Programmers Are People Too

[BammBamm]

1 install/computer at a time. Unless you’re playing in “HotSeat” mode, you’ll need to purchase additional licenses. It’s only fair.

Look. Without a doubt, Sid Meier’s Civilization V is well worth investing in the required license for each discrete player. As an example, would it be fair for me, were I a hotel owner, to shell out the paltry sum of 50 USD for a single license and install it on each PC in every room of my 1,500-unit facility for my guests to play? Hardly.


Maybe that wasn’t the best analogy to use, so let’s consider the following hypothetical: Let’s say Jon & Kate were still together, from Jon & Kate Plus 8 fame. Jon says, “Hey, Kate, let’s run down to Best Buy and pick up a copy of Civ5, and install it my gaming rig, your laptop, that old computer in the guest room for your mom, and on each one of the kids’ TRS-80s. That way, we can all play at the same time. Think of all the money we could save!”


Once upon a time, a coworker tried to justify “going-in-on” a particular software title with 4 of his buddies. He reasoned, “It’s no different than 5 people who pool their money together to buy a car.”

I answered, “I think you’re forgettin’ somethin’, man: The difference is, only one person can drive the car at a time. You can’t divide that Buick into five equal parts & all head your separate ways. Likewise, you can’t stroll down to the DMV, renew your driver’s license, photocopy the damned thing, and share that with your partners-in-crime, so what makes you think you can share a software license, dumbass?”


Discuss.

 

[Tylerryan79]

I don't have this problem, seeing I am the only one in my family who plays civ. If however my wife decided she wanted to play a single player game Id with all honesty let her play mine. If I should feel bad about that, I don't. Also the analogy of Jon and Kate, hah funny stuff. First if that was a family with 10 people who weren't on tv making a good living, But just a normal family scrapping by I wouldn't feel bad if they only bought one copy for their whole family. Odds are they won't have 10 seperate computers, so if they all play single player, fine by me. If they had say 3 pcs, then ya buy 3 copies, so on and so forth. I do agree that you shouldn't split the cost and then put the game at 4 different houses.

I honestly don't see this subject as black and white. Each situation must be treated differently IMO. If the intent is malicious, or not. That is also subjective haha, another thread eh.

Edit: I think I missread your post. Your saying one install on one pc at a time, all my scenarios are just that.

 

[dot]

[...] so what makes you think you can share a software license, dumbass?”
[...]

Well, you can. That's about it.

 

[Jarlaxe Baenre]

Install it on all the... Oh, right. Steam makes that impossible.

 

[gibson1314]

Kate's split up, beauty, she would get it!

 

[AlpsStranger]

If you're whining because Steam won't let you buy one game and install it on 3 or 4 computers, I think we have our justification for Steam-only right there. Doesn't it seem silly when you think it through?

 

[aziantuntija]

As an example, would it be fair for me, were I a hotel owner, to shell out the paltry sum of 50 USD for a single license and install it on each PC in every room of my 1,500-unit facility for my guests to play? Hardly.

What about if you were a hotel owner and family of four people (2 adults and 2 kids) comes to your hotel and they would all have to rent different rooms because they all cannot use the same room at the same time. That would be pretty fair.

 

[12agnar0k]

What about if you were a hotel owner and family of four people (2 adults and 2 kids) comes to your hotel and they would all have to rent different rooms because they all cannot use the same room at the same time. That would be pretty fair.

Talk about just avoiding the point.

 

[aziantuntija]

Talk about just avoiding the point.

Relax m8. I was just fooling around

Or did that comment make me offically a steam hater now?

 

[Tylerryan79]

Install it on all the... Oh, right. Steam makes that impossible.

No it doesn't. If your talking about the hotel scenario! . The owner could install on one pc, authenticate, disconnect it from the net, put it in the hotel room, rinse and repeat. If all the computers are in offline mode the hotel owner could do this.

 

[dot]

No it doesn't. If your talking about the hotel scenario! . The owner could install on one pc, authenticate, disconnect it from the net, put it in the hotel room, rinse and repeat. If all the computers are in offline mode the hotel owner could do this.

Well, you can. That's about it.

'nuff said.

 

[Akaoz]

No it doesn't. If your talking about the hotel scenario! . The owner could install on one pc, authenticate, disconnect it from the net, put it in the hotel room, rinse and repeat. If all the computers are in offline mode the hotel owner could do this.

But no multiplayer, no?

 

[deanej]

By that logic, you should buy two copies of a DVD if you ever plan to watch to movie with a friend.

 

[bjbrains]

By that logic, you should buy two copies of a DVD if you ever plan to watch to movie with a friend.

No. By that logic, you should buy two copies if you and your friend both want to watch it on different TVs at the same time. Come on now.

 

[deanej]

That would make sense if you installed the movie on your TV. Since you don't, a per-person approach is needed. Especially since the movie industry likes to insist that you are simply buying a license to watch the movie on DVD, your friend did not buy a license so he shouldn't see the movie.

 

[Gamemaster77]

No. By that logic, you should buy two copies if you and your friend both want to watch it on different TVs at the same time. Come on now.

So your not allowed to connect your DVD player to two TV's now? Only one at a time. Why not? They are my TVs and my DVD players. Come on now.

 

[bjbrains]

So your not allowed to connect your DVD player to two TV's now? Only one at a time. Why not? They are my TVs and my DVD players. Come on now.

That's not what I mean at all. (That's just a case of output, nothing to do with licensing). I mean in two different locations, in two DVD players.

 

[Eastwinn]

Steam allows to you to install games on any computer, you just have to be logged on to play them. The catch is that you can only log onto an account on one computer at a time. Sharing an account across the household is extremely feasible, provided you don't want to play with each other. Sharing with friends is also possible but not as practical.

 

[ValugaTheLord]

Last time I checked you could install games from Steam to 100 different PC's from the same account.

Problem is that you can only play this game from this acc.. but then again there is offline mode if you want to play LAN with your friend.

 

[BammBamm]

Dear friends, do we really need to be splitting hairs here? Perhaps my initial post was too vague, so let me clarify it:

One active license on one machine at one time.
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I’m fully aware that Steam’s sophisticated licensing structure allows us to install the same software title on any number of machines. The caveat is that only one of these installations are authorized to be active at any given time.

For those of you who disagree with 2K’s decision to integrate the Steamworks DRM solution, and who fully intend to (try) to circumvent it, then might I suggest you change your respective CivFanatics’ Forum avatars to reflect your true nature:

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