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Thread: Morality of "cracked" executables

  1. #1
    jim
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    Morality of "cracked" executables

    Piracy has been discussed in a heck of a lot of threads, so I'm not trying to do the same again here. I'm more interested in the executables themselves.

    I bought GTA: San Andreas from Steam a while back, and it emerges that the Steam version is "patched" to version 3.0. Version 3.0 removes, believe it or not, support for 1920x1080. If you want to play in native resolution on the Steam version, the only method detailed on the Steam forums is to download a crack exe cut able for an earlier version of the game.

    And after some research, there appears absolutely no other method.

    So my first question is, why on earth has it been done? Seems insane to encourage paying customers to go and find cracks.

    Secondly, and perhaps more interestingly, what's your opinion on the morality of it? On the one hand, you bought the games "as-is", so you should just go out and get another version if that's what you want. On the other hand, it has been (as far as I can see) deliberately hobbled, and Steam being steam, there are no refunds. So you either accept your money has gone down the drain, accept an inferior product, or use an "illegal workaround".

    Thoughts?
    Last edited by jim; 20-05-2011 at 01:39 PM.

  2. #2
    jim
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    Re: Morality of "cracked" executables

    hold up, just building the first post line by line

    EDIT: Finished now
    Last edited by jim; 20-05-2011 at 01:45 PM.

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    Headless Chicken Terbinator's Avatar
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    Re: Morality of "cracked" executables

    Is it illegal to use the workaround, even if the workaround itself may be illegal or against the EULA?
    Kalniel: "Nice review Tarinder - would it be possible to get a picture of the case when the components are installed (with the side off obviously)?"
    CAT-THE-FIFTH: "The Antec 300 is a case which has an understated and clean appearance which many people like. Not everyone is into e-peen looking computers which look like a cross between the imagination of a hyperactive 10 year old and a Frog."
    TKPeters: "Off to AVForum better Deal - £20+Vat for Free Shipping @ Scan"
    for all intents it seems to be the same card minus some gays name on it and a shielded cover ? with OEM added to it - GoNz0.

  4. #4
    Banhammer in peace PeterB kalniel's Avatar
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    Re: Morality of "cracked" executables

    Quote Originally Posted by Terbinator View Post
    Is it illegal to use the workaround, even if the workaround itself may be illegal or against the EULA?
    Yes. Downloading (copying) a copyright file without permission from the copyright owner is illegal, regardless of how modified it is.

    As for morality, no - you buy the inferior product so you should use the inferior product. Buying Windows Home doesn't give you the privilege to use Windows Professional. If the product isn't as advertised then you pursue correct action through the legal system and sales of goods act etc., you don't take rectifying action into your own hands.

  5. #5
    jim
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    Re: Morality of "cracked" executables

    Right, but we all know that there is no such thing as correct action, since Steam is on a par with Roland Freisler.

  6. #6
    Banhammer in peace PeterB kalniel's Avatar
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    Re: Morality of "cracked" executables

    Quote Originally Posted by snootyjim View Post
    Right, but we all know that there is no such thing as correct action, since Steam is on a par with Roland Freisler.
    Then if you don't want an inferior product you don't buy the steam version.

    Is there not some ini file you can modify (legally)?

  7. #7
    jim
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    Re: Morality of "cracked" executables

    Quote Originally Posted by kalniel View Post
    Then if you don't want an inferior product you don't buy the steam version.

    Is there not some ini file you can modify (legally)?
    Unbelievably, no there isn't. Not from the copious research I did, at least.

    Thing is, I had no idea the Steam version was hobbled. If v1.0 and the various patches worked fine when I had it on disc, I would hardly expect the v3.0 on Steam to be broken!

    Perhaps you could accuse me of shoddy research, but I don't expect things to get worse with release of new patches.

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    WEEEEEEEEEEEEE! MadduckUK's Avatar
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    Re: Morality of "cracked" executables

    no hesitation.
    Quote Originally Posted by Ephesians
    Do not be drunk with wine, which will ruin you, but be filled with the Spirit
    Vodka

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    Oh Crumbs.... Biscuit's Avatar
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    Re: Morality of "cracked" executables

    Quote Originally Posted by kalniel View Post
    Yes. Downloading (copying) a copyright file without permission from the copyright owner is illegal, regardless of how modified it is.

    As for morality, no - you buy the inferior product so you should use the inferior product. Buying Windows Home doesn't give you the privilege to use Windows Professional. If the product isn't as advertised then you pursue correct action through the legal system and sales of goods act etc., you don't take rectifying action into your own hands.
    Correct me if im wrong but the steam version isnt an inferior version, it just automatically updates to the latest patch without a way of back tracking?

