Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!cbosgd!ihnp4!ptsfa!ames!ucbcad!ucbvax!renoir.Berkeley.EDU!robinson From: robinson@renoir.Berkeley.EDU.UUCP Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga Subject: Re: all copy protection Message-ID: <19632@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU> Date: Tue, 7-Jul-87 10:23:47 EDT Article-I.D.: ucbvax.19632 Posted: Tue Jul 7 10:23:47 1987 Date-Received: Thu, 9-Jul-87 02:31:28 EDT References: <1303@crash.CTS.COM> <593@madvax.UUCP> <1813@vax135.UUCP> Sender: usenet@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU Reply-To: robinson@renoir.Berkeley.EDU.UUCP (Michael Robinson) Organization: University of California, Berkeley Lines: 37 Keywords: excuses, excuses In article <1813@vax135.UUCP> cjp@vax135.UUCP (Charles Poirier) writes: >This kind of argument assumes pirates are ethical Darwinists. Their >noble motivation is to weed out the baddies who overcharge for rotten >code by refusing to pay them for it. I don't know. I don't think "this kind of argument" assumes anything of the sort. In my experience, there are basically three kinds of software pirates. The first kind is the neurotic compulsive mega-pirate, responsible for 90% of pirating in general, but who has a limited impact on the marketplace because they don't use 97% of the stuff they pirate, and certainly wouldn't pay anything for it if they had to. The second kind is the determined, informed, ruthless pirate who buys a computer system with the expectation that they will never pay for any software, even the useful, worthwhile stuff. Copy protection and software quality are moot issues with these people, because they are never going to pay for anything, no matter how good or cheap, and are always going to get what they want--they go through Prolok protection like tissue paper. The third type of pirate I have encountered is the personal or small business user on a budget who knows piracy is wrong, but who simply can't afford the $600-$1000 it costs just for a simple commercial word processing and spreadsheet setup. These are the people who made Turbo-Pascal an overnight sensation, the people most deterred by copy protection, and the people most influenced by quality and value for their money. But then again, these observations are based on personal experience, and as such, completely invalid in an issue typified by argumentation like the following: >I just don't understand the logic of this. Pirates are thieves. >Typical, smirking, self-centered thieves. Thieves are not motivated by >social ideology. > Charles Poirier (decvax,ucbvax,ihnp4,attmail)!vax135!cjp ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Mike Robinson USENET: ucbvax!ernie!robinson ARPA: robinson@ernie.berkeley.edu