RSSMusic was meant to be Free. Real Networks is taking another step in that direction.
First thing, I can not stand real media player. The ethics of the company, hiding shareware in the install process has always made me furious. I refuse to install it on my computers.
However, watching the controversy over the RIAA and the downloading of music has been something I have watched. It has been my assumption that music is fighting to be free, and once it is so, the artists stand to make much more money than they are now. As long as the record companies control the distribution of music, the artists will never achieve their earning potential. The biggest stars make their millions, but every other artist subsidizes the stars and typically barely breaks even selling their music through the record companies.
So today RealNetworks announced that if you download and install the Rhapsody software, they will give you 25 songs. That is not bad. My only fear is that in doing so, they will install spyware on the computer to make up some of the money that they are losing giving away the music. For the consumer, it is a windfall, and there is no commitment to buy any more music.
Soon most artists not under a contract will put their music out for free, and the exposure they will recieve will be much greater than any record label would ever give them.
The article is below the fold.
Prayers for My Favorite Radio Addiction (Laura Ingraham)
I just came across this via Michelle Malkin’s site, that talk show host Laura Ingraham has breast cancer. Our hearts and prayers go out to Laura and her family. More can be seen at Laura’s web page:
PRAYER REQUEST FOR LAURA: You know I hate Drama Kings or Queens, but I am asking for your prayers today and for the forseeable future. On Friday afternoon, I learned that I have joined the ever-growing group of American women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer. As so many breast cancer patients will tell you, it all came as a total shock. I am blessed to be surrounded by people who love me–my family, a wonderful fiance (if he thinks he’s going to get out of marrying me because of this little blib, he’s sadly mistaken!), my friends, and my church. I am absolutely blown away by how helpful and kind everyone has been–including total strangers who have experienced the same rollercoaster of emotions. The sisterhood of breast cancer survivors is inspiring. I am truly blessed. On Tuesday I will have an operation and within a few days will know more about the future. I am hopeful for a bright future and a “normal” life (well, scratch the “normal” part). Anyway, people have gone through much worse, and I know I’ll obliterate this. I am thanking you in advance for your prayers. You are my family. And remember, I’ll be back sooner than you think.
I have spent many a long drive back from consulting trips at night listening to one of my favorite “radio addictions”. Laura made the drives much more bearable and is probably very much responsible for keeping me on the road and focused. Her skits on “Lie of the week” and her John Kerry theme song promotion brought laughter to me personally when all I could do is wish my ride was over. As an aside “Just a Gigolo” was perfect for Kerry.
I would just like to give back a small piece of the incite and sense of humor to Laura during this difficult time for her. God Bless you Laura and get well soon so that we can all enjoy hearing your wit and sarcasm as you dissect the Left like only you can.
God speed and God Bless.
Is CNN really that desperate? Spamming Bloggers?
From TechDirt
John submitted this bizarre story apparently making its way rapidly around the blogworld suggesting that CNN may have been involved in a viral anti-marketing blog spamming campaign. The idea is that they went looking for blog posts that were critical of CNN (not too hard, I imagine) and posted something that looked to be in agreement, highlighting a specific show, with the idea of making it seem extra controversial. It sounds like they might have gotten away with it (Scooby Doo ending here…) if only they hadn’t also keyword stuffed the post — clearly making it spam. Of course, a lot of what’s in the post exposing this story is still conjecture about the motives of whoever was involved in the process. It’s entirely possible that it wasn’t CNN at all — but either way, the pattern described is somewhat odd. While blog comment spamming has been around for a while, it at least sounds like some less-than-above-board marketers of more legitimate companies are experimenting with the tactic. Given this and the likely growth of tag spam, it certainly suggests that one of the biggest issues when you have a very writable web is going to be dealing with the spam.
We fight comment spam every day. It would be a shame if CNN was using comment spam to improve its ratings and hurt my blog. One of our greatest source of new readers is Google. If CNN is trying to hurt a blogs reputation by what is considered fraudulent means, that is a terrible thing to do.
Democratic Law Makers; Look Before You Leap
Seems that Washington law makers are checking out their own closets before they start rummaging through Tom De Lays. Of all the people in this country who should never throw stones; it is Washington politicians. I have said it from the very beginning of this controversy. Do Democratic politicians really want to make ethics an issue? Its one of the shortest books ever written, ‘Washington Political Ethics’.
Los Alamos National Laboratory Computer Specialist Sentenced For Hacking
Somehow the idea that this former Los Alamos National Laboratory computer specialist was sentenced to 8 months in prison for hacking just doesn’t set well. Jerome T. Heckenkamp, 25, of Santa Monica, pleaded guilty to two counts in January 2004 to hacking into and damaging the computers of several high-tech companies, including online auction giant eBay Inc.
Heckenkamp could have faced up to five years in prison but U.S. District Court Judge James Ware sentenced him to eight months in prison and eight months of electronic monitoring and home confinement. He also has to pay $268,291 in restitution and for three years cannot use a computer with Internet access without approval from a probation officer.
Heckenkamp admitted breaking into San Jose-based eBay’s computers in February and March 1999, defacing a Web page and installing malicious programs that captured usernames and passwords that he used to gain access to other eBay computers.
Heckenkamp also admitted he broke into San Diego-based Qualcomm Inc.’s computers in late 1999 and installed more so-called “Trojan” programs. At the time, he was a student at the University of Wisconsin at Madison.
He was arrested in January 2001 and lost his job at Los Alamos.
I am certainly glad that this in individual wasn’t working at a high security, high risk area that was detrimental to national security with a psychological make up like this. Oh, that’s right he was working at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
