Pirated / Burned / Copied Software, Why you should not buy it.

If you look for software on Ebay I am sure you have seen people selling pirated software for about a 3rd of the cost of retail. Sometimes they are Honest.......... Ha! lets say that some sellers don't lie as much as others do. Some will straight up say in the item description that it is a back up copy. Some will also say that it is a full functional version but cant be registered. Others will make it look like a legit software program but after you pay for it they tell you that it is a copy and it cant be registered. The real low life's do not say anything and sell 50 copies of the illegal software in a week and then as buyers (some do not know any better and some know exactly what they are buying), The ones that do not know better get there software and realize that its bunk and go to Ebay to complain only to find out that Ebay has already exiled the thief.  Aside from the obvious reasons not to buy pirated software, this is the main reason not to buy illegal software. You might be spending a 3rd of retail, but you are getting far less than what you are paying for. I figure that most people buying pirated software are not the sharpest knives in the drawer. So what happens is that seller sells multiple copies of a software program. The buyer is all jacked up because he got over on the "Man" by scoring the software at a 3rd or less off the retail price. Now we know that someone knowingly purchasing pirated software is pretty much the greedy type. The seller tells you not to register it. Why? Because seller already registered it in his name. Most software companies these days are doing everything they can to stop piracy. Let's say that if 10 out of 50 buyers of the same illegal software decide to try and register the product this will raise all kind of red flags with the software company. The first thing that will happen is The original Foolio that registered the software and registered it, then sold copies of it, Will have his account suspended, and then the company's that can will void the license number. If you didn't use your license number yet you will get locked out. Last but not least if you are running Windows XP or Vista, With all the updates they are doing all the time, Some updates are bound to screw up the Software. That's it for the illegal software, you either remove the updates on XP or Vista or you do not use your illegal copy of you bargain software.

In closing one of the reasons why software costs so much is because of the piracy. If you want the same Full versions of pretty much any software I suggest the Academic version of the software you want. The only requirements are that you are Clergy/ Non-profit, Teacher or Student. I am pretty sure that All active students K thru College qualify. If you have kids in school you qualify for Academic discounts and if you look in the right places even on Ebay you can find Academic software for not much more than the illegal stuff. For example I was looking to buy Propellerhead's Reason 3. I had no idea about the Academic discount. The retail on Reason 3 is $399.99 and you can probably find it for around $349.99 on Ebay give or take $10 or $20. I found the same version as the retail only it was the Academic version for $199.99. Needless to say I jumped on it and it is the exact same software as the $399.99 retail version.

I hope this guide will help some of you out, if you have read this far then I think I at least got your attention for a few minutes and I thank you for taking the time to read this guide.                                                

If you notice anything I left out or a mistake please contact me and let me know and I will fix it.

BUY SAFE!

Northbay707