UPDATE: PS3 Hacker GeoHot Claims He's on Vacation

[cgentero]

To all the people who say that that Hotz and everyone else would just use the jailbreak to pirate, might I remind you people of another case Sony was involved concerning possible copyright infringement.

*Hint* Sony was actually fighting for consumer rights in this case.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sony_Corp._of_America_v._Universal_City_Studios,_Inc.

 

[mirasiel]

To all the people who say that that Hotz and everyone else would just use the jailbreak to pirate, might I remind you people of another case Sony was involved concerning possible copyright infringement.

*Hint* Sony was actually fighting for consumer rights in this case.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sony_Corp._of_America_v._Universal_City_Studios,_Inc.

Thats different, Sony wanted to make money off of that!

 

[SteewpidZombie]

I can just picture him now


GeoHotz: Yeah I'm just down here in Columbia partying with some supermodels and staying in a 5 star hotel while laying in a solid gold beach chair. Oh rest assured though, none of the legal defense money was used on any of this...*proceeds to snort cocaine of supermodel's butt*...but I did run into Charlie Sheen by coincidence.

 

[13lackfriday]

What a coincidence, I just got back from spring break in Peru.

Wonder if he was part of the hordes of tourists and backpackers....

 

[mirasiel]

4th time now, I do not feel that he should have to expend every penny he has on this case, I allow him to budget some money for his own sanity and mental well being. That is my answer to #618.

Sir, if I were angry it would be obvious, hypothetically I'd say something like "you fucking jackass why dont you try answering the fucking question directly instead of acting like the smarmy cocksucker that you are?" and then I'd link you to my MSpaint picture of a large penis that says "suck me ************" ....all in the mental tone of Al Swearengen*.

In answer to the question you didn't really ask (you offered a wager), in this country legal aid would be means tested (about 30% or so of the pop qualifies) which means yes, you could still go on a holiday assuming the cost was below X or if you had booked and paid for said holiday prior to applying for legal aid, as seems to be the case here.

The only thing you are hurting is the English language and I wouldn't normally make anything of it but you're the one who decided that speaking down to someone was the best way to make your point


Haven't, don't.


*Swear-engen...I never caught that when I watched deadwood.

Very classy response.

Im sure that if you need legal aid, you cant afford tickets to South America to begin with. Even with on legal aid you have to put up your own money, so any extra cash you have to spend on your vacation, might be used to pay for your legal bills.

Besides he did not take legal aid, he begged for money from his supporters, he took advantage of their good will, and instead of being humble, he is out partying in a foreign land. Is that not what he is doing?

If you believe that my grasp of the English language might be flawed, why did I have to correct your definition of circular argument and your spelling?

PS I dont know who Al Swearengen is, so your very lovely insult will be done in the mental tone of Steve Urkel. "Did I do that?"

I ooze class from my every pore.

A $300 (about £150 or a lawyer for an hour or two, maybe?) flight took me 15 seconds to find, paid in advance or even on credit card I think you could still get legal aid if you coud afford that depending on various factors.

And now we have circled back round to the start of this chain, but I'll be even blunter this time.. we believe (very) differently...so I am agreeing to disagree.

We are all flawed, tragic creatures in our own ways but I get by with my devilsh good looks and rapier wit and I'm sure you have some delightful qualities of your own.

You should watch Deadwood if you ever get a chance it was a very enjoyable show with some breathtaking swearing .

 

[blind_dead_mcjones]

So now he is taking a vacation spending money he could have used on the case instead of begging for donations.

What an asshole.

What is even more saddening is the staggering number of sheeps that still insist he is in the right.

I will laugh so hard if it turns out he actually has a secret stash of hacked PS3 hard drives somewhere that are full of pirated games.

Not that it would matter, since the brainless sheep would simply accuse Sony of having planted them there as a part of their latest evil scheme.

even sadder is that even if he does lose this case, they would still insist he's in the right, that its all a conspiracy against him by both sony (who seem to be portrayed as being a front for both K.A.O.S from Get Smart and the Umbrella Corporation) and the courts, and would probably donate cash to get him back on his feet to take another vacation.

 

[Arretu]

If I'm honest with myself, and I was involved in this sort of thing, I'd be on a plane to South America too. At a guess, so would most of you. After all, if it looks like your life is about to come crashing down around your ears, who wouldn't want to enjoy that last bit of normality.

