Downloading good or bad?
 

When I think about downloading anything I look at it differently. With freeware and such I dont think twice, unless it s avirus or something, but with media I just figure if IM NOT GOING TO BUY IT ANYWAY then whatever, I wont pass it on to others though. I'll download out of print stuff also but lately I havent downloaded all that much really.

i download everything to hear stuff, keep out of print or stuff that's not available on cd (like digital releases, vinyl, tapes, etc)

i hear stuff that's official, check it out, if i love it, i put it on my shopping list, sometimes i burn it to listen in the meantime

if i really love something, i try to make an effort to get the real deal, the package as it is, and if it's available on vinyl the better. i love the thrill of getting a brand new physical piece of music that i can't really change it

of course, i'm not judging, i download a shitload, just my point of view

Yeah. I've downloaded alot of cds but I try to buy them too. Just today I bought Cat Power-Moon Pix, Sufjan-Illinoise, ATDI-ROC and some other stuff just because I loved it so much. My ratio of real cds to burned ones is about 3:1.

I download albums and buy vinyl. So bands are only gonna make money off of me if they still sell vinyl.

I'm not a vinyl snob, I just prefer it, it is more convenient for me. Easier to organize, harder to lose, and leaving them on a dusty table is not going to kill them.

Ive lost so many cd cases ovr the past two years.

me too, i love vinyl even if most of the time i can't listen to it. i think of vinyl more like the art pieces, i love them

cds have their things too, but vinyl is vinyl

which last longer?
I know cds can last a century in some cases. (so ive read)

vinyl does have more wear and tear, and you can't expect a vinyl that's played constantly to last a lot. but the occasional spin is ok and given good storage and temperature they can last you decades...

...just look at how much vintage vinyl is still available; i've bought vinyl that's easily 20-25 years old and it's still playable. my mom has older stuff in mint conditions

I download a track off an album that looks good, but I don't know anything about the artist, etc. to see if I like it/to get into the artist more. I'll only download whole albums if there's no way I can buy it in person or if it's out of print, and I put it to my mp3 player if I bought the cd myself or for the same reasons above.

I download any freeware.

I have vinyl that's fifty years old and plus, and it's fine because we keep it in safe conditions.

Vinyl lasts longer if cared for properly.
Digital media supposedly has a shelf life of around 50 years before deterioration.
When they put music in a 1,000 year time capsule recently, they used a record made of nickel.
I regularly listen to LPs that are 50 years old at work, and the ones that are Mint sound incredible. The pressings were so good back then that even scratched LPs sound like barely anything is wrong.

CDRs break down very fast; I have had them develop errors in 1 or 2 years in some cases.

also, cd-rs last less than a normal silver cd

when did cds really take off? like mid-80s, how many cds do you see from then? like none

i have records that are 50 years old and play great, some minor scratchs (not cared for by previous owner...)

as far as downloading, i download mostly shit i havent heard and bootlegs of course. i dont really buy cds much cause i have no job and no money. BUT this week im going to be applying all over the place. then im thinking ill be buying tons of shit.

I download primarily to sample artists to see if I like them. I'm not too big on downloading entire albums, but out of print media is definately fine

I find the downloading without payment of commercially available product disrespectful in the extreme to the artists concerned. When I say this, I'm referring to those who download for free when they could go to a store and buy the product. It's a different story if something is downloaded, listened to once to see what it's like before buying, and then deleted.

I appreciate that the music distribution system means that there are parts of the world where getting stuff from a store is damn near impossible, and I'd never condemn someone in that situation for downloading, but that's my only my exception. The "I can't afford to buy CDs" argument cuts no ice with me - are you going to steal a car when you can't afford to buy one of them?

If a band makes something available for free download themselves, well obviously that's different.

Personally, I don't want to download because I want the whole package, e.g. artwork, liner notes, etc.

As for bootlegs, well I guess I'd rather they got downloaded for free rather than some drugs cartel get cash out of someone buying them.

Downloading is very convinient, because ever when i will buy a cd or so i first download it...

its a wonderful tool the internetweb thing

I usually download stuff i read about (here), and check it out. SY just have to be original.

I only download impossible-to-buy stuff, and the music that people make themselves. When I finally am able to do it, I want to upload a couple of old vinyl stuff that's really interesting.

