Comment by dorian-graph | Hacker News Reader

Comment by dorian-graph | Hacker News Reader

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I agree with you so much. To this person and all the others you don't have some God given right to the content they produce/deliver. Instead of pirating go without.

Will life stop if you don't watch the latest episode of Community? Probably. Give it a go. If you die I have dibs on your $2000 Macbook Pro, $800 iPhone, $250 Sennheiser headphones, etc. The very phrase 'Because you are messing with my life' in this context shows how much is wrong with the current culture.

These companies are destroying civilisation? I've asked this question before: If I create a piece of software and ask you to not use it without purchasing it, will you do that? Very few people seem to be able to answer yes. The people who can't answer yes are those who are ruining civilisation. There is so much hyperbole in this article ("Messing with my life was not enough. You are even trying to destroy one of the pillar of our society: education.") I'm not quite sure if it's satirical or not, hah.

Steve Jobs mentioned that in the end it comes down to the person knowing they've done something wrong after they've tried to rationalise their way out of it ("BUT IT'S NOT STEALING" or whatever the latest fad is).

During high school I pirated a hell of a lot of software, videogames, music, movies—everything. I still bought more video games than most people will in their life times but that in no way balances what I pirated. I've stopped (All I have left is to make a list of the music I have and listen to in order to delete it all and slowly purchase it, which I've started doing). I either pay for something, borrow it or go without.

The funny thing is, I don't like these big corporations either. I wish people would stop treating them as large, mythical and faceless entities but talk to the people behind the door. Until both sides come to understand each other and seek that communication they [we] will forever be at war.

I don't support SOPA nor do I support blatant pirates.

I agree with your sentiment, but it seems you have a contradiction here: " (All I have left is to make a list of the music I have and listen to in order to delete it all and slowly purchase it, which I've started doing). I either pay for something, borrow it or go without."

If you really believe what you say, you'd delete all your pirated music right now. Either that, or you might modify your views a bit.

I have some free time today after work where I'm going to finish making the list and then I'll have it all deleted. :)

To quote you: "you don't have some God given right to the content they produce/deliver. Instead of pirating go without."

I don't understand how that fits with finishing making the list. If you can keep some pirated music around since high school, and now longer so that you can make a list, can't I download a little to see if I like it? If it's good, I'll pay to go to a concert or buy the tracks off Amazon. ":)"

And the artists don't have a god given right to produce it once and sell it many times.

Yes they do because they created it. As much as they have ownership over their music, you have the god given right not to buy it.

Well then they have a god given right to not digitalize it.

You're right but do you really want to return to the 90s when CDs cost $20 each and you had to carry around a 100 CDs instead of an mp3 player? Or to the 80s when we used lo-fi tapes instead? The labels would love this.

It shouldn't be required of just the RIAA to use technology properly but everyone. If someone makes music you like, and they're not attempting to rob, respect them. $1 is not much for a song you enjoy.

I don't care what the labels do. If they fell they cant make money that way then they should probably stay out of the digital business model.

But the truth of course is that they saw huge benefits throughout the years as it became cheaper and cheaper for them to produce and distribute the music.

Where is your sympathy for all the truckers, records store people etc. that lost their jobs because of digitalization?

I personally have more sympathy for them, the musicians will always have the music. Whether they will be able to live from it is another thing.

The smart ones will.

I'm trying to understand your point. Are you for digital music being available or not?

>Where is your sympathy for all the truckers, records store people etc. that lost their jobs because of digitalization?

Of course I do have sympathy for them but humanity has to move forward. We are living in a disruptive age – much like those in the beginning of the Industrial Age. Humanity will need to adjust. This really is another subject for another story and doesn't hold relevance to the topic of piracy.

>I personally have more sympathy for them, the musicians will always have the music. Whether they will be able to live from it is another thing.

This makes no sense. You are condemning musicians to the same fate as those you mentioned. The only difference is that potential future truckers and HS/college students at record stores won't suffer because there will be new jobs created but the artist always will.

The world does not need more starving artists.

So basically what you are saying is that the truckers should get with the times but the artist shouldn't?

We live as you say in a disruptive age and this applies in no small part to artists.

As with regards to the starving artists.

Let me remind you that the kind of artists that actually have spent many years becoming good have always been struggling and always needed to do live gigs.

They are very different than those the labels push to become big stars today.

What i mean with they will alway have art is this.

The trucker will loose their job and that's pretty much it. The artists will always be able to do art whether they get paid for it or not.

>So basically what you are saying is that the truckers should get with the times but the artist shouldn't?

You're playing a game that has nobody's interests at hand.

Yes I'm saying this because 'truckers' are going to get left behind. You still haven't answered the question of whether we should live in the digital age or not.

>Let me remind you that the kind of artists that actually have spent many years becoming good have always been struggling and always needed to do live gigs.

You're playing a game against my argument. All artists struggle but do you want them to become eternally poor?

>Let me remind you that the kind of artists that actually have spent many years becoming good have always been struggling and always needed to do live gigs.

Do you or many know the difference? Are most making the distinction and buying indie products? I can already tell that they are not.

I lived as a musician for some years. I think I have a pretty good understanding on how it works and I am playing no game at all.

Plus I have both a product out (cost money), a service out (free), have a design agency.

I don't say that artist shouldn't make money. I think they should when they work. But claiming that it's somehow a right for musicians to keep reaping the benefits of digital distribution but not those related to it, is in my mind wrong and not serving the anyone.

Truckers and musicians who don't conform to the new reality is going to be left behind.

It's really that simple. Of course they will try and get the government to protect their interest and it will have people helping them defend that.

But it's not a fair game.

And artist neither are nor will be eternally poor. It's a poor argument. There will always be people who make money on their creations, they will just have to do it differently than what we do today.

Technology is always a double edged sword. No one, not even artist can escape that.

> Yes they do because

Who gave it to them? I dont think that we ever, as a society, ever fundamentally _agreed_ to the existence of such exclusivity rights. Yes they are in the constitution, yes they are in the lawbooks, but the people at large never fundamentally agreed that such rights should be in there. The decision process was always top-down, never bottom-up. They are not a result of peoples morality, but of a interest-driven, behind-closed-doors development process. Those laws dont map the will of the people, of your fellow citizens, but of a few, but influential stake holders. Such rights are not democratically backed. If you would ever have a referendum on copyright policy, you would probably lose them.

I see that you are the maker of FinalTouch. Where do you offer the free downloads?

Why should i? People pay for it. Did I ever say that you shouldn't be allowed to make money? Of corse not. I said its not a right but an opportunity.

I certainly intend to find and distribute pirate versions of FinalTouch.

You're ok with that, right?

Yes of course. If you really want to go through the trouble. Be my guest. It's not going to mean anything.

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