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VLC Patent Issues?

That's a real shame. It's a great program. If you haven't downloaded it yet, download it now. It's a really, really good program and this might be your last chance. If you don't download it now and it goes away forever, you'll be kicking yourself later.
 
Lord Blackadder said:
Crap. I better go make sure I have an updated version, then burn it to CD and store it in a fire-proof safe. :p
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I will just burn it on a cd... No money for a fireproof safe. :D

Anyway, I hate this when it happens. A good program comes out that really helps a lot of people and is very handy, then some guys in a lawsuit decide it's time to make it illegal.

EDIT: Please read again the link provided by the author of this thread. I don't think you realize how big the problem is. Not only VLC is threatened, but also ffmpeg and other libraries which VLC is built upon. This means that great applications such as ffmpegx will soon be ceased to be supported.

If this happens, the software patent-supporters will surely not stop there...
 
i almost forgot that i didnt have it because i forgot to re-download it last time i did a system restore, well needless to say i just downloaded a new copy, i dont want to lose this awesome piece of software!
 
Heh. Before this tidbit, I was still blissfully using version 0.6.3 :eek:

Sigh. Time to back up some more installers, methinks...
 
Well, this sucks. VLC is my default player on Mac, Linux and Windows.

If VLC goes away, I don't know what I'll replace it with...
 
just curious, but does the current VLC player work okay with Tiger? would hate for it to be shut down and the current version not play well with Tiger, thus being forced out of it, or well hopefully if it doesnt work there will be an update before it goes bye bye....if it goes bye bye
 
diavolo said:
Well, this sucks. VLC is my default player on Mac, Linux and Windows.

If VLC goes away, I don't know what I'll replace it with...
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You don't need to replace it if you keep it. :p Silly. ;) Just download the latest installer and KEEP it.
 
SteveC said:
You don't need to replace it if you keep it. :p Silly. ;) Just download the latest installer and KEEP it.
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*smacks head* I guess I could do that...

I wonder if VLC would still be developed by "rogue" programmers if it were get squashed.
 
They are all great applications but the thing is, if they are patent offending then they'll have to be stopped. Without patents how can people protect their investments. Think of it this way: How p*ssed off would you be if Microsoft brought out an OS which used components of the Mac OS? Just because we are not familiar with the companies these programs are ripping off, doesn't mean it's right.
 
SpaceMagic said:
How p*ssed off would you be if Microsoft brought out an OS which used components of the Mac OS?
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Uh, maybe you might want to specify CODE here instead of "components" :p

On a more serious note, this EU patent bull needs to be stopped.
 
d.perel said:
i'm downloading it now, but what does it do?
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Its a video player. For Divx and other types of media. A lot of people use it since Quicktime doesn't support Divx, at lease not very well.
 
Apple Hobo said:
How can they stop the source from being distributed and worked on by, as someone above mentioned, rogue programmers?
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by law suits against those programmers. You might think the internet is anonymous, but it isn't, you IP gets logged places and you can be found.
 
Excuse me for my lack of legal knowledge, but if there is such a problem with VLC in the EU, why not rename it and release it somewhere else? Surely EU laws don't apply in Cochabamba, Bolivia? ;)
 
grapes911 said:
Make sure you save a copy now. This is too good of a player to loose.
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Except on DP G5s, mine doesn't play sound right practically ever. It won't play dvds or anything with that type of audio. (ac3) On my old powerbook and ibook files and dvds played fine on them.
 
Many of you guys who are posting are totally selfish. The only thing you're concerned about is making sure that you have the latest version of this software downloaded?? Did you even visit the website? MUCH MORE is at stake here than whether or not you will have your latest-downloaded version of the software (which wouldn't do you any good anyways, when new video formats come out in the future). A whole generation of video products are at stake here, the freedom & future of many players and projects are threatened here... AND there's something you can do to help prevent it from happening. Please help the fight.
 
This sucks.

I love VLC. It plays files Quicktime just can't (or won't), and I can take screenshots while playing DVDs! :mad:
 
aw thats a shame, i really like VLC. just a pity it takes a while to turn on the video window sometimes.

tis a dark day for small-time movie players
 
mac15 said:
Sure does, works fine for me. :)
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good to know, and as one poster mentioned above, yes this does suck, and if i knew a way to help i would, have any info on how people like use can help out with this situation?
 
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