Just burn it to a standard CD and after that convert it to whatever format you like with whatever tool you wish and load it onto you favorite portable player.
Of course you can file a lawsuit to anyone for anything in our litigious society. I hope that Apple doesn't settle with this guy for even one red cent, but let him go to court and then let him (or more likely his corporate sponsor) pay Apple's legal expenses.
I feel in no way limited, but rather liberated with my Mac from having to worry about all the malware and frequent crashes my old, but now seldom used wintel box can be afflicted with. Most of my iPod files are mp3 format ripped from my CDs, so there is no limit there. I have some of them as m4a files also, but for my purposes, mp3 is just fine. There are also programs that turn m4p files into m4a files.
I don't think that buying music CDs is a step backwards. No downloaded music is of equal quality or at least capable of equal quality to a CD. I like to buy things online, but I also like to go into a "regular" store and handle the stuff I might be interested in, including CDs.
Apple doesn't LOCK anyone into their music player, they just make it more convenient for the iPod than the other music players. Anyone can still put the music they got from iTMS onto *any* portable music palyer.
The difference is that the user can easily get rid of iTunes or any other unwanted program off their Mac by simply dragging the program folder to the trash. No need for a special un-install procedure. Certain registry entries in windows look for files, which if they are no longer there, cause a permanet system error, including an unbootable computer. The Mac system still runs fine after deleting programs, but with windows, the computer may get hosed completely if the user attempts to delete programs. This often results in necessitating a complete reformat of the HD and re-install of everything. The basic design of windows is flawed, but I am hoping that the new, upcoming "longhorn" will finally fix these problems (get rid of that d**** registry) next year.
That is batantly false. There is NO JOB that a Mac running OSX can't do which a Wintel box will do. There may be some PROGRAMS which only run on Wintel, but there is usually also another program which will do the same or similar thing on a Mac. All the best and most used windows programs have an exact counterpart for the Mac. For 99% of the consumers, a Mac will do everything a Wintel box can. Even the BEST games are often ported to the Mac.
A Mac will do all this without being subject to the viruses, worms, trojans and spy/adware that forces windows users to waste many dollars and precious time on anti-virus/spyware programs and other security measures that should be an inherent part of any decent computer system in the same way that seatbelts and other safety items are part of all automobiles.
Don't come with the worn out old saws about the Mac being only a small part of the market as being the reason it has no malware. Hackers love challenges and have tried for years and are still trying mostly unsuccessfully to breach the Mac and wreak their havoc on rightfully smug Mac users. About the only persons who MUST run windows are persons who make their living writing software for wintel and business users who are locked in to the wintel paltform by some specific software.
...a silly idea even for desktops and it will never fly...
I certainly agree here. I for one don't want to be completely dependent on a not always reliable, insecure, Internet to store my important data and the software that is used with it. I think that PERSONAL computers will be with us for a long time and all networks will allow us to use the computers to communicate as an addition to the wired and cell phone systems. Even cell phones are not anywhere near as reliable as the old fashioned POTS and I for one will not ditch the old landline as my basic phone service.
By using Mac OSX I neatly sidestep all the problems that Windows users face every day. If Apple truly does come out with the rumored $500 machine, one of the last excuses for using bug infested, insecure Windows will have disappeared.
The point is that God, not man decides when the end will come and until He makes it happen there is no need to worry. The Bible does tell us through the apostle Peter that the world is to be destroyed by fire at this time, and the heavens at the same time. Atoms exist in a very delicate balance and if that balance is upset they ALL disintegrate everywhere at once.
...We don't yet know enough physics to explain how the brain works...
We do understand the physics of how a bicycle works. When someone builds a robot that can ride an ordinary bicycle through traffic, at least as well as an average ten year old kid, they'll have taken the first small step toward a computer that could someday be considered human.
Lets face it, computers ARE appliances. Most/.ers will of course disagree with that. Some computers such as all Mac OSX and some Linux computers will be safe when connected to the Internet. Computers, to most people are appliances that allow them to get and manipulate information from the Internet. If the Internet did not exist, there would be far fewer computers in use by ordinary users.
Why a huge company like MS can get away with selling software that allows a computer to get damaged so easily is beyond me.
...No Linux user in their right mind would do this...
A Mac OSX user would do this and nothing bad would happen because OSX is safe out of the box. Linux, unfortunately, requires quite a bit more computer savy than most ordinary users have. A computer should be at least safe enough so it CANNOT get infected by merely connecting it to the Internet. Browsing to bad sites or opening unknown attachments is equivalent to taking a walk in a bad neighborhood in the dark.
