Tag: law

Can a private network name breach public indecency laws?

  • October 1, 2009 at 9:32 pm

  • Yesterday my iPhone stumbled upon a wireless network with a very vulgar name. It made me think: if someone found that offensive, could the owner be charged with public indecency?
    It’s a curious (albeit pretty boring) question: because the network owner would, I suspect, presume that their wifi name is confined to the privacy of their [...]

Open Database License (ODbL) v1.0 Released

  • July 2, 2009 at 3:00 pm

  • Thanks to Gavin Wray for spotting this.
    “The Open Database License (ODbL) is an open license for data and databases which includes explicit attribution and share-alike requirements.
    “This license, the first of its kind, is a major step forward for open data. There are currently very few licenses available suited to data and databases and none which [...]

Harvard professor says downloading is 'fair use'

  • May 21, 2009 at 10:01 am

  • "Downloading music without the permission of the copyright holder should qualify for copyright laws' exemptions for 'fair use', a Harvard academic has said. Partial responsibility lies with the music industry itself for failing to adapt, he said."

    Visit Harvard professor says downloading is 'fair use'

No sex please, we’re Australian

  • August 1, 2005 at 1:15 pm

  • Apparently we may kill but not procreate. Not the most obvious strategy for maintaing a species.
    This is of course the story that Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas has effectively been banned in Australia, because of hidden sex scenes which can be unlocked by the player.
    So it’s OK to play at stealing cars, running drugs and [...]

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