Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with piracy

Where in the internet heading these days?

carmel — Fri, 28 Dec 2012 13:05:46 -0800

Where is the internet heading? What are the issues we are facing with the internet and issues that will arise in the future? What do internet based companies need to worry about and prepare for? Looking for answers as well as places to read and learn about these sort of issues. For example: SOPA and PIPA bills. Online fraud (oh my, this on its own is a huge topic, I realize). Etc?

Looking for examples of new issues in the internet world that are currently happening, or that will become an issue in the future. Things that online companies need to think about / worry about, etc. Or even things that consumers need to worry about. Examples of what the internet may bring in the future.

Also looking for places to read up about this stuff online.

I know this is sort of open ended, but hopefully you guys can give me some more concrete examples, as I'm having trouble phrasing my questions.

ARRRRRRticle One defines the powers of Congress as...

synecdoche — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 13:41:42 -0800

How can I find out if and when a particular clause in the US Constitution has been invoked? I'm specifically referring to Article 1, section 8, clause 10, the "maritime crimes clause." I'm interested in the phrase "Offenses Against the Laws of Nations," and how it has been interpreted by the courts. I want to know if its use has expanded beyond maritime piracy and into, for instance, acts of terrorism.

Is there some database I can use to find out when the specific clause has been cited? I have access to a good university library but am not familiar with the resources for this kind of legal research.

I'm asking for a friend, I swear...

Anonymous — Fri, 03 Aug 2012 09:08:51 -0800

Ok, aside from any morality issues, what are the actual dangers of using pirated software? Let's say if (hypothetically, of course) a very small business wanted to use pirated software, what would the actual dangers be for them? Under what circumstances could they be found out?

And for the purposes of the hypothetical, we can say this would happen in Canada and would apply to your general suite of office and graphics programs (nothing esoteric or proprietary).

Where can I find pro-SOPA arguments/videos?

espertus — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 10:29:26 -0800

I teach computer science and would like to educate my students on the SOPA controversy. I can find lots of resources online (including entertaining videos) against SOPA but haven't had any luck finding arguments in favor of SOPA (except for sarcastic/satirical ones). Any pointers?

Why do teh ebooks bad so look?

hiteleven — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 12:00:41 -0800

Why are pirated/cracked ebooks commonly of such low quality? This is for an academic paper. I have to admit to downloading the odd pirated book for my Kindle. But every one has had errors in their texts to a certain degree. Minor errors include missing punctuation or missing line breaks (between lines of dialogue, for example). Larger mistakes include whole chapters in italics, or chunks of text appearing in the wrong place (sometime ending up several pages down the road).

I'm basically looking for the reasons why ebooks that are cracked end up with these kinds of problems. If there is an online resource for cracking books that discusses these issues, that would be fantastic, since I would be able to cite it (this is academia, so there's no fear of prosecution).

Thanks!

Where can I find statistical information on the effects of piracy on American shipping in the nineteenth century?

synecdoche — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 13:57:51 -0800

Where can I find statistical information on the effects of piracy on American shipping in the nineteenth century? I'm trying to find hard data on the frequency of pirate attacks on American shipping between the American Revolution and, say, 1898. Where can I look for this kind of information? Specifically, I'd love to be able to say "There were x pirate attacks reported against American vessels between 1800 and 1900," or even "Y individuals were tried for piracy in the United States in this period." Obviously I don't expect to find anything that concrete, but you get the general idea.

I have located a number of newspaper articles and other primary sources that address specific cases of piracy, as well as a number of historical laws, but I want to be able to paint (and cite!) a more general picture.

I have access to a good research library, but didn't have much luck today and the reference librarian who specializes in historical data is away at the moment. Even pointers toward applicable databases that I might be able access would be useful. I've checked reference works like A Statistical History of the United States but this is a relatively specific and esoteric search.

Thanks!

How to monitor and protect against unauthorised image use?

LongDrive — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 01:21:11 -0800

Can anyone recommend any services that protect and/or monitor original images online from unauthorised or unlicensed use? As part of expanding our business, we are embarking on a project that will be displaying a large number of images of original creative content online, and I am looking for some sort of service or system that will allow us to track unauthorised use.

