🚀 go-pugleaf

J.B. Nicholson-Owens <jbn@forestfield.org> wrote:
> Chuck Swiger wrote:
>> You appear to understand that it's wrong to steal software when the company
>> is still selling it.  You seem to believe that it somehow becomes okay to
>> steal software once that product is no longer being sold.
>
> Unauthorized duplication and distribution is not theft.

Is that your opinion, or are you claiming that everyone would agree that your
statement is a fact?

>> [ Note that what we're discussing has nothing to do with opinion, merely
>>   straightforward facts and the law...
> 
> The law distinguishes between theft versus unauthorized duplication and
> distribution.  What's going on here is people assisting other people to make
> unauthorized copies and distribute those copies to their friends (otherwise
> known as sharing), not stealing.

Care to ask Adobe or Pixar what they think, specificly whether it's okay for
someone to put a copy of NEXTSTEP (containing copyrighted software like
PostScript or RenderMan) on an anonymous FTP server?

If they say "no", would it become theft then?

Your claim that putting software on an anonymous FTP server is "sharing with
friends" is 100-percent, US-RDA certified, grade-A, bullshit.

> http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/words-to-avoid.html#Theft has 3 brief
> paragraphs to say about calling copyright infringement theft.

Ah, well then.  Forgive me if I have to say that I don't always agree with
the GNU philosophy.  Good intentions, and all.

Come to think of it, I also don't remember using that word-- theft-- myself.
It's interesting that you also equate "stealing software" with "theft",
however.  No?  That's not what you meant?

-Chuck

       Chuck Swiger | chuck@codefab.com | All your packets are belong to us.
       -------------+-------------------+-----------------------------------
       "The human race's favorite method for being in control of the facts
        is to ignore them."  -Celia Green