[Jack Tingle]

I once wrote a post, "[novels] not worth stealing". It's pretty simple. If a publisher makes his books available in ebook form, and without DRM, I wouldn't steal them under any circumstances. It takes quite a bit of time to find a pirated copy of a particular book (or strip one), check it for viruses, reformat some of them, and put them in whatever form you need. Once you value your time at something over minimum wage, stealing costs too much in most cases.

Now at [exorbitant price], I might not BUY the book, but I wouldn't generally steal it. There is an ethical component here as well. The publisher and I just disagree about how much the book is worth. If you wouldn't shop-lift it, I say you shouldn't pirate it either.

Now, if the publisher won't sell it to me in a usable form at any price for whatever reasons, I have no reason to respect his position. I still may not steal it for ethical reasons, but under some circumstances, I might. He is not materially harmed under those circumstances.