[carld]

Originally Posted by kacir

If you borrow a paper book and make a private copy using copier machine and then return the book, is anybody going to kick down your door with a search warrant?

I didn't say they would, but that doesn't make it legal.

If you make a copy of your favourite radio program on your cassette recorder for your own private use (like listening in your car while you commute) is the copyright police going to seize all your tapes?

I believe the RIAA has actually sued over that specific issue, but I've already done enough googling about copyright for today.

If you record the latest episode of The Mentalist on a VHS tape so you could watch it privately when there is nothing on the telly are you breaking the law?

That is specifically allowed by law in the US.

See? The Internet doesn't really change things that much.

None of those examples goes to what I said. The fact that copyrighted material is available on the internet does not change the basic legality of it.

In many jurisdictions the above copying would come under fair use rights.

In my jurisdiction all those examples would be illegal except for taping a TV program. Also, even if all your examples were fair use, it still doesn't apply to just grabbing copyrighted materials off the internet.