I don't own a console myself, but if I have paid £300 for some hardware, I will do whatever the hell I like with it, EULA or no. Manufacturers can say what they will, but in my opinion once you have paid for something, it's yours.

Montopolis, I am glad you are an outstanding example of morality and justice, but I remain unconvinced that you are right in anything more than a theoretical way. In an ideal world, maybe he would sell everything he owns to support his fight. If everyone was willing to do that it is likely the world would be a much better place. Sadly, humans are imperfect beings, and as such I fully support his choices. I'd do exactly the same. (This is assuming that he was truthful about not using donated money for his holiday.)

If you have the choice of losing so much, it's practically insane to do so rather than ask those that feel the same way you do for help and support.

 

[Arretu]

If I'm honest with myself, and I was involved in this sort of thing, I'd be on a plane to South America too. At a guess, so would most of you. After all, if it looks like your life is about to come crashing down around your ears, who wouldn't want to enjoy that last bit of normality.

I don't own a console myself, but if I have paid £300 for some hardware, I will do whatever the hell I like with it, EULA or no. Manufacturers can say what they will, but in my opinion once you have paid for something, it's yours.

Montopolis, I am glad you are an outstanding example of morality and justice, but I remain unconvinced that you are right in anything more than a theoretical way. In an ideal world, maybe he would sell everything he owns to support his fight. If everyone was willing to do that it is likely the world would be a much better place. Sadly, humans are imperfect beings, and as such I fully support his choices. I'd do exactly the same. (This is assuming that he was truthful about not using donated money for his holiday.)

If you have the choice of losing so much, it's practically insane to do so rather than ask those that feel the same way you do for help and support.

Wow, I want to thank you for a valid argument to justify his actions. The human animal can be a selfish one. Awesome post, I have no retort.

Just pointing out the hypocrisy of many posters in this thread. If you don't like it, go sacrifice your life (and yes, this could destroy his life) for a cause you truly believe in. I for one will applaud you.

 

[Worcester Sauce]

Settle down there matey. Sony sell the PS3 console at a huge loss only because they make the money back on game sales. If the military buy several hundred of these machines but no games, it's as if sony is now paying to support the US army. Before jumping to the thought of "but theyhave so much money, it shoudln't matter!" don't forget they wouldn't have much if all they did was hand out freebies.

respond as you like.

Not since may of last year. Escapist news story link [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/7.194610-PlayStation-3-System-Sales-No-Longer-a-Money-Pit]

In which case i sincerely appologise, should really check my facts.... :s "all i wanted was to contribute

 

[Frostbyte666]

The reason lawyers are hired is so that you can still have a reasonably normal life before having to appear in court. If you had to do everything yourself then you wouldn't be hiring the lawyer. Also ARE YOU AWARE HOW EXPENSIVE LAWYERS ARE!?! This is why many businesses have professional indemnity insurance so that insurers can pay for said lawyers without the businesses piggy bank being broken and that they can still conduct business and earn money to pay for said insurance and many other costs. Now how many people have private indemnity insurance (if such a thing even exists), so yes taking a holiday is quite justified. I've known people who've been tied up in the legal process for years, they have gone on holiday and had a life out of whatever court case is on, and how do they do this? They hire lawyers.

Notice I have not stated whether I approve of Geohots actions or not but he does have a right to continue his life and the media may have jumped the gun on saying the guy had bolted when he could have given notice to his lawyers, the opposition lawyers and the courts etc.

Once the matter has gone to an actual court and the session is due to begin THEN taking a holiday would be wrong since he would be bolting, however aren't they still fighting over where the charges will be pressed, New Jersey or California. Therefore at the moment no harm, no foul.

 

[AzrealMaximillion]

Most of this appears to be based on "Sony's claims", i dont hink they are an unbiased party in this matter. I'm not saying its untrue, im saying i would like to hear it from a source that hasnt already tried circumventing the law.

The thing is since it's a video game related case (very low on the U.S. courts' importance level) the U.S. courts aren't going to be giving out news. Sony's info is the best we've got.

