Hi,

Two comments:  I believe that it is better if possible to own something
outright rather than have to rent it, and yes, the overall costs wil
increase.  There's also a potentially increased risk to security as your
transaction details will be accessed, stored and updated more often.
Regarding Adobe and such, one would have thought that they would from
the outset have looked at the possibility of hacking, done it themselves
and introduced some safeguards if they believed them to be necessary,
rather than crying wolf after it has gone back to the wild.  Whereever
there is a barrier, somebody somewhere will try to surmount it, and I
suppose the software industry feel under an obligation to protect the
intellectual property of authors by any means they can, as well as
stopping those outside the loop from profiting.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Tina Hansen" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Monday, August 06, 2001 3:51 AM
Subject: Reflections on Trends


>     Every once in a while, an article shows up on these lists that
prompt me
> to reflect on current trends. I want to reflect on three trends that
are
> really hot today.
>
> First, there was some discussion not too long ago about the problems
with
> renting software. In my book, I see the major problem of only being
allowed
> to rent software as a further attempt to discourage piracy, but at the
risk
> of placing anyone who wants to use that software, whatever it may be,
in a
> tough position. This is my own view as well as those on this list.
>
> Even if every piece of software was at a low monthly fee, I believe
that the
> costs would eventually add up and it would make it harder to upgrade.
> Personally, apart from those on this list, I have not seen a lot of
outcry
> on this subject.
>
> I understand the possible reason for this: to try and discourage
piracy, but
> I don't think this is the best way to stop it.
>
> I also wish to comment on the Russian computer science student who has
been
> jailed for breaking into a security provision in software under the
recent
> copyright laws in this country. Whenever I hear stories like this, I
must be
> honest with everyone and say that while I'd like to fight every
battle, it's
> tempting to just bury your head in the sand, yet if we don't fight, we
could
> see more cases like this.
>
> I am pleased that the Electronic Frontier Foundation and others are
> challenging this, but somehow, I get the sense that the jailing of
this
> programmer was reactive, and it is another supposed way to stop
piracy.
>
> This is why I believe we have some major problems here. These cases
are
> extremely disturbing and this is why I feel stuck between a rock and a
hard
> place. You want to do something, but what? Also, there are so many
stories
> like this out there, it's tempting to long for the "good old days."
But I
> know that that won't get us anywhere either. It seems the big question
is
> how to discourage piracy yet make certain that access technology still
can
> be used with any new software or hardware that comes out.
>
> There is also a lot of discussion about upcoming technologies and
access
> issues. I'd be interested in any solutions to this one. We can't fully
stop
> technological innovation, but how can we convince technology designers
to
> take this issue seriously? We have passed a great deal of laws, but it
seems
> as if the fight gets harder and harder every time. Maybe it's time for
the
> mainstream media to pick up the pace on this issue. Maybe the Freedom
Box
> and other appliances will at least open the door for discussion on
this
> concern. Maybe a consumer board could help write up guidlines. The
battle is
> so hard to fight, it makes one want to run from the fight, but we
can't give
> up. Does anyone have any suggestions or thoughts on this?
>
>
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>
>


VICUG-L is the Visually Impaired Computer User Group List.
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[log in to unmask]  In the body of the message, simply type
"subscribe vicug-l" or "unsubscribe vicug-l" without the quotations.
 VICUG-L is archived on the World Wide Web at
http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/vicug-l.html