Ubisoft ain't so Bad

[Nisgeis]

I think what he's saying is that he is a legal owner of the game, so what he is doing is legal. He then goes on to describe what does and doesn't work with the cracked version (or no net patch version) and how to manually make the changes that the proper game exe would make if you were using it. If he has a legal version of the game and is using the crack, then he's legal right? I know that's a whole other grey area...

But, I don't see anyway to get round the needing a network connection other than using the cracked exe. There's nothing in the save files about whether or not to check you have a connection and the game checks for a connection before it loads the rest of the game up and before you load the save files.

[The Enigma]

Originally Posted by Nisgeis

I think what he's saying is that he is a legal owner of the game, so what he is doing is legal. He then goes on to describe what does and doesn't work with the cracked version (or no net patch version) and how to manually make the changes that the proper game exe would make if you were using it. If he has a legal version of the game and is using the crack, then he's legal right? I know that's a whole other grey area...

But, I don't see anyway to get round the needing a network connection other than using the cracked exe. There's nothing in the save files about whether or not to check you have a connection and the game checks for a connection before it loads the rest of the game up and before you load the save files.

His statement before explaining how to do it:

SO I ONLY MODIFY MY OWN COPY OF GAME WITHOUT ANY CRACK JUST TO BE ABLE TO PLAY CAMPAIGNS WITHOUT NET CONNECTION!!!!

I fail to see how one could read that line in a different way.
So please help me if I'm wrong with my conclusion that this guy isn't using a modified sh5.exe

[Nisgeis]

Originally Posted by The Enigma

His statement before explaining how to do it:

I fail to see how one could read that line in a different way.
So please help me if I'm wrong with my conclusion that this guy isn't using a modified sh5.exe

His 'style' of writing is a bit hard to read through, but he says in the same post:

Main problem to player without net connection , using no net crack is that game BLOCKING , MISSION BAR PROGRESS and we can't have our MISSIONS completed

I don't have that problem when I have no internet connection, I just get disconnected, never mind campaign progress not updating.

And to he says to test with:

yes without need of connection to the UBISOFTCKERS SERVERS (try with patch no net)

And also:

FIRST mission works and can be completed even with NO NET PATCH

I don't think that's an official patch .

But just to be absolutely sure, I went through all of his instructions and changed everything he said to (boy was it tedious) and I started the game without an internet connection - it wouldn't start. So I plugged the cable in until it had started and then continued to follow the instructions (loading the save) then pulled the cable out. The game came up and said that I must be connected to the internet to play the game.

So, the instructions don't do anything to make the game work if you don't have an iternet connection, they only let you continue through the campaign if you already have a way to play without being connected (a cracked exe).

EDIT: Has anyone else with a legit version tried this?

[The Enigma]

Originally Posted by Nisgeis

His 'style' of writing is a bit hard to read through, but he says in the same post:

I don't have that problem when I have no internet connection, I just get disconnected, never mind campaign progress not updating.

And to he says to test with:
And also:

I don't think that's an official patch .

But just to be absolutely sure, I went through all of his instructions and changed everything he said to (boy was it tedious) and I started the game without an internet connection - it wouldn't start. So I plugged the cable in until it had started and then continued to follow the instructions (loading the save) then pulled the cable out. The game came up and said that I must be connected to the internet to play the game.

So, the instructions don't do anything to make the game work if you don't have an iternet connection, they only let you continue through the campaign if you already have a way to play without being connected (a cracked exe).

EDIT: Has anyone else with a legit version tried this?

Now that's a revealing post.
I must agree, reading through his post is quit a struggle.
I thought when he was talking about the "no net patch", he was referring to his own .cfg modification.

You proofed by going through the process he has described, that his so called solution only works with a modified sh5.exe.
Thank you for clearing things up.

I can't go through those steps myself, since I don't own a copy of SH5.

[Rockin Robbins]

Whether morally right or not (I don't like it) most countries now have laws on the books forbidding you from modifying software of any type to defeat DRM. I choose not to break the law, so I wouldn't consider using the cracked exe file.

However, if Ubi, as it did in SH3, actually pirates the cracked game from the pirates and releases it officially as the DRM free version of the game then all bets are off.

So according to Ubi, piracy is bad unless... I still say that Ubi commits piracy with its DRM, converting your computer to its own use, removing your legal fair use rights with the software. What is worse, piracy of a piece of software or piracy of an entire computer? I'm not going to jump on the bandwagon for either.

SH3 and SH4 are great games that can keep us modding, playing and strategizing for ten years.

[janh]

Originally Posted by Rockin Robbins

Whether morally right or not (I don't like it) most countries now have laws on the books forbidding you from modifying software of any type to defeat DRM. I choose not to break the law, so I wouldn't consider using the cracked exe file.