I hope you have plenty of $$$ to pay an army of lawyers. MS is not responsible for *anything*, according to their EULA which you presumeably clicked when you installed their bug infested, insecure software.
It might be a good thing if ALL computerdom were held to the same product liability standards most other manufactured products are. However, since even the might of the US Government was insufficient to more than slap MS's wrists, I suspect that any private entity taking them to court will be considered by them a pest, similar to what most of us consider flies and mosquitoes. There is no way to eliminate those, just control them to a tolerable level. Lawsuits to MS is just another business expense they pass on to the customer.
...It's only a matter of time before MacOS X gains enough popularity that it's own security holes...
What security holes in OSX? Undoubtedly the security sellers of this world are working overtime to find holes so they can sell their expensive wares to Mac users as well. So far they have not had much luck because OSX is unusually secure for the average user.
Windows is insecure by its design and Linux can be made as secure as any computer can be, but it is up to the user to do so. Unfortunately to use Linux it takes quite a bit more computer expertise to do this than most non-/. type users have. This is a shame, but the fact is that Linux is made by geeks for geeks.
To my knowledge, not even the most expert security mavens have EVER found a way to infect a Mac running OSX or even OS9, as it comes out of the box, by simply connecting the computer to the Internet. Any computer can be subject to social engineering an ignorant user into doing something he/she should not, so that sort of thing doesn't qualify as a security hole in my mind.
In OSX, not running as an administrator can make the social engineering attack considerably harder to do, especially if the user does NOT know the admin password. Not running as an admin under Windows will break a number of programs, so the user is forced to run that way, making the whole computer less secure. I know of NO program on OSX where the user has to be an admin, unless the program is designed to do some system modifications.
Still, a firewall is a good idea just to keep the local network from having to carry a lot of probes for holes in its attached computers.
...save enough people to guarantee survival of the species...
This whole debate hinges on some very fundamental beliefs. For those who believe that we are a only a cosmic accident with no greater purpose, the scenarios of extinction may seem plausible.
For those who believe that there is a higher purpose for mankind and that there is a God who has created us for that purpose, there is no need to worry about another catastrophe wiping mankind out as long as this planet exists at all. We have the direct promise from God, after the flood of Noah, that life on this Earth will continue about the same as it has since then, until the "End of the World":
Genesis 8:22 "As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease."
What a bunch of BS. There were fear mongers 40-50 years ago telling us about the population bomb and that before the year 2000 comes the world will be depopulated by hunger and disease and other dreadful stuff. Well we are still here and the world's people's living conditions have much improved, abeit much more slowly than could have been the case if human greed for wealth and power were not present.
Just replace Windows with something more secure. Skeleton keys were superseded by better ones years ago. Get rid of your skeleton Windows for a more secure Mac OSX or Linux.
Oh stop blaming the user already. If software companies were held to the same liability standards as car makers or other manufacturers, we would not have these problems, or at least very few.
The steering wheel came off when I pulled up on it and I lost control of the car and crashed! I should not have pulled it that way. Just read the average lawyerese on software packages. Manufacturers of other goods would be scorned out of court if they tried to write such stuff about their products and have to pay through the nose when their product fails because of faulty design.
The government mandates recalls for defective products. Maybe they should also mandate such recalls for defective computer hardware and software, especially if such a defect can cause severe financial damage to the consumer. Computers should be safe and deliver what they promise without a bunch of lame exuses.
Blaming the user, it seems, works only in the computer business.
...Mac OS X is vulnerable to any *Nix capability since it is unix based....
There are social engineering attacks that any OS may succumb to, but unlike Windows, the Mac OSX is NOT vulnerable to getting infected by the mere fact of being connected to the Internet. On the Mac I have never needed to have admin privs to allow any program to run which is not designed to alter the system in some way. This makes the Mac much more secure. If the user does not know the admin password, (like my wife and kids) even social engineering exploits will only be able to affect that particular user, rather than hose the entire system.
All flavors of Windows allow full access to all areas of the HD. If this access is restricted, which it can be, many programs will fail. No program should be able to modify the registry or other system areas, but many programs do just that and will crash if the access is not granted.
...there do exist viruses which attack Linux and MacOS....
