Thread: Is it okay for a student with limited financial resources to pirate software?
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gerbick
2010-09-27 , 00:35
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#177
Originally Posted by silvermountain View Post
I'm still curious to hear if every single anti-piracy advocate here that took the time to giddieup on their mighty high horses have ever had a pirated piece of software (app, game, music, movie) in their possession and/or enjoyed someone else's. It doesn't really matter when it was or why it was - if you did it you really have no right to ram your dubious morals down anyone's throat as that person may well be in exactly the same situation (age, financial situation, etc) as you were then.

For the record I'm against software piracy myself but I downloaded music and movies years ago so there would be too many glasswalls for me to start throwing any bricks due to me now being in a situation where I don't have to do so. Doesn't give me any right to judge others.
Since you asked, I'll be honest. I still have stuff from the Napster days I've yet to listen to... I got that much stuff. But I've pirated. And justified it because I was younger, not in that field... stupid... oblivious to what it meant to make your own software.

Then I grew up. Then I became the software developer myself. I have almost always purchased software - music not so much - but there were a couple of items I didn't pay for; but I got them through other means. I beta tested for Microsoft since the Windows 95 beta days. I still do. And I keep up my MCSE and I'm active with a Microsoft Certified Partner and have access to MSDN/Technet. I've beta tested for Adobe, Macromedia, Corel, Fractal Design, VMware, MetaTools, Electric Rain, Discreet and Autodesk... and was "blessed" enough to find a ton of bugs during the beta days, get free software that support my design side too.

Then I got into the Linux world... even paid for Kylix. I've bought or received over 90% of my software... pirated less than 5% and I've gone backwards and actually paid for those.

But yeah, I've pirated. And I've come to understand that it affects a lot of folks directly and indirectly. It also can be avoided. I've written companies, asked if they had a program where I could test their software or use it as a hobbyist. Toon Boom Studio responded, as have others... and it's pretty cool. I didn't make a dime from their software, but I sure as hell learned from it.

So to be honest... in the past, yep. Did it. Now? For the last 12 years, I have not pirated software. Music though? Hell yeah... I have. But I also have an over 1000 CD collection that I purchased, and have been slowly transferring them to MP3's... so much so that I don't listen to what I stole while I was being stupid during my Napster days.

If you want the software, I'm quite sure there are SO MANY ways to legally get it. All you have to do sometimes is ask... surprising what it does for you.