I’m still debating whether this advertisement is clever, or just in bad taste. I think it’s a mix of both, as I support the idea of providing the less fortunate with ways to connect with the world. Although the needs of food, and water will super cede a laptop, it’s still a way to help us all stay connected.

Here’s the ad for the One Laptop Per Child charity that digitally altered a video of John Lennon. Or they found a great look-a-like. Either way they did a great job, even if it’s a bit creepy.

Net Neutrality has been a hot word to use the past couple of years. With questionable tactics being raised by telecommunication companies to control internet access for users, it will only continue to grow. The latest Net Neutrality incident comes from the Northeast, with the telecom FairPoint Communications.

FairPoint is taking over internet distribution from Verizon, who is giving up 1.5 million landline accounts going into the new year. All of this is pretty standard fare, but the big question is the handling of email accounts through FairPoint’s service. All of the Verizon accounts will have to be switched over to FairPoint. This can either be a small, or big hassle depending on how much you rely on your email address for communication.

I can actually forgive FairPoint for having customers switch from their Verizon accounts, to theirs. It makes sense, considering it’s a huge telecom switch. Where I draw the line though, is that FairPoint is restricting access to third party email services (AOL, Yahoo, Google etc..). Users of these services will still be able to keep their addresses, but can only access their accounts through FairPoint’s email portal.

Needless to say this is a huge breach of privacy in terms of a provider-client relationship. Restricting access to a site because of a service that millions across the country use every day? I’m not sure what the thought process behind the decision was. If anything, having customers rely on other third party services helps keep the strain off their servers. The only real advantage to forcing users to use FairPoint’s portal would be if they have advertising on their pages.

This is quite upsetting, as it’s but one step (albeit a small one) towards telecoms garnering more control over content. First, it started with capping bandwidth for people utilizing a large about of data transfer. Now, FairPoint has taken it a step further restricting users from free services on the internet.

Where/When is it going to end?

[via: Rutland Herald]

The fight against online piracy has been a grueling uphill battle, with many left scarred and wounded. From the artists who’ve seen album sales drop, to the people who’ve been sued by the RIAA. Each side has their reasons for conducting themselves the way they do. Depending on which side of the argument you fall on probably rests on how important Copyright law are to you.

I’ll admit that I’m rather neutral in the debate, but there’s one thing that has always confused me with the RIAA. Their practices of finding justice in lawsuits against people who download music illegally. Not only are some of the lawsuits ridiculous in terms of how much is paid, but it’s who they go after. They don’t take into consideration that some of the people they go after aren’t what most people consider to be criminals.

My favorite take on illegal downloading is this video from the Musical parody artist, Weird Al Yankovic.

There have been cases that the RIAA has gone after teenagers, some who are having struggles paying medical bills for surgeries. They’ve gone after grandma’s, financial struggling families, and even the deceased. While stealing music is never right, is putting even more financial burden on people who have enough as is all that fair? No one likes Prince John in the Robin Hood stories, and movies.

I think the RIAA is starting to catch on to the problems with their lawsuits. In a recent WSJ article, it appears that the RIAA is giving up on their lawsuits against downloaders. I’m not sure what light bulb went off in someone’s head, but they are now shifting their focus towards the uploaders.

Although the RIAA will still finish up their current cases, they’ve concoted a new strategy that appears to make more sense. The RIAA will be working closely with ISP’s, in monitoring customers who upload files for others to download. Instead of trying to sue people, they are going to allow the ISP’s to handle the matter.

When someone is found to be uploading files for illegal sharing, an email warning will be sent. If the problem continues to happen, there will be more warnings. If the user then refuses to give up then the ISP will purposefully slow down their internet connect, and eventually restrict access altogether.

I actually think that this plan has a chance of working, much more so than the lawsuits. First, there’s a lot less people uploading files than downloading them. Second, there’s no nasty lawsuits that need to be filed; ones in which that make the RIAA look like the bad guys. This plan also will be cutting the problem off at the source, which is the most important aspect.

Time will only tell if their plan works. I have enough confidence in it to believe that it’s better than their current course of action.

The internet has effected so many facets of our lives that it’s impossible to think of where we’d be without it. Video games are a primary example of how the internet has made an impact on a particular industry. If you read game reviews, it’s almost considered a faux pas if a game doesn’t have some kind of online functionality.

As we move forward with integration of video games and the internet, what other changes can we look forward to?

In a recent Joystiq article, one aspect of gaming that is quickly becoming network integrated is the distribution of the games themselves

I think as we move forward to online distribution, it’s important that we look at every angle to make sure that what we’re doing is really helping the industry. Just like any kind of change, it’s important to realize that with the good, there’s always the bad.

