TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:Piracy, education and the techie garage sale From:Bill Swallow <bill_swallow -at- yahoo -dot- com> To:TECHWR-L listserv <TECHWR-L -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Fri, 23 Jun 2000 05:43:07 -0700 (PDT)
I want to start this post by stating that I totally
agree that software piracy is unethical, unfair, and
illegal.
That said, I don't understand the problem with one
person uninstalling a program to lend to another for
educational purposes - educational purposes ONLY.
There is still only one person using the license.
If this is a problem, then is it in fact illegal to
sell old software at garage sales and such? Same thing
as the scenario above, only the original owner is
getting a small chunk of cash for the favor, and who
knows what the new owner will do with the software. (I
ask in part because I plan on having a garage sale
soon and have a ton of toddler software and old games
I'd like to unload, and throwing them away seems
stupid after paying $25 - $70 for each application
new.)
Also, what about installing one license on several
machines, if only one person will be using the several
machines. Example: Someone has a CD-ROM with Mac and
PC versions of the software, and wants to install it
on home office machines - the Mac for use with
graphics products, the PC for use with other
publishing products, and a Notebook for travel. Is
this also wrong?
I would think that as long as only one person is using
the software, that all the above are "OK". Am I wrong?
Please educate me.
__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Get Yahoo! Mail - Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/