Originally Posted by Jim Offerman
Originally Posted by truedude
Microsoft has to be considered partly responsible for the success of file sharing theft.


I fail to see what Microsoft did to promote file sharing. Unless, of course, you are referring to their draconian DRM efforts (i.e. "Plays For Sure", etc) that are so cumbersome they practically beg consumers to seek out DRM-free torrents instead...

And can we please stop calling file sharing "theft". It's not. Theft is when you take something from me and then I no longer have it... file sharing does not fit that description.


Jim,

If you bought a book. Let's say whatever book is now the best seller at Amazon.com, then typed out every word of it and put it on a PDF file for free download on the internet, what do you think would happen? Do you think that you stole the book?

Well there are two definitions of "book" here, just as there are two definitons of "song." One definition is as the physical copy of the author's work, the other defintion is as the author's intellectual work itself. Taking either without permission is stealing. When we say "stealing a song" we mean the stealing of the author's intellectual work, of which they have the right to copy (the copyright) not the illegal filesharer.

You've got to know your limitations. I don't know what your limitations are. I found out what mine were when I was twelve. I found out that there weren't too many limitations, if I did it my way. -Johnny Cash

It's only music.
-niteshift

Mike Dunbar Music