C0rk.W0rd

MPAA vs. 321 Studios

The world of consumer rights has just been dealt a major blow by a California court. 321 Studios, the manufacturers of the popular DVD X Copy software have been ordered to stop shipping/selling their product by weeks end (02/27/2004). For many, DVD X Copy was the first user-friendly means of backing up purchased DVD's, and as such, was subject to a great deal of scrutiny from the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA). 321 Studios is poised to appeal the ruling which is laden with controversy... here is why...

The initial ruling was based on the MPAA's insistence that the DVD X Copy software was illegal because is violated elements of the DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act). The DMCA has been the topic of heated debate ever since its inception in 1998. I have read the Act in its entirety and it is arguably one of the most ambiguous things I've ever absorbed. The MPAA's main argument concerns security encryption circumvention. Essentially, the DMCA says that any efforts to thwart/circumvent (crack) any form of encryption are illegal. This is a problem for DVD X Copy, because the software effectively dispenses with the CSS (Content Scrambling System) developed to encrypt retail DVD content, allowing users to then extract copyrighted material. It's not looking very good for 321 Studios is it?... well not so fast... there is more...

321's appeal will certainly focus on the DMCA's "fair use" clause. Unfortunately, the fair use clause is probably the most vague and ambiguous portion of the DMCA. The general interpretation is that it is "fair use" to allow customers to circumvent encryption to copy copyrighted works, so long as the intent is for personal use or investment protection. The idea is essentially this... I bought a DVD, and I want an extra copy in case something should happen to the original. I buy DVD X Copy, and I am able to create backups to protect my investment.

Of course the grey area here is the legality of marketing a product that enables consumers to break encryption for "fair use" purposes. There is also the MPAA's argument that the software exceeds the capacity of "fair use" because it is being used to mass-produce and distribute their copyrighted products.

In 321 Studios defense, they are acting in the best interest of the consumer, and in no way intentionally contributing to DVD piracy. Their software was conceived in the interest of 'fair use' and is employed as such by thousands of Americans. The illegality resides at the consumer level unfortunately. If I sit in my basement all night churning out copies of Spider-Man so that I can go sell them on eBay… well then I'm turning a copyrighted material into my own little profit center, and that is wrong. This is the story that the MPAA was successfully able to sell to the California court. The problem is that there is no data to back up the claim this shady business model is being pursued by a significant number of Americans… nor that any copies being generated are depleting legitimate DVD revenue... explain?... happy to...

The DVD format has been nothing but a gem to the movie industry. With superior quality video and a reasonable price DVD's have been flying off store shelves. In fact, the Blockbuster video rental chain is being forced to close down numerous locations and reorganize their business to emphasize the retail instead of the rental because customers are more likely to BUY DVD's, not rent them. The evidence of declining sales the RIAA used to peddle its case against song swappers, is simply not valid in the DVD model. DVD sales are not only on the rise, but accelerating each year as the price of DVD players hit rock bottom, and the DVD customer base grows by leaps and bounds. DVD copy software like DVD X Copy has done very little to damage the sale of DVD's in this country. The reality is that the DVD format is appealing enough to the consumer to warrant its reasonable price point. Bargain shoppers can find many of their favorite DVD's for $10 or less. That is cheaper than most audio CD's!!!

The DVD beast has swallowed American's whole and the MPAA is just after a little more than they deserve. Like the RIAA, the MPAA is a rich and powerful conglomerate. The difference is that the RIAA is attempting to extort money to make up for its own mistakes, and the MPAA simply wants to squeeze the consumer for a little more. Both major character flaws to be sure, but I'm still not sold on the whole 'attack the consumer' marketing strategy.

