Posts by Jonathan

Please let this happen

But I wonder whether the RIAA and MPAA will *somehow* get immunity to this particular law, allowing them to make DRM that behaves like rootkits at will.

Average IQ...

I remember hearing that the average IQ is 100 because individual IQ is expressed as difference from the norm.

Now I dont know how IQ tests are scored, but surely one would have to adjust each test to get a mark out of (or over) 100? And that would mean you need to already know what the actual average is. For example, if there were a simple test where the maximum mark is 200, and the average for the population is 133, and you wanted to make it centred around 100, wouldnt you have to divide by 133 and multiply by 100?

I remember hearing about the use of a bell curve, but how would you know much to adjust each score to make them all average 100?

Personally though, I'm not surprised at all. Look at the US - its full of people who vote for Bush and think evolution is a lie. Coincidentally, most of those are Christian.

Passenger Air Quality

"Passengers are reminded that farting can result in ejection from the aircraft."

Ha ha ha ha!

Quote: Naomi Campbell

"Why can't you do anything right? Get all my bags on this flight. I'm Naomi Campbell."

Ha ha ha ha, a washed up ex celeb is upset that she didnt get her way! Thats hilarious!

Now, I make no excuses for BA/BAA losing her luggage, they are horribly inept, but her attitude takes the cake.

No teeth in this lion...

Such data breaches will stop happening when those responsible are held legally and financially accountable, not before. Right now, there simply is no incentive to stop. Whats the worst that could happen - will the offending party get a sternly worded letter? Please.

Phorm, NebuAd, all the same

All share a complete lack of disregard for their customers, and it seems that WOW!, like the BBC, has no problems lying to its customers about spyware.

This is why I have my cookies set to session only, and sometimes even use a whitelist - if I dont approve your domain for cookie setting, you never set cookies.

Hopefully MS and Mozilla can make this setting the default for all new browser installations. How the advertisers will cry when users are made to be explicitly aware of cookies - or have them deleted when they close the browser.

BT obviously have something to hide.

Why else would they lie and not offer detail on Phorm? If they were proud of their association with Phorm, they would be upfront and honest.

I also think they do know exactly how many people were affected in the test, but dont want to disclose the information because they can see a lawsuit from a mile away. I mean, being a trial, they need to collect data on how Phorm works.

Can someone make a Freedom of Information Request for this?

Isnt the "nerd" redundant?

I mean, if you are a techie, arent you guaranteed to be a nerd?

Can you be a techie but not a nerd?

Really, if you are going to call us names, at least get it right.

Just sent this to Ian Livingstone

Dear Mr Livingston,

As I'm sure you are aware about the issue surrounding Phorm, I will be brief. Please note, before I begin, that I am not a BT customer, and thus was unaffected, but as a concerned member of the public, I am interested in the Phorm case because for me it represents the erosion of consumer rights to allow for greater corporate profits.

I wish to ask you two questions.

Firstly, why did you not inform those who participated in the trial last summer what the reason was for the various problems they encountered? I'm sure I'm not alone when I say I wish that BT had been more forthcoming about this technology, as a leader in the UK broadband industry. I think it sets a dangerous precedent, and am perhaps more concerned that you lied to your customers than the fact that the trial was conducted at all.

The second question I wish to ask is, what is BT planning on doing for those affected customers? In case you are not aware, the Information Commissioners Office has recently declared that Phorm must be opt-in for it to be legal. Thus, last years trial as not legal, as it was not opt-in. I would like to hear your views on this. What plan of action will BT take to mitigate the risk of lawsuits and more negative publicity resulting from the trial being in danger of beign declared outright illegal?

I would appreciate any correspondence.

Thank you,

**********

@Bill Fresher

Look at Biographicon - you get to make a wiki page about yourself. Well an autobiography basically. Also has links to other people.

"Hi Chris

We let you know yesterday that we had proposed amendments to the Phorm entry on Wikipedia – there were several factual inaccuracies that were pointed out to us. Having reviewed our suggested changes with hindsight, we accept that we were a little over zealous in our efforts to make those corrections and that we erroneously removed some relevant items in the editing process. These were quickly reinstated by Wikipedia’s editors. We will endeavour to make sure that this does not happen in the future."

