# Kazaa IP Blocker thread closed? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 3, 2003, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kazaa-ip-blocker-thread-closed/192636 "2003-08-03T00:55:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Shaolinrabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Shaolinrabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shaolinrabbit)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2003, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kazaa-ip-blocker-thread-closed/192636/21 "2003-08-03T15:44:34Z")
I agree **Catsix** , I wasn’t trying to villefy IP blockers, because I know there are a lot of uses for them for Net Admins and such, and private individuals who are perfectly legal stuff. I, personally, use all kinds of things that are worse than that(In terms of what most use them for.) on my PC as a hobby. Basically what I was saying was that while IP blockers might well be a good topic for discussion, file sharing utilities probably aren’t. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2003, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kazaa-ip-blocker-thread-closed/192636/22 "2003-08-03T16:05:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Copaesthetic \* > **I’m a computer tech, and I don’t know anyone with a file charing utility that doesn’t use it _solely_ for the purpose of gaining copyrighted material rather than paying for it.** I am a computer tech as well and I have known people who use Kazaa or Bear Share to share files between themselves that are not copyrighted. For instance, a person where I was working asked me how to best send her sister across the country a pile of photos and videos she had on her computer (all personal stuff she took with her own cameras…or so she told me). I first suggested she burn the files to a CD and mail that but she did not have a CD burner and did not want to have to buy one if she could avoid it. I briefly started to mention setting up an FTP connection but her eyes immediately glazed over and I could see I had lost her. I then asked if she and her sister had and used something like Kazaa or Bear Share and she said yes. There ya go…send the files via Kazaa. At a later date she came by and said that method worked. I’m not trying to pretend that Kazaa isn’t used for sharing copyrighted material or even that legitimate use makes up for a significant amount of what Kazaa is used for. Just relaying an instance I know of where it was used legally. ---
**Author:** ![Shaolinrabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Shaolinrabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shaolinrabbit)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2003, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kazaa-ip-blocker-thread-closed/192636/23 "2003-08-03T16:38:03Z")
That’s pretty cool, **Whack**. I’d never actually heard of anyone using it legit. I mean, I figured _someone_ was using it for a legitimate purpose. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![catsix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e19b73/32.png) [@catsix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/catsix)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2003, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kazaa-ip-blocker-thread-closed/192636/24 "2003-08-03T17:48:02Z")
> [@](#): > > **Copaesthetic** said: > Basically what I was saying was that while IP blockers might well be a good topic for discussion, file sharing utilities probably aren’t. I understand completely. The first post I had in this thread was kind of a joke about how things would be if taken to the absolute extreme. I mentioned the rest of it because the technology itself, IP blocking, port translation, etc is really interesting to me. I bore the hell out of my family on a regular basis, I’m afraid. It wasn’t to disagree with you about the interest in not discussing file sharing here, just a takeoff on your statement that there are some legitimate uses to damn near any type of technology. Don’t get me started on packet sniffing. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Ms2001](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ms2001/32/18463_2.png) [@Ms2001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms2001)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2003, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kazaa-ip-blocker-thread-closed/192636/25 "2003-08-03T23:06:40Z")
Here’s another legitimate use of P2P (Napster, actually), one that wouldn’t have worked if the service weren’t already chock full of copyrighted material: > [@](#): > > [Bonnaro 2003 Artist Bios: Josh Kelley](http://www.bonnaroo.com/2003/artists03/bio03_joshkelley.htm) > In a modern twist of a classic tale, Kelley’s big break did not happen in any club but rather on the internet. “I would record my own songs and put them on my computer, compress them on MP3 files, take my computer to the library at the university and put my songs in my files on Napster,” Kelley remembers. “I just kind of spam mailed people who liked people who kind of sounded like me. So I would type in like Dave Matthews, get a list of people who liked Dave Matthews. Then I would type in ‘If you like Dave Matthews, try Josh Kelley.’ I did that day after day after day.” > > One eventual recipient of Kelley’s charming library of self promotion was Eric Clinger, an A&R representative who eventually signed Kelley to Hollywood Records. > [@](#): > > _Originally posted by TubaDiva_ > **Kazaa says on its site not to use their software to violate copyright . . . but they do nothing to police it, which means they condone thievery, plain and simple.** I must strongly disagree. The phone company does nothing to police use of their lines - does that mean they condone drug dealing and terrorism? Absolutely not; it means they’re a common carrier. They’ve deliberately chosen not to interfere with the content to protect themselves. If Kazaa chose to police _some_ content (which would mean reworking their software from the ground up), they’d become responsible for policing _all_ content. They’d have to delete copyrighted material that’s illegal here, Nazi related material that’s illegal in Germany or France, Falun Gong material that’s illegal in China, and who knows what else that’s illegal in Batshitzania. ---
**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2003, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kazaa-ip-blocker-thread-closed/192636/26 "2003-08-04T00:14:25Z")
I’m a musician and I use my mp3s in the manner Mr2001 described. I haven’t struck gold yet though. Keep your fingers crossed. These services _do_ have legal uses. ---
**Author:** ![capacitor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e47774/32.png) [@capacitor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capacitor)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2003, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kazaa-ip-blocker-thread-closed/192636/27 "2003-08-04T02:21:54Z")
You are aware, mods, that the RIAA is blocking access to those who would other wise never have access. If I didn’t listen to Taylor Mali ‘Objection Overruled’ online, I would probably never think of the viability of slam poetry. ---
**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2003, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kazaa-ip-blocker-thread-closed/192636/28 "2003-08-04T18:09:36Z")
The admins also don’t want people to use IP blockers against **this board**. ---
**Author:** ![Ms2001](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ms2001/32/18463_2.png) [@Ms2001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms2001)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2003, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kazaa-ip-blocker-thread-closed/192636/29 "2003-08-04T23:47:55Z")
Does that mean we can’t discuss the many web anonymizer services? ---
**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2003, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kazaa-ip-blocker-thread-closed/192636/30 "2003-08-05T00:03:36Z")
Here’s an example: [Masking IP adresses forbidden?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=118952) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kazaa-ip-blocker-thread-closed/192636.md?page=1)