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Google News facing an uncertain future

Since the dawn of time Google News has refused to pay for the right to show snippets from news stories and linking to the external headline, claiming that it constitutes fair use. They've stood by this stubbornly, even as other news sites have one-upped them in news traffic on a continual basis. That makes the story out of the Scotland's Sunday Herald all the more shocking. The story reports that Google has reached a secret deal with a few large UK news groups to license content for Google News. Say it ain't so Google? Secret deals? It all seems so clandestine. It's like that major league slugger who resisted steroids for so long, even as all the other guys were hitting more home runs and getting more attention. And then, finally, reluctantly, he caves and falls to the dark side.

This not-so-secret deal has major implications for the current online news format. One of the big feathers in Google's moral superiority cap is that they don't run ads, so they don't profit from their news site. They're doing it out of the goodness of their hearts, sending traffic to the external sites. This is a boost to the fair use argument, proving that they're not doing it for their own gain. However, if Google has to start paying for licensing its news, do you think it's really going to be able to stay ad-free? They may be alright with not making money off of their news site, but there's no way they're going to stand for losing a ton. Implode much?

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Featured Time Waster

Forumwarz - a potentially offensive time waster

I pwn UAfter spending the better part of an hour on Forumwarz I still can't decide if it's just sick or if it's kind of fun. It's a bit like a car wreck on the highway. I know I shouldn't be looking but I can't quite turn away.

It's sick, it's twisted, it's the internet on it's worst level and darn it, it's kind of fun. At least for a little while.

Forumwarz is a parody role-playing game that takes place on the internet - or at least the Forumwarz version of it. Your goal is to complete missions that are given to you through a mock up of GoogleTalk called Sentrillion.

Your first "friend" is ShallowEsophagus who begins giving you missions to pwn various forums by being a troll. Depending on the character type you are assigned at start up, you have tools like drooling on the keyboard or bashing your head on the keyboard that you can use to destroy forum threads and eventually, pwn a forum.

Future missions involve buying illegal software from the Russians, pwning more difficult forums and other internet oddness.

Completing missions gives you cash, called Flezz in game, and items that you can pawn or use in other missions. The game is NOT for those easily offended. It's crass, coarse and there are frequent f-bombs in the fake chat sessions.

This is also a game for a more mature audience as it requires you to shop at the Drugs R Fun store to get various concoctions to improve your playing, engage in certain cyber activities to get more Flezz and just generally use a more adult perspective.

If you can get past that, here are the more enjoyable and time-wasting aspects.

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