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software piracy
do you belive in it?!? Dec 11 05 09:16 pm Link I think it's somewhere up there with the Easter Bunny and Santa Claus. Dec 11 05 09:29 pm Link If it didn't exist neither would the world we live in and love.... Dec 11 05 09:34 pm Link I admit nothing! Dec 11 05 09:35 pm Link A bunch of C++ once tried to make me walk the plank, but I stole its cutlass and got away safely. Dec 11 05 09:47 pm Link help me dispell or prove a myth...is there a branch of the justice department or agency that can come into a company suspected of using pirated software or software that is not intended for use and seize that equipment???...now before you think i am nut, i have heard a commercial with an 800 number to call if you think you know of such activities. Dec 11 05 09:48 pm Link we should not talk about religion on this site Dec 11 05 09:49 pm Link Whats the Number? Is there a Reward....lol (:------ Hj Dec 11 05 09:53 pm Link BCG wrote: I do not think they can take there equipment but there is a group that does check whether you are using or selling pirated software I worked for a company who bought some to resell and he thought it was legit right up until the sheriff showed up with a warrant he had to go to court and ended up settling out of court for an undisclosed amount. oh and I do not think they are actually part of the goverment either they just work closley with several software companys like Microsoft and Adobe. Dec 11 05 09:59 pm Link adobe and microsoft are my new enemies. Dec 11 05 10:14 pm Link BCG wrote: You are thinking of the BSA or Business software Aliance.... they are to software what the RIAA is to the record industry... only not quite as rabid... Dec 11 05 10:33 pm Link they do not have authority in private business affairs do they???...*thanks God I live in a State in which i can carry a concealed weapon* Dec 11 05 10:36 pm Link Well... the simple solution is to simply pay for the software. I don't have any pirated software, and I don't "share" my software with other people. As a photographer I don't want people stealing my images, and in some cases I'd go to court to collect damages for copyright infringement. And its the same thing for those in the music business; it doesn't help bands to steal their music. Just because something is deemed "expensive," or is readily available online, doesn't make stealing it right. Having said that, I do believe these people do go over the top in "enforcing" copyright law. I don't know anything about the legalities of this practice, but I didn't think companies like Adobe or Microsoft has the power to enforce laws. Were they deputized or something? If the Adobe police were to show up I'd more than likely turn them away just out of principle... I would expect instead these companies to file a complaint with the proper authorities just as we would do were one of our images stolen. Anyway... I ramble now so I'll shut up. -Pat- Dec 11 05 10:57 pm Link I only use legal software. I spent a lot of money on it (over $5000), but using pirated ones just isn't right. I also do not own any burned music CDs or ripped DVDs. My collection of music and movies is huge and they're all legally purchased originals. Mark Dec 11 05 11:05 pm Link You can't compare software to music and movies or any art media. Music was made to be shared. It is a different beast than software. Until the music industry gets over itself and embraces technology and the fact that the only way to license music is one price unlimited sharing, it will continue to suffer lost revenue. I don't care how many song writers they say they are paying with the money they make. I know otherwise. If a CD costs under $2 to produce, where does that other money go? The other $12-14 dollars? I promise you it does not go to the lonely song writers. Sony BMG knows no one will ever feel sorry for them. So the "face" they put on piracy is that of the poor songwriter. Dec 11 05 11:15 pm Link bencook2 wrote: From a legal standpoint, they're almost identical. The US Copyright law has some specific instances for "musical works", but the basis behind copyright for music, art, photography, literature, and software is the same. Dec 11 05 11:23 pm Link bencook2 wrote: You sick puppy.. Software, music, movies and your images are and should be protected by law. To say that someone who creates music does not have the same rights as you who produced an image or someone that spent years developing software is at best hypocritical and at worst malicious. Dec 11 05 11:36 pm Link BCG wrote: My fiance works for a local multi million dollar company which has a graphics and web design department. If a program needs to be installed on more than one computer technically and to be legal they are supposed to purchase a liscence for each computer they install it on. Well, the tech department kids in charge of handing out the programs were making copies for themselves, not aquiring liscences for each computer they installed stuff on and Mr. Lawyer did in fact show up at the bosses office with a big stack of lawsuit papers listing all sorts of fines he would have to pay if it went to court. Dec 11 05 11:40 pm Link If you are stealing software they will find you and put you away.... Dec 11 05 11:58 pm Link A good friend of mine works for the anti-piracy department of a large corperation. He gets emails from crazy people all the time trying to report some sort of piracy. Usually it is young men and or teenagers saying they know someone that has copied a computer game and/or software and want to know if they can recieve money. But this particular