It's all about the piracy... No it is not!

[megalomania]

I find it quite ironic that it is easier, faster, and far more convenient for me to downloaded pirated versions of games, movies, and music than it is to get these things legitimately. It is no wonder people flock to P2P sources for entertainment. Individual people using free software have established vast social networks that work better than the retail system of the billion dollar corporations. Now why is this?

Case in point: I wanted to check out the latest Doom 3 demo. I click on the links to get the demo, but do I get a download prompt? Hell no, I get treated to the corporate runaround. They want me to register for this or that service, they want my private details, they want my email, they expect me to fill out copious amounts of paperwork when all I want is to see what the game is all about. Now if you do go through the rigmarole of jumping through all those hoops and actually do get to a page where you can actually download, the page you will find there is a lengthy wait because you didn’t BUY the premium service granting you instant access.

Why go through all this for a mere demo when in less than 30 seconds I can open my browser and get a torrent from Suprnova for the full game. No registering, no waiting, no hassle. I say these companies have no right to complain since they make getting their products so difficult. They have really dropped the ball if they let themselves get skunked by a bunch of ordinary people who created a sophisticated retail distribution system quite literally by accident or chance.

The root of their problem is outright greed. It is greed that compels them to seek out my private information and email address so they can sell me even more crap. It is never enough for them to be happy they made a sale, oh no, now you the consumer are made to feel guilty because you didn’t buy enough. Last Xmas the major retail chains even had the balls to blame customers for their poor sales. Oh the customers just wouldn’t buy enough. Boo fucking hoo, lower your damn prices asshats.

These companies like the RIAA and MPAA are acting as though they are entitled to all of your money. They consider every CD-R or DVD-R ever sold as being used only to copy music and movies. Why by their estimates they are out several hundred quadrillion dollars a year in sales. It is funny that the same arguments they use against piracy are the ones a more enlightened government used to establish public libraries. Here we have these buildings in every podunk little town in the US that I can go to get the latest Michael Crichton novel, for free mind you, while at the same time the parking lot at the Barnes and Noble isn’t exactly empty.

Indeed books cost just as much as a CD album despite the fact the book costs far more than the cheap piece of plastic from the drugged out hippies who didn’t even write the songs they are contractually obligated to sing. No, the only people who get hurt by music piracy are the massive corporate conglomerates that belong to the RIAA who have historically screwed both consumer and singer alike. I don’t know if there is such a thing as karma, but the RIAA is surely getting exactly what it deserves.

[DaedalusX]

Another good example:

Why should I *NEED* to have an internet connection, running that spyware crap stream bullshit, and wait a couple of hours to get my legit half-life 2 game to unlock when I can download it off the newsgroup at 500k/sec ++ and play it, no stream running in the background sucking up cpu, no online authentication for a offline game, no BULLSHIT. You can't even play half life 2 in single player if you aren't online when you bought, it is unacceptable.

[Sarevok]

I agree with everything you said; mainly with the statement that people behind the entertainment industry are greedy bastards. What you said is correct from a First World standpoint, but I would like to add a different viewpoint:

Here, many lower to lower-middle class people have to pay so much money to the government (in the form of taxes; usually everything, including stuff such as food and gasoline, has from 30 to 50% of taxes contained within its price. I am not exaggerating) and to businessmen, such as supermarket owners, bank owners, etc. (I'm not exaggerating, the price of things such as food usually increases by 50-100% every year), that they have very little money left for "irrelevant" things such as entertainment (it is irrelevant for some people, and from a practical standpoint it should be irrelevant for everybody, but anyways most people need some entertainment to keep going in this world full of shit), so it is very common for people to use pirated stuff.

And I'm not even talking about people who don't even have a job, despite being intelligent, "educated," etc. Again I'm not exaggerating, it is common for middle class people to be fired for no reason other than the fact that its employee wants to employ someone else to give this one a lower salary. (It is illegal to lower someone's salary, but it is not illegal to fire someone and then employ someone else and pay a lower - in comparison to the former worker's salary - salary for this person.)

