[net.micro] Pirates and some wrong ideas that are going around.

stanly@unmvax.UUCP (03/30/85)

Hello,

	In all the articles that I have been reading, one think keeps
being repeated and repeated.

  Software stealing is as bad as robbing a bank or holding up a
     7-11 except on a smaller scale.

Piracy is a bad term for copying diskettes.  When you steal a program,
 you are making a copy of it and not taking from the other person.  You
 are not stealing it or pirating it but you are COPYING it.

Better lets call it:

	Software stealing is as bad as copying tapes or records.

Another thing is that not all copying is for stealing purposes.  Some people
 back up software with "the great pirate programs". Last week in the local
 apple computer club, a new rule was created.

	No copying is allowed in the club.  Anybody caught copying software
will have all the software they have on them checked to see if it is
a copy and not the real thing. If it is a copy, IT WILL BE ERASED!

Two days later somebody went into my backpack and took most of my diskettes.
 True, some of them were copys but most were the real thing.  If you are not
 allowed to backup your disks, how are you to protect yourself? Most
 copying is for pirating purposes so that if somebody said, " I am
 backing up this stuff " , what are you supposed to think? The thief knew
 you could not get me to copy it for him so he stole it.


Send me mail . . . I   L O V E  mail

          Josh Siegel

 {convex,ucbvax,gatech,csu-cs,anl-mcs,lanl-a}!unmvax!unm-cvax!josh

-- 

   Stanly Steinberg
   Department of Mathematics and Statistics
   University of New Mexico 
   Albuquerque, New Mexico 87131

uucp:
   {anl-mcs,convex,csu-cs,gatech,lanl,ogcvax,pur-ee,ucbvax}!unmvax!stanly
ARPA:
   unmvax!stanly@lanl.arpa

sde@mitre-bedford.ARPA (04/01/85)

The nature of software piracy is that of "theft of service". For those
who've never heard the term, it is the offense committed by someone who, e.g.
rides a train without permission (normally granted through ticket purchase).
It clearly does not add much to the effort of moving a train, but also clearly
deprives the train owner(s) of revenue and at its base violates the basic
property rights inherent in ownership. Therefore, piracy is, in fact, theft,
despite declamations to the contrary. By the way, for those who find nothing
wrong in copying tapes or discs, since the original is undamaged, how about
someone copying, say your doctor's or lawyer's records. If there is no right
to limit distribution to those authorized, then the latter is just as
justifiable.

David   sde@mitre-bedford