Get free music downloads at BPL
Apr 18th
Free music downloads now available from Boulder Public Library via Freegal
For everyone who’s ever heard a song on the radio and wanted to add it their collection, wanted a hit single off an album, or just wanted to explore the work of new musical artists, Boulder Public Library offers a new, free online music download service. Freegal Music, a downloadable music service designed for libraries, is now available through the library’s website at: http://boulderlibrary.freegalmusic.com/.
Freegal is free for all Boulder Public Library (BPL) cardholders who live in Boulder County, and all downloads may be kept permanently. Each library cardholder may download up to three songs per week (156 per year) and keep the songs forever. All that is needed to access this service is a Boulder Public Library card number in good standing.
Freegal Music provides access to the Sony Music Entertainment catalog, which includes hundreds of thousands of songs, more than 100 genres of music, and more than 50 record labels. No special software is needed to use the service, and there are no digital rights management restrictions. Downloading of songs is completely free and legal for library cardholders. Songs are downloaded in a universally compatible MP3 format, so they can be saved to any computer, mobile device or MP3 player, including an iPod. Songs can be downloaded at home or at computer stations in libraries via a USB device, such as a flash drive or MP3 player. One click and you can save the songs to your iTunes or Windows Media Player.
“We are excited to be able to offer this free music download service to Boulder Public Library cardholders,” said Valerie Maginnis, library director. “It gives our patrons access to more of the materials they want, in a convenient, accessible format, while also being highly efficient for the library. We anticipate that this will be a very popular new service.”
More information and answers to frequently asked questions about Freegal are available on the BPL website, www.boulderlibrary.org. Music can also be found in the library’s catalog by searching for “Freegal.” BPL offers other music and film streaming services, such as Alexander Street, which offers 30,000 albums for streaming, at: http://research.boulderlibrary.org/music_film.
Watch for Boulder Police SWAT teams in your neighborhood
Apr 18th
Boulder police to hold monthly SWAT exercise this week
The Boulder Police Department Swat Team will be conducting a multi-location training exercise on Thursday, April 19. The exercise is part of the department’s annual training program and will occur in several locations in and around Boulder.
Approximately 25 officers will take part in the training. Residents will see police activity in the southeast and east/central areas of town. SWAT Team members will be carrying unloaded weapons and may deploy visible smoke bombs as part of the exercise.
One of the goals of this particular training is to evaluate officers’ preparedness for emergencies at unknown locations. Because of this, the department is not releasing the specific locations of the exercises.
SOPA is "Dead" direct from Film industry lobbyist Chris Dodd in Hollywood
Apr 16th
SOPA — the controversial online piracy bill tech giants said would “break the Internet” – is dead, Hollywood’s chief lobbyist Chris Dodd said.
Dodd, the head of the Motion Picture Association of America, said the industry-supported Stop Online Piracy Act is “history”, in an interview with Bloomberg Television that will air this weekend.
“That’s over with. It’s gone, in my view. It’s dead. It’s behind us,” said Dodd, a former five-term Democratic U.S. senator from Connecticut.
The stark comments, from the man who pushed for tougher anti-piracy laws, come after a concerted effort from the technology community to block SOPA from passing the U.S. Congress last year. Google (Nasdaq: GOOG), Wikipedia and Reddit all went dark in protest; web domain registration provider GoDaddy.com was subject to a boycott because of its support for the bill.
Opposition to the bipartisan SOPA began to grow late in the U.S. House of Representatives, resulting in the measure getting shelved in January.
SOPA would have empowered the U.S. Department of Justice to go after “rogue” foreign websites dedicated to piracy and copyright infringement that are outside the agency’s jurisdiction. The Justice Department and copyright holders would have been able to get a court to block people in the U.S. from accessing foreign websites that host infringing content, like so-called “torrents” of movies, music and software.
The tech community said the bill was too broad and would have unfairly ensnared websites that host user-generated content that often contains infringing material. Further, opponents bristled at provisions to “deputize” payment networks like eBay’s PayPal and Internet service providers to root out copyright violations.
While SOPA may be dead, Dodd said efforts to get Congress to crack down on intellectual property theft will continue. The push will likely come after the 2012 elections, Dodd said.
“The issue hasn’t gone away,” Dodd said. “In fact, even those from the technology community, the overwhelming majority believe we must do something about intellectual property.”
1. http://www.ibtimes.com/archives/articles/reporters/dan-rivoli/
