The Dutch extreme right populist party PVV joined the left wing anti-ACTA faction in the parliament. now there's a majority against ACTA. Kinda weird, but good for us http://nos.nl/artikel/340875-kamer-tege ... -acta.html
“I'm a pessimist when it comes to regulating an industry, which hasn't adapted to the digital age, through sanctions rather than market means,” Traikov told reporters in Sofia today. “Authors' copyrights should not be placed above human rights.”
Posted: Feb 16th, '12, 06:20
by Ruroshin
I have been monitoring all of these events and it is a bit worrying. The trend for torrent site appears to be to moving towards magnet links only.
What do you all think about this? Ditching .torrent files altogether and just have magnet links and then eventually move onto magnet links using DHT only, i.e. no initial tracker. Eventually the site will just become a list of hashes. Easy to backup, easy to move elsewhere, not reliant on third party torrent storage.
How about you all try just using the magnet links only for a few weeks and see how it goes?
Posted: Feb 16th, '12, 06:45
by \( -o _ o- )/
That's a great idea. The trend moving towards magnet links only is very true.
I think it would be better to remove the torrent links for a week and see how many complaints there are.
If there's no complaints, leave it as is. If there's complaints? There's the tutorial by Baeksoo....
Posted: Feb 16th, '12, 09:05
by Ethlenn
I'm in favor of trying this. There will always be some slower people who don't read tutorials, but it's worth giving a try.
And yes, this trend is pretty obvious on some korean sites.
Posted: Feb 16th, '12, 09:20
by Sorvaseven
I think it's the best idea to use magnet links only in combination with DHT. This is the trend and DA would be more independent! I use magnet links only and it works pretty fine.
But there are a few problems with DHT. Not all torrent programs are supporting DHT yet. They also still use different protocols, enabling communication between different clients based on DHT is not always possible. Currently BitComet, Deluge, uTorrent, KTorrent, qBittorrent, rtorrent, transmission and the reference client uses only the same protocols. I read that the developers are working hard to solve these issues, so i guess in the near future this wouldn't be a problem anymore.
So i'm pro magnet and pro DHT, but there should be a good and visible help section (tutorial) for user!!! Here is my suggestion to improve the help and avoiding many complaints like \( -o _ o- )/ mentioned it:
I think the VSS hint can be delete, it's not up to date anymore (for more then 2 years already^^), also the JSoTW hint can be disappear (it's not soooo important i think^^). The red text "Help section: How do I download/upload a torrent" should be linked to the tutorial.
Like Ethlenn I'm in favor of trying this, but in combination magnet - DHT with a hint to a tutorial
Posted: Feb 16th, '12, 09:27
by BaekSoo
Ruroshin wrote:How about you all try just using the magnet links only for a few weeks and see how it goes?
I don't think it's necessary to try it out for a few weeks. Just do it and I have to say magnet links have never failed whereas the torrent download sites have.
BTW, I've updated the tutorial to include manually adding trackers to the torrent.
Posted: Feb 16th, '12, 09:33
by Orion1986
The trend is obvious indeed and with a good torrent client, it makes no difference. I've been using magnets occasionally and they don't require much special handling from me.
I agree we should use it. The only problem they have is that the file doesn't show in the preview/approval window of some clients, in order to chose which files you want. But they slowly adapt now, and since big sites are switching to magnets, they'll adapt faster.
The only thing one needs to do right now, before they improve this function, is go to the file list and change the priority of the file download. If you have a slow speed and don't need all the files. The first thing it "downloads" is the info. You go to the file tab and do it.
Utorrent has this and I'm sure others have it too. Basically, instead of all the file info and names etc being listed in a .torrent file, they are also downloaded from the internet.
It's just a different type of file that works differently in how it acquires the data, but not really in how it downloads it. It won't even be too complicated of a tutorial, really.
And on another note, DA could use a new look and some sprucing up. Lovely place, but the platform feels very old and non-inviting.
It's not terribly hard to make modern forums, for people with some skills. Maybe even some user in DA could help, if you can't do it. ^^
Posted: Feb 16th, '12, 10:07
by Ruroshin
Orion1986 wrote:
And on another note, DA could use a new look and some sprucing up. Lovely place, but the platform feels very old and non-inviting.
It's not terribly hard to make modern forums, for people with some skills. Maybe even some user in DA could help, if you can't do it. ^^
Indeed, I have been meaning to do it for years now but keep putting off due not having enough time. Might just end up hiring someone to do it.
Posted: Feb 16th, '12, 11:13
by Orion1986
You can have a "Hiring" topic here and maybe even find a person within DA. This is one of the few places online where one can have a decent conversation.
So, it would be nice to make it more up-to-date and enticing for audiences. Plus, some b*tches here will make sure people don't go wild. Ehehe. Can't wait.
