Chip a Playstation, Go to Jail 703
perogiex writes "A man in Ottawa was
convicted of selling and installing mod chips out
of his computer store. Sony is overjoyed, man is less than thrilled. This is the first time such a case was tried in Canada." From the article: Garby said he didn't know he was committing a crime and would have never gotten involved in selling mod chips if he had known the law. Update: 07/24 21:53 GMT by M : Headline corrected; it's clearly mod chips for the original Playstation, not the Playstation 2.
depressing (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:depressing (Score:5, Insightful)
He wasn't just selling mod chips, he was also selling pirated games. Not sure if they would have just busted him for the mod chips or not though.
It quite clearly said that he was busted for both (Score:2)
Re:It quite clearly said that he was busted for bo (Score:2)
uh (Score:3)
Mod chips (Score:4, Informative)
It's legitimate use is that it allows playign games from Japan.
FYI, the PS and PS2 also have region encoding similar to DVDs. Japanese games can't be played on American consoles, and (I believe) vice-versa. The mod chip prevents the system from recognizing that its not a legitimate disc (by replying to all queries as 'yes, this is legal')
Just as DeCSS is primarily used for watching other-regon dvds, but has a side effect of getting unencrypted content, the mod chip allows playing other-region games, and has a side effect of allowing games on CDR also.
Chances are that's why he got arrested. In the US, he could probably (also?) be arrested under the DMCA.
I'm not taking any sides, just stating facts...
Re:Mod chips (Score:5, Insightful)
If we are going to be vocal on the unfairness of legal roadblocks to fair use in the cases dealing with DeCSS and proposed DRM legislation, we have a responsibility to be equivalently vocal in cases where technologies we advocate and claim rights to are being used illegally. If we want DeCSS to be legal despite its "side effect" of decrypting DVDs, we have to denounce those who exploit that side effect for illegal personal gain.
If we want mod chips to be a legal and accepted use of our own hardware for playing legally purchased Japanese games or burned backups of others we own, we have to speak against pirates who want to make money using mod chips and CD/DVD copying technology illegally.
Neil
"There are thousands of types of people in the world: The type of people who think there are two types of people in the world, and the thousands of other types."
Re:uh (Score:5, Informative)
He was caught modding the machines and selling pirated software out of his store. I don't think you can get busted for modding unless they can prove the intent was for pirating and not backup. Well, having and selling pirated software with your mods counts as copyright infringement.
It's like saying he had a lockpit set and was caught using it to steal goods from cars. Guess what? It's not the possession of the lockpit set that got him busted.
Re:uh (Score:5, Interesting)
Of more concern -- and perhaps why you're scratching your head -- is the "four counts of selling unauthorized computer equipment". What the hell does that mean?
Who "authorizes" computer equipment? Do the charges stem from something like violating FCC-equivalent (DOC? CRTC?) RF regulations, or something equivalent to "possesion of burglary tools", or something more ominous, considering the free speech aspects of computers?
Anyone know? ("Know", not speculate.)
The CBC doesn't say. (Score:5, Informative)
342.1(1) Unauthorized use of computer
342.1 (1) Every one who, fraudulently and without colour of right,
(a) obtains, directly or indirectly, any computer service,
(b) by means of an electro-magnetic, acoustic, mechanical or other device, intercepts or causes to be intercepted, directly or indirectly, any function of a computer system, or
(c) uses or causes to be used, directly or indirectly, a computer system with intent to commit an offence under paragraph (a) or (b) or an offence under section 430 in relation to data or a computer system is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding ten years, or is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction.
342.1(2) Definitions
(2) In this section,
computer program means data representing instructions or statements that, when executed in a computer system, causes the computer system to perform a function;
computer service includes data processing and the storage or retrieval of data;
computer system means a device that, or a group of interconnected or related devices one or more of which,
(a) contains computer programs or other data, and
(b) pursuant to computer programs,
(i) performs logic and control, and
(ii) may perform any other function;
data means representations of information or of concepts that are being prepared or have been prepared in a form suitable for use in a computer system;
electro-magnetic, acoustic, mechanical or other device means any device or apparatus that is used or is capable of being used to intercept any function of a computer system, but does not include a hearing aid used to correct subnormal hearing of the user to not better than normalhearing;
function includes logic, control, arithmetic, deletion, storage and retrieval and communication or telecommunication to, from or within a computer system;
intercept includes listen to or record a function of a computer system, or acquire the substance, meaning or purport thereof.
