IP: gnutella

[Dave Farber <farber@cis.upenn.edu>]

>Date: Fri, 28 Jul 2000 22:01:37 -0400
>To: farber@cis.upenn.edu (David Farber)
>From: Richard Jay Solomon <rsolomon@dsl.cis.upenn.edu>
>
>This hilarious socio-political quote is on the 
><http://www.gnutella.com/> site. Read it all:
>
>>I was in the pub last night, and a guy asked me for a light for his 
>>cigarette. I suddenly realised that there was a demand here and money to 
>>be made, and so I agreed to light his cigarette for 10 pence, but I 
>>didn't actually give him a light, I sold him a license to burn his 
>>cigarette. My fire-license restricted him from giving the light to 
>>anybody else, after all, that fire was my property. He was drunk, and 
>>dismissing me as a loony, but accepted my fire (and by implication the 
>>licence which governed its use) anyway. Of course in a matter of minutes 
>>I noticed a friend of his asking him for a light and to my outrage he 
>>gave his cigarette to his friend and pirated my fire! I was furious, I 
>>started to make my way over to that side of the bar but to my added 
>>horror his friend then started to light other people's cigarettes left, 
>>right, and centre! Before long that whole side of the bar was enjoying MY 
>>fire without paying me anything. Enraged I went from person to person 
>>grabbing their cigarettes from their hands, throwing them to the ground, 
>>and stamping on them.
>>
>>Strangely the door staff exhibited no respect for my property rights as 
>>they threw me out the door.
>
>
>Reuters notes tonight that 1.2 million people have downloaded the gnutella 
>software in the last 24 hours, thanks to the free publicity inadvertently 
>given by the recording industry. Speaking of morons leading the blind...
>
>Richard