Poll: Your opinion, on...ILLEGAL DOWNLOADING

[walls of cetepedes]

I never have, apart from a copy of Fallout 1, which was bugged to hell.

 

[Akai Shizuku]

Don't use torrents but get stuff off of friends and family all the time.

May I ask why the abstinence from torrents?

I am too stupid to figure out how to use them and I am not confident in my virus protection. I have avg free by the way.

They're fairly simple once you get the hang of it, and at times shockingly fast.

I use AVG Free too. It's pretty decent.

 

[Arkhangelsk]

I think this is appropriate:

Spoiler

But seriously, people make too big a deal out of this.

 

[Golden Gryphon]

I don't.

I'd feel silly if I got in trouble for something as mundane as that.

 

[oliveira8]

"houlier than thou"? What do you mean?

As in a do-gooder who says "Your bad cuz u steel moneezz"

Like the people at the Westboro baptist church [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wvLEtRSCiE&feature=related]

I see.

My opinion is that downloading is not stealing at all. You are not taking something, only walking up to it and making a copy of it. Nothing is taken from those who produce it.

Nothing is taken, but the ones who produced it aren't getting their money either. In a way you stealing their money by not paying up for a product.

Paint it as you want, it's a sort of crime. Not a major one, unless you selling and making a profit out of it.

Making a profit out of illegal downloading is a pure dick move. But what if you can't get some things at the store? What if it's no longer being sold, or is a foreign product? Sometimes if you want something, illegal downloading is your only option.

If it's no longer being sold or produced it's usually considered abandonware in the internet, and that really depends on your countries law. France and the US say it's illegal while my country(Portugal) doens't say it's legal or illegal , so abandonware is not covered by law and I can leech from the loophole as much as I can.

 

[data_not_found]

Am I the only one that thinks that linking downloading to pirates is a royally bad PR move? Pirates are awesome, and if downloading halo for free gets me in the club, SWEET. They could only have done it worse if they called it ocean's elevening software.

 

[matsugawa]

I think I'm somewhere between the second and third option in the poll. "Out of print" does not equate to 'public domain' but it does create an interesting grey area; as a wise man once said, "is it premature to call these people thieves when they haven't been given a means to pay for what they're after?"

I think the reality is, for every ONE of us who might use a torrent responsibly, there are at least one HUNDRED others who will use it irresponsibly. It's like with Napster, it was supposed to be this great way for people to discover indie bands trying to make a name for themselves or obscure/out-of-print records in the hopes of them being possibly re-issued, but instead people were just making copies of Metallica's Black Album, neither indie, obscure, nor out-of-print. It may not be right to knock an invention just because it gets abused, but it's definitely not right to pardon the abusers because they have a simple means at their disposal.

 

[Akai Shizuku]

"houlier than thou"? What do you mean?

As in a do-gooder who says "Your bad cuz u steel moneezz"

Like the people at the Westboro baptist church [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wvLEtRSCiE&feature=related]

I see.

My opinion is that downloading is not stealing at all. You are not taking something, only walking up to it and making a copy of it. Nothing is taken from those who produce it.

Nothing is taken, but the ones who produced it aren't getting their money either. In a way you stealing their money by not paying up for a product.

Paint it as you want, it's a sort of crime. Not a major one, unless you selling and making a profit out of it.

Making a profit out of illegal downloading is a pure dick move. But what if you can't get some things at the store? What if it's no longer being sold, or is a foreign product? Sometimes if you want something, illegal downloading is your only option.

If it's no longer being sold or produced it's usually considered abandonware in the internet, and that really depends on your countries law. France and the US say it's illegal while my country(Portugal) doens't say it's legal or illegal , so abandonware is not covered by law and I can leech from the loophole as much as I can.

w00t for loopholes.

I personally care not for law, only the moral implications of my actions.

 

[Akai Shizuku]

And about pirates...

http://www.tshirtbordello.com/images/Pirates-Are-Cool-lg.gif

 

[bluepilot]

I do not download torrents but only because my computer is kind of old and slow and I am worried about getting a virus or hacker from torrents.

