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  3. What do you all think about piracy?

What do you all think about piracy?

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  • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
    27 May 2025, 12:18

    Pirated and OS software are different things, obviously. But would you prefer one over the other? I'm thinking of switching to both OS software AND pirated software. Just want opinions and tips from this community.

    R This user is from outside of this forum
    R This user is from outside of this forum
    roux@hexbear.net
    wrote on 27 May 2025, 13:56 last edited by
    #16

    I do all my pirating with Transmission as my torrent client, so both?

    A long time ago I pirated because I was poor and wanted to play Skyrim and stuff. I'd download movies occasionally too but streaming services came along and I mostly didn't need to pirate anymore. Then the streaming industry boomed and the enshitification started. I got real sick, real fast with not being able to fined common movies that were either exclusive to a service I didn't have or was behind a paywall of some other sorts.

    So, I donned the hat again, beefed up security wit ha VPN, got a 6 TB hard drive, set up both Jellyfin and Plex(I need my IP addy to log into Jellyfin and kids and partner don't know how to retrieve that so Plex is the backup.) and went back to the high seas. I pay substantially less to watch almost anything I want, than to trudge through 7 different streaming apps trying to find that one movie or show. It helps when you realize pirating against streaming apps only hurts those companies and not the creators themselves(unless you take all of the services originals into account, which is a cache 22 since anything that would catch my eye got cancelled after 2 seasons).

    1 Reply Last reply
    2
    • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
      27 May 2025, 12:18

      Pirated and OS software are different things, obviously. But would you prefer one over the other? I'm thinking of switching to both OS software AND pirated software. Just want opinions and tips from this community.

      E This user is from outside of this forum
      E This user is from outside of this forum
      etterra@discuss.online
      wrote on 27 May 2025, 14:01 last edited by
      #17

      Yo ho ho bitches.

      I once was wearing my music pirate tee, with a skull wearing head phones, while walking in public in the city (Chicago). I was in a light crowd crossing the street and this traffic cop gave me the dirtiest goddamn look I've ever seen lol

      1 Reply Last reply
      2
      • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
        27 May 2025, 13:23

        If you actually use Linux then I would appreciate an answer to the following question: Can I transfer a (pirated) PC game on my phone to Linux via either localsend or FTP Server? And how difficult is it to do?

        T This user is from outside of this forum
        T This user is from outside of this forum
        tapdattl@lemmy.world
        wrote on 27 May 2025, 14:09 last edited by
        #18

        I don't know about local send specifically, but KDE Connect will do that. And if you have an FTP client on your phone, then yes you can easily spin up an FTP server on your local network and transfer files that way

        1 Reply Last reply
        0
        • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
          27 May 2025, 12:18

          Pirated and OS software are different things, obviously. But would you prefer one over the other? I'm thinking of switching to both OS software AND pirated software. Just want opinions and tips from this community.

          A This user is from outside of this forum
          A This user is from outside of this forum
          auster@thebrainbin.org
          wrote on 27 May 2025, 14:14 last edited by
          #19

          Personally, I think piracy is a tool of the desperate, the disheartened and those that don't care for awarding merit. The desperate if a software is too hard to come by legitimately, the disheartened as a form of protest if the software/company has draconian practices at play, and those that don't award merit because they would, if not never, at least rarely buy/rent anything if not forced to.

          FOSS is nice and all, but do mind people are expending their time in such projects, so if you think a project is good and you can afford it, I'd suggest supporting financially the creators.

          T 1 Reply Last reply 13 Jun 2025, 13:21
          0
          • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
            27 May 2025, 12:18

            Pirated and OS software are different things, obviously. But would you prefer one over the other? I'm thinking of switching to both OS software AND pirated software. Just want opinions and tips from this community.

            N This user is from outside of this forum
            N This user is from outside of this forum
            newoldguard@hexbear.net
            wrote on 27 May 2025, 14:19 last edited by
            #20

            Piracy is ethically correct against corporations and I do it with glee

            1 Reply Last reply
            22
            • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
              27 May 2025, 12:18

              Pirated and OS software are different things, obviously. But would you prefer one over the other? I'm thinking of switching to both OS software AND pirated software. Just want opinions and tips from this community.

              U This user is from outside of this forum
              U This user is from outside of this forum
              ulrich@feddit.org
              wrote on 27 May 2025, 14:38 last edited by
              #21

              Not entirely sure what you're asking. Pirated software is just software you've copied without permission. It can be anything.