I have not heard of any malware that can install on a Mac and affect the system unless the user knows the admin password. As an ordinary user, I have NEVER been able to install or run a program for the first time without having to give the admin password. Users get a warning if a program wants to open that has never run before and the list of where the permitted, established, programs is kept cannot be accessed without the admin password.
To install secret software on a Mac, the cops would have to take the Mac away for a while and then bring it back. They'd have to know the login password. If they booted from another disk or an install CD, they could get access, but not under my present password -- they'd have to assign a new one and then I could not get in afterwards. If I know or suspected my Mac had been messed with I'd reformat the HD or install another one in its place and re-install everything from backups. I never give the admin password to anyone nor to any request that I do not initiate.
A computer-wise criminal would not be caught by such tactics, at least not on a Mac. If I were such a criminal, and my computer had evidence that could put me in prison for many years, I'd claim the 5th amendment if an attempt were made to force me to reveal the passwords. I'd also have the built-in encryption vault enabled that every Mac has available. In countries where there is no 5th, I'd take my chances with contempt of court.
...It doesn't take a switch to Linux to get Linux-like protection...
How about OSX? No programs I have installed require admin status and the root account is disabled. To install any software I have always had to enter the admin password, since I run as a regular user. Also, if I DID have something to hide I'd turn on the data vault encryption capability. How they would install spy software without my knowing about it is something I cannot think of. If they DID take my computer away and later gave it back I'd reformat the HD and re-install everything from backups and turn on the encryption. If the encryption is turned on, the keystrokes caught by a hardware keylogger would end up in an encrypted file as well unless keystrokes were sent over the Internet before encryption was done. I'd certainly notice Internet activity when there was not supposed to be any, such as when I was not even running any programs other than the Finder.
...what that amount of water in the atmosphere would do to climate...
That water would make the whole Earth a toasty 85-95deg F everywhere. The 95-105deg F temperature range happens to be where the chemistry of life operates at its best. It is no accident that all warm blooded creature's internal temperature is in this range.
As for the Flood of Noah, there is not a spot on Earth that does not exhibit evidence of flowing or standing water and sedimentation. Even the highest mountain ranges have evidence of water action and fossils in sedimentary rocks. Of course, whether this was due to Noah's flood cannot be asserted from this evidence, but it cannot be excluded either.
Most cultures on this planet have consistent legends of creatures commonly called dragons and drawings and pictograms that look very much like today's scientists depictions of dinosaurs. In the Biblical book of Job there is the description of a creature which matches that of a large dinosaur modern scientists have dubbed a Stegosaurus.
How often have modern evolution believing scientists said that a certain creature went extinct millions of years ago and then someone finds one of them alive or recently dead?
In any case, there is plenty of evidence that the climate and topography of this planet of ours was vastly different in the past and living things flourished in great and unimagined abundance in all areas. There is also evidence that sudden, catastrophic events intervened from time to time.
You must be rich. We pay $1 or $1.50 to rent a regular older released DVD and $2-$3 for the latest just out DVD movies.
As for copying movies or TV shows -- there are very few movies I'd want to see more than once. For the ones that are worth watching again, renting them for $1 each time is a lot cheaper than buying. I'd never get close to watching any movie 10 to 15 times to justify buying it. A blank DVD cost way too much to copy most movies I've seen. Hollywood is safe there, unless they dramatically increase rental costs. Of course there are people, like a friend of mine who like to COLLECT movies, and for Him a copied home-burned DVD is an anathema, like a Xerox copy of a stamp would be to a stamp collector. Hollywood is safe there too, so why are they so worried about copying?
DVD players and ordinary, say 27in or 35 in Tv's are ridiculously cheap these days, while 30in computer displays are really expensive. So why would anyone want to watch a movie on a postage stamp sized computer display with miserable sound rather than a nice big TV set with decent sound? Hollywood is safe there also. Will high definition TV improve Hollywood's product? I doubt it. If I wish to have a hi def movie experience I can go to a movie show many many times for the price of hi-def video equipment. I wonder how many/.ers feel as I do?
...and they know that they don't have to actually win a lawsuit in order to put their victim out of business...
However, there are some lawyers who will look at a case and if they think they can win easily, take it to help the little guy and themseves because they'll get the attorney's fees from the big company.
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... to throw away the music...
Just burn it to a standard CD and after that convert it to whatever format you like with whatever tool you wish and load it onto you favorite portable player.
... Couldn't I file a lawsuit....
