One of the first log magazines: “Pirate” for 1989
The topic of piracy is one of the most talked about in the whole world. Today I want to introduce you to a pirated magazine, which was published in 1989 on one of the largest BBS ca US, located in Chicago. The same city where Al Capone used to trade in illegal alcohol. Such people were called bootleggers. That is how the sysops of this pirated BBS-ki called pirates who act for profit. Nowadays, all pirates are simply called pirates, regardless of whether they earn a lot of money on their illegal business, or vice versa, free of charge, like Robin Hoods, posting releases on the network, spending their time and money on it. It is hard for many today to believe that someone can do something for free, but at that time there was a clear line between "real" pirates and those who did it for money.
All issues of the magazine are kept in original here .
It was interesting for me to read about how the same topics that we are arguing about today were spoken by the pirates themselves 24 years ago. Freebies, theft, ethics and freedom of information - as if there wasn’t a quarter of a century between us. By the way, taking this opportunity, I want to note that the authors of the magazine call the program “information” not because they think it is just “zeros and ones”, but in contrast to material things. In English, for this concept there is a very appropriate word - intangible. These people knew firsthand that programs were not just information, but the result of creative work, because at that time only a few enthusiastic users were network users: programmers, or people who were very close to computers.
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The first issue of the journal is opened by an article, the translation of which I cite in full:
Who are the pirates?
Computer piracy is the copying and distribution of copyrighted software (warez). Pirates are people whose hobby is to collect and play with such programs. Most of them like to collect warez, make it work, and then store (archive).
Pirates are not bootleggers . Comparing pirates with bootleggers is the same as comparing a car enthusiast to an automaker. Bootleggers are people who sell stolen goods for their own enrichment. Bootleggers are thieves. Pirates are not thieves, and most pirates consider bootleggers to be a lower form of life, worse than pedophiles.
Pirates share varez with each other to learn, share information, and just for fun! But to be a pirate is not just sharing a warez. This hobby and lifestyle. Your colleague or classmate who brought you a floppy disk with a pair of files is no more pirate than your friend who gave you the latest Depeche Mode album. A real pirate belongs to a group of people who share his interest in varesa. Usually this is done through BBS-ki, and the main rule is there: “to get something, you have to give something.” Pirates are not freeloaders , and only lamers can think that they will get everything for free.
The latest issue of the Chicago Tribune (March 25) states that manufacturers estimate the damage from software piracy at $ 4 billion a year. This is of course absurd. Companies rarely engage in piracy, it is unprofitable for them, because if it is found, they may have problems. And private individuals would hardly spend several thousand dollars a year on wares, which they don’t really need, and there is evidence that pirates spend more money on the purchase of software. In fact, pirates are probably one of the best forms of advertising for quality products, because they provide an opportunity to evaluate a program before buying it. Most of us buy programs because of documentation and support, so why spend money on 4-5 similar programs just because you don't know which one is better for you?
Maybe piracy is unethical? It is considered illegal, although in most states the law leaves a gray area between backup and use. But is it ethical? We believe so. We doubt that pirates cause any damage to manufacturers in the form of lost profits, and insist that they make free advertising for products. An ordinary person does not have a heap of bucks to buy both Dbase-4 and Foxbase, and he will easily manage without both if he were forced to buy. But, testing both systems, we can tell those who WILL buy which one is better. We spread computer literacy, fostering development, and support the market. Pirates do no harm to anyone, do not steal money from anyone’s pocket, and bring much more value to the computer industry than they want to admit.
And how many of us pay huge telephone bills for the intercity? The guys from the telecoms should just adore us. No, pirates - do not be mean. The pleasure of finding someone rare, the exciting task of hacking the program, the excitement of the race, who will be the first to post the latest version is the beauty of piracy. We are collectors of information. Unlike those who prefer to leave knowledge to a handful of favorites, we make them available to the masses.
So who is a pirate? A pirate is someone who believes that information belongs to people. Just as a book can be scanned or placed in a library for general access, pirates provide something like a library. Experienced pirates even act as teachers for those who could be buyers. We do not imagine ourselves as free computer consultants, and we would never allow ourselves to even think about taking money for our services. By maintaining a network of information exchange, we increase computer literacy, which is only good for all.
The software industry is unlikely to ever approve (or even recognize) the contribution of pirates to their activities, and will continue to consider us "enemies!" Pirates have no representatives in the legislature and the electorate to refute this misinformation. PIRATE magazine should unite us and break the propaganda of the media representing us as thieves and outcasts. By ensuring the free flow of information, and not under the control of a privileged minority, we serve democracy and a free market.
