Free music for fre April 10, 2009 5:59 PM Subscribe
So, you have to be a member to download songs from Mefi Music? IS that really fair?
Is there a more specific reason you're asking this question?
As I see it, 5 bucks for unlimited access to any music collection is a fantastic deal.
posted by rollbiz at 6:03 PM on April 10, 2009
As I see it, 5 bucks for unlimited access to any music collection is a fantastic deal.
posted by rollbiz at 6:03 PM on April 10, 2009
Is it fair that anything costs money, man?
posted by found missing at 6:06 PM on April 10, 2009 [1 favorite]
posted by found missing at 6:06 PM on April 10, 2009 [1 favorite]
IS that really fair?
Sure, why not? You're going to have to develop the idea where "not free" automatically equals "not fair" because it's not an automatic given.
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 6:07 PM on April 10, 2009 [1 favorite]
Sure, why not? You're going to have to develop the idea where "not free" automatically equals "not fair" because it's not an automatic given.
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 6:07 PM on April 10, 2009 [1 favorite]
Seems pretty fair, yeah.
posted by Divine_Wino at 6:08 PM on April 10, 2009
posted by Divine_Wino at 6:08 PM on April 10, 2009
I'm curious to know how you think it's unfair.
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 6:09 PM on April 10, 2009
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 6:09 PM on April 10, 2009
Maybe the question is whether it is fair that MetaFilter directly (theoretically) makes money off the music? It's plausible a couple people have bought memberships entirely to download music.
BIG DISCLAIMER: I love MuFi, and have absolutely no qualms with how it is run.
posted by Corduroy at 6:11 PM on April 10, 2009
BIG DISCLAIMER: I love MuFi, and have absolutely no qualms with how it is run.
posted by Corduroy at 6:11 PM on April 10, 2009
Yeah, I just didn't want to have drive-by RSS scraper spammer jerks downloading everything all day (and still it happens, from the podcast feed).
Anyone can subscribe to the podcast feed and slurp them down, I just didn't want to bother with someone abusing my bandwidth with an obvious link to download for non-members.
posted by mathowie (staff) at 6:21 PM on April 10, 2009
Anyone can subscribe to the podcast feed and slurp them down, I just didn't want to bother with someone abusing my bandwidth with an obvious link to download for non-members.
posted by mathowie (staff) at 6:21 PM on April 10, 2009
If you have a website, and I have an RSS scraper, and my scraper reaches acrooooooooooooss the internet, into your website ...
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 6:26 PM on April 10, 2009 [2 favorites]
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 6:26 PM on April 10, 2009 [2 favorites]
drive-by RSS scraper spammer jerks downloading everything all day
Yeah. I once parked a few MP3s in an unprotected folder on my home web server thinking oh, I'll share these with my internet friends for a few days and then pull them. I've since either removed them or password-protected the relevant directories, but I still get http requests every single day for some of those files.
How anyone querying hotmp3files.ru or whatever these sites are called would satisfy their search with my requiem for the <blink> tag is beyond me, but I'm sure the gods will have an answer.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 6:50 PM on April 10, 2009 [3 favorites]
Yeah. I once parked a few MP3s in an unprotected folder on my home web server thinking oh, I'll share these with my internet friends for a few days and then pull them. I've since either removed them or password-protected the relevant directories, but I still get http requests every single day for some of those files.
How anyone querying hotmp3files.ru or whatever these sites are called would satisfy their search with my requiem for the <blink> tag is beyond me, but I'm sure the gods will have an answer.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 6:50 PM on April 10, 2009 [3 favorites]
Since when is metafilter supposed to be "fair" anyways?
posted by dead cousin ted at 6:51 PM on April 10, 2009
posted by dead cousin ted at 6:51 PM on April 10, 2009
drive-by RSS scraper spammer jerks downloading everything all day
Are those what these things are about? There seem to be a bunch of those semi-blogs grabbing the songs off the site.
posted by micayetoca at 6:54 PM on April 10, 2009
Are those what these things are about? There seem to be a bunch of those semi-blogs grabbing the songs off the site.
posted by micayetoca at 6:54 PM on April 10, 2009
Absolutely it's fair. If we're going to be giving all this stuff away for free, then what was the point of signing up and paying the $5 in the first place? If you think of each song as 99¢ like in iTunes, then Music alone has paid for itself over and over again. It's the closest thing we have to MeFi Platinum.
posted by sambosambo at 6:57 PM on April 10, 2009
posted by sambosambo at 6:57 PM on April 10, 2009
So, yeah, Citizen Premier, could you elaborate a little on why you think it's unfair?
posted by micayetoca at 7:11 PM on April 10, 2009
posted by micayetoca at 7:11 PM on April 10, 2009
I'm surprised goodnews.. I'd have thought that it would only be a problem if you linked to it.
