Who owns that copy of AutoCad? A recent court ruling says that restrictive software licenses can forbid resale (and possibly other uses like rental and lending.) Wired has their take on it. [more inside]
posted by warbaby on Sep 12, 2010 - 86 comments

The Texas Gulf Coast is no stranger to disaster - both natural and man-made. The 1900 Storm (previously). The Texas City Disaster (previously). Hurricane Ike (previously). Tropical Storm Allison (previously). New digital media collections, made available through the the University of Houston, shed light on previously overlooked events such as the Hurricane of 1915, and allow a fresh look at well-known disasters such as the Texas City Disaster. A digital slideshow of images and information about The 1900 Storm is also available through the Rosenberg Library in Galveston, Texas. [Please note that some links include images of the deceased which may be NSFW or unsuitable for some audiences.]
posted by greekphilosophy on Dec 10, 2009 - 9 comments

Whenever I feel confused about the rights of artists in this age of freely-shared media – which is easily done, let's face it – I take a moment to revisit Pere Ubu's page of protocols. It's a beautifully written, concise series of rules which neatly explains, amongst many other things, why there are (virtually) no Ubu videos on YouTube. I used to work for David during the 1990s; the clarity of his thoughts on the music business was always inspiring, and continues to be so.
posted by rhodri on Mar 2, 2007 - 61 comments

Video game studies? Yes, please. And I don't just mean in gaming schools. Critical perspectives have been developing as well. Metafilter is already wise to ludology,but what about its mother discipline, ergotics? Don't forget narrative and storytelling. Of course, if cultural studies, or education is your thing, that's covered too. Other programs focus on application and aesthetics. Perhaps MeFites are catching on?
posted by mrmojoflying on Apr 17, 2006 - 15 comments

Photoshop is fourteen years old this month. I am sitting in its hometown and have version 7 on my Gateway. Loretta Lux was trained as a painter and now uses digital images via photoshop for her art. (NYTimes article) News photographers have lost their jobs for using it. Some would argue that photoshop is a new medium and I would agree. I will use it next to shape the images that will promote my sons' landscaping business.
posted by JohnR on Feb 29, 2004 - 23 comments

A call to rally to protect our digital rights Legislation introduced in Congress to allow continued fair use of digital media. Other links at story site.
posted by stevefromsparks on Jan 17, 2003 - 7 comments