I think the proper, dignified, respectable response to this is STFU NOOB!

I do like that they admitted it though. No one censors something if they have nothing to hide, or nothing they arent proud about. Phorm, unsurprisingly, has a veritable graveyard of skeletons in its closet.

But will he be able to TransPhorm(tm) BT?

I think not. Same old thing - exploit the customer, outsource customer service, sell out customers habits to advertisers for that little bit of money, downsize the workforce. Its no wonder BT is losing market share - its because they are terrible!

ICO

"Phorm has assured me that their system is very good for my bank balance, that is to say, very good for the consumer."

Come on, the ICO plainly ignored FIPR for no good reason. Phorm is illegal, its about time the ICO said so.

Who's the idiot?

not only is it not encrypted, but they send it through royal mail. Why not just hire a courier, or send someone in a taxi?

Fools, I hope they get a big fine for this. There is no reason for this to happen. They could have used encryption or a more secure transfer mechanism, but no, they decided to save a little money

Nothing to see here

He's holding a broom, standing over a rug with a strange lump in it and no dirt in sight. Nothing to see here folks, lets tackle e crime and global warming.

"Whats that you say? People getting stabbed and shot? Youths beating up people and getting away with it? No, those are minor crimes. Transport For London not safe? I'm a Transport Police officer, of course its safe. As I was saying, e-crime is where its at."

Right. This is so sad. Wake me when they admit there is a problem.

April Fools is over...

Seriously El Reg, this has got to be fake. A big name corporation with a sensible stance on piracy? Its impossible!

Anyway, I'm glad that someone stands up to the BPI/RIAA mafia - it actually seriously influences my next choice of ISP.

Its got nothing to do with whether I do or do not use torrents, its to do with the attitude that the ISP is not a monitor or law enforcing agent. The proper authority to handle this is the police. If the BPI feels that a user is breaking the law, they should send the information they have to the police, who can then request information from the ISP. Why is this not an acceptable course of action?

I think organized music such as it is today is eventually doomed to die. This is because of the rise of digital distribution and independant labels. Also, I think the record companies, after all this time, still dont get - piracy is not the cause of their issues, its a symptom of their failure to present an attractive option to consumers. When they sell the right stuff for the right price at the right format, then they will find piracy will decrease.

@Ben Verwaayen

I want to send him an email but I want to ask if I can get in trouble for calling BT bloated, corrupt, inefficient and illegal. Would that count as defamation or whatever, if its in private communication?

I also want to express a negative opinion of Mr Verwaayen for allowing such a thing to occur - would that be illegal?

I will not be using any profanities at all.

I wish this were an April Fools joke...

"We think it is unethical of the Register to seek to undermine a technology that enhances online privacy - Phorm's system ensures that ads are served with no data storage - something that will benefit readers of the Register and other websites.

In the interests of balance, we would like the Register to reflect the improved privacy environment Phorm provides over the other major online ad targeting companies detailed in the attached table."

/end

You just cant make this up. El Reg being irresponsible by exposing a spyware scam to the Net? You know, attempting to portray your product in a positive light is one thing. This.... This is stupidity. This is from the mouth of Mr-I-Dont-Know-How-To-Do-PR (and my product sucks anyway).

Seriously, we have two options - have our internet usage monitored for the sake of advertising revenue we will never see, or.... Nothing. Or no monitoring. Which sounds like its a better deal for privacy? The jury is out on this one.

It still amazes me what people will do, and what they will convince themselves of, for the sake of money. This is a system that uses people like cattle to make more money for the ISPs and the advertisers by invading our privacy, and yet Phorm defends it as if it could cure AIDs and cancer. How? How can you not admit that your product is immoral at best, illegal at worst. How can that not make sense to you?

Poor guy....

He apparently complained about the RHIC too. Funny that we are still alive.

How is it people become such cranks?

One more thing....

Isnt Safari free? What do Apple care about how many machines I install it on?

One question....

Well, honestly I wish them luck.

I do have one question. How much of the female bits did he keep? Is he going to need a C Section?

Interesting...

Now all we need is a surface that deforms to form buttons as the need arises.

I was also thinking, I wonder why no company has marketed a handset/mobile phone that offers a vibration mode for, uh, more intimate purposes.

