Little things that irk you 2

[JSR]

Sounds to me like you got free stuff, but I must've misread.

[JazzFunk]

^Yeah, technically I did...but it's like someone giving you a 1p tip!

PS: 20msp is a QUARTER of what you'd pay for a base-level Indie game.

[JSR]

A 25% discount on an indie game? Sweet.

[JazzFunk]

^m'kay.

[charlesr]

lol. Alex, the dedicated devil's advocate. Well played.

So many reward schemes - it's just crazy. Shopto even have their own one. I can't keep track. Credit card one is the best. Cash(vouchers)back on everything.

[NW2013]

The lad who got off with a ?20k fine for setting up the TV Shack file sharing website. His defence was basically that he 'didn't know it was illegal'. You're having a laugh!

Not a comment on the rights/wrongs of piracy but I just find that to be a ridiculous defence. You could find the biggest cretin on your local street and they would know piracy or even sharing links is classed as illegal by the authorities.

[noobish hat]

TV Shack wasn't a file sharing site was it? Didn't it just have links to streaming sites? I'd guess he only used the 'didn't know it was illegal' defense because the judge/jury/general public are too braindead to understand that if that was illegal, they'd have to put Google on the stand next.

[NW2013]

Yes, you're right it was providing links. I think there is a difference in providing specific links to dodgy website and having them appear on your search engine though, i.e. you knew what the intention of the users was if you're running TV Shack or a similar site whereas users can search for whatever on a search engine.

[randombs]

Couple of guys on a motorbike tried snatching my iphone just now near Oxford Street. I stood there incredulous for about 10 seconds then noticed they weren't going too fast so went after them but they rode off. I saw them again as they circled back and was gonna barge them off their bike but it was a rather busy main road and they got away. Plus I was worried in case I caused an accident. I saw where they were going and, assuming they were circling again, went down a different side street to ambush them but, alas, my navigation skills are worse than Apple Maps. Shame, though. Bitches would've got it good. Real good, I tells ya!

Also, what a pair of weaklings: the guy grabbed the phone but even with my fluffy thinsulate gloves on couldn't take it. Or maybe that's Griffin rubber case ftw?

The way they circled back told me this wasn't opportunistic, I bet they're regulars.

Very pissed off and need to blow off some steam now and tonight I'll probably lie in bed replaying the scene over and over with different Street Fighter moves and not being able to sleep. Would've been worse if they'd taken the phone, though.

[noobish hat]

There are rapists and drug dealers who get off with less than 20k fines. Ignoring the fact that what Mr TV Shack did wasn't illegal, I think a little perspective would be good, at the very least. It's the (often American) huge profit making corporations who are pulling the strings in UK courts when it comes to copyright cases, and the whole thing makes me sick.

[dataDave]

****ing bull****. I don't get Christmas Eve off because some Chinese people in my dept. have already booked it.

That's all of Christmas Day I get off. Ace. I ****ing well can't wait.

[charlesr]

Yes, you're right it was providing links. I think there is a difference in providing specific links to dodgy website and having them appear on your search engine though, i.e. you knew what the intention of the users was if you're running TV Shack or a similar site whereas users can search for whatever on a search engine.

So if true, all anyone needs to do is provide links to legit torrents too? And then it's the same as google. And then they'd have to take google to court.

Frankly google need to be taken to court - youtube is the biggest illegal jukebook ever. So many people I know no longer bother buying music because they just tap in whatever they want to youtube and listen on that. Even my squeezebox has a youtube app which converts the vid streams to music and it bypasses all the adverts - you can hit search and listen to whatever you want (if you could put up with the horrible sound quality which is most people).

[randombs]

I thought YT gets around it by paying royalties, doing all that advertising they do before a lot of songs and actively removing dodgy videos?

As for Google, I expect their defence is to blame it on their robots, similar to how they don't get done for automatically caching child pornography photos because there's no human actively searching the things.

[sj33]

Indeed, YouTube has dealt with it by giving 'copyright owners' access to special tools that allow them to either remove copyrighted content, or try and monetise it by adding advertising, purchase links and similar. That's why so many videos have a 'buy from iTunes' link.

[Lebowski]

Hmrc what a bunch of useless tossers, despite being in full time employment for the last three years they have estimated that I have been paid ?1500 in jsa (I've never received a penny of jsa) and are asking for ?360 in tax from me. a simple phone call would sort this out but nope I have to jump through all sorts of hoops to prove I haven't had job seekers allowance.

15 minutes arguing with them that this is obviously an error wouldn't wash, they even agreed that I can't of had this but I still need to prove this, a call to the benefits line turned up nothing surprisingly, so now I have to write to the archive center in hull to request proof wtf?