Re: Cnet Article on Abandonware

["Ernest" <ernestls@home.com>]

>
>Arkain wrote:
>
>> JUST A POINT OF NOTE:
>>
>> If it wasn't for "Mr. Average Home User" giving copies of
Windows(original)
>> to their friends and "sharing" the software through BBS's, Windows
wouldn't
>> be quite as big as it is today. The initial reason that Windows had so
many
>> installations is that it was pirated from the beginning, just as current
>> copies of the OS are. M$ actually owes the pirates for making it so
>> prolific. That's the effect of "small scale copying... by home users."
>>
>> As bad a crime as it is to do this, companies actually profit from piracy
to
>> a certain degree, but as always, there is a point where it becomes
>> excessive. I readily agree that piracy is a "Bad Thing" but eeverything
in
>> this world has it's uses.
>>
>> Arkain
>>

>While piracy has been with us since the days of Bill Gates' first Altair
BASIC,
>and is properly credited with doubling the number of users of WordStar
(another
>good reason to hate piracy), it isn't the basis of Win 3.0's success,
though I
>have no doubt that Win 3.0 and higher have lots of pirated copies floating
>around.
>
>Roy

Piracy has certainly helped the gaming industry. I use Quake II as an
example. When the game Doom was released, many people when nuts over it
because there had never been anything like it before. Lots of people made
copies of it, and soon there was a huge user base of people who were just
waiting for the next Doom-like game to come out -which was Quake, and then
Quake II. ID made a fortune off of Quake II because Doom, either bought or
copied, had created a huge market of hungry buyers. Quake II came out and
legal copies flew off of the shelves. It was sold out for weeks, maybe even
months.

I can use vintage computer collecting as another example of a positive
effect of piracy. I collect vintage computers of many makes and models but I
probably would not have started collecting, and saving these old systems
from the trash heap if there was not the large amount of free software for
them. I know that I would not have bought my Apple IIe if I had to buy the
software that I have. I couldn't justify the cost, when I don't NEED it.
Collecting is a fun hobby for me but I don't have to do it.

I'm not saying that piracy is right but it does have some positive effects,
in some situations. I believe that in the case of vintage computer
collecting, piracy may do more long term good than bad only because it gives
people a reason not to toss their old computers into the trash, and it may
encourage the next generation to take a look at some of these old systems,
like the Apple II -thus keeping the user communities alive and growing, and
maybe some of these new users will give something positive back to the
community. Who knows?

Ernest