Buying vs Downloading for free, what's your stance? Options

[queen]

are you the type who downloads all your stuff or do you actually go buy and support the industries?

i'm annoyed with people telling me i'm stupid for actually buying my softwares, movies, games, and CDs. i'm sorry that i like having legit collections and the feeling of accomplishment when i buy something i've worked hard to save money for.

edit: if it's your thing to download, it's not my problem; i just really dislike it when people get on my case for not wanting to.

[queen]

i notice no one is talking specifically about games, which is what i originally had in mind. i just added everything else 'cause most of the things that are downloaded are music and software.

i understand many of what you guys have stated, about software (ie adobe or microsoft) being ridiculously expensive. morally, i have no issue with students downloading these things for free because the companies get their money through institutions/schools and businesses that eventually enable some people to get it for free anyway. however, when someone is specifically pursuing a field in let's say, graphic design or photography, that person def. should invest the money to obtain said software.

music is a whole 'nother realm. p2p filesharing and torrents aside, sites nowadays enable us to stream music for free, and most forums/web communities even upload entire albums for others to freely download. one wouldn't even have to try that hard to obtain music. however, there are legit ways of downloading music (ie itunes), so there's no excuse to not buy except that people simply don't want to pay. international/foreign music was brought up, and it's hard to find certain music in your local record store, but one can order via the artists' websites or from a store that specifically imports this type of music.

i've been through my downloading stage (circa napster/kazaa era), and i think it's just totally different when you actually posses the tangible album in your hands. i know that not everyone is like this, but i personally don't feel the need to download music if i don't deem it worthy for me to buy. i'm not one to download albums at a time, but i recognize there are people who download anything and everything, and thus would have a hard time buying all those cds.

i think the movie industry is still pretty strong, as i know many people who actually do go out to theatres, buy dvds/blu rays, and who rent rather than download.

anyway, for the issue that really gets on my nerves: games. i'm not talking about downloading one or two games; i'm specifically annoyed with 'gamers' who download all their games freely and have the audacity to call me a dumbass. excuse my bitterness, but i get this kind of heat from people in clubs at school and even close friends. frankly, it really does anger me, since these same people are the ones who complain about gameplay or 'standards'.

[Just_Dream]

i think the movie industry is still pretty strong, as i know many people who actually do go out to theatres, buy dvds/blu rays, and who rent rather than download.

anyway, for the issue that really gets on my nerves: games. i'm not talking about downloading one or two games; i'm specifically annoyed with 'gamers' who download all their games freely and have the audacity to call me a dumbass. excuse my bitterness, but i get this kind of heat from people in clubs at school and even close friends. frankly, it really does anger me, since these same people are the ones who complain about gameplay or 'standards'.

Yea I still pay for movies, and even support blockbuster, since I signed up for the total access package (before they changed it, so I still have a decently priced package). I do get discounted tickets for movies since I buy them through my college box office, so it's still supporting the movie industry.

As for video games, I will admit that I've gotten my boyfriend to download a game for my DS, but even so, like I said, I still did buy Pokemon Diamond and Pearl for both of us. I like the DS, but I guess the only game that I truly really like from it are: Cooking Mama and Pokemon. I still stand by my purchase, even though my friends told me I could just download it. The idea of actually having it, plus the free stylus was more than enough to sway me.

And I don't really play video games in general, but I do think people should PAY for them. I mean, if it's a really good game, why not buy it? I even support my boyfriend's gaming enough to buy a few games for him. I mean, I do think video games are pricey, but if he wants to buy it, it's his choice. I totally respect that because in order for the gaming industry to create better and more awesome games, funding is needed and it is a full time job for many.

On another note, for manga, I do still buy manga, but I know I've had to resort to scanlations since they're often ahead of what is published. I will buy the rest of the volumes once it's finally completely licensed in America (still waiting).