Sponsor's Message

No, it's not the now defunct Napster or the perilously positioned Kazaa.

No, there are no digital rights management (DRM) or other copy-protection mechanisms attached -- you can burn this music to CD or just keep it on your PC's hard drive in MP3 or other formats.

What's more, at least one of the giants of the music industry, Sony doesn't seem to mind that you can download and save this music to the media and format of your choice -- in fact they'll sell you equipment designed specifically for this purpose!

And, perhaps best of all, by adding a low-cost card to your PC, you can download this stuff at rates which are pretty close to 200Kbps -- without a broadband connection!

So, with all this free music so readily available, why is the recording industry still bitching so loudly about piracy?

And how on earth do they substantiate their claims that CD piracy has now cost the industry $114 million?

Readers Say (updated irregularly) Free music... - Allister Relationship skills??... - Dominic From Yesterday... One rule for us, another for... - Andrew Awards... - Allister x-mas goodie... - Adrian backup... - Bahu Christmas WishList... - Andy Awards? - Why Not... - Murray Christmas list... - Charlie Backup... - Colin Christmas Wish... - Hamish Have Your Say

Do they think we're stupid or something?

Where's the explanation of how they came up with this silly amount of money?

Don't get me wrong -- I don't believe anyone should breach the industry's copyright by copying a CD and then giving or selling it to someone else. Regardless of the ethics involved, it's simply and unambiguously against the law.

But what about all downloadable music I was talking about just a moment ago -- why isn't the music industry moving to shut down those who are making it so freely available?

And, more importantly, how can you get your hands on it -- right?

Well to download it (and burn it to MP3 or regular music CD format) all you need to do is buy a cheap FM-stereo or TV tuner card (or one that does both).

Yes, every Sunday morning on TV2, the entire Top 20 charting tracks are played in their entirety, in good quality stereo, and without any form of copy-protection.

Likewise, there are dozens of FM stereo radio stations to choose from around the country -- most of which regularly play those same Top-20 hits 24 hours a day.

Capturing a music vid or FM broadcast is now an extremely trivial job and the quality of the recording that results is every bit as good as those 128Kbps MP3 files that are so freely traded on P2P networks.

Now it could be said that the broadcasters aren't the ones who are being naughty. They're transmitting the music with the full permission of the copyright owners and it's YOU who break the law if you record it.

So, as I've asked before, why are the likes of Sony not suing themselves for selling equipment specifically designed to commit such offenses? Why are these companies quite happy to sell you gear designed to record music from FM or TV broadcasts -- then go on to bitch about the fact that people are pirating music?

As I said earlier, I don't condone the breaching of anyone's copyright -- but I wonder how many people will figure out that for the price of a few Top-10 compilation CDs, they could give a TV/FM tuner card that will provide the recipient with all the popular music recordings anyone could ever want.

More on this on the weekend when I publish the next installment of the Tivo-like PC box project.

The JetKart Is For Sale
If you're looking for an interesting gift for Christmas then what could be better than my jet-powered kart? I've I'm running out of space in the garage and need some pocket-change for Christmas so no reasonable offer will be refused.

I also have a Norinco bolt-action .22LR rifle on offer. Comes with a 3-9x40 scope, a silencer and some ammo.

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