posted by xorry at 7:37 PM on April 10, 2009
these were free from sxsw or elsewhereposted by xorry at 7:37 PM on April 10, 2009
Seems perfectly fair to me, by my definition of fair. Your definition may vary the results.
posted by dg at 7:41 PM on April 10, 2009
posted by dg at 7:41 PM on April 10, 2009
Is it fair that you had to pay $5 to post this complaint?
posted by klangklangston at 8:00 PM on April 10, 2009
posted by klangklangston at 8:00 PM on April 10, 2009
Was this a drive by shitting or what?
posted by dead cousin ted at 8:09 PM on April 10, 2009
posted by dead cousin ted at 8:09 PM on April 10, 2009
has no one ever told you about the analog hole? get your mother. it's time we had a family talk.
posted by the aloha at 8:10 PM on April 10, 2009
posted by the aloha at 8:10 PM on April 10, 2009
Of course it seems fair to members. Just like tax hikes for poor people seems fair to rich people.
We need some non-members to weigh in on this thread.
posted by aubilenon at 1:36 AM on April 11, 2009
We need some non-members to weigh in on this thread.
posted by aubilenon at 1:36 AM on April 11, 2009
So, yeah, Citizen Premier, could you elaborate a little on why you think it's unfair?
No.
posted by Citizen Premier at 1:41 AM on April 11, 2009
No.
posted by Citizen Premier at 1:41 AM on April 11, 2009
I think the OP's gripe is unfounded. Nothing is stopping Metafilter Music posters from including a link in their posts to other sites where members and non-members alike may download that very same track and/or additional tracks free of charge. I'm perfectly OK with the policy that downloading tracks from Metafilter costs $5 for access to the entire music library.
posted by emelenjr at 2:33 AM on April 11, 2009
posted by emelenjr at 2:33 AM on April 11, 2009
I didn't say it was unfair. I asked if it was. The verdict seems to be, "yes."
posted by Citizen Premier at 2:50 AM on April 11, 2009
posted by Citizen Premier at 2:50 AM on April 11, 2009
So by asking, "IS that really fair?" you were NOT implying that you think the policy is unfair? I guess I'm a little confused as to why you asked the question, and that's why I pointed out that other people commenting here don't seem to agree with you. I guess I misunderstood the point of this MetaTalk thread.
posted by emelenjr at 5:45 AM on April 11, 2009 [1 favorite]
posted by emelenjr at 5:45 AM on April 11, 2009 [1 favorite]
Is it fair that you have to pay $5 to UPLOAD music files?
Yes.
posted by blue_beetle at 7:27 AM on April 11, 2009 [1 favorite]
Yes.
posted by blue_beetle at 7:27 AM on April 11, 2009 [1 favorite]
So, yeah, Citizen Premier, could you elaborate a little on why you think it's unfair?
No.
Well I can really see why your request is worthy of consideration, then. Thanks for participating. Last one out, turn off the lights.
posted by absalom at 8:03 AM on April 11, 2009
No.
Well I can really see why your request is worthy of consideration, then. Thanks for participating. Last one out, turn off the lights.
posted by absalom at 8:03 AM on April 11, 2009
So by asking, "IS that really fair?" you were NOT implying that you think the policy is unfair? I guess I'm a little confused as to why you asked the question, and that's why I pointed out that other people commenting here don't seem to agree with you. I guess I misunderstood the point of this MetaTalk thread.
It was a philosophical experiment to see if people are able to quantify fairness, duh. Why else would he start a thread asking about the fairness of a site's policy?
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 8:12 AM on April 11, 2009
It was a philosophical experiment to see if people are able to quantify fairness, duh. Why else would he start a thread asking about the fairness of a site's policy?
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 8:12 AM on April 11, 2009
I'll pay the $5 fee for anyone who wants to come do my dishes.
posted by jeffamaphone at 8:31 AM on April 11, 2009
posted by jeffamaphone at 8:31 AM on April 11, 2009
Is it fair that I read thirty-four comments of this crap?
Is it fair that I posted a thirty-fifth?
posted by box at 8:52 AM on April 11, 2009
Is it fair that I posted a thirty-fifth?
posted by box at 8:52 AM on April 11, 2009
I didn't say it was unfair. I asked if it was. The verdict seems to be, "yes."
The verdict is that it's not unfair.
posted by inigo2 at 9:55 AM on April 11, 2009
The verdict is that it's not unfair.
posted by inigo2 at 9:55 AM on April 11, 2009
The verdict is that it's not unfair.