I am not completely innocent though because I watch shows by streaming...but only my favourite shows and only because America restricts DVD sales abroad (stupid thing to do in this digital age)

Once the DVD is half-price on Amazon I buy it (about a year and a half after streaming it)

I never pirate games because I do not know how, and I do not really mind paying for games anyway. I do mind waiting for America to release my favourite shows though...

 

[The Bandit]

It's wrong. It's not your shit and you're not supporting the artist by stealing it. Yes, you are stealing it. Taking something that does not belong to you, that you have not paid for, is stealing. It's a clear-cut, black and white definition. It's only your whining that grays the area.

"houlier than thou"? What do you mean?

As in a do-gooder who says "Your bad cuz u steel moneezz"

Like the people at the Westboro baptist church [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wvLEtRSCiE&feature=related]

I see.

My opinion is that downloading is not stealing at all. You are not taking something, only walking up to it and making a copy of it. Nothing is taken from those who produce it.

Nothing is taken, but the ones who produced it aren't getting their money either. In a way you stealing their money by not paying up for a product.

Paint it as you want, it's a sort of crime. Not a major one, unless you selling and making a profit out of it.

Making a profit out of illegal downloading is a pure dick move. But what if you can't get some things at the store? What if it's no longer being sold, or is a foreign product? Sometimes if you want something, illegal downloading is your only option.

That's a pretty crappy argument, honestly. Unless you just live in a crazy censored country, you can find most anything you want on Amazon or eBay or another equivalent. And saying "waaaah i cant find it" isn't an excuse. It doesn't give you some right to obtain it by any means necessary.

I consider it morally wrong, but I typically don't have a problem with people who at least admit it's wrong and do it anyway. There isn't much incentive to uphold the law if your chances of getting caught are about as slim as winning the lottery. When I see half-baked excuses trying to defend it, though, it's just annoying. You're wrong. It's OK. Not everyone's perfect.

EDIT: Also, the "what if [product x] is crappy? I shouldn't have to pay for it" argument. A) if the product is crappy, why the hell do you want it? B) if the product's crappiness surprised you (meaning, you thought it was going to be good) this is YOUR fault for not researching it correctly. With the Internet, there's no excuse for this incompetence.

 

[Akai Shizuku]

It's wrong. It's not your shit and you're not supporting the artist by stealing it. Yes, you are stealing it. Taking something that does not belong to you, that you have not paid for, is stealing. It's a clear-cut, black and white definition. It's only your whining that grays the area.

"houlier than thou"? What do you mean?

As in a do-gooder who says "Your bad cuz u steel moneezz"

Like the people at the Westboro baptist church [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wvLEtRSCiE&feature=related]

I see.

My opinion is that downloading is not stealing at all. You are not taking something, only walking up to it and making a copy of it. Nothing is taken from those who produce it.

Nothing is taken, but the ones who produced it aren't getting their money either. In a way you stealing their money by not paying up for a product.

Paint it as you want, it's a sort of crime. Not a major one, unless you selling and making a profit out of it.

Making a profit out of illegal downloading is a pure dick move. But what if you can't get some things at the store? What if it's no longer being sold, or is a foreign product? Sometimes if you want something, illegal downloading is your only option.

That's a pretty crappy argument, honestly. Unless you just live in a crazy censored country, you can find most anything you want on Amazon or eBay or another equivalent. And saying "waaaah i cant find it" isn't an excuse. It doesn't give you some right to obtain it by any means necessary.

I consider it morally wrong, but I typically don't have a problem with people who at least admit it's wrong and do it anyway. There isn't much incentive to uphold the law if your chances of getting caught are about as slim as winning the lottery. When I see half-baked excuses trying to defend it, though, it's just annoying. You're wrong. It's OK. Not everyone's perfect.

Not everyone can use eBay or Amazon.

So you're basically calling my argument shit because you don't agree with it. Wow. How intellectual of you.

And your username is highly ironic.

EDIT: The issue is that you might pay for something and it either doesn't work or it turns out to be shit.

And the game store decides to be a dick about it and not give you your money back.

 

[lostclause]

I think this sums it up nicely. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OWPfcEOr2Yg
But I have pirated, mainly old games which I can't get anymore.

