Some legal **** about backups (Finnish and EU legislation) >>

It has been said very clearly that everyone has the right to make a backup copy. However, the legislators are about to give a whole lot of protection to Licensors by sanctioning any kind of "cracking a copy protection-system".

In practise this means that even though the copy protection is something as retarded as a big red ON/OFF button on your CD, you are not allowed to press it to "OFF"...since that would be "circumventing the protection mechanism" i.e a crime.

To sum it up: EVERYONE HAS THE RIGHT TO MAKE A BACKUP COPY WHICH RIGHT CAN NOT BE TAKEN AWAY FROM YOU BY EULA'S etc. but you can't circumvent any kind of copy protection in any way making the right completely and utterly useless.

heh the good old days. i remember playing Wolfenstein 3-D on a tape drive with a huge 3" binder full of maps (the good 'ole text maps, not these new-fangled graphical ones) when i was 6.

btw, Castle Wolfenstein on the Mac rocked.

Originally posted by Rumor
heh the good old days. i remember playing Wolfenstein 3-D on a tape drive with a huge 3" binder full of maps (the good 'ole text maps, not these new-fangled graphical ones) when i was 6.

btw, Castle Wolfenstein on the Mac rocked.

Castle Wolfenstein on the Apple ][, you mean :confused: Yeah that was the first game I really got addicted to on a PC ... of course, you weren't born then, were you ... (1984 ... my freshman year of college):(

Funny thing then - you made LOTS of backups because 5.25 floppies (which actually WERE floppy) were so unreliable!

I suppose that piracy could have been an issue, with my 300baud modem ... but it just wasn't until much more recently.

Mike

DeTRiTiC-iQ put it well over at Massassi:


Speaking morally, everyone I know who has obtained the beta (and liked it) fully intends to buy the game upon relase, most are preordering.

Speaking as a gamer, by having a leaked beta, the game will already have partially matured before release and there is less risk of the inevitable first patch being rushed and damaging to game popularity.

Speaking as an editor, having an understanding of the gameplay mechanics as early as possible can give mappers the ability to make excellent maps that fully exploit the game ready for shortly after release.

Speaking as an admin, no more talk or hinting at where to get the beta, or boasting about having it will be tolerated.

I will be honest here, if I had a chance to get the Beta, I would get it, I'd like to try the game out early, and buy the finished product in September, morally all I am guilty of is being overly curious and impatient not a thief.


(Plus I am going to University 2 weeks before the game comes out, and if I am unable to obtain a laptop then I will only be able to play it when I come back home from Uni and that won't be very often.)

I'm sorry if my opinion offends anyone but and seems like I'm sticking two fingers at Raven and LucasArts, but I think seeing as I've bought every Star Wars game for the PC that has come out (even Star Wars Chess and Monopoly) if I had the chance why not TRY the game a little early.

Originally posted by Count Dooku
I will be honest here, if I had a chance to get the Beta, I would get it, I'd like to try the game out early, and buy the finished product in September, morally all I am guilty of is being overly curious and impatient not a thief.

Morally, I have seen you around here enough to believe you - as I do many who say similar things - that all you want is a taste, and WILL buy it.

Of course, the only thing that is both moral & legal is to walk away, and wait. However, you could be morally OK if you downloaded and still bought the game, but you would be doing something illegal.

My concern is that people - who would have otherwise just bought the game - will get a taste for downloading stuff, will learn where to do it, and will start doing it instead of buying games properly. Of course, the choice is their own ...

Mike

[ Edited. Why don't people listen??]

And for people calling it a demo version, no way, it is a illegal beta, and shouldn't be out there.

An illegally leaked beta also has the potential to hurt the game, in that its unfinished, and will more than likely be different than the final product.

People who like the beta as is may be disapointed when things change (as people were mad about things that changed in the patches for example). Since the beta was not intented for the public, system performance and features didn't need to be tested or tweaked and so more can go wrong.

Just because it's a beta doesn't change that it's still illegal and non-permissable on these forums than if it were the full version of the game that was being warezed.

what amazes me is all the talked about "leaked betas" and "piracy" when this is just Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy. i mean, c'mon people, its not Doom3 or Half-Life 2 or even the first new engined installment in the series (like JK or JO)...yes, i am excited about JA and i most definitely will get it and i agree that something like a CDKey system would be welcome (i know it works) but...c'mon! it seems like half of all new threads in this forum get locked because somebody says something about a beta or pirating the game...bleh. however, i do appreciate the moderators support in battening down the hatches on illegal subjects.

What's the difference between a pirated Jedi Academy or Half-Life2??? :rolleyes: And yes a lot of threads get closed, but it's because a LOT of warez posts are showing up... I think 90% of all the posts here contain the words warez or pirated now :(

Originally posted by HertogJan
What's the difference between a pirated Jedi Academy or Half-Life2??? :rolleyes: And yes a lot of threads get closed, but it's because a LOT of warez posts are showing up... I think 90% of all the posts here contain the words warez or pirated now :( I think he was saying:
- That a leaked beta of HL2 or Doom3 should be more interesting because they are unknown quantities - you would be interesting in looking at basic things like graphics, feel of movement and so on. With JA we already know what the game will basically look like and play like, so the lure of the beta is ...? Which is why the interest in the Doom3 made more sense (still not legal, of course).
- That it is rediculous that so many people are posting about it that half the threads have been closed ...

I agree ... and it is too bad - it's taking the fun out of visiting here ...

Mike