Then the media promotes the message that "society" (in fact, rich people, politicians, megacorporations) are losing with piracy, that the world is going to end because of it, that you MUST not use anything pirated because if you do so, the world is going to end. They want you to feel guilty for using pirated stuff; you are acting against everybody, against THE CHILDREN when you do so. They want you to believe that you are losing a lot when you obtain pirated software. IT'S A LIE! They are losing, not me. And they want me to believe that I am losing. :mad:

Just like when politicians banned guns because "people might get hurt if they had guns in home, they might get hurt if they tried to defend themselves against criminals," when they banned concentrated ethanol ( of course I simply buy the diluted one, dry it with CaO, and distill it :rolleyes: ) from common supplies (i.e. anything that isn't a chemical supply store) because "so many children are getting hurt because of alcohol burns..." :mad: As you can see, all of their justificatives are a lie. It's all a lie! They lie all the time!

By using pirated software/movies/whatever you are acting out of revenge against politicians/businessmen/etc, all of whom are full of shit greedy lying bastards! FUCK them very much! If I can't put a bullet in their heads, at least I can avoid taxes (thus not handing my money over to the government) and overprofited prices (thus not handing my money over to businessmen).

[akinrog]

While I am trying to avoid pirated software/movies/ music etc. since I am trying to avoid prosecution for the use of pirated software, in past I had to use them since I had no enough money, and I need them for making a living. (Though I must confess that during buying the overpriced licenses of the office software, I sweared to B.G. of MS every day the vilest insults, since buying linences opened a huge gap in my budget, which I am still struggling to close.)

(Bosses of) The giga companies are not only greedy sons of a bitch but they are also fools since they are trying to sell a $ 500 office software package in a country whose GNP per capita is only $ 2500.

And I guess that of this $2500, at least $2000 is represented by the local giga companies of my country. The remaining $500 is what is left for the ordinary people and small and medium enterprises.

This type of sharp marketing/ sales practice is utterly an invitation for the pirated software. I see some European software companies which are reasonable. They apply such price policies that if you are from a poorer country their prices drop drastically and if you are from a rich country they apply their regular prices.

[K9]

It becomes not so much a matter of them being outraged at you screwing them, but outrage at the prospect of them not being able to screw you.

[megalomania]

It is not so much the piracy for piracy's sake as it is just easier for the consumer to obtain the pirated goods. Furthermore it is not that getting pirated goods is too easy, but that getting the legit thing is so damn hard.

The movie industry is so scared about pirates that they will not release movies online. This means a lot of people are just fucked because they have no way to get the movie they want. I have never watched an anime movie (outside of a handful on the Sci-Fi channel when they had anime Sunday) until this year. Why not? Because I had never seen one in the video rental places before. Now with P2P I can watch just about any anime I want for free by downloading it. I ask you this: Who is wrong, me for getting something for free that I have no idea where to buy, or them for failing to offer something I would buy if I knew where to look?

NBK2000 has introduced me to the theory that money is a substitute for work. For years I have been trying to wrap my head around where exactly wealth comes from. I have heard about, and agree with, wealth is NOT a zero sum game (in zero sum if you get rich that means someone else gets poor). Now I see that wealth, or money, is work made real.

Therefore if money is a substitute for work, then I should be able to fork over some cash and have a company let me download a movie without any hassle. Yet the exact opposite is true: It takes far more work AND money to get the legit article when I can just download the thing without any hassles AND get it for free.

The point being all these movie big wigs have to do is let me download their films for a modest fee. Just let me have what I want when I want for a reasonable amount. Is that hard? Apparently it is because they will not do this. They would rather sell nothing then concede that someone might get something for nothing when they are getting that something for nothing either way. That is like cutting off your nose to spite your face.

Today I opened windows media player to listen to some net radio. I noticed the "music" tab and clicked on it. I don't use WMP that often so I decided to check out some of its features. I was whisked off to a page with a selection of the latest and most popular albums. One of those albums was something by Green Day. I decided to check it out and clicked on the link. I don't know what I was expecting, but I was not at all surprised they wanted me to buy the songs. 99 cents a pop and two you had to buy the album to get. Quite tricky on their part since there are 9 songs (at 99 cents a pop) but the album is $10.89.

I decided to try a little experiment. Would it be easier to get the songs by paying or from P2P? I went to suprnova.org and found several torrents of the album, and I found several rars and zips on DC++. These began downloading in earnest, the DC version at 45k/s and the torrent at around 90k/s. Back on the MSN network I first had to "sign up" before I could order anything. Needless to say by the time I was ready to submit my order for ONE stupid song the torrent was done (and the torrent was a full CD quality rip).

