Let’s have a ramble fest.

In case you are confused, I am required to write 3 posts to my blog before noon today. I had weeks to work on this, but of course I waited until I was at work to get started. I’m hoping that the super modifications to the theme and the absurd amount of info I put on my About Me will pad out the lack of coherence to this posts (as far as my grade goes, that is). That’s right, 10 percent of my final grade, the difference (by my math) between an 84 and a 94, all comes down to some rambles I write an hour before they are due.

Then again, what else is new?

It’s just so embarrassing how transparent this is. I mean, if she gave us a prompt or guidelines, I could fake it at the last minute. But just “write three posts”? That’s too much pressure. And thus here I freak out.

I want this site to be coded as good as it looks. Right now it’s not fluid and I have only a minimal grasp of how the designer set it up. I need to get the big picture so I can make real changes, not just hacks.

I also need to figure out how things like “pages” work, as well as widgets and plugins. I want this site to be SEO optimized, as well as usable and accessible.

I want to add a notepad, a private page where I can jot down my ideas for later posts (and later stuff in general).

I really want to have movie/book/music reviews on here. I think people want to read what I think.

I want to add a Creative Commons logo to the bottom of the site. I think that would be really NEAT.

I need to figure out things like tags and categories. I think a big problem I’m having is that WordPress makes this too easy, which always feels like a lack of options.

I want this site to look like a dirty old newspaper crossed with a mint-condition antique book.

I’m so hungry and eager. My shift ended 8 minutes ago. I need to go before they drag me out.

And then come back at noon. Hurrah!

Wow, this is pretty light even for a ramble fest.

Until next time…

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A little known secret of copyright law is the idea of “fair use.”

Fair use means that someone can use a copyrighted material for such noble purposes as education, parody, and criticism. Now, what is really interesting is that the Digital Media Content Act, known affectionaly as DMCA and less affectionaly as “those f-ing a-holes,” does not stipulate fair use. It is written as though the concept did not already exist.

This raises the question: Does that mean that digital media does not fall under the fair use clause of already existing copyright law, or that it’s just understood and they didn’t see it necessary to mention it?

Well, I’m going with option 2, not because I think the RIAA is a group of really nice people, but simply because I think a jury would agree with me.

So, technically I can post this song here because I’m reviewing it.

I think it’s a really neat song. Me and Mery were wondering if the chatter-babble chours is suppposed to be the sound of the birds cackling.

I didn’t really get into of Montreal even though my friend Ben wouldn’t quit nagging me to check them out. But then I was hanging out with my new roommate one day, and this song came on and I really liked it. And Mery, hippier than she’ll ever admit, started singing along and filled me in on the details.

The embarrasing part is that I haven’t really listened to anything else by them. But I listen to this song probably 5 times a week. It’s so good.

I like the sighish-moan at the beggining, it reminds me of the count down at the start of “Do You Realize” by The Flaming Lips.

Wow. I thought I was going to write a lot more on this song. But it seems that even with an hour to go, I’m just too blahed out to think. Maybe it’s the lack of sleep.

Maybe this is why digital media isn’t fair use. Because it lets any idiot with a blog justify downloading music.

We shall see.

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