AAAnd now the other side of the story, All the people who accused him of taking the money and running are proven wrong, the guy has already payed his lawyers who are responding with proof that no evidence tampering took place.Of course people could have looked at how sony got the information that this guy was in South America or what the removal of controller cards actually means, but no. Just look at all the people on here who bought into Sony's slander. I would gladly donate to the legal fund for GeoHot to sue Sony for this.

Go read the original article again. Sony said that he left. They never said he ran. Also this info is coming from Sony's lawyers, who are honestly getting payed waaaaaaaay more than Geohotz's legal fees. For a reason. Geohotz's legal fees are only $10,000. That's a really, really cheap lawyer. Most lawyers charge $200-$300 an hour to talk to. The amount he has is probably enough for 33 hours. This info about evidence tampering can't be just made up as I'm pretty sure that releasing false information about court cases is illegal. Also I'mpretty sure Hotz's legal fees aren't paid off yet. That's not how it works. Lawyers usually take the money after sevices are done so they get the entire amount calculated properly, as you have to pay for the time used in court. And to be honestly fair, the man says he's in South America on vacation. Why? Why not cancel the vacation to better prepare his case? Why have people pay for his responsibility and not put any money in himself?

He spouts this "freedon fighter" crap and people like you eat it up. How much money are you willing to donate to this guy? Are you going to pay for it when he loses too?

 

[AzrealMaximillion]

I ooze class from my every pore.

A $300 (about £150 or a lawyer for an hour or two, maybe?) flight took me 15 seconds to find, paid in advance or even on credit card I think you could still get legal aid if you coud afford that depending on various factors.

And now we have circled back round to the start of this chain, but I'll be even blunter this time.. we believe (very) differently...so I am agreeing to disagree.

We are all flawed, tragic creatures in our own ways but I get by with my devilsh good looks and rapier wit and I'm sure you have some delightful qualities of your own.

You should watch Deadwood if you ever get a chance it was a very enjoyable show with some breathtaking swearing .

Im sure you are wrong, about your charm and good looks as you have been about this discussion.

Arguing the legal aid is your pathetic attempt to steer this conversation away from your logical fallacies. Still here is more proof that you are wrong, "Legal Aid is the provision of civil legal services to people who otherwise cannot afford the services of a lawyer."
More information; http://lawyers-law.com/how-do-you-qualify-for-legal-aid/

Irregardless, it doesnt matter whether you can or can not take trip while on Legal Aid, because as I pointed out previously, this is an ethical argument which is; If took money to pay for his bills, he shouldnt spend his own money on partying in South America.

This is not a circular argument, once again, a circular argument is an argument in which the answer is the reason for the argument.

It only goes right back to the legal aid argument, because you have nothing else to bring to this discussion, so you attempt to sway this back to your pointless and flawed legal aid argument. Continuously failing or avoiding to explain; why do YOU believe it is ethical to take other peoples money, so that you have enough money to party with your friends in a foreign land?

You have failed to provided a valid argument because, like most people, you must have some ethics yourself. You see, one must be a very unethical person, to accept money from strangers to pay for ones responsibilities, and still have the testicular fortitude to go party with your friends in some foreign land.

I wish I had enough hand to gice you a one man standing ovation with the thunderous sound of Giant's Stadium fans.

 

[AzrealMaximillion]

If I'm honest with myself, and I was involved in this sort of thing, I'd be on a plane to South America too. At a guess, so would most of you. After all, if it looks like your life is about to come crashing down around your ears, who wouldn't want to enjoy that last bit of normality.

I don't own a console myself, but if I have paid £300 for some hardware, I will do whatever the hell I like with it, EULA or no. Manufacturers can say what they will, but in my opinion once you have paid for something, it's yours.

Montopolis, I am glad you are an outstanding example of morality and justice, but I remain unconvinced that you are right in anything more than a theoretical way. In an ideal world, maybe he would sell everything he owns to support his fight. If everyone was willing to do that it is likely the world would be a much better place. Sadly, humans are imperfect beings, and as such I fully support his choices. I'd do exactly the same. (This is assuming that he was truthful about not using donated money for his holiday.)

If you have the choice of losing so much, it's practically insane to do so rather than ask those that feel the same way you do for help and support.

Wow, I want to thank you for a valid argument to justify his actions. The human animal can be a selfish one. Awesome post, I have no retort.

Just pointing out the hypocrisy of many posters in this thread. If you don't like it, go sacrifice your life (and yes, this could destroy his life) for a cause you truly believe in. I for one will applaud you.