Especially now, with these major changes to the internet and the Asia-mania at an all time high and rapidly rising, more and more users will come by.
A lot of not-in-the-know people might bypass this thinking it's an amateur work or maybe an old and dead place. It doesn't scream "We're here and lively!".
Fresh logo, fresh platform and this baby will look so wonderful. Run better too.
Posted: Feb 16th, '12, 13:07
by Sorvaseven
Orion1986 wrote:You can have a "Hiring" topic here and maybe even find a person within DA. This is one of the few places online where one can have a decent conversation.
So, it would be nice to make it more up-to-date and enticing for audiences.
Think this is a good idea. Finding people who are technically competent and well versed in the current DA structure can maybe found here. I'm fine with the current design/structure, but if volunteers willing to modernize why not having a "hiring" topic here...?
Posted: Feb 16th, '12, 13:28
by Orion1986
In light of ACTA and such, it's also a good way to show things move on and get better. People might have doubts about DA's future and plans.
A new look and a fresh attitude, along with the magnet links will make everyone cheer up and keep up the good fight. Will bring new people too.
Posted: Feb 16th, '12, 19:10
by Tyrea
Techdirt has a lot of interesting articles but i won't link anything yet since i'm way too tired to read them atm. had to share this though:
The Court noted that the privacy of users is more important than protecting copyright. In addition, it fears that a filter would result in censorship of legitimate content, thereby obstructing freedom of information.
“[The filter] could potentially undermine freedom of information, since that system might not distinguish adequately between unlawful content and lawful content, with the result that its introduction could lead to the blocking of lawful communications,” the Court writes.
But it's too early to play the triumphant tune (downloaded from somewhere ofc).
Posted: Feb 16th, '12, 19:24
by Orion1986
The MPAA and RIAA and whatever b*tches started this can suck it. Politicians need them, but they need people to vote for them more.
DON'T MESS UP THIS TIME.
No more excuses.
NO to ACTA
NO to IPRED
SAVE THE INTERNET!!!
Posted: Feb 17th, '12, 06:51
by TenguKing
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will lead his second effort of 2012 to push Internet-regulating legislation, this time in the form of a new cybersecurity bill. The expected bill is the latest attempt by the Democrats to broadly expand the authority of executive branch agencies over the Internet.
Reid favors an approach that would expand DHS authority beyond currently regulated “critical infrastructure,” such as utilities and financial institutions, to also include Internet service providers and private networks.
DHS recently announced a decision to hire 1,000 new cyber experts.
Posted: Feb 18th, '12, 00:14
by TenguKing
Why switch to magnet links until we absolutely have to? Why choose this moment to make it any harder/complicated for people to download torrents and files? The inevitable result of all this crap is that before we know it, in the U.S. torrent downloading will essentially become illegal, as it already is in Japan and South Korea. Europe (at least eastern EU) seems to still be up for grabs.
Please let normal torrenting continue for as long as possible. Switching to magnet-only torrents will only show the pro-copyright crowd that we really ARE afraid of them.
Posted: Feb 18th, '12, 14:21
by yonsama_86
Ye Ye Yeee
My country - Bulgaria redject the ACTA.
But I still thin that ACTA SOPA and other like them are stupid becuz Internet is a free space and with that bulshits they just stop us doing whatever we want in Internet
Posted: Feb 19th, '12, 13:02
by Luna14
Great! Just what we need...
With pending "Iran" conflict, we can guess where this is going...
Viewpoint: The internet is broken – we need to start over ... Last year, the level and ferocity of cyber-attacks on the internet reached such a horrendous level that some are now thinking the unthinkable: to let the internet wither on the vine and start up a new more robust one instead. On being asked if we should start again, many - maybe most - immediately argue that the internet is such an integral part of our social and economic fabric that even considering a change in its fundamental structure is inconceivable and rather frivolous. I was one of those. However, recently the evidence suggests that our efforts to secure the internet are becoming less and less effective, and so the idea of a radical alternative suddenly starts to look less laughable. – BBC/ Prof Alan Woodward, Department of Computing, University of Surrey
This June sees the launch of what many consider to be the next generation of IP (known as IPv6 and IPSec) which is capable of securing all data transmitted over the internet.
Bell Canada and TELUS (formerly owned by Verizon) employees officially confirm that by 2012 ISP’s all over the globe will reduce Internet access to a TV-like subscription model, only offering access to a small standard amount of commercial sites and require extra fees for every other site you visit.
Yeah we're off to World War 3 with Iran, that much is clear... thanks Israel...
Being a current customer of Time Warner as far as the internet goes, what, if any, are the current alternatives for simple users of the internet like myself to being switched over to this "new and improved" TV internet system?
Is there anywhere else to turn outside of Verison/Time Warner? and if so, does anyone have any leads as to what services we should be looking into switching onto?
