Sinabro

Ars Technica reports:

In the wake of the discovery that Comcast is blocking some peer-to-peer traffic (and even blocking some Lotus Notes e-mails), the company is attempting to keep the PR machine well-oiled by giving customer tech support reps some talking points. And if they deviate from the script and admit that Comcast has been using Sandvine to send forged TCP reset packets, they’re likely to lose their jobs.

It’s amazing how everything makes a full circle. At its peak, unfettered capitalism in pursuit of profit above everything else (ethics, morals, sense of duty) so resembles communism at its peak—all the censorship and oppression.

BTW, COMCAST MUST DIE, DIE, DIE.

Ars Technica reports

The overall verdict is fairly unanimous: the device’s keyboard is a bit cramped, but in terms of price, performance, and features the Eee PC hits the trifecta. Indeed, Asus appears to have gotten so many things right with the Eee PC that it could be a game-changer in the mobile market, in terms of both hardware and software.

Too bad I’m in the market for a more powerful computer than what I already have. Does Asus make regular laptops as well? I should pay more attention when their brand name comes up on deals sites that I keep an eye on. So far, I’ve seen that Toshiba and Acer (and, well, actually AMD-based laptops) seem to be GNU/Linux friendly, as far as not requiring any binary-only firmwares or drivers goes.

Ars Technica reports,

A lobby group from the free-speech, fair-use side of the tracks just presented a six-step reform program for outdated US copyright laws. Public Knowledge president Gigi Sohn presented the plan in a New Media conference speech at Boston University recently and expressed no patience with the “disconnect between the law and the technology” of media production and distribution.

Finally. These are some long overdue measures that should have been implemented (alas they are only being proposed now) years ago.

Regarding the punishment part of double-edged sword, here’s something I think would be great—fair and well-fitting the crime: if the copyright owner abuses the privileges given under recent copyright acts, and subsequently loses suit regarding whether it was an infringement or not, the works under contention goes into public domain. This will be a great way to make sure that the copyright owner cannot abuse his privileges anymore, and make media giants think twice before spamming ISPs with DMCA notices.

Ars Technica reports:

As global companies standardize on English and expand worldwide workforces, the same problem has proved challenging. Can managers speaking English as a second or third language truly be effective leaders of those from other countries and cultures? Can they get results without being offensive?

One of the worst articles I’ve read on Ars Technica. The title isn’t clear—I wasn’t aware that there was any particular meaning to “speaking English” in quotation. And it wasn’t a particularly attractive title.

If that’s the only thing, it would have been forgivable—after all, title is the hardest thing in writing. But, what’s worse—the article carries absolutely no valuable information, while poorly telling the author’s own, inept experience.

I mean, his experience shows that he is completly, totally culturally insensitive, if not moronic—either for not being aware of a very common knowledge, or not doing any kind of homework on the places he’s going to. Then he goes onto state the obvious things that have been said for years—one of the most well-known reference goes back to “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy”, regarding “Babel fish”.

Ugh. What a waste of my time it has been.