The Cost of Piracy: A Rant

[Supreme2k]

Hopefully, most newbies will read this. My utimate goal is for this to be a sticky


I've noticed the rise in the "I downloaded a movie and burned it. It won't play in my DVD player. What do I do?" posts, usually preceeded by "How do I extract a video from 58 rar files? And what's a rar file?"

I've tried to take the high road as of late, and substituted this

Your best solution:

If the movie is available commercially, buy it. It is well worth the purchase to save you the hassle of mucking about with downloads from (insert p2p, newsgroup, or other).

for my previous

STOP F---ING POSTING ABOUT YOUR "PROBLEMS" WITH MOVIES YOU GOT FOR FREE! THIS IS DVDRHELP, NOT WAREZHELP.COM! F--K OF-!

Simply put, this is a help site for video enthusiasts. Backups are included in the advice, but of your own media.

Even if you take the sneaky route and don't mention names, but that often doesn't help when we know what you are talking about. It pisses off some of us when we see someone getting help with doing something illegal. Even thoughwe sometimes read between the lines, you have to understand that Big Brother often scans sites like this and reads between those very same lines.

You say you have a probem with those 106 rar files? Here's your solution: Go straight to the source at http://www.rarlab.com/index.htm

You say your having problems with that illegal video that you've downloaded from BT, eMonkey, or Huzzaa? Let me tell you that there's hundreds of warez boards where they'll happily discuss your problem (for a month or so before they get shut down).

Look, we know that your friend sent you his 8Gig home movie in an email attachment, or rar'ed it up, rather than spending the $1 for the disc and shipping to send it to you. We know that friend is now dead, in a coma, or no longer speaks to you, so he can offer absolutely no help with something that he created and has expertise about, but that s not what this site is about either. I will, hwever, offer some helpful links:

• For postage inquiries, so you can have an alternative to downloading a 6Gig "attachment": www.usps.com, www.ups.com
• For your communications problems with your friend: http://www.drphil.com/
• For your communications problems with your (living impaired) friend: http://www.johnedward.net/after_life_.htm

Of course, this "advice" is for the warez kidz (you/we know who you are ) For Actual newbies/enthusiasts, you will be gladly be helped.

Contrary to what jimmalenko says :P , many of us do care if this site is shut down, and we don't want Baldrick to carry that weight alone. If some of us seem a little overzealous, know that (for the most part) we are looking after the site, and not our egos.

I may add to this after a beer or two

[Grimey]

well put. it should be a sticky...or required reading for people to join this site.

[waheed]

Totally agree. Maybe you can PM Baldrick for a sticky.

[Ironballs]

Agreed, there's some right turnips lurking on this site

[samijubal]

ROCK ON Their piracy just ends up costing all of us who pay for what we want more in the end. I'm with the required reading 110%, if there was only a way to ensure that.

[jimmalenko]

I say don't make it a sticky or required reading....

...because it has been evident of late that most NOOBs seem to have tunnel vision when passing through the AUP and in the forum. The benefit of stickies is lost on a lot of them.

[nerd1701d]

I LOVE it!

The funniest one I ever saw was a guy asking how to copy movies that he rented. He was scolded, then posted a few days later, replacing the rent with own.

I'm glad to see more people here discussing making their own DVDs with home movies.

It's kinda like back in the 50s and 60s when people had 8mm movies and slides.

Doug

[johns0]

Hate to say it but no matter what you say or post noobs will be noobs and ask without reading any rules or faq or giudes,not to say all noobs do this but a fair share do and it will never end.

[TheFamilyMan]

I say don't make it a sticky or required reading....

...because it has been evident of late that most NOOBs seem to have tunnel vision when passing through the AUP and in the forum. The benefit of stickies is lost on a lot of them.

Absolute agreement here!!!! Nothing short of having to pass a randomized written "driver's licence test" on forum usage in order to be granted forum access will get people like these to read and understand the rules. (But hey, once all those test questions get out there, someone will post the correct answers and defeat the system...rant, rant, rant)

[Supreme2k]

But if I can save just 1% of those poor tortured pirate souls, then I've suceeded

Not to mention all the regulars who have to think of a witty comeback involving one part of the human body shoved up another part.

[jimmalenko]

But if I can save just 1% of those poor tortured pirate souls, then I've suceeded

True.

Not to mention all the regulars who have to think of a witty comeback involving one part of the human body shoved up another part.

You have your head shoved so far up your arse you could scratch your sphincter with your shoulder pads

[Capmaster]

Excellent post Supreme2K! 8)

[garman]

Just a Thought......