Top 100 From IMBD... What I've Seen In Bold

1 Godfather, The (1972)
2 Shawshank Redemption, The (1994)
3 Godfather: Part II, The (1974)
4 Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, The (2003)
5 Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The (2002)
6 Casablanca (1942)
7 Schindler's List (1993)
8 Shichinin no samurai (1954) (The Seven Samurai)
9 Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, The (2001)
10 Citizen Kane (1941)
11 Star Wars (1977)
12 One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)
13 Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
14 Rear Window (1954)
15 Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
16 Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
17 Memento (2000)
18 Usual Suspects, The (1995)
19 Pulp Fiction (1994)
20 North by Northwest (1959)
21 Fabuleux destin d'Amelie Poulain, Le (2001) (Amelie)
22 Psycho (1960)
23 12 Angry Men (1957)
24 Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
25 Silence of the Lambs, The (1991)
26 Buono, il brutto, il cattivo, Il (1966) (The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly)
27 It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
28 Goodfellas (1990)
29 American Beauty (1999)
30 Vertigo (1958)
31 Sunset Blvd. (1950)
32 Pianist, The (2002)
33 Matrix, The (1999)
34 Apocalypse Now (1979)
35 To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)
36 Some Like It Hot (1959)
37 Taxi Driver (1976)
38 Paths of Glory (1957)
39 Third Man, The (1949)
40 C'era una volta il West (1968) (Once Upon a Time in the West)
41 Fight Club (1999)
42 Boot, Das (1981)
43 Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi (2001) (Spirited Away)
44 Double Indemnity (1944)
45 L.A. Confidential (1997)
46 Chinatown (1974)
47 Singin' in the Rain (1952)
48 Requiem for a Dream (2000)
49 Maltese Falcon, The (1941)
50 M (1931)
51 All About Eve (1950)
52 Bridge on the River Kwai, The (1957)
53 Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
54 Se7en (1995)
55 Saving Private Ryan (1998)
56 Cidade de Deus (2002) (City of God/God's Town)
57 Raging Bull (1980)
58 Wizard of Oz, The (1939)
59 Rashomon (1950)
60 Sting, The (1973)
61 American History X (1998)
62 Alien (1979)
63 Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
64 Leon (1994) (The Professional)
65 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
66 Vita ? bella, La (1997)
67 Touch of Evil (1958)
68 Manchurian Candidate, The (1962)
69 Wo hu cang long (2000) (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon)
70 Treasure of the Sierra Madre, The (1948)
71 Great Escape, The (1963)
72 Clockwork Orange, A (1971)
73 Reservoir Dogs (1992)
74 Annie Hall (1977)
75 Amadeus (1984)
76 Jaws (1975)
77 Ran (1985)
78 On the Waterfront (1954)
79 Modern Times (1936)
80 High Noon (1952)
81 Braveheart (1995)
82 Apartment, The (1960)
83 Sixth Sense, The (1999)
84 Fargo (1996)
85 Aliens (1986)
86 Shining, The (1980)
87 Blade Runner (1982)
88 Strangers on a Train (1951)
89 Duck Soup (1933)
90 Metropolis (1927)
91 Finding Nemo (2003)
92 Donnie Darko (2001)
93 Toy Story 2 (1999)
94 Princess Bride, The (1987)
95 General, The (1927)
96 City Lights (1931)
97 Lola rennt (1998) (Run Lola Run)
98 Full Metal Jacket (1987)
99 Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003)
100 Sjunde inseglet, Det (1957) (The Seventh Seal)

Artistic Roll Call - An Attack

While picking up Andrew last night, he drew my attention to the television screen which was showing a movie trailer commercial thing. I watched as a bunch of youth pop culture stereotypes ran their mouths about how they were the best at something (which had yet to be revealed), and how they were "callin' challengers out" ... to "throw down" in competition. I wasn't really sure what I was looking at, but the frames to follow held the answer. I watched as a handful of youth pop culture stereotypes performed what looked to be a variety of "pop-and-lock" routines that apparently represent the new age of dance. It seems the movie industry decided that they hadn't catered enough to youth's special interest in steaming piles of shit, and decided to make a film (no wait, that's to nice).... a MOVIE which bears a striking resemblance to the Wade Robson Project.

For those of you not familiar with the Wade Robson Project, it is a show on MTV where dancers are pitted against one another in a warehouse setting, where they compete for the praise of Wade Robson and his alleged fans by virtue of their kickin' dance moves. I've never looked to MTV as a purveyor of quality television. For quite some time, MTV has been scraping the bottom of the barrel when it comes to the artistic standards of their on air personalities and content. With the Wade Robson Project however, we find that MTV has in fact surveyed the underside of the barrel, and decided that some malformed protein growths forming on this dimly lit underbelly of horror, are worth producing for television.

"MTV is to music, what KFC is to CHICKEN!!!"
- Lewis Black

...anyway, it appears that Hollywood in its infinite wisdom has decided that 'pop-and-lock'ers represent a large enough market segment, and that a film of this nature should in fact produce revenue for an industry being torn to shreds by the evils of file-sharing. But I don't want to get off topic here... I'm greatly concerned about the artistic standards of the average American these days, and I'm really hoping that this movie does as bad as a hope it will. Frankly, I don't see that the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) would have anything to bitch about profit-wise, if they stopped allowing such tasteless pits of sub-standard storytelling to invade the screens of my local movie house.

