Piracy, industry friendly or what?

[TechZ]

Nobody is justifying/promoting piracy here. Careful please, i can get into trouble!

Greengrime:
Just because some people do it doesn't meant the act is justified

GG, not some, a majority of people do it. Look around and ask your friends.

Again most people who need ultra fast connections are tech people, RD pointed that out too.

I connect remotely and do REAL work
downloading Linux ISO's and patches to MS operating systems

For one thing game companies are making it harder for a person to use one copy on more than one machine, hell if I bought C&C Generals, i should be able to play it on both my pc and my laptop, but I cant can I? (no really can I?)

[confus-ed]

Nobody is justifying/promoting piracy here. Careful please, i can get into trouble!

..hell if I bought C&C Generals, i should be able to play it on both my pc and my laptop, but I cant can I? (no really can I?)

So I requoted with a little more emphasis on what probably needs remembering while we debate this & then I'll say on your later question you can do this without doing any 'evil' by simply installing it twice & using your original cd as a 'key' thats how its meant to work, however as copyright is so dumb you'll still be technically infringing by having two lots of s/w installed at once ! & that's what the dumbies tell you to do as well ..

In this case the 'best bit' is that the copyprotection mechanisms they employ to defend their copyright are probably in breach of a whole load more laws about being able to make backups & 'fair use' (we don't have that in the UK technically, we are entitled to have a full program listing - like yeah - that comes in the box :butt: ) ..or if you pm/mail me .. you never know what I might say but as you rightly say we can't cover those bits here !

[GreenGrime]

GG, not some, a majority of people do it. Look around and ask your friends.

True.

But like I said, it still doesn't make it right.

[corturbra]

Just a quick question, slightly deviating from the copyright issue, however, it is still pertinent.

Is £12.99 really that much to pay for a music CD for which you'll get a lifetime's pleasure? Sure it hurts now, but in 20 years time you'll still be able to listen to your CD, so over 20 years, you've paid less than a £1 a year to continuously have the same enjoyment of a song.

As for copyright, you should be allowed to make a backup copy (just 1) of your product, regardless of whether it is software or music. I always make a copy of my CD's, that way the original never gets scratched or used to scrape the ice off in the winter!

Is piracy industry friendly? Yes, if every individual who copies/borrows a CD and finds that what they have borrowed is useful to them, then subsequently purchases the product at full price. No, if individuals just download/copy songs and never pay, then how can that help?

[confus-ed]

.. No, if individuals just download/copy songs and never pay, then how can that help?

Sells loads of ipods .. so that we can all look forward to MKII !

[GrandDad]

http://www.webtechgeek.com/IndexWTG.htm#halo2

Action Game 'Halo 2' Sold Early on EBay $265.: Advance copies of the aliens-versus-space marines video game "Halo 2" have already fetched as much as $265 on Internet auction site eBay, days before the official launch.

The $50 Xbox game, Microsoft Corp.'s flagship title, doesn't officially go on sale until Tuesday.

But in one eBay auction, an in-hand copy of the $55 special edition "Halo 2", which includes special packaging and a bonus DVD, sold Thursday for $265.

In a statement, Microsoft would only say it has been "working really hard to keep the 'Halo 2' plot twists a secret so everyone can have an equal opportunity to enjoy them. That will happen when the game officially goes on sale at 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday, November 9."

In the game, players once again assume the role of super soldier Master Chief as he and fellow combatants try to thwart an alien invasion of earth.

Reports that copies had been sold at a few stores owned by Midwest retail chain Meijer Inc. were denied by company spokesman John Zimmerman. "There is absolutely no truth to that at all," he said.

Last month, a pirated, French-language version of "Halo 2" appeared on file-sharing networks and news groups. Microsoft said it continues to investigate that case and is working with authorities to track down those responsible. It's unclear how the breach occurred.

The problems apparently haven't affected sales: more than 1.5 million copies of the game have been pre-ordered. (AP)

[Radical Dreamer]

Everyone tends to forget that fast connections ARENT just for tech people, what about movie trailers? I use quite a bit of BW watching trailers, and how about MS updates? Over 200mb of updates for XP alone. Virus updates can get to be upwards of 10mb at times. What about patches for games? What about online gaming? What about the sharing of LEGAL files just as large databases and large LEGAL movies (home movies for example)

Just because most people use the connection for illegal purposes, does not mean that we should get rid of or restrict the use of it.

Hell, I can use my VCR to record PPV movies, does this mean we should outlaw vcr's? People use digi cams to make perverted videos of underage children does this mean we should outlaw them?

Case being is that alot of things can be used for legal and illegal purposes, but I hate to lose the things that I can do legally just because of a bunch of idiots