against SOPA/PIPA; Says The Answer To Piracy Is Providing A Better Service

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 25 Jan, 2012 @ 08:45am

    Re: I feel that Piracy is a big problem...

    By the way, I encourage trying this phrasing out in regular conversations,for any subject.

    I think that piracy is a big problem, and you should try cutting back on fast food and start exercising for 15 minutes every day to lose a few pounds.

  • On the post: EMI VP Comes Out Against SOPA/PIPA; Says The Answer To Piracy Is Providing A Better Service

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 25 Jan, 2012 @ 08:42am

    I feel that Piracy is a big problem...

    I feel that piracy is a big issue...

    I'm starting to think that this phrase is used to smooth the feathers of those who still think that piracy is a big problem so they might actually listen to the rest of the statement where the real (and possibly heretical) answer shows up. Let's face it, there's still a lot of people who'll blow an aneurysm if you try to say that piracy isn't the problem, outmoded business models are, but when you put it this way:

    "I feel that piracy is a big problem, and the solution is providing our products to customers in affordable and convenient ways."

    Not so bad right?

  • On the post: The Internet Begins Discussing What To Do With Its New Found Powers

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 24 Jan, 2012 @ 10:18am

    Re: Re: Re:

    The real power of the internet is to shout people down.

    Even if this were true (I disagree), I'd rather have millions engaged in a genuine discussion about their future liberties than a few thousand dictating the future by spending 94 million dollars and writing up their own laws.

  • On the post: Public Petitions The White House To Investigate Chris Dodd & The MPAA For Possible Bribery

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 23 Jan, 2012 @ 01:08pm

    To answer a glib question seriously

    What about Dodd's freedom of speech?

    I know this was more of a flip question aimed at his statement on TV, but this question can also be aimed at the larger issue about lobbying, and money in politics that deserves a comment.

    Currently money in politics is protected expression, and honestly I don't have a major problem with that. The money is supposed to buy advertising time, and if the average TV watcher votes for a politician based off an ad that doesn't even have ten percent of the charisma and persuasion of that Slap Chop commerical, than we get what we deserve.

    On the other hand, which was the point of the original article and this is why I think the petition is important,the speech (money) does not behold the receiver to obey. In demanding that MPAA contributions should lead to instant compliance, he showed his, and the MPAA's hand. And what a dirty set of cards they were carrying!

  • On the post: The Pirate Bay Press Release On SOPA: We Are The New Hollywood

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 23 Jan, 2012 @ 10:45am

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Except...

    Chris Dodd does remind me a little of Lo Pan.

  • On the post: Are Democrats About To Lose An Entire Generation Of Voters By Pushing PIPA/SOPA Forward?

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 19 Jan, 2012 @ 11:17am

    Re:

    Hear, hear!

    If they were on the ball, they would have used the internet like the lightning fast and global communications medium it is to create hordes of interested and paying customers. It wouldn't be 100% fair to say that you could look at the internet in 1994 and see dollar signs immediately, but even a few years later, the potential was obvious.

  • On the post: Largest Artist Community Group Comes Out Against SOPA & PIPA

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 12 Jan, 2012 @ 02:10pm

    Re:

    I don't think they know. I'm cynical enough to see it as carefully executed plausible deniability.

    As long as the Congresscritter listens to the lobbyist and no one else, which IMO would be pretty easy in DC surrounded by staff and more lobbyists, they can go on with their lives completely sure that what they're doing is for the artists/children/cat fanciers. Heck they'll even be rewarded with some cushy job as a "strategic advisor" or "historian" when they retire, and you only get rewarded for doing the right thing, right?

  • On the post: Kickstarter Helped Raise Nearly $100 Million In 2011… But There Are No New Business Models?

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 12 Jan, 2012 @ 01:57pm

    Re: Re:

    True.

    What I really like about this information, is the sheer amount of content thats being created through Kickstarter that would otherwise be:

    - Underfunded.
    - Self-funded at what could be a painful expense.
    - Funded by middlemen who would likely insist on owning the content.
    - Not created at all.

    Never in human history has it been this easy to create content (art/knowledge/whatever) with a shot at getting the whole world to experience it. It's really, really cool.

  • On the post: Boo-Freaking-Hoo: RIAA Complains That 'The Deck Is Stacked' Against Them On CES Panels

    Joe Publius ( profile ), 12 Jan, 2012 @ 10:44am

    Re:

    Obviously the iceberg was an astroturf front for the deep-sea exploration industry.

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