Morality has NOTHING to do with it. I don't use illegal software for one reason only - it's ILLEGAL. I've always found a way to get my software legally, for relatively low prices. Sometimes I buy them off friends who no longer use them (I get the discs and so on, so it's not just using a copy of their stuff).
But morality? Please. Here's a newsflash for you: many companies DESPERATELY WANT you to pirate their software. Not too long ago a mini scandal broke out because users traced a bittorrent back to the original software company. That company didn't want to make their software free, because they still made a lot of money from corporate users as well as those who paid up. But they needed to broaden their market. So the best way was to "donate" an apparently pirated copy and let a bunch of students learn their software. In time, those students move into the workplace, or otherwise get enough $$$ to buy it (a la the OP), and bingo! The company is a winner. Meanwhile, their competitor who didn't go that rout, slowly saw their market shrink as folks got hooked on a product they knew thanks to pirating. And the company that allowed - actually PROMOTED - piracy of their product? Guess what - that was no loss to them, since folks who pirate often cannot afford the software anyway, so it's not like "lost sales". This way, at least they hook a new generation of users on their product. That was pretty much the entire strategy of Microsoft in the third world - especially China. MSFT knew that an average Chinese was not going to donate their entire paychecks for a year for a copy of Windows. So NO LOST SALES ANYWAY. Meanwhile, the Chinese pirates established Windows a the default desktop OS for 1.5 billion people market! In time, as China grows richer, they'll be buying tons of software for Windows as well as Windows from MSFT. And what would have happened had MSFT been 100% successful in preventing piracy in China? China would just have used Linux or some other OS and MSFT would have been shut out of the market! Instead, MSFT dominates - 100% due to piracy! That's why MSFT closed their eyes to pirating - actually encourage it - in the third world. Of course, once they are dominant and have nothing further to gain - it's back to crying about piracy for them...
What follows now is speculation. I have ZERO evidence for it. I may be 100% wrong. YMMV. However, I would not be totally shocked if Apple were not closing their eyes (not officially!) to a bit of pirating of FCP. Think about it. The dominant editing platform in the pro world is Avid. How do you dethrone that? Well, you raise a new generation of editors who grew up on FCP. They enter the workplace and use/demand/are comfortable with FCP, not Avid. But they are poor students. So you do a edu discount and edu versions. But many are still too poor. Take a page from MSFT. Let those suckers pirate. YOU ARE NOT LOSING SALES TO FOLKS TOO POOR TO PURCHASE EVEN AN EDU VERSION. So no loss. Sure there'll be some a*holes who could afford it, but prefer to pirate anyway, but thems the breaks. Meanwhile you educate a whole generation in FCP. One day, Avid wakes up, and sees: only old retiring editors use Avid - everyone has moved on to FCP (of course, FCP needs to be beefed up, since it is still miles behind pro level Avid, but FCP Extreme is almost here
). Bingo. Apple won the market - thanks to pirating. Just like MSFT.
Now, why do I refuse to pirate? Because I refuse to be forced to do illegal things. You want me to buy your software? Make it compelling. Make it affordable for me. Give me a trial version (FCP has none - many pirate, because they refuse to buy a pig in a poke). I refuse to learn your software by doing illegal things - you want me to switch to your platform? You want me to evangelize your software? Make it easy for me - no BS like forcing me to do illegal stuff which actually benefits you, but can hurt me if I get caught. You want the benefits? Give me LEGAL options. Until then, you lose.
That's my stance wrt. music. I buy tons of music. I spend at least $2K a year on CDs. But I rarely buy stuff without listening first. I hear my friends CD (my friends are music freaks!), and if I like it, I don't burn it, I buy my own copy. If your company/band is too stupid to provide me with FREE samples - entire tracks, entire albums - then I won't buy it. And I won't spread the word. And you will lose out on a bunch of sales. And it'll serve you right. BECAUSE I REFUSE TO DO ILLEGAL THINGS THAT CAN SEND ME TO JAIL OR GIVE ME HUGE FINES - FOR MAKING YOU SUCCESSFUL AND DOING YOUR FREE MARKETING. You want me to market for you - give me a legal option.
Bottom line: I think all software/music should have trial versions (not crippled). It is good for the developers and content creators and good for the buyers and consumers. But it should be legal. That's why I refuse to pirate.
And morality has nothing to do with it.
