Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!seismo!sundc!pitstop!sun!pepper!cmcmanis From: cmcmanis%pepper@Sun.COM (Chuck McManis) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga Subject: Re: Software Development And Piracy (Spurred By FTL replies) Message-ID: <81277@sun.uucp> Date: 13 Dec 88 02:03:59 GMT References: <218@algedi.UUCP> Sender: news@sun.uucp Reply-To: cmcmanis@sun.UUCP (Chuck McManis) Organization: Sun Microsystems, Mountain View Lines: 49 Someone wrote : >In the old days pirates were hunted down, tried (sometimes) and hung. >We can be a little more lenient, but if your neighbor next door or the kid >down the street were caught and fined, their friends and neighbors might >be a little less inclined to steal software. In another article (Rick Francis Golembiewski) commented: >Isn't that a bit too drastic? After all I don't really think that >Copying software really is as damaging to society as drug abuse. >Also if you did the do the above, I can assure you that you will >indeed strike fear into people, however probabily the potential ligitamate >users who will decide that they can really live with out a computer, >since computer owners are such immoral criminals... Yes and no. The fine for pirating software should be the list price of that software. In a completely idealistic world, if you were accused of pirating software the court would give you 10 days to come up with a registered copy of the specified program, if you couldn't you would pay the fine of $X where X is the price of the software, and any court costs associated with this, plus be required to destroy all copies of the software in your possesion. Simple no? The pirate is either discouraged or the software company gets their money. >>It works for common thieves, why not software thieves as well. >Last time I looked there was still 'common thieves' out there, in >fact many of out jails are releasing them because there is not >enough space for this type of criminal. Actually, I'd probably write the law such that the fine would be preferred instead of jail unless you couldn't pay of course. Then we'd just confiscate your hardware. If it discouraged pirates from buying computers I wouldn't mind that either. Because electronic communications can't convey the intention of an article, one can never be sure of how it was "meant." In the case of Rick's article, when I read it I got a feeling of "Gee, pirates are just poor folks who wouldn't buy your software anyway why come down on them like murderers or something." And the answer in my opinion is that pirates really are scum of the earth type of people who shouldn't be tolerated. Being tolerant of such activities is equivalent to condoning them. --Chuck McManis uucp: {anywhere}!sun!cmcmanis BIX: cmcmanis ARPAnet: cmcmanis@sun.com These opinions are my own and no one elses, but you knew that didn't you.