Of course you can file a lawsuit to anyone for anything in our litigious society. I hope that Apple doesn't settle with this guy for even one red cent, but let him go to court and then let him (or more likely his corporate sponsor) pay Apple's legal expenses.
...people may be limiting themselves...
I feel in no way limited, but rather liberated with my Mac from having to worry about all the malware and frequent crashes my old, but now seldom used wintel box can be afflicted with. Most of my iPod files are mp3 format ripped from my CDs, so there is no limit there. I have some of them as m4a files also, but for my purposes, mp3 is just fine. There are also programs that turn m4p files into m4a files.
...take a step BACK, technologically speaking...
I don't think that buying music CDs is a step backwards. No downloaded music is of equal quality or at least capable of equal quality to a CD. I like to buy things online, but I also like to go into a "regular" store and handle the stuff I might be interested in, including CDs.
Apple doesn't LOCK anyone into their music player, they just make it more convenient for the iPod than the other music players. Anyone can still put the music they got from iTMS onto *any* portable music palyer.
...because Apple pre-loads iTunes...
The difference is that the user can easily get rid of iTunes or any other unwanted program off their Mac by simply dragging the program folder to the trash. No need for a special un-install procedure. Certain registry entries in windows look for files, which if they are no longer there, cause a permanet system error, including an unbootable computer. The Mac system still runs fine after deleting programs, but with windows, the computer may get hosed completely if the user attempts to delete programs. This often results in necessitating a complete reformat of the HD and re-install of everything. The basic design of windows is flawed, but I am hoping that the new, upcoming "longhorn" will finally fix these problems (get rid of that d**** registry) next year.
...nobody has any alternative...
That is batantly false. There is NO JOB that a Mac running OSX can't do which a Wintel box will do. There may be some PROGRAMS which only run on Wintel, but there is usually also another program which will do the same or similar thing on a Mac. All the best and most used windows programs have an exact counterpart for the Mac. For 99% of the consumers, a Mac will do everything a Wintel box can. Even the BEST games are often ported to the Mac.
A Mac will do all this without being subject to the viruses, worms, trojans and spy/adware that forces windows users to waste many dollars and precious time on anti-virus/spyware programs and other security measures that should be an inherent part of any decent computer system in the same way that seatbelts and other safety items are part of all automobiles.
Don't come with the worn out old saws about the Mac being only a small part of the market as being the reason it has no malware. Hackers love challenges and have tried for years and are still trying mostly unsuccessfully to breach the Mac and wreak their havoc on rightfully smug Mac users. About the only persons who MUST run windows are persons who make their living writing software for wintel and business users who are locked in to the wintel paltform by some specific software.
...a silly idea even for desktops and it will never fly...
I certainly agree here. I for one don't want to be completely dependent on a not always reliable, insecure, Internet to store my important data and the software that is used with it. I think that PERSONAL computers will be with us for a long time and all networks will allow us to use the computers to communicate as an addition to the wired and cell phone systems. Even cell phones are not anywhere near as reliable as the old fashioned POTS and I for one will not ditch the old landline as my basic phone service.
By using Mac OSX I neatly sidestep all the problems that Windows users face every day. If Apple truly does come out with the rumored $500 machine, one of the last excuses for using bug infested, insecure Windows will have disappeared.
The point is that God, not man decides when the end will come and until He makes it happen there is no need to worry. The Bible does tell us through the apostle Peter that the world is to be destroyed by fire at this time, and the heavens at the same time. Atoms exist in a very delicate balance and if that balance is upset they ALL disintegrate everywhere at once.
...We don't yet know enough physics to explain how the brain works...
We do understand the physics of how a bicycle works. When someone builds a robot that can ride an ordinary bicycle through traffic, at least as well as an average ten year old kid, they'll have taken the first small step toward a computer that could someday be considered human.
...for selling them like appliances!...
/.ers will of course disagree with that. Some computers such as all Mac OSX and some Linux computers will be safe when connected to the Internet. Computers, to most people are appliances that allow them to get and manipulate information from the Internet. If the Internet did not exist, there would be far fewer computers in use by ordinary users.
Lets face it, computers ARE appliances. Most
Why a huge company like MS can get away with selling software that allows a computer to get damaged so easily is beyond me.
...No Linux user in their right mind would do this...
A Mac OSX user would do this and nothing bad would happen because OSX is safe out of the box. Linux, unfortunately, requires quite a bit more computer savy than most ordinary users have. A computer should be at least safe enough so it CANNOT get infected by merely connecting it to the Internet. Browsing to bad sites or opening unknown attachments is equivalent to taking a walk in a bad neighborhood in the dark.
