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General discussion

Do you back up your store-bought CDs, DVDs, and Blu-ray media?

Jun 8, 2012 9:29AM PDT
Do you back up your store-bought CDs, DVDs, and Blu-ray media?

-- Yes. (How many times have you had to rely on it, because the
original failed?)
-- No. (Why not?)
-- Sometimes. (When do you do it?)

Discussion is locked

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Well,
Jun 8, 2012 12:12PM PDT

I enters as "yes", I do make a copy, but what I do is copy the CD to a mini-disc to use at work. If I were to sell the CD, I'd delete the contents of the mini-disc. The license follows the media.

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Yes, I back up my lawfully purchased media for personal use.
Jun 8, 2012 12:34PM PDT

When I purchase a music CD, software program, or DVD movie, I always make a fair use backup copy, and store the original for archival purposes. Why is that? Well, for one thing, disks become damaged, or wear out from use. However, what I have purchased, and paid good money for is not just a silver piece of plastic with some writing on it.

When I purchase a media product, what I am really purchasing is a LICENSE to use that product on one device at a time. Under that legal theory, as long as I possess the original, and thereby the license, I can legally make one copy for personal use, as long as only one is in use at the same time. So I do not find anything legally or morally objectionable about making and using a fair use copy, in order to protect my investment.

Now, it is true that under the Digital Millenium Copyright Act, the mere act of circumventing encryption or other DRM is now a criminal offense--even if the underlying purpose falls under a legal exemption (such as Fair Use rights). However, let's face it. Have you ever heard of someone being prosecuted under the DMCA who is NOT actually violating copyright law, and selling/distributing/uploading copyrighted content? Guess what, neither have I.

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No, I don't back up any CDs that I buy.
Jun 8, 2012 1:15PM PDT

Other than a couple of software CDs that I purchased recently, I have not bought any CDs, DVDs, or Blue Ray media anytime in the past several years. To me, CDs are like 8 track and cassette audio tapes. I don't have any of them around either. I have Flash Drives, SDs, CFs, and Hard drives, and that is the only storage mechanisms that I have around.I have some audio CDs and Video DVDs around, but hardly ever watch them. they are located in a Sony 300 CD/DVD player. All of my audio CDs that I have made mp3s of are there. None of the DVDs have a back up. It is amazing how fast you can drop out of using that technology when you have mp3 players and HDTV DVRs that you record your video on. I am in the 21st century now, and try to not go back to last centuries media.

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I back up only CDs
Jun 8, 2012 3:37PM PDT

I hardly buy any media these days, I prefer streaming on demand even for music. Before I rarely bought any movies or shows but I did have a collection of CDs which I have put in a couple of hard drives not as much as back-ups but to be able to do my own playlist and compilations and put them in my smartphone and music player.

Making a back up of media doesn't make much sense to me unless you want to spent money on a safe in a bank. If there is a fire in the house I will lose the back-ups along with the originals and for online storage I have enough with valuable pictures and important documents, the storage capacity I will need to rent to back up media is just to big to be justifiable for the price.

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I do not make backup copies but ...
Jun 8, 2012 5:05PM PDT

If I know that a Disk (whatever kind) has DRM controls on it, I will not buy it. I got one once and I wanted to play the movie on my computer while my wife was watching the main system upstairs. It would not even let me play it. Fortunately for the most part, I like old movies and it seems that most of them do not include that nefarious protection scheme.

IMHO the Copyrights act is an attempt by the media moguls to protect an archaic business model and does not recognize that we are now in the 21st century. The sooner they come up with a new business model that recognizes this, the better off we will all be -- them included. There are many that bite and must have the latest -- I will not. I suspect that their revenue could be a lot higher if they would recognize this, come up with a new business model that did not depend on the DRM stuff and get rid of the encryption. They are catching some little fish now and then -- but I have not heard of a single big outfit that has been caught. You can bet they are out there someplace. If there is money to be made illegally, someone is going to try to do it big scale. I feel sure there is equipment out there that can defeat the encryption easily and thus enable the making of many (millions?) of bootleg copies of anything. If these media moguls would get smart and come up with a new business model that does not depend on the encryption process, they would put these bad guys out of business in an instant and get more money in their coffers in the long run.

Did anyone ever say big business was smart? Not me!

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Do you back up your store-bought CDs, DVDs, and Blu-ray medi
Jun 8, 2012 10:41PM PDT

I always backup everything I have twice. I copy the CD-DVD on another CD-DVD and on my external HD.And that's it! If I feel over time I don't need it anymore, I delete it.

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Back up of bought CD's
Jun 9, 2012 9:35AM PDT

I sometimes back up CD's but only if i might take them to a party or friends house in case it gets lost.
As a general note,i would think it ok to back up every CD bought,as I paid for it I can see no reason not to (except for counterfeiting)which is not right anyway.