The reason it is so hard to get music and especially movies is their greed. I mentioned earlier I would gladly pay a reasonable price for movies if I could download them. I would also pay a reasonable price for music. But their prices are NOT reasonable. They are outrageous! Paying $25-$30 for a titney spears album is not reasonable. 99 cents for one song is not reasonable. Renting a movie for 24 hours for $5 is not reasonable.

These bastards are getting pirated because their sense of greed is so overwhelming. They go beyond greed and into malfeasance. They are little more than monopolists, or rather collusionists. The RIAA already got sued a few years for conspiring to keep retail prices of music artificially high. The longer they keep trying to peddle their overpriced wares on an outdated distribution system the more rampant piracy will become simply because it is the most efficient economic system.

"I pirate not because I don't have the money, but because they won't offer the product."

The software scene is something different altogether. I understand the need for many software publishers to charge high prices simply because they have such a small market. This argument does NOT apply to the likes of Microsoft or the gaming industry as they have plenty of customers, but they charge a lot anyway (greed). How many people really need to buy photoshop? A few thousand companies maybe? The current price for either Adobe CS or the Adobe Video Collection is about $1500. Outrageous yes, worth it no, unless you are a company. I can download both of these for nothing faster and easier than buying them. However, if I could not pirate these I would never pay that much money for them. The fact is most people who pirate software never intended to buy it in the first place. I think it is disingenuous of the software industry to decry every pirated download as a lost sale. The fact is Photoshop would not be nearly as popular as it is if millions of people could not pirate it. These millions of users have created reams of how-to websites and guides, posted informative articles, and have contributed to the design of macros and plug-ins. These resources have in turn allowed Adobe to become as popular as it is.

Until there is a new paradigm of thinking in the corporate world involving significantly lower prices and better distribution piracy will reign supreme.

[Anthony]

You are bang-on, here Mega.

Software piracy should only be persued if the pirated copy has been used to make money - i.e. business use.

I simply adore open-source and/or freeware programs. I use several for DVD copying and they are downright great. Bug free, practical, useful tools that do what you tell them. They consume minimal system resources, and many are less than a megabyte in size! All for the princely sum of fuckall. Compare that to Nero (latest all singing, all dancing version) which I occasionally have to use, and it is terrible! The free programs do what it does, but better. All Nero has is appeal to AOLers. There is no way on this earth that I would pay for that pile of shit!

Same goes for much commercial software. Who would actually pay several hundred for MS fucking word? IMO, that kind of software was designed for business, and they should pay for it. All the private use that has come about should be icing on the cake for MS, not an excsuse to bitch about lost sales.

It is outrageous that an operating system that you NEED to use a computer (quiet you LUNIX types ;)) can cost more than the computer itself!

Music! Magazines have given away free CDs on the covers for years. Newspapers that cost $0.10 a copy can afford to give away CDs. Yet still the greedy record companies insist that £15-£20 is a reasonable price for a CD? Bullshit.

If they dropped their prices to 4.99 a CD, sales would rise, and they could still have a several hundred percent markup. And oh look, no one will see the point in buying pirate copies anymore...

Seen those "FACT" copyright ads on films since the WTC attack? "Piracy funds terrorism" get off the bandwagon, arseholes.

They cried foul when the tape recorder was released, when the VCR was released. "We'll go out of business!" they wailed. Yet still they are pulling the same old shit. Sales have not plummeted, they are still as rich as ever. I'm dissapointed the courts give them the time of day. Especially when the recipient of the RIAA's vitriol is a fucking kid who download some songs from kazaa that he couldn't have afforded to buy anyway. If it's a guy running a hundred CD or DVD burners round the clock and selling thousands of copies, I could see it being worth the court's time.

I like the way those FACT ads claim that piracy will destory our publishing industry. I haven't heard of a publisher suing someone for possesing an ebook though. Thankfully, the publishers have kept things in perspective. They acknowledge ebooks, but realise, and have stated, that they know people will always prefer having a proper book in their hand to read. Good for them.

Mega, you are damn right - the media industries have the power to curb piracy but they choose not to do it out of greed.

Your experience of attemping to download legit music is shocking. For a start, 99c a track is appalling. An average 15track cd would therefore cost ~$15. I buy my CDs online for $9 or $10 (new CDs). The cost of an mp3 should be proportional to the amount of the original song you are getting. Fucked if I'd pay the same amount for a copy that only contains approx 1/8th of the original product (lossy compression). You can hear the difference between MP3 and CD!

