Anyone heard of SOPA?

by sage44 Tue 17 Jan 2012 - 20:49

Welp it is very BIG!

Stuff about it:

http://news.cnet.com/8301-31921_3-57329001-281/how-sopa-would-affect-you-faq/
Literally, there are about 20 companies going blackout because of it. Fight the power by blacken out BABY! Anyone heard of SOPA? 732225

http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/283144/20120117/sopa-blackout-list-jan-18-google-wikipedia.htm

http://sopastrike.com/

Discuss what you think about it... It is not a good thing at all!!!!!!!!!!!

by **ElfenMagix** Tue 17 Jan 2012 - 21:40

And?

I find it difficult that its going to happen, because that would be a denial of service, which is illegal at least in this country. Furthermore, they risk losing contracts and clients if they do.

Sage, you're 15? Grow up. Really. you need to see both sides of the subject before taking sides. I have been on the internet since '92 and on BBSes and Hologates Email systems since '80. These companies have thousands of servers, and would require hundreds of IT Techs to go into the ISP Data Warehouses and shut down the servers one at a time. Google alone has its North East node in NYC. It takes up a whole floor with over 30,000 cabinets, each cabinet holds a minimum of 50 servers. You do the math.

I'm not worried about a thing, even if these companies go out. Simply put, Senators and their blackberries, if there is a blackout of data to their end, they will bring on a congressional the likes we have not since the McCarthy years. Rule #1: Despite what laws Congress passes, companies are not greater than the government. Why do you think we are trying hard to end lobbyism that some companies do with congress. Separate a Senator from his Blackberry data, their will be hell to pay.

by **boomer_gonz** Tue 17 Jan 2012 - 22:21

SOPA's been shelved for the most part anyway...for the time being anyway. Someone finally got it that DNS blocking would be Christmas for the bad guys (organized crime, arms dealers, drug cartels, terrorists, etc). They could set up entire fully isolated private networks within US soil and be completely invisible from local law enforcement departments. Worse because they'd have American legislation to back it because to unveil these networks would require said departments to break SOPA law in order to enforce the very laws that the Bad guys are breaking.

PIPA still though is in legislation, but it's days are numbered as it was meant to be a package deal with SOPA. a better tactic than a web Blackout would be a voluntary user sitout. Online commerce websites such as Amazon, Ebay, etc. have just as much clout as (if not more than) organizations like the MPAA and the RIAA. Not too mention sites like Youtube, Dailymotion, Reddit, Twitchtv, Hulu, etc; get a grand portion of their revenue from advertisements run intermittently with streaming feeds. The loss of profits for an entire day would not go unnoticed.

by **ElfenMagix** Tue 17 Jan 2012 - 22:46

Agree 100%, Boomer.

It would be back to the old BBS Days.

by **Nachtsider** Wed 18 Jan 2012 - 1:14

Won't fly.

by Entropy Wed 18 Jan 2012 - 1:44

I have to say that this bill does give me a particular amount of worry. It was shelved yesterday, but it was brought back. We don't ultimately know what the bill will look like when they actually bring it to the floors of the Congress, though. There's a good chance the more...offensive stuff will be stripped out.

It seems eerily reminiscent of the time Big Media wanted to ban recordable VCRs and cassettes, and that went over like Betamax. How many late 80s/early 90s references can I fit in this post? At least 2, it seems. I think there are some issues which can be addressed, particularly the things about prescription drugs, but attempting to give the Justice Department to censor the Internet based on copyright infringement (which is a civil matter) is naturally concerning and I'm glad Google and the rest are using what methods they have (they could NEVER outspend Big Media on the Hill) to spread awareness about it.

by Awinnell Wed 18 Jan 2012 - 1:45

works in China,the middle east etc etc,start comparing the US to those sort of countries and it will never see the light of day,mind you there are already blacklisting protocols in place,though those are for child pornography,last year it was impossible to access megaupload,in the UK, for 4 days as it had been added to that blacklist !

by Alfisti Wed 18 Jan 2012 - 5:49

To be honest, to anyone who doesn't know about SOPA by now: I'd really like to know which particular rock you've been living under for the last few months... I might go hide there myself.

Nachtsider wrote:Won't fly.

Damn, well there goes my plan of buying that old carrier which was up for sale awhile back, parking it in international waters and charging people for server space. Radio Caroline for the 21st Century and all that. Razz

by **Nachtsider** Thu 19 Jan 2012 - 19:00

The Feds just iced Megaupload.

