Bill McIntyre said: >If I recall, what started this thread was pirating of software NOW, not >in some theoretical future when all materials may be replicated at zero >cost. I don't know whether your utopian future will ever arrive, but its >not here yet.
This is not correct. Parts of the prerequirements that will be needed have arrived already. But the cost is not zero, but are moving into that direction. >But our present cultural standards are the ones we have, and society >works more smoothly if everyone is playing by the same rules. The >standards may evolve, but the social contract asks us to play by current >standards. Evolution may involve large parts of the population to break with those standards and create their own. Most of "the standards", which have been imposed by previous generations and not seldom by force or threating with force. > So if I copy it from >someone else or download and use someone's serial number, it has the same >ultimate effect as if I had slipped the CD under my jacket at a store. No, but it would have if the store when you got out with the CD under jacket, still had the same amount of CD's as when you went in. >got it for free, and the owner of the property right got ripped off. Only if it was likely that you would have paid for the CD to begin with. When it comes to music, that would have been likely for me had the price been about half of what it is today. If you're from a low wage country in, Asia say, then it's not likely unless CD's cost 50 cents. The losses claimed by software companies through organizations life BSA are totally ridiculous as they do not take into account that most software duplicated isn't used at all, used very seldom and are used for learning the application. Pirating is also free marketing that gives mind share. Most people I know that test software and end up using it, will pay for it, when they have determined that they will use it for making business (or at all). Most of them want a relation to the makers too. Smart software companies try and mimic these behavioral patterns, by providing free entry level versions, usable demos and so on and most importantly makes it easy and compelling to pay for their product as well as starting a relation with the company. ___________________________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe send a mail message with a SUBJECT line of "unsubscribe" to <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> or <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
