[Robotgroup] Off Topic, but Topical

[Vern Graner]

Def Egge wrote:
> Um ... no.  That is a deliberate misquote of what 
> I wrote (I presume to stir up more discussion).

Heh.. Moi? Stir up trouble? :D Actually, I enjoy this sort of discourse. 
Its mental bubble gum for me... :)

> CDs stolen from an unlocked vehicle are not the 
> same as .mp3s ripped from said CDs and 
> subsequently - deliberately - loaded into a Kazaa 
> folder ... even if the user claims to be clueless 
> about the way Kazaa worked.

Ok, so lets say the CD's in question taken from said hypothetical 
vehicle in the hypothetical mall parking lot were legally created backup 
copies of your original purchased CD's.. could RIAA/MPAA sue for 
unlawful distribution and win?

A step further.. If your legally created backup copies of your purchased 
CD's are stolen, are you required by law to destroy your originals since 
your license to listen went with the legally created archival copy?

   I suspect that there
> is no implied consent to enter the vehicle 
> despite leaving it unlocked.

What if the CD case full of legitimate "backup copies" of music CD's was 
accidentally left on a park bench...? Is there implied consent there? I 
think its an interesting exercise to see where the analogy breaks down.

Is an open access point considered "implied consent"...? I think I 
recall cases where unauthorized use of an open access point has been 
considered a crime by the local Gendarmes. :)

> The Howell's do not have the distribution rights 
> to the .mp3s that they made world-readable and 
> wide open.

The distribution rights are not in question here. I think whats in 
question is in which case would the person who's MP3's were snagged be 
considered a *criminal* or a *victim* of the crime?

> Now, behave.

I am behaving! In exactly what WAY I'm behaving may be in question tho... ;)

Vern

-- 
Vern Graner CNE/CNA/SSE    | "If the network is down, then you're
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