...they will have to answer in court...
I hope you have plenty of $$$ to pay an army of lawyers. MS is not responsible for *anything*, according to their EULA which you presumeably clicked when you installed their bug infested, insecure software.
It might be a good thing if ALL computerdom were held to the same product liability standards most other manufactured products are. However, since even the might of the US Government was insufficient to more than slap MS's wrists, I suspect that any private entity taking them to court will be considered by them a pest, similar to what most of us consider flies and mosquitoes. There is no way to eliminate those, just control them to a tolerable level. Lawsuits to MS is just another business expense they pass on to the customer.
...It's only a matter of time before MacOS X gains enough popularity that it's own security holes...
What security holes in OSX? Undoubtedly the security sellers of this world are working overtime to find holes so they can sell their expensive wares to Mac users as well. So far they have not had much luck because OSX is unusually secure for the average user.
Windows is insecure by its design and Linux can be made as secure as any computer can be, but it is up to the user to do so. Unfortunately to use Linux it takes quite a bit more computer expertise to do this than most non-/. type users have. This is a shame, but the fact is that Linux is made by geeks for geeks.
To my knowledge, not even the most expert security mavens have EVER found a way to infect a Mac running OSX or even OS9, as it comes out of the box, by simply connecting the computer to the Internet. Any computer can be subject to social engineering an ignorant user into doing something he/she should not, so that sort of thing doesn't qualify as a security hole in my mind.
In OSX, not running as an administrator can make the social engineering attack considerably harder to do, especially if the user does NOT know the admin password. Not running as an admin under Windows will break a number of programs, so the user is forced to run that way, making the whole computer less secure. I know of NO program on OSX where the user has to be an admin, unless the program is designed to do some system modifications.
Still, a firewall is a good idea just to keep the local network from having to carry a lot of probes for holes in its attached computers.
...save enough people to guarantee survival of the species...
This whole debate hinges on some very fundamental beliefs. For those who believe that we are a only a cosmic accident with no greater purpose, the scenarios of extinction may seem plausible.
For those who believe that there is a higher purpose for mankind and that there is a God who has created us for that purpose, there is no need to worry about another catastrophe wiping mankind out as long as this planet exists at all. We have the direct promise from God, after the flood of Noah, that life on this Earth will continue about the same as it has since then, until the "End of the World":
Genesis 8:22 "As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease."
...If you're talking about predator/prey relationships then humans still don't win....
Humans will generally win if they have a powerful enough gun and plenty of ammo.
...population is growing so rapidly...
What a bunch of BS. There were fear mongers 40-50 years ago telling us about the population bomb and that before the year 2000 comes the world will be depopulated by hunger and disease and other dreadful stuff. Well we are still here and the world's people's living conditions have much improved, abeit much more slowly than could have been the case if human greed for wealth and power were not present.
...but by installing firewalls on Windows...
Just replace Windows with something more secure. Skeleton keys were superseded by better ones years ago. Get rid of your skeleton Windows for a more secure Mac OSX or Linux.
...but the user is the issue here....
Oh stop blaming the user already. If software companies were held to the same liability standards as car makers or other manufacturers, we would not have these problems, or at least very few.
The steering wheel came off when I pulled up on it and I lost control of the car and crashed! I should not have pulled it that way. Just read the average lawyerese on software packages. Manufacturers of other goods would be scorned out of court if they tried to write such stuff about their products and have to pay through the nose when their product fails because of faulty design.
The government mandates recalls for defective products. Maybe they should also mandate such recalls for defective computer hardware and software, especially if such a defect can cause severe financial damage to the consumer. Computers should be safe and deliver what they promise without a bunch of lame exuses.
Blaming the user, it seems, works only in the computer business.
...Mac OS X is vulnerable to any *Nix capability since it is unix based....
There are social engineering attacks that any OS may succumb to, but unlike Windows, the Mac OSX is NOT vulnerable to getting infected by the mere fact of being connected to the Internet. On the Mac I have never needed to have admin privs to allow any program to run which is not designed to alter the system in some way. This makes the Mac much more secure. If the user does not know the admin password, (like my wife and kids) even social engineering exploits will only be able to affect that particular user, rather than hose the entire system.
All flavors of Windows allow full access to all areas of the HD. If this access is restricted, which it can be, many programs will fail. No program should be able to modify the registry or other system areas, but many programs do just that and will crash if the access is not granted.
