# wARez rULez!! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 5, 2001, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809 "2001-03-05T12:43:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/1 "2001-03-05T12:43:31Z")
Who, or indeed what, is “warez” and why does he, she or it rule? Most websites I’ve seen it on go along the lines of “your gay and suck ha ha ha,” so I’m guessing these are 8 year olds who’ve just discovered HTML. ---
**Author:** ![Lemming](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ccd318/32.png) [@Lemming](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemming)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/2 "2001-03-05T12:52:36Z")
Generally, that term is used for software obtained through illicit means, usually over the Internet. I think they say it “rulez” because they didn’t pay for it. Actually, it’s not so much the 8-year olds that discovered HTML, but oftentimes the kind of hacker (or wannabe hacker) who has no respect for proper English. (They like to 5p33k with numbers when possible; don’t know why.) ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/3 "2001-03-05T13:49:58Z")
Of course, as soon as this thread degenerates into “where’s the best places to find warez”, it will be closed. ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/4 "2001-03-05T14:05:03Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lemming \* > \*\*(They like to 5p33k with numbers when possible; don’t know why.) \*\* My understanding is that in the 80’s(?), there was a fear amongst the 31it3 that their message boards were being montiored by software that could parse sentences looking for key phrases. Using 31it3-speak, they would fool the e-vil software. Fenris ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/5 "2001-03-05T14:10:35Z")
So, where’s the best place to find, er, wARez? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![HomeSlice](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/9d8465/32.png) [@HomeSlice](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HomeSlice)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/6 "2001-03-05T15:18:51Z")
It can be tough to find a good warez site out there, very tough. But when you do, you an a bunch of neat stuff. l33t! ---
**Author:** ![TheNerd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/858c86/32.png) [@TheNerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheNerd)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/7 "2001-03-05T15:31:47Z")
The term “warez” is actually a corruption of the name of one of the big Mexican organised computer crime syndicate families. You see, the Juarez and Gomez families both deal in stolen software in huge volumes. Some clueless scriptkiddies misinterpreted, and now “warez” and “gamez” are the terms used. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/8 "2001-03-05T15:53:45Z")
Start [here](http://www.tuxedo.org/jargon/html/entry/warez-d00dz.html) and follow the links. ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/9 "2001-03-05T16:58:48Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Fenris \* > > My understanding is that in the 80’s(?), there was a fear amongst the 31it3 that their message boards were being montiored by software that could parse sentences looking for key phrases. Using 31it3-speak, they would fool the e-vil software. > > \*\* What the hell is “31it3” is meant to be. Tell me, please, this is the kind of thing that keeps me up at night. ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/10 "2001-03-05T17:03:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Fenris \* > > My understanding is that in the 80’s(?), there was a fear amongst the 31it3 that their message boards were being montiored by software that could parse sentences looking for key phrases. Using 31it3-speak, they would fool the e-vil software. > > \*\* What the hell is “31it3” meant to be. Tell me, please, this is the kind of thing that keeps me up at night. ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/11 "2001-03-05T17:04:52Z")
What the hell is “31it3” meant to be. Tell me, please, this is the kind of thing that keeps me up at night. ---
**Author:** ![Lemming](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ccd318/32.png) [@Lemming](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemming)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/12 "2001-03-05T17:28:40Z")
Elite. See, some things just aren’t worth staying up late at night over. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/13 "2001-03-05T19:45:58Z")
BTW: this message board has no government affiliation. There is no need to post in triplicate. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![TPWombat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbce88/32.png) [@TPWombat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TPWombat)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/14 "2001-03-05T21:40:05Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Pushkin \* > \*\* > Be alert. > Your country needs lerts. > \*\* Be aloof. We have enough lerts. ---
**Author:** ![Wonko\_The\_Sane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/258eb7/32.png) [@Wonko\_The\_Sane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wonko_The_Sane)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/15 "2001-03-05T22:38:11Z")
[http://www.bigredh.com](http://www.bigredh.com) has cool file-trading software. (random comment) I’ve found that any “warez” site (html) usually is just a bunch of porn popups. You can usually find them in newsgroups, but usually there are parts of the multi-part posting missing, so they are useless. I have never had success finding warez in newsgroups or on websites (lotta porno-spam though, hate them popups) ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/16 "2001-03-05T22:48:33Z")
Yeah, porn popups or links closed by the SPA. Which is too bad because a USEFUL service these sites provide is supplying “abandonware,” or software that is no longer produced or supported. This can be handy if one has an old computer that won’t run the current Windows software. Few software companies have a “museum” for old DOS software like Borland does. ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/17 "2001-03-05T23:22:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Jeff Olsen \* > \*\*BTW: this message board has no government affiliation. There is no need to post in triplicate. 🙂 \*\* Waitaminnit . . . I am Tripler, and I work for the government. Is this a crack at me? 😃 Tripler ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2001, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/18 "2001-03-05T23:52:44Z")
> [@](#): > > I am Tripler, and I work for the government. > > Is this a crack at me? 😃 No, that was a crack at all us gub’ment workers. Me included. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2001, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/19 "2001-03-06T00:53:07Z")
Actually, in my ecperiences warez sites don’t tend to be porn. I’ve had good luck with getting old games that I loved a long time ago. Some sites will advertise that since the games are no longer being produced, it’s legal to download and play them. This is wrong. As long as the copyright on the game is still in effect, it’s illegal. (not that I haven’t downloaded any of them anyways…) ---
**Author:** ![StephenG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7feea3/32.png) [@StephenG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StephenG)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2001, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809/20 "2001-03-06T01:03:00Z")
I thought the triplicate comment was funny. =) Just FYI, if you turn off javascript in your browser, that’ll disable the popups. It’ll also disable “mouseover” – the phenomenon where you hold your mouse over a link and something other than the link shows up in the status bar. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/warez-rulez/56809.md?page=2)