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From: elwell@osu-eddie.UUCP (Clayton M. Elwell)
Newsgroups: net.micro.apple
Subject: Re: An open letter to software pirates
Message-ID: <183@osu-eddie.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 21-Mar-85 18:09:28 EST
Article-I.D.: osu-eddi.183
Posted: Thu Mar 21 18:09:28 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 22-Mar-85 03:20:45 EST
References: <1180@decwrl.UUCP>
Reply-To: elwell@osu-eddie.UUCP (Clayton M. Elwell)
Organization: Ohio State Univ., CIS Dept., Cols, Oh.
Lines: 57
Summary: 


I applaud Joel's article.  I would like to offer a few thoughts of my own,
some of which may duplicate Joel's.  If so, my apologies in advance.

I was introduced to computers in high school, with all that implies.  I
learned assembly language on the Apple ][ and IBM PC by "breaking" (i.e.
removing) the copy-protection on a wide variety of software.  I did not then
own a computer of my own, but my friends thought what I did was wonderful.

Later on, two things happened:

	1) Congress passed the Computer Software Copyright Act.
	2) I started thinking about what I was actually doing.
	   This was prompted by my entry into the field as a
	   person trying to *sell* programs to make (at least part of)
	   a living.

It's amazing the perspective you gain when it's YOUR program being copied.
I have had to discontinue at least one product because of outright theft.
We're not talking living-room copying after the computer club meeting; we're
talking taking someone else's program, changing it slightly, and selling it
to the same market for a ridiculous price.  It hurts, in more ways than one.

I have heard many excuses for pirating software; one of my friends is an avid
"collector".   Most of the disks he has have been used exactly once (to "make
sure it works").  Here are some that Joel didn't mention:

"It's only a video game..."

	Most video games worth playing (and thus pirating) are the
	most sophisticated pieces of software on the market.  There's
	a lot more programming expertise in, say, "Wizardry" than
	there is in an average accounting system.  Think about it:
	real-time graphics, keeping track of input from multiple
	sources, etc.  Especially on the Apple, getting graphics
	good enough to give your program an edge in the market is
	like squeezing blood from a turnip, and gives new meaning
	to the word "optimization".  Every compiler designer should
	be forced to write a commercially successful video game.
	But I digress...

"No one will ever know it was me..."

	Possibly so.  Would you steal a book (or photocopy the whole
	thing) for the same reason?  Maybe so, but probably not.

The fundamental problem with software piracy is that, while being theft of
intellectual property, it bears a very strong resemblence to making backups,
which is a very good idea indeed.  Pirating doesn't "feel" like a crime.
There is, however, no fine line here.  It is very simple.  Let's say you
have a copy of a piece of software.  If you own an original through legal
means (like buying it), it's a backup.  If not, it is a pirated copy.

Think about it, and pretend for a moment that it's YOUR software being
pirated.

--Clayton Elwell