[mythtv-users] Slightly OT: The (not-so-)hidden costs of Vista

[R. G. Newbury]

F Peeters (MythTV) wrote:
> Haven't seen this one on list yet, and as I think it is at least partially
> appliccable to our joined hobby, I though I'd post it:
> 
> <http://www.cs.auckland.ac.nz/~pgut001/pubs/vista_cost.html>
> 
This has been referred to on politechbot and groklaw.

It has very interesting ramifications for everyone who wants to use 
their hardware as it should be able to be used. That said, Prof. 
Gutman's discription of the Vista spec as 'the longest suicide note in 
history' is probably correct.
Although groups like the RIAA can effectively 'buy' politicians, and get 
obscene stupidities like the DCMA passed (and the really bad part of it 
is that the damn politicians can be 'bought' so cheaply: they don't even 
get the money), at the end of the day, the politicians have to get 
elected and when a few million people get their hardware device keys 
revoked (including politicians)  there will be hell to pay for the 
politicians.

And speaking of hell for politicians, the "nicest" thing which we 
collectively could do would be to donate copies of Vista to all the 
politicians we hate....and wait for the 'solid excreta to impinge on the 
revolving turbine' as it surely will.

Geoff