Other than that, I'm happy to just listen to stuff whilst I'm online at band websites etc, which I find to be a great tool.

i like donwloading too, there aint nothing as bad a rushing out to buy a CD only to find its a pile of crap, if i downlaod something and like it enough to buy it i will, CD's can be expensive and you wanna thread the water first

I'd consider downloading new stuff to see if I wanted to buy it (ie if it was good enough), but I find that in just all cases I've encountered I can stream it at the band website to sample.

I used to buy cd's only. But now I download the album, if I like it then I will go buy the vinyl copy of it, or if its not available then I'll get the cd. Downloading music has opened many doors for a slew of people/fans/artists, and because of downloading music, you can get to the music you really are looking for faster then if you had to dig in a store for hours. Then again there is something about digging through cd's and records for what seems like eternity and pulling out that gem you knew was buried in the crates. Oh well, people are going to do what they want to do.

spking about 'music downloading' I go for everything, then I buy what I like more cause I like high fidelity. then I usually go to concerts and I buy there want I find. I particular like bands that move on the globe!

As products voyage around the sphere even people should do that easily and without many problems but this is not what I'm seeing....we arent sharing anything except for some gigabyte.....

and most of this shit i dowload is from those "hip" guys who dont care if their music is shared...

I came across the website tagoo. It isn't at all comprehensive, but I found a few things. Just one click and the copyrighted material (not live stuff, or rare stuff, but released stuff) was mine. I downloaded about two or three things, then stopped. But I'm so tempted. Free music! (Ug, I wanna go there now.) I could care less about the "package."

Do I feel guilty?

Or do I fear getting caught? Literally thousands have been sued and I have shitty luck in general. Am I being a pussy?

Do you download copyrighted stuff anyway? If not, do you stop yourself for ethical reasons? Or fear of getting caught? How can you tell the difference?

Can this really be a discussion? People don't feel guilty at all for listening to songs on the radio, but when radio was getting started the record industry tried to shut that down too. Then when they realized they couldn't they suddenly noticed that radio play promoted the sales of recordings rather than discouraged it.

Perhaps things are a little different in a world where anyone can create their own "albums" from downloaded tracks, but I honestly think if the record labels were interested in creating interesting hi-fidelity artefacts that people wouldn't find an MP3 as a reasonable alternative. The problem is, the labels are much more interested in producing product that is so disposable that nobody really thinks of it as particularly valuable.

The dinosaurs are dying and rumbling about the mammals stealing their eggs. Poor dinosaurs.

I like downloading and I like supporting the artist. I like to see bands live where I'll usually buy physical CD's from them.

My biggest problem with buying CD's and such is space... with all my movies (834 at last count on DVD and VHS -- that's not counting DVD-r's, these are all actual copies) and CD's (probably 200-300 CD's with cases and shit, another 200-300 actual CD's with weird packaging or not cases, EASILY 10,000+ CD-R's, some with cases some in gigantic CD spindles, etc.....) and video games (huge stacks of video games from every system you can think of) and books (a whole library) and magazines (probably 2,000+ music, video game, etc magazines)........... space is an issue with me. Perhaps why all my shit is spread across 4 houses.

i download to sample & buy what i like.

when i was broke in gradschool i downloaded EVERYTHING. before that i lived in a musical prison-- thank god for napster!

No programs other than thing freeware audio recorders like Audacity. Media is fair game, music, movies, live DVDs, you name it.

So NO ONE fears getting sued?

i download lots of LPs, well actually a lot less than i used to.
The thing is u can't buy everything can you?
There's only THAT small amount of money that you can spend every once in a while on CDs, LPs and art in general. These days i prefer "saving" to buy petrol for the bloody car to go to work (...) like just anybody else who doesn't live and work in a large city.
I'm attracted to packaging that is singular and that is the key selling point these days. Anybody can find good looking jpegs to print a jacket and stick in a jewel case.
so as far as i'm concerned i download what i need to listen to and i buy the LPs i would buy with or without downloading. I actually found out that i bought CDs i would never have bought if i hadn't had the chance to download in the first place., which is really in favoir of downloading.

Being part of the indie music biz on a small scale, i understand both points of view. Downloading is fine as long as u keep on buying a few LPs to support the bands u really like. Basic but true.

i dont have a problem with it.

hahaha.

Are you kidding?

I've been downloading for a decade now... a decade. And I don't know a single person who has been sued, including but not limited to myself. And ...

Okay, I know you're kidding.I took the bait.