Polska Brain Jelly

Engadget is running an article by Michael Gartenberg asking the question if DRM is being rightfully demonized.  His argument is that DRM is just a tool, and it’s how that tool is used that makes it good or bad.  He makes a statement toward the end that fairly well sums up the argument DRM opponents have:

Yes, I know most DRM solutions can and will be circumvented. If there’s a lock on the door, someone is always going to try to find the key and usually they will.

The simple fact of the matter is legitimate users come into contact with DRM issues much more often than those to whom the DRM is supposed to be targeting.  Pirates don’t run into DRM issues because it’s already been stripped away, allowing them a hassle free experience to the data they want.  It’s the paying customers that have to deal with denial of services caused by DRM not behaving properly or because of esoteric rules (like deactivation in iTunes before you upgrade or update) that should be clearly laid out to the person shelling out their money.  It’s analogous to being asked to show your receipt when leaving a store.  Shoplifters (at least the smart ones) aren’t going to walk out with something in the open.  They hide it first.  The really smart ones even pay for something minor so they have a bag to walk out with and a receipt to be checked.

I’m personally sick of being treated like a criminal from companies that I’m buying goods from, whether they be physical or digital.  It’s got to stop somewhere, and I already refuse to show receipts after I purchase something.  I think fighting intrusive DRM is the next logical step.  Consumers need to make a stand.

This is funny stuff.  It captures the fifties era educational films perfectly.  I don’t use Facebook (or FaceCrack as I have termed it, my wife is addicted), but it still conveys the funny.

As much as I love my iPhone, I hate iTunes.  iTunes is the most counter-intuitive, sluggish eyesore I have on my computer.  I can’t say it’s the worst program I’ve ever used, that’s reserved for a Fox-Pro based program that I worked with back in the mid-90′s, but it comes close.  If it weren’t for the fact that my iPhone all but requires it, I wouldn’t come near that piece of crap software with a ten foot laser pole.

Yesterday I plug in the iPhone to charge and sync, and I get a pop-up saying that there is an update to iTunes (9.0).  It gives me a link that I click on and from there it gives me options to download iTunes.  I grab the x64 install and five minutes later I start the install.  Other than it taking forever to install, everything looks like it worked.  In fact, it even told me at the end the install was completed successfully.

Plug the iPhone back in so it can finish charging and I get an error message saying the Apple Mobile Device Support is too old for iTunes, uninstall both iTunes and the Apple Mobile Device Support and reinstall them.

What?  I just upgraded the stupid POS!  Fine, you picky piece of broken shit, I’ll do it your way.  I uninstall iTunes.  That goes fine.  I uninstall the Apple Mobile Device Support and it looks like everything uninstalls fine… until AMDS decides it doesn’t want to be uninstalled today.  Literally, for no explained reason, the progress bar which was at 100% starts emptying, and then the uninstaller closes.  AMDS is still in my program list.  Try it again, exact same thing.  Not wanting to prove myself the definition of insanity, I forego a third attempt.

Hit the Inter-Tubes to find out what the hell is going on.  Not really much help there other than Apple giving a specific order in which to uninstall their products on Vista (I’m running 7), but I give it a try and still same scenario.  I try a few other things that are suggested in various forums, none of which helps.

On a lark, I try the “change” option found in the program list and it brings up the option to repair or uninstall.  Choosing uninstall I get the exact same results, making me the very definition I was trying to avoid. Wanting to try something new and not wanting to chunk my entire computer out the window because of a bad program, I hit the change link again and choose repair.  After that shows finished successfully, I proceed to try and uninstall again.

Miracles do happen, because the damned thing actually uninstalled.  There was apparently something wrong with the program (corrupted when I updated iTunes or it installed incorrectly) and for some unknown reason it wouldn’t uninstall while it was broken.  Boggles the mind.  One of the reasons you uninstall a program is because it’s broken.  To not allow a program to uninstall because it’s broken is the height of idiocy.  Anyway, I reinstall iTunes, and not believing it when it says it installs successfully, I open it up and plug in my iPhone.

It works… with another popup saying I have to authorize this computer to use my iPhone on it.  The same computer that had iTunes on it before,the same computer that I’ve used my iPhone on since I got it.  The same computer that hasn’t changed except for an OS change, no hardware change (except an addition of a TV Tuner card, hardly a major hardware id change).  So now I have activated three of the five activations I have on the same computer.  This is ridiculous.  I understand that after five activations I can deactivate all my activations and start from scratch, but I can only do that once a year.  What happens if I get upgrade happy in a year and it requires me activate each time.  When I hit that wall am I just shit out of luck?  Sorry, you’ve reached or exceeded your activations, you can just piss right off of using iTunes with that iPhone of yours, you know the one you paid good money for.

Apple, along with every other DRM whore out there, can stick their activations straight up their uninstaller.

It’s been a little while since I’ve posted here.  That’s due mostly to lack of time, school, work, etc.  Just wanted to make a quick note to keep the dust from collecting.  As always, Screencap Comics is updating twice weekly on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  Check it out.

I love my IPhone. Especially now that I can post here with it. I’m beginning to think there really is an app for everything.