Is dongle illegal ?

[whyterabbyt]

maxlef quoth

Or you allow all software developpers to use dongles and that's just not possible, or you don't allow anyone to use it !

that's all

You're a consumer, not an arbitrator of consumer law. You dont get to decide what other peole do; you just get to decide if you're going to buy it or not.

And almost no plugin developers use dongles. So stop acting as though they're all going to overnight unless we make a fuss about it; they're not. Most plugin developers sell downloads over the net; when was the last time you downloaded a dongle?

[whyterabbyt]

maxlef quoth
and what if i want to use MORE than 127 different plugins ?

Name 128 VST plugins which use USB. Or even just 12. Or 5.

i have the right

You have the right to buy or not to buy. You do not have the right to dictate somene else's business decisions. If you dont like those decisions, dont buy their stuff. Dead simple.

[AndrewSimon]

OK I am curios now.
Can somebody please explain in simple English what is a dongle? (sounds like a sex toy to me)

[whyterabbyt]

It is a small device that plugs into a port on your computer without which a specific software package will not run.

[AndrewSimon]

Thanks

Sounds annoying.
I wonder how effective is it?
How long before someone creates a hack or a "virtual port" simulating a dongle.

[topaz]

there already are cracks, but the cool serious guys buy there software.

the rest are f**king chavs.

Thanks

Sounds annoying.
I wonder how effective is it?
How long before someone creates a hack or a "virtual port" simulating a dongle.

[Z3R0T0N1N]

I understand what you are saying, but it is perfectly legal. Some of the license agreements that software companies make you agree to are not legal, and wouldn't stand up in court if you could afford as many lawyers as the company can.

But, listen, if it bugs you that much, why would you buy software that requires a dongle?

Anyway, there isn't a dongled product that hasn't been cracked yet. So, if you must have it, BUY the product, then search for the dongle emu; it should take you all of an hour! Then you can use your legal software without the dongle.
see? easy.

[maxlef]

I understand what you are saying, but it is perfectly legal. Some of the license agreements that software companies make you agree to are not legal, and wouldn't stand up in court if you could afford as many lawyers as the company can.

But, listen, if it bugs you that much, why would you buy software that requires a dongle?

Anyway, there isn't a dongled product that hasn't been cracked yet. So, if you must have it, BUY the product, then search for the dongle emu; it should take you all of an hour! Then you can use your legal software without the dongle.
see? easy.

so...what's the need of dongle if they can be cracked as any other software??

[Teksonik]

I have usb disabled in the bios and will not use anything usb, even a dongle.

Why? What about your music kybd, surely not MIDI

What's wrong with midi?

[Sepheritoh]

Stupid maybe, but not illegal

I have only one set of programs that use a USB dongle (3 plugs use 1 dongle only) that was worth the money. The other dongle software I have seen did not impress - not that I have seen that many. Come to think of it, I have only really tested one other program that had a dongle. So what's the fuzz about . Let me go find something else to bitch about.

[SuitcaseOfLizards]

After doing a little bit of research, I have come to the conclusion that dongling is illegal if you do it in public, in front of a minor, after consuming beer on Sunday. Please people, remember that running about with your dongle out *will* land you in jail, or at least make the young girls laugh at you.

This has been a public service announcement.

All that aside, if you don't like dongled software, don't buy it. It's perfectly legal for a company to implement copy protection under almost every circumstance, at least here in the U.S., and there are alternatives for every dongle-protected product I'm aware of, music-software-wise.

[Z3R0T0N1N]

so...what's the need of dongle if they can be cracked as any other software??

exactly.

they suck, and there is no point because they don't stop piracy; they just piss off legit users.
but what can ya do? Just don't support the use of dongles, and if you see something you would like to buy that requires a dongle, refer the developer to threads like this one.

[snooky]

MIDI is great!!!

[ericj23]

as i have pointed a few times recently the following software has NOT been cracked

sx3, halion 3, logic (anything after 6), hypersonic 1.1, culture 1.5

the common thread here - they all use dongles - hmmmmm

[HanafiH]

so...what's the need of dongle if they can be cracked as any other software??

It separates management from the reality of their market when piracy is rampant.

If you're selling a non-dongled product your essential offering under sale is the return in investment you give through community, support and service to the purchaser. You are selling an ongoing brand loyalty.

If you're selling a dongled product, the offering under sale is in essence the dongle and the provision of it. Consequently you can operate a faster cashflow timeline by not providing the levels of support a non-dongled product offering must give to reward consumer loyalty.

Dongles acheive this by requiring significantly longer crack times that less onerous protection schemes. So dongled products in a crack market try to make most sales in the intervening period between release and crack. In this initial market phase, support and reliability is secondary anyway to marketing spin in generating cashflow. You are selling a transient edge in features and modernity.

Generally, (and this is true across all software not just audio) non-dongling vendors offer better customer support and long term investment value than dongling vendors. There exceptions to this but not many.