Stealing X from Bob deprives Bob of the use of X. Infringing Bob's copyright on X deprives Bob of potential profits from exclusive possession of X.
All of it, EVERY SINGLE BIT of the difference between theft and copyright infringement, lies within the above quote: potential profits.
Potential is intangible. You cannot assign a value to potential. You cannot steal something that doesn't exist.
Don't believe me? Go into any new car dealership and tell them, "I'm a potential lottery winner, so give me that new car, and I'll get ya back when my ticket comes in."
Copyright infringement != theft. Period. Are they both bad? Yes. Are they equally bad? HELL no. The penalties should reflect the seriousness of the crime, not try to recoup some imaginary amount of money that someone might have made, had not a file been shared, or the chocolate milk in his breakfast been a certain temperature, or the sky a particular shade of grey in the morning.
God, I'm so ashamed, I just publicly admitted that I have not only seen Empire Records, but I can quote it from memory. Time to throw myself off the roof.
It's time for the governments of our respective countries to realize we aren't pirates; We're voters. And citizens.
Sure, until we're all convicted for felonious copyright infringement, which would then cost us our right to vote, leaving the current administration and their *AA sugardaddies in power, untouchable by anyone who disagrees with them.
If nobody here can provide proof (and not the "I heard it was on some Apple CD in 1981" nonsense), then it fits the definition of folklore.
Wait a minute. I was computing in 1981 (although in those days, I was all about TRS-80's), and I don't recall CD being a storage option back then, for Apple or anyone else. Matter of fact, Sony didn't introduce the CD until 1982, so I'd say the 'Apple CD' theory is as full of shit as Bill is.
Before you say "you don't understand Java", let me say that I do know it very well.
Good, because I don't. I have given up trying to get my head around Java, because I can't get any further than the procedural base. Classes and abstractions are the stuff of my nightmares. This is why I suggested Java be taught first off - once you can grasp that, you're good to go. IME, programatic theory is the same in all procedural languages (the difference seems to be only in the syntax), so logically once you've nailed the concepts of OO, you should be good to go, and the demand for Java is high, so you may as well start there syntactically.
For some reason, the way my mind works, there's a great big wall at the end of procedural that keeps me from progressing into OO, which has doomed me to a programming niche that is being overrun and passed by. What I really need to do is go to plumbing school.
I can envision a system like virtual battle bots, where one has to program a bot and them watch it do combat autonomously. After a battle, you'd tweak the code and try again. I would even have a debug window up that stepped through the robots code while it was moving (significantly slowed of course).
Deal with input, decision making, construction of complex movements from strings of simple movements. Etc...
In one of my MANY attempts to grasp OOP, I came across a program (which was actually a JDE) that does EXACTLY that - you have a robot, and by building bytecode, you establish rules and conditions with which the robot behaves. There's also a 2-player mode, where each player codes his robot's behaviors and then they are let loose upon each other. I'm too rushed to google it up, but I'm sure you could track it down with a few choice queries.
Actually, given this scenario of enabling a kid to learn programming, I'd absolutely point them at Java.
I was one of those kids that learned programming in BASIC on TRS-80's back in the early 80's... and back then the order of the day was procedural programming, so that's the methodology that I learned. Because of my background in procedural, I have never gotten fully comfortable with OOP, and it's been the Achilles' tendon of my career.
OOP is significantly easier to learn if you don't have to 'unlearn' procedural programming first... so start there with the next generation of programmers. Java's got it's flaws, but for learning Object Oriented Programming, it's the way to go.
What if you just have to return the DVD to blockbuster, to receive your $0.50 deposit back?
The whole point of the technology is to appeal to those consumers that don't want to take the dvd back to the store when they're done with it. If you're gonna return it, degrading discs would actually be BAD for the business model.
Slashdot Mirror
Stealing X from Bob deprives Bob of the use of X. Infringing Bob's copyright on X deprives Bob of potential profits from exclusive possession of X.
All of it, EVERY SINGLE BIT of the difference between theft and copyright infringement, lies within the above quote: potential profits.
Potential is intangible. You cannot assign a value to potential. You cannot steal something that doesn't exist.
Don't believe me? Go into any new car dealership and tell them, "I'm a potential lottery winner, so give me that new car, and I'll get ya back when my ticket comes in."
Copyright infringement != theft. Period. Are they both bad? Yes. Are they equally bad? HELL no. The penalties should reflect the seriousness of the crime, not try to recoup some imaginary amount of money that someone might have made, had not a file been shared, or the chocolate milk in his breakfast been a certain temperature, or the sky a particular shade of grey in the morning.
</soapbox>
-72
Bush got more votes, so Gore lost. Simple as that. Get over it, quit whining and move on.
How soon they all forget.
Gore won the popular vote - he had more ballots with his name on them.
Bush won the electoral college - he won more states.
'Sheep, thought I.' - Anthony Burgess
-72
My name's not fucking WARREN!!!