While I'm ranting - adverts on DVDs! They rip me off by charging $20 for 20c worth of plastic, and expect me to pay for the privilege of watching ad space that they have sold to make even more money (does the greed end?). And I can't skip past their stupid copyright warnings or intros and studio logos, because of the PUOPs. What's more, unlike VHS, these ads and bullshit reduce the quality of the feaure you've paid through the nose for! There's finite space on a DVD.

It's a pleasure to watch a copied DVD, where either the bullshit has been removed, or can be skipped past. I really have come to hate playing a legit dvd and having to wait anywhere up to 2 minutes to get to the fucking menu.

Don't even get me started on the "artists" who think they deserve the millions they're paid for record deals, that the comman man has suffered for. In relation to wealth - it's a bottom up structure. All money comes from the labours of the common man. Governments, councils, banks, investers, chief executives, managers are never spending their own money, always the labourers.

[Silentnite]

Too true. Open source is more and more the way to go. *nix as an operating system that doesn't report back to ABC or Micr$oft. Openoffice is beautifully put together. Because all of these are programs where people code in what people want. Word incorporates so many plugins and pointless paperclips and system bogging details that its ridiculous. Hmm. Pay 150 dollars for an UPGRADE or get OO for free? McAffee used to provide unlimited updates when you buy their Antivirus. Then they kicked it up to 50 dollars a year to get an upgrade. I could have installed AVG or some such freeware, but instead to spite McAffee I cracked the program to give me free updates for 20 years. Fuckers. Adobe CS. An overblown paintshop that will only reliably work on a highend desktop. Yes i'll pay 2000 for my computer and then another 1500 for a program?
As for music, i download. I downloaded some of Eminem's new CD, Greenday's, all sorts of them. And then i realized how good the CD was and went out and bought them. Before i learned about suprnova i'd drop 20 bucks on a cd that i only liked one song. Might as well burn my money.
It's a crock. If anything downloading has increased my spending. So MPAA and RIAA can bend over instead of the consumer for once.

[c0deblue]

Came across this article a few days ago that sounds a cautionary note for all (see also the "related stories" at the bottom of the Register article): http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/12/14/finnish_police_raid_bittorrent_site/

I agree that the companies and their trade organizations are a bunch of greedy so-and-sos, but the problem is that they - like the Mafia - have at their disposal a LOT of firepower, and they - like the Mafia - aren't above engaging in overkill to set an example to others. That's what it's all about - completely destroying a few poor slobs so they can sell their products at inflated prices to everyone else. The P2P community needs to discover a means of hooking up that doesn't leave a record of every transaction and doesn't rely on a central "control and dispatch" system to make the connections. For gangster outfits like the RIAA this is like shooting fish in a barrel.

[DirtyDan]

I hate to bring anymore bad feelings toward the **AA ( :p ) , but I learned to my dissmay this morning that *something* shut Suprnova down for good.


Good-bye!
Greetings everybody, As you have probably noticed, we have often had downtimes. This was because it was so hard to keep this site up! But now we are sorry to inform you all, that SuprNova is closing down for good in the way that we all know it. We do not know if SuprNova is going to return, but it is certainly not going to be hosting any more torrent links. We are very sorry for this, but there was no other way, we have tried everything. Thank you all that helped us, by donating mirrors or something else, by uploading and seeding files, by helping people out on IRC and on forum, by spreading the word about SuprNova.org. It is a sad day for all of us! Please visit SuprNova.org every once in a while to get the latest news on what is happening and if there is anything new to report on. As we wish to maintain the nice community that we created, we are keeping the forums and irc servers open. Thank you all and Goodbye! sloncek & the rest of the SuprNova Team

Im not sure if this is simply due to lack of mirrors and high bandwidth costs of if there lies another more obvious reason, but it brings bad new regardless. There are plenty of other torrent houses out there, such as www.isohunt.com, but how much farther will this hunt go? Is P2P near its fate? When Kazaa Lite K++ died, I had already migrated onto torrent. Now I dont know where to go! I fear for the worst, and who knows what the consequences will be if P2P loses more steam than it already has. I bet lower media prices wont be at the top of the list though...

[Silentnite]

How overblown and ridiculous does their case become when they begin prosecuting 12 yr old Girls?? She got hit with a 12000 dollar fine, which a grassroutes effort online got the entire amount donated. It's illegal to watch DVD's on linux, to make backup copies, and soon, to do anything but fork over money to the Recording industry.

