Preparing for the Broadcast Flag? 735
Couch Potato asks: "I'm worried that, come next July, the FCC mandated broadcast flag will soon take away all sorts of fair use rights I have long enjoyed. Given that there are only a few months left to make purchasing decisions, how best can one prepare for the advent of the broadcast flag?"
"I'm somewhat aware of projects like Myth TV, but it's not all that I want. Specifically, I want to make sure that I can record DVDs or similar files of any program I want off of cable, sattelite or broadcast TV, flag or not and without any other encumbering restrictions (such as the Macrovision DRM for DVDs) and without worry that someday they'll change something so that my old drivers and hardware are suddenly obsolete and useless when faced with updates to the formats. Note that this makes closed-source-only drivers an issue, because assuming the hardware can still be adapted to whatever they change on us, open-sources drivers can be modified and closed-source ones probably won't be, whether for legal or practical considerations. So then, what can someone with a modest budget do to make sure that their constitutional fair use rights don't succumb to planned obsolecense, like the VCR has?"
Similar question... (Score:5, Interesting)
Hmm.. (Score:5, Interesting)
Don't worry... (Score:3, Interesting)
Ween yourself from the Toob. (Score:2, Interesting)
The 4-step "Who cares, TV sucks" program (Score:5, Interesting)
Step 2: Cease to care whether or not you can legally record them.
Step 3: Cancel your cable/satellite service.
Step 4: Download the 2 or 3 shows you really enjoy watching.
Packet sniffer/transformer (Score:4, Interesting)
Stop time (Score:4, Interesting)
Sorry, that's a small jab. We can't predict what the future will bring. I can tell you this though...
If you want to be able to do things with bits that the powers that be try to stop you from doing, your best bet will always be had in the hobyist (read free software / oss) areas. This is because companies who want to compete and cooperate to get your money will b forced to play by the rules imposed by those would deny digital rights. Individuals will not bend to this, so the free stuff, while admitedly slower on the curve, will be your best bet, if freedom is your motivation. This means invest in your PC.
If you want digital input to your TV, go over DVI, but be sure that any set you look at will play non DRM encoded stuff. I believe the MPAA is attempting to mandate the broadcast of digital signals in a format which will limit rights. There are two types of digital interface on a television. My memory is sketchy here, I bought my set over 18 moonths ago. I do know though that there are a couple of different interface/protocol types, some of which use only the protocol which the MPAA is trying to define (in their favour). Be careful of that.
Re:Write Some Letters (Score:5, Interesting)
Two of the three federal appeals court judges from the District of Columbia scolded the Federal Communications Commission Tuesday over what they saw as an overstep of the agency's authority given by Congress. The reprimand came in response to the FCC's ruling on the "broadcast flag."
Re:Write Some Letters (Score:4, Interesting)
Screw them. (Score:4, Interesting)
Screw them.
If the broadcasters insist upon making me not the master of my TV, PVR, and DVD player, then I shall not consume their product - I'll read a book, I'll work on my car/computer/house/physique, and generally be better off than I am now.
The manufacturers of HDTV sets aren't seeing quite the volume they want - guess what guys, if you continue to make things less friendly to the consumer they will not consume as much!
Perhaps we shall see a rise of "GPL TV" - people creating shows for download (Considering the success of Homestar Runner, this may not be as far-fetched as we might think). Imagine - a Star Dreck^WTrek that has somewhat sensible science and stories! A rendition of Starship Troopers that is actually faithful to RAH's vision!
But no matter what - if my TV does not recognize me as its lord and master, then it shall be summarily expelled from my castle.
Re:The EFF is fighting the broadcast flag (Score:5, Interesting)
This issue isn't a technicality but a very valid point with regard to legislation and powers delegated by the U.S. Constitution.
Our goverment is (and should be) set up in such a way so that, when in doubt, the people have right of way.
This is not only an issue of the FCC overstepping its authority, but a fundamental question of what the federal government can, and cannot do.
