Just a Question...

Hey, I came to this site and liked the help I could get here (I had a bad trojan). Now that I have gotten computer problems staightened out and what not I just had a question about downloading music by way of something like limewire. Is it just too risky to even consider? Also, sorry if I'm asking this in the wrong area, but seeing how it doesn't pertain to any problems I thought I would pose it here. Thanks again for all the help your site provides

 

It's a question of legality more than risk.

 

It depends on where you live. If you reside in the US it's illegal to download copyrighted music, movies, or other programs without purchasing them. There are several sites that offer music downloads for purchase. iTunes is one that I'm most familiar with, but there are others.

If you reside in Canada, downloading music is legal. Canadians currently pay some sort of tax on blank media that goes to the music industry. They are, however, prohibited from uploading music, but can download as much as they desire.

When in doubt, don't do it. Limewire, Kazaa, and other P2P software are often riddled with adware and other things that you may not want on your computer. If you choose to use these programs you must make sure your virus tables are always up to date.

I shy away from P2P software for various reasons. What you do is your decision and your business. If you're downloading music and you live in the US, you're running the risk of catching the eye of RIAA and being the reciepeint of civil lawsuit. Let your conscience be your guide.

 

Following up with Swatshark...I couldn't have said it better myself!!!!

I, personally...strongly recommend AGAINST the free download stuff!!

Roger

 

Agreed! Most P2P apps come with junk that you don't want. There are a few that claim to be "safe" and free from spyware/adware and other bundeled crap, but I still wouldn't trust them. Besides, when sharing P2P, you really have know way of ensuring that what the other user is sharing is not a virus or something else that you really don't want.

Since the original question was not about legality, but rather safety (I'm assuming safety of his PC) I'm going to suggest, without getting specific, file sharing by means of sharing and downloading parts of a file. You don't actually download a complete file from one user-start to finish, but rather peices of a file in non-liear fashion from mulitple users. It is WAY safer since the users and files themselves have a rating system. It's a bit more difficult to track since it's relatively new (although some chinese dude is serving three months for it). There is a name for this method of file sharing, but I'm not going to say it. Just know that it's not complicated, and there are plenty of sites out there that give good tutorials and recommend the best client software (which is neccessary). Keep in mind, some of the client apps come bundled with junk, so be cautious.

Before anyone gets on my case, I look at questions regarding (illegal) file sharing kinda like a teenager asking about sex. I'm not going to promote it, but you got to assume that they're going to do it anyway. So why not educate them on the safest way to do it, right? It's like the debate- "should condoms be distributed in High Schools"?

Anyway, safe downloading! And don't download like three movies a day. Your ISP will get suspicious if you use more bandwidth that all of their other customers combined. Oh yeah, and don't do it at work!


-Steve