DVD Copying Once Again an Issue

[silver-bullets]

The article can be found here.

The judicial system has just trounced another program the "comprimises" DVD copy protection under the Digital Millenium Act. I do not think that this will help prevent people from bypassing DVD protection at all. People who make the pirated copies that flood the streets are not reliant upon comercial software at all. They usually produce their own. This ruling only hinders legal us of the program and perhaps a few teens from copying a DVD and giving it to their friend.

-Cheers-

[RoadClosed]

As an owner of DVD X-Copy mysdelf, I have been watching on the 321 website for months. In fact I have given the advice of "Get it while you can" because it makes lagally copying DVDs a snap. However, the core of the software is DeCSS, and you can get that everywhere. I believe that if you own a DVD you should be able to make a copy for your laptop or car. etc. So if you believe in the same, go buy it and give the guys a run for their money. It's hard to fight all those big name studios with billions in legal funding available.

[lumpyporridge]

I purchased clonecd a year or two ago and then got rid of windows for a while , after reinstalling windows i went to get clonecd and found that due to the eu's new laws clonecd had ceased to be , a quick search found zillions of cracked copys on ftps and private sites , now clonecd has been picked up by a company in a country without draconian laws. And well, my point is the more stuff like this is suppressed the more available it becomes. If you want music but not the risk of filesharing ,check out russia ie http://www.allofmp3.com/index2.shtml you can find great deals for all the music you could ever want ,legally and cheap as can be. Does draconain suppression ever work , ehh nope

[RoadClosed]

lol, I was just setting here staring out the window thinking the same thing. I have been around a while, saw battle after battle for protecting VHS tapes, trying to make dual cassette decks illegal, suing kids downloading music, putting people in jail or fining them for stealing cable etc. When will the industry stop trying to catch those few who will break the copy protection schemes anyway. The masses are too lazy to figure it out so I don't get it. When, if ever will it stop? lol, its just ****ing crazy.

[phishphreek]

Thus far, I've never had any issues/problems getting a copy of a DVD.
I just go to the video store and buy it previewed (9.99) or I buy it a new copy. ($15-25).

Just be sure to take good care of your DVDs... and you don't need to make copies.

CDs are a bit different. You listen to CDs everywhere (even less now with todays mp3s and such). But, seriously... DVDs... I watch them at home or maybe a buddies house. I don't need a copy to keep at work, in the car, at my buddies and at my home. I'll listen to a CD over and over. But I might watch a DVD once or twice every couple of months (and thats a bit "extreme" for me). I doubt that you're going to be watching the same DVD over and over that you'd need to have multiple copies.

Because DeCSS is "illegal" then the products that use this technology is also illegal.

If pot is illegal, but I decide to make pot brownies with the pot... those brownies are still "illegal".

Whether or not the original product should be illegal is the real subject at hand.

Instead of finding ways to bypass this... we need to be focusing more on technology that won't hamper your ability to do with it what you want. It IS possible to make DVDs that don't have the copy prevention. Shouldn't we start focusing on how to get manufacturers to produce these without the CSS encryption rather than bypassing it? Its the fair use laws... fight for them! http://www.protectfairuse.org/consum...w_playing.html

But then again... asking that of any manufacturer is like asking them to put a million dollars in your bank account. Its just not going to happen.

Anywho... thats my opinon on the matter.

BTW: Revolution OS is now out on DVD and it is free of the CSS encryption... meaning, copy at will and hand out to all your buddies? Probably not... http://www.revolution-os.com/store1.html

[RoadClosed]

Hey Phish, you bring up some great points. We seem to focus on DVD technology as centered around movies. I use DVDs for everything. My latest version of Technet comes on DVD, I need the ability to have multiple copies available at different sites. I could put them on a server but when the WAN is down that defeats the usefullness. In addition my linux distro is DVD etc...

There are also various albums out in DVD format and I see this as a going trend in the future. you get music encoded in Dolby Digital which sounds absolutely fantastic. Then the DVD realm falls into that of the CD realm, one may wish to make customized albums for personal use. As far as using DVDs at Multiple locations, I own a decent collection of live recordings on DVD, they are fun to play on a computer while working and since I own the original, I would like the privy to make a copy for the laptop.

There are alot of DVDs out there and I am thankful that not everyone employs copy and zone protection. I agree with you, the answer is convincing the industry to abandon practise, except it's not going to happen anytime soon - in fact we are in more danger of someone convincing the government to deploy hardware based measures to prevent it. And once again people will go to expense and time to navigate around the copy protection.

[phishphreek]

RoadClosed: You can't copy the DVDs that come to you (technet and etc)? You mean, they actaully include the CSS code on those too? Here I was thinking that they mostly used the CSS in movies and possibly video games...

I don't have a DVD burner as of yet... I've been looking into getting one, just never got around to it yet.

But, you're right. I was thinking DVDs as in movies... since I don't use them much for anything else... In the other cases you mentioned... you SHOULD be able to back them up just like you SHOULD be able to backup your movies. I'm just surprised to see so many people using CSS for simple stuff like technet or a music dvd?.

[RoadClosed]

I was pointing out that there are more applications to DVD copying than just the latest rented copy of X-men. I used a DVD copy program so I don't know if MS encoded them. I doubt they would. MS has never really approached copy protection on it's software. How many of us admins/techies would have had their asses in a sling if they did?

[KeyserSoze]

Normally I don't respond to posts such as this, since they seem to just degenerate into something not worth posting in the first place, but here I go anway...

Just be sure to take good care of your DVDs... and you don't need to make copies.

Phish, I disagree. There are several reasons why I might need to make fair use copies. I may have kids who oftentimes break things. I might have a lake house, and I don't want to have to remember to tote my collection of dvds along everytime. I might travel a lot and watch them on my laptop. The list could go on for a while, but the point remains the same--I should be the one to judge the why, not the people I have already legally purchased the dvd from.
Now, I agree that we need to be more dilligent in supporting our fair use rights, and not just ripping movies and cds. But what has happened is a court and industry is taking away our ability to exercise those rights you speak of. And, as far as it being illegal, well, that's a fine line. Of course we can't have people running around doing anything they please in the name of personal freedom, but think of all of the things we hold dear today that would not exist without people breaking laws, since they were once illegal themselves: civil rights, the bill of rights, hell, even the country itself.
Not to put dvd copying on the same level as those institutions, but just because a law exists does not make it right.

[nihil]

I think that if companies want to copy protect their stuff they must be prepared to replace damaged ones at a nominal charge, if they expect to get the backing of the law?

I personally have some back ups of CDs I listen to regularly, otherwise I wouldn't bother.

DVDs are a different matter? To get the same quality you generally have to burn them across two disks, certainly with the software I have seen, otherwise you lose quality with the compression.

It is still legal to make personal backups over here, but I really wouldn't think that it is worthwhile with DVDs at present, because of the quality issue? Anyway, I don't watch them that often..............hell we complain enough about repeated programs on the TV

I suggest that the whole issue is what we call "a storm in a teacup"..............professional counterfeiters use professional software and hardware?

just my £0.02