Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!SFAUSTIN.BITNET!Z4648252 From: Z4648252@SFAUSTIN.BITNET (Z4648252) Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st Subject: RE: ST piracy Message-ID: <890627.22503916.027053@SFA.CP6> Date: 28 Jun 89 04:50:40 GMT Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU Organization: The Internet Lines: 58 Frank Rahmani writes: "Just as there are two opposing sides to your character, as shown by your two postings (one very friendly, the other full of name-calling), there are also two opposing aspects to software piracy." ---- Any STer who is isolated will be very grateful to the gracious aid given by other STers on this net. I suppose this is, as Frank says, my friendly side. I will admit to another side, one of indignation when I see those taken advantage of by, and here comes the name calling, thieves, 'slime', and 'scum bags'. The language is harsh but it is purposeful. The term PIRATE denotes adventure, challenge, and to a child, fun on the high seas as ships are conquered and booty taken. When I see my developer friends spending agonizing months on software projects, it does bring up my other side when I see their work stolen. Piracy? Nay. It is theft. It is stealing. It is pure moral degeneration especially when it is accepted by society as a whole. Perhaps users who enjoy stealing software fail to appreciate the significance of software. Without algorithms, routines in ROMs, and programs, then a computer will not work. Software is a part of the computer. It should not be considered any different than the printer, disk drive, or monitor. Software is part of the equipment. A purist will cringe at that statement but philosophically, the statement is correct. As Frank says, piracy will always be with us. So also will be crooks, thieves, and those who will rip another person off. Solution? I just don't know. I liked the earlier suggestion of a registration card on the outside of the software package. It would take a lot of work to get that to work, though. Software rental could help on the low profits. Instead of fighting rental firms, have a royalty fee similar to video tapes. Why not? At any rate, attacking software stealing on a moral basis will never work. Someway, there needs to be a physical solution or we who choose to buy will just have to wait a little longer as prices rise to make up for the stolen software. Here's something for science fiction buffs. When physical cloning becomes possible in the far (??) future, imagine what happens when Joe User can buy a cloning device so that he can clone his disk drive, his computer, his monitor. Push a button and there it is. A backup disk drive. A backup monitor. His Uncle Bob needs an RGB monitor but doesn't have the money. The molecular code is available on Joe User's disk. He downloads the code, installs it in his cloner, and presto. He has an RGB monitor. Is the above ridiculous? Is it piracy or is it stealing? Larry Rymal