Why Facebook and Google’s Concept of ‘Real Names’ Is Revolutionary
By Alexis Madrigal
Aug 5 2011

But this week’s discussions have made me rethink my intuition about names on social networks. My instincts had strongly pointed to requiring real names; my experience in the comment trenches of different websites has led me to believe that pure anonymity online creates a short-circuiting of our social…

Judge says domain name loss is not a “substantial hardship”
By Timothy B. Lee

A federal judge has rejected a petition by the Spanish company Puerto 80 for the return of the domain names Rojadirecta.com and Rojadirecta.org. The US federal government seized the domains earlier this year, arguing that they were primarily used to provide links to infringing sporting content.

Puerto 80 says that after…

Google Plus’s “Real Name” policy is abusive; Facebook is not a “Real Name” success story
By Cory Doctorow
Aug 4th 2011

Here’s danah boyd in very good form, explaining why “Real Name” policies like the one Google has rammed down Google Plus users’ throats (and like the insanely naive one that Randi Zuckerberg would like to foist on the entire Internet) are an abuse…

Spies in disguise: Fashion secrets of the Stasi revealed (and it’s not quite as incognito as you might think)
By Allan Hall
4th August 2011

For a profession as covert as theirs, you might have thought the Stasi would kit out their spies with an inconspicuous wardrobe to aid them in their secretive work.

However far from blending in, a new exhibition has revealed…

Shy Lindsay Lohan covers her face (but flashes plenty of leg) at Coldplay concert
By Daily Mail Reporter
4th August 2011
Maybe she was just having a bad hair day.

The usually confident Lindsay Lohan came over all shy as she left the Los Angeles Tennis Centre at UCLA last night after catching the Coldplay concert.

The actress attempted to hide from onlookers…

Righthaven, still angering judges, finally pays cash for its mistakes
By Nate Anderson

Righthaven, the Las Vegas copyright enforcer that has filed hundreds of suits to “defend” newspaper articles, has been hammered repeatedly in court. Now, it is finally paying defense lawyers, even if it can’t quite manage to send a check to the proper location.

Not that it wants to pay up. Righthaven has…

Shock, awe: British government agrees that copyright has gone too far
By Timothy B. Lee

The British government today pledged (PDF) to enact significant changes to copyright law, including orphan works reforms and the introduction of new copyright exceptions. And the tone of the comments was surprising: the government agrees that “copyright currently over-regulates to the detriment of the UK.” CD (and perhaps DVD) ripping…