Give me a break, this site will be and always will be a place of nefarious acts. Not to say that all of us will do something illegal. "To Err is to be human" I'm sure if you look around your home and ask yourself what I bought and what I received illegally. Most of us will posses something that was not bought or given through legal means. I'll be honest.... I started doing the pirate thing it intrigued me but it also educated me, Later I changed, I started to enjoy video editing, I rarely pirate movies, currently I edit clips from TV, home movies etc... It's fun and it all started through PIRATING. I think we should all get off our high horse and educate people about pirating but still help if they ask questions. Remember this site does contain "help" in it's url. That's my 2 cents -garman

You are in breach of the forum rules and are being issued with a formal warning.
Do not advocate warez. Illegal activities will not be tolerated. ***
/ Moderator Cobra

[mh2360]

Yep! lets keep this site 100% legitimate, honest and law abiding. You then might get 2 or 3 post a day...

Compare the number of posts about "DV, DVB, VHS2DVD transfers" to "DVD image files, Divx files (who uses Divx for backup purpuses, not many!), Divx to DVD conversion (right, we all archived our home movies to Divx ten years ago...) I'm not saying that this site condones illegal copyright theft... But wake up FFS...

[jimmalenko]

I think the AUP makes it pretty clear as to what is acceptable and what isn't.

Two Questions:

" I just d/l <insert unreleased movie here> off <insert p2p software here>. What next ?"

"I have an AVI file. How do I convert it to something I can play in my DVD Player ?"

Exactly the same question.

I cannot believe so many people read the AUP (or have meant to have anyway) then post the first question.

The key is in the way you ask your question

[lacywest]

Just a Thought......

Give me a break, this site will be and always will be a place of nefarious acts. Not to say that all of us will do something illegal. "To Err is to be human" I'm sure if you look around your home and ask yourself what I bought and what I received illegally. Most of us will posses something that was not bought or given through legal means. I'll be honest.... I started doing the pirate thing it intrigued me but it also educated me, Later I changed, I started to enjoy video editing, I rarely pirate movies, currently I edit clips from TV, home movies etc... It's fun and it all started through PIRATING. I think we should all get off our high horse and educate people about pirating but still help if they ask questions. Remember this site does contain "help" in it's url. That's my 2 cents -garman

Yeah ... Buddy .... I'll give you two more pennies if you continue.

Hey Baldrick ... when you get a chance send me a PM ... I have a question to ask you ... relating to the post I made about BattleStar Galactica ... it's an ordinary question ... but I am curious about something.

Oh and I just love that cute little gold square above my call sign ... how many other folks here have them ??

[indolikaa]

Oh and I just love that cute little gold square above my call sign ... how many other folks here have them ??

Only one? Rookie...


@Supreme2k,

Excellent post. However, can you imagine what this place would be like if what you have dreamed of actually came true?

For starters, I wouldn't have anybody to pick on..

[indolikaa]

Just a Thought......

Give me a break, this site will be and always will be a place of nefarious acts. Not to say that all of us will do something illegal. "To Err is to be human" I'm sure if you look around your home and ask yourself what I bought and what I received illegally. Most of us will posses something that was not bought or given through legal means. I'll be honest.... I started doing the pirate thing it intrigued me but it also educated me, Later I changed, I started to enjoy video editing, I rarely pirate movies, currently I edit clips from TV, home movies etc... It's fun and it all started through PIRATING. I think we should all get off our high horse and educate people about pirating but still help if they ask questions. Remember this site does contain "help" in it's url. That's my 2 cents -garman

I'll be honest, I started doing the sheep-shaggin' thing because it intrigued me. Nevermind that it's illegal in all 50 states. But it also educated me. I didn't realize that breaking the law could feel so good, but I changed. I started enjoying having sex with dead animals. I would line them up in a row, drown a bottle of vodka, and get busy. It's fun, and it all started through my acceptance that doing something illegal doesn't mean I should be held accountable to the laws of the land. I think we should all get off our moral high horse and educate people about the value of breaking the law for personal satisfaction. Remember, this site elected a sheep-shagger as class President.

That's my 2 drachmas.

[lacywest]

Oh and I just love that cute little gold square above my call sign ... how many other folks here have them ??

Only one? Rookie...


@Supreme2k,

Excellent post. However, can you imagine what this place would be like if what you have dreamed of actually came true?

For starters, I wouldn't have anybody to pick on..

Yes only one .... hmmm ... so some persons here have more than one ... huh.

I felt embarrassed ... when I got it ... at least nobody can see it but me.

