On 8/04/2015 9:54 AM, Rohan McLeod wrote:
Andrew McGlashan wrote:
Much better to just keep to legal and proper downloads, don't you think?
Well of course that goes without saying !
;-) Yes, especially when Russell says all of us IT types have plenty of income.... quite a generalization, but that's what I think his view is.
the very idea of owning movies which I haven't paid for; or even converting DVD's so they are playable outside of brain-dead DVD players, (which mostly also seem incapable of playing them); is abhorrent to my higher moral self.!
The whole issue is a minefield. I hate it when I buy a DVD these days and there isn't even 2.1 sound option or plain old stereo. If you have 5.1 you are golden, but otherwise the DVD needs to be played at high sound levels due to not having a good range of audio options to choose from. In cases like this, aside from DMCA issues, I think it *should* be fair to download a normal stereo version of something you own or to re-encode as needed to be able to play the DVD. When it comes to Bluray, there are other problems. A disc may work fine one day and then won't work again, ever, unless the player can get an update from the Internet to make sure it is /legal/ .... that is horrid too. There is so much wrong with DMCA, but when it comes to video content from the Internet in legal forms, well there is plenty available without needing to pirate anything.
I even believe there are some who have copies of that other OS what was it called .....; anyway they have not paid for it apparently.
My own view is that Microsoft has traditionally priced it's OS too high, but when you think about all the years of update support (patching), then the price seems to be reasonable. But using pirated Windows is not right, it is far more risky than using a proper legitimate version and not worth the risk. Mark Russinavich has even mentioned that MS may open source Windows! They are a new business these days. It may never happen, but it has been discussed and it just might.
There seems to exist a whole category of software ..shareware ? where such behaviour is rife.
Yes, that doesn't make it right.
This software philosophy, what's it called 'open-source' ?; why it's just encourages such an attitude !
I think that Microsoft should re-enable full support for XP, but with a reasonable once off new payment, or a very low subscription cost. Until such time as Windows goes open source, if it ever does, there will always be issues of trust -- particularly with how easily they bend over backwards for those three letter organizations, such as with Skype. I do not use Skype for all sorts of reasons, not least of which these days, is that it is MS controlled and it has been known to follow private links in chat sessions ... effectively watching everything you type and with current day speech recognition capabilities, well everything you say too.
Oh Andrew; how I concur with you regarding the wickedness of the world !
Two [or 10 for that matter] wrongs do not make a right. I would consider myself to be a bit of a libertarian, we have far too much regulation and government control over people. Give us a fair price for almost anything and we'll happily pay it, if we can afford it. Don't squash us with DMCA or other abhorrent measures. Personally, for me, there is so much free and legal content available that I have no interest in seeking illegal content, regardless of any other consideration. Cheers A.