The crowning spectacle on this whole thing is the title of the movie. Are you sitting down? If you have a seatbelt and even a glimmer of faith left in humanity... NOW might be a good time to strap in. The title being scribed to this masterpiece is You Got Served. Do I need to repeat that? YOU GOT SERVED!!! ugh... Does someone want to tell me how shit like this gets past the censors? And who made the call, giving the director or House Party 4: Down to the Last Minute another shot at obscurity?

If anyone goes to see this flick, taking the story and content seriously, and not to lather it in merciless ridicule... you are cordially invited to remove yourself from the artistic roll call!!

I Take Good Mobile Pictures ... :)

C0rk's M0bl0g made it as an editors pick on TextAmerica. Head on over to the TextAmerica Homepage (http://www.textamerica.com). The image of the Eagles fan under editor’s picks (bottom left) is mine. I also got a publication @ http://hats.textamerica.com

Check me out…

Click Here For TextAmerica HomePage
Click Here For HATS Publication

... I don't know how long it will all stay on there... so check it out NOW before i disappear...

Where Does He Get Those Wonderful Toys?

You know, I just caught a few minutes of the original BATMAN movie (on SciFi Channel) that was released in 1989. At the time, everyone bitched that the film was too dark, and that the caped crusader was far too menacing, not to mention the homicidal antics of the THE JOKER brilliantly brought to life by Jack Nicholson. I came to the realization that Michael Keaton got out of that franchise at EXACTLY the right time -- AFTER establishing himself as the best Batman, but NOT BEFORE scoring a piece of Michelle Pfeiffer aka Catwoman. Does everyone really long for the campy Adam West version of Batman to return to the screen? I sure don't. Adam West needs to stay where he's at... when not attending conventions and being the butt of EVERYONES jokes, he needs to attend to his responsibilities as the mayor of Quahog, RI.

Each installment to the series after BATMAN RETURNS (that's Batman 2) has been a steaming pile of shit. Moreover, the casting of Batman has gone so, well, BATTY that I want to kill whomever is allowing this insanity to continue. Val Kilmer and George Clooney... ugh... I'm not even a FAN of DC Comics yet I am highly disturbed. Luckily there might be a light at the end of the tunnel. It seems that Warner Bros. (the owner of the franchise), finally realized that their recent efforts were SHIT, and they have decided to reinvent the series.

Christopher Nolan, director of Insomnia and Momento (both good films) will be directing this next project. Though I was a little disappointed when Darren Aranofsky dropped the film. They have yet to acquire the bluk of the cast, but I am thrilled that British actor Christian Bale (American Psycho) will be taking the part of Bruce Wayne/Batman. Many believe that it will emerge as a film-noir, which sounds just PERFECT. I've even heard rumors of B&W... but I won't get carried away just yet.

Anyway, this just goes to show you how much thought comes out of my viewing of about 10 min of a dated, yet fabulous superhero movie.

Ramblings on Film

I saw Underworld this weekend, and aside from the plot being a complete piece of Hollywood hog-wash, I have to say that I kind of enjoyed the film in all its ripped off unoriginal glory. It's not a good movie, but it is entertaining enough to keep me in my seat. Or it could just be that I like seeing Kate Beckinsale play a sexy vampire killer type in sexy 'skin-tight' leather (complete with British accent). I'm not sure, you be the judge. This movie is in fact, The Matrix meets The Crow meets Blade, nothing terribly original, and there are probably better ways to spend your time.

Enjoyable...YES!
Essential...NO!

What did bother me about going to see this movie was the 8 some odd commercials I had to sit through before the coming attractions even ran. I hate to harp on a seemingly recurring issue, but I paid $7.00 to get in, do I really need to sit through 20min of commercials before my movie? I'm not exaggerating, i checked my watch or well my cell phone and they were in fact running commercials for a good 20min. Aren't the slides we have to look at before the film enough? Then, to top it ALL off they run this 4min documentary detailing the adverse effects of movie piracy, inviting us to take pity on the poor set designer whose kids are apparently being set on fire every time someone signs on to KaZaA. I hate to break it to the MPAA, but the REEL (hahah a pun) criminals are in your midst. How do you think those who pirate movies get their hands on them in the first place. Now, I know some people sneak their cameras into the theater and whatnot, but how do you explain my nearly perfect copy of Lord of the Rings, which scrolls "This Screening Copy Is Intended For Promotional Use ONLY, Please Do Not Copy or Distribute"?. MAYBE, you should be investigating these 'tape handlers' since it seems to be THEIR advanced copies making it into the hands of file-swappers. I'm also not inclined to feel bad about the money you are apparently loosing, the fact of the matter is that DVD technology now accounts for more than 80% of profits acquired from feature films. The fact of that matter is that people ARE buying your DVD's in SPITE of all this file-sharing, so chill out. Not a great way to end, but it's all I've got at the moment.