[jimmalenko]

I'll be honest, I started doing the sheep-shaggin' thing because it intrigued me. Nevermind that it's illegal in all 50 states. But it also educated me. I didn't realize that breaking the law could feel so good, but I changed. I started enjoying having sex with dead animals. I would line them up in a row, drown a bottle of vodka, and get busy. It's fun, and it all started through my acceptance that doing something illegal doesn't mean I should be held accountable to the laws of the land. I think we should all get off our moral high horse and educate people about the value of breaking the law for personal satisfaction. Remember, this site elected a sheep-shagger as class President.

That's my 2 drachmas.

NO RELIGION. period.

C'mon Indo, you should know that by now

[indolikaa]

Oh and I just love that cute little gold square above my call sign ... how many other folks here have them ??

Only one? Rookie...


@Supreme2k,

Excellent post. However, can you imagine what this place would be like if what you have dreamed of actually came true?

For starters, I wouldn't have anybody to pick on..

Yes only one .... hmmm ... so some persons here have more than one ... huh.

I felt embarrassed ... when I got it ... at least nobody can see it but me.

Some people here consider a person dogshit if they don't have at least a pair of Aces in their hand.

So what did you do to get yours? Come now, don't be shy.

[mastersmurfie]

ok...I gotta throw in my two cents worth also...

I'll be honest.... I started doing the pirate thing it intrigued me but it also educated me, Later I changed, I started to enjoy video editing, I rarely pirate movies, currently I edit clips from TV, home movies etc... It's fun and it all started through PIRATING

I stumbled across this place over a year ago, cause I wanted to know how to convert the DivX movie I just downloaded to DVD...guess what? I came across this:

What is this site about?
This site will help you to make your own VideoCDs, SVCDs or DVDs that can be played on your standalone DVD Player from video sources like DVD, Video, TV, DV, Cam or downloaded movie clips like DivX, MOV, RM, WMV and ASF.

The above is from the very first page of Videohelp.com

Now, since then, I have NOT acquired any content from any of the P2P sources...because I learned that those sources are mostly crap, and the headaches involved with "converting" them is not worth it..

instead I have focused on capturing my own "sources", converting if necessary, and burning them to DVD...

I think the AUP makes it pretty clear as to what is acceptable and what isn't.

yes, the AUP does...

However, if I'm just the average person looking for a "way", and I come across this site, I would go with what is posted above:

hey!! I can come here and figure out how to make these downloaded movies into DVDs!!!

[jimmalenko]

What is this site about?
This site will help you to make your own VideoCDs, SVCDs or DVDs that can be played on your standalone DVD Player from video sources like DVD, Video, TV, DV, Cam or downloaded movie clips like DivX, MOV, RM, WMV and ASF.

In conjunction with

Before you reply, please observe our following forum rules

Do NOT give warez.

Do NOT link to warez .

Do NOT ask for warez.

Do NOT provide information how to obtain warez.

Do NOT advocate warez.

Warez includes downloaded copyrighted movies, movies that are not yet released on VHS/DVD and copying rented movies.

I interpret that as saying that you are pretty much left with public domain movies as being the only ones you can download.

TV shows are another kettle of fish...

I remember Baldrick saying downloading TV Shows was OK, yet I seem to recall a post by him yesterday, absconding someone because they downloaded TV shows off P2P. Where else are you going to download TV shows from ?

Let me point out that I agree - I think the rules are a bit too ambiguous and must be confusing as hell for a lot of newbies.

However, the Mods are here for a purpose.

[d_unbeliever]

NOOB pirates can post "valid or legal" questions here, and continue doing their piracy ...

this will just make those NOOB pirates to carefully choose their words when posting their questions...(NEVER mentioned the word DOWNLOAD pirates )

[burnman99]

Hopefully, most newbies will read this. My utimate goal is for this to be a sticky


...I've noticed the rise in the "I downloaded a movie and burned it. It won't play in my DVD player. What do I do?" posts, usually preceeded by "How do I extract a video from 58 rar files? And what's a rar file?"

Numero Uno: Not all rar files are for warez. Rar (especially self-extracting rar's are the best way to distribute files when other means like CD or DVD are not available. I personally have 44 rar files on this site http://briefcase.yahoo.com/rogergray1964/VIDEO_TS and it is DEFINITELY NOT a copyrighted illegal movie.

Numero Dos: No matter what anyone else says this site does contain a great deal of "Backup the ole DVD" which IS basically illegal regardless the reason. There may be a "Gray Area" for fair use, but it's definitely not 100% legal.

Numero Three-0: Videohelp.com is a misnomer. Videopersonwith10000postscondecends2personswith3po sts.com is what this site should be called. Different people learn through different means. Many people are A) don't learn well by just reading guides B) have trouble sifting through the hundreds of guides or maybe even C) can't read well or at all. Moreover, nothing is worse than being told in a forum to "Read the help file, when the help file is 1) confusing & limited 2) antiquated or my fave 3) just plain wrong, and yes it does happen.