The closest I have seen is Picscout's Imagetracker, which was recently bought by Getty. They have a service which essentially is what I am looking for in terms of using spiders to track any unauthorised use of registered images, however they only deal with a minimum of 30,000 images, which is far over the limit of what we are starting out with, so I am trying to find a comparable alternative solution.

Obviously watermarking is an option, but I would prefer a more elegant and advanced solution if it exists. Does anyone know if such a service exists in any form?

I'm no buccaneer, and I'm not trying to hornswaggle anyone, but I would like to hang the RIAA from the yardarm.

WhitenoisE — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 04:56:46 -0800

Are there any significant US organizations similar to Piratbyrån? Piratbyrån was a Swedish think tank whose mission was to challenge conventional ideas about intellectual property rights. They were devoted to "freely sharing information and culture" and are internationally known for establishing The Pirate Bay (the site transferred ownership to another organization in 2004). Piratbyrån disbanded in 2010 after the death of Ibi Kopimi Botani, a co-founder.

Their self-definition:

Piratbyrån (The Bureau of Piracy) is not an organization, at least not primarily. First and foremost, Piratbyrån is since its beginning in 2003 an ongoing conversation. We are reflecting over questions regarding copying, information infrastructure and digital culture. Within the group, using our own different experiences and skills, as in our daily encounters with other people. These conversations often bring about different kinds of activities.

How can I cover my filesharing tracks?

Kale Slayer — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 11:32:31 -0800

How can I cover my filesharing tracks? I am hoping to be proactive, against what Comcast may try to do to me, in regards to this.

What is the legal process for a non-US citizen protecting their copyright in the US?

jihaan — Thu, 26 May 2011 12:57:13 -0800

What is the legal process for a non-US citizen protecting their copyright in the US? Say someone from another country makes a film and then it is pirated and sold in the US. How would they go about stopping the sale of the DVDs? Can you file an injunction? Is it expensive? I have noticed that foreign film directors are complaining a lot about piracy and wondered how easy it is to actually do something about it from another country especially if they are a small, independent filmmaker.

How can I learn more about IP/copyright history/issues in the US?

autoclavicle — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 07:48:40 -0800

I want to learn more about the history and legal issues surrounding copyright infringement/intellectual property and how it relates to businesses and artists in the United States. What would be a good place to start? (Prompted by this thread.)

Penalties for exhibition of pirated movies?

Anonymous — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 20:07:22 -0800

What would the penalty be for publicly exhibiting a downloaded, pirated copy of a new movie? Not simply in your basement or something, but at an actual movie theater? I assume there would potentially be additional charges on top of whatever people getting busted for downloading new movies get charged with. Would it make it even worse, legally, if they advertised the fact that they were screening it? Would it be worse if the film weren't out on DVD yet? (I am in the US, and trying to talk some friends out of doing something stupid).

A cost effective music solution

antgly — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 08:53:23 -0800

What is the most cost effective way to have tons of music (piracy is not an option)? At the least I want something that lets me listen to music on my iPad offline because it is a WiFi only model. The only options that I've seen are mostly paid plans with trials and nothing free as far as I've seen. I'm looking for something legal and with a variety of music. I like Rdio, but my trial ended. So I'm wondering if there's anything really cheap or free? Free would be the best option.

Does the recording industry profit from piracy in any way?

toftflin — Sat, 18 Sep 2010 11:48:52 -0800

Are there ways in which record companies (e.g., Sony, Universal Music Group, Warner Bros) actually profit from piracy? A lawyer friend of mine, who is involved in a case involving music piracy, asked me this question.

They offered the example of Sony selling MP3 players and CD/DVD burners.

Another example was Sony advertising on websites that contain links to pirated films.

Are there any other examples of the recording industry profiting from or supporting piracy?

Who wrote/published/owns the "Piracy, It's a Crime" music?

caek — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 08:12:38 -0800

Does anyone know the musician, composer, label, publishing company or licensing agency responsible for the music on the Piracy, It's a Crime advert? This is, ironically, so we can clear a sample for use in a fairly high profile UK music release. We've cleared all the other samples for this record, but we're drawing a blank on who to ask for this piece. Any pointers or clues, however slim or however many steps away from the people who can give us permission to use this music, are extremely welcome.