R.S., 1985, c. 27 (1st Supp.), s. 45.
He was also convicted of straightforward, old-style piracy; he was apparently selling pirated games on CDRs.
Selling 413 Pirated Games? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Selling 413 Pirated Games? (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Selling 413 Pirated Games? (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Selling 413 Pirated Games? (Score:2)
Moral of the Story: If you're engaging in practices of questionable legality, make sure you aren't also doing something that is undeniably illegal. example: If your entire CD collection is ripped to your hard drive, make sure your friends' CDs, 200 random tracks from Napster, and your kiddie porn collection aren't on there as well. Don't give the law an open door to nail your ass, and set a court precedent of prosecution for the questionable activity.
Re:Selling 413 Pirated Games? (Score:3, Informative)
The FSF makes no such claim (Score:4, Insightful)
> Your program is linking against Sony's code (the PS1's firmware). According to the FSF, this requires Sony's permission - at least, they say linking against other code requires that code's author's permission. (That's how the GPL bans non-GPL code calling GPLed libraries, unlike the LGPL...)
That's not right. The FSF says that distributing a combined work consisting of copyrighted code plus your code requires the permission of the copyright owner.
But there is no distribution of a combined work when you run your own software on a modded PS1.
Anyway, we already know that the copyright violation in this case was selling pirated games.
Doug Moen.
Lame excuse (Score:2)
While I agree that chipping a PS2 shouldn't be a crime, the above is an extreamly lame excuse.
Ignorance is no excuse. (Score:2)
He should've checked.
If it's morally questionable (and, please, don't tell me that chipping your PS2 so you can play pirated games on it isn't at least morally questionable), it just might be illegal, too!
- A.P.
Re:Ignorance is no excuse. (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Ignorance is no excuse. (Score:2)
Every (and yes, I mean EVERY) modchip for the Playstation has its primary requirement as "Plays backup copies". It's frustrating, because I don't want to play backups, just imports.
And how is it illegal?
Re:Ignorance is no excuse. (Score:2)
Its a side effect of the by-pass that the mod chip makes in order to circmumvent (sp) the security check.
Its a great selling point for those selling MOD chips but can also cause problems like this.
The real problem here is that I should be able to chip my PS2 with what ever I like. Just becasue my PS2 is chipped and capable of playing back-up copies doesnt mean I will play pirated copies.
Back-ups are important as I just recently lost a $50 copy of GTA3 due to scratching. Now if these chips were not illegal then I could just bust out a back-up and keep on playing. As it stands now I'm out $50 and I don't know if I have my heart in it to give another $50 to have the right to play a game I already owned (or excuse me license to use).
Re:Ignorance is no excuse. (Score:2)
give it a shot, you never know
good luck...
Re:Ignorance is no excuse. (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Ignorance is no excuse. (Score:2)
License Restrictivism (Score:3, Interesting)
> Personally, I find such licensing schemes to be morally reprehensible.
As do I. Would that the courts agreed.
> In the U.S., the right to reverse engineer is legally sanctioned and assured.
Chipping a P/S2 is not reverse engineering, it's modifying. Take note that the law addresses these things separately (that's why the two terms are separated in most EULAs).
> The property management company broke the law by failing to repair air conditioning in the apartment in a timely fashion (AC is considered an essential service in Arizona by law), and although they had a clause in the lease agreement that "excused" the company from liability if they were unable to perform a repair in a timely fashion, the law took precedence over the contract, and I was vindicated.
This isn't exactly the same, since (despite what many of my friends say) the P/S2 isn't usually considered an "essential service". Also, there are no laws currently in place that specifically allow hardware modifications to the P/S2, so it's not the same as signing a contract that takes away rights explicitly granted, which is what happened with your lease.
> If I buy a piece of hardware in the United States, I can do whatever I want to it...
Well, here's where it turns grey. It's easy to say that, but not so easy to defend it in court. For example, this guy got fined for selling the mod chips themselves and installing them in customers' machines. In this case, he didn't buy the hardware, so where does the line fall? If you modify your own machine, it's fairly easy to claim fair use. This becomes much harder when people are paying you to break contract for them.
> All the more reason for me to enjoy being a U.S. citizen (until such time as the laws here are modified by corporate interests).
They're gonna pull your Slashdot account. Have you not heard of the DMCA? It applies to hardware as well as software.
Virg
Re:Why? (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Why? (Score:2)
Their ability to DICTATE to you ends as soon as you give them your money. For any other sort of property, this is painfully obvious. Only for "artificial" property are restrictions such as these considered anything but absurd megalomaniacal fantasy.
The only thing that is reasonable is that the "artificial property" of the authors in question is not reproduced without their permission. Even this is only a special case rule that is put in place to further a particular (and well defined) public policy objective.
"Producers" have no moral rights whatsoever.
Re:Why? (Score:2)
Then why do we have lawyers? (Score:5, Insightful)
Kudos to him! (Score:5, Funny)
Looks like I'll be picking up a new hobby...
Re:Kudos to him! (Score:3, Insightful)
Two Words: Legal Fees (Score:4, Interesting)
Unless he had a public defender, I'd say he ate up the rest of that money just on legal fees.
Although, I am not a Canadian, so maybe their legal system works differently.
Jon Acheson
Pirated Games (Score:5, Insightful)
Chips or piracy (Score:4, Insightful)
Even though I think selling mod chips shouldn't be illegal, I don't have sympathy for people who are selling pirated software!
Re: (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Chips or piracy (Score:2)
I'm also curious who determines what is "authorized" under Canadian law.
Re:Chips or piracy (Score:2)
And if you re-read my post you will see I am against piracy of any type. No I do not have a hacked cable box. This is different.
Re:Chips or piracy (what a poor example) (Score:5, Insightful)
>Do you also have a hacked cable box? It is theft of service.
You miss the point so badly:
If you OWN something, it's YOURS. Not only do you NOT have the right to take away people's freedom, but you also have no right to even KNOW what people do with their property.
I'll give you a quick lesson in right & wrong:
RIGHT: You decide to paint your car YOU OWN, a color other than what it was manufactured.
WRONG: You LEASE (or steal) a car, and repaint it without the owner's permission.
Re:Chips or piracy (what a poor example) (Score:5, Insightful)
Not that I disagree with your point at all, indeed I heartily agree. But try telling that to the BATF if, for example, you make a minor mechanical modification to a legally owned semi-automatic rifle that converts it to fully-automatic (ie a machine gun), or cut the barrel of your legally owned shotgun down to less than 18 inches.
If you thought DMCA enforcement was tough...
Re:Chips or piracy (what a poor example) (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Chips or piracy (what a poor example) (Score:4, Insightful)
Oh, but indeed they are. The FCC has a whole set of regulations covering consumer electronic devices and their possible RF emissions. You better believe that Sony has to file some serious paperwork with the FCC to get permission to sell the things. (Also with Underwriters Labs and the CSA regarding shock and fire hazards, but that's more of an insurance thing.)
Although I still believe you should be allowed to do whatever the hell you want to with your own property, so long as it doesn't actually (vs hypothetically) endanger others or trample on their rights.
Re:Chips or piracy (what a poor example) (Score:2)
Individual property rights are one of the pillars of the modern western democracies. They should not be trampled upon so casually.
Re:Chips or piracy (what a poor example) (Score:2)
In scenario #1, you're asking about a *purchased* cable box. Why yes, if the owner of said box wishes to make some modifications to the electronics inside of it that allow it to decrypt all incoming signals - I think that's perfectly ok and legal. If the owner proceeds to actually *use* the box to watch cable he/she isn't paying for, then that's a seperate issue and more of a "grey area".
In scenario #2, you're talking about *stealing* a move theater's key. Right there, obviously, it's illegal. Stealing isn't legal. If, however, you were an owner of the theater and copied the key - do you think anyone would care or have a problem with it? Probably not!
(Incidently, back to scenario #1, the real problem, in my opinion, is that cable companies made poor decisions in the design of their systems. They pipe *all* of the channels in to the homes of their customers.... in many cases - to homes of people who are no longer even customers at all, simply because they didn't bother to disconnect the physical cable when the previous home-owner moved. By doing this, they've created a "grey area" for themselves. Is it morally ok and/or legally ok to use one's own equipment to descramble these signals that are already coming into his/her home? Perhaps so. If the cable company didn't want this to happen, they shouldn't put the signals out there to begin with.) It's sort of like me signing all of the checks in my checkbook in advance, leaving the book in a public place, and walking off. Then I scream about the illegal activities being done against me when people start using those checks without my approval. Hey, why was I stupid enough to sign them all ahead of time? Do I even have a strong legal case against the users of said checks?
Re:Chips or piracy (Score:4, Insightful)
There seems to be a vocal contingent on Slashdot that assume that anybody using DeCSS, Napster, Mod Chips, etc... must be pirates and should be thrown in jail. Even if there are legitimate uses for a technology the potental for abuse exists and therefore everyone who uses it is therefore guilty.
I've used DeCSS dozens of times (everytime I watch a DVD I bought legally in fact) without infringing on copyright once. Does this mean I should go to jail? I've played import games (at conventions, but still...). Those machines were modded. Should I go to jail? I've backed up my games (although I don't actually have a mod chip yet, I'll install it if one of my originals is destroyed). Am I evil? Do I deserve to be thrown in jail for using technologies that can also be used to pirate?
Re:Chips or piracy (Score:2)
You can do anything you like with it.
You are badly mangling together two diametrically oppposed legal theories.
Umm, there's more than just the chips... (Score:2, Redundant)
Re:Umm, there's more than just the chips... (Score:5, Funny)
It's like saying Timothy McVeigh was given the death penalty for failing to return his rental truck in time... and other associated offienses.
Today, Sony Is: (Score:4, Funny)
[ ] Good
[ ] CowboyNeal
It wasnt just mod chips.. (Score:4, Informative)
If he didnt know *that* was illegal, he's full of it.
Re:It wasnt just mod chips.. (Score:2)
As mrbill says
If he didnt know *that* was illegal, he's full of it.
Re:It wasnt just mod chips.. (Score:2)
I am just saying that the defense of "I didn't know it was illegal!" doesn't hold any water, ever.
Re:It wasnt just mod chips.. (Score:2)
Re:It wasnt just mod chips.. (Score:2)
Moronic spelling.. (Score:5, Funny)
Garby sold the chips from his computer store, Kustum Komputers
That in itself should get him life in prison with no chance of parole.
Re:Moronic spelling.. (Score:2)
mmmm, krispy kreme... (Score:2, Offtopic)
Re:mmmm, krispy kreme... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Moronic spelling.. (Score:5, Funny)
DMCA (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:DMCA (Score:4, Informative)
To sum up (Score:2)
2) Heh heh.. he still made some money off the deal.
3) Damn! 413 games! Where did you say this guy's shop was?
wait a second... (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:wait a second... (Score:2, Informative)
Last time I checked, it's still legal to void your warranty.
Re:wait a second... (Score:2)
-Peter
No DMCA in Canada. (Score:4, Interesting)
But, I am not absolutely sure on this. Could a Canadian Lawyer verify this for me? Also, do you know if he could get caught on that Mod chip for a different reason?
Re:No DMCA in Canada. (Score:2)
But, the DMCA is the local embodiment of an international Treaty* - ALL COUNTRIES (i bet *your* listed here(!) [wipo.org] will end up w/ a DMCA:
See here [eff.org]
*From the dmca: World Intellectual Property Organization Copyright Treaty and Performances and Phonograms Treaty, the relevant part (which gave birth to the DMCA) is here:
Article 18
Obligations concerning Technological Measures
Contracting Parties shall provide adequate legal protection and effective legal remedies against the circumvention of effective technological measures that are used by performers or producers of phonograms in connection with the exercise of their rights under this Treaty and that restrict acts, in respect of their performances or phonograms, which are not authorized by the performers or the producers of phonograms concerned or permitted by law.
And, for good measure, here is what Microsoft (our fav friend, w/ MPAA && RIAA) think (quite well of) these bodies/treaties: here [microsoft.com]
Whats my point? First, WIPO is a body of MultiNational Corporations. America is the seat of Global Capitalism. Global Capitalists are driving treaties like these, and will use American legislation to say ""Look at the wonderful state of the Intellectual Property Industry in America(TM) and you will see what We can do for You. Just enact a law -- JUST LIKE THE DMCA -- and we will play nice with you. If not, you are a Rogue Nation in an the next Axis of Evil.
So, basically, we're all fucked. This problem (global governance via Corporation) is only starting - and its so far off the radar of most -- not the Anti-Capitalists, they may not know this particular play in the detail as most
Wait about 10-15 years, the best is yet to come im sure..