              1 Reply Last reply
              1
              • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
                27 May 2025, 12:18

                Pirated and OS software are different things, obviously. But would you prefer one over the other? I'm thinking of switching to both OS software AND pirated software. Just want opinions and tips from this community.

                L This user is from outside of this forum
                L This user is from outside of this forum
                landedgentry@lemmy.zip
                wrote on 27 May 2025, 14:41 last edited by landedgentry@lemmy.zip 6 Feb 2025, 17:37
                #22

                ::: spoiler spoiler
                askldjfals;jflsad;
                :::

                1 Reply Last reply
                2
                • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
                  27 May 2025, 12:18

                  Pirated and OS software are different things, obviously. But would you prefer one over the other? I'm thinking of switching to both OS software AND pirated software. Just want opinions and tips from this community.

                  P This user is from outside of this forum
                  P This user is from outside of this forum
                  pixelatedsaturn@lemmy.world
                  wrote on 27 May 2025, 15:18 last edited by
                  #23

                  I pirate everything. I started more than 35 years ago when I didn't have any other option because of my location, so it became the norm. Later, I didn't have much money and I didn't want to spend it on software and games. Later I just stuck with it. I never delved into ethics of it - it seems a very tedious task to do.

                  I did buy some stuff here and there. But even today, id pirate games for sure, in not going to dish out 50, if I don't even know if I'll like it.

                  Interestingly, never in my life I had issues with viruses or malware. Sure I got some, but the basic antivirus software delt with it and I had no consequences.

                  H 1 Reply Last reply 28 May 2025, 19:28
                  5
                  • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
                    27 May 2025, 12:18

                    Pirated and OS software are different things, obviously. But would you prefer one over the other? I'm thinking of switching to both OS software AND pirated software. Just want opinions and tips from this community.

                    T This user is from outside of this forum
                    T This user is from outside of this forum
                    the_sleepy_woke_dialectic@hexbear.net
                    wrote on 27 May 2025, 15:36 last edited by
                    #24

                    Make your own Netflix
                    7GB (size of one hour 4k HDR content) * 3 (hours) * 30.5 (Average days in a month) = 640.5 GB

                    A good, new, brand name 20TB drive costs ~$300, that's $15 per TB.

                    Thats $9 a month. When your drives are full just buy another drive.

                    Add $20 for a usenet sub, VPN, another maybe $5 at most for other hardware.

                    N 1 Reply Last reply 27 May 2025, 18:04
                    0
                    • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
                      27 May 2025, 12:18

                      Pirated and OS software are different things, obviously. But would you prefer one over the other? I'm thinking of switching to both OS software AND pirated software. Just want opinions and tips from this community.

                      I This user is from outside of this forum
                      I This user is from outside of this forum
                      irotsoma@lemmy.blahaj.zone
                      wrote on 27 May 2025, 17:04 last edited by
                      #25

                      There are three points I could make:

                      1. Most software that is not free these days is also stealing all your private data. The value in these applications is generally greatly reduced, and in many cases, truly free alternatives exist, so the need to pirate should be much reduced from the past.

                      2. Where the first point doesn't apply, there is usually a reason. Either the company has used their monopoly powers to force people to use their software in order to do their job or to interact with government agencies (Adobe is one that often comes to mind). In this case, the ethics of the situation IMHO mean that pirating is OK. If the company is doing unethical things to force you to buy something, then doing something unethical to not pay for it is an exception in my opinion. The person would not be buying the software if they weren't forced to and purchases should not be forced.

                      3. Access for the poor is another issue where I don't see this as an issue. The poor will never be able to afford the software, so no one is losing money on the sale and it only benefits the company to have people using it if it's a locally running application. There may be some concerns if there are essential services involved that require servers or other systems that have to be maintained by the vendor, but otherwise, Windows having been pirated for decades made it ubiquitous. Without that, poor people likely would never have touched Windows and would have learned Linux or Mac or something else instead and Windows wouldn't have as many people locked in as it does now. So, for the poor, assuming it's software that runs locally, I see no issues from an ethical standpoint in general.

                      These are just my opinions, but I'm not alone. And this is not to be used as justification for specific actions, just very general points about the ethics of software piracy. For reference, I've done a lot of research on software ethics from both the user and vendor side and used to run a nonprofit on this subject.

