# Justification for using pirated software **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 4, 2006, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/justification-for-using-pirated-software/375320 "2006-10-04T22:58:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![shijinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@shijinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shijinn)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2006, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/justification-for-using-pirated-software/375320/81 "2006-10-11T13:53:01Z")
one of the problems with software is that it is so easy to make a full duplicate of the product at a small fraction of the selling price. when you make something physical, piracy don’t occur simply because it’s not practical to do so. even if they do, the ‘authentic imitation’ would generally be inferior or perfect. in the case of the latter… say i somehow have the resources to make an exact duplicate of a prada bag. i make a million more and give it away free. am i in trouble? perhaps. but those people who got the bags certainly aren’t in any moral predicament, maybe not even if they paid for it. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2006, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/justification-for-using-pirated-software/375320/82 "2006-10-11T14:45:01Z")
I’m happy to be corrected on this, but doesn’t the law (at least in the USA) consider pirating software to be theft? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2006, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/justification-for-using-pirated-software/375320/83 "2006-10-11T17:12:04Z")
[QUOTE=NinjaChick] But it costs $200, and I do not have $200 to spend. So _I am not going to buy the software_. I’m not going to spend the money on it, because I don’t _have_ the money. At some points I may have two hundred bucks extra in the bank, but that’s much better used for repaying my five digits of student debt, or saving up for law school, other things like that. I’m not going to spend the money on that software, because it’s prohibitively expensive. [/QUOTE] That’s rationalization, and it’s a good one, but you seem to understand that what you are doing is wrong. Most people accept that if you can’t afford something, you do without. The fact that you wouldn’t buy it if you had the money is your rationalization for not earning what you use. It’s much easier to just copy. You obviously value the product, otherwise you wouldn’t have gone through the effort to acquire an illegal copy. Why would anyone _ever_ pay for it even if they had the money? I can always use your rationalization to get an illegal copy and donate the money to charity? I don’t see why you would ever buy software that you can acquire without purchase while you have debt? Is there any software you consider worthy to purchase, and why? ---
**Author:** ![ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chockfullofheadygoodness/32/511_2.png) [@ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2006, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/justification-for-using-pirated-software/375320/84 "2006-10-11T17:59:18Z")
[QUOTE=China Guy] This is still a straw man. Many companies sell localized versions of their software at a discount in Russia and other countries. In China, I can buy tons of LEGAL disney VCD’s for $2, but these are licensed only for use in China. [QUOTE=treis] Can you buy Vista for $2? [/QUOTE] [/QUOTE] Dunno about Vista, but I picked up a legal Chinese version of Office for 170 RMB (~$20 US). That’s about 1/15 of what Office Xp was retailing for in the US at the time. No grey market problem, as all the installation screen, EULA, dialog boxes, and menus are in Chinese. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/justification-for-using-pirated-software/375320.md?page=4)