"Downloading music from free websites like KaZaA, Grokster and iMesh is considered copyright infringement, which means that you used something that belonged to someone else without paying for it. And since you are breaking the law, it can mean trouble.

In September, 261 people around the country, from a 12-year-old student to a grandmother, were charged with illegally downloading music. In lawsuits filed against them by the RIAA they could be fined up to $150,000 for each song they downloaded from the Internet.

Last April, the RIAA decided to sue several college students who operated song-sharing Web sites, including one student at Princeton University. The lawsuits demanded each student pay $150,000 for every song they offered on their Web site. All the students have settled their cases out of court, each agreeing to pay RIAA a total amount ranging from $12,000 to $17,000. ".... Entire article:
http://www.njsbf.com/njsbf/student/eagle/winter04-3.cfm

[nbk2000]

I thought they already had distributed P2P networks? Wasn't that the point behind bittorrent, WASTE, gunettella, and all those that came after Napster?

[c0deblue]

I've only used Bit Torrent and eDonkey a couple of times (with only partial success in terms of uncorrupted files), so I certainly don't claim expertise on the subject. However, the thing that got my immediate attention was that when you make connections all the peers and seeds are listed by IP number. At any given time in the course of a lengthy download, there may be 30 or 40 IPs shown, together with the completed percentage for each. The only thing the more aggressive software companies, movie producers, etc. (AND the advocacy/enforcement groups that cause most of the problems) have to do is send a search request using eDonkey or its cousins, and within a short time they have a list of source IPs. Over the course of a lengthy download the list changes with log-ons and log-offs, so they can collect a BUNCH of time-specific IPs and go to the ISPs for the server logs. It's probably safe to assume they use an assortment of P2P programs in conjunction with bots to monitor file sharing and compile databases of the most popular software/movie/music downloads. Sort of like a honey pot sting except they don't even have to bother setting up the honey pot. Their only problem is that with finite resources they have to pick and choose since they obviously can't prosecute EVERYBODY (yet). Nowhere near as secure as the old passworded warez boards, but even they were infiltrated on a fairly regular basis. The only secure P2P is if I dial you up directly and share files that way. As soon as there's a public search/hookup function you're no more secure than in a chat room - never knowing who's lurking there. Nothing's without its risks, but unfortunately they're becoming greater - and the stakes higher - as outfits like the RIAA file charges and lawsuits against whole groups of their latest targets: the downloaders. :(

[Silentnite]

Thankfully your mostly wrong. Yes with bittorrent you can see the individual IP's. But that in itself isn't illegal. It just shows you have the file. They then have to connect, but in connecting they begin sharing too. They can say that they only did it as a preview or to get others but when you have up to 30 people to connect to then you have 30 individual parts of the file. Therefore you don't get the entire file from any particular person. The same argument they use you can use.
It's almost impossible to design a proxy-type sharing program that hides the users due to that slowing everything down significantly. The best they've come up with is Suprnova's Exeem, which is in beta right now, and you have to be a registered user, so no piggies allowed basically.

[c0deblue]

It doesn't matter whether all the particulars of the above observations are "right" or "wrong", it only matters that the racketeers at **AA and their ilk have decided to set an example by imposing draconian penalties on nickle-and-dime file sharing. That's a fact. It also doesn't matter what any of us "can say" by way of defense - the "justice system" isn't sympathetic to such finely-minced arguments; they're not looking for excuses to acquit you, they're looking for rationales to support a conviction. The "honey-pot" sting is a time-tested tactic, and courts have looked the other way at claims of entrapment. No one would deny that a primary purpose of distributed P2P networks is to circumvent having to buy products at retail, so it makes no difference whether you download something from a single source or acquire it a piece at a time from many. Legal opinion and practice favors their position, not ours. That's the reality. As to the question of whether law enforcement is just as guilty for sharing or contributing to the file-share stream, it's the same as when cops download kiddy porn during an investigation - the courts don't call that criminal activity, they call it EVIDENCE.

Let's say they come after you for some ridiculous penalty like $150,000 per song (or whatever), as they've already done in several cases. Now let's say you're able to "settle" the case by forking over $15 or $20 K plus the legal fees of the lawyer who negotiates the settlement, or that a very clever and committed lawyer is able to secure your acquittal at trial, but with legal fees of $25 or $30 K (if you're lucky). What kind of "victory" is that?

