SOPA 'shelved' until consensus is found : Othor Games

» Sun May 13, 2012 11:46 am

http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/17/sopa-markup-resume-february/

I mean people who aren't involved and just want to use the web site. Yeah, it's their site so they are free to do what they want with it, but I'm not entirely clear on the purpose of this.

Wikipedia and sister sites get hits from all groups of people, many of which probably haven't heard an inking about SOPA yet (Given that the owners of most of the news sources in the US are very pro-SOPA, I doubt they are doing much negative coverage, or coverage at all, of SOPA, making it invisible for a good many people)

» Sun May 13, 2012 6:13 am

Y'know, there's probably a better way to protest than inconveniencing thousands of people.

Quite possibly, but while part of the reason behind a protest is to make your voice heard, it's also to get attention, so that people who may not have known about a problem are made aware. And considering that the media's coverage of it has been almost nothing, I imagine many, many people are still unaware of SOPA.
Edit: Boo on ninja'ing.

» Sun May 13, 2012 2:32 am

Its never anyones concern unless there is money involved.

Piracy would just increase if it did pass, I won't be changing my avatar just because it incorporates someone elses design :meh:

Of course money's involved. I can imagine Apple would line up Samsung's products for copyright infringement enough to shut down their website for half a year.

I can think of 2 millions ways to exploit this acts to initialize terrorist attacks.

» Sun May 13, 2012 8:50 am

Wikipedia and sister sites get hits from all groups of people, many of which probably haven't heard an inking about SOPA yet (Given that the owners of most of the news sources in the US are very pro-SOPA, I doubt they are doing much negative coverage, or coverage at all, of SOPA, making it invisible for a good many people)

Quite possibly, but while part of the reason behind a protest is to make your voice heard, it's also to get attention, so that people who may not have known about a problem are made aware. And considering that the media's coverage of it has been almost nothing, I imagine many, many people are still unaware of SOPA.
Edit: Boo on ninja'ing.

Oh, so the reason is to get more people to notice the issue. I thought it was some stupid move to prove a point about how important the internet is or something.

» Sun May 13, 2012 1:11 am

So... If start spamming these forums with links pirated copwrighted material, take screens before the mods can ban me, send those screens to relevant authorities saying that this site is hosting illegal links... Profit?

We'd have Pete Hines on the case?

» Sat May 12, 2012 9:52 pm

So... If start spamming these forums with links pirated copwrighted material, take screens before the mods can ban me, send those screens to relevant authorities saying that this site is hosting illegal links... Profit?

We'd have Pete Hines on the case?

No, ICE Operation In Our Sites is what deals with .com sites which host such links (and how that Brit got extradited to the US for linking to infringing content). SOPA deals with non-US registered sites. Also removal of the links would be enough to immunize yourself from ICE on a user-created content site such as a forum.

» Sun May 13, 2012 11:24 am

Also removal of the links would be enough to immunize yourself from ICE on a user-created content site such as a forum.

Would the forum be blocked whilst an investigation into it's removal practices are investigated?

Edit: Personally i would have preferred to see the worst case scenario happen. Would show the power some dinosaurs are having over modern politics for a change. Could really shake things up.

» Sun May 13, 2012 7:54 am

Would the forum be blocked whilst an investigation into it's removal practices are investigated?

Edit: Personally i would have preferred to see the worst case scenario happen. Would show the power some dinosaurs are having over modern politics for a change. Could really shake things up.

You wouldn't even be able to get ICE to do anything without about $10000 minimum :shrug:

» Sat May 12, 2012 11:43 pm

I'm not sure how badly this would have affected Canada, but I'm glad the bill has been put on hold. At the very least, people will shut up about it.

» Sun May 13, 2012 3:33 am

For some reason, (I dont even live in the US) I am being blocked from heaps of websites by the American Government, The Skyrim wiki is blocked for crying out loud! This is ridiculous. Why is this happenening even though the bill is on hold?

» Sun May 13, 2012 5:02 am

Papanet is well better than you Internet, I has live kitties running the servers.

