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Do you pirate?

The reason i pirate is because Music,Anime and stuff that i like doesn't come to my country. And sometimes amazon and ebay won't even ship here :(
I tend to go to the movies for well you know movies :p And luckily we got a dedicated blue ray store for old and new blue ray movies. Ps3 I'm to lazy to mod so i still buy games. And the few games i have for my Mac are all blizzard and are legally bought :)
Oh yea adobe software is so expensive but i will buy it when i start making money out of it :)
 
Cromulent said:
But one thing that really winds me up is the music industry and recording artists moaning about how piracy has destroyed their living.

Hello? This is the real world, adapt or die. That is motto of capitalism. Either work out how to make money from distributing your music for free (ala Spotify in Europe) or go out of business.
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It is not the artist's fault that the industry has looked upon digital technology and taken a step back from it and let people take it into their own hands, instead of embracing it and taking control before it got big. Its the record companies themselves that failed to act.

Artists have the right to complain about it. They don't decide what goes on in the industry. They just make music.
 
I try not to. Especially now that I'm older and have a job. Apparently getting old and getting a job means my conscience eats away more at me. I guess before, I pirated so much because I didn't have money and was bored, but now I pay for my music (I'm not much of a music person though) and some of my movies. The movies I really, like many of the Batman movies, I pay for, but I do admit I find a lot of shows and stuff online to watch just because I don't have cable and am bored a lot of the time.
 
There are a few ocassions For example I've been looking everywhere for a copy of Halo CE for Mac the cheapest i can find it is for 70 bucks on amazon, and from what i hear the the Xbox version sucks so stuff like that i will dl if its soething riduculus like that.
 
I buy lots of CDs and some software. Over the past 12 months, I have purchased 23 albums, many of which I first downloaded "illegally" and purchased later because I loved it.

I have downloaded FAR more than 23 albums illegally (yes, pirating is immoral and illegal), but I don't feel so bad because the bands who deserve my money actually get my money.

My pirating did not result in lost sales. ;)


Oh, and I have also purchased the latest MacUpdate software bundle, repurchased Intaglio after getting my new MBP, and have purchased several other pieces of software that I think are quite neat.
 
It depends on what I'm getting. Usually if I want an app for my iPhone and it's not by a widely known developer like EA, I won't pirate it. If I want an app for my MacBook, and it's not overpriced, I'll buy it. I always pirate songs though, unless I can't find them.

I came to realize that developers work hard for the products that they put out, and I respect that to an extent. The reason I pirate games from EA, etc, is because they're already millionaires. While it's still wrong, it's not like .99 cents from an app that I chose to obtain another way is going to bankrupt them. Same with apps for my MacBook. I have no problem spending 20-50 dollars on a good application, but when it gets into the 100 dollar area, I'll search for a pirated version.

Another reason I pirate a lot is the fact that it all adds up over time. You think to yourself, "Well...the app is only .99 cents. Hell, I'll buy it". You do that for 10 apps, and you're looking at about 12 or so dollars after tax, and that's not accounting for apps that are over .99 cents. Even 12 dollars doesn't sound expensive, but that too adds up over time. Before a jailbreak was available on my old iPod Touch, I was literally on a buying frenzy. I've spent over 40 dollars in apps alone, and that's just not right.
 
with my mac mini as an HTPC, everything I have must be in 1080p quality ARGHHH
 
I do download music, but I buy(or will buy) the albums later on if I like it, problem being that I have too much school work to get a job right now and I'm pretty much broke.

I've only downloaded a tv show once, but that was Big Bang theory season 3, which the season already ended, and it was a few months before it actually came out on dvd, so I really wanted to see what happened since I had just finished my season 1 and 2 disc, I do plan on getting that soon on disc to have a physical copy.
 
Music: rarely ever. Most of the bands I listen to are trade-friendly bands, so the vast majority of their music is freely downloadable anyway (taped by tapers at their concerts). Those bands ENCOURAGE their music to be traded, and even REQUIRE that it be free. Studio albums and soundboard recordings they charge for, and the normal rules apply...but the live stuff is fair game. I like the live stuff more anyway.

Movies: Never. I'm too impatient to wait for the torrent to download anyway. I also like having the shelves of DVDs in my media room. I'm in the process of ripping all of them to hard drive, but will keep the discs. Because we travel so much for work, it will be nice to have our media library with us.

Also...I LOVE the graphic in the post above about what you get when you pirate vs. what you get when you buy. It is freakin' psychotic the amount of crap you have to sit through EVERY TIME to watch a movie you paid for.

TV Shows: all the time. What's the difference? I don't pay to watch it on TV, except for the cable bill...so downloading it is not any different. I've downloaded some off iTunes....then I found out that I can't even play them on my monitor because my setup is not HDCP compliant. So screw 'em.

Phone Apps: Never...always pay.

Software: Yes, some. If I end up using it a lot or professionally, I will buy it. But for hobbying around once a month or just to play with, not so much. I have ended up buying two $2000 programs in the last year after deciding that they were my main productive apps and I wanted to be more legit.
 
The only thing I pirate is audiobooks, and only if I own the real book. They are just too overpriced for me to afford, and I have dyslexia (I can manage to concentrate enough to read, but it gives me major headaches after a prolonged period) so just sitting down with the book is not an option.
I never listen to music, and I buy my apps/software.
 
It's interesting, all those people saying "I'm broke so I download _____."

I wonder if you were born in the, say, 50's, and going to school and broke, would you shoplift music LP discs from the store? Why not?

