 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
||
 |
|
|||||
 |
 |
 |
|
|||
 |
|
|||||
 |
|
|||||
 |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|||
 |
 |
 |
|
|
 |
 |
|
||
 |
 |
|
||
 |
|
|||
 |
|
|||
 |
|
|||
 |
|
|||
 |
|
|||
 |
|
|||
 |
|
|||
 |
|
|||
 |
|
|||
 |
|
|||
 |
|
|||
 |
|
|||
 |
|
|||
 |
|
|||
 |
|
|||
OPINION
Is the Internet the New Pirates Home?
By: Dave S., Crescent Collegiate, Blaketown, NF
Back in history, there were pirates that surrounded Hong Kong and European countries. They would look for treasures and keep an eye for gold. A passenger ship was one type of ship pirates looked for as it contained jewelry and money from the people. It was easy to do. Just get in, take what you need, and get out. The passengers would not fight, nor would they try to be brave and get their necessities back. Pirates could get in and out quick; thus, the authorities never were able to come to the rescue in time. Well, that was back then.
In this day of technology the pirates' target has changed. They've finally found a home ~ a new way to get their treasures. No, it is not gold or silver. Simple, it's warez. What is warez? It is fully downloadable files on the Internet that are given free to others. Programmers that make software for Microsoft, Oracle, Corel, and many other companies are victims to this Internet scandal. Instead of buying software, you can just go download it for free. No hassle, no problems. Oh yea, this is costing the computer industry more than a 100 billion dollars.
Yup, these are new days for pirates. They have finally found a spot to live in on land and have a computer. They get into FTP sites or web sites and look for warez. Then, they get out before the FBI or any other security can get them. These pirates are around the world. They could be living in the big city or in a little prairie farm. All they need is a phone line and a modem.
No more paying $50 for software, just get it on the Internet. That's the motto. You can call it warez, wares, whatever. Can you believe music is another illegal thing going on the Internet? It's a compressed song using mp3 format. Some artists like it, many others hate it. Lots of money is being lost, as CDs can just be downloaded on the Internet.
You might be asking yourself, what's the big deal? Sounds like something I would like to do. I guess I can't stop you but I can try. Let's put it this way, you get a $40,000 fine for downloading warez or mp3s. When you could just go to the store and get it for a lot less. Why risk getting fined $40,000 when you can just do the ordinary and good thing?
I guess you might say the pirates' minds have still stayed the same. They're still eyeing the gold.