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Originally Posted by Zedrow
Honestly, I think it would depend on the numbers of those comitting such crimes. In the thread about immigration you made a point that while the immigrants are here illegally there are just too many to prosecute. In comparison I suspect that far more people pirate software, music, and movies then are in the US illegally, and yet you are willing to allow them to stay in the US because they are there in such high numbers that it would be inconceivable to go after each one. Does it make it any more 'correct' to do? No but why would it be acceptable for one crime but not another? As well I argue that illegal immigrants are driving down wages, hurting working Americans, as well as increasing costs for education, healthcare etc... which affects every American whereas piracy only trims the bottom line of companies who continue to make profits regardless. Either an illegal act is an illegal act or it is open for interpretation. You can't pick and choose which you prefer to enforce.
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In the immigration case I am not arguing that illegals be allowed to break the law and benefit from it. I'm arguing against chasing down the illegals because the only sane method for removing them is by cracking down on the people who employ them. Only when they are no longer rewarded with a job when they cross illigally will they stop doing so and go back home. Most politicians like very selective enforcement. It's easy for a politician to call for the tracking down of 12 million illegals because they can't vote, they have no money, it gets people excited, and it's never going to happen anyway.
Calling for real enforcement and real penalties for employers is a much different story because employers vote and, more importantly, have the kind of money that translates into campaign contributions.
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I agree to an extent. As far as application software goes, I think the bulk of the piracy is done by those who want to 'fiddle' with it and learn it, not profit from it. Most companies ensure that their software is legal so that they will not suffer any legal action against them.
For games I really can't say. As I mentioned earlier, I fully support those companies who do release a final, relatively bug-free product, however they are few and far between these days. If I bought a car only to find that some of the parts weren't included I would return it immediately. Unfortunately there are no such options when buying games. As for the bulk of the population it likely is done simply to save $$.
I'm not a programmer myself, but I understand and appreciate the time and effort that goes into making these products. In most cases, however, I have learned that it is not the programmers or even the developers who are rushing the product out, but the distributors who are pushing for quicker release times for their products. When I can, I buy directly from the developer because they take pride in their product and are more likely to release a finished product.
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I have worked in IT for about 15 years. I've seen countless cases of businesses and individuals using pirated software on a daily basis. In fact when I've done freelance work I have had to turn down work on occasions when a business owner asked me to work on equipment which was obviously running pirated software. I also know many people who download bootleg copies of music and movies and never pay a penny for a cd they've listened to online. So while it is true some people only pirate software and music and movies to "test drive" I've known many more who do it for keeps.