Topicless thread

[Nichi]

Hard to believe tomorrow is the first day of December...and I don't have my Christmas shopping finished yet ^_^;;

I still need to get gifts for my parents and my sister, although I have some ideas in mind for the latter...

[stewartsage]

I got my bro Yotsuba #1, threw in with my brother to get my dad Heretics of Dune, and may be getting my mother a laptop.

[Bella]

I got my bro Yotsuba #1, threw in with my brother to get my dad Heretics of Dune, and may be getting my mother a laptop.

Impressive. @____@

I've gotten........ nothing. I'm probably gonna try to make arts for people. Though my family isn't exactly receptive to art. :/

I've considered making a huge batch of snowball cookies and sending them out to people, but would it be weird/creepy to get homemade food in the mail? :\ Nobody complained when my mom did it years ago, but everyone adored my mom and that was at least a decade ago...

[Nichi]

@Bella: I wouldn't have a problem with receiving homemade food in the mail, although it'd be a little odd (That's usually the kind of thing you'd give someone in person)

As for gifts, the only idea I have for anyone at the moment is possibly upgrade my sister's laptop to Windows 7 Home Premium, from Starter (It's $80 to do so, but hey; she's been awesome this year, so I feel she deserves it ^_^). As for my parents, I'm still drawing a blank...

[NejinOniwa]

>paying for upgrade of operating system

My mind is full of tire.

[Nichi]

@Nej: If you're thinking it, I'll just say that I'm against the idea of using a keygen. Also, her netbook lacks a DVD drive (Obviously), so a cracked copy would be of no use

I seriously hope that doesn't spark a flamewar; like the "why waste money on abandonware?" one when I mentioned buying a copy of Windows 2000 a while back

[Chocofreak13]

@pentium: PAY for software?? *bursts out laughing* (also, considered an external dvd drive? they're uncommon, but they exist)
@bella: i was actually considering sending you guys food, but i don't think apple pie would ship well. :\
but my relatives in canada used to do that, i think. so don't think anything of it. :3

as for christmas gifts, i have all my gifts planned, now it's just a matter of assessing funds and starting the shopping. :3

[Red-Machine]

>paying for upgrade of operating system

My mind is full of tire.

@pentium: PAY for software?? *bursts out laughing*

How would you guys like it if somebody stole something YOU made?

[Pitkin]

It looks like Pentium's small text went without effect. :/

Not liking to pay for a software is one thing. Cracking a commercial software is another. Laughing at someone who actually prefers to pay for a commercial product is one more. Quiz: which of the above is the most childish way to behave?

Cut the bloody exchange, for Gaia's sake. Nothing good comes out of it.

I personally find it great that someone's ready to support a commercial product when deeming it worth to use daily. If one wants a free product, there are other options.

[NejinOniwa]

Well, I suppose. The thing is mainly that in Sweden the pirate culture is so widespread among computer users (and nerds in particular) that anyone who actually knows enough about OS'es to want to try and upgrade from one to another, will almost undoubtedly download and crack a copy. I know a great, great number of nerds and advanced computer users, and not a single one of them has ever even spoken about buying an OS - and many of them have asked me in person how to best crack things. That's how it is in vikingland, we rape and pillage - be it not women and villages, then be it 1's and 0's.

And besides, M$ isn't exactly the most whiteknightable company around, seeing as their daily practices are even less moral in turns of avoiding payment and roping in money than piracy is...

[Nichi]

To move away from that subject...

All the gifts I have so far are wrapped up and ready to go; freeing up the drawer I was hiding gifts in. Brace yourself; the presents are coming

[Bella]

And besides, M$ isn't exactly the most whiteknightable company around, seeing as their daily practices are even less moral in turns of avoiding payment and roping in money than piracy is...

Pretty much sums up my feelings. I wish people would use the energy they expend getting worked up about the injustices of piracy to get worked up about the injustices of the software industry ... and of sexism, racism, and every other bigotry there is ... and of war ... and of murder, and rape, and violent theft ... and all the other crimes that affect people on an personal level, not those that affect a company's bottom line (in theory).

How would you guys like it if somebody stole something YOU made?

Honestly, I wouldn't give two fucks if anyone stole something I made (say, downloading and printing some of my artworks and framing them as art), as long as they didn't try to profit (turn around and sell them) from it. From what I understand, a lot of people in the software industry feel the same way - for instance the folks at Adobe, who have pretty much given up on stopping their products being pirated and don't give a damn about it as long as bootlegged for-sale copies don't turn up, AND still make egregious profits from the few people - well, institutions - that do pay for their products.

[Krizonar]

I pay for stuff I like and pirate stuff I don't like.

Sounds odd, but seems to work out the way I want it to.

This doesn't seem to explain why I have a legitimate paid for copy of Vista.

[NejinOniwa]

came with your comp?

[Red-Machine]

I have a legit copy of Vista, but I didn't pay for it.  My former employer gave it to me from their Microsoft TechNet subscription and never asked for it back. xP