Free stuff?

cc.slim

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I just stopped all file sharing on my {sigh} shared computor such as torrents, cheats, and upon my descretion what could be deemed self satisfaction without paying! I have a inner feeling that there within sharing lies injustice. So what are our limits to sharing? Where do we draw the line? I dunno myself? Maybe I can lighten up restrictions if I get in the know.
 
and for a Bible verse to back it... Matthew 22:21 - Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s, and unto God the things that are God’s.

I know it's twisting it a bit, but Jesus was referring to the Temple Tax. Oddly enough, it was Jesus' "house" and yet he still conformed to Roman rules and paid the tax.
 
I understand and that is the reason why I stopped this, but the fine line of the law is vague. For instance Limewire asks if your going to infringe. This confuses me as to how downloading any music or video or games without paying is not stealing. Not an infringing issue because of a checked box? Does that checked box mean it's ok?
 
Limewire is a P2P file sharing service. The files available through the service may be legally or illegally shared. If you download material that is illegally being shared, you have committed a crime or if you make material available for sharing on such a service that can not be legally shared, you have again committed a crime.

An arguement can be made that if you bought the material in question to begin with and was downloading it again but then, you have the cd\dvd or a legal copy anyway. Loosing the original material does not give rise to a right to use P2P services to redownload the material in question. If you have a damage media, most publishers will replace it if you return it to them.
 
in theory, you should only be sharing or downloading content that you have the rights to distribute or receive. One example is if you are a musician and want to share you music, it's legal (since it's yours, you decide what the distribution rights are).

Same thing if you're writing software, making movies, or something like that.

You can also redistrib most open-source software (as long as you send it out in the original file format, un-edited, leave the author data intact, etc)
 
Personally i use torrents a lot. I download movies and music. But i generally buy the DVD/CD of anything that i like... everything else gets deleted immediately.. Also i use torrents to download software i cant afford but need for work like AutoCAD.

Now i am not saying that is right, in fact i am certain it is stepping on risky moral ground. I am not making excuses for it. I could whine and say i am poor etc etc.. But at the end of the day, i download and i am comfortable with it. I support the artist/movie/etc.

I guess the internet provides us with an easy way to gain access to stuff we would normally have to wait and pay for.. That new CD or DVD, usualyl it would be a xmas present or a special treat.. but now you can download it on release day and try it out.

That said, piracy goes hand in hand with the gaming industry, i remember copying from tape to tape on my C64 and having a second disk drive on my Amiga to copy floppy disks.. It was just what everyone did and games were expensive for 10 year olds.

I would say that as a christian you should carefully consider if you are going to use p2p applications. I would suggest that the bible is against stealing of which this is a form. Theres no need for complex verses or analysis, its that simple. So, having my "vice" without regret is probably not an admirable quality.
 
I use to torrent many games and movies, but that was mainly in Canada. I probably had easily over 1 grand worth of products. Come Alaska, I kept going some, but then we got three strikes with our ISP, said knock it off, and now I'm legit. T__T

We were fairly poor growing up, so buying games was out of the question. Thus torrenting seemed good... But it's still stealing.
 
Well, I know wet sand no matter if it be firm, is still moral quicksand, so I need a piece of the rock. What if I had bought, but now over time have lost whether it be by theft or damaged, an owner of that broughten right? Is the fact that once paid is just that paid in full? Say I for real bought an ac/dc album six years ago and it was stolen, can one share it back to me with a clean conscience? I have ubers of VHS tapes I want to copy to dvd but can't because of an infringement? I paid for them but am I allowed to upgrade with technology?
 
According to the "No Electronic Theft" act, you can make copies of material you have purchased the rights to use, for you own personal use. That is, make a copy of your VHS to DVDs. You can make MP3s of your CDs to use on your IPod - Assuming there is no DRM on it, which is another issue altogether.

If you want a good solid rock - go find a copyright lawyer to get advice on specifics. Otherwise, in a general sense:

1. You can make personal use copies of any copyrighted work that is not intended for redistribution - even copying to a different medium is generally permissable.
2. If the media is damaged, contact the distributor of the media and ask for a replacement - They may replace the damaged media upon you sending it to them.
3. If the media was stolen because you left it in plain sight, be more deligent in protecting personal property in the future and go buy a new one or catch the theif and get it back, but good luck, it generally becomes a he said, she said type of issue.
4. If the media was stolen or damaged as part of a home or car break in, your insurance company may cover the replacement of it, check with them.
 
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