What be a pirate's favourite novel?

synecdoche — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 10:19:20 -0800

I'm looking for suggestions for novels and short stories about piracy, with some specifications. I'm putting together for myself a reading list of prose fiction or non-fiction that deals with pirates and piracy. However, I want to limit my search to a certain time period—a "long" nineteenth century (say the American Revolution to World War I)—and to American literature. Any suggestions for good, literary fiction? I have a few things on my list already, including Melville's "Benito Cereno," Cooper's The Red Rover, and Frank Norris's Moran of the "Lady Letty", as well as a long list of captivity narratives and so on from the Tripolitan War, but I am hoping the Hive Mind can help me expand.

I have seen this question but my search is a bit more specific.

Any suggestions? They don't necessarily have to be "fun" reads. I'm also not very interested in contemporary historical research (I've seen this thread), though nineteenth-century historical or non-fictional accounts that deal with pirates and piracy would be welcome, too.

How do pirates pirate?

Lifeson — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 08:31:57 -0800

When a software pirate cracks a program, what exactly does s/he do? As a layperson, it's easy to understand some forms of piracy: building a torrent of MP3 files ripped from CD can be done with any music program and a torrent client, and discs without security measures can be ripped as .iso files and shared with the medium of choice.

Conversely, say that a new game comes out with a new form of DRM. Within hours, someone has cracked the security and is illegally distributing modified versions of the game that bypasses the DRM. I don't understand how this is possible for closed-source/proprietary products. If the only pieces we have are various bits of compiled code, some in proprietary formats, how does someone explore those files to not only identify how the DRM works, but also modify the actual software to bypass those measures? If the DRM functions by contacting a separate server, how do pirates figure out how to spoof a validation message when the game company presumably does not publicize its DRM mechanisms?

Obviously, I don't want step-by-step information about how to perform illegal activity. I want help understanding concepts of software engineering. Are compiled objects much less opaque than I understand them to be? If we don't know what language the software was coded in or what compiler turned it into software, how do software engineers explore its internal workings? How do programmers modify that software when they don't have the source code?

How do I spot a Buffy or the L Word FAKE DVD set?

DorothySmith — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 13:25:07 -0800

How do I spot a Buffy or the L Word FAKE DVD set? I want to buy the L Word DVD series and the Buffy DVD series but am worried about buying a fake boxset.

I've read that the L Word didn't release a box set (you can buy all the seasons in a set, but they're in their original boxes and not one box). Obviously I'd rather not pay $150 if the knock off would be just as good... but I also don't want to spend $60 and have them be terrible. This box set is all over ebay and on dvd websites. Has anyone purchased it before?

http://dvdsetsonline4.com/The-L-Word-Seasons-1-6-DVD-Box-Set-DVD-1652.html

But more generally, how would I know if I was buying a fake L Word or Buffy dvd series? Any tips? Anyone know something specific to watch for, especially with these two tv series?

Thanks for your help <3

Digital Economy Bill - When will it take effect?

srboisvert — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 05:28:45 -0800

Now that the Digital Economy Bill in the UK is rushed through what is the timeline for enforcement?

Is there a technological reason that the RIAA and MPAA only go after tracker sites and not people downloading torrents?

frodoxiii — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 20:08:04 -0800

With the recent legal action against Isohunt, I would like to understand the tech and privacy of torrents better. Is there a technological reason that the RIAA and MPAA only go after tracker sites and not people downloading torrents? Way back in 2007 someone asked about the safety of downloading torrents. It was answered in that thread that it isn't.

http://ask.metafilter.com/65568/How-safe-is-torrent-now

My feeble knowledge of news in the 3 years since that metafilter thread is that no one has been prosecuted for torrent use. Rather, the torrent sites that sell advertising are targeted.

For the RIAA and MPAA this is like bailing a ship out with a spoon. Autofill in a google search window brings up Pirate Bay after the three first letters. And as Isohunt has proven with their "lite" version, you can bring up essentially the same results with a Google search.

Why have there been no prosecutions of people downloading torrents?

How to discourage piracy amongst a small community?

puffmoike — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 10:30:36 -0800

Seeking ideas for discouraging piracy of a DVD which has a small potential audience of only a few thousand, well-connected people. A friend has just made his first proper video production of an amateur motor racing competition in Australia. There are four major meets each year, and he is hoping to sell a DVD of each directly to many of the competitors. Nobody has tried to do this before.

