response 21 of 206:

Sep 7 19:31 UTC 2000

<adjusts her eyepatch>  Arrrrrrrr

response 23 of 206:

Sep 7 21:55 UTC 2000

I have never downloaded anything from napster and I didnt vote for Bill 
Clinton in the last election. 

response 25 of 206:

Sep 7 22:28 UTC 2000

i thought monica was kind of cute

response 27 of 206:

Sep 8 00:43 UTC 2000

Bill Clinton has always squicked me out. I never could understand how any
woman could think him attractive or how anyone could believe his campaign
promises the second time around. 

response 29 of 206:

Sep 8 03:25 UTC 2000

I am giddly upon seeing the phrase "squicked me out". :)

response 31 of 206:

Sep 8 04:51 UTC 2000

Here's a topic which came up in party today.  The process of taking a 
CD and turning its tracks into MP3 files is known as "ripping."
(A question for the resident Grammar Bitches, if they are still here:
Do you say, "I'm going to rip a few CDs?"  or "I'm going to rip 
a few MP3's?")   I've always assumed that the derivation of the 
term "ripping" was from the 1960s slang "rip off," meaning to steal,
and this would imply that the people who coined the term had some 
perspective on intellectual property rights.
 
Is "rip off" the correct etymology, or is there another derivation
for "ripping?"

response 33 of 206:

Sep 8 09:17 UTC 2000

Hypothetically I have a 'cd' of 'Shanghai Noon' that I paid good money
for (about 1.25$US and I paid much more than I should have as I am
'rich') in Hefei, An Wei, PRC.  Its not a DVD, its a VCD
that plays equally well in a DVD as well as the CD of my PC.  The DVD
of the VCD has not been 'released' as it is still playing in the
theatres in the US and has not been released foreign.  In addition to 
the English dialog, and the subtitled mandarin the VCD also has
subtitled fukienese and malay and 'dubbed mandarin' for the english as
options.  My only gripe is that it is not 'letterboxed', but whaddayah
expect for one dollar and two bits.  Now, just between you and me this
flik is not exactly on the top of the list of whats-her-name will allow
me to spend 50 bucks US$ to go see in a US theater on a 'date night'.
(instead we save money and go see 'art' shit.)

Granted this is not 'revenue' that the original studio might have
collected in any of its traditional distribution channels, but is it
really 'stealing'?  Its not even in the same market format the the
studio is gonna release 'legitimate' copies of/in.  Oh, and I don't
even own a DVD. (I don't even have cable.)  As near as I can figure
there is no way that in controlled/traditional distribution methods the
studio has a chance in hell of collecting $ from me, thus it has no
'damages'.  I might even mention to friends/co-workers that it is a
pretty good flik and thus the studio benefits from the 'buzz' in that
filk that I don't dupe copies of the VCD to might actually go pay the
50 bucks for a 'night on the town' or at least view it on TV whenever
it is released if it is.  No foul, no harm?

response 35 of 206:

Sep 8 16:46 UTC 2000

i'd love to read that.

response 37 of 206:

Sep 8 18:11 UTC 2000

Here's a great example of why Napster should be allowed: I just ordered 
a Captain Tractor cd.  Without Napster, I'd have probably never heard 
any Captain Tractor songs, and I would not be buying the CD.  In this 
case, after stealing the music (actually only one song), I'm paying for 
it.

response 39 of 206:

Sep 8 18:59 UTC 2000

"Mp3 is radio" is one argument I've heard, but the record companies are pretty
much going after anything at all.  The real issue is precendent, not fairness.

response 41 of 206:

Sep 8 19:13 UTC 2000

You can listen to any CD in a record store before buying - to preview
it. I'd think record companies might allow this over the web, if it
is done once, and not recorded. (You can't make a copy of the CD in
a record store!). Then, ea could have sampled Captain Tractor, and
bought the CD because he wanted a copy. So, would you agree that it
would be OK if all downloaded music automatically expired after
one listening, and could not be saved or copied?

response 43 of 206:

Sep 8 19:24 UTC 2000

No.  Using your logic, a person can spend a fair amount of time in the 
record store, just listening to the same CD over and over.  You can go 
back the next day and still listen some more if you want to. (as long as 
the manager doesn't kick you out)  Yes, you have to spend time driving 
to the store, but generally, that would not be nearly as long as it 
takes to download a file.

response 45 of 206:

Sep 8 19:50 UTC 2000

I guess I've been spoiled by my T1 connection. When I've d'loaded music
before, from sites which WERE legal (mp3.com artist's sites, the virtual
filksing, and Dougie's, etc.), it's taken maybe five minutes when I've done
mass d'loads.
I think the mp3 site's idea is good -- at least the one I've used  -- which
is to allow various artists to put songs on line so people can hear them, or
download them, and to sell DAM cd's by those artists for a small amount of
money. That way, they get exposure, and those people who LIKE their stuff will
buy it. At least, the honest ones. (I've gotten one DAM cd from there, from
a Welsh singer named Jodee James, and it's *very* excellent.)