Strictly speaking, most copyright laws are probably much more specific than that, but therefore upon loopholes. I can speak for the German law text, but I assume many European formulations at least will sound quite similar. It forbids the "circumvention of a functional copy protection mechanism for the purpose of creating duplicate copies".

Now that offers two legal and accepted loopholes. (A) What is a functional copyright mechansims? This has been tested in law suits already, but it leaves it up to the judge to decide whether he considers a specific mechanism functional, or not. Mechanisms need to be enough sturdy to be functional (i.e. not easy to circumvent).
(B) "For the purpose of creating a duplicate". Now if you edit a easily modifiable text config file, you already have installed your copy -- so no duplication. So this law does not apply here.

In the German legal system, you would probably, or surely, not be prosecuted for editing that file. However, this would have to be tested in a case first to get a general judgement. Even if it would fall under the copyright infringement category, the punishment would be dependent on the damage you did (there will be a differentiation between a civil case for the damage reparation (if a software company would press it), and a separate legal one for the copyright infrigement).
For the damage reparation, the software company would for example have to proof that you caused lost sales, and would have to proof how many -- that would in case of proven guilt (besides the cost of the judge, defendant and case fees) be the penalty to pay. Most likely the judge would even correct that penalty down to match your income so you have a real chance to pay it off in a certain time frame. Now since you paid for your original already, and did not cause any external damage, there is no damage value. And state attorneys are too much in demand for bigger cases that news papers already print for years that they would not accept such a small case.

[jerm138]

Originally Posted by Rockin Robbins

However, if Ubi, as it did in SH3, actually pirates the cracked game from the pirates and releases it officially as the DRM free version of the game then all bets are off.

Didn't they do this with a version of Rainbow Six? They pirated the pirated copy and released it as an official "patch."

Two wrongs don't make a right, so I don't think that this justifies pirating UBI's games...

...but isn't this kind-of F-'ed up?

[urfisch]

UBI is, what MAKES the people "steal" the game...nothing else.

[Gilbou]

Originally Posted by Rockin Robbins

Whether morally right or not (I don't like it) most countries now have laws on the books forbidding you from modifying software of any type to defeat DRM. I choose not to break the law, so I wouldn't consider using the cracked exe file.

However, if Ubi, as it did in SH3, actually pirates the cracked game from the pirates and releases it officially as the DRM free version of the game then all bets are off.

So according to Ubi, piracy is bad unless... I still say that Ubi commits piracy with its DRM, converting your computer to its own use, removing your legal fair use rights with the software. What is worse, piracy of a piece of software or piracy of an entire computer? I'm not going to jump on the bandwagon for either.

SH3 and SH4 are great games that can keep us modding, playing and strategizing for ten years.

In Europe, reverse engineering and modification even of protected software is allowed and protected by law for interoperability issues.

Ex : my PC runs Debian (Xubuntu to be precise).
I use software to play my PC games with a Nvidia driver.
Legally, I am allowed to modify the games as to make them work under my PC (I use cracked .exe so the protection that doesn't work with Linux doesn't forbid me from playing the game). Legally, it's interoperability and there's nothing they can do to prevent me from doing it.

[Rockin Robbins]

Originally Posted by Gilbou

In Europe, reverse engineering and modification even of protected software is allowed and protected by law for interoperability issues.

Ex : my PC runs Debian (Xubuntu to be precise).
I use software to play my PC games with a Nvidia driver.
Legally, I am allowed to modify the games as to make them work under my PC (I use cracked .exe so the protection that doesn't work with Linux doesn't forbid me from playing the game). Legally, it's interoperability and there's nothing they can do to prevent me from doing it.

That sure is a lot more enlightened than what the wholly purchased government of the US has done.

Here is what Wikipedia says about our Digital Millennium Copyright Act

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) is a United States copyright law that implements two 1996 treaties of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). It criminalizes production and dissemination of technology, devices, or services intended to circumvent measures (commonly known as digital rights management or DRM) that control access to copyrighted works. It also criminalizes the act of circumventing an access control, whether or not there is actual infringement of copyright itself. In addition, the DMCA heightens the penalties for copyright infringement on the Internet. Passed on October 12, 1998 by a unanimous vote in the United States Senate and signed into law by President Bill Clinton on October 28, 1998, the DMCA amended Title 17 of the United States Code to extend the reach of copyright, while limiting the liability of the providers of on-line services for copyright infringement by their users.

What's this part about criminalizing circumvention of access controls? That sounds like a catch-all that could make preventing a program from going online to authenticate itself a criminal act. It's obviously written by the copyright holders for the purpose of punishing their customers in the name of fighting piracy.

It's as bad as onerous deed restrictions at a condominium, coupled with the power-mad condo associations. Many of the stories coming from those condos are quite entertaining looked at from the outside, but for those unfortunate enough to live there, their entire investment in their property could be at risk.