Lastly, isn't it amazing how tenacious these a-holes are? We beat SOPA/PIPA, and they resurrect it from the dead as another bill (I predicted this one earlier). and now AT THE SAME TIME set plans to destroy the internet altogether while they think we're all distracted fighting the new renamed SOPA... not to mention ACTA.
We must keep on fighting, but at the same time realize that it may not be a winnable battle after all.
Posted: Feb 20th, '12, 19:27
by Luna14
Is there anywhere else to turn outside of Verison/Time Warner? and if so, does anyone have any leads as to what services we should be looking into switching onto?
There are a lot of smart people in this forum, that can address this question better.
My personal opinion regarding this matter is, why bother changing providers and
signing new contracts? Is too early in the game, and we don't really know WHO IS WHO.
Anyway, I think it is important for them to ratify ACTA, or some other alike treaty,
because they like/prefer acting by the "law".
And number 2, because there are many other internet providers across Europe not own by current ACTA supporters.
Lastly, isn't it amazing how tenacious these a-holes are? We beat SOPA/PIPA, and they resurrect it from the dead as another bill (I predicted this one earlier). and now AT THE SAME TIME set plans to destroy the internet altogether while they think we're all distracted fighting the new renamed SOPA... not to mention ACTA.
Yes, these a-holes are very tenacious.
What I find really scary is that they use the LAW to impose NEW LAWS or
break existing LAWS. And in the end, it is all legal.
Here read what they are doing now to Polish people, after Poland decided not to
ratify ACTA. Totally ignoring Polish people wishes, and forcing their way... Zdrojewski: ACTA ratified at the earliest in two years http://translate.googleusercontent.com/ ... nzqwO7qWLQ
We have time for ratification and we will use it to rally public opinion. Says Minister of Culture.
But the US isn't giving up. To the contrary, the US and its industry backers seem to have concluded the problem with ACTA was that they didn't try hard enough to lock down the negotiating process. So they're now plowing forward with the Trans-Pacific Partnership. This time, the US has cut the leak-prone Europeans out of the process, limiting negotiations to eight countries such as New Zealand and Peru that are much easier for the United States to intimidate. Presumably, the goal is to enshrine the US's preferred copyright policies in the TPP and then use the TPP as a template for future agreements.
We must keep on fighting, but at the same time realize that it may not be a winnable battle after all.
Yes, I agree. We have to keep on fighting.
We have to spread the word and refuse to use services that are NOT of our liking.
And I guess, use their same tools against them, namely THE LAW.
Support groups like Occupy movement, Pirate Party and some others ones alike.
And protest in mass numbers anywhere and anyway we can.
Well, this is just my personal opinion...
Posted: Feb 20th, '12, 19:38
by Luna14
Just spreading the word....
Petition for American Citizen: WE PETITION THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION TO:
Please Submit ACTA to the Senate for Ratification as Required by the Constitution for Trade Agreements
On Feb. 27, a diplomatic process will begin in Geneva that could result in a new treaty giving the United Nations unprecedented powers over the Internet. Dozens of countries, including Russia and China, are pushing hard to reach this goal by year's end. As Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said last June, his goal and that of his allies is to establish "international control over the Internet" through the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a treaty-based organization under U.N. auspices.
Among the treasure troves of recently released WikiLeaks cables, we find one whose significance has bypassed Swedish media. In short: every law proposal, every ordinance, and every governmental report hostile to the net, youth, and civil liberties here in Sweden in recent years have been commissioned by the US government and industry interests.
Tyrea, thanks for a link, will repost it everywhere.
Oh, I do love this fee for viewing journals and access to some books just to check there is actually nothing that is useful.
Thanks to all that keeps news coming. I guess we'll see more interest along May and June, when the deadline will be close.
"The file-sharing landscape is slowly adjusting in response to the continued push for more anti-piracy tools, the final Pirate Bay verdict, and the raids and arrests in the Megaupload case. Faced with uncertainty and drastic changes at file-sharing sites, many users are searching for secure, private and uncensored file-sharing clients. Despite the image its name suggests, RetroShare is one such future-proof client."
RetroShare... i'm wondering if there is already a "secret" J- or Kdrama group Please let me know about it
First round of negotiation:
Last week, EU Commission said ACTA is designed to protect intellectual propety
only and asked for a court ruling of the European court of justice.
You can listen to Mr. De Gucht here:
Now the EU parliament wants to do the same and for the second round of negotiations they want to send ACTA to European Court of Justice to assest if ACTA balances properly commercial interest vs civil liberties.
