Illegal Downloads aka the Hong Kong of the Internet

Downloading music has always made me feel bad.

I think it's wrong to download music because it takes money away from the people who made it. I especially feel bad when I'm downloading music that was made by an unpopular or less than rich artist. It makes me feel like I'm killing off their career because I'm not actually giving them money to fund their career.

I say this but look at me now. I'm on a VGM site where I constantly download VGM music. Not to mention, go on Direct Connect and have a field day. Just call me Hippo because I'm a hypocrite.


The only time I do (the don't was a mistake eariler) feel okay about people downloading and sharing music is when it's a rare soundtrack that nobody can just go and buy. When there actually isn't an option to buy it anymore.

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by Free.User

While I understand that downloading illegaly is "wrong" and illegal, I justify it thusly: I am aware of what is available to me, and I have limited funds. If I want to use a program/listen to music/watch a movie, and am perfectly able to, I'm not going to let the issue of legality get in the way. "I want to listen to "X" artist, and can do so in about 10 minutes, as soon as I download the album. Great... too bad It's "wrong"." As far as I'm concerned, I'm going to listen to the damn music.

The problem I see with that kind of thinking is that it's actually hurting the artist. When we download something music from a lesser known and artist then it's hurting them a lot more than an artist like Usher.

My main problem with downloading music is that I think "Is the artist I love going to be able to make a new album if I'm not funding their career". When I think if that, it makes me not want to download music....but I still do anyway. Yep...soniclover the hypocrite.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Well, yes, you do have a point there. I guess my post was more implied to an artist's music in the region you are living in.

I guess if it's music from a different region then it's doesn't effect the artist as much.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Free.User

It works differently in Canada. Downloading music is free and legal. However, when you buy blank CD-Rs, you are charged a levy, which goes to music artists nationwide. They (the artists) seem to be happy with it, and so am I.

Wow, that's a nice little system there. Everyone wins.

How ya doing, buddy?

(Please tell me I didn't make that Mistake.)

Um guys, I meant to put doinstead of that don't in my post about downloading rare albums. :doh:

Sorry for the confusion but hey...mistakes happen. :juggler:

I'll go edit it now.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Originally Posted by knkwzrd

\If the artist is serious, people hearing the music is what matters to them anyway.

What if the artist is seriously greedy?

Then they're not going to be too happy

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

For me, it matters how good something is for me to warrant buying it.

Like the way they wanted you to pay for Winrar just so you don't have an annoying pop-up that says "time expired, go buy this!''. I don't think that's worth purchasing the service for.

The whole issue I'm having with this is that many people will easily download something and not feel remorse. It makes me think that people will go to the very limits that they can. We know it's wrong but we still do it because it's free, easy, and convenient.

Sometimes I wonder, if you could kill somebody with a single mouse click, and not get caught...how many people would be dead right now?

FELIPE NO

Originally Posted by PUG1911

But with the shareware/donationware stuff you aren't supposed to think about it as getting rid of a pop-up. You are supposed to evaluate whether the application is good, and that you would want to support the developers for their efforts. Do you use Winrar? Then you should pay for it. It's *not* just to kill the pop-up, the pop-up is just to get you to realize that you should pay the developers. It seems it failed to do so.

Yes, like I said before. We know something we're doing is wrong but we do it anyway. This is the same kind of situation when you don't pay artists for their music.

I just never wanted to pay for it. I didn't want to spend money on it when I can just bypass the pop-up and not pay. I guess that's the real problem here. Nobody ever wants to pay when they don't have to.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

When I think of how much Music I've gotten over torrents over the years, it's shocking.

I remember, I got scared when I first started because I thought I would get caught. I heard all of these stories about individuals getting sued and whatnot. It seriously scared me.

3 Years later...

Jam it back in, in the dark.