P
Pray4Life
Guest
I was wondering whether it is a sin to modify software in any way if the user agreement forbids it (and if it is, how serious a sin would it be, venial or mortal?)
Here are the details of the situation that brought up this question: I own a computer game which has a couple of annoying bugs which the official patches do not address. These bugs cut off a bit of content which would otherwise be available (i.e. I do not think it is “unused material” left behind by game developers).
There are a couple of scripts available on the internet that will correct these bugs. In one case, it is simply a matter of changing one number! One! But even changing that one number would technically be a violation of the user agreement and therefore be illegal, since it would be “modifying” the original file.
To me, this seems absolutely ridiculous. I OWN the game. It is my property. I am not renting it, or still making payments on it, I PURCHASED it and therefore, I think I have the right to play it, all of it. It is my property and unless it infringes on the creator’s rights, I think that common sense says that I can do whatever the heck I want with it.
If we were talking about anything else, I could do whatever I wanted to it, legally. I could buy a book and burn it, I could “modify” a chair by taking off a leg or adding an extra one. I do not believe it harms the rights of the game developer, steals from them, or otherwise damages them if I modify my own personal copy of a game. If I copied it, distributed it, etc. THAT would infringe on their rights, but adding a script that changes ONE number in a game file, to correct an error that THEY made and evidently do not deem important enough to fix? I think that is within my rights. I can’t see how that could be sinful, unless it is sinful to fail to abide by an agreement that demands what I don’t think can possibly, reasonably be just.
Another example of ridiculous demands in these agreements is games that prohibit “transferring ownership” of them to anyone else. My understanding is that technically, I could not legally purchase such a game and then give it a friend when I’m done playing it, even if I was giving her the only copy of it in my possession. I don’t believe this demand is legal, and so would not be sinful even if I violated the agreement by doing so. Of course, I am not a lawyer, so I could be wrong. (Well worth bolding, I think. I am not trying to lead anyone down the moral and legal slippery slope of giving away their computer games
)
Anyway, would violating an agreement on a point such as this be a sin, even though I am not sure this kind of demand is just? Would doing so in such a small matter be a mortal sin (I am scrupulous and have difficulty sometimes judging “grave matter.”)
MY common sense says that the only thing that could be wrong with this would be going against an agreement, but I can’t help but wonder how binding such an agreement is if it is so obviously contrary to something I would think would be a natural, God-given right: to choose how to use one’s own property (provided, again, that it does not infringe on others- and I do not think this particular demand is rightfully theirs to make in the first place.)
Please set me straight on this because it is really grinding my gears and I want to approach this from a position of reason and good Catholic morality.
Here are the details of the situation that brought up this question: I own a computer game which has a couple of annoying bugs which the official patches do not address. These bugs cut off a bit of content which would otherwise be available (i.e. I do not think it is “unused material” left behind by game developers).
There are a couple of scripts available on the internet that will correct these bugs. In one case, it is simply a matter of changing one number! One! But even changing that one number would technically be a violation of the user agreement and therefore be illegal, since it would be “modifying” the original file.
To me, this seems absolutely ridiculous. I OWN the game. It is my property. I am not renting it, or still making payments on it, I PURCHASED it and therefore, I think I have the right to play it, all of it. It is my property and unless it infringes on the creator’s rights, I think that common sense says that I can do whatever the heck I want with it.
If we were talking about anything else, I could do whatever I wanted to it, legally. I could buy a book and burn it, I could “modify” a chair by taking off a leg or adding an extra one. I do not believe it harms the rights of the game developer, steals from them, or otherwise damages them if I modify my own personal copy of a game. If I copied it, distributed it, etc. THAT would infringe on their rights, but adding a script that changes ONE number in a game file, to correct an error that THEY made and evidently do not deem important enough to fix? I think that is within my rights. I can’t see how that could be sinful, unless it is sinful to fail to abide by an agreement that demands what I don’t think can possibly, reasonably be just.
Another example of ridiculous demands in these agreements is games that prohibit “transferring ownership” of them to anyone else. My understanding is that technically, I could not legally purchase such a game and then give it a friend when I’m done playing it, even if I was giving her the only copy of it in my possession. I don’t believe this demand is legal, and so would not be sinful even if I violated the agreement by doing so. Of course, I am not a lawyer, so I could be wrong. (Well worth bolding, I think. I am not trying to lead anyone down the moral and legal slippery slope of giving away their computer games
)Anyway, would violating an agreement on a point such as this be a sin, even though I am not sure this kind of demand is just? Would doing so in such a small matter be a mortal sin (I am scrupulous and have difficulty sometimes judging “grave matter.”)
MY common sense says that the only thing that could be wrong with this would be going against an agreement, but I can’t help but wonder how binding such an agreement is if it is so obviously contrary to something I would think would be a natural, God-given right: to choose how to use one’s own property (provided, again, that it does not infringe on others- and I do not think this particular demand is rightfully theirs to make in the first place.)
Please set me straight on this because it is really grinding my gears and I want to approach this from a position of reason and good Catholic morality.
) that states the license on the box or even tries to tell you that you are only purchasing a license. I’m sure I’d probably remember seeing something like that. I think most people probably buy a computer game expecting that they are buying a game, not just a license to use a game.