Mike is an independent movie producer and is thinking of using YouTube as a distribution arm. He's worried that someone may steal it, though. Leo says there's always that risk. YouTube does a good job of preventing casual users from downloading a file, but it's not really that hard to figure out how to do it. The rewards far outweigh the risks, though, because that's where the eyeballs are.
James found a list of serial numbers for Sony Vegas. Are they legit? Leo says no. Vegas is a $700 software package and if he downloaded the trial version and put a serial number in that he found on the internet, then that's piracy. This isn't really something James will want to do, especially if he's starting his own video business. There's also the risk of getting malware from downloading software from unofficial websites.
When Netflix considers whether to pick up a title to stream online, Netflix looks to the piracy sites to see what's popular and what isn't. That shows what the demand is.
Carlos is concerned about the Six Strikes system starting up on Monday. He says that file sharing (and Carlos admits some piracy) music and video made him a better consumer, from Software to music. He discovered new stuff that made him want to buy. He even buys apps that he's picked up on the Internet, to try before he buys. Leo says that while he doesn't support piracy, having a try before you buy policy is a great way to give users the chance to test drive their product. Be honest. Be Ethical. Users should buy stuff they use.
The Copyright Alert System (CAS) is being instituted by ISPs this week, which will create a "six strikes" protocol that will enable ISPs to blacklist you and cause your internet service to be degraded and potentially banned for life. Those who run afoul of CAS will also be required to complete an online copyright prevention class.
Leo says the worst part is that there's no conviction because it isn't a law. This means there's no due process, and that's a crime.
A site called Bleeping Computer is a great resource for cleaning malware off of your system. They have a removal guide that could help Boris get rid of that virus. However, Leo says that almost in every case, someone who has one virus also has more. So he could end up removing that one and go on computing without knowing about other viruses he could be infected with.