Hmmm (Score:4, Insightful)
Here's a scenario. You bought a rad new PS2 game, you want to make sure that if it gets scratched, eaten, etc. . . you can still play your game, so you burn a copy, and use the mod chip to play the game. You paid for the game once, right? What's wrong with that.
If you ask me, aside from the selling pirated games, this guy had a case.
Re:Hmmm (Score:2)
Of course, I'm just talking out of my ass since I'm just guessing about the nature of modchips.
Re:Hmmm (Score:2, Insightful)
Now, I'm not sure if these gaming companies pull a microsoft, and say that you're buying the CD and not the software on it (essentially paying for the distribution and not the product), but I don't think they do. If they don't, then you have every right to burn a back-up copy of your game and play it on the PS2. . . which would require a mod-chip. So, if this logic holds-up, you've got every right to go out and get yourself a mod-chip. What you choose to do with it is up to you.
Selling pirated games, too (Score:2)
It sucks about him getting busted for the mod chips, but if you're selling pirated games, you've got no excuse for a little punishment. When you start profitting off of your ability to make exact replicas of other peoples work, with little work of your own, you're really profitting off of their work, not yours - and that's not fair.
-Andrew
I'd be tempted to defend this punk if... (Score:2)
But noooo, this punk sells illegally copied CDs, slashdot posts it as "man convicted for installing mod chips" in an attempt to spin the story. Smooth move, Travolta. I'm sorry, but I left my gold stars in my other jacket.
How many pirated games? (Score:2, Insightful)
Get a clue, editors! (Score:2, Interesting)
So, what this guy was selling ??
Please top calling it PS/2 (Score:2, Interesting)
Dont believe the hype (Score:2, Interesting)
Second, the artice said Sony Playstation, meaning the orginal playstation.
This slashdot artice makes it seem like they will go after you for putting a mod chip in, well this idiot "was selling a line of 413 pirated video games".
As usual, /. gets the facts wrong (Score:2, Interesting)
"Editors": Is it so hard to read the article?
A basic tenet of law (Score:3, Insightful)
That said, I'm interested to find out which part of the Criminal Code specifically makes installing mod chips, and presumably other circumvention devices, a felony offense. It sounds rather DMCA-like. I wonder if Parliament passed something DMCA-like with almost no fanfare. The article makes it sound like the mod chip conviction is the important one for being the first of its kind.
Re:A basic tenet of law (Score:5, Informative)
No. Heritage Canada and Industry Canada have been collaborating in a very significant consultation process accross Canada. I attended their Ottawa consultation meeting, which had surprisingly strong "citizen" representation. The big american content producers were given their say, but not given a lot of credibility. Michael Geist [uottawa.ca], a U of Ottawa lawyer , was particularly good with not letting things by.
Canada DMCA opponents mailing list. [flora.org]
Digital-Copyright.ca [digital-copyright.ca]
Thorough background [sooke.bc.ca] brought to you by Matthew Skala, the chap that broke (IIRC) the Cyber-Patrol encryption and, again IIRC, was pursued by Mattel for DMCA violations, despite being a Canadian.
Please read the article (Score:2)
Of course, as the ad says, mod chips also allow people to play copied games, but this is far from their only purpose. (Mods used to come out for cartridge systems by Sega and Nintendo as well, though it was often enough to just resize the cartridge slot.)
If he was convicted of mod-chipping seperately from selling pirated games, it is a big deal. Sony says the case was, "precedent setting." Therefore, I doubt the conviction was based on his selling of pirated games, which are already illegal.
Just one more reason not to do business with Sony. I'll accept anti-piracy measures. Iw ill never accept reion coding and I will not support a company that participates in it, especially with such vigor as Sony.
Slashdot is trolling you again. (Score:5, Insightful)
How do I know this? Well, first, I read the article; second, I know that there aren't 413 GAMES available for the Playstation 2!
Also, the PS/2 is a computer from IBM, and does not require mod chips to play pirated games. Sony doesn't call their Playstation 2 the PS/2, perhaps because they don't want to get sued. Does slashdot want to get sued? Well, it'd be nice to have some penalties for irresponsible journalism...
Finally, considering the facts of the case, it is disingenuous for the writers of this article to call it a conviction for selling mod-chips, since that wasn't all it was.
In conclusion, all you journalists are lazy, illiterate, and incompetent. If you don't agree with me, prove me wrong by writing something accurate, intelligent, or interesting.
