I'd like to know the total amount of software that has been pirated over the decades. It must be in the billions. I'm in a building business when sometimes I design and draw projects. I can't count with all my digits of how many illegal copies of just AutoCad, let alone other programs on machines I've seen through the years of either someone I know or machines I've fixed.
Yeah, it has to be in the billions. I have seen many, many pirated copies of software installed on people's machines myself. I can remember a number of places (way back in the DOS days) where people were using illegal copies of Novell Netware, Word Perfect, you name it. Some of my clients were legal offices (of all things) who would have ONE copy of the software and using it on a network with 25 users! Very annoying. Stealing some of these titles (like AutoCad, SQL Server, QuickBooks, etc.) amount, literally, to grand theft. In fact, laws were passed some time back declaring such piracy just that. Unfortunately it's almost impossible to enforce those laws. Whenever I've encountered such I've refused to work with the pirated software. When a friend (or whatever) had me work on their machines I would ask them for the license to the software and if they couldn't produce it I would refuse to work with it until the software was either removed or they purchased a copy. Sometimes people would get offended making excuses like "... but I can't AFFORD to purchase [insert title here] ... I couldn't stay in business!" My answer to that is, then, you don't belong in business.
The hilarious thing about it is that many of these businesses I worked with where there was pirated software had expensive equipment they needed to do their business but when it came to paying for the software all-of-a-sudden they couldn't "afford it". Somehow software tools, because they're not physical items, are considered "vapor" or "freebie" items. The really silly thing is that they couldn't run their business without it (like AutoCAD) any more than they could run it without the lathe in the back of the shop. Hypocritical.
I think this is one of the reasons MS has introduced the Modern app via the new UI. I noticed that when installing EE from RP that MS kept track of all the apps I had installed on RP whether bought or free. I was then able to install in EE. This will greatly aid to the decline of piracy. I think all software will eventually be written in the Modern interface only to be purchased via the MS Store. This way they keep track of what's installed on one's computer. I think 3rd party software companies will enjoy this as well. Hard working and honest people will gain the money due them by this system of sale.
Some might see this as policing. It surely is. As long as one purchases software legally then one is doing no wrong. Besides that, one does not need to keep copies of software on hand. One just downloads it to reinstall via the MS Store.
You know, I hadn't thought of that aspect of it - the control over piracy. You're right. The Modern interface is certainly not up to the task for heavy-duty applications (I mean, can you imagine AutoCAD in Modern?), but control over software licensing is definitely more of a possibility through that delivery method. I support that idea to a point, however the next logical step there might be trying to control desktop applications through the store like that. I'm not sure I support that idea, though if implemented properly it might not be too bad. I'd hate to see MS lock down the desktop in that way as the ability to deliver a program to a system is one of the strong points of the Microsoft platform. Anything I write in VS2008 is deliverable to any Windows system from XP upward.
However ... things are changing. We shall see how it goes.
-Max
