Geek TypePad Blog

Slow news week

Ok, you might have noticed a distinct lack of posts. I just cannot force myself to write about meaningless stories covering financial statements and other useless crap. This week either I seem to be seeing less in the normal stories, or there really is nothing big happening. The biggest thing this week is that TypePad is allowing it's beta testers to talk about select features, the so called 5 days of TypePad, and at the end of that we will see a total loosening of the rules for us beta users, with permission to post screen shots and to review the service. We also might just have pricing information around the end of the week, and a word as to what us loyal beta testers will get for our hard work. I am just happy I had the chance to try the service out, and can now give my readers an educated opinion of it.

End of week cleaning

Enjoy.

• Backyard Paparazzi to the Stars
  
• Judge OKs $1.1 billion Microsoft deal
  
• Patriot Act Complaints Reviewed
  
• PeopleSoft new obstacles for Oracle
  
• Real Basic to target Linux
  
• Red Hat to dump retail, devolve package work
  
• Cracking Windows passwords in seconds
  
• Google Beefs Up News Searches
  
• Hackers Lose a Patron Saint
  
• IBM giving SuSE Enterprise Linux away
  
• Games firm sues Eminem for fraud
  
• Linux in Munich - Gartner gets retaliation in prematurely
  
• Red Hat opens Linux development process
  
• SCO scoops up Web services start-up
  
• Wal-Mart to Face the Mother of All Lawsuits
  
• Watchdog asks Justice Dept. to block Oracle
  
• PeopleSoft details stock swap
  
• Oracle confirms bid for bigger PeopleSoft
  
• Today is Sys Admin Day - again
  
• RIAA, Colleges Seek Piracy Fix
  
• RIAA blocks attacks with TST-Secure-OS
  
• Congress disappoints FCC, DoJ
  
• How to Tell if the RIAA Wants You
  

Linux/Unix war heats up

There has been a lot of news in the last few days on the impending battle between IBM with the rest of the Linux community and SCO. SCO recently made demands of Linux users that they pay up for a license to Unix or they stop using the IP infringing Linux OS. Now SCO has a bullseye painted on, well, all across their company as every company that deals with Open Source is pissed at them and their threats. First up, the The Open Source Development Lab has brought on it's first non tech producing company, Unilever, who makes Dove soap and Lipton tea among other things. Next, we have a piece at The Register about the day long discussion at CA World in Las Vegas all about Linux and it's place and future.

Next, we have Big Blue in what promises to be the first of many responses to the SCO threat pointing out a few facts to SCO. The first point, this one going to it's sales force, is that until very recently SCO was selling it's own version of Linux, infringing code and all, which essentially nullifies it's claims that the code is proprietary. Their logic is that if SCO knew the code they were shipping(it is Open Source after all) and they still shipped it under the GPL, then they themselves are responsible for GPLing the code, not IBM. Therefore, SCO's extortion attempt is null and void. Analysts, meanwhile, are so mixed on their analysis of the latest SCO news to be of any use at all. Happily though, since Linux powers a large portion of the net, I am happy to say that hasn't changed.

Anti spam Registry?

U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer yesterday released a survey he did that says 74% of internet users want a do not spam registry like the US has for telemarketing. This shows strong support for his Stop Pornography and Abusive Marketing (SPAM) Act that he brought about last month, which would seem to answer this polls issue quite well. Sadly, most internet users, after seeing the success of the no not call list, think this is a good idea, but they fail to see the strong differences. Ok, let's say you set this up, and billions of net users sign up. Then, when people in the US get this list, they just export it to other countries, and now you have handed a list of over a billion valid, confirmed addresses for non US based spammers to go after. Whoa, what success. Duh!

RIAA subpoena list published

TechTV has looked over the many subpoenas that have been sent out by the RIAA, and have compiled a fairly lengthy list of users, seemingly all on Kazaa, who they want taken out either willingly stopping their piratical activities, or by legal order followed by a penalty phase ranging in the many thousands of dollars. The list is rather long, and appears to not be nearly complete, but if this is any indication it is going to be a very interesting time if even a small percentage decide to fight it in court. The RIAA will quickly find that it is very costly to accuse and sue people at a whim, though there is one user I predict will be hard to pin down. You see, on the list of Kazaa user names they found, TechTV pulled www.k_lite.tk_Kazaa_Lite@Kazaa from the pile. This is all lazy Kazaa Lite users.

Aussies file against SCO

Open Source Victoria has asked the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to "investigate The SCO Group's activities in light of its unsubstantiated claims and extortive legal threats for money against possibly hundreds of thousands of Australians". The Register reports the group has compared the SCO cash grab to a Nigerian scam or the other net extortion plays. "OSV believes there that there may be a case to answer on the issue of 'misrepresentation of need', where an organization is suggesting that people must make payments that in fact they are not obligated to.". I look forward to this request going forward, as it could easily become the test case against the claims and the demands that SCO has made against Linux users.

Lindow loses drive

Creative Lindows CEO revealed that after Lindows stole the idea of Linux on a bootable CD from Knoppix, that the company was now going to be offering a PC for under $200($169 to be exact) that has no hard drive, only a CD ROM drive, and will come with the LindowsCD OS that simply boots off the CD. "Lindows intends WebStation to be used as a bare-bones method for accessing the Web. The company envisions that, instead of spending $400 to buy a basic Windows PC or $300 to get a basic Lindows desktop, some companies or individuals would rather pay less for a WebStation." I look forward to there being other competing products that use a bootable CD Linux distro like Knoppix and not using Lindows.

Darl McBride is a moron

Ok, that's it, I am certain of it. Darl McBride(no relation, I hope, to Mike) is a complete, unmitigated, moron. The man really thinks that anyone would believe his so called experts who have, he says, looked over the code in Linux and Unix, and agreed(what a shock, agree with the man writing the check) that there is significant code the same. He dismisses anyone who disagrees with his side as spin, and claims grandiosely that no one who has been allowed access to the code has come away not seeing their side. He fails to mention that anyone who disagreed with their claims would be unable to simply because that is part of the NDA. Darl, you bough old code that no one else wanted. You got screwed. Give up and go away, before you really piss the Linux geeks off.

AOL scammer busted

The FTC has caught and settled a case against a 17 year old scammer who sent out thousands of email purporting to be from AOL, luring people to a fake AOL look a like site and scammed them for a total of $3.500, which the unnamed teen will have to repay. The teem also agreed to a lifetime ban on sending spam. It's the first enforcement action the FTC has taken against an Internet "phishing" scam -- the use of spam, or unwanted junk e-mail, to lure computer users to look-alike websites, where they are deceived into forking over personal financial data. reports Wired. In March, Internet service provider EarthLink said it had blocked such a scam that sought to collect credit card and bank account numbers from its customers. Many EarthLink subscribers received an e-mail message urging them to resubmit their personal information or face termination of their accounts, due to a "recent system flush." says CNet.

SEC looks into gaming

The Securities and Exchange Commission has officially begun an investigation to accounting in the gaming industry, with confirmed suspects being Acclaim, Activision and THQ. CNet is reporting that the investigation began at least on the 11th of July, as Acclaim admitted in a filing that it was notified it was under investigation by the SEC(why must you file with the SEC that the SEC is investigating you? Why don't they just announce it?) and both Acclaim and Activision have said they are cooperating. It is unclear whether or not this goes further into the industry than these three companies, but if it does I cannot imagine how bust the commission must be, being that there are hundreds of game publishers. More as I hear it.