Some of us like me never even bother to download music.

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http://www.brennanmcdonald.com
"Avoid shame - but do not seek glory - nothing as expensive as glory"
Sydney Smith (1771-1845)

I think downloading music is a crime but all i'm really doing is robbing a few $ from the already extremely rich. Anyway didn't a record company recently try to sue about 60 people who were the top downloaded in the U.S. for around $300,000 each (the amount all music added up to i think).

I bet if i looked hard enough i could find a place to download books, i just don't think books are as popular as music so there arn't many places but still some.

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What's this i hear bed? Word has it you and Pam are sleeping together.

9?@?Headless-Pixie";p="23947"]I think downloading music is a crime but all i'm really doing is robbing a few $ from the already extremely rich.[/quote]

Obviously if it were just one person doing it, or just one instance, it wouldn't be a big issue. As far as robbing from the rich, you're talking about the labels, but what about the artists themselves? Only a small percentage of artists on the major labels are actually wealthy. I've been downloaded by the thousands, and believe me I'm not wealthy.

They will never recover that kind of money even if they win every case. The most the RIAA (which represents all the major labels, so the money would be split) will ever see is a couple thousand from each person. Even if they did get $300,000 from 60 people, that's only $18 million - far less than the industry has lost in sales over the last couple of years from downloading. And the artists will never see a penny of that.

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"The basic problems facing the world today are not susceptible to a military solution."

- JFK

shouldn't the record companies consider it free advertising? i mean, how else are you going to hear some of these artists?

My friend that's like saying "...well, I just swiped this Snickers bar because I'd never tried one before and I wanted to see how they tasted - Free Advertising For YOU!!!" ... or, "officer, I took this 911 Turbo off the lot cuz I wantd to check out how they handle around corners - Free Advertising For YOU!!!"

As I mentioned above, practically ALL artists have free samples of their tracks on their websites.

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"The basic problems facing the world today are not susceptible to a military solution."

- JFK

actually...all artists don't. I see your logic. but, never-the-less. i want to hear more than one song before I start throwing down 20 bucks for a CD. So i will continue to download. if I like it...THEN...I will buy the CD. I got real tired of hearing a song I liked , dropping 20, and finding out it didn't work as an album, or that that song was the ONLY song that sounded like that, or that that song was the only good song. That, to me, is ri[pping off consumers.


what protects us from terrible music?

I understand your point about shelling out $18 for a CD based on 1 good song, and then the rest of the CD ends up sucking. But how often does that REALLY happen, and are you just using that as a convenient excuse for downloading? There's a certain degree of unknown with most things you spend money on as a consumer - a meal at a restaurant for example...do you get to sample every dish to see if you'll like it before you order it? Sometimes you have to rely on the reputation, word of mouth, or your prior experience with the restaurant...or the band, before you shell out your 18 bucks.

It just sounds to me like people are using this as a convenient excuse to get free music. So what happens when you download a track and you don't like it... do you really get rid of it? I'd be curious to know exactly how many FREE downloads you've actually deleted because they sucked. Is it the same ratio as the songs you've disliked on CD's you've bought? You still got a free track, whether you liked the song or not, so are you really just "sampling" to see whether to buy the CD? And anyway, why WOULD you buy the CD if you already have the tracks?

Bottom line is of course you can continue to download free music as long as it's an option. If you can convince yourself that it's right, and you feel good about doing it, then by all means you should keep doing it. If you really think that getting an artists' product for free will be conducive to their ability to continue to survive and provide good music in the long run, then you should keep doing it. If not, then I think iTunes, eMusic, Rhapsody, and all the other legal download sources are a good way to cut down on the risks.

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"The basic problems facing the world today are not susceptible to a military solution."

- JFK

Nowadays I get a lot of my music online, mostly in mp3 form now. There are now a good amount of legal download sites, I'm on emusic.com, I've found a ton of gems on there, and for a flat monthly rate you get a good amount of downloads.

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Hooo Hoooooooo

A conversation about Radiohead came up and this guy says, "Oh! I love Radioland, my favorite band! I downloaded all their albums for free."

If you really like a band, you ought to buy their albums and support them so that they can continue to make albums.

I have some music I didn't pay for (burnt cds), but I don't make a habit of downloading free music.

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LET ME SEE YOUR WAR FACE!!!

yeah but it would be good for everyone if record company release like 30% of some artist's new album for free downloading and those who like it will definitely go and buy the whole album...