God, I'm so ashamed, I just publicly admitted that I have not only seen Empire Records, but I can quote it from memory. Time to throw myself off the roof.
-72
Why does our world increaseing sound like a combination of "Logan's Run", "1984", and "Brazil"?
what, you didn't think those were works of FICTION now, did you? Those stories aren't prophecy, they're ROADMAPS.
-72
It's time for the governments of our respective countries to realize we aren't pirates; We're voters. And citizens.
Sure, until we're all convicted for felonious copyright infringement, which would then cost us our right to vote, leaving the current administration and their *AA sugardaddies in power, untouchable by anyone who disagrees with them.
Spooky when ya look at the longterm picture, yes?
-72
yup. I went to a jr. high school in San Antonio named after one of the astronauts that died in that fire, Ed White.
-72
Brilliant. Damn, I wish I had some mod points to give ya.
-72
Speaking for all smokers that have to fly, I'd just like to say your sister sucks.
Have a nice day!
-72
You oughta change your name to Reid Richards, because that was a HELLUVA reach.
-72
If nobody here can provide proof (and not the "I heard it was on some Apple CD in 1981" nonsense), then it fits the definition of folklore.
Wait a minute. I was computing in 1981 (although in those days, I was all about TRS-80's), and I don't recall CD being a storage option back then, for Apple or anyone else. Matter of fact, Sony didn't introduce the CD until 1982, so I'd say the 'Apple CD' theory is as full of shit as Bill is.
-72
Isn't he the stretchy guy from the Fantastic Four?
-72
The internet obsoletes the control of distribution
Verbing weirds words.
-72
+1, Logan's Run reference.
-72
Before you say "you don't understand Java", let me say that I do know it very well.
Good, because I don't. I have given up trying to get my head around Java, because I can't get any further than the procedural base. Classes and abstractions are the stuff of my nightmares. This is why I suggested Java be taught first off - once you can grasp that, you're good to go. IME, programatic theory is the same in all procedural languages (the difference seems to be only in the syntax), so logically once you've nailed the concepts of OO, you should be good to go, and the demand for Java is high, so you may as well start there syntactically.
For some reason, the way my mind works, there's a great big wall at the end of procedural that keeps me from progressing into OO, which has doomed me to a programming niche that is being overrun and passed by. What I really need to do is go to plumbing school.
-72
I can envision a system like virtual battle bots, where one has to program a bot and them watch it do combat autonomously. After a battle, you'd tweak the code and try again. I would even have a debug window up that stepped through the robots code while it was moving (significantly slowed of course).
Deal with input, decision making, construction of complex movements from strings of simple movements. Etc...
In one of my MANY attempts to grasp OOP, I came across a program (which was actually a JDE) that does EXACTLY that - you have a robot, and by building bytecode, you establish rules and conditions with which the robot behaves. There's also a 2-player mode, where each player codes his robot's behaviors and then they are let loose upon each other. I'm too rushed to google it up, but I'm sure you could track it down with a few choice queries.
-72
Actually, given this scenario of enabling a kid to learn programming, I'd absolutely point them at Java.
I was one of those kids that learned programming in BASIC on TRS-80's back in the early 80's... and back then the order of the day was procedural programming, so that's the methodology that I learned. Because of my background in procedural, I have never gotten fully comfortable with OOP, and it's been the Achilles' tendon of my career.
OOP is significantly easier to learn if you don't have to 'unlearn' procedural programming first... so start there with the next generation of programmers. Java's got it's flaws, but for learning Object Oriented Programming, it's the way to go.
-72
Man, I wish I had mod points for ya - that was insightful and thought-provoking. Good show.
-72
What if you just have to return the DVD to blockbuster, to receive your $0.50 deposit back?
The whole point of the technology is to appeal to those consumers that don't want to take the dvd back to the store when they're done with it. If you're gonna return it, degrading discs would actually be BAD for the business model.
-72
So then the NSA would be...
Speak clearly into the microphone, please.
-72
I got a FEVER! and the only prescription is MORE COWBELL!
You will need:
1 postage-paid return envelope
1 paper grocery bag
1 brick
some tape
1. Wrap brick in grocery bag (plain side out)
2. Tape postage-paid return envelope to outside of package
3. Drop into public mailbox
There ya go, an 8-dollar plea to stop bulk mail.
-72
You wouldn't like me when I'm angry...
Hell, I don't like you NOW.
-72
...warn me when the robots are coming!
-72
That's good - but it's no match for my personal favorite headline from WWN:
CONCLUSIVE SCIENTIFIC PROOF THAT CAVEMEN LOOKED LIKE ELVIS!
-72
Best In Show was a great movie - you oughta credit your quotes so more people can be exposed to this little-known film.
The best part, however, is in the extra scenes on the dvd where the Pinenut guy is showing off his cabin full of beach balls.
-72