If I found $20,000 in the street I would certainly 'clean it up'

GOG.com ftw.

Support companies that do the work to preserve (and make a profit on)games of our past and you will see more of them preserved.

Actually I live MY life, so what I feel about it is the most important thing in the world (to me). I seem to be able to coexist with the rest of the world anyway. There's not a single person around me who'd call me antisocial.

I don't forget that every single person around me have as much right to their own personal liberties as I have to mine... That's where law fail.

I live by a single moral code, and it works.

I try give everyone around me the same space for peace, prosperity and freedom as I require from them...

I don't need laws to be a good citizen. I don't need law to be a good human. I don't need law, law doesn't trouble me over it. You seem to do so though.

I'm not saying laws are unnecessary. Most people can't tell right from wrong good enough to live without law and not cause conflict with other people.

Here's a question for yall, IF Stardock seemed to abandon Object Desktop, cursorFX, WB or one of their others products, would you all download a pirated version to uhh.. preserve it's history? or would you try to get permission?

Up until now we have been talking mainly about games.. now give me an honest answer.. mine is no.. I would try to get permission.

For me it depends on time. If it's positively ancient (such as nes, windows 1.0-3.0, etc) I don't need permission, but more recent ones... well that's harder to decide.

Hey my 1st husband was 9 years younger than me, and my current, soon to be ex, is 11 years younger

hehe I meant if Stardock didn't exist anymore, what happens to the products still floating around in cyberspace.. the creators would still be around, even if the Company wasn't 

Of coz XP wasn't discovered but still it runs on XP..... just as many XP games run on Vista.......

Abandonwares are of following types...

1. The software firm has earned enough profit so it releases the commercial software as freeware....

2. It releases the software as freeware to promte itself....

3. The company gets bankrupt so it released some or all of softwares as freeware......

4. It got bankrupt but hasn't released the software as freeware.....

Downloading above three types is not illegal as dowonloading freewares can't be....

Downloading the last type is not proper, so I won't do it....

But let me ask one more thing If you have dumped something into bin and if someone can use it.... Is it not good for society to let him do it ? .....Like if u eat vegetables or anything and throw the wasted matter on road or bin or wherever and if someone can still use it as manure etc..... will u file a case.......

herman, one word for you dear--->Copyright

Well.. I don't consider it right for someone to dig through someone elses garbage. I wouldn't bother with filing a case though, since I never throw things that could compromise my privacy in the regular trash. Even old bills and receipts can easily be used maliciously against you should someone want to do you harm.

If someone finds a pile of horse poo on the road and pick it up to use as fertilizer, they're doing a public service and I'd be happy to let them keep it.

---- Double post --- MEH!

Do you mean that downloading first three types of abandonware is against the copyright law?

Can u explain how downloading freewares(as in type 1 to 3) is against law?

Or Your garbages are copyright?

Hey Mr Crane Beware Its Copyright.....

I was referring to Stardock products, and I definately don't think they are garbage

Heman, the first 3 scenarios would probably not fall under abandonware, but more as of GPL or GNU licenced, as the Copyright owners gave the general public free reign to that specific item. * providing the public follow the terms of GPL or GNU licence provisions* thus being free for all to use and enjoy.

In the last case, "True Abandonware" where the company closed it's doors without releasing the item. It would still be held under Copyright. Those copyrights could possibly be held or maintained by the Bankruptcy courts, until they are "if at all" distributed to the creditors to who the orginating company owed Funds too. They can also be sold off by auction if they are deemed valuable and worth a monetary value. The funds from the sale would then be distributed amongst the creditors. This all depending on the courts decisions.

As for Trash.. Trash is knowingly thrown away, there for it would fall under abandonment, as you willingly tossed it away. But it could also be argued if the trash was placed in to a recepticle, the owner of said recepticle would be the owner of the trash. * possibly including "Intentional transfer of ownership" if the owner of the recepticle is not the same as the original owner of the deposited trash. California has private refuse companies Who own the recepticles, once trash is placed in them, technically the ownership and responsibility of disposal falls on the owning company.

Also for those who think a person breaks a law or can be classified a criminal only when caught.  The minute you Break a law wether it is known by law offocials or not, you have violated a law. While technically one is Deemed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law In the US, If you know you broke the law, you are still guilty of a criminal act. Even if it never comes to light. If you tell a lie, is it still not a lie even if never discovered?

We all have a bit of larceny in us, it's human. It's up to us and our moral fibre to decide for ourselves what is "our acceptible level". While Society will judge people when caught, their consciences will judge them when not.

TG_Terminator, Plz read my name correctly....

Types Of Abandonware a/c wikipedia...............

• Commercial software unsupported but still owned by a viable company: The availability of the software depends on the company's attitude toward the software. In many cases, the company which owns the software rights may not be that which originated it, or may not recognize their ownership. Some companies, such as Borland, make some software available online, in a form of freeware. Others do not make old versions available for free use and do not permit people to copy the software.

• Commercial software apparently owned by a company no longer in business: Often, no entity defends the copyright if such software is put onto abandonware websites. An example of this is Digital Researchs original PL/I compiler for MS-DOS. However, the rights to the software may have been bought by another company or have reverted to its original authors, who could file lawsuits against those copying software without permission.

• Shareware whose author still makes it available: Finding historical versions, however, can be difficult since most shareware archives remove past versions with the release of new versions. Authors may or may not make older releases available. Some websites collect and offer for download old versions of shareware, freeware, and (in some cases) commercial applications. In some cases these sites had to remove past versions of software, particularly if the company producing that software still maintains it, or if later software releases introduce Digital Rights Management, whereby old versions could be viewed as DRM circumvention.

• Unsupported or unmaintained shareware: Again, finding historical versions may be possible, but very difficult.

• Opensource and freeware programs that have been abandoned: In some cases, source code remains available, which can prove a historical artifact.

And Talisgil, I  couldnt find any good contra... not even in games shop.... there were none which support gamepads...

Any TPS which does?

Sorry heman, for the spelling error

Contra Hard Corps is all I've played, and that was either for megadrive, or SNS

Edit: I found some Contra.. and hehe, it's so-called abandonware, and it's up to you.. I'd rather get a secondhand console and get a copy of the game I've been guilty of using emulators and roms, many times actually, years ago, but not anymore, the real thing is better, and guilt-free

Yeah! emulators suck! I own a NES SNES 2xGBA GC XBOX 2xPS2 PS3... next a Wii and 360.. also looking for a good Saturn and Dreamcast 3DO Jaguar... Nothing beats the real thing

my appologies heman, as it is 4:00 am here, I mis read it. * it has been corrected*

While wikipedia may have a list of types popularly referd to as "Abandonware" if a company or private party holds copyrights and has not relinquished them to the public for free consumption, they are technically not "abandoned" tho they may be discontinued or unsupported. The owner of the copyrights still has the right to sue any and all distributors of the software if they choose.

They have mixed abandonware* software which has been left for dead and offered off to the public for free use* and shelved ware * that which has been dropped development but the Copyrights are still maintained by the owner.

I realize they are loosely grouping the two types together which some use to state "since it is abandoned it's free game" but really if the owners wanted to they could go after those distributing the items.

Lets put it in other terms. You own a car lot and manufacture cars. but decide not to build last years model and only offer this years. but someone buys last years model from some where, and starts building exact replicas. Claiming you abandoned the body style and stuff since you stopped making it. Does that make it abandonware? No, as the copyright holder of that body style and model you have the right to not have others take your work/design/etc. wether you wish to continue to develop them or not and use them for thier own purposes without your concent.