guy contacts them usually once a week via email. My friend seems to always run into his emails. This one in particular made me gut laugh. I had to share it: I, Sir ****** *. ****** LIVE HERE IN VANCOUVER, B.C. Canada and have done so for many years since starting UNIVERSITY in 1983. Before that I lived in Kamloops B.C. Canada the HOME TOWN of Avro Arrow's TOP ENGINEER DESIGNER and then Apollo Rocket DESIGNER ENGINEER. He could have be my father for all I know. I have UNIVERSITY Graduate course in Solar Energy Utilization and Fiber Composite Construction and 6 years of University education in APPLIED SCIENCE. And you treat me like a BUM. YOU ARE RUDE to THE MAX. And then you wonder why I am rude. The police have been flying all over the planet PRETENDING to be me and making me look like: SHIT. I have written my own patent applications and AWARDED patent but THE PIGS stole my money and I could not pay my FEES. They stole my cellular phone and all my motor vehicles and BURNED DOWN my HOME to destroy INCOME TAX RECORDS. They have PHYSICAL TORTURED me by way of STEALING my INCOME and have mentally TORTURED me by REFUSING TO DO THEIR JOB. I am EXTREMELY INTELLIGENT but NOT the GEEK as I know all ABOUT the BULLY. To get an A grade on an math exam I would study for about one day. I am QUICK. EXTREMELY QUICK. More to come as good information. PLEASE ASSIST as I, Sir ****** *. ****** am INJURED and HURT and TORMENTED CONTINUOUSLY by the Liberal Party of Canada, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and my Family. As I am an ADOPTED BASTARD CHILD. My real parents were OBVIOUS killed during similar marshalling event at the first manned flight to OUTER SPACE. Some how my real parents were killed and my so called mother STOLE me from the Hospital. SHE HATES ME and says I own NOTHING and deserve NOTHING. She is INSANE. Criminal INSANE along with the Canadian police and Canadian Gov't. The Queen of England has GONE MAD and is RUDE to her death. I can not pay her VISA bill. They are killing themselves everyday. You people are running a 21st century Spanish Inquisition and are ILLEGAL. You wonder why you are killing yourselves trying to kill me. YOU are ILLEGAL. TORTURE IS ILLEGAL PERIOD. From Sir ****** *. ****** He goes on to list 57 things that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and the C.I.A. has 'stolen' from him including this one: 39) One trillion cubic feet of natural gas situated in Fort Saint John British Columbia Canada Just thought I would share some laughs  Dec 12 05 12:24 am Link Kevin Connery wrote: No arguement. Dec 12 05 01:06 am Link Doesn't matter if it's music, software or photographs. If you stole it - you stole it. Just because I think a Porsche is too expensive to buy one I don't go around and take the next best one... Doesn't matter if I agree with the companies/industry policies or not... Dec 12 05 01:12 am Link Hartsoe wrote: You are right. But in the mean time, billions of downloads later, the majority of the world agrees with you in word...but does not in deed. Dec 12 05 01:28 am Link bencook2 wrote: Yeah - I know... but I like the idea that I am not downloading illegal software or music or whatever and STILL can come up with the stuff I show here... Dec 12 05 01:32 am Link yeah, but by ripping music CDs you don't give the the musicians one thin dime let alone the big bad record companies you pretend to be hatin' on... and I know how much we bitch when we see our images other places and didn't get any renumeration. The one major positive I see to purchasing my software is that, god forbid, something happens to my machine, I can reload all of it. I do back up constantly but I know most folks don't and if your computer goes burp, you have to scramble to find all your software again ah well... Dec 12 05 02:09 am Link I believe all software should be open-source and have a cap on its price tags by law. for example, something that we all use - photoshop. it should not cost that damn much. how about $50 a copy instead. their sales would probably increase more than enough to compensate for it. I mean let's imagine that half the people who get cracked copies instead got legal copies at $50 a pop. of course it's gonna improve their sales. I've seen people just giving out copies of Photoshop and other programs all over the place. companies have a monopoly on their software since nobody else makes the identical product (only one label will have a song by a specific artist, only one company will have the exact program, etc), and because of that think they can charge such high prices. Yet monopolies are supposed to be illegal. Gov't looks the other way on software, music, video, etc monopolies and trusts because they like getting the taxes from every sale and from the profit margins of all the companies. Dec 12 05 03:34 am Link BCG wrote: it's the copyright enforcement people. and yeah they can, if they get a report of it, come in to check things out. but they can't access the computers without a warrant. if they get a warrant, they can view it, confiscate it, and charge you. Dec 12 05 03:36 am Link Sounds like you need to take some Accounting classes and learn about the concept of "overhead". bencook2 wrote: Dec 12 05 05:11 am Link Alexei Fomin wrote: Well, photoshop isn't expensive anymore and given out by almost any new printer which comes along... Dec 12 05 05:19 am Link Mach V Speed wrote: I have taken 3 accounting and 2 ecconomics and my History of Rock n Roll professor worked for Capital for 15 years. thou doth assume too much. (or too little as the case may be) Dec 12 05 09:51 am Link bencook2 wrote: with attitudes