 

[Akai Shizuku]

Oh no. Not another one of these. They just bring out the hypocritical "houlier than thou" assholes on here. -.-;
Anyway I do not use torrents as they are way too slow but I never ever buy something without knowing its worth first.

By God, you were right.

 

[oliveira8]

I do not download torrents but only because my computer is kind of old and slow and I am worried about getting a virus or hacker from torrents.

I am not completely innocent though because I watch shows by streaming...but only my favourite shows and only because America restricts DVD sales abroad (stupid thing to do in this digital age)

Once the DVD is half-price on Amazon I buy it (about a year and a half after streaming it)

I never pirate games because I do not know how, and I do not really mind paying for games anyway. I do mind waiting for America to release my favourite shows though...

I hate TV series...Mainly because it takes YEARS!! to reach this part of the world to national TV with decent subtitles. I have a version of FOX channel and it must be handled by Microsoft Robots cause the damn channel is always breaking! Not to mention some of the worst subtiltes I EVER SEEN!

Dexter season 2 just started here on national TV, Season 2 of Dexter premiered in 2007! The Portuguese version of FOX has re-runs of all Dexter seasons...with crappy channel programing and broken subtitles. I don't mind bad subtitles most of the time, I understand perfectly english...but not Dexter english where they use 100 variations of Fuck- words and it's hard to hear what they whispering...

Fock you TV! I'm going to watch Dexter to the interwebz with english subtitles for the deaf!

 

[The Bandit]

It's wrong. It's not your shit and you're not supporting the artist by stealing it. Yes, you are stealing it. Taking something that does not belong to you, that you have not paid for, is stealing. It's a clear-cut, black and white definition. It's only your whining that grays the area.

"houlier than thou"? What do you mean?

As in a do-gooder who says "Your bad cuz u steel moneezz"

Like the people at the Westboro baptist church [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wvLEtRSCiE&feature=related]

I see.

My opinion is that downloading is not stealing at all. You are not taking something, only walking up to it and making a copy of it. Nothing is taken from those who produce it.

Nothing is taken, but the ones who produced it aren't getting their money either. In a way you stealing their money by not paying up for a product.

Paint it as you want, it's a sort of crime. Not a major one, unless you selling and making a profit out of it.

Making a profit out of illegal downloading is a pure dick move. But what if you can't get some things at the store? What if it's no longer being sold, or is a foreign product? Sometimes if you want something, illegal downloading is your only option.

That's a pretty crappy argument, honestly. Unless you just live in a crazy censored country, you can find most anything you want on Amazon or eBay or another equivalent. And saying "waaaah i cant find it" isn't an excuse. It doesn't give you some right to obtain it by any means necessary.

I consider it morally wrong, but I typically don't have a problem with people who at least admit it's wrong and do it anyway. There isn't much incentive to uphold the law if your chances of getting caught are about as slim as winning the lottery. When I see half-baked excuses trying to defend it, though, it's just annoying. You're wrong. It's OK. Not everyone's perfect.

Not everyone can use eBay or Amazon.

So you're basically calling my argument shit because you don't agree with it. Wow. How intellectual of you.

I just... I just don't even know, dude. I can't even respond to that ridiculousness. Really? Is that what I said? I mean, to be fair, I didn't write a detailed essay giving valid reasons as to why your argument failed, but I gave one or two a brief mention didn't I? Christ. I wasn't even trying to be rude with you.

Your argument failed because, as I already conceded, unless you live in a crazy censored country YOU HAVE ACCESS TO THE WHOLE INTERNET. You can find ANYTHING on the Internet. Literally. Who else doesn't have access to eBay or Amazon? This isn't me arguing with you, I'm sincerely curious.

Your argument further fails because, again, AS I STATED your inability to find a product does not give you a right to obtain it through any means. Why? Because it's stealing. There's no arguing this point without trying to turn the definition into vagueness, defeating the whole purpose of definitions. Words have an exact meaning for a reason. If you don't pay for a product, it's stealing. End of story.

EDIT: I, ironically enough, answered the edit to your post in my edited original post. Go back and read it.