Pirates - freedom fighters, defending their dream!
Pirates are not bootleggers . Comparing pirates with bootleggers is the same as comparing a car enthusiast to an automaker. Bootleggers are people who sell stolen goods for their own enrichment. Bootleggers are thieves. Pirates are not thieves, and most pirates consider bootleggers to be a lower form of life, worse than pedophiles.
Pirates share varez with each other to learn, share information, and just for fun! But to be a pirate is not just sharing a warez. This hobby and lifestyle. Your colleague or classmate who brought you a floppy disk with a pair of files is no more pirate than your friend who gave you the latest Depeche Mode album. A real pirate belongs to a group of people who share his interest in varesa. Usually this is done through BBS-ki, and the main rule is there: “to get something, you have to give something.” Pirates are not freeloaders , and only lamers can think that they will get everything for free.
The latest issue of the Chicago Tribune (March 25) states that manufacturers estimate the damage from software piracy at $ 4 billion a year. This is of course absurd. Companies rarely engage in piracy, it is unprofitable for them, because if it is found, they may have problems. And private individuals would hardly spend several thousand dollars a year on wares, which they don’t really need, and there is evidence that pirates spend more money on the purchase of software. In fact, pirates are probably one of the best forms of advertising for quality products, because they provide an opportunity to evaluate a program before buying it. Most of us buy programs because of documentation and support, so why spend money on 4-5 similar programs just because you don't know which one is better for you?
Maybe piracy is unethical? It is considered illegal, although in most states the law leaves a gray area between backup and use. But is it ethical? We believe so. We doubt that pirates cause any damage to manufacturers in the form of lost profits, and insist that they make free advertising for products. An ordinary person does not have a heap of bucks to buy both Dbase-4 and Foxbase, and he will easily manage without both if he were forced to buy. But, testing both systems, we can tell those who WILL buy which one is better. We spread computer literacy, fostering development, and support the market. Pirates do no harm to anyone, do not steal money from anyone’s pocket, and bring much more value to the computer industry than they want to admit.
And how many of us pay huge telephone bills for the intercity? The guys from the telecoms should just adore us. No, pirates - do not be mean. The pleasure of finding someone rare, the exciting task of hacking the program, the excitement of the race, who will be the first to post the latest version is the beauty of piracy. We are collectors of information. Unlike those who prefer to leave knowledge to a handful of favorites, we make them available to the masses.
So who is a pirate? A pirate is someone who believes that information belongs to people. Just as a book can be scanned or placed in a library for general access, pirates provide something like a library. Experienced pirates even act as teachers for those who could be buyers. We do not imagine ourselves as free computer consultants, and we would never allow ourselves to even think about taking money for our services. By maintaining a network of information exchange, we increase computer literacy, which is only good for all.
The software industry is unlikely to ever approve (or even recognize) the contribution of pirates to their activities, and will continue to consider us "enemies!" Pirates have no representatives in the legislature and the electorate to refute this misinformation. PIRATE magazine should unite us and break the propaganda of the media representing us as thieves and outcasts. By ensuring the free flow of information, and not under the control of a privileged minority, we serve democracy and a free market.
Pirates - freedom fighters, defending their dream!
This is followed by brief tips for users, a list of the largest BBS and the “sysop corner”, where it is reported that starting next week, connections from 1200 baud modems will no longer be accepted, and users are advised not to waste time and buy a newer modem. 2400 is also small, but this is standard, so 2400 will be supported for now.
The next section contains the full text of Richard Stallman’s speech at the University of Texas in 1987 titled “Why the ownership of programs is harmful to society.” At that time, copyright was a little-known phenomenon for computer enthusiasts, so the issue also contained a huge article about copyright in the United States, written by a lawyer, explaining in detail what it is and what dangers the pirates may face in this regard.
The second issue (September 1989) covers such important topics as:
- The world of piracy is no longer the same;
- Viruses. This new danger is becoming more real. There are already 29 species on the list of PC viruses known at the time;
- Invalid resource blocking.
In this latest story, not sites like today are blocked, but phone calls of modems! It turned out that after the group of phreakers got into the habit of making long distance calls to different BBS stations, one telephone campaign simply blocked all its subscribers from calling all of these numbers. As a result, ordinary users could not reach the legal BBS.
It was the earliest pirate (varezny) magazine that I was able to detect. A variety of publications distributed over the network, were produced from that time until the mid-2000s, when, due to the activity of the FBI, they apparently went deep underground. If the community is interested, I will continue to publish such materials.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/193074/
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