                      L 1 Reply Last reply 28 May 2025, 06:21
                      9
                      • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
                        27 May 2025, 12:18

                        Pirated and OS software are different things, obviously. But would you prefer one over the other? I'm thinking of switching to both OS software AND pirated software. Just want opinions and tips from this community.

                        S This user is from outside of this forum
                        S This user is from outside of this forum
                        sylver_dragon@lemmy.world
                        wrote on 27 May 2025, 17:09 last edited by
                        #26

                        My personal preference is to use FOSS whenever it's practical. For home use, I've switched to FOSS for the vast majority of my computing needs. I run Linux on both my server and desktop. Most of the software on my server is FOSS, with the one exception being a container using the Splunk free license. My desktop is running Linux, and I use LibreOffice for documents and the like. I do run Visual Studio Code, which is technically Open Source, though I would not put it past Microsoft to do a rug-pull on that eventually. And I have an extensive library of games with Steam, basically nothing of which is Open Source.

                        I have reached a point, financially, that piracy is not morally defensible. And I'm not willing to get into the mire of if, or where such a line would be. I believe that creators should be rewarded for their work. Though, I also agree that the limits on copyright are way out of whack with the changes Disney has purchased through the years. So, piracy as a moral question is a murky subject, with no clear answers to me. But, the end result is that I buy games, movies or TV shows. For other software, I usually look to FOSS projects (e.g. Gimp vs Photoshop, FreeCAD/OpenSCAD vs Autodesk), free licenses (e.g. Splunk) or just do without. For TV Shows/Movies, if it's not on one of the streaming services I subscribe to, I may buy it via a digital service; or, I do without.

                        S 1 Reply Last reply 28 May 2025, 01:09
                        2
                        • T the_sleepy_woke_dialectic@hexbear.net
                          27 May 2025, 15:36

                          Make your own Netflix
                          7GB (size of one hour 4k HDR content) * 3 (hours) * 30.5 (Average days in a month) = 640.5 GB

                          A good, new, brand name 20TB drive costs ~$300, that's $15 per TB.

                          Thats $9 a month. When your drives are full just buy another drive.

                          Add $20 for a usenet sub, VPN, another maybe $5 at most for other hardware.

                          N This user is from outside of this forum
                          N This user is from outside of this forum
                          n0x0n@lemmy.ml
                          wrote on 27 May 2025, 18:04 last edited by
                          #27

                          I would still encode and compress the files without noticeable visual loss from a reasonable distance.

                          AV1-opus combo is generally a good choice and is a viable open codec alternative to x265! Plus you save GB of space for even nore movies and share your encodes on a private tracker to keep up your ratio !!

                          It's a win/win situation except if you're a hardcore bluray/4k hoarder and have the money and mean to keep everything in the native quality. More power to you !!

                          1 Reply Last reply
                          0
                          • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
                            27 May 2025, 12:18

                            Pirated and OS software are different things, obviously. But would you prefer one over the other? I'm thinking of switching to both OS software AND pirated software. Just want opinions and tips from this community.

                            L This user is from outside of this forum
                            L This user is from outside of this forum
                            lattrommi@lemmy.ml
                            wrote on 27 May 2025, 19:16 last edited by
                            #28

                            I'm just here because I got scurvy a couple times. Stay in school, ye' landlubbers n' doan't farget to eat yarself a fruit or vegetable, least once n' a fortnight. ccccccc.

                            L 1 Reply Last reply 27 May 2025, 19:22
                            4
                            • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
                              27 May 2025, 12:18

                              Pirated and OS software are different things, obviously. But would you prefer one over the other? I'm thinking of switching to both OS software AND pirated software. Just want opinions and tips from this community.

                              T This user is from outside of this forum
                              T This user is from outside of this forum
                              that_devil_girl@lemmy.ml
                              wrote on 27 May 2025, 19:21 last edited by
                              #29

                              Generally, if software was affordable and their business model is ethical, I wouldn't pirate it.

                              If a company is charging a subscription for something that has no business being a subscription, I'll pirate it. If a business is stealing data or willingly collaborating with evil people/governments/regimes/etc, I'll pirate it.

                              1 Reply Last reply
                              13
                              • L lattrommi@lemmy.ml
                                27 May 2025, 19:16

                                I'm just here because I got scurvy a couple times. Stay in school, ye' landlubbers n' doan't farget to eat yarself a fruit or vegetable, least once n' a fortnight. ccccccc.

