Netflix's diminishing subscribers and its response

That sounds to me like doing client side security. Is that OS hook strong enough that you would want to protect that sort of PII behind? I expect to get round it with virtualisation for example.
I'm not sure exactly what you mean by virtualisation but as far as I'm aware emulators respect it. Depends on the kind of emulation I guess, I think there's pure software emu and device-based emulation (via a cloud service).

And sure, it's client-side security. That's one of the problems with having something as ubiquitous as a vaguely-modern smartphone. They're something institutions have to cater for - increasingly for staff as much as students - and they're not like a workstation that can be managed centrally via IT. This makes them innately susceptible to attacks that traditional infosec just doesn't cover.

It's kind of an interesting field right now. There's so much iteration between generations of devices, APIs and so forth, that mistakes are basically guaranteed. It's not like how computers first came about where it was academia first, popular culture second. It's the other way around.

A "digital ID card" that's just a picture isn't an an appropriate method of confirming identity in the first place.
I'm trying not to derail the thread too much, but you don't understand the (concrete) use case I'm getting at. These cards often render barcodes that can be used to access facilities. A replacement of a physical service that most universities (and more institutions) provide.

Yes, we can tangent the tangent into "is replacing said service a good idea" but that's a whole other discussion. The flag is important, and the flag has a valid use case.
 
I'm trying not to derail the thread too much, but you don't understand the (concrete) use case I'm getting at. These cards often render barcodes that can be used to access facilities. A replacement of a physical service that most universities (and more institutions) provide.

Yes, we can tangent the tangent into "is replacing said service a good idea" but that's a whole other discussion. The flag is important, and the flag has a valid use case.

I understand the use case, there's an appropriate way to do it: Add your student ID to Apple Wallet on your iPhone or Apple Watch

"You can use your student ID on your iPhone or Apple Watch to access your dorm or library, buy food at campus cafés, pay for books and supplies at campus stores, and wherever you use your physical student ID card.

Express Mode is turned on automatically when you add your student ID to Apple Wallet, so you can use your student ID with just a tap. You don't need to wake or unlock your device, and you don't need to authenticate with Face ID, Touch ID, or your passcode. Simply hold your device near the contactless reader."

Preventing screenshots of barcodes on a phone is laughable. It's the smartphone equivalent of not allowing students to use photocopiers on campus and instead having a photocopier attendant who photocopies stuff for students and refuses to photocopy any physical barcodes or other objectionable material. If someone wants to defeat a system where the security involves people not sharing barcodes, both approaches are about as effective at deterring bad actors.
 
I understand the use case, there's an appropriate way to do it: Add your student ID to Apple Wallet on your iPhone or Apple Watch
I encourage you to submit this recommendation to the nearest university board of your choosing. I'm not here to debate what you think is a preferable idea (though for starters, making it iOS-only when you're raising an Android flag is not it), I'm here to establish that your claim about the flag being nefarious isn't a solid one.

EDIT - I realise, too late, that the Apple example was possibly meant as a "look at what they do better than Google" kind of evangelism thing. If so, I have even less interest in the tangent. I presumed originally this was purely from a technical, platform-agnostic point of view. Sorry to all of ya for the derail (and to sherbz especially).
 
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How about making Netflix more elderly friendly?

A special remote with really big buttons.
Or a 1 touch button where you speak and it brings up search results right away.

Give a senior discount even.

My Roku remote has an audio search button already.

And did I just read that Netflix is also adding advertising to their streams?
 
My Roku remote has an audio search button already.

And did I just read that Netflix is also adding advertising to their streams?
I think they are adding a free service that has ads.
 
I got incredibly pissed off recently when I realized that Netflix actually makes it impossible to take screenshots of their streams, which I find utterly ridiculous. Taking a screenshot of a show to use it to make a meme is textbook fair use.
I was taking screenshots on Amazon just fine until a couple weeks ago when it suddenly stopped. They even blocked partial screen screenshots which seemed to be a workaround for a while. It drives me insane that I my browser can override screenshots. I don't think media should be able to control how I use my computer. I'm on MacOS.
 
I saw this coming years ago. Toot toot, that's me tooting my own horn.

What I mean is that customers thought they'd found the goose that laid the golden egg: cable TV quality entertainment without having to pay cable subscriber fees, and no commercials? When it seemed like streaming revenues were only going to be a fraction on top of cable and what have you, I can see why companies like Netflix etc. were able to peddle their service at just a few pennies a day, but then when the competition starts heating up an cable is (supposedly?) on the backslide, where are the content producers going to get their money from? They're not going to take an 80% pay cut because you, Mr. and Mrs. Customer, don't want to pay for it.
 
I encourage you to submit this recommendation to the nearest university board of your choosing. I'm not here to debate what you think is a preferable idea (though for starters, making it iOS-only when you're raising an Android flag is not it), I'm here to establish that your claim about the flag being nefarious isn't a solid one.