 

[Akai Shizuku]

It's wrong. It's not your shit and you're not supporting the artist by stealing it. Yes, you are stealing it. Taking something that does not belong to you, that you have not paid for, is stealing. It's a clear-cut, black and white definition. It's only your whining that grays the area.

"houlier than thou"? What do you mean?

As in a do-gooder who says "Your bad cuz u steel moneezz"

Like the people at the Westboro baptist church [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wvLEtRSCiE&feature=related]

I see.

My opinion is that downloading is not stealing at all. You are not taking something, only walking up to it and making a copy of it. Nothing is taken from those who produce it.

Nothing is taken, but the ones who produced it aren't getting their money either. In a way you stealing their money by not paying up for a product.

Paint it as you want, it's a sort of crime. Not a major one, unless you selling and making a profit out of it.

Making a profit out of illegal downloading is a pure dick move. But what if you can't get some things at the store? What if it's no longer being sold, or is a foreign product? Sometimes if you want something, illegal downloading is your only option.

That's a pretty crappy argument, honestly. Unless you just live in a crazy censored country, you can find most anything you want on Amazon or eBay or another equivalent. And saying "waaaah i cant find it" isn't an excuse. It doesn't give you some right to obtain it by any means necessary.

I consider it morally wrong, but I typically don't have a problem with people who at least admit it's wrong and do it anyway. There isn't much incentive to uphold the law if your chances of getting caught are about as slim as winning the lottery. When I see half-baked excuses trying to defend it, though, it's just annoying. You're wrong. It's OK. Not everyone's perfect.

Not everyone can use eBay or Amazon.

So you're basically calling my argument shit because you don't agree with it. Wow. How intellectual of you.

I just... I just don't even know, dude. I can't even respond to that ridiculousness. Really? Is that what I said? I mean, to be fair, I didn't write a detailed essay giving valid reasons as to why your argument failed, but I gave one or two a brief mention didn't I? Christ. I wasn't even trying to be rude with you.

Your argument failed because, as I already conceded, unless you live in a crazy censored country YOU HAVE ACCESS TO THE WHOLE INTERNET. You can find ANYTHING on the Internet. Literally. Who else doesn't have access to eBay or Amazon? This isn't me arguing with you, I'm sincerely curious.

Your argument further fails because, again, AS I STATED your inability to find a product does not give you a right to obtain it through any means. Why? Because it's stealing. There's no arguing this point without trying to turn the definition into vagueness, defeating the whole purpose of definitions. Words have an exact meaning for a reason. If you don't pay for a product, it's stealing. End of story.

EDIT: I, ironically enough, answered the edit to your post in my edited original post. Go back and read it.

The issue is not with the actual access, obviously, but the means to buy things via the Internet.

And enough with the edits already. And you still didn't answer me about things not working.

 

[The Bandit]

It's wrong. It's not your shit and you're not supporting the artist by stealing it. Yes, you are stealing it. Taking something that does not belong to you, that you have not paid for, is stealing. It's a clear-cut, black and white definition. It's only your whining that grays the area.

"houlier than thou"? What do you mean?

As in a do-gooder who says "Your bad cuz u steel moneezz"

Like the people at the Westboro baptist church [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wvLEtRSCiE&feature=related]

I see.

My opinion is that downloading is not stealing at all. You are not taking something, only walking up to it and making a copy of it. Nothing is taken from those who produce it.

Nothing is taken, but the ones who produced it aren't getting their money either. In a way you stealing their money by not paying up for a product.

Paint it as you want, it's a sort of crime. Not a major one, unless you selling and making a profit out of it.

Making a profit out of illegal downloading is a pure dick move. But what if you can't get some things at the store? What if it's no longer being sold, or is a foreign product? Sometimes if you want something, illegal downloading is your only option.

That's a pretty crappy argument, honestly. Unless you just live in a crazy censored country, you can find most anything you want on Amazon or eBay or another equivalent. And saying "waaaah i cant find it" isn't an excuse. It doesn't give you some right to obtain it by any means necessary.

I consider it morally wrong, but I typically don't have a problem with people who at least admit it's wrong and do it anyway. There isn't much incentive to uphold the law if your chances of getting caught are about as slim as winning the lottery. When I see half-baked excuses trying to defend it, though, it's just annoying. You're wrong. It's OK. Not everyone's perfect.

