First of all you should all have registered here: https://www.donotcall.gov/default.aspx at the National Do Not Call Registry. So, avid readers, as you are all aware, I have been very much against the use of caller ID blocking be it for Telemarketing purposes or for any associated harassment that would result from the use of caller id blocking, especially frustrated with spoofing and VoIp anonymity.
This week the House of Representatives passed a new bill, an amendment to the 1934 Communications Act to prohibit manipulation of caller identification information, this will outlaw [fingers crossed] the use of *67 , spoof cards and all that other crap I hate. The proposed bill is only 8 pages long, but every word reassures me of the impact it will have on all of us into the future.
DSLreports writes:
Argh!
Congress has passed a law that bans all spoofing of caller ID identification, be it via traditional phone service or VoIP. The Truth in Caller ID Act of 2010 (pdf copy here) was passed in the House of Representatives this week, and was primarily aimed at scammers who use spoofed phone numbers when pitching bogus wares (you’re probably familiar with the extended auto warranty scams by now.) The language of the bill:
It shall be unlawful for any person within the United States, in connection with any real time voice communications service, regard- less of the technology or network utilized, to cause any caller ID service to transmit misleading or inaccurate caller ID information, with the intent to defraud or deceive.
The bill of course contains an exemption for police or federal agencies should they be using the tactic in law enforcement.
I breath a sigh of relief today. Thank you HOR, now on to Congress!!
AS I am watching the “Pseudo Live” launch video on Adobe.com for the CS5 suite, I can’t help but think how great everything looks in the pre-recorded video. Great production value! There are hundreds of Tweets on the subject as we all listen in for our specialized area of interest…. I heard nothing about transcoding video from Premiere or what the status of the Adobe Media Encoder is, which are the applications I use the most as a streamer of media, followed closely by good ole’ Dreamweaver.
Video looked great, Adobe Mobile Video looked great on the innocuous ”Mobile Device” they featured (ahem, iPhone?)… As far as you can tell from a video they produced and mastered in their Adobe CS5 suite… especially with all those “easy to use effects” in Adobe After Effects. Everything was great…
And then, the live launch video ended. read this entry »
As a kid there were two things I asked Santa Claus for every year:
1. a robot clone that would do my homework and clean my room and
2. A hovercraft of my very own
** Yes, I ordered the one advertised in the back of the comic book and was sadly disappointed when it was too small to actually fly around in. However, that dream could soon be realized!! At least the second one – and I tell you what, if I come across $13K in the next year – and find somewhere to park the thing in NYC – I am definitely going to buy one! Imagine flying over the traffic in NYC’s rush hour! Ahhh, to dream a little dream… this is exactly one of those things that makes life worth while!!
The hovercraft functions as a stand-alone vehicle, but with the detachable wings in place it becomes a small aircraft capable of a top cruising speed of about 60 miles per hour. While it doesn’t fly very high, the 1.8-liter engine pushes the craft to a ceiling between around 10 feet — plenty high to clear fences, cars and the inevitable slack-jawed onlooker — and has a range of 140 miles.