Suddenly, I don't feel so secure anymore.

by **Triela** Thu 19 Jan 2012 - 19:19

Megaupload's passing is really sad. D:

by **Kiskaloo** Thu 19 Jan 2012 - 19:48

Yeah, they're one of the sites I used (as a paid member).

Anonymous took down the Web sites of the Justice Department, the Motion Picture Association of America, and the Recording Industry Association of America in response.

by **Nachtsider** Thu 19 Jan 2012 - 19:59

Kiskaloo wrote:Anonymous took down the Web sites of the Justice Department, the Motion Picture Association of America, and the Recording Industry Association of America in response.

Like that's going to accomplish anything.

My response was to download the entire 25-episode run of Genesis Climber Mospeada from Rapidshare before someone takes that place down, too.

by Entropy Thu 19 Jan 2012 - 20:07

Megaupload's passing is troubling, good thing I offered a Mediafire mirror to my recent downloads, but it appears some of the older ones I could have to replace...

by **Nachtsider** Thu 19 Jan 2012 - 20:52

... certain files on my other stomping ground at Megashares, listed as being uploaded not more than several days ago, are now gone on account of 'violating copyright'.

Getting nervous now.

by Schaschanist Thu 19 Jan 2012 - 21:39

Well, i'm a bit out in this discussion, first we don't have that much problems here in good old germany and second, i haven't heard or read much about SOPA and/or PIPA.
I think there is a marginal problem all are not considering: We live in a digital world. Shutting down site because of their content does not solve problems, because it causes more problems for other people as an reaction. Plus people will find another way to publish the stuff

Just think, for example, of Youtube. What if somebody shuts this platform down too? On the one hand it fights the the hurting of copyrights, on the other side it really, sorry for the word, FUCKS everyone who's not uploading music videos for no reason.
Youtube is a place to watchs videos, homemade videos, announcements, funny stuff just for the laugh, seriously meant conspiracy theories agains companies/regimes/governments.
The problem are the users who are uploading copyright protected stuff. Well, it is a loss of money for the record companies, on the other side, alot of users using it to find songs they heard sometime somewhere, in the radio or in a comercial.
So to beat the "few" bead people you really have to sorry again, FUCK everybody else. I think that doesn't work for long anymore, someday the people will jump at the barricades. Really, i think acts like this really could be the particular drop that let the barrel overflow (i hope you understand what i mean, it's a german phrase).

That's at least my opinion to that topic.

by Awinnell Fri 20 Jan 2012 - 1:52

if any part of Sopa or Pipa get passed ,then we could say goodbye to this or any site with fan-fiction on them as they all violate copyright on the original works

by **Triela** Fri 20 Jan 2012 - 2:15

Awinnell wrote:if any part of Sopa or Pipa get passed ,then we could say goodbye to this or any site with fan-fiction on them as they all violate copyright on the original works

If that happens the internet will be no more. I can't live without my slash fics!!!! D:

by Officer_Charon Fri 20 Jan 2012 - 17:18

I thought fan-fiction had been deemed to not violate copyright laws?

by Ggultra2764 Fri 20 Jan 2012 - 21:50

The government seriously needs to get the MPAA and RIAA off their asses and grow a pair to have the two organizations adopt to modern innovations of the Internet instead of resorting to outdated methods.

SOPA and the Protect IP bills would do enough to fuck up my experiences online that it would be scary, especially as the shut down of Megaupload has put a damper on my options of watching anime titles that legal streaming sites like Crunchyroll and Funimation don't have rights to.

by Awinnell Sat 21 Jan 2012 - 1:34

Officer_Charon wrote:I thought fan-fiction had been deemed to not violate copyright laws?

under Sopa they wouldn't need any justification,it only has to be perceived as a violation for it to be removed

by Lyndist Sat 21 Jan 2012 - 2:27

Dark side of capitalism : It only serves to 1% - those who have power or money or both . The remaining 99% can only look and say "FUCK YOU "

by **Kiskaloo** Sat 21 Jan 2012 - 10:26

lyndist wrote:Dark side of capitalism : It only serves to 1% - those who have power or money or both . The remaining 99% can only look and say "FUCK YOU "

Looking at Communism under the Soviet Union, most of the Warsaw Pact, the People's Republic of China before the Premiership of Deng Xiaoping and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea today, I'd ask "what's the difference?" Muh-m-muhahahaha!

by **Nachtsider** Sat 21 Jan 2012 - 11:27

lyndist wrote:Dark side of capitalism : It only serves to 1% - those who have power or money or both . The remaining 99% can only look and say "FUCK YOU "

Kiskaloo wrote:[Looking at Communism under the Soviet Union, most of the Warsaw Pact, the People's Republic of China before the Premiership of Deng Xiaoping and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea today, I'd ask "what's the difference?"

