[Dean's World] Dave Schuler: Forced Installation

[notify at powerblogs.com]

Posted by Dave Schuler:
Forced Installation
http://www.deanesmay.com/posts/1188249837.shtml


   Does [1]this fall under the rubric of "cruel or unusual punishment"?

     Scott McCausland, who used to be an administrator of the
     EliteTorrents BitTorrent server before it was shut down by the FBI,
     pleaded guilty in 2006 to two copyright-related charges over the
     uploading of Star Wars: Episode III to the Internet. As a result,
     he was sentenced to five months in jail and five months' home
     confinement.

     McCausland--who also goes by the name "sk0t"--has since been
     released from jail, but on Tuesday he reported on his blog that the
     terms of his sentence meant he would have to install Windows if he
     wanted to use a computer during his probation. "I had a meeting
     with my probation officer today, and he told me that he has to
     install monitoring software onto my PC," wrote McCausland. "No big
     deal to me...that is part of my sentence."

     "However, their software doesn't support GNU/Linux (which is what I
     use)," continued McCausland. "So, he told me that if I want to use
     a computer, I would have to use an OS that the software can be
     installed on. Which basically means: Microsoft and monitoring
     software or no computer. I use Ubuntu 7.04 now, and they are trying
     to force me to switch. First they give me two felonies, then they
     throw me in prison, and now this."

References

   1. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6204348.html?tag=nl.e550