You can hear the EU parliament here: http://audiovisual.europarl.europa.eu/A ... 93a52926eb
Here are some other good news in favor of Anti-ACTA supporters
1-US government tells EU parliament that since ACTA was prepared outside
congress US will probably not ratified it. http://boingboing.net/2012/03/01/what-t ... lls-e.html
More fun: RIAA chief: ISPs to start policing copyright by July 12
"The program, commonly referred to as "graduated response," requires that ISPs send out one or two educational notices to those customers who are accused of downloading copyrighted content illegally. If the customer doesn't stop, the ISP is then asked to send out "confirmation notices" asking that they confirm they have received notice.
At that time, the accused customers will also be informed of the risks they incur if they don't stop pirating material. If the customer is flagged for pirating again, the ISP can then ratchet up the pressure. Participating ISPs can choose from a list of penalties, or what the RIAA calls "mitigation measures," which include throttling down the customer's connection speed and suspending Web access until the subscriber agrees to stop pirating."
Posted: Mar 16th, '12, 14:15
by Keiko1981
takeda_shingen wrote:More fun: RIAA chief: ISPs to start policing copyright by July 12
...If the customer doesn't stop, the ISP is then asked to send out "confirmation notices" asking that they confirm they have received notice.
I can just imagine the time it would take and paperwork - if they don't do it digitally.
Don't they have something better to do.
Well, here we have the ISPs offering super-fast connections.
The one I've got offering the highest speed of 1Gbit/s.
So, the ISP's wants the earn money from their customers.
Lower the speed, and it would probably reduce piracy.
I remembered when I sat with a dail-up modem and it took 3-4 hours to download a file that was 30-40MB.
Where you ended up with a awful phone bill afterwards.
Posted: Mar 16th, '12, 14:50
by takeda_shingen
Keiko1981 wrote:
...If the customer doesn't stop, the ISP is then asked to send out "confirmation notices" asking that they confirm they have received notice.
I can just imagine the time it would take and paperwork - if they don't do it digitally.
I think I saw something about redirecting web access to show those notices somewhere.
Well, here we have the ISPs offering super-fast connections.
The one I've got offering the highest speed of 1Gbit/s.
So, the ISP's wants the earn money from their customers.
Lower the speed, and it would probably reduce piracy.
But they want to put high numbers in their ads, they just don't want people to actually use that bandwidth.
So NSA is spying domestically or worldwide? Because if it's worldwide... get the f*ck of my European yard, you CIA-based douches!
Oh yes, Watergate on larger scale.
Is that the end of even ACTA? http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAct ... ormat=HTML says "If you decide for a negative vote before the European Court rules, let me tell you that the Commission will nonetheless continue to pursue the current procedure before the Court, as we are entitled to do. A negative vote will not stop the proceedings before the Court of Justice."
Posted: Jul 4th, '12, 13:12
by Ethlenn
@arcady: interesting read.
As long as YouTube doesn’t implement encryption to prevent storage of streamed content, doing so would be legal, Redlich adds, noting that the downloading of streamed content from YouTube for private use does not require the permission of copyright holders.
I'm going to download all damn I want and no one is going to stop me. In 1080p!!
So apparently fansubs are becoming illegal and subject to copyright removals too.
And i don't mean subs ripped from streaming sites, but from subbing groups like darksmurfsub and withs2. I might be mistaken though, and maybe I'm jumping to conclusions, but i saw on the soompi forum a dmca removal notice for a link to the withs2 subs.
Just try finding queen in hyun's man subs on both darksmurfsub and withs2. Or look up any newer kdrama and check how many links are removed due to dmca.
I mean, are they for real? I'm not versed in copyright law, but I think that the copyright belongs to the subbing group. If it's true, it's becoming really ridiculous.
This article seems to say that the actions will be initiated by the producers of content so it is likely that the major producers will be collecting IP addresses of torrent downloaders. Using a blocking list in clients such as Transmission may help protect the guilty.
The Japanese TV networks do not seem to be aggressively pursuing copyright infringement (except for some actions by Fuji on YouTube stuff) so that jdrama torrents may not be affected. Probably the entities that will be active here will be the motion picture industry, tv producers such as Showtime and HBO and the music recording industry.
The penalties do not sound all that severe - rounds of warning followed by possible slowing of access.
We'll have to wait and see how this plays out.
Posted: Apr 6th, '13, 16:17
by sensei991
Effect of Megaupload shutdown
Article in the Wall Street Journal (4/6/2013) cites a study that says that shutting down Megaupload resulted in a 6-10% increase in digital revenues for the US motion picture industry (who funded the research). When applied to the total revenues of the industry, this get interpreted in saying that 'piracy' results in an estimated $2-3 billion loss. The magnitude of this estimate shows why the industry is aggressive in going after piracy.
Downloading of Asian dramas is not a concern of the US motion picture industry, but the distribution of the dramas becomes a victim of the crackdown process. D-addicts avoids problems with movies by not dealing with them, but distribution of music such as OSTs could conceivably cause future problems. And companies such as Sony and Fuji might one day decide that there are untapped revenues in the drama area.
but good for us 