Yeah, pretty much this. Communism is just the same, if not worse.

by Alfisti Sat 21 Jan 2012 - 21:17

Ggultra2764 wrote:The government seriously needs to get the MPAA and RIAA off their asses and grow a pair to have the two organizations adopt to modern innovations of the Internet instead of resorting to outdated methods.

This is the bit where I point to Hasbro and say that other media companies could stand to learn a thing or two from their handling of the unexpected success of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. Whether you like of loathe the show, the simple fact of the matter is that Hasbro realised it was the internet which made the show popular in the first place and embraced that... leaving the full-download and HQ youtube streams alone. When they did finally have them taken down, it wasn't without explanation (in the form of an open letter essentially amounting to "you guys keep asking for DVDs and overseas airings, no-one will sign a contract with us to distribute that if we leave the HQ media streams up with our blessing").

Now, it's proabably a bit unfair to compare Hasbro, for whom MLP is basically a 22 minute long advertisement for childrens' toys (and can therefore have its, relatively miniscule, production costs written off as part of the advertising budget), with someone for whom their IP is all they have to sell. However, the fact remains that the free distribution across the web has pretty much made the show a success.

Either way, there is a balance to be struck here.

by MadHatChemist Sun 22 Jan 2012 - 23:25

Most of the other filesharing sites are deleting files, closing of
American IP addresses, or preventing anyone by the account holder to
access what's in their accounts

More here.

by **Kiskaloo** Sun 22 Jan 2012 - 23:30

I see FileSonic went dark today, as well. That just leaves FileServe as my last account.

Well if nothing else, I'll save a couple hundred bucks in premium subscription fees. Back to torrents, I guess, and with the direct download sites gone, we should see a lot more seeders so transfers should hopefully be quick.

by MadHatChemist Sun 22 Jan 2012 - 23:36

Kiskaloo wrote:I see FileSonic went dark today, as well. That just leaves FileServe as my last account.

Well if nothing else, I'll save a couple hundred bucks in premium subscription fees. Back to torrents, I guess, and with the direct download sites gone, we should see a lot more seeders so transfers should hopefully be quick.

Fileserve has been deleting files left and right.

by **Kiskaloo** Sun 22 Jan 2012 - 23:57

MadHatChemist wrote:
Kiskaloo wrote:I see FileSonic went dark today, as well. That just leaves FileServe as my last account.

Well if nothing else, I'll save a couple hundred bucks in premium subscription fees. Back to torrents, I guess, and with the direct download sites gone, we should see a lot more seeders so transfers should hopefully be quick.

Fileserve has been deleting files left and right.

They've also killed their Affiliates program, so nobody has a reason to host stuff on them. I've noticed most of the subbing sites I follow have stopped DDLs for that reason. Guess a few more marginal shows will now be dropped from my list. Smile

Fortunately, Top Gear is popular enough the main torrent is well-seeded within a few hours of air (which is when I get home to download).

by Awinnell Mon 23 Jan 2012 - 7:21

unfortunately for me using torrents isn't an option,if you do use them you get a nasty letter from your ISP ,can be banned from their service and can be made to pay for whatever they think you have downloaded ,on top of that they throttle the ports torents use constantly here in the UK

by **Nachtsider** Mon 23 Jan 2012 - 7:49

Is there any danger at all that the torrent sites will be next?

by Awinnell Mon 23 Jan 2012 - 8:37

it's likely,access to piratebay is blocked in the UK,so chances are it could happen elswhere

by taerKitty Mon 23 Jan 2012 - 11:32

The problem with SOPA isn't the ends - by downloading files, we may justify it as "but I'd never spend the money anyhow" etc. I'm not here to talk about that - as others have noted, this is a digital age, and with it, comes certain realities, be they legal under pre-digital body of law or not.