Re: (Score:2)
I'll bite... (Score:3, Insightful)
However, people and organizations can still be sued for slander and libel, even under the First Amendment. I think that organizations that purport to report the News have an obligation to report the facts accurately, and should be held to a higher standard than are individuals.
I'm arguing that the headline is negligent and misleading, and should be corrected. Every minute that goes by when it isn't misleads and confuses another person who might have expected news or accurate reporting. Many people have come to expect this sort of inaccurate reporting from slashdot, but that doesn't excuse it.
Perhaps they could have an "editor" on duty whose job it is to "edit"?
Re:Slashdot is trolling you again. (Score:3, Insightful)
I agree that the journalists tend to be lazy, but don't blame
Phoenix
Ignoratia legis neminem excusat (Score:2)
"Unauthorized" computer equipment? (Score:2)
four counts of selling unauthorized computer equipment
Isn't that a bit misleading?
If I buy an extension cord and use it to plug in my computer, who "authorized" that bit of computer equipment? Who authorized Bob's Harware to sell it to me?
Mod chips and legality (Score:3, Informative)
What the customer dies with the unit *after* he pays for it is totally up to the customer...as long as the customer accepts the fact that it will not be covered under warranty.
It is a grey area because the ModChips can be used for legitimate uses as well as illegal ones...Much the same way that a CD-RW can be used for legit back-up and archival purposes as well as for pirating software.
This guy hasn't a leg to stand on as he sold Sony Product with unauthorized modifications as well as selling pirated software.
Phoenix
BTW: Before I get flamed/trolled, a legit use of a mod chip would be to have a working copy of a game that can get scratched and/or broken while the original is sitting in a nice shelf somewhere safe.
Are Nestle Mod'd Chocolate Chips legal? (Score:5, Funny)
Just out of curiousity, what is the distinction between selling mod'd PS/2 systems and selling, say, mod'd Nestle Chocolate Chips? If I combine Nestle Chocolate Chips with flour, sugar, butter etc to make cookies is Nestle going to come after me? Or is it ok because I'm selling them as cookies and not Nestle Chocolate Chips(tm)?
PS/2. Nestle. They're both just chips.
Unauthorized computer equipment? (Score:2)
Robert Garby, 38, pleaded guilty to two counts of copyright infringement and four counts of selling unauthorized computer equipment
Can somebody familiar with canadian law explain to me what "selling unauthorize computer equipment" involves. Is this like not getting the chips properly licensed with the canadian equivalent of the FCC? Or does canada have some sort of DMCA-like provision that I'm not aware of.
Am I the only one... (Score:2)
(Maybe you should come up with some other abbreviation for "Playstation 2"...abbreviation overloading is a Bad Thing. :-) )
tell the whole story (Score:2, Redundant)
So I'm guessing... (Score:2, Funny)
This seems like a legit company selling a device to allow Playstation 2 to play copies, backups etc. Is this illegal?
Implications (Score:5, Interesting)
If I pulled the engine from my Ford Ranger and replaced it with a Chevy 350, aren't I likewise depriving Ford Motor Company of future engine part sales? This is setting a bad precident.
Re:Implications (Score:4, Insightful)
In a truely free market capitalist society that would be entirely Sony's problem. Why should customers (including retailers) be obliged to ensure that Sony's business model works?
For your analogy to be more accurate you would have to say that when you buy a Ford Ranger the company (Ford) doesn't make very much, if anything. Instead, they get their money from selling gas. So, if you (and about half of Ford's other customers) were to mod your Ford Ranger and install a nuclear reactor in it, I'm sure there would be similar reactions.
In which case people would be telling Ford that they were being foolish not to get into the nuclear fuel business, make reactor driven cars as a standard option and supply their own mod kits.
The thing is when it comes to computers people think the rules of basic economics should be tossed out of the window. With laws created to enforce a corporate welfare model.
Re:Yea right he didnt know (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Yea right he didnt know (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Stood the test of trial... (Score:2, Funny)
Re:mod chips, or games? (Score:2)
Re:Uh!?! (Score:2)
I have MANY times seen people selling mod chips in the local papers (in Canada). There is usually something in there like: "... to play backups and imports..." I have a feeling they only went after him because he was selling pirated video games. There is no such thing as a DMCA in Canada, so you're allowed to hack apart a PS/2 all you want, and modify it to play backup games, but you still can't make illegal copies of games.
Re:Old... (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Old... (Score:2)