]
] NEW YORK, April 2 (Reuters) - Sun Microsystems Inc.
] (nasdaq: SUNW - news - people) and Microsoft Corp.
] (nasdaq: MSFT - news - people) on Friday settled their
] long-running legal battle over patents and unfair
] competition, setting the stage for the arch-rivals to
] enter a new era of cooperation over their competing
] technologies.

[ Also noted are 3300 new people to add to the unemployment rolls as Sun slashes 10% of it's workforce. -k]

Sun, Microsoft settle long-running disputes

] Microsoft is expected to unveil copy-protection software
] this summer that will for the first time give portable
] digital music players access to tunes rented via
] all-you-can-eat subscription services--a development that
] some industry executives believe will shake up the online
] music business.

[ I continue to not understand the desire to rent music. I know it's really no different from renting movies -- saying "I want to experience this, but not own it forever." I find it impossible to put my mind into that mode as pertains to music, but it's becoming ever more obvious that a huge number of people do feel that way. They simply want access to whatever's popular right now, and whatever's going to be popular six months from now, when the current flavor is old and tired. It's only a problem for me because the majority generally wins when it comes to business models, and the subscription model is what the music industry prefers... They want ongoing, sustained revenue without having to concern themselves with the variability of product quality. And of course, they want to make sure that you can experience their product only in a few prescribed ways.

Certainly I fear that Microsoft's dominance of the OS market will allow it to decimate the competition, which i don't think helps anyone. Well, I take that back... it helps Microsoft, and the big labels.

Also, does anyone else find it sorta creepy that the software is called Janus? -k]

Microsoft's iPod killer? | CNET News.com

It's what it sounds like. If you think might
find it offensive, you're right, so don't go there.

] The cone shaped nostril inserts were designed to allow
] one size to fit all. ....
] In short, it doubles the pleasure, and doubles the fun!
] With The Pussy Snorkel you won't miss a lick!
]
] The Pussy Snorkel allows a man to continue breathing
] while performing oral sex on a woman in a spa, bathtub or
] even a bowl of green Jell-O.

[ That's just awesome. -k]

The PUSSY SNORKEL - SNORKEL FACTS

Sorry for the lack of memeage. I've been very busy.

I'm going to be in Cleveland this weekend. I'm helping out some friends from Troma with a few things related to a convention (or two) in the area. For those who are not familiar with Troma, its the oldest operational Independent movie studio in America. They are also all completely insane.

This weekend will either be fun, traumatic, or most likely both.

I've acquired a new mobile phone. I'm in number port limbo, so it may be a little tricky to get ahold me for the next few days. When I come out the other side, I should be able to Bluetooth myself some Internet whenever I need it. In the future, I should be a more connected when mobile.

[ You actually got a phone that'll do net over cell over bluetooth? What phone/service... that's what i've been wanting... -k]

What did I get myself into?

] Now the computer savvy among us can relive the fun of
] having your very own personal mini-oven with the PC
] Ez-Bake oven! It fits in a 5 1/4" drive bay and plugs
] right into your power supply with the included Molex
] connector.

[ Wow. That's all I can say. -k]

ThinkGeek :: PC EZ-Bake Oven

St. Louis University student Nick Aker and an assistant chemistry professor Shelley Minteer developed the biofuel cell in class. Akers said that once the biofuel cell is charged, it could run a cell phone for a week or a laptop all day before needing another drink.

[ Pretty neat... here's a slightly less tongue in cheek version of the story :
http://www.fuelcelltoday.com/FuelCellToday/IndustryInformation/IndustryInformationExternal/NewsDisplayArticle/0,1602,4212,00.html

Still lacks details though. 6200% more efficient than traditional chemical batteries is the only half useful spec I've seen. If that's true, and scalable, then my powerbook should be able to run for about 5 straight days. Yet the article says it could power my laptop "all day" and my cell phone all week. My cell phone already lasts about 4-5 days, and my laptop battery gets between 2 and 3.5 hours per charge depending on how i use it, so, is it 62 times more efficient or 2 times? Or are people's laptops only lasting 1/62 of a full day... i know p4's suck, but...

i hope to see more details... so far the articles i've seen are mostly about how cool it is that this startup got funding. -k]

Vodka and beer to power batteries

] The number of unemployed workers (currently 8.2 million)
] and the national unemployment rate of 5.6% in February
] 2004 do not adequately convey the true labor slack in the
] economy for several reasons. One major understatement is
] that the unemployment rate does not reflect the uniquely
] large 1.2% decline in labor force participation that has
] occurred since the current recession began in early 2001.
] This decline represents a stark contrast to the past
] three business cycles, when labor force participation
] actually grew by an average of 0.4% of the working-age
] population over similar lengths of time. Consequently,
] there is what can be called a "missing labor force" of
] 2,808,000 workers who might otherwise be in the actual
] labor force but have either dropped out entirely or
] failed to enter the labor market because of the lack of
] jobs. If the unemployment rate in February 2004 took into
] account this missing labor force, the unemployment rate
] would have been 7.4%, or 1.8% greater than the official
] rate of 5.6% (see chart below).

Here is someone publishing unemployment statistics which include the data about the contraction of the total labor force.

The unemployment statistics the government doesn't want you to see...

[ We're about 17 minutes past the go live time for our new liberal radio network. The site is still in holding pattern however, and there's no web stream availble yet.

Can anyone in NY, LA, Chicago, Portland or w/ XM tell us if it's broadcasting? Is the O'Franken Factor in full effect? -k]

Air America Launches (supposedly)

] ``I've ordered this level of cooperation because I
] consider it necessary to gaining a complete picture of
] the months and years that preceded the murder of our
] fellow citizens on Sept. 11, 2001,'' Bush said.

You considered it necessary? Or you consider it necessary only after getting your ass handed to you by the media during the last week?

Seriously this man so transparent. Why would any vote for him in Nov?

[ Agreed. I can only hope that 6 months isn't too long for people to remember this shit. Kerry's ads are gonna have to seriously remind people that this fucker wouldn't have cooperated for SHIT if not for all the bad PR it was causing. I hope they declassify all that Clarke stuff. There's just no possible way it benefits them. He's gonna hand them their ass all over again. -k]

Guardian Unlimited | World Latest | Bush Agrees to Let Rice Testify Publicly

] Internet music piracy is not responsible for declining CD
] sales, claim the researchers behind a major new
] statistical study.

[ Yeah, I've seen a few of these recently. Too bad it's irrelevant. RIAA's gonna keep suing traders, which is just what I predicted last year. Sue little Suzy, and see Suzy's mom limit her computer usage in a heartbeat. And see all Suzy's friends' moms do the same to their kids. It *is* working for now, though I don't think it will forever...

The main reason the RIAA's actions are so despicable is that the industry should have been in on this whole "internet" thingie from the get-go. If the labels hadn't been so fucking backwards in the first place, none of these lawsuits would've been necessary, because we'd have had decent, legal download services 5 years ago. The labels figured they could avoid the costs of changing business models and ignore what consumers want. Napster showed them the error in their thinking. If someone in the big 5 had had the balls to push for modernized distribution models, we all could have avoided the massive war and grown naturally into the 21'st century. I still think it'll happen eventually... as long as consumers keep demanding what they want.

Of course, in my perfect world, the major labels all bite it, less money gets spent for promotion and marketing and more gets spent on offering a wider variety of music... -k]

Net music piracy 'does not harm record sales'