If you ask me, the way I'm reading the thread there are two verdicts. One) that it's not unfair that the songs can only be downloaded by members, and two) that it is really obnoxious to post a very vague thread with a question and then refuse to clarify.
posted by micayetoca at 10:03 AM on April 11, 2009 [2 favorites]
If you ask me, the way I'm reading the thread there are two verdicts. One) that it's not unfair that the songs can only be downloaded by members, and two) that it is really obnoxious to post a very vague thread with a question and then refuse to clarify.
posted by micayetoca at 10:03 AM on April 11, 2009 [2 favorites]
I didn't say it was unfair. I asked if it was. The verdict seems to be, "yes."
No it doesn't.
posted by Jaltcoh at 11:53 AM on April 11, 2009
No it doesn't.
posted by Jaltcoh at 11:53 AM on April 11, 2009
Is there some kind of punchline coming?
posted by roll truck roll at 12:26 PM on April 11, 2009
posted by roll truck roll at 12:26 PM on April 11, 2009
Is there some kind of punchline coming?
I hope so because otherwise this whole thing is just fucking pointless. Actually even with a punchline it's still pretty much worthless.
posted by ob at 12:48 PM on April 11, 2009
I hope so because otherwise this whole thing is just fucking pointless. Actually even with a punchline it's still pretty much worthless.
posted by ob at 12:48 PM on April 11, 2009
In Citizen Premiere's defense, the line folks keep quoting could pretty easily be a product of mangled elision:
I didn't say it was unfair. I asked if it was [fair]. The verdict seems to be, "yes [it's fair]."
Bad writing, but it brings reading comprehension back into the realm of the plausible.
CP, it would be nice if you could maybe give us a paragraph or so on what you were thinking that motivated this—there's nothing in particular wrong with wanting to get the community reaction to something, but the way you phrased your post really does suggest you had a reason to think it might not be fair, and if you're going to dangle that in front of everybody it's just plain polite to keep your end of the discursive bargain by letting us know where you were coming from.
posted by cortex (staff) at 1:03 PM on April 11, 2009
I didn't say it was unfair. I asked if it was [fair]. The verdict seems to be, "yes [it's fair]."
Bad writing, but it brings reading comprehension back into the realm of the plausible.
CP, it would be nice if you could maybe give us a paragraph or so on what you were thinking that motivated this—there's nothing in particular wrong with wanting to get the community reaction to something, but the way you phrased your post really does suggest you had a reason to think it might not be fair, and if you're going to dangle that in front of everybody it's just plain polite to keep your end of the discursive bargain by letting us know where you were coming from.
posted by cortex (staff) at 1:03 PM on April 11, 2009
Phew. I responded to this thread so early this morning, I was afraid I needed either more coffee or better sarcasm detection.
posted by emelenjr at 2:57 PM on April 11, 2009
posted by emelenjr at 2:57 PM on April 11, 2009
CP, it would be nice if you could maybe give us a paragraph or so on what you were thinking that motivated this—there's nothing in particular wrong with wanting to get the community reaction to something, but the way you phrased your post really does suggest you had a reason to think it might not be fair, and if you're going to dangle that in front of everybody it's just plain polite to keep your end of the discursive bargain by letting us know where you were coming from.
Man, mods are so nice. I can't get over it. Me, I would have just said "This is a bad post, and you should feel bad for making it."
posted by languagehat at 5:29 PM on April 11, 2009
Man, mods are so nice. I can't get over it. Me, I would have just said "This is a bad post, and you should feel bad for making it."
posted by languagehat at 5:29 PM on April 11, 2009
You can always download the MP3 because the URL is available in the View Source whether you're logged in or not. I have a bookmarklet here (warning: hosted on a silly web page because I threw this up at 2 AM one summer night) that automates that.
(More technical stuff: It actually makes an HTTP request, so you need to be online, but the bookmarklet could be rewritten to do everything in JavaScript. (I'm just lazy, and I hate JavaScript.))
(Less technical stuff: If this is uncool, I can take it down pronto.)
posted by shadytrees at 9:24 PM on April 11, 2009
(More technical stuff: It actually makes an HTTP request, so you need to be online, but the bookmarklet could be rewritten to do everything in JavaScript. (I'm just lazy, and I hate JavaScript.))
(Less technical stuff: If this is uncool, I can take it down pronto.)
posted by shadytrees at 9:24 PM on April 11, 2009
I didn't say it was unfair. I asked if it was. The verdict seems to be, "yes."
I meant to say "no."
posted by Citizen Premier at 3:05 AM on April 12, 2009
I meant to say "no."
posted by Citizen Premier at 3:05 AM on April 12, 2009
You are not logged in, either login or create an account to post comments
You don't have to be a member to listen to the stuff, or to subscribe to the main feed or any of the subfeeds, and if a member really wants to share a file with an enthusiastic non-member, they could always hand it off as a favor.
posted by cortex (staff) at 6:02 PM on April 10, 2009 [5 favorites]