...there do exist viruses which attack Linux and MacOS....
I have not heard of any malware that can install on a Mac and affect the system unless the user knows the admin password. As an ordinary user, I have NEVER been able to install or run a program for the first time without having to give the admin password. Users get a warning if a program wants to open that has never run before and the list of where the permitted, established, programs is kept cannot be accessed without the admin password.
To install secret software on a Mac, the cops would have to take the Mac away for a while and then bring it back. They'd have to know the login password. If they booted from another disk or an install CD, they could get access, but not under my present password -- they'd have to assign a new one and then I could not get in afterwards. If I know or suspected my Mac had been messed with I'd reformat the HD or install another one in its place and re-install everything from backups. I never give the admin password to anyone nor to any request that I do not initiate.
A computer-wise criminal would not be caught by such tactics, at least not on a Mac. If I were such a criminal, and my computer had evidence that could put me in prison for many years, I'd claim the 5th amendment if an attempt were made to force me to reveal the passwords. I'd also have the built-in encryption vault enabled that every Mac has available. In countries where there is no 5th, I'd take my chances with contempt of court.
...It doesn't take a switch to Linux to get Linux-like protection...
How about OSX? No programs I have installed require admin status and the root account is disabled. To install any software I have always had to enter the admin password, since I run as a regular user. Also, if I DID have something to hide I'd turn on the data vault encryption capability. How they would install spy software without my knowing about it is something I cannot think of. If they DID take my computer away and later gave it back I'd reformat the HD and re-install everything from backups and turn on the encryption. If the encryption is turned on, the keystrokes caught by a hardware keylogger would end up in an encrypted file as well unless keystrokes were sent over the Internet before encryption was done. I'd certainly notice Internet activity when there was not supposed to be any, such as when I was not even running any programs other than the Finder.
...what that amount of water in the atmosphere would do to climate...
That water would make the whole Earth a toasty 85-95deg F everywhere. The 95-105deg F temperature range happens to be where the chemistry of life operates at its best. It is no accident that all warm blooded creature's internal temperature is in this range.
As for the Flood of Noah, there is not a spot on Earth that does not exhibit evidence of flowing or standing water and sedimentation. Even the highest mountain ranges have evidence of water action and fossils in sedimentary rocks. Of course, whether this was due to Noah's flood cannot be asserted from this evidence, but it cannot be excluded either.
Most cultures on this planet have consistent legends of creatures commonly called dragons and drawings and pictograms that look very much like today's scientists depictions of dinosaurs. In the Biblical book of Job there is the description of a creature which matches that of a large dinosaur modern scientists have dubbed a Stegosaurus.
How often have modern evolution believing scientists said that a certain creature went extinct millions of years ago and then someone finds one of them alive or recently dead?
In any case, there is plenty of evidence that the climate and topography of this planet of ours was vastly different in the past and living things flourished in great and unimagined abundance in all areas. There is also evidence that sudden, catastrophic events intervened from time to time.
...$5 or $6 for a movie...
/.ers feel as I do?
You must be rich. We pay $1 or $1.50 to rent a regular older released DVD and $2-$3 for the latest just out DVD movies.
As for copying movies or TV shows -- there are very few movies I'd want to see more than once. For the ones that are worth watching again, renting them for $1 each time is a lot cheaper than buying. I'd never get close to watching any movie 10 to 15 times to justify buying it. A blank DVD cost way too much to copy most movies I've seen. Hollywood is safe there, unless they dramatically increase rental costs. Of course there are people, like a friend of mine who like to COLLECT movies, and for Him a copied home-burned DVD is an anathema, like a Xerox copy of a stamp would be to a stamp collector. Hollywood is safe there too, so why are they so worried about copying?
DVD players and ordinary, say 27in or 35 in Tv's are ridiculously cheap these days, while 30in computer displays are really expensive. So why would anyone want to watch a movie on a postage stamp sized computer display with miserable sound rather than a nice big TV set with decent sound? Hollywood is safe there also. Will high definition TV improve Hollywood's product? I doubt it. If I wish to have a hi def movie experience I can go to a movie show many many times for the price of hi-def video equipment. I wonder how many
change it to scholastic.google.com
...and they know that they don't have to actually win a lawsuit in order to put their victim out of business...
However, there are some lawyers who will look at a case and if they think they can win easily, take it to help the little guy and themseves because they'll get the attorney's fees from the big company.