Thread: What is "piracy" and is it ever justified
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mmurfin87 is offline mmurfin87
2010-03-05 , 16:23
Posts: 307 | Thanked: 157 times | Joined on Jul 2009 @ Illinois, USA
#304
Originally Posted by CrashandDie View Post
If you look at the exact value of a painting, its pure worth in terms of materials, sure, it's not much. But value is made of so much more than the basic building blocks -- this is the foundation of our whole world; I just can't fathom you don't realise this.
Originally Posted by mmurfin87 View Post
So what gives this really long number value? Well, in certain contexts, the program it represents may offer some functionality that is desirable.
I'm already on the same page as you, Crash. The difference between your examples is, if say the "house" in question was a mobile home, and I took it, I've deprived the user of its use, and harm is done.

If I copy a program, and only do that. I just copy it. Is any harm done?

Let me rephrase that into a scenario.

Say I'm on an Apple computer and I download the latest Age of Empires video game (or any other windows-only program). Assume I'm running OSX, I don't have Boot Camp, so all I have is a useless copy of this program on my computer.

At this point though, what I've downloaded isn't really even a program. It doesn't run or do ANYTHING on my OSX computer. Its just a really long number. So have I done any harm or theft in this scenario? Ignore for the moment what my intent might be.

Now, say I was on a PC and I downloaded that program and then ran it and install it. All of you (and me included) would say you have committed piracy.

I'm just trying to separate the concept of copying a long number, and using functionality without paying.

In the case of a house, I cannot take the house from you without also depriving you of its functionality. In the case of code, I could "take" from you (copy) the program a billion times and not deprive you of your profits until the first time I ran your program and used it without paying.