Not trying to be disagreeable here, but seeing this thing through rose-colored glasses is a serious mistake. If they do come after any of us, the only thing rose-colored will be the red ink on our balance sheets. Which incidentally is EXACTLY their objective.

[tmp]

I remember when new VHS movies cost $80 to $100. Too me at least,
$15 for a good movie on DVD is not unreasonable. That same price for
a CD with only 1 or 2 decent songs on it outrageous ! It's no wonder
the music people are being pirated.

[Silentnite]

I hold out faith that this will be put to a stop soon. If we keep rolling over and saying well its cheaper to do it this way and let the **AA's rape us, then no matter what we're fu*Ked. Consumers will start realizing the difference, regardless of how dumb the majority is. But like I said. Blind faith in humanity...

We're doomed.

[knowledgehungry]

The only people losing money are the big record companies. I can't tell you how many CD's I have bought because of P2P. When I hear a few songs from a certain band that I really like I go out and buy the CD because I know that this band isn't making money(all bands I do this with are small independent record labels), and I prefer to have the real thing as opposed to MP3's on my computer.

[Anthony]

You'll all be glad to hear that there is at least one working mirror of Suprnova: http://www.bi-torrent.com/ and people are still seeding. I wasn't sure what to do when I found both suprnova and sharereactor were gone.

Surely if you are aquitted, then you recover your costs from the prosecution?

The trouble with trying to fine someone $150 000 per song, when they have 1000 songs, is that the defendent can't possible pay it. So either the judge will award means tested compensation (probably a few thousand), or you take the $150 million fine, and based on your surplus income, agree to pay $10/week.

That's what happens in criminal court, I don't see why civil law would be any different?

[nbk2000]

Mega, here's the article that introduced me to the 'Money is time from your life' concept.

[cyclonite4]

...illegal to watch DVD's on linux...

Thats just fucked up.
I know that on Linux you can watch DVD's with region protection, which may be the excuse they are using.

I believe it's just another tactic against open-source, probably one of Microsoft's under-the-table deals. :mad:

Besides, you can beat region protection on windows anyway. You can use some special programs, or play it in VLC.

God I hate the big companies. :mad: :mad:

[Silentnite]

No, its not the actual ability to copy or anything like that that they are worried about. Sadly its only about them not recieving any money.

See in order to ''view'' dvd's in windows someone had to pay one of the 'Companies' several thousand dollars in order to license the decoder. Obviously the linux community opensourced one rather quickly, but no one payed the licensing fee and THAT is what is illegal. Everyone is viewing dvds on linux using an unlicensed viewer. And seeing as how no one will pay for an actually licensed program to view, when there are so many decent OpenSource ones...

Sad to know that you can be arrested just for viewing DVDs that you actually bought, on a computer you made.

[cyclonite4]

Not just sad, evil. :mad:

The fact they are so greedy practically justifies piracy.
I pirate software not because I can't afford (even though I can't), or because I find it hard to get their product (even though I do), I do it to bite them back in the ass for being such greedy fucks. :)

Every single cent they can rip out of your pocket makes them feel just that extra bit more satisfied, they can't stop at billions, no, they want more, greedy bastards. :mad: :mad: :mad:

[Silentnite]

Yes, its sad what the US is coming to, let alone the world. I am reading more and more accounts of our civil liberties being infringed upon or downright negated, and its ... disheartning. :mad:

A man reported to an ISP that a spammer was violating its agreement with the ISP by spamming. That Spammer is now suing the man that got them banned from the ISP. :eek:

OpenSource and Linux is deemed *Communistic* by Bill Gates in order to drive Micro$ofts stock up as it has stagnated over the last three years. :(

American Airlines employees confronted a man travelling and gave him a blank piece of paper to right down where he will be staying and with whom and where he will be travelling. :(

Trying to pass a bill in California that gives potential jail time to P2P software developers if they dont provide reasonable protection to ensure that the program cant be used for anything illegal. :mad:

Theres more but its making me depressed and ..... angry.

[cyclonite4]

God I hate the world, and because of the way it's turning, more and more every day.

[megalomania]

Consider this: The cost of computer hardware has fallen dramaticially over the past 10 years. It used to be a mainstream system would cost well over $3000. At these prices the cost of Windows OS is something of an afterthought. Today, computer systems are starting to reach a price point of true affordability except for one component that remains increasingly expensive: the OS.

