Wednesday, September 4, 2002

Melancholy Elephants: a copyright parable. Spider Robinson's "Melancholy Elephants," a prescient sf story about copyright, is online for free. This is a hell of a story about the possibility that we will run out of works that are not in copyright, a kind of proto-parable about the demise of the commons brought on by the infinite extension of copyright. Link Discuss (Thanks, Adam!) [Boing Boing Blog]

Napster says farewell after judge blocks sale. Napster says a final farewell on their website.... [Lockergnome's Bits and Bytes] "Confusion...will be my epitaph..."

Yahoo expands Real deal to boost media content. Pact lets Yahoo deploy Real's Helix Universal Server [InfoWorld: Top News]

Listen.com inks another broadband deal. In its latest agreement with a broadband provider, the online music service will offer songs to Charter Communications' cable modem subscribers. [CNET News.com]

UP: Peter Gabriel. On his first collection of new songs in ten years, Peter Gabriel explores death, depression, loneliness, loss and, ultimately, hope. [All Songs Considered]

A Sound WTC Remembrance. A new sonic memorial is gathering audio artifacts that chronicle the history of the World Trade Center and its neighborhood before, during and after Sept. 11. By Kendra Mayfield. [Wired News] Picture Projects created a Sonic Browser interface, where users will encounter ambient sounds from hip-hop dance music to stories about the pianist at The Greatest Bar in the World. Visitors will be able to tune in to specific sounds by rolling the cursor over the screen and across a "sound center" that will lower the volume and let other sounds emerge.

Monks' Chanting and John Cage's Silence. The Merce Cunningham Dance Company and the Noh Drama Theater of Japan presented two separate programs that paid oblique but strong tribute to the victims of the Sept. 11 attacks last year. By Anna Kisselgoff. [New York Times: Arts]

On the Radio, Afghans Call Their Nation to a New Day. The success of a breakfast radio show, "Good Morning Afghanistan," is the most striking example of changes sweeping the nation's news organizations. By John F. Burns. [New York Times: Business]

Wi-Fi to climb aboard modems. A combination communications-802.11b semiconductor will help build a set-top box that creates its own wireless network instead of just connecting to an outside wireless network. [CNET News.com]

Recording industry site hit again.  Access to the RIAA's Web site is sporadic after attacks. Weekend vandalism includes a faux announcement that the group would "offer the latest albums for download."  [CNET News.com] [jenett.radio]

DirecTV cuts fee for TiVo service. As part of its effort to turn on more consumers to DVRs and satellite television, the company halves its monthly subscription fee for TiVo's digital video recording service. [CNET News.com]

Judge Cues Napster's Death Music. A federal bankruptcy court rules that German media conglomerate Bertelsmann AG can't complete its purchase of Napster. The company's assets are likely to be sold off to pay its debts. [Wired News]