Re: Another Modest Proposal: Pirating vs Archiving

[nathan@parka.winternet.com (Nathan Mates)]

In article <4t33ih$hdd@bmerhc5e.bnr.ca>,
Jeffrey Robertson <jeffr@bnr.ca> wrote:
>In article <4t1eok$ftb@blackice.winternet.com>,
>Nathan Mates <nathan@parka.winternet.com> wrote:
>>In article <4t0fgk$s5i@bmerhc5e.bnr.ca>,
>>Jeffrey Robertson <jeffr@bnr.ca> wrote:
>>>In article <4srk6u$b6e@blackice.winternet.com>,
>>>Nathan Mates <nathan@parka.winternet.com> wrote:
>>>>   Usefulness and rarity is _NOT_ an excuse for the general public to
>>>>be able to download pirated stuff. At best, it is a pathetic excuse to
>>>>salve up a conscience that knows that what it's doing is wrong, but
>>>>they have no self-control to do the right thing.

>>>Nathan, what's your opinion of the "don't ask; don't tell" argument
>>>presented for this kind of pirating?  (Or for gays in the US military,
>>>for that matter...)

   First off, I don't think your proposal is of the "don't ask, don't
tell" variety. You do propose asking for permission, and then telling
the world what the legal status is. The current situation at asimov is
"we won't ask if it's legal, but we will tell the whole world that we
do have pirated stuff."

   The legality of a piece of software is fairly easy to determine: we
have the copyright laws, and there's no big push to change them at
all. The legality of what the US military does is a _far_ more hot
button issue where the legality is undertermined, and people's
personal feelings play a far more important role. I want to stay to
the facts, and not get sidetracked off to issues better left to
congress, the president, the supreme court, and many special interest
groups.

>[Demonstration that Asimov fails my proposed criteria snipped.]

>I guess you believe that if the copyright holder of Bard's Tale
>does not wish to distribute the game, no one else should either.
>If you didn't buy the game when it was available... too bad!
>You'll never own it, until the copyright legally expires.

   Here's something that a lot of people have been missing in this
whole argument: you _CAN_ legally buy the software used. Garage sales,
comp.sys.apple2.marketplace, and the like will get you _legal_ masters
of pieces of software not currently in print. Unfortunately, that
involves spending money, something which is an anathema to pirates.

   I have personally picked up many Apple II pieces of software off
c.s.a2.m, stuff that's not sold in stores, and I didn't have the
money, ability (I grew up in Pakistan due to my parent's jobs-- _no_
Apple II software was available), or inclination to buy at the time.
Now I own it, and my copy is 100% legal. Came with full documention,
and sometimes even boxes, stuff you won't get off Asimov for most to
all games.

>Anyway, liberal or not, do you support my proposal, Nathan?
>Anyone?

   It's certainly a giant leap forward over what's currently being
done at asimov, and except for the hardcore pirates, it's acceptable
to most people. How about trying to implement it for starters, and
when the current lot of disk images conforms to those guidelines,
we can talk again.

Nathan Mates

--
<*> Nathan Mates http://www.ugcs.caltech.edu/~nathan/      <*>
# What are the facts? Again and again and again-- what are the _facts_?
# Shun wishful thinking, avoid opinion, care not what the neighbors
# think-- what are the facts, and to how many decimal places?  -R.A. Heinlein