Need To Know 2001-01-12

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"[Stallman] came out and flamed me for admitting to using XEmacs. He thought that I was my father (who is also named Dan Flickinger). My dad had some legendary flame war with the guy back when I was a kid. Now I have grown up with that name curse in my household, I must carry on the tradition when my father passes on." - The Younger Flickinger vs RMS [ http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=01/01/07/0211213&cid=74 ] ..."My name is Dan Flickinger, you flamed my father, prepare to die!" >> HARD NEWS << oh, so it's you The CYBER-RIGHTS-UK mailing list isn't the first place you'd expect to find noted jurist LAURENCE GODFREY re-emerging onto the Net - best known for enthusiastically advocating his cyber-right to prosecute cases of alleged online defamation [see NTKs passim]. A few of the regulars mentioned this and, inevitably, one listmember, Michael Sims, took it a teensy bit further. Hours after his uh, accusation, Sims reposted an e-mail, apparently sent from Mr Godfrey (and headed "CONFIDENTIAL"), requiring a full retraction and apology for the, uh, vivid terminology. Ominously, no such undertaking was received by the list. Mr Godfrey may well, as he is inclined to, enter into legal proceedings against Mr Sims. Indeed, it has been intimated that redress may be sought against Sims' employer too. This does not bode well for world peace: Michael is editor of the "Your Rights Online" section - on Slashdot. http://slashdot.org/yro/ - Laurence Godfrey vs the Anonymous Cowards? http://www.cyber-rights.org/mailing.htm - It's the grudge match of the *millennium*! WWW.FAXYOURMP.COM continues to work well, with over 2500 faxes sent to your eager parliamentary reps. Of course, not every politician has been happy at being put in touch with their 10,000 or so bosses. A few, bless them, now prefer e-mail - which was rather the point, so the volunteers will set that up shortly. Two, strangely, have taken to demanding *signed* faxes - JEFF ROOKER, Labour MP for Birmingham Perry Barr and PIARA KHABRA, Labour MP for Ealing and Southall in West London. They say it's for verification purposes. Which is odd, because each constituents' name and address (as seen in the electoral roll) are at the top of the fax, and we understand that the Her Majesty's Complete Photographic Database of British Subjects' Verified Signatures is still in beta. It's almost as though these MPs are trying to wriggling out of their commitments to their voters. Now that just *can't* be, so, for now, FYM is ignoring these requests. It sounds most unlike MPs to shirk their duties like this. And anyway, they were sent by e-mail, and we didn't see a PGP signature anywhere, so how could we possibly be sure that they're genuine? http://www.faxyourmp.com/ - anyone want to write a java signature drawing app that'll POST a bitmap? A correction to last week's story. Apparently BRITISH TELECOM, after discovering that the ISPA "Villain" award they were sponsoring might go to Jack Straw or OFTEL [NTK 2001-01-05], sought to remove their name from the proceedings (though word has it they were only sponsoring this category to avoid being nominated themselves). The organisers gladly accepted their resignation - and promptly added Peter Bonfield to the Villain shortlist. Good to see BT managing to avoid any potential bad publicity there. http://www.ispaawards.org.uk/html/vi_internet_villain.asp - worth a quick flutter I think >> ANTI-NEWS << berating the obvious MORRISSEY fans at last convinced by DIANA DEATH PREDICTION: http://www.morrissey-solo.com/article.pl?sid=01/01/05/1931211 ... REDHOTANT FALCO!... Life Doesn't Quite "Get" THE SIMPSONS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/health/newsid_1105000/1105056.stm ... they don't look that "minitur" from where *we're* sitting: http://www.magsuk.com/uk/newdisplayproduct.asp?prodid=1125 ... PC GAMER falls for ol' CLAN SPICE GIRLS sponsorship hoax [NTK 2000-11-24]: http://www.ntk.net/2001/01/12/gamerdoh.jpg ... DOBEDO FALCO!... a rich guy falling off a horse is *always* funny: http://www.ntk.net/2001/01/12/wickedgranny.gif ... future of ONLINE GAMING: http://www.thechucklebrothers.co.uk/balls.htm ... fashionmall.com up from $1.09 to $3.12 - boo.com better buy than REDHAT... RIAA "confiscated 87 illegal CD-Rs during first half of 1997" brags http://www.riaa.com/Protect-CDR.cfm ... London's top-rated movie is seasonal Capra weepie "CINEMA CLOSED FOR CHRISTMAS": http://www.pop2.net/pchtml/filmdb.shtml >> EVENT QUEUE << goto's considered non-harmful Whether you're hankering for the latest on (M+1)-th price auction protocols and Chaum's RSA-based blind signature scheme - or, for that matter, 8 hours of sunshine a day and a sea temperature of 27 degrees - now's the time to register for FINANCIAL CRYPTOGRAPHY '01, basking in the tropical climate and offshore tax-free status of the Cayman Islands (the actual conference isn't until 2001-02-19, but they advise booking your suite at the Marriott Beach Resort well in advance). Somewhat less glamorous is the venue for this Sunday's "sonic improvisations" from SLUB.ORG, who might be a splinter group, or a simple misspelling, of NTK Newtonmas no-shows SLAB.ORG. Either way, they'll be noodling away with their usual generative music networks from 5pm 2001-01-14, at the "Public Life" cybercafe/ bar in Spitalfields Market, London E1 - yes, the one that used to be a public toilet. http://fc01.ai/registration.php3 - intriguing "Privacy Notice" for those attending incognito http://slub.org/ - sadly, slob.org no longer available >> TRACKING << sufficiently advanced technology : the gathering Operator logos? Ringtones? Pah. What you *really* want is your own WAP/SMS gateway, right? Are you sure? I mean, it's not as if you can't just serve .WML pages off your Website, and it's probably easier (and, currently, cheaper) to rig up a Perl script to hammer www.genie.co.uk and/or an e-mail-to-SMS Website if you really want an automated SMS service. And before you even think about it, you should know that KANNEL, the newly-1.0, open source WAP/SMS gateway *is* a bit of a heavy scene. There's all the weird WML bytecode translation it's doing, and if you want SMS, you'll have to rig up an account with an SMS Centre (or a cheap datacable/IR link with your phone). And then there's the endless tweaking with the parameters, and setting up all your friends' phones to point to it. Oh, sure, with a bit of work you could probably get it to send out op-logos to your mates or... what? People pay how much for that? Really? http://www.kannel.org/kannel-1.0-press-release.shtml - lookit me! i'm almost a telco! http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_1106000/1106700.stm - god knows i'm paying enough http://www.primatesys.com/ - if you just want the logos from your Palm http://www.logomanager.co.uk/ - ... or Windows. Lightweights. >> MEMEPOOL << hasta la altavista two slightly different visions of the future of DREAMCAST: http://www.htloz.com/xbox_gamecube/XBOXMACHINE.html vs http://binky.paragon.co.uk/3do/issue5/issue5.html ... gentle Jesus tends to the poor, the sick, and users of BLITZ BASIC: http://www.christiancoders.com/ ... Am I a DEGRADED CRATER - or NOT? http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010108.html ... when "I thought he was an ORC" just doesn't cut it any more: http://www.sptimes.com/News/010301/Hillsborough/Father_guilty_in_deat.shtml 8-bit NUDITY is the new rock 'n' roll: http://girls.c64.org/ ... http://www.industriallogic.com/games/dppc.html vs http://www.pixelflo.com/008/ ... is LEG-DEPENDENT SPORT a euphemism? http://www.geocities.com/greatrevor/preg.html ... ADHD kids believed to be "INDIGO CHILDREN" - "next step in human evolution": http://www.kryon.com/k_37.html ... Gojira scrolls past Midway's RAMPAGE: http://gfpoken.bigw.org/g2k/ ... ex-Wiredies LOUIS, JANE, IAN STEWART invest UKP3.3m in hahabonk.com, disproving stereotype that Californians have "no sense of humour"... >> GEEK MEDIA << the less affected-by-uunet-snafus www.tvgohome.com TV>> of course, the really sneaky thing would be to tell the contestants that one of them is THE MOLE (8pm, Fri, C5) - when really they were all on the same side!... the repeated BITS ANIMATION SPECIAL (12.25am, Fri, C4) perpetuates the myth that any game code was ever written for Sensible Software's "Sex, Drugs And Rock'n'Roll"... and, facing the double On-Digital threat of Paramount Comedy *and* E4, UK Play unleash some early episodes of THE LARRY SANDERS SHOW (11pm, Mon-Fri; repeated triple-bill 9pm, Sat) - cleverly counter-programmed vs ITV2's regular weeknight THE LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN (11pm, Mon-Fri), which it often peculiarly resembles... once they've exhausted I LOVE THE EIGHTIES (9pm, Sat, BBC2), maybe there's a series in Stuart Maconie wryly recalling anecdotes about some of the great military conflicts and/or serial killers of the last 2 or 3 decades... Jim Cameron recounts how Kubrick inspired him to make his own tediously overlong sci-fi epics in 2001: THE MAKING OF A MYTH (11.25pm, Sat, C4), before having his budget cut for cybercliched Buffy knock-off DARK ANGEL (9pm, Wed, Sky1)... and HEAVENLY CREATURES (9.45pm, Sun, BBC2) is by far Peter "Bad Taste, Lord Of The Rings" Jackson's dullest film - and not as good as the "dumb casino" scene in NATIONAL LAMPOON'S VEGAS VACATION (9pm, Sun, C5)... C4 and C5 team up for a double dose of Jean-Claude Van Damme playing his own brother in MAXIMUM RISK (10pm, Sun, C4) and DOUBLE IMPACT (9pm, Mon, C5)... ITV handily sticks on BADDIEL AND SKINNER UNPLANNED (10.40pm, Sun, ITV) right after the former's freakish-sounding new sitcom BADDIEL'S SYNDROME (10pm, Sun, Sky1), featuring Gareth "Blake's 7" Thomas... while analogue electro-fest THE SHAPE OF THINGS THAT HUM (1.25am, Sun, C4) is made by Jacques Peretti, the guy who does the "Clubs" page in the Guardian Guide... Sandra Bullock battles a sinister screen-pixellating Mac virus in THE NET (9pm, Tue, C5)... the BBC documents their struggle with the Chris Evans-monster they themselves created in BLOOD ON THE CARPET (9.50pm, Tue, BBC2)... and C4 ingeniously undermines the launch of its E4 digi-channel by scheduling it against its hot new star 'n' Emmy-packed acquisition THE WEST WING (10pm, Thu, C4)... FILM>> after the postal product-placement problems of "You've Got Mail", this year's Tom Hanky Christmas pooh is Fedex ad CAST AWAY (http://www.capalert.com/capreports/castaway.htm : open urination; very revealing clothing on Hanks [...] a few times a full buttock was exposed [...] one flash scene revealed his pubic hair but no gender-specific anatomy)... but apart from that and special previews of VERTICAL LIMIT (imdb: avalanche / helicopter / blizzard / brother-sister / himalayas / k2 / mountain-climbing / mountaineer / nitroglycerine / rescue / rock-climbing / sacrifice / mountaineering), there's just Ray "sodding" Winstone, Ben "Gandhi" Kingsley and Ian "Lovejoy" McShane - together at last! - in Britcrime SEXY BEAST (http://www.bbfc.co.uk/ : frequent coarse langauge, some strong sexual references and violence)... or this week's hilarious CGI Exorcist knock-off, Winona Ryder's LOST SOULS (http://www.capalert.com/capreports/lostsouls.htm : leaving the scene of an accident; a digital clock showing "666"; a statue of the crucifixion being broken, causing Jesus to hand upside down with an open-eyed expression of horror) - whose best bet of attracting viewers is that it's apparently being shown with the trailer for "Fellowship Of The Ring"... CONFECTIONERY THEORY>> "I've been trying to locate a TERRY'S CHOCOLATE RASPBERRY (or Terry's Chocolate Orange Raspberry Edition as the manufacturers describe it)," pleads reader BEN LAMB. "Some American friends gave me one and it was delicious, but I've been unable to find another either in the UK or the States. Was it a limited edition?" Well Ben, they do seem to exist: http://www.traderjoes.com/tj/fearless/or/or2021.html - the best we could suggest as an interim stopgap is NESTLE'S WONKA W-EGG (32p), a cubic creme egg-alike made out of the same raspberry-flavoured white chocolate as former NTK taste- abomination WONKA WONKLATE [NTK 2000-11-03], filled with what seems to be synthetic raspberry jam... with just 3 months to go until Easter, the W-Egg faces off against MARS' MILKY WAY EGGS IN SPACE (32p), packed with a slightly denser Angel Delight-style substance instead of normal strawberry Milky Way filling - also available as MILKY WAY MIXED MINI EGGS ("Vanilla, strawberry and chocolate lightly whipped mini eggs", 99p for a pack of approx 16)... plus, though not yet available internationally, GUT SPRINGENHEIDE's real eggshells injected with choc nougat or truffle centres, from Germany: http://www.preparedfoods.com/archives/2000/2000_08/0008bnp.htm ... for semiotic vegans, there's plenty of non-egg-based entertainment due over the next month as well: NESTLE TOFFEE CRISP COCONUT (out now, 28p); SAINSBURY'S PIZZA EXPRESS PIZZAS (out Jan, UKP3.25); and MCVITE'S PENGUIN FLIPPER DIPPERS (out Feb 5, 49p) - "flipper-shaped biscuits and some vanilla- chocolate gunk to dip them in," our source reveals, "backed by a UKP3 million advertising campaign"... possibly washed down with BRITVIC's "Feel The Frozen Fizz!" carbonated Slush Puppy ICE BLAST, now available in larger branches of KFC... also in beverages: after getting their ass kicked in the traditional carbonates market by energy and still fruit drinks, COCA-COLA claim to have "several innovative research projects underway which involve milk"... as innovative, we hope, as the latest LIMITED EDITION FRIJJ SHAKE (89p), rejoicing in the manga-style moniker of SILENT POPCORN. The toffee popcorn flavour is so convincing that it "psychologically replicates the feeling of little flakes of kernel skin getting stuck to the back of your throat," reports spotter LEE MAGUIRE. "Two thumbs up!"... >> SMALL PRINT << Need to Know is a useful and interesting UK digest of things that happened last week or might happen next week. You can read it on Friday afternoon or print it out then take it home if you have nothing better to do. It is compiled by NTK from stuff they get sent. Registered at the Post Office as "suuure we're a Christian ministry" http://www.needtoknowgod.com/ NEED TO KNOW THEY STOLE OUR REVOLUTION. NOW WE'RE STEALING IT BACK. Archive - http://www.ntk.net/ Unsubscribe? Mail ntknow-unsubscribe@lists.ntk.net Subscribe? Mail ntknow-subscribe@lists.ntk.net NTK now is supported by UNFORTU.NET, and by you: http://www.ntk.net/books/ (K) 2001 Special Projects. 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