[thelist] More Smart Tags

[aardvark]

> From: Martin <martin at members.evolt.org>
> 
> >> OK, so we're obliged to add a proprietary meta tag for every
> >> browser that decides they want to mess with our content?
> >
> >well, yes, and that is unfortunate... but hey, aren't a lot of us
> >adding favicon.ico files to our sites?  and how is it messing with
> >our content?  the content doesn't change, it just stuff some
> >unfortunate links into an ugly squiggly line..

i realized that the first part of this response sounds bad... 'well, 
yes' is a statement of fact, as in 'yes, you may have to do that, and 
wouldn't it suck' as opposed to, 'yes, so what?'...

> Links are content (otherwise Yahoo doesn't exist, and bloggers don't
> really have much of a site), and choice of links or lack thereof is
> very clearly part of the site owner's intent.
> 
> Imagine if I *removed* all the links from your site?

you can... you want the bookmarklet to do that?

now, we know it's not the same... it's not removing links, and it's 
not trying to make links behave a new way... it's inserting 
somethign that are links, but only from a little pop-up menu...  that 
doesn't make it good or better or right, but let's just frame it 
correctly...

> >> It seems to me (as well as others more versed in law than anyone on
> >> this list is likely to be) that this smart tag idea (as we
> >> understand it) is a blatant abuse of monopoly power.
> >
> >i completely disagree with that... how is that abuse of monopoly? 
> >have you seen all the other browsers out there that users can get? 
> >free ones?  that easily do what IE can do?
> >
> >there is a choice, user education not-withstanding...
> 
> Ah yes. Unfortunately, that's so much handwaving. "Apart
> from the insurmountable problems, timetravel is trivial"

yep, but the argument still stands...

i'm in no way saying it's *easy* or even commonly known, but we 
have to look at it from a different angle... the fact is, there are other 
browsers and nothing is stopping people from getting them...

we all know damn well they won't... but that's not the issue...