Now hear is what I don’t get about these P2P Programs for example LimeWire,Kazaa,Morpheus etc. Now it was rumored that people that where downloading from these programs where to be fined depending on what they have been obtained. Now I too have such a program by the name of "LimeWire" which can be found under msn's "Most popular downloads" It rate's about sixth from the top in popularity. Now these P2P Programs allow people to upload or download multiple types of files. Now the question on everybody’s mined is who are the thieves when it comes to pirated music or videos? on LimeWire it gives you the option if you would like to be a server to download off of I would think that would be Bad you know just incase you accidentally posting something that may get you in deep $#!&. So if I’m not using such a program to upload anything are downloads considered legal. Now I myself feel what ever you download on the net should not be held agenst you, the downloader is not hurting anyone but merely contributing to the miss use of these programs where as the uploader is the one hurting either the artist or the music/movie industry. I guess when it comes down to it; it really depends on the person you talk to on this topic no right or wrong answer.

Nope, basically if you are downloading copyrighted software, you are breaking the law. I guess it depends on what country you are in also. Some have less strict rules.

So unless you are downloading something that's publicly and legally available for the public to freely use, you will be doing something illegal by downloading it.

Don't take my word for this, but from what I heard, if you limit your uploads they most likely won't go after you. I say go with the safer approach and buy the software/music/whatever if you like it. Like you said, it depends on who you talk to. I say it's illegal if you download copyright content.

I'm with you weaponX. Downloading of anything from the net that is copy righted is illegal. Thats the way it should be when you consider how much time and money people have put into creating these things. I mean the most illegally downloaded stuff is either computer programs or music. Both of which take a ton of time to make. I think that if you were the one who created that game or song that people were stealing you would be pretty angry and hope that they would stop. Anyway, I'll get off my soup box and stop preaching.

It also depends on your country's laws and legislation. For example in Canada,it is deemed illegal to upload copyrighted and protected materials, yet the whole download category is kind of in a grey area and not really enforced.

But downloading something that isn't supposed to be free is stealing either way.

What about copyrighted programs that can't be obtained through other means? I remember the hassle I had when I contacted one gaming company to ask for one of there old games. They eventually got me a "replacement" cd for $5 bucks... but that was only after months of trying to find the right person in the company to talk to.

--YB

I think the main contention of illegal downloads and sharing is the major loss monetarily to the record companies and in turn the artistes themselves. While I agree whole-heartedly that we must all do our bit to respect IP (Intellectual Property), the issue of exposure shouldn't be neglected. If the music wasn't spread around, fans might never hear of new and upcoming music which they might like.

I remember in the days pre-dating MP3 players where we used to jog around with cassette WalkMans. Most of my tapes were compilations of music I'd recorded off the radio. I was quite happy with the quality, but gradually as the technology improved, I - like many others - embraced CDs and their huge improvement in sound. That of course was the time before we realized that a glorious connective revolution called the Internet was about to unfold in front of our eyes. For a time, original CDs produced by record labels were the staple and backbone of my collection.

Apologies if I'm drifting but what I'm trying to say is that we shouldn't be afraid of technology. Au contraire - we must embrace it whole-heartedly. A lot of people still believe that online file sharing is sounding the death knell for record companies and physical media. It isn't. They will adapt and so will we.

Yes both downloading and uploading illegal software and music files is well, illegal. People have been fine a lot of money and that was what made me stop. That and the stupid popups and spyware I get all the time.

So if using p2p sofware to download copywrited things is illegal, then the same would go for bittorrent right?

If you use bittorrent to download a totally free software (let's say a free Linux distro like Fedora) on a site saying I am the author and I allow you to freely downlad and use, you are right.
If it's a copywrighted product, you cannot download and use it, whatever mean you use (including going to eastern europe and buy it for five dollars on the market).

Okay - confession time. When I was in my teens (I'm 23 now) I swiped TONS of music through KaZaa and WinMX. Now, do I have that music anymore? Nope. Because ... once I started college, my English professor really started encouraging me to keep writing. I'm really into fiction, incidentally, but I also do Web content etc.

Which was the first time that I actually started seriously contemplating a career as a writer. Unless majoring in journalism counted, which I didn't think should have counted because it was mostly school newspaper work. But that's a different story.

My point is just that I started thinking about trying to make a living creating something that nobody else can create quite like I can ... then I started thinking about how much it would suck if someone bought one copy of it then started passing it around to a bunch of other people on the Internet and not giving me any money for it. Would I be able to keep writing if that happened? Sure, but it wouldn't be a full-time profession like I want it to be.

I know, I know - making music isn't the same as writing. I know that bands and musicians have endorsements, merchandise, concerts and other "sideline" things to make money, and that they don't often make a whole lot from the actual album sales. Writers basically profit from sales of the actual work. We don't get tee shirts often.

But ripping someone off is ripping someone off; once I realized this, I started finding legal, fair ways to enjoy music. I'm still a big fan of things like free iTunes codes, but at least I know that *someone* is paying royalties per code that I get, whether I buy a Slurpee or whatever else.


Just because a user refuses to upload songs doesn't mean that he isn't contributing to copyright theft. SOMEONE has to make the download available so that said user can get it on his hard drive in the first place. And the user isn't paying for it. Granted, many people will buy the CD or at least the single if they really like it ... but there are plenty of services that let us buy the song outright whenever we want it (iTunes, Napster are a couple of examples).

I know that different countries treat the issue in their own ways, but I still think that we should all find some way to help support the things that we enjoy. Even if it's just something small like buying a ten-dollar tee shirt from a local band that we like hearing.