That's right, good ol' Windows in keeping the cost of computers sky high. In a low end system it is the single most expensive component! A quick websearch of current prices for XP pro reveals it costs between $120 to $250. A year ago my graphics card cost me $160, and it was the most expensive component. Even upgrades to XP cost over $100.

Microsoft spends too much time trying to do everything and ends up sucking at just about everything. Who among you relies on the Windows firewall? What about the encryption features? DO you use the CD burning utils? The movie maker?

There are tons of appz out there that replicate the features of windows and do an infinately better job. That's funny considering how staggeringly wealthy Micro$oft is. If I knew how to safely rip out most of the WIndows bloatware I would. Maybe if they concentrated on actually making an OS that worked things would be better.

They won't, of course. They are greedy, so they try to include as many features as possible to block any competition from gaining a market share and to justify an entirely new version of windows rather than a mere service pack. Service packs don't make money.

In the end Windows is a jack of all trades, master of none. Full of features only newbs will rely on, and still it crashes. I hope someone starts suing software makers because of bugs. If software companies were held to the same standards as physical product manufactures I bet Windows would not be the piece of crap it has always been.

[cyclonite4]

Eventually, a good percentage of windows users will shift to linux when they grow weary of Microsoft Windows' infamous 'Blue Screen of Death' :P

[akinrog]

Actually I would prefer linux over MicroShit, but due to compatibility problems I cannot use it (since majority of my clients use microshit products). A few months ago I had to invest over $2000 in order not to use pirated software for my business, but this is really heavy burden since I have to work several months to cover up the gap in my budget.

[Bert]

God I hate the world, and because of the way it's turning, more and more every day.
I know it's hard to believe, but the world has pretty much been this way (or worse) for a long, long time. What's happened is either you've started to notice how it is, or your attitude towards the way it is has changed.

You can either do something to change your attitude or be very unhappy, or be dead. I suggest attitude change as the easiest... Can be as easy as doing something (even just symbolic) about whatever is pissing you off, or distracting yourself by doing something you enjoy. Extra points for combining the two. Try not to kill anyone else doing it, it gives the forum a bad name.

Of course, if you're a teen you won't believe this. Good luck, hope you feel better... We've mostly been there. Mostly.

[Silentnite]

I do something symbolic by finding out who is most Vehement about anti-piracy and such and begin downloading just that in my dreams. Even several copies. I wont use it, and I almost always delete it. But the act gives me a smile.

[cyclonite4]

Bert, I know the world has been for a long time, but you gotta admit it isn't exactly getting better. I try to both of your suggestions and usually find the second more effective, distracting myself with enjoyable activities. I guess hate may be too strong of a word, dislike maybe?

I'm not here to kill people, or give the forum a bad way in any name (there is porbably enough people doing that.

Maybe I'll change my attitude one day.

[Bert]

Maybe I'll change my attitude one day.

Go watch a movie called "What the (bleep) Do We Know?"... It's worth it for the Polish wedding scene even if it you don't take the film's message to heart.

[cyclonite4]

Is the 'bleep' supposed to be there or was a word filtered out, like the F word for example?

[nbk2000]

It's (bleep)'d in the title, not censored on our end or by the poster.

[cyclonite4]

I had a look at the video store across the road (which is quite large), and I couldn't find it.
How old is it?
What genre is it?

[Bert]

It's still in theatres. The DVD comes out this spring (http://www.whatthebleep.com/dvd/)

[Silentnite]

Here's a funny story. MGM was sued and found liable for their DVD's. Apparently they just cut out part of the picture on widescreen-formatted movies instead of re-formatting it. The funny part is how it all works out in court:

Media Giant rips you off:.. $7.10 per copy
You rip off Media Giant:.$150,000 per copy

Media Giant does this in an organized fashion: no criminal sanctions
You do this in an organized fashion:.........: criminal record, PMITA jail time

Gotta love our system. Thank you big business!

[fr0sengh0st]

If something is cheap you end up spending more on it,

I found this legal music download site - www.allofmp3.com - based in Russia and at only 2 cents a mb I’ve found myself spend far more on music than I ever used to

I-tunes should take note of services like this and stop trying to fob us of with overpriced downloads, especially as I live I in the UK and its 20% more expensive than other countries in Europe, so the only possible explanation is greed
:mad: