The Crazy Chimp Blog

An Act to Amend the Copyright Act

Jun 12, 2008
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Okay so I sent in a letter to Jim Prentice who is the current Minister of Industry. Now a few months later he has sent me this reply in an email which has a few interesting remarks that I will highlight after the email:

The Government of Canada has introduced Bill C-61, An Act to Amend the Copyright Act. The proposed legislation is a made-in-Canada approach that balances the needs of Canadian consumers and copyright owners, promoting culture, innovation and competition in the digital age.

What does Bill C-61 mean to Canadians?

Specifically, it includes measures that would:

expressly allow you to record TV shows for later viewing; copy legally purchased music onto other devices, such as MP3 players or cell phones; make back-up copies of legally purchased books, newspapers, videocassettes and photographs onto devices you own; and limit the "statutory damages" a court could award for all private use copyright infringements;

implement new rights and protections for copyright holders, tailored to the Internet, to encourage participation in the online economy, as well as stronger legal remedies to address Internet piracy;

clarify the roles and responsibilities of Internet Service Providers related to the copyright content flowing over their network facilities; and

provide photographers with the same rights as other creators.

What Bill C-61 does not do:

it would not empower border agents to seize your iPod or laptop at border crossings, contrary to recent public speculation

What this Bill is not:

it is not a mirror image of U.S. copyright laws. Our Bill is made-in-Canada with different exceptions for educators, consumers and others and brings us into line with more than 60 countries including Japan, France, Germany and Australia

Bill C-61 was introduced in the Commons on June 12, 2008 by Industry Minister Jim Prentice and Heritage Minister Josée Verner.

For more information, please visit the Copyright Reform Process website at www.ic.gc.ca/epic/site/crp-prda.nsf/en/home

Thank you for sharing your views on this important matter.

The Honourable Jim Prentice, P.C., Q.C., M.P.
Minister of Industry

The Honourable Josée Verner, P.C., M.P.
Minister of Canadian Heritage, Status of Women
and Official Languages and Minister for
La Francophonie

Yeah so I have a few things that are a problem. I can understand the prospect of purchasing copyrighted material, and I totally understand. But what I have a problem with is the amount of control that goes into the material that I purchase. Why can I not buy a DVD and put it on my computer or iPod for later viewing use? I payed friggin' 30 bucks to watch the movie and I want to watch it on my iPod! Studios may argue that we can download it off of iTunes but I can't get Ratatouille of there. What else am I supposed to do? And what about music that is not available? And the same goes for TV Shows. The Canadian iTunes store is absolutely broken because it does not have the same content as the American store. We can't get Hulu or ABC.com up here (maybe that will change with this law?).

What about the limits to the amount a company can sue a individual? I heard that it's like up to $20 000 for uploading something to a P2P network or even YOUTUBE!!! For Pete's sakes! YouTube!?!?! I can get fined $20 000 for uploading a cool clip from "The Office" to YouTube? Thats frickin' retarted! I'm used to just getting the videos pulled. This could also mean that if I have music in a movie that I make, they could put the pressure down on me. Not cool at all. Seriously, how much damage am I causing by putting a sample clip that would ultimately cause people to want and see new

He also commented about the recent story about how border agents will be able to rummage through our technology devices to find copyright infringing material. He says that they can't seize the items, but he never said that you couldn't look through them and then fine me. He needs more clarification.

So yeah, Digg this story if you like!

Net Neutrality

Jun 7, 2008
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Haven't posted anything for a long time (sorry) but this deserves it! WATCH IT, SPREAD IT!

NBC mocks Apple through "The Office"

May 16, 2008
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I was watching The Office and noticed that instead of iTunes, Michael Scott was looking for music on Amazon. Finally NBC gets to poke fun at Apple!

YEAH! MY ACCOUNT IS BACK!!!

May 12, 2008
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YouTube gave it back to me!

Hi there,

Take 2 Games has retracted its copyright claim with respect to the
following videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUG7g7PJq_Q
This content has been restored and your account has been restored. For
technical reasons, it may take a day for the video to be available again.
There remain claims against your account listed below.
The Office Clip: Vasectomy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8MeLya_Tgg
Claimed by NBC Universal
Wall-E: 4 Minute Feature
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=En88JJZkNlM
Claimed by PIXAR

Sincerely,
Harry
The YouTube Team

Look for more videos to come!

RE: The letter to Take2 Games!

May 12, 2008
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Okay so I just received an email back from Take2 and here is what they had to say:

****,

we just started using an outsourced service and they have pulled down some third party vids that should have stayed up, including official IGN vids. if you forward the youtube notice to me at this address, I will respond to them that it was an error. Your "record" will be cleared and the vid wlll be reposted.

best regards,
****

**** *. *****
Vice President & Associate General Counsel
Take Two Interactive
622 Broadway
New York, NY 10012
Ph:***-***-****
Fax: ***-***-****
Email: *

How do you like them' apples? Thanks Take2! I'll keep everyone posted on the status of my Youtube account.

Here is the original in case your to lazy to find it (just scroll damnit!):

Dear Take 2 Games,

I recently posted a few videos of gameplay from the game GTA IV. These gameplay videos were available for download from http://www.ign.com/ and as such, I uploaded them to the video site http://www.youtube.com/ . These videos had no mark of copyright and any information on not republishing them anywhere else. My latest video http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=NUG7g7PJq_Q was claimed to be copyright infringement on my behalf. This removal from the site resulted in my permanent deletion from YouTube.

This video was orginally made by IGN.com, whom has had no problem with their videos being uploaded to YouTube. The video was watermarked with IGN's logo as well as being created by IGN. What I would like to know is why this video had a copyright claimed on this video and not any of the other videos uploaded by me and other users. Rockstar's legal notice says this on their site:

All Online Services material, including, but not limited to, text, data, graphics, logos, button icons, images, audio clips, video clips, links, digital downloads, data compilations, and software is owned, controlled by, licensed to, or used with permission by the Company and is protected by copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property rights. The Online Services material is made available solely for your personal, non-commercial use and may not be copied, reproduced, republished, modified, uploaded, posted, transmitted, or distributed in any way, including by e-mail or other electronic means, without the express prior written consent of the Company in each instance. You may download material intentionally made available for downloading through the Online Services for your personal, non-commercial use only, provided that you keep intact any and all copyright and other proprietary notices that may appear on such materials.

I am uploading these videos for no means of commercial use and I only wish to share these videos with other people. How is my uploading of these videos infringing on the company's copyright? They in no way harm the company, in fact they help to advertise the games release. I am a 16 year old, so I may not know as much as the lawyers, but I think that it is unfair for this to happen to me. We are in a age of digital distrubution and I want to be a part of it. YouTube is a site that I regularely upload videos to, they are videos that I like to share with others. I have no intention of causing harm to Take 2 Games or Rockstar, I only wish to get people excited for a game that will do very well.

Thank you for your time in listening to my concerns, I would grately appreciate someone to contact me about this issue.

Sincerely,
Andy Bewernick (ilikemonkeys2)

the Pixar story

May 3, 2008
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I just finished watching it and I have only two words... FREAKING AWESOME!!! It's given me new inspiration for my animation and I recommend anyone who is interested in animation to see this documentary! From what I hear it is coming out on DVD in June.

The letter I wrote to Take 2 Games

Apr 29, 2008
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Witht the deletion of my video off of YouTube and in turn causing my account to be "permanently disabled" I wrote this email to Take 2 Games:

Dear Take 2 Games,

I recently posted a few videos of gameplay from the game GTA IV. These gameplay videos were available for download from http://www.ign.com/ and as such, I uploaded them to the video site http://www.youtube.com/ . These videos had no mark of copyright and any information on not republishing them anywhere else. My latest video http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=NUG7g7PJq_Q was claimed to be copyright infringement on my behalf. This removal from the site resulted in my permanent deletion from YouTube.

This video was orginally made by IGN.com, whom has had no problem with their videos being uploaded to YouTube. The video was watermarked with IGN's logo as well as being created by IGN. What I would like to know is why this video had a copyright claimed on this video and not any of the other videos uploaded by me and other users. Rockstar's legal notice says this on their site:

All Online Services material, including, but not limited to, text, data, graphics, logos, button icons, images, audio clips, video clips, links, digital downloads, data compilations, and software is owned, controlled by, licensed to, or used with permission by the Company and is protected by copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property rights. The Online Services material is made available solely for your personal, non-commercial use and may not be copied, reproduced, republished, modified, uploaded, posted, transmitted, or distributed in any way, including by e-mail or other electronic means, without the express prior written consent of the Company in each instance. You may download material intentionally made available for downloading through the Online Services for your personal, non-commercial use only, provided that you keep intact any and all copyright and other proprietary notices that may appear on such materials.

I am uploading these videos for no means of commercial use and I only wish to share these videos with other people. How is my uploading of these videos infringing on the company's copyright? They in no way harm the company, in fact they help to advertise the games release. I am a 16 year old, so I may not know as much as the lawyers, but I think that it is unfair for this to happen to me. We are in a age of digital distrubution and I want to be a part of it. YouTube is a site that I regularely upload videos to, they are videos that I like to share with others. I have no intention of causing harm to Take 2 Games or Rockstar, I only wish to get people excited for a game that will do very well.

Thank you for your time in listening to my concerns, I would grately appreciate someone to contact me about this issue.

Sincerely,
Andy Bewernick (ilikemonkeys2)

So do you guys think that I have any chance of getting the copyright notice retracted? I certainly hoep so, I had over 1 million views on my videos and was heading up fast in the world. YouTube needs a much better system for this. I think that they should send a notice to the user doing the "Copyright Infringment" telling them to take down the video upon pending acocunt deletion. If they don't comply within a certain amount of time they take the neccessary action. I would have had no problem removing these videos, but why they do this I don't know.

@#$% you Rockstar!

Apr 29, 2008
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So I'm posting some great video of GTA IV as some may know on YouTube. Thanks to one of Take 2's copyright claims on a video, my account got banned on YouTube. This is so frustrating! What am I doing that is against their copyright? I looked into it and I see nothing, the videos I posted are available from IGN for people to download. Guess I gotta create a new YouTube account now. I've got some good ideas on what I will be doing for videos.

The truth about Christianity!

Apr 28, 2008
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So lately on Digg there have been lots of articles about how Atheists are superior and Christians are corrupt. I'm gonna let you all know something about me, I'm a Christian. A recent video that I have seen about a Christian school leader asked for sex in exchange for giving a diploma. This is absolutely disgusting and appalling that someone of his stature and claiming to represent himself as follower of Jesus Christ would do this. But for some reason people have it under the belief that all Christians are "holier than thou". How did they get this impression? I in no way believe that, nor do any of my friends and members of my church. People have the wrong perception on what Christians are and believe. So let me give you a rundown on what it means to be a Christian:

So we all know that we as a society and people are not perfect. We do a lot of crappy stuff like murder, rape, stealing etc. Thats why we have the judicial system, there is punishment for these crimes. In our daily lives we lie, cheat, and do many hurtful things to others. Thats just the way the world is, and many times there are no consequences for this. When God created the human race we were perfect. Adam and Eve were set in the world naked and without fault. Now, God gave them one rule... not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. As we all know there is the devil (Satan), he was cast to earth as a result of his rebellion against God thinking that he to could also be a god. In the garden he took on the form of the serpent.

The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord God had made. One day he asked the woman, "Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?"
"Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden," the woman replied.
"It's only the fruit in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, 'You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die' "
"You won't die!" the serpent replied to the woman. "God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil."
The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too. At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves.
-Genesis 3:1-7

So as the story goes on, God banished them from the garden as well as punish them, for example childbirth would be painful. God also promised that one of Adam's decedents would defeat Satan. This is the promise of Jesus Christ, which is also predicted several times more throughout the Bible. Now that sin had entered the world, there also came more punishment for it. The only punishment for sin was death, but God did not want to sentence everyone to death every time you did something wrong, so he gave instructions. During the old testament there were specific instructions given to the people of God (Israel). The only way that God would forgive them was through a sacrifice. I won't go into the details about it but basically what they would do is take the best lamb or animal of the livestock and offer it to God (kill it). For thousands of years this was how it was done, and it's of course very tedious and demanding.

Fast forward a few thousand years and we come to the life of Jesus, the man that had been predicted to come. He basically goes through his life teaching people about God and preforming miracles. Now Jesus is the son of God, but they are both God. It's confusing and I still have a hard time wrapping my head around it to. The reason why Jesus was sent to earth was to defeat the grip that Satan had on us. He was sort of the perfect lamb, the only thing is that he was human. Jesus led a life of perfection (after all he was God). Jesus sacrificed himself and died on the cross so that no one would ever need to worry about preforming the weekly ritual and worry about the punishment of death. He took on the sin that every person had ever done or would ever do. Now there is one small but HUGELY important thing, Jesus rose again three days later. His resurrection shows that he conquered the grip of death on all of us. Paul does a good job explaining why its important:

But tell me this-since we preach that Christ rose from the dead, why are some of you saying there will be no resurrection of the dead? For if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless. And we apostles would all be lying about God-for we have said that God raised Christ from the grave. But that can't be true if there is no resurrection of the dead. And if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins. In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost! And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world.
But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died.
So you see, just as death came into the world through a man, now the resurrection form the dead has begun through another man. Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life. But there is an order to this resurrection: Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back.
-1 Corinthians 15: 12-23

Basically that passage explains how Christianity hinges all on the fact that Jesus rose from the dead. It also explains how we all can explain death. While we do all die someday, we are born again into another life in Heaven. This is what they mean by the resurrection. What Paul means by "Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back." is that when Jesus come back at the final days of earth, the dead will literally rise.

So heres the basic gist of Christianity, if you accept that Jesus did die for our sins and took on the burden of eternal death (hell), you are able to have a second life in him (means you go to heaven to be with him). Thats about it, it's simple yet means so much in your life. Is it not amazing how one man who never did anything wrong, gave up his life so that you would not have to take the punishment? I think it's pretty darn awesome, and thats why I'm a Christian.

Now to you critics of Christianity! You now should understand what we are all about (or should be), and in no way proclaim to be better than anyone else. If we do, we are very wrong in saying so! I had a conversation with someone about money and the Church. He is under the assumption that Pastors and leaders are out to get money from the congregation. Have you met any pastor that does this? I've never done it, Pastors are only teachers and mentors. The y have a great understanding of the Bible and teach it to other Christians. Tithes are only a small amount of money that is given back to God. I personally have found when I do this, my money always ends up coming back to me or blessing me in some way (tax breaks to). Churches need money to operate, they are not profit making but still need money. I am not required to give money in any way, it's just the right thing to do and it is such a miniscule amount.

I hope this blog post has helped anyone with questions about Christianity in some small form, if you have any questions feel free to send me an email (ilikemonkeys1@gmail.com) or contact your local Church. I also recommend picking up a Bible to take a look at it more. Thanks for you time on reading this!

I finally updated my Youtube Channel!

Apr 11, 2008
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You can check out my sweet new background image! I love it! Took me all day to make it though, any thoughts on what should be changed? (Send me a message on youtube or twitter).