Not everyone can use eBay or Amazon.

So you're basically calling my argument shit because you don't agree with it. Wow. How intellectual of you.

I just... I just don't even know, dude. I can't even respond to that ridiculousness. Really? Is that what I said? I mean, to be fair, I didn't write a detailed essay giving valid reasons as to why your argument failed, but I gave one or two a brief mention didn't I? Christ. I wasn't even trying to be rude with you.

Your argument failed because, as I already conceded, unless you live in a crazy censored country YOU HAVE ACCESS TO THE WHOLE INTERNET. You can find ANYTHING on the Internet. Literally. Who else doesn't have access to eBay or Amazon? This isn't me arguing with you, I'm sincerely curious.

Your argument further fails because, again, AS I STATED your inability to find a product does not give you a right to obtain it through any means. Why? Because it's stealing. There's no arguing this point without trying to turn the definition into vagueness, defeating the whole purpose of definitions. Words have an exact meaning for a reason. If you don't pay for a product, it's stealing. End of story.

EDIT: I, ironically enough, answered the edit to your post in my edited original post. Go back and read it.

The issue is not with the actual access, obviously, but the means to buy things via the Internet.

And enough with the edits already.

So, who doesn't have the means to buy things via the Internet?

 

[Akai Shizuku]

It's wrong. It's not your shit and you're not supporting the artist by stealing it. Yes, you are stealing it. Taking something that does not belong to you, that you have not paid for, is stealing. It's a clear-cut, black and white definition. It's only your whining that grays the area.

"houlier than thou"? What do you mean?

As in a do-gooder who says "Your bad cuz u steel moneezz"

Like the people at the Westboro baptist church [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wvLEtRSCiE&feature=related]

I see.

My opinion is that downloading is not stealing at all. You are not taking something, only walking up to it and making a copy of it. Nothing is taken from those who produce it.

Nothing is taken, but the ones who produced it aren't getting their money either. In a way you stealing their money by not paying up for a product.

Paint it as you want, it's a sort of crime. Not a major one, unless you selling and making a profit out of it.

Making a profit out of illegal downloading is a pure dick move. But what if you can't get some things at the store? What if it's no longer being sold, or is a foreign product? Sometimes if you want something, illegal downloading is your only option.

That's a pretty crappy argument, honestly. Unless you just live in a crazy censored country, you can find most anything you want on Amazon or eBay or another equivalent. And saying "waaaah i cant find it" isn't an excuse. It doesn't give you some right to obtain it by any means necessary.

I consider it morally wrong, but I typically don't have a problem with people who at least admit it's wrong and do it anyway. There isn't much incentive to uphold the law if your chances of getting caught are about as slim as winning the lottery. When I see half-baked excuses trying to defend it, though, it's just annoying. You're wrong. It's OK. Not everyone's perfect.

Not everyone can use eBay or Amazon.

So you're basically calling my argument shit because you don't agree with it. Wow. How intellectual of you.

I just... I just don't even know, dude. I can't even respond to that ridiculousness. Really? Is that what I said? I mean, to be fair, I didn't write a detailed essay giving valid reasons as to why your argument failed, but I gave one or two a brief mention didn't I? Christ. I wasn't even trying to be rude with you.

Your argument failed because, as I already conceded, unless you live in a crazy censored country YOU HAVE ACCESS TO THE WHOLE INTERNET. You can find ANYTHING on the Internet. Literally. Who else doesn't have access to eBay or Amazon? This isn't me arguing with you, I'm sincerely curious.

Your argument further fails because, again, AS I STATED your inability to find a product does not give you a right to obtain it through any means. Why? Because it's stealing. There's no arguing this point without trying to turn the definition into vagueness, defeating the whole purpose of definitions. Words have an exact meaning for a reason. If you don't pay for a product, it's stealing. End of story.

EDIT: I, ironically enough, answered the edit to your post in my edited original post. Go back and read it.

The issue is not with the actual access, obviously, but the means to buy things via the Internet.

And enough with the edits already.

So, who doesn't have the means to buy things via the Internet?

More people than you think, actually.

Don't even get me started about people who don't have the money.