Yea, ok... I could get into some other things, but I'm not going to... my weekend was good, work is groovy, I was pleased to pickup The Big Lebowski & Requiem For a Dream for $9.99, and well, that’s about it.

One should also note, that I do in fact have digital copies of both The Big Lebowski and Requiem For a Dream, which I acquired FREE OF CHARGE using P2P file-sharing software. Ironically enough, I wouldn't have known enough to BUY Requiem had I not sampled it ahead of time. It is also worth pointing out that I did not intend to purchase anything when I went to Best Buy Friday night, but reasonable pricing is ALWAYS a good incentive since I'm sure DVD's cost about 3 cents to make, and even with shipping and promotion, the cost per unit is probably 50 cents (and that's probably an over-estimation). More on this later...

I turned by desktop into a TiVo last week, but I will talk about that in my next post... later people.

ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL!!!

That's right, its Monday Night Football time, and the Eagles season opener which will be kicking off in just about 3 hours. I'm pretty pumped to see them go up against the Bucks again. I originally thought I might be going to the game, but it became apparent that I wasn't early this afternoon. I'm a little disappointed, but hardly devastated. Though he's not the biggest football fan, Chaz is gonna come over later. We're gonna eat Buffalo Wings, drink some beers and watch the game. Hopefully I will have positive game results to report later on this evening. More on that after the game...

Some people have been expressing concern over my last post. I assure you all that I am mentally, fairly decent. I had quite a few introspective moments on Saturday night that made me feel at odds with the world. Either way I'm over it now, and in relatively high spirits. I spent Saturday night between Coffee Works and Palace discussing various issues with Jessica over countless cups of Joe. It was nice to see a new face, since Voorhees has become pretty desolate the last few weeks. Regardless, I think a good time was had by all, though I think I managed to creep Jess out on more than a few occasions on account of her soft-touch, as compared to my soul-less, heart-less, penchant for unfettered cruelty towards the world --- which is all meant in jest of course, or well… most… some of it. I guess my barbaric sense of humor can come off as overly caustic and hurtful at times... in-any-event, she said it was the most she's laughed in a long time... and I'm not that funny --- so go me!

The rest of my weekend was pretty bland. I saw The Order with Andrew and Merissa, and it almost caused me to loose all the Mexican food I had consumed not an hour prior in an involuntary personal protein spill. PLEASE think twice, no wait, three times before going to see this god-awful film. The concept for the film is GREAT but it cannot save the piss poor execution and seemingly mindless events that occur throughout. This movie has more blatant and poorly written 'filler' than anything I can remember. AVOID THIS FILM!!!

I also helped Andrew set-up his wireless network. Andrew just scored himself a top-of-the-line Alienware that SCREAMS!!! To say that I am jealous would be an understatement. Either way, we were both a little concerned when (after installing the wireless card), the system seemed to freeze up at the Alienware Splash screen. Andrew called Tech Support, and the operator thought removing the Network Card would solve the problem. After this didn't work, I asked Techie to run me through the BIOS resetting procedure for this particular MB. Resetting the BIOS fixed the problem immediately, and everyone was able to breath a little easier. Other than a minor hic-up the operation seems to have been a complete success. Must contain the urge to plunk down mucho $$$ for a new box. - BREATH!!!

It seems that my optimism paid off. I checked BANNERWeb this afternoon, and it pleases me to report that I received an 'A' in CS390D. For those of you that don't know, that’s Level 4 C++ Class. I didn't think I had a shot in hell of getting anything over a 'B', but I always seem to surprise myself. I still have two more grades coming in - one from the obnoxious air-head mentioned in a previous post, and the other for Computer Ethics. I would really like to make this a 4.0 term for me, but I just have this funny feeling that Computer Ethics is going to ruin it for me. Regardless, Computer Ethics class included some really interesting readings and classroom discussions. The Final Paper that I wrote, concerning the RIAA vs. File-Swappers, was also pretty well done, I feel.