I did pirate in the past. The only software I've actually pirated is, forgive the cliche, Photoshop. It was back in the late '90's and it's mostly for the thrill of stealing something and not getting caught :rolleyes:

Nowadays, I never pirate things. I only download movies "illegally" when I receive a DVD and find that it does not have captions. There's captions for a lot of movies online, so I just download the captions, download the movie, watch it, then return the DVD. That's "illegal", but I feel justified to do that.
 
ravenvii said:
It's interesting, all those people saying "I'm broke so I download _____."

I wonder if you were born in the, say, 50's, and going to school and broke, would you shoplift music LP discs from the store? Why not?
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So can we assume that you don't pirate?:rolleyes:
 
bruinsrme said:
So can we assume that you don't pirate?:rolleyes:
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No, look. He says he used to do below the bit you quoted.
ravenvii said:
It's interesting, all those people saying "I'm broke so I download _____."

I wonder if you were born in the, say, 50's, and going to school and broke, would you shoplift music LP discs from the store? Why not?

I did pirate in the past. The only software I've actually pirated is, forgive the cliche, Photoshop. It was back in the late '90's and it's mostly for the thrill of stealing something and not getting caught
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See. :rolleyes:
 
I've said it before: the recording industry should have made an effort to change with the times. Only in the past few years have they taken slight action in response to declining media sales; prior to that they were exemplifying Bearshare users in ridiculous HUAC-like trials.

Piracy was an inevitable result of the internet, with its ease and commonality allowing for people to overlook the fact that it is morally wrong. Obviously the justifications from person to person are going to differ with changing conviction, but it should be obvious to everyone at this point that the traditional "buy this music" model is decreasing in popularity.

I think we are approaching a new type of media consumerism fueled by this movement. Darwinian principles will soon phase out traditional 20th century mindsets, and inherently, the public sense of "morality" will stretch. The RIAA treats the public as if they are obliged to buy music, as if torrenting isn't an option. Those trials show them for what they are: old moneybags with a sense of entitlement, trying desperately to retain wealth and power by means of legal manipulation and "moral" argument.
 
ravenvii said:
It's interesting, all those people saying "I'm broke so I download _____."

I wonder if you were born in the, say, 50's, and going to school and broke, would you shoplift music LP discs from the store? Why not?

[...]
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There's a difference between pirating and stealing, which has already been discussed in this thread.
 
Fundamentally what is pirating?

I download the D&D 4E PDFs just because Wizards only makes hard copies (I do tend to buy the hard cover books, but have 30 books on my MacBook is easier to transport than 30 hard copy books)
 
For some reason i don't feel quilty about pirating when i watch MTV-Cribs and see those one-hit-wonders showing off their possesions.

People and bands with actual talent i am willing to support. The rest is just quick cash for some producers who just happen to have a lot of influence (wondering why) of what is on the radio these days.
 
ComputersaysNo said:
For some reason i don't feel quilty about pirating when i watch MTV-Cribs and see those one-hit-wonders showing off their possesions.
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A lot of people try and rationalize it this way, using the "robin hood" scenario. This doesn't change the fact that it is piracy, and currently against the law. FWIW, I agree mostly on a moral level :cool:

ComputersaysNo said:
People and bands with actual talent i am willing to support. The rest is just quick cash for some producers who just happen to have a lot of influence (wondering why) of what is on the radio these days.
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The problem is that the majority of people making this claim don't follow through financially. Over time we stop differentiating the "actual talent" from everything else, and no one gets money.

The concept of file sharing opened a door that cannot be closed by anything but strict legal enforcement, but the government isn't about to make a black/white decision. Currently anti-piarcy groups (mostly the RIAA) are pushing to make it the ISP's fault for allowing the download to occur, and even going as far as to blame search engines like Google. The problems with this should be obvious, and anyone can see that they are grasping at straws after their "public fear" campaign in the early '00s didn't work.

So far, they have managed to get ISPs to issue warnings, but AFAIK none of them have actually started disconnecting users. I don't think that will happen until they are forced to, as users could sue for a number of reasons.
 
Techhie said:
A lot of people try and rationalize it this way, using the "robin hood" scenario. This doesn't change the fact that it is piracy, and currently against the law. FWIW, I agree mostly on a moral level :cool:



The problem is that the majority of people making this claim don't follow through financially. Over time we stop differentiating the "actual talent" from everything else, and no one gets money.

The concept of file sharing opened a door that cannot be closed by anything but strict legal enforcement, but the government isn't about to make a black/white decision. Currently anti-piarcy groups (mostly the RIAA) are pushing to make it the ISP's fault for allowing the download to occur, and even going as far as to blame search engines like Google. The problems with this should be obvious, and anyone can see that they are grasping at straws after their "public fear" campaign in the early '00s didn't work.

So far, they have managed to get ISPs to issue warnings, but AFAIK none of them have actually started disconnecting users. I don't think that will happen until they are forced to, as users could sue for a number of reasons.
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Are we getting into the legal aspect of pirating or are we discussing whether or not we pirate?

So far the thread has been pretty good. I would hate for it to end up like the rest of the threads around this topic.

With that said I don't think anyone dismisses the fact that it is illegal but rather sharing if they do and why or if they did and no longer.

I recall WAY back all of the kids in the neighborhood pitching in for an album and then making 10, 20, 30 copies to cassettes or cassette to cassette. I guess that is old school pirating.
 
Not that much. The only thing I really do is head to the video store here, rent movies to copy them, then return them.
 
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