The problem with SOPA is the means - by claiming 'IP infringement', they can wreak all manner of havoc without due process. Yes, we currently have cases where computers can be seized and/or network access revokes without warning, but there are (usually) warrants and appeal processes.

SOPA makes all that an unhappy memory in companies' eyes. They see something that they can construe as IP infringement, they can have LEOs seize it without (current) due process. Redress options are few and costly.

That last word is the crux of SOPA - it's about the money. If a company is big enough, they can already impose their will, but it will cost them. Under SOPA, it costs them little more than drafting a letter. Currently, 'the little guys' can hope to reverse a ruling, but under SOPA, it's so much an uphill battle, it becomes a climbing wall.

by **Kiskaloo** Wed 25 Jan 2012 - 9:19

It looks like most, if not all, of the DDL sites have closed up shop.

As for torrents, some of the big sites might either be taken down or blocked, but there will always be the option. And most, if not all, modern torrent programs encrypt the data so ISPs cannot identify what the packet is (this was developed in response to Comcast "bit shaping" torrent packets and deliberately slowing them down).

Having to use torrents now does double my bandwidth (since I need to seed 1:1 for fairness), but I do have a 250GB monthly limit. head bang

Now we just need to find a torrent site for Entropy's scanslations. I suggest nyatorrents since it handles anime.

by Awinnell Wed 25 Jan 2012 - 11:20

by Schaschanist Wed 25 Jan 2012 - 11:42

Awinnell wrote:

So true....
Even the penalty for raping or abusing of children is more harmless here than download or upload music. (Actually just two or three years.)
SOMETHING WENT REALLY REALLY WRONG IN THIS WORLD!

by Professor Voodoo Thu 26 Jan 2012 - 4:37

Marisa: So what's the penalty for killing (insert current bubblegum-pop star)? If I hear that stupid song one more time I'll...

Henrietta: Hey! I like that song!

Marisa: My point exactly.

by Alfisti Thu 26 Jan 2012 - 4:43

Professor Voodoo wrote:Marisa: So what's the penalty for killing (insert current bubblegum-pop star)? If I hear that stupid song one more time I'll...

Henrietta: Hey! I like that song!

Marisa: My point exactly.

Monty: You could just, you know... change the station.

by Professor Voodoo Thu 26 Jan 2012 - 4:53

Alfisti wrote:
Professor Voodoo wrote:Marisa: So what's the penalty for killing (insert current bubblegum-pop star)? If I hear that stupid song one more time I'll...

Henrietta: Hey! I like that song!

Marisa: My point exactly.
Monty: You could just, you know... change the station.

Marisa: As unfair as it sounds, the dork is way stronger than me. Last time I tried to change 'Etta's radio station I got thrown out of the second storey and got blamed for the broken window!

by Alfisti Thu 26 Jan 2012 - 5:11

Professor Voodoo wrote:
Alfisti wrote:Monty: You could just, you know... change the station.
Marisa: As unfair as it sounds, the dork is way stronger than me. Last time I tried to change 'Etta's radio station I got thrown out of the second storey and got blamed for the broken window!

Jethro: Why do you think Monty gets control of the radio?

Monty: Because you can never remember what frequency the BBC is on.

by Professor Voodoo Thu 26 Jan 2012 - 5:25

Alfisti wrote: Jethro: Why do you think Monty gets control of the radio?

Monty: Because you can never remember what frequency the BBC is on.

Marisa: Alright...if you're so good you get the next joint-mission with Henrietta.

Monty: Not with a whole week to think about it could I concoct a sufficiently emphatic way of telling you no.

by **Kiskaloo** Sun 5 Feb 2012 - 17:39

FileServe appears to be back. Links to Top Gear 18x02 are live.

by Godot Sun 12 Feb 2012 - 3:38

Here's a really helpful video I've seen about SOPA from a gaming channel. Very well researched and well thought through but might be a little long for the more impatient (7 minutes or so). If you can't be bothered to sit through the whole thing, at least skip to 5:30 - 6:30 for a bit of shocking information on how this bill ended up as bad as it was or 1:30 - 2:15 for what exactly what this bill was aimed at.

It seems like the most threatening part of these bills is that the sheer ignorance of those pushing these bills through. They don't really seem to understand what they're backing.
http://penny-arcade.com/patv/episode/sopa-pipa

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