38

A person just bought a 3000€ workstation and asked me to install cracked versions of Office, AutoCAD, full Adobe suite and Rhino with plugins. And he's going to use them at work to make money.

So, since I have to, I installed 2-3 years old versions of each, in English (he only knows Italian) and blocked all the connections so he can't receive any update/fix or use web related functionalities. I also disabled all autostarting components and contextual menu / OS integrations (although this can be seen as a plus).

When he's calling me asking to "fix" things, I will simply say "sorry, it's the only way for the crack to work, if you want everything you'd better pay for a license or else go open source".

Why can't people understand the value of the complex software they use? Just because it's not a material thing doesn't mean it's not a steal

Comments
  • 10
    I think he does. But he knows he can get away with it.
  • 2
  • 2
    And a copy of office is what? €99?
  • 0
    I would like to get an update when he'll get audited and fined for using cracked software at work.
  • 0
    @RenoX why would you say that?
  • 5
    @RenoX That's not a valid argument.
    They made something, they spent time and money making it. They can sell it if they want to.

    It's always wrong to steal. No matter who you steal from.
  • 1
    @Konsole to act in your own self interest and against that which seeks to harm you is a pretty valid argument.
    nothing wrong with stealing from them.
  • 2
    @RenoX And how did they harm you exactly?
  • 0
    @Konsole there are many ways they subtly (and sometimes not so subtly) harm their users. i suppose a few cases are where they datamine their users, log their keystrokes, purposfully make certain things bloated and complicated to kill competition etc.
  • 3
    @RenoX And nothing is stopping you from not using their products. There are plenty of other options as good as and some even better
  • 0
    @Konsole so yes, stealing from them is ok.
  • 3
    @RenoX No it's not. You disagree with them, go your way. No one's forcing you to do anything.

    Stealing is not acceptable.
  • 0
    @Konsole hurting the ones that hurt you is ok.
  • 1
    @RenoX uh u know technically devRant is paid for by Adobe...
  • 0
    @billgates oh, i thought devrant was an independent platform :^/
  • 1
    @RenoX And please elaborate on how MS hurt you....

    I am sure it's pretty stupid.
  • 2
    I even paid for fucking WinRAR although I did have the Nokia key from the internet.
  • 1
    @Fast-Nop Well paying for WinRar is a bit too much.... But okay 🤣
  • 0
    @RenoX if you think some big company is hurting you, the best thing to do is to avoid their products. Cracking them doesn't stop you from being harmed.

    But if you appreciate their software and use it in your job you should consider buying it, as if you bought a pc, a car or any other tool you use to make money in your life. As a developer you wouldn't want someone to steal your product, would you?

    Stealing is a crime, no matter what your reasons are. And the fact that stealing software is easier doesn't make it less of a crime.
  • 1
    @RenoX Oh it is independent (I think). But at least one of the developers works for Adobe.
  • 3
    @michezio actually, you are also a criminal from a legal point of view because you installed the cracked versions for him.

    Preaching water and drinking wine, eh?
  • 2
    Seems like you dont like conflict and you probably are a lot more like him than you think.

    Aren't stealing and dishonesty friends?
  • 0
    @Fast-Nop yeah, but people pay me for that. And they are going to do that anyway, so better me than someone else. But I'm just downloading and installing for them, every software I use for myself is either bought or open source 🤷🏻‍♂️
  • 1
    @michezio So you're even doing illegal business. It gets better and better with the hypocrisy.
  • 0
    Its not worth stealing, the pricing model these days is an operating cost by way of a small monthly fee and not the thousands you used to have to fork up back in the day. Not to mention expenses reduce any legitimate businesses tax bill
  • 1
    @Fast-Nop oops, it's not going how I expected... Better get out of here 🏃🏻
  • 1
    Reminds me of guys who use cracked audio software and then complain about people pirating mp3's...
  • 1
    @thatDude @Fast-Nop @Santaclauze Anyway, just to be clear, I work as a technician in a shop and I'm required to do so if the customer asks for it. If it was for me I would completely avoid the hassle to find cracks and things, but that's how they told me to do and I need money to finish my studies so that's how it goes.

    I wouldn't have posted this rant if it wasn't my real thought. I'm not an hypocrite, I pay all the apps I use, I have academic licenses that I use and when I don't have I use open source alternatives or pay at least the basic license. But unfortunately I also have to pay my taxes, and this is the only job I found that gives me time to study and is near home so I don't waste it commuting.
  • 2
    @michezio you are never required to do things on your job that are flat out illegal. Law always beats customer request. What you are required to do is informing the customer that his request is not legally possible.

    Unless you work for the mafia of course and would face shoes by Concretti.
  • 1
    @Fast-Nop I completely agree, and I think my boss does too. But unfortunately we are a small shop, and e-commerce is destroying our businesses. We can't sell things at lower prices so the only way to make customers chose us is to offer these kind of "services". If we refuse to install cracked products when they ask for them they would simply go somewhere else. But I can assure you that we also sell licenses when we can (antivirus mostly, people seem to not trust a cracked antivirus)
  • 3
    @michezio Yeah I see the issue. However, what this means is simply that the business has no economic basis in the way it is set up now.

    Once you get law enforcement after you, the whole thing will become a lot more complicated even on a personal level. With prison and shit. No judge will believe you that you weren't fully aware of what you were doing, regretting it or not.

    You're just one disgruntled customer or ex-employee away from that scenario. Or an ex-girlfriend/wife grumpy on anyone involved, which is a really common case.
  • 1
    @Fast-Nop I know, but it's unlikely to happen. Everyone has at least a cracked software in their computer or smartphone, I guess you too and even the judge itself, so we are criminals all the same. Also there is no actual proof that we were the ones who did the dirty job, we take our precautions, so I guess someone's word against ours would be meaningless with no evidence.

    But yeah, it sucks anyway.
  • 0
    Adobe’s monthly plans are fucking ridiculous... if there was a better option I’d take it but there’s not. I resent paying so much every month for software
  • 1
    @michezio I know quite some people who find it strange that I pay for the software I use, it is quite common to use cracked versions here... I stick to it out of respect to my fellow developers. I believe more people should do this, especially devs. That being said, respect for defending your position instead of chickening out at the first sign of resistance.
  • 1
    @michezio context does help. Good on you and fuck that dude. Studies are more important :)
  • 0
    @michezio call the Guardia di Finanza and leave a anonymous tipp that he is doing business illegally.
  • 2
    @michezio In court, there is a huge difference between someone having illegal copies on his own PC, and someone who installs illegal copies on a lot of PCs for a lot of people, and then even commercially.

    You'd be fucked so royally that a truck could make a U-turn in your ass without even slowing down.
  • 2
    @Fast-Nop indeed. But there's no way they could prove that we installed those software and not themselves. I understand what you say, and I completely agree, but I can't change things for the moment 🤷🏻‍♂️
  • 1
    @Jilano Office 365 is €10/month for a 5 machine license.
    There's no excuse to pirate if you're making money...
  • 0
    @kwilliams it's never about excuses. It's about opportunity.
Add Comment