The Right To Read: Time Limited Textbooks Misc.8/28/2000; 2:43:24 PM In The Right To Read, Richard Stallman writes a hypothetical story set in 2096 as a flashback to circa 2050 about university students who were not allowed to share textbooks by defeating the technological protections on them, or they would face jail time. He may have been off by about 50 years. As shared in this Slashdot story, Vital Source Technologies has created such a protected textbook. Its capabilities for control are limited only by your imagination.For the corporate spin, see the Vital Source Technologies page. Apparently, NYU is offering it this year... they are presenting it as a way of saving money, though if you don't already have a Apple Powerbook, that's a significant hidden cost.As an isolated incident, this isn't a problem. I fear how far this will go. I also fear what happens when Doubleclick.net buyts Vital Source Technologies, too.Great Slashdot post that sums it up quite concisely.