I find it ironic that you try to find the hypocrisy of this thread's posters while ignoring the hypocrisy of Geohotz. The man says he's a "freedom fighter". What freedom fighter leaves his cause to go on vacation? That's like Che Guevera leaving Castro's side to chill in Columbia because he didn't want to get shot during the Cuban Revolution. Even if this vacation was planned in November, why not cancel it and use what money you get from that to better solidify your stand? I can tell you right now that not a lot of people have the balls to go on vacation while an international company is suing them. And I highly doubt you, or a lot people posting here would do the same.

Think of it this way. You can't possibly know what Geohotz is thinking at this moment. You don't know the end result of this case. Would you honestly be someone who would go off to another country to relax? Would you not have the thought of this life threatening court case going through the entire time? Would that not wrack your mind to the point of severe stress? Not much of a vacation.

This guy has some major priotity issues here. It's not like it's an open and shut case and the fact that you're defending his choice to spend his own money on leasuire and use $10,000 from strangers (which honestly it a really cheap lawyer) to pay legal fees disturbs me.

 

[Arretu]

If I'm honest with myself, and I was involved in this sort of thing, I'd be on a plane to South America too. At a guess, so would most of you. After all, if it looks like your life is about to come crashing down around your ears, who wouldn't want to enjoy that last bit of normality.

I don't own a console myself, but if I have paid £300 for some hardware, I will do whatever the hell I like with it, EULA or no. Manufacturers can say what they will, but in my opinion once you have paid for something, it's yours.

Montopolis, I am glad you are an outstanding example of morality and justice, but I remain unconvinced that you are right in anything more than a theoretical way. In an ideal world, maybe he would sell everything he owns to support his fight. If everyone was willing to do that it is likely the world would be a much better place. Sadly, humans are imperfect beings, and as such I fully support his choices. I'd do exactly the same. (This is assuming that he was truthful about not using donated money for his holiday.)

If you have the choice of losing so much, it's practically insane to do so rather than ask those that feel the same way you do for help and support.

Wow, I want to thank you for a valid argument to justify his actions. The human animal can be a selfish one. Awesome post, I have no retort.

Just pointing out the hypocrisy of many posters in this thread. If you don't like it, go sacrifice your life (and yes, this could destroy his life) for a cause you truly believe in. I for one will applaud you.

I find it ironic that you try to find the hypocrisy of this thread's posters while ignoring the hypocrisy of Geohotz. The man says he's a "freedom fighter". What freedom fighter leaves his cause to go on vacation? That's like Che Guevera leaving Castro's side to chill in Columbia because he didn't want to get shot during the Cuban Revolution. Even if this vacation was planned in November, why not cancel it and use what money you get from that to better solidify your stand? I can tell you right now that not a lot of people have the balls to go on vacation while an international company is suing them. And I highly doubt you, or a lot people posting here would do the same.

Think of it this way. You can't possibly know what Geohotz is thinking at this moment. You don't know the end result of this case. Would you honestly be someone who would go off to another country to relax? Would you not have the thought of this life threatening court case going through the entire time? Would that not wrack your mind to the point of severe stress? Not much of a vacation.

This guy has some major priotity issues here. It's not like it's an open and shut case and the fact that you're defending his choice to spend his own money on leasuire and use $10,000 from strangers (which honestly it a really cheap lawyer) to pay legal fees disturbs me.

As pointed out, the cost of a holiday compared to the cost of legal fees is somewhat negligible. Adding that small amount to what will be a very costly enterprise would seem somewhat pointless. Do you have a source for him claiming to be a freedom fighter? While I do not doubt that he would claim that, I have not seen it myself, so can't comment.

As for the priority issues, different people see things different ways. I can certainly see why someone would want to get away from it all for a while before the aforementioned lawsuit has the chance to leave his life in tatters, with dubious prospects of such freedom in his future.

Just to clarify, I don't know (or care) if he is on holiday or trying to escape the law. I'm just saying that if he is doing what he says he is, and not using donated money to do so, he is entirely within his rights. If, on the other hand, he is either attempting to get away, or used donated money to pay for this trip, then I would certainly not approve of or agree with those choices. Even then, I can understand why he might make them. People are acting like he has personally taken money from their pockets. It's kinda bemusing.