Re:Ween yourself from the Toob. (Score:5, Interesting)
But then we had a kid. When your wife it stuck at home, it only takes a few weeks for her to realize that there is only so much going on on the net in a given day.
Now, we did get satellite, and with it a DVR package. Fast forwarding through commercials, and being able to stockpile shows for days when I'm sick at home have eliminated my 2 major complaints about the tube.
The stockpiling is important. Most of my favorite cable channels... ok who am I kidding... the only 2 channels I watch tend to run the interesting stuff in marathons, with a long dry season in between. While I only average a few hours of TV a week, having 8 episodes of Star Trek, and another 6 "Tales of the Gun" are really handy for being home with the flu.
And having 5 or 6 hours of "Sesame Street" and "Jay Jay the Jet Plane" canned and ready to play is a life saver when you have a toddler. It means you can play their favorite video without it drilling your mind to the point you can recite the dialog by heart.
And to be fair, she is evenly split between wanting TV, mom and dad time, and bringing a book over demanding we read it to her. If anything, she prefers the books.
Re:Buy an HD TV tuner card (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:meh (Score:1, Interesting)
I can understand blocking recording of Pay Per View on-demand movies, but I'm certain that the broadcast flag will be abused to cover other shows.
Until the public retaliates. What cable company wants to deal with people complaining they can't record $show?
Maybe money would be best spent on creating and mailing out a "Your Fair Use Rights of Music and Television" to everyone in the country, outlining what they are allowed to do by law, and where their rights are being limited by various technologies.
Re:Write Some Letters (Score:3, Interesting)
http://www.house.gov/brown-waite/ [house.gov]
At least she won't vote for privitizing social security. The average age in this district IS 127. I bring it down a bit.
http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/fl05_brown-w
"constitutional fair use rights" ? (Score:3, Interesting)
you seem to be talking about the generally held
us freedom-loving people have had it high on the hog with the centralisation of power under a liberal government (except for gun rights). now that this centralised power is under conservative control we're shocked (shocked!) when the interpretation changes to our disliking. boo fscking hoo.
if we want a lasting right to fair use, to privacy, or whatever, we had better get it
if we don't want a powerful central government dictating law to us from their corporate puppeteers, then massive decentralisation of that power or, at least, less corrupt influences on that power, are needed. seriously, is there a more sure recipe for corruption than to put as much power in as few hands as possible? guess what, the Constitution never outlined plans to vest this much power in Washington, DC, but a rampant-running series of
Pirate TV? (Score:4, Interesting)
1. We work hard on establishing a world wide WiFi network that isn't supplied or owned by ISPs, but is a collective non-profit organization.
2. Set up multiple membership levels with different requirements:
a. Standard users (just a regular WiFi access point to "catch the signal")
b. Operators (a bridging WiFi set up that connects several neighborhoods together)
c. Watchtower men (long range WiFi setups that can spam 20-50 miles to connect the Operators together)
d. Publishers (Centralized content hosting for free media perhaps in partnership with Wikimedia and the like)
3. Use this network to broadcast live and on/demand programming that is supplied and produced by any members
Ideally, this should really be multiple assocaited projects. The primary one being the non-profit that organizes the members of this wireless network. The other projects would be focused on creating content publishing software that would make it easy for anyone to publish video and audio, as well as education on creating media.
Barring any of that, a similar kind of network would probably grow tremendously if "Joe Average" learned that he could download the latest episodes of his favorite show using a WiFi peer-to-peer network...
So which is it going to be corporate America? Do you turn every citizen into a criminal, or do we find alternatives to your crap?
Re:Write Some Letters (Score:2, Interesting)
2 ways: Right before the DA or not watch at all. (Score:2, Interesting)
The simplest solution is to stop watching television. I got bored of television some 10 years ago. I took it up again last autumn but lost interest.
I guess this is not feasible for everyone.
