NationStates Jolt Archive

According to the globe and mail, it is!
The survey of 3,000 postsecondary students found that they have double-standards when it comes to protecting intellectual property rights.

When asked about someone plagiarizing their own work, 87 per cent of students consider this to be serious or very serious, yet only 40 per cent consider using pirated software to be a grave issue.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20050809/RSOFTWARE09/TPBusiness/Canadian

How the hell do you equate plagiarizing with piracy? When you pirate software, music or movies, you are stealing intellectual property. When you plagiarize someone's work, you're claiming that you created that intellectual property, and are trying to get through university using it. There's a huge bloody difference there. That's like saying that stealing a pineapple from a grocery store is the same as claiming that you grew it yourself.

Another quote from the article:
Instead, he said, many students believe that big companies are overcharging them for software.

"For many of those who use pirated software or pirate it themselves, the mindset would be 'Well, they're ripping us off, so it's not really stealing. We're getting our own back,' " Prof. Schafer said.
That too, is ludicrous, and is not an argument I've ever heard a proponent of piracy use, and is not one that in any way supports it. That argument is the same as saying "Well, it only costs ferarri about $1000 to make a car, and they're selling them for $500000. They're ripping us off, so I'm going to steal a ferarri."

The mindset of these people is likely more along the lines of "If I didn't download it, it would be too expensive for me to afford to buy anyway, so whether or not I download it doesn't affect whether or not the company makes money." This is a mindset I can relate to somewhat. The prices of these games are becoming ridiculously high, topping $70 or even $100. Your average college student could never afford to spend that much on a game, so the company that makes it won't be getting his money no matter what he does. Him downloading the software in no way affects the companies income, so while it may be "stealing" per say, nobody actually loses anything.

Anyway, what do you people think?

Just based on what you quoted, I don't think the Globe and Mail is directly comparing plagiarism and piracy as being similar, but rather, it's comparing them in terms of IP rights, and there I think the comparison is valid. Both deal with expropriating another's intellectual property for private use without providing compensation. In the case of plagiarism, the compensation is attribution--in piracy, it's monetary.

Now of course you don't use pirated software or a purchased term paper in the same way, nor do you benefit from both in the same manner, but in that very limited reading I used above, there is a valid analogy.

I don't consider piracy plagerism. Plagerism is COPYING one's work and saying its your own creation.

Piracy is basicly bypassing all those artsy graphics, and getting one or two songs and not getting other crap you don't care about.

That too, is ludicrous, and is not an argument I've ever heard a proponent of piracy use, and is not one that in any way supports it. That argument is the same as saying "Well, it only costs ferarri about $1000 to make a car, and they're selling them for $500000. They're ripping us off, so I'm going to steal a ferarri."


The first part you are right about, I dont see how piracy and plagiarism are the same thing, but on the second part, I have to disagree. I have heard that argument used by proponents of piracy all the time, even on this very board. I agree its a stupid, braindead argument. But that doesnt change the fact that many people use it.

Just based on what you quoted, I don't think the Globe and Mail is directly comparing plagiarism and piracy as being similar, but rather, it's comparing them in terms of IP rights, and there I think the comparison is valid. Both deal with expropriating another's intellectual property for private use without providing compensation. In the case of plagiarism, the compensation is attribution--in piracy, it's monetary.

Now of course you don't use pirated software or a purchased term paper in the same way, nor do you benefit from both in the same manner, but in that very limited reading I used above, there is a valid analogy.

What Nazz said...only shorter. :D

Stealing is stealing, whether it's claiming something as your own (plagiarism) or taking something without paying for it (piracy)

That argument is the same as saying "Well, it only costs ferarri about $1000 to make a car, and they're selling them for $500000. They're ripping us off, so I'm going to steal a ferarri."
That's not quite the same. If I pirate a copy of your software, you can still sell the software (albeit probably not to me), or use it, or whatever you like.
If I steal your Ferrari, you no longer have a Ferrari.

That's not quite the same. If I pirate a copy of your software, you can still sell the software (albeit probably not to me), or use it, or whatever you like.
If I steal your Ferrari, you no longer have a Ferrari.
Please, reread my entire post, thank you.