I would write more, but I have some wings to eat and beer to drink and football to watch. If anyone wants to join, you know where to reach me.

PROOF!

You are ALL required to check out The Lebowski Random Quote Generator

It helps me in my endeavor to prove that there is SOME element of humor in EVERY line of The Big Lebowski

Week 9, More Movies, & a FEZ

It took me an hour to get back from the city this morning because a bunch of people in white robes and fezzes (is that the plural for fez, or is the plural simply 'fez' i donno) were standing in the middle of the intersection of 30th & Market Streets. I have absolutely no idea what these people were there for, all I know is that they had children walking through traffic begging for money -- I ignored them --- why should I give money to people who are impeding my travel. I suppose that is a little harsh... but I don't really think blocking traffic is an effective way of getting ANYTHING done, other than pissing people off. Ok so on to something else...

The end of the term is rolling around. We are officially in week 9 now... only 1 week left. I have a great deal of writing to do in the next week to tie up all my loose ends. I have a 7-page paper due in computer ethics, 9-pages of non-fiction due in my creative non-fiction class, and 4 X 2-page essays on various topics in political philosophy due for my political philosophy class. Needless to say, I will be writing a great deal in the next week. I'm planning to work on one of these papers after I workout later this afternoon. Lets see how productive I can be --- yea I know I'm laughing too.

State In Movies...

I wanted to go see Freddy Vs. Jason this weekend, but unfortunately I could not find any saps willing to go with me. Shayna and I had planned to see it together, but she has been MIA the last few days, and I have begun searching for other viewing companions. If anyone is interested, let me know --- I NEED TO SEE THIS GOD-AWEFUL MOVIE!!!

I didn't get out to the theater this weekend, but I did manage to watch three classic films while the rents were out of town. I watched LA Confidential on Friday night, which I hadn't seen in a few years. It was a good refresher. Though I am still not a fan of Russell Crowe, the film itself is quite good, and Kevin Spacey was superb as always. On Sunday night I started watching Seven Samurai an old Japanese film with a 3 1/2 hours runtime. Having other things to do with my Sunday, I was forced to finish my viewing on Monday morning. Seven Samurai is a LONG film that tells an intricate and beautiful story in authentic Japanese style with English subtitles. However, I am inclined to only recommend it to those who are extremely patient and interested in the genre, or to those who enjoy old artistic film-making. The last film I watched over the weekend, I enjoyed while riding the bike on Monday afternoon. I finally got around to seeing Scorsese's classic Raging Bull starring Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci. Filmed in black and white this historical retelling of the life of famed boxer Jake La Motta is both disturbing and beautiful. The soundtrack, filming techniques, and brilliant performances all make this an EXCELLENT example of American cinema.

Lets see... what else can I tell you about? Oh! apparently a movie theater in Vineland is showing a Kubrick double-feature on August 30th. They will be showing Dr. Strangelove, followed by Full Metal Jacket. If anyone is interested in going to THAT... drop me a line and let me know.

I also read an interesting article this morning about what the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) thinks is to blame for their less than exemplary performance at the box-office this summer. Oh no, they're not being accepting blame for churning out such bombs as Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle & Gigli. And surprisingly they're not pointing the guilty finger at file-sharing software and movie piracy courtesy of programs like KaaZa and Grokster. No, the MPAA seems to think that cell phone text messaging is the reason for the drop in box office sales. Apparently, they feel that the speed at which people are able to send their movie reviews via text-message is serving to warn potential viewers of flops before they purchase their ticket. So essentially they are pissed that we are now BETTER at avoiding shit-films? ... Isn’t the solution to start making better movies? God-Damn-It!

This entry really didn't cover many of the things I intended to, so I guess you can expect some more updates in the days to come. Until that time... everyone take it easy, and leave some comments PLEASE!!! (Come’on I’m being nice, leave some comments so my words don't feel so wasted)

Well, there's a piece of Maria in every song that I sing And the price of a memory is the memory of the sorrow it brings And there is always one last light to turn out and one last bell to ring And the last one out of the circus has to lock up everything Or the elephants will get out and forget to remember what you said And the ghosts of the tilt-a-whirl will linger inside of your head And the ferris wheel junkies will spin them forever instead When I see you a blanket of stars covers me in my bed

SORRY! --- I JUST NEEDED THAT :-)