    Your point on morality still feel heavily tainted by legal belief, given the circumstances (the crack/patch is being used to allow the game to be played as it was originally designed, not to give the player an unfair advantage or to be played without purchase) personally i think morally there is no shame whatsoever in using a crack or patch.

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    ɯʎɔɐɹsɐʌʍ mycarsavw's Avatar
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    Re: Morality of "cracked" executables

    Sort of related to having to resort to cracked .exe just to play a game properly

    (NSFW - some fruity language)

    How anti-piracy screws over people who buy PC Games
    |Kata: "Read title as 'fisting'. Not sure why I clicked. Relieved, really."|
    |TAKTAK: "It was so small that mine wouldn't fit into it"|

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    Re: Morality of "cracked" executables

    Well, define what's "moral"? Philosophers have been arguing about the finer points of that for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. So this could be a long thread.

    Having said that, I'll take a stab at it.

    Forgetting legality, my attitude is that if I paid for it, and I'm not using it in a way that disadvantages the copyright owner, then I feel morally justified in a cracked exe. For instance, if I have a game I bought, and it insists on doing a CD check, then I've been known to use a crack to bypass that, not because I couldn't fulfil it but because it's a pain to keep loading the CD.

    Another example would be format conversion. Again, assume I bought the CD. If the rights holder expects me to buy another one to keep in the car, he's living in cloud-cuckoo land. So, in the past, I've copied CDs for the car CD auto-changer. These days, it's format conversion to MP3 for loading into the car. Having bought the CD, I see no moral need to pay again for an MP3 for the car. After all, if I'm in the car listening, I'm not at home using the CD. And for purists, nobody else is using the CD either, since there's no kids at home and the wife has her own CD collection.

    One reason I won't out CDs in the car is I've had a few trashed by bouncing about in car players. Another is that if you've got 100 CDs in the car, and they get nicked, it could cost up to about £1500 to replace them. Good luck getting that covered on insurance.

    Morally, I see nothing wrong with downloading a few tracks, and listening to them before deciding whether to buy the album or not. I've done that a few times, too. Usually I end up buying albums I otherwise might not. Legally, of course, it's not allowed, but in practice, it is going to happen and companies stand as much chance of totally eliminating that as they do of bypassing gravity. In fact, thinking about it, I'd bet on scientists bypassing gravity before they totally prevent downloading.

    And, morally, I feel that many of these issues are ones that are only still illegal because the law hasn't caught up with changes in technology, or in modern lifestyles. There have, however (several years ago) been proposals (and I mena serious government-sponsored reports) that have suggested amendments that modify the law in these areas of copyright to bring it into the 21st Century. Sadly, in the rush to get the Digital Millennium Act (I think it that's what it was called) through Parliament in the wash-up before the last election, a golden opportunity to address some of these issues, like format-shifting, was missed.

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    Ride the lightning Marenghi's Avatar
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    Re: Morality of "cracked" executables

    there is a 'hack' available to get your game to the right resolution without using a cracked exe here

  13. #13
    jim
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    Re: Morality of "cracked" executables

    Correct me if I'm wrong, but that's just a camera hack to fix the FOV in the available widescreen resolutions. The third post says "Widescreen resolutions are available in the display setup" - my problem is that they don't in version 3.0 - or at least, not as high as 1920x1080.

    In this one there is no way of selecting a 1920x1080 resolution, so FOV never even gets into the equation.

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    Re: Morality of "cracked" executables

    oh sorry, i read in the first post about being able to change the aspect ratio to 16:10 and assumed that from there you could select the res you're after but i guess that doesn't really help if they removed support for that res!

  15. #15
    Senior Member Andy3536's Avatar
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    Re: Morality of "cracked" executables

    I don't see a problem tbh. It's for games pruducers to suply a working game, if they can't do that you can look for a crack or try and get your money back. And when it comes to PC software the latter can be a pain.
    For the most part i've used fixed exe files where games wouldn't launch. I have no problem using a cracked exe for that.

    Although i've not used one for a while and none of the games i have installed now are using one, i don't know if games are getting better in that regard or i just don't own them. But it may also be explained that more and more games seem to require the use of steam now?? But if i encountered the same issue in the future wouldn't think twice about using them. I think UBI released an illegaly made exe as a official patch a while ago but i forget which game for, so even producers like them

  16. #16
    hexus.zombeh! format's Avatar
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    Re: Morality of "cracked" executables

    Personally I see no problem with that at all. No one is being disadvantaged by your actions.
    ~'Armaments, universal debt, and planned obsolescence--those are the three pillars of Western prosperity'~ Aldous Huxley




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