Strategies for dealing with this

The Teachers feel that a Committee for Action on National Education (C.A.N.E) needs to be formed. They feel that some students require special attention in order to learn, and thus they propose two programmes to benefit students.

The first, Special Mandatory Attention Campaign for Kids (S.M.A.C.K) will be used for all students whose attention is wandering, or who are mildly disruptive. S.M.A.C.K-style programmes have been in use in the past, and have benefitted students enormously. It is thought the return of the S.M.A.C.K. will bring education standards up to where they should be. Studends who require more attention than normal will benefit from Special Mandatory Attention Campaign For Kids: Direct Overt Watch: National (S.M.A.C.K.D.O.W.N.)

Problem students, whose special needs must be addressed in a considerate and caring fashion, will benefit from Benefit Education Action Track (B.E.A.T).

/end joke

This is what happens when politicians control education.

BT's "Improvements"

Just like BT is "improving" its customer monitoring program, and "improving" its targeted ads?

I'm so glad that BT is not my ISP. And that my email is not tied to any ISP.

What reason is there to ever use the address provided by your ISP?

Where does it end?

Say I work for the government. I quit, and then decide to expose the sloppiness and ineptness in my former department (assuming there was such). Now, if I sell my story to a journalist, is that now illegal? Is it illegal to expose incompetency now?

I'd like to know what shes being accused of. Is telling the truth about your employer now illegal? If what she said was false, then okay sue away. But if not, should they have the right to silence her?

I'll end on a joke I heard about the government, which I think is appropriate.

A young man was on a fast track to a good career and a good life, when he had a motorbike accident. He was badly injured, and lost his job as a result. He also lost his testicles.

Distraught, but seeking to start again, he began seeking work to tide himself over. He soon found a job with the government. After passing the interview, he enquired about the hours.

His manager told him, "We start at 9, but you can come in at 10."

Wondering what made him so special, the man asked his manager, who replied, "For the first hour all government employees just sit around and scratch our balls. No point in you coming in for that."

If only all managers were so pragmatic and honest.

This pilot = ejected from the mile high club

Because his girlfriend complained about his early accidental discharge.

Hope she wins

Its time the RIAA get a taste of their own medicine.

Really, someone needs to sit their executives down, and explain the facts of life to them. These guys must be very ignorant.

First, your customer base doesnt take kindly to base accusations and threats to sue. It isnt helping your already bad reputation, and lets face it, reputation is important.

Second, believe it or not, piracy is not the cause of your woes. No, its a symptom of your failing business model. When you figure out why customers are becoming disillusioned and not wanting to buy your music, you will figure out how to reduce piracy. People will find a way to pirate your music until you make it more attractive to buy. Right now, with your prices sky high and value at an all time low, no one has any incentive to buy from you. I know you are afraid of this "digital age" and would prefer it if people went back to tapes and LPs. But its the way of the world, you cant stop it. Your CD sales are falling because people are getting over having to pay £10 for 9 crap songs and one good one.

When you put it all together, the end result is that the record industry has the stick, but not the carrot. They are trying to beat people into buying, but dont offer anything people really want to buy. Then they are surprised that people pirate music.

@Jim

if London ends up like that, with everyone cycling everywhere, you can bet there will be a tax levied for flatulence produced by the extra exercise. Carbon footprint and all that, its all a bit complicated but the end result is better for the environment. You like the environment, dont you?

FIPR FTW!

I love the taste of Phorm's tears - there is nothing quite like the tears of greedy individuals whose ambitions have been foiled.

lets hope this goes from being the opinion of a think tank to official policy.

@Chris Williams

Perhaps so, but the network technology itself is not illegal - the content is.

I can use BitTorrent to download game demos and free software, just as others can use it for piracy. And World of Warcraft uses torrents for patches.

I'm aware that although torrents can be legally used, in reality that probably only happens 1% of the time. The point is, you cant assume that everyone who uses torrents is a pirate - unless the RIAA/MPAA have found some way of convicting people as pirates just because they have the means to do so. They would need to intercept your packets to discover what content you are after or trying to share - which might qualify as illegal interception.

Oh no - I have a DVD writer at home, I better turn myself in before the record industry discovers that I can use it for piracy.