Next thing is the observation that somewhere there is a DA converter where the input side is digital and the output side is analogue. And as long as there isn't any unbreakable decryption technique buried inside the DA converter the solution is simply to read the input side of the DA converter.
This is also the same reason that copy protection will never work. Somewhere the digital data has to be converted to analogue so all you have to do is to nick the data right there.
I guess this text will render it impossible for me to get a visa to the USA...
FWIW
Let hollywood fuck themselves... Who cares really? (Score:4, Interesting)
I think the real shame is that as a result of this broadcast flag, Hollywood will simply fuel an entire underground HD-TV show swaping network on the internet.
There will be 10x the amount of traded HD-TV shows being swapped online. There will be a huge demand for those who can provide recorded versions of your favorite tv show.
Dont these companies realize that the more they squeeze the people, the more willing the people are to fuck them back?
We're a country of rebelling bastards, its what we do best
So let the corperations continue to own and control our government. It's nothing new. We've already lost that war years ago.
Hollywood, say hello to the larger than ever, more elite than ever, more unstoppable than ever, and more right than ever... underground HD-TV show scene that you have created. Way to learn from the past, you fucking morons (hollywood).
Re:Write Some Letters (Score:2, Interesting)
Only on Slashdot can someone have their facts wrong and be modded insightful.
Re:Write Some Letters (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Producers should not be enslaved to the Consume (Score:3, Interesting)
The problem is that powerful copyright holders have extended the "applicable laws" more than once, retroactively. The problem is that "applicable laws" have ceased to protect the public from IP hoarding.
What right do you have to claim it as "your" culture?
The right to sing a combination of notes, or to write a combination of words, is inherent. The people chose to give that right up in the form of a temporary monopoly called copyright, in exchange for more and better creativity. Specifically, copyright laws enabled a professional creative class that doesn't require private sponsorship, which is a very good thing so far, but the people did not sign away the right to sing those notes or write similar words forever.
One thing you need to understand is that copyright also prohibits anybody else from independently coming up with that series of notes later. That "anybody else" might in fact have released the song into "our culture" for free, but we've chosen to lock that part of "our culture" up temporarily to encourage the first comer.
[...] your attitude smells of slavery. ou want to force the IP creators to give away thier creations so that you do not have to expend any effort in acquiring it your self.
First of all, you need to apologize to slaves for trivializing their plight. If copyright was not protecting your livelihood, you can switch to another job that you can do. Slaves have no such choice, so don't even begin to compare software engineers or musicians without copyright to slavery. (No, it doesn't even "smell" of it.)
Secondly, I see no such sentiment in the post you are responding to. The complaint seems specifically directed at the "ones with complete contempt for the notion of the public domain, who have repeatedly bought extensions to the duration of copyright". I think we're talking about people who want to retroactively extend copyright, which is in its moral essence refusing to uphold their end of the deal.
Finally, speaking specifically to the software engineer, the public will derive zero benefit from your software after a certain time period (depending on the nature of your work, of course, but particularly if the sources are closed). Thus, it's not in the public's interest to protect your work for that long. We'd like it to be somewhat useful, for some time, in the public domain, in exchange for that protection. A balance needs to be struck so you will be encouraged to create, but it's not fair to expect to profit for as long as your creation is useful.
Re:naaahhhh just get a home screener setup (Score:3, Interesting)
I bought it originally to keep using my 8mm video camera instead of buying an $800 (at the time) DV camcorder. I've found tons of other uses for the thing now.
Re:It's being challenged in court (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Producers should not be enslaved to the Consume (Score:3, Interesting)
>copyright also prohibits anybody else from
>independently coming up with that series of
>notes later.
Ehh, this might be something that is different in US copyright laws, but if you can show that you came up with it independantly it is NOT a copyright infringement. The hard part is showing that though. But if you actually do create something independantly you would not infringne. As I said, not sure if it is the same way in US copyright laws though.