Anything where someone is expending effort to limit what I can do with my hardware is nefarious. My device should be working for me. "No screenshots in apps" is akin to the obnoxious, infantilizing javascript popups that try to stop you right-clicking on web pages.

I don't have a recommendation for developers using the secure flag - what I want is for google to scrap the flag, and tell developers using it to pound sand. I doubt users lose any features.

- I realise, too late, that the Apple example was possibly meant as a "look at what they do better than Google" kind of evangelism thing. If so, I have even less interest in the tangent. I presumed originally this was purely from a technical, platform-agnostic point of view. Sorry to all of ya for the derail (and to sherbz especially).

Nah, I use an Android phone, and I don't want Google to support DRM on it.
 
Nah, I use an Android phone, and I don't want Google to support DRM on it.
Ah, fair enough. Which you have to admit, makes your recommendation of the Apple ecosystem kinda funny :)

Taking away control from the user has always been a thing. I understand why you'd object to it, particularly as a power user or the like, but the reality is no user has complete access to every system, much like we don't all have access to this forum's backend database.

Your objection is to a flag that developers have to implement in something specific like (but not limited to) an ID card. But that's just a tool. What normally matters is how it's used. Much like with Netflix's choices in its software matter more than what it's actually building that software with.

I'm a big proponent of considering the ethics of software development. But that's a more nuanced topic and often criticised-as-progressivism compared to "limiting what I can do with my hardware". Because that's not about the ethics of the decision at all. It's stamping your feet because something is inconveniencing you personally.
 
Copyright is already super sketchy, giving it elevated status over my computer's ability to function as I intend it is a crime.
 
I'm not sure exactly what you mean by virtualisation but as far as I'm aware emulators respect it. Depends on the kind of emulation I guess, I think there's pure software emu and device-based emulation (via a cloud service).
I meant running android in VirtualBox for example. You can take a screenshot of what the guest OS is showing without involving the guest OS at all.
Ah, fair enough. Which you have to admit, makes your recommendation of the Apple ecosystem kinda funny :)

Taking away control from the user has always been a thing. I understand why you'd object to it, particularly as a power user or the like, but the reality is no user has complete access to every system, much like we don't all have access to this forum's backend database.
We totally can have full access to systems we own. That so many people choose systems that they do not have control over says a lot about people really. Not having access to the backend of CFC is totally different from buying a non-turing complete computer.
Your objection is to a flag that developers have to implement in something specific like (but not limited to) an ID card. But that's just a tool. What normally matters is how it's used. Much like with Netflix's choices in its software matter more than what it's actually building that software with.
A phone is just a tool, and it is a tool that people choose to buy that stops them doing what they want to do. I just hope this sort of thing just pushes people towards proper open operating systems.
I'm a big proponent of considering the ethics of software development. But that's a more nuanced topic and often criticised-as-progressivism compared to "limiting what I can do with my hardware". Because that's not about the ethics of the decision at all. It's stamping your feet because something is inconveniencing you personally.
Where are you getting the "inconveniencing personally" from? Quoting the developer docs does not obviously sound like that. I will admit a big issue I have with this sort of client side security is that it is an inconvenience of the legitimate user without actually being an impediment to the determined crook.
 
You could, but I keep finding myself buying their hardware.
 
I lost all my goodwill for them after an iphone i had broke. It was a software fault. It kept on booting up and restarting. Took it into the shop, they confirmed it was a software fault. Then charged me £400 to replace the phone (and they kept the "broken" one, no doubt to recondition it and sell it on). They are also massively anti consumer by hardware locking their products so you can only buy THEIR headphones and THEIR chargers, for which they charge you hundreds of pounds/dollars. Even Microsoft in the 90s was not as bad as Apple is today. And yet people still buy all their products, which technically speaking are not even that good anyway.

Rant over.
 
The human interfaces on cell devices are so unintuitive, that once you learn one, you're almost trapped in a prison of forever copyright. Start/end/everything inbetween.
 
The human interfaces on cell devices are so unintuitive, that once you learn one, you're almost trapped in a prison of forever copyright. Start/end/everything inbetween.
You must be a bit of a power user. As far as the basics go they are much the same.
 
Think more in terms of getting ready to throw the thing against the wall after 20 seconds of use each time.

I swear I have to suck on my fingers and dry them off before the screens even work properly enough to swipe an unlock code. I think they're for people with soft, well moisturized, and manicured hands.
 
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The human interfaces on cell devices are so unintuitive, that once you learn one, you're almost trapped in a prison of forever copyright. Start/end/everything inbetween.

This. My father went from Android to Apple a year ago, and his usability is still lousy, even with my fruitware-literate sister living nearby.
 
Fuitware? :lol:
 
Apple's walled garden for iPhones and iPads is quite wonderful. I am PC based for my computer though because of games and a long history going back back to DOS.
Can i just say that Apple is a terrible company forever and ever amen.
Yes you can, but you would be wrong... :p
 
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