He is already well known in the particular racing community, has excellent marketing opportunities (he operates the biggest relevant online social networking / forum in Australia) and has a good-looking online storefront. His earlier 2-minute YouTube videos were very well-received, which encouraged him to purchase much better equipment and dedicate much more time to editing a professional-looking production, complete with driver interviews, onscreen results tables, legally-sourced music, etc. Having seen his all-but-completed first DVD we are very confident that it will completely exceed most people's expectations.

My big concern, however, is that whilst most of the racing community will be very impressed by it, and will be very keen to watch the DVDs, they won't necessarily feel compelled to pay for them...

There is a photographer who makes a decent living by selling CDs of photos of competitors at each meeting. But the photographer creates individual CDs, so that the only way for a person to see lots of photos of themselves is to buy a CD. Creating individual DVDs isn't practical, so my friend is going to have to try and sell the same DVD to everybody, many of whom are going to be quite good friends. And because it takes a lot of time for one person to create a snappy hour-long package from three days worth of footage, there is going to be an inevitable two-week delay between the race meeting and the DVD being available.

There are enough competitors -- with more than enough disposable income -- who will really enjoy the DVDs that this should be a success. But obviously if a sizeable proportion of the competitors choose to wait until a mate burns them a copy of the DVD, a segment turns up on YouTube or a full-length torrent appears, then my friend might not sell enough DVDs to make it worth his effort. And then there simply won't be any more DVDs made.

In short I'm convinced that as a group the motor racing community will really want my mate to earn enough money to want to keep making more DVDs. But I'm not sure how he should best encourage each of them individually to do the right thing.

If Hollywood can't find a technological solution for this problem my mate certainly won't be able to. So I suspect his best hope is to appeal to people's honesty. But I'd be very keen to hear any suggestions of how best to go about this.

Is my Photoshop CS2 Pirated?

Babblesort — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 09:38:00 -0800

I just received a copy of Photoshop CS2 that I purchased via eBay. How can I tell if it's fake? I just received a copy of Photoshop CS2 that I purchased via eBay. How can I tell if it's fake? The seller was listed as being in South Carolina so I was surprised and concerned when my package showed up shipped from China.

The copy was advertised as unopened in original shrinkwrap and it looks like that is the case. But with the unexpected Chinese origin I'm concerned that it may be a pirated copy. Can anyone tell me any specific things to look for to validate its authenticity. Hologram printing or the like on the disc? Something else?

Does this game genre even have a name?

The Winsome Parker Lewis — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 13:18:17 -0800

What are some great computer games for people who enjoy non-linear privateering, combat, and risky missions? I've loved the Escape Velocity games for years. I recently got into Frontier (previously) and enjoyed it a lot, but it was way too short and easy. I'd like to try Transcendence (previously) but I'm on a Mac, and I'd like to try SAIS (previously) but I can't get it to run under Snow Leopard. Finally, I just discovered Skyrates (previously) and it's fun but so very slow.

All that build-up is to ask: What other Macintosh or Flash games are like these? Specifically I'm looking for games that feature trading, fighting, upgrades and customization, and a big world to explore. I especially love games that let you choose to be good or evil (or neutral) and to become a hero, villain, or impossibly wealthy merchant. Even better if there are a bunch of different factions to choose from besides "good" and "evil," with shades of moral ambiguity. If the game is free that's also a big plus. Any suggestions?

Quoth the Pirate

cachondeo45 — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 14:03:40 -0800

[Discography filter] How do I cite a pirated CD? I do research in an area where 90% of available music is pirated. In fact, most musical groups depend on piracy for maximum exposure. Regardless of your opinion on the matter of piracy, I am wondering what is the best way to cite a pirated CD in a discography. I cite lyrics from some songs that are only available on pirated format. I can guesstimate the year the pirated CD was "released" (turnover is pretty high), but the titles of the discs are super generic (such as "Best Hits Ever" and the like). Is there an appropriate way to do this? Or do I just keep it to footnotes and explain the sort of non-origin of the CD? (And of course, it may be irrelevant, but I'm using a format similar to APA.)

What is the best way to download free movies on the internet without resorting to piracy?

peetle — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 09:45:33 -0800

What is the best way to download free movies on the internet without resorting to piracy? I don't know, but I have been told that there are websites that exist where one can download free movies. Do these places actually exist? What is the best one?