SI: abandonware ?

[artaxerxes]

Hi
I've just deleted a post that contained a link to a so call abandonware site.

Please refrain from posting think kind of links here.

thx

artaxerxes

[Trevor_Clim]

sorry, if i have made problems
i didn't know that it was not a really abandon ware site
but sites like the one from the underdogs are legal, or?

[sslaxx]

Their legality is, at best, highly questionable.

For SI, try EBay or similar.

[Dominus]

if there is an Ultima for download it is not perfectly legal (save for Ultima 4 which Ultima Dragons are supposedly able to offer for download).
Please NEVER post such a link here!
Thanks!

[Morg]

Well the law says they are illegal. But since the people who are breaking the law think the law is unjust, they think of themselves as freedom fighters not criminals.

Like most freedom fighters vs criminals senerios is too wait and see who wins and the winner is always right

[drcode]

Try emailing Origin and ask them if you can buy the Ultima Collection CD. When they last sold it, I think it was only around $12.

[Dominus]

Morg: aslong as that fight is done in such a way there will never be done anything about it. Quite to the contrary, the US seems to think it more plausible to prolong copyrights.
As long as you people in the US don't step up and try to convince your congressman that it is more worthwhile for him to listen to his voters instead of companies nothing will come out of it!

[Morg]

Dominus by the way i do agree with you. While i do not particularly belive in that law, I do belive in the rule of law. Abandonware doesn't exist as far as the law is concerned and thus some of these sites are distrubuting copy writen material against the law. Yet there are a few sites (im not going to bother to identify them) that only distribute freeware, shareware and products where nobody owns the copyrights. What i was saying was as for whos right and who's wrong only time will tell.

[drcode]

Trouble is, that even before all the goofy extensions they've added, a copyright was good for 28 years, with a possible extension for another 28 years. I've heard that there are groups pushing for shorter terms for software (like 5-10 years), but I doubt if it will happen. The companies have lots of money to spend pushing their viewpoint, and the general public doesn't know or care much about the issue.

What I think is strange is that you can copyright software, but never provide the source (even to the government). It's a little like if you bought a book, but only got to see a summary of it.

[Kennedy]

Well, I bought my copy legaly. I rented each of the installments and the expansions first though, sevral times in fact (that's how much I liked it!) But now bill gates and micro$oft fixed it so we can't rent software anymore. though I support abandonware I strongly suggest you buy the Ultima Collection CD or something similar as the games are well worth the 15 dollars (unless of course you have windows xp which probably won't be able to run it, lousey micro$oft!)

[Jiles]

Kennedy,

It's hardly worth blaming Microsoft for the fact that Ultima won't run under XP. It was Origin's decision to use a non-standard memory manager. More to the point, why should MS support 'legacy' code that is more than 7 years old?

[SB-X]

It isn't that hard to install an old MS-DOS to run the UC on.

[Morg]

Yeah i think we need to change the subect line. It seems that we all have about the same sentiments about abondonware. While it would seem to be a good idea, my money (and that of the software companies) says that it will not happen. So whether or not you as an individual support abondonware, its best if you do not post links or addressess to abandonware sites because when that happens it can be misinterpited as support from exult. I think that we can all agree that they do not diserve the hassle or possible litigation from your support of the abandonware cause

[wjp]

Well said

Let's close this discussion.