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Should writers hate book pirates?
Easy question, no? Just like the question Should microsoft hate software pirates?
Not so easily answered. Piracy of windows 3.1 made ms the leader by far in the pc operating systems market. They lost some dollars because of piracy, but in the long run benefitted immensely because of the market share piracy gave them.
So, what happens if a writer's books are massively pirated? Well, that means popularity, and that translates into sales, and might even get the guy a movie contract. I am guilty of pirating, in that I have tried software before buying to make sure it works, and have bought music after listening to a downloaded mp3. In neither case would I have bought otherwise. And in the states I can have a digital copy of a printed book I own. If I can buy that copy reasonably, and it is well formatted, I would do so. But I would not feel bad about creating my own if it were not.
If I was a writer I would love to see my books massively pirated. That means popularity, and that will in some way translate into income.
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