For publishers, and developers the greatest advantage for online distribution is cost. It’s much cheaper to put your content online for downloading then to produce cases, instruction manuals for physical copies. I think that the idea of cheaper costs, effects the smaller developers and publishers much more so than the powerhouses. If you have created a game, and are thinking about trying to get it released then making it available online is a much less daunting venture.

Some things that I think publishers, and developers should look out for when looking to distribute online is how overpopulated the landscape could get. There’s already one platform that is a prime example of this trend; the iTunes App Store. There’s already over 3000+ games available for download on the App Store. Which makes it hard to have the worthwhile titles to be more known.

Depending on what kind of consumer you are, digital distribution is a godsend or a nightmare. If you’re a person who’s looking for the most convenient option, then downloads are the way to go. You don’t have to leave your house, deal with annoying salespeople etc… There’s also less physical clutter with purchasing games through downloads compared to physical copies. Accessibility, is another benefit for downloading content. The Steam service that Valve uses is a perfect example of greater accessibility through online distribution. With Steam, once you have installed a game then it is linked to your account rather than the actual game itself. That way, wherever you go, aslong as you have your Steam account you can install your game on any PC.

I think that the negatives for online distribution are a little more subtle than the positives. The greatest risk for looking towards online distribution over physical property is the economy. Publishing, and creating physical media provides jobs to millions of people around the world. People that rely on physical media distribution to help pay the bills. If content goes solely online, then what will happen to these people? If you’re looking for a more personal concern, then how about the idea that it’s fun to own physical property over a file. I think that consumers still like the idea of holding a product in their hands, compared to owning a file. It will take sometime to ween people off of that mindset as well.

As Xbox Live, Playstation Network, and WiiWare all become more viable resources for gaming, this trend will continue to grow. Sony has moved ahead the fastest, already offering downloads of full PS3 games on their network.

It’s very important that we continue to discuss the consequences of moving towards online distribution. There’s great advances to be made, but it’s important to realize what we’re completely effecting with the transition.

So, I caught wind yesterday that the Club Nintendo service had finally launched for North America. I mentioned Club Nintendo in a ‘Top 5 Reasons For Wii Owners To Smile’ post earlier in the year. After my experience with Club Nintendo last night, I might list it as a reason to throw something breakable against the wall.

For those who aren’t sure of what Club Nintendo is, I’ll break it down for you. It’s a service in which Nintendo allows you register games onto a website, and will give you a survey about said game. The surveys are only 5 questions long, so it won’t take to long to complete them. The more games that you register the more coins you accrue. Once you’ve earned enough coins, you then are able to order some free Nintendo swag from Club Nintendo. The prizes range anywhere from Nintendo DS stylus kits, all the way up to a free video game.

To say that the site launched with a few problems is an understatement. My experience last night with Club Nintendo was full of slow load times. Bizarre instances that the site would log me out when I clicked on certain links. There were a couple of error messages when I tried to register some of my games.

I was able to get four of my 8 games registered, before going to bed. Which leaves me with 140 Coins at the moment. Unfortunately that’s not quite enough, as 300 Coins is the minimum prize for now.

So far the reward list is quite small, but that’s forgivable seeing as the site just launched this week. The prizes range in cost anywhere from 300 coins - 800 coins. The largest reward right now is the Game & Watch Collection for the Nintendo DS.

Here are a few of the rewards available…

Hanafuda Cards - 800 Coins

Wii Remote Holder - 300 Coins

Mario Party Playing Cards - 500 Coins

I logged on to Club Nintendo just before writing this article, and everything appears to be running a bit more smooth. I don’t have any games here to register, so not sure if that’s running better or not.

I highly recommend that you sign up for Club Nintendo. There’s really no reason not to sign up for something that’s only going to give you free stuff in the future. I’m saving my coins for now, until the reward catalog grows a bit.

Has anyone else signed up for Club Nintendo yet? Have you had any problems logging on, or have you been able to load it at all?

It’s never a good thing to hear that the internet browser that has close to a 70% market share hold has become vulnerable. Internet Explorer has just been discovered to have a huge vulnerability in its code, according to a BBC report.

The problem with the IE browser is of the worse kind as well. It allows cons to take control of someone’s computer and retrieve passwords and usernames.

Alot of internet experts are advising IE users to switch browsers while Microsoft finds a fix for the problem.

Rick Ferguson of Trend Micro issued this statement to IE users, “If users can find an alternative browser, then that’s good mitigation against the threat.”

Microsoft has advised against this, of course, stating they are working as fast as possible to find a patch for the browser.

So far the exploit has only been used to hack usernames and passwords for video games. It’s only a matter of time before it shifts from gaming, into more important regions of the internet.

I don’t claim to be an expert, but it seems to me that if there’s a chance of financial information being stolen then switching browsers for a short amount of time isn’t bad advice.