In conclusion I do believe this site could go under but not to new people trying to learn how to rip DVD's but to idiots who have too much time on their hands who fuss & whine to make up for their lack of penis size that run everybody off who actually want to help.


Hope THIS helps.

Have fun stormin' the castle!

Rog

[NamPla]

This is in interesting topic!

I have never understood why folk want to bootleg a copy of "Titanic" or "Pirates of the Caribbean" or "I Robot" or whatever.

All these "new releases" are garbage anyway.

Actually, I support the piracy biz becauze it takes money from the wankers in control of Hollywood. That's a good thing.

But I don't "pirate" anything. I'm a huge movie buff & I think it's important for people to be archiving these rare OLD movies onto DVD. I know a lot of this stuff is coming out on DVD these days, but there's still rarities that do not exist on DVD, eg "2+3: MISSION HYDRA"...or "THE DEVIL'S 8"...or "EARTH DIES SCREAMING"...or some such fantastic nonsense...

So what's my point?

Umm, I don't know.

I guess look at something like, for instance, "THE LAST HOUSE ON DEAD END STREET" by the masterful Roger Watkins (early '70s) which has floated around in its crappy "Venezualen" VHS bootleg edition for years, but is now on double-DVD in pristine glory. I think everybody who has owned & seen this crappy VHS dub has gone & bought the DVD, for all its slick cover & booklet & printed disks etc... Brilliant amateur cinematography. Nice packaging, too.

So... Yes, "New Release" bootleggers shouldn't be allowed in here I guess, even though I support ripping off Hollywood. It's just stupidity & dumbness. I have never even looked at "divx" or whatever it's called. Sounds like rubbish to me.

If Big Brother is reading this, well cool I'll tell you what I did with your sister last night, ha ha...

[Grimey]

Now, since then, I have NOT acquired any content from any of the P2P sources...because I learned that those sources are mostly crap, and the headaches involved with "converting" them is not worth it..

instead I have focused on capturing my own "sources", converting if necessary, and burning them to DVD...

I think thats what happens to most of the users here. they come to this site looking how to do the most basic conversion, like converting their downloaded movies to dvd, but over time as they learn more they discover how much better things can be than downloaded movies, they stop and move on to better, more legitamate projects. I'll admit it myself, i have downloaded movies before, but after more expereience with videos, i realized how much better things can be, especially with sound. you may occasionally get a download with good quality video, but no downloaded movies have near as good sound as purchased dvds.
Thats just what i think anyways.

[jimmalenko]

Warez the best place to download copyrighted movies ?

[Grimey]

Warez the best place to download copyrighted movies ?

[mastersmurfie]

What is this site about?
This site will help you to make your own VideoCDs, SVCDs or DVDs that can be played on your standalone DVD Player from video sources like DVD, Video, TV, DV, Cam or downloaded movie clips like DivX, MOV, RM, WMV and ASF.

In conjunction with

Before you reply, please observe our following forum rules

Do NOT give warez.

Do NOT link to warez .

Do NOT ask for warez.

Do NOT provide information how to obtain warez.

Do NOT advocate warez.

Warez includes downloaded copyrighted movies, movies that are not yet released on VHS/DVD and copying rented movies.

I interpret that as saying that you are pretty much left with public domain movies as being the only ones you can download.

TV shows are another kettle of fish...

I remember Baldrick saying downloading TV Shows was OK, yet I seem to recall a post by him yesterday, absconding someone because they downloaded TV shows off P2P. Where else are you going to download TV shows from ?

Let me point out that I agree - I think the rules are a bit too ambiguous and must be confusing as hell for a lot of newbies.

However, the Mods are here for a purpose.

Please let me say that I don't advocate warez (as I was properly "educated" in the TV shows thread...), but again, if I was a newbie to this site, and saw the first page, I might post something related to "downloaded files"...which was my point...

How many of you read the "WHOLE" EULA (End User's License Agreement) when you install software on your computer? I know I don't, and expect that the majority don't either....

This:

Before you reply, please observe our following forum rules

Do NOT give warez.

Do NOT link to warez .

Do NOT ask for warez.

Do NOT provide information how to obtain warez.

Do NOT advocate warez.

Warez includes downloaded copyrighted movies, movies that are not yet released on VHS/DVD and copying rented movies.

which is at the beginning of every post that you make, is kinda like that EULA...

Almost nobody reads it (not an excuse, but a reason for some of the posts), and if they do, they think it doesn't apply to them...