                                L This user is from outside of this forum
                                L This user is from outside of this forum
                                lattrommi@lemmy.ml
                                wrote on 27 May 2025, 19:22 last edited by
                                #30

                                I only pirate adult cinema, because in the end it's not piracy if it's not racy.

                                1 Reply Last reply
                                0
                                • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
                                  27 May 2025, 12:18

                                  Pirated and OS software are different things, obviously. But would you prefer one over the other? I'm thinking of switching to both OS software AND pirated software. Just want opinions and tips from this community.

                                  C This user is from outside of this forum
                                  C This user is from outside of this forum
                                  cmnybo@discuss.tchncs.de
                                  wrote on 27 May 2025, 19:42 last edited by
                                  #31

                                  I prefer to use FOSS software. There is a risk of getting malware from pirated software. Even if there is no malware, commercial software usually has lots of tracking and telemetry anyways.

                                  A M 2 Replies Last reply 28 May 2025, 18:50
                                  4
                                  • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
                                    27 May 2025, 12:18

                                    Pirated and OS software are different things, obviously. But would you prefer one over the other? I'm thinking of switching to both OS software AND pirated software. Just want opinions and tips from this community.

                                    G This user is from outside of this forum
                                    G This user is from outside of this forum
                                    geneva_convenience@lemmy.ml
                                    wrote on 27 May 2025, 20:12 last edited by
                                    #32

                                    If buying isn't owning then piracy isn't stealing.

                                    1 Reply Last reply
                                    57
                                    • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
                                      27 May 2025, 12:18

                                      Pirated and OS software are different things, obviously. But would you prefer one over the other? I'm thinking of switching to both OS software AND pirated software. Just want opinions and tips from this community.

                                      J This user is from outside of this forum
                                      J This user is from outside of this forum
                                      jamonbear@sh.itjust.works
                                      wrote on 27 May 2025, 23:02 last edited by
                                      #33

                                      Both FOSS and piracy are about freedom. The first is given, the second is taken.

                                      1 Reply Last reply
                                      25
                                      • S sylver_dragon@lemmy.world
                                        27 May 2025, 17:09

                                        My personal preference is to use FOSS whenever it's practical. For home use, I've switched to FOSS for the vast majority of my computing needs. I run Linux on both my server and desktop. Most of the software on my server is FOSS, with the one exception being a container using the Splunk free license. My desktop is running Linux, and I use LibreOffice for documents and the like. I do run Visual Studio Code, which is technically Open Source, though I would not put it past Microsoft to do a rug-pull on that eventually. And I have an extensive library of games with Steam, basically nothing of which is Open Source.

                                        I have reached a point, financially, that piracy is not morally defensible. And I'm not willing to get into the mire of if, or where such a line would be. I believe that creators should be rewarded for their work. Though, I also agree that the limits on copyright are way out of whack with the changes Disney has purchased through the years. So, piracy as a moral question is a murky subject, with no clear answers to me. But, the end result is that I buy games, movies or TV shows. For other software, I usually look to FOSS projects (e.g. Gimp vs Photoshop, FreeCAD/OpenSCAD vs Autodesk), free licenses (e.g. Splunk) or just do without. For TV Shows/Movies, if it's not on one of the streaming services I subscribe to, I may buy it via a digital service; or, I do without.

                                        S This user is from outside of this forum
                                        S This user is from outside of this forum
                                        signofzeta@lemmygrad.ml
                                        wrote on 28 May 2025, 01:09 last edited by
                                        #34

                                        Have you tried the fork VSCodium? It strips out some of the telemetry and makes it more FOSS.

                                        1 Reply Last reply
                                        3
                                        • D darkguyman@lemmy.dbzer0.com
                                          27 May 2025, 12:18

                                          Pirated and OS software are different things, obviously. But would you prefer one over the other? I'm thinking of switching to both OS software AND pirated software. Just want opinions and tips from this community.

                                          ultragigagigantic@lemmy.mlU This user is from outside of this forum
                                          ultragigagigantic@lemmy.mlU This user is from outside of this forum
                                          ultragigagigantic@lemmy.ml
                                          wrote on 28 May 2025, 02:13 last edited by
                                          #35

                                          History will thank pirates for keeping our cultural history preserved and safe from for profit leeches that would burn every single book in existence if it made them a dollar.

                                          1 Reply Last reply
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