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From: nazgul@obsolete.UUCP (Kee Hinckley)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple
Subject: Re: Piracy...$2/shaft
Message-ID: <8905251340.AA16546@obsolete.UUCP>
Date: 25 May 89 13:40:26 GMT
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    Network Comment: to #948 by pnet01!crash!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!obsolete!nazgul
    
    I think that a clarification is in order.  When the infamous $2.00 product was
    mentioned, I am pretty sure that the author did not simply refer to the
    production costs, but to the overall value of the program itself.  Let's face

Quite.  I can't say I would consider a $2.00 program worth stealing either.

    I would like to ask the fervent defenders of law and order (said with a
    smile), what do they propose for the various situations outlined by various
    international and domestic members of this newsgroup.  Specifically, please

That's a _real_ problem.  Again, I don't think the answer is pirating.
The problem here is two fold.  First, if you thought it was expensive
to sell software domesticly, it's even worse to try and export it.  You
might think that places like Programs Plus and the like might do it, but
a lot of the programs which *are* available outside of the US are not the
same version as those internal.  Some of the programs you buy are explicitly
not for resale outside of the US and Canada because there is a different
distributor in Europe handling the sale.

I think there are probably two things that can be done in this case, one
short term, one long term.  The short term case is to write a letter to
the software publisher in question, explaining the problem and requesting
a copy of the software (perhaps enclosing a money order or BarclayCard
number or some such, or just asking what the price would be).  The question
then becomes whether the publisher can legally export it without going
through all kinds of rigamarole - or whether they'll just ignore that
and ship it off (I know I would).  The second one is to lobby your government
to stop putting restrictions on, or better yet, to make it easier to get,
imported software.  At least in Europe I suspect that that the Common Market
will make this whole situation much easier, since as a publisher I only have
to deal with one set of import rules, and I can deal with one redistributor,
instead of one per country.

No law or moral is every cut and dry.  The problem with rules is that
to be properly applied someone has to make exceptions sometimes, the
problem with that is *who* gets to decide on the exceptions.

I really didn't intend to come across as a law and order type.  I have
very mixed feelings on this subject and didn't really want to get
involved in the discussion at all!  On the one hand I have strong
feelings towards the philosophy that "if you don't need it, and thus
wouldn't have bought it if that were the only option, it's okay to steal
it".  On the other hand I make my living in the software business
and have no desire to see things I write walking off by themselves.

						-kee

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