Hamsters are faster and work for less. Also they aren't as snotty as kitties tend to be.... :rofl:

» Sat May 12, 2012 9:58 pm

This is a fairly good read for people who want to read more about the issues:
http://blog.reddit.com/2012/01/technical-examination-of-sopa-and.html

» Sat May 12, 2012 8:52 pm

Been talking to the family today, explaining what is going on, been in a few forums, and I am completely baffled that people didn't even know this was going on.

Even moreso by people who are annoyed by the minor inconvenience of a blackout protest.

Was I the only person in America that mailed and called my Representative? 2011 had some really terrible legislation pass, and now this in 2012? Don't even get me started on the Supreme Court.

Jesus Christ America, I mean... really.

» Sun May 13, 2012 9:11 am

So just in case you need to Wikipedia something during the blackout, here's how. Google the term you're looking for along with the word wikipedia. When it shows the result for the Wikipedia page, click the double arrows to the right to expand (and show a preview) and if it says 'cached' under the link click that to get an archived version of the page which you can view. Yay!

» Sat May 12, 2012 10:55 pm

Hamsters are faster and work for less. Also they aren't as snotty as kitties tend to be.... :rofl:

Well, mine uses xenomorphs. Much betterz than yourz hamsturz.

» Sun May 13, 2012 5:54 am

So just in case you need to Wikipedia something during the blackout, here's how. Google the term you're looking for along with the word wikipedia. When it shows the result for the Wikipedia page, click the double arrows to the right to expand (and show a preview) and if it says 'cached' under the link click that to get an archived version of the page which you can view. Yay!

Or just click on the "Stop" button before it kicks you to the blackout page.

» Sat May 12, 2012 11:16 pm

If wikipedia had put up a banner, or required that we go through a little message page, I'd applaud them for getting involved. But this is just a nuisance.

» Sun May 13, 2012 1:04 am

If wikipedia had put up a banner, or required that we go through a little message page, I'd applaud them for getting involved. But this is just a nuisance.

It's supposed to be.

Also, http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/17/sopa-markup-resume-february/ Shelving certainly not a victory.

» Sun May 13, 2012 2:19 am

But this is just a nuisance.

That's the point.

Its supposed to be a represenation (hyperbole or not) of what SOPA could/would do.

» Sun May 13, 2012 12:09 am

It's supposed to be.

Also, http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/17/sopa-markup-resume-february/ Shelving certainly not a victory.

Which is why Wikipedias blackout is a good thing (or a good premise, the execution may be a little flawed),
They are playing the Aes Sedai game by telling people what they want to hear in wording that means they are lying through their teeth.
Basically they are pulling the fast one your mom always tried:
"Mom, can I go to the movies?"
"Let me think about it"

» Sun May 13, 2012 12:30 am

That's the point.

Its supposed to be a represenation (hyperbole or not) of what SOPA could/would do.

That was my interpretation, too: a taster of how things could be if this goes through.

» Sat May 12, 2012 11:30 pm

I understand that's the point, but it's still diminished my opinion of wikipedia.

» Sat May 12, 2012 10:54 pm

If wikipedia had put up a banner, or required that we go through a little message page, I'd applaud them for getting involved. But this is just a nuisance.

That wouldn't have nearly the same effect, though. Under SOPA (or similar legislation), just about any wiki could be taken down. By going offline, Wikipedia is demonstrating exactly what that would mean to the world and the availability of information. Personally, I think the message they've put up should be clearer on that, but that's their choice :shrug:

.

» Sat May 12, 2012 8:07 pm

It's supposed to be.

Also, http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/17/sopa-markup-resume-february/ Shelving certainly not a victory.

I want very much to be surprised by this. I'm not. Like JagarTharn said, "shelving" it for about 5 seconds was pretty much just to get the spotlight off of it long enough to try to force it through.

» Sat May 12, 2012 10:12 pm

I want very much to be surprised by this. I'm not. Like JagarTharn said, "shelving" it for about 5 seconds was pretty much just to get the spotlight off of it long enough to try to force it through.

I had a quick look at the person behind it. His picture alone was entirely unsurprising. Funny, that.