attitudes like ashley simpsons prevailant in the industry, i do not feel the need to support her anymore...now i will BUY anything by Shakira, even if it sux. Dec 12 05 10:02 am Link Hartsoe wrote: PhotoShop CS etc is over $500. Photoshop Elements is often given out as freebie. Two vastly different levels of software. Dec 12 05 10:17 am Link Dreams To Keep wrote: I know, but who needs PhotoShop CS in a full version and is NOT a professional photographer/graphic Designer (who can/should afford a legal licence). Dec 12 05 10:20 am Link Hartsoe wrote: Hey, that's where all the hotties who didn't want to f**k with me while I was driving my Cavalier live. Dec 12 05 02:24 pm Link Alexei Fomin wrote: Comare the above statement to: Alexei Fomin wrote: Read copyright law and or ANY other intellectual property laws. Then come back and compare what you said with the facts. You'll notice there's a very low correlation between your claims and reality. Dreams to Keep wrote: And Photoshop Elements has more capabilities than PS 1, 2 or 3 had in most respects, and they sold for $500 and worked extremely well for designers and photographers. Dec 12 05 02:38 pm Link Well, I produce photographs, and I produce software. If you copy my photograph and hang it in your home, or load my program and use it for important functions, it seems much the same to me, except: 1. You're using my software to do important things (as opposed to decorating your house), so you're stealing something that has a greater intrinsic value to you. 2. My photography has several thousand dollars of overhead to it, and with money having been spent on camera, software, accessories and such, my costs are relatively static. My software, on the other hand, costs me to provide ongoing programming services, support services, subscriptions, and advertising. So when you steal my software, you're stealing something that hurts me more to have stolen. If Photoshop should be limited to $50 per installation, and they'd have more sales, why, then, just develop a photo editing program yourself and sell it for $50 a pop and see how much better your business model is than Adobe's as you put them out of business. That's how competition works. And for my harshest statement ever on these forums, thanks to all who advocate stealing my product that I've sweated buckets and gone into debt to produce. What I'm putting on the market to try to make my livelihood with is no different than the farmer or watchmaker who take their products to market, just to have someone swipe the bushel or timepiece when their back is turned. Dec 12 05 04:07 pm Link BCG wrote: consider yourself reported Dec 12 05 04:09 pm Link I find the comments on the music industry and the perceptions those have of the piracy issue interesting. Over the past few months I have been photographing, building marketing collateral and helping write Press Releases on a new technology that will be introduced Q1 06. The biggest concern is not the consumer buying a CD, ripping it to an iPod, handing the CD to a firend to do the same and so on. The largest area of concern is international product dumping, as in 10's of thousands of units distributed throughout the world illegally with no return to the artist or label. Napster, gnuella et al were a significant problem in unauthorized peer-to-peer, but a mosquito bite compared to a snake bite that is happening overseas. New technologies that thwart the practice by making it unaffordable / difficult to copy are actually good for both the labels and the consumer as non-sharing units create additional sales and reduces the overall costs by eliminating the high costs associated with fighting piracy. As for software, technically speaking and if one reads the fine print in user agreements, the software is only a license to use, not ownership. Software makers can and do perform audits and are within their power to do so, however most of those audits are at the enterprise level, not directed to the individual. Dec 12 05 04:28 pm Link Wow, I'm taking a bit of a beating here. Well it's a good thing i have thought of photography the same way as software already. That's why I have no problem giving a cd of images out to a customer. so they can print as much as they want as long as they're not making a profit off of the images. Also, with photography it's a lot easier to recreate the photograph than it is to recreate a program, so someone could make an equivalent of an "aftermarket copy" of my images by setting everything up themselves and reshooting it. with software, you can write the same program 3 different ways and it will work just the same any way you do it. So with software it is a lot harder to recreate the product. I will always have to have a day job, because i refuse to charge as much as everyone else, and usually do it pretty much for cost plus an hourly a little higher than my day job. because i think that it's fairer that way. But i shoot for love of the craft and art, which it seems a lot of photographers have forgotten. and same with programmers, they have forgotten that they got into programming because they enjoyed it and just wanted to do something they liked. To so many people in creative fields it is now all about money, instead of the art and craft that they originally fell in love with. Dec 12 05 04:47 pm Link after the crap and hoopla sony caused over installing programs on unsuspecting consumers, i plan to buy all my videos, software and music supplies from my friend Huong Chang in the Hunon Province of china...*flips off the over paid, underworked execs at sony, adobe and microsoft.* Dec 12 05 04:50 pm Link |
