On Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 5:02 PM, Bob Elzer<bob.elzer@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Apparently if you bought the George Orwell book 1984 on amazon for your
> kindle, you actually became part of the story today.
>
> Amazon deleted the books from your kindle, without permission because the
> publisher changed it's mind about the offering.
>
> Even after you already purchased it. You got your money back of course.
>
> But to me this is just theft. Just the same as buying something at sears,
> and them coming to your house and taking it back in the middle of the night.
>
> There is all sorts of wrong with this.
>
> Here's the link
> http://pogue.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/07/17/some-e-books-are-more-equal-than-o
> thers/

Amazing.  The holy grail of publishing: licensing for a limited time
and the ability to pull it back when wanted.
- No more need to go through the work of releasing a new edition of a
text book, just take it away from everyone at the end of the semester!
- Make people sign in to their reader and charge for each different
person that reads the same book.  Sue anyone who gives out their
password.

There is a story somewhere out there on the web about a possible
future.  A future where a guy risks prison by sharing his textbook
reader password with his new girlfriend so she can study for her
classes.  I think it was authored by Richard Stallman back in the
1980's.  I can't find it or I'd give a link.  More and more it is
prophetic.

We're getting there.  If the public does not raise outcry over this
latest move, we're at the threshold of such a world.

There really are two sides at battle here.  Information control for
profit and information freedom for benefit.  Digital technology
requires those who would control to take extreme measures.  They stand
out in stark relief against the freedoms of information we have (had?)
in the recent past.

Alan
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