Gates: There's a home server in your future

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Is Hollywood where it needs to be?

Home servers, network media players, etc., are all nice concepts. And when thinking about the possiblity of a home server there are many intriging ideas, especially around managing not just home electronics, but appliances, security, lighting, etc. But what I want is a centralized media storage and management component.

When I buy a CD or DVD (physical one, not a download), I want to be able to stick it in a device, rip it and save it to a storage area, and then be able to retrieve that from anywhere in the house on any media device. And one step further, I want to be able to upload that media to my car so that when I travel I can listen to my music or my children/passengers can watch a movie or listen to music, whatever they want to. I don't want to have to keep lugging cd's and dvd's around all the time.

And as I see it, Hollywood is an impediment to progress. I'm not suggesting that they don't deserve to make money. They do. But the argument has been that if we are able to make copies of movies, that we won't buy as many. We will all just steal and skip buying them. I think that is bulls*(&. I had the ability to record LP's onto cassetts in the 80's and even though I recorded compilations and even whole lp's, I still bought records. Then in the late 80's everyone had 2 deck cassett players/recorders. Again, we still bought music, even though recording copies was easier than ever. In the 90's, before cd burners, I bought 2 single disc cd players and a mixing board so that I could create mixes. I could still record a CD to tape, but rarely did.

So, for over 20 years now anyone could have borrowed or sharred a cd and made a copy of it. I'm sure people do that, but I don't think that it has ever been huge. Point is, most people aren't thieves. We don't mind buying the movie, or the cd. But what we want is to be able to have what we bought available anytime and anywhere we want it. I used to make make 2 or 3 copies of my favorite cassetts, one for the car, one for my walkman or boom box (that's how old I am), and then the original would stay at home. I also did it because anyone that has ever used a cassett will be all too familiar with the habit of cassett players making a lunch out of your favorite cassett. Well, to make a comparison, my daughter when she was just starting to watch movies, had a habit of putting nice scratches across her Disney Sleeping Beauty and Snow White DVD's. According to Hollywood, I should have to buy that DVD more than once. They are greedy. They aren't interested in the artists making money for their work, they want like the fact that with the current laws, we are forced to buy multiple copies of the same movie.

Isn't it time that they stopped being part of the problem!! Fine, if they want to chase people down for making copies and illegally sharing them via peer networks, let them. But how about giving everyone the right to make copies to protect against loss, and to allow us to have real and usefull network media centers.

And if Hollywood is listening, I would like to say that I haven't bought a cd or a dvd in at least 5 years. I've been given some for christmas and birthdays, but that's it. Why? Because I refuse to support an industry that is so greedy that they won't let me make a copy of a movie or cd that I bought as an insurance policy against the original being ruined, stolen, or lost, or as a convienence to allow me to easily have access to my media from anywhere. I believe in voting with my dollars. So, I just do without. My daughter now that she is a bit older asks for DVD's for her birthday and christmas, and ususally someone in the family buys her a couple, but as long as hollywood is so greedy, I won't buy any more music or any more movies. What I already have is plenty. Besides, I still enjoy the old music that I grew up with and so I still listen to that.

Someday if Hollywood ever gets their head out of their arse and allows us to make copies of our media and create copies on our networks, then maybe I'll start buying again, until then, I can do without hollywood!

Posted by: mgrubb@...   Posted on: 01/08/07 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use

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