Re: [TCLUG:14607] Napster

["Eric M. Hopper" <hopper@omnifarious.mn.org>]

On Mon, Mar 13, 2000 at 11:20:42AM -0600, Timothy Wilson wrote:
> Hey everyone,
> 
> It looks like we're starting to see the Napster flood here at school.
> I've noticed a number of students trying to install it on various
> machines.  We're probably going to have to end up blocking it to
> preserve what bandwidth we've got.  So, does Napster run on a special
> port?  Is the software available from sites other than napster.com?
> I'd appreciate any info anyone could provide.

	*think* Is there any way to simply traffic shape Napster traffic
to only consume, say, 10% of your bandwidth, rather than turning it off
totally?  It would be nice if there were some sort of priority queueing
in routers that would allow you to cause Napster packets to be dropped
in favor of other traffic.

	I can understand about bandwidth problems, but there were
similar bandwidth issues with some of the Usenet groups in the early
90's, and, for the most part, that didn't result in those groups being
blocked.  It's the record industry's response, and the feeling that
somehow it's illegal anyway that makes the irritatnt warrant blocking
instead of some less harsh solution.

	I've come to the conclusion, after thinking about it for a long
time (years), that copyright law and patent law are in need of
fundamental change, and/or elimination.  That change won't happen
without a revolution of sorts.  Supressing Napster is supressing that
revolution.

	Yeah, much of Napster traffic is illegal by current law, but I
don't think current law really respects the will of the people.  In
fact, the popularity of Napster very much indicates that it doesn't.
Eventually, a new structure will arise that, hopefully, will be better.
In the meantime, I think it's important the revolution continues.

	Yeah, I probably sound way overly political, but this is
important.  Just as important, IMHO, as the DVD issue, and for many of
the same reasons.

Have fun (if at all possible),
-- 
Its name is Public Opinion.  It is held in reverence. It settles everything.
Some think it is the voice of God.  Loyalty to petrified opinion never yet
broke a chain or freed a human soul.     ---Mark Twain
-- Eric Hopper (hopper@omnifarious.mn.org  http://omnifarious.mn.org/~hopper) --

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