Software Piracy

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department purchased a revenue, costs jobs in the technology supply chain
license to install software offered by DataWall, Inc. The license (developers, distributors, retailers), and cripples local software
allowed the department to install 3,700 copies of the software, companies.
but it installed 6,000 copies. The department claimed that the While some people believe that software piracy saves
number of employees using the software concurrently could not money, it can increase costs beyond litigation and fines. Pirated
exceed 3,700. The sheriff’s department was sued. An appellate software can be infested with malware or viruses. In a study
court did not accept the department’s argument. The defendant completed by IDC and commissioned by Microsoft, infected
ended up paying over $750,000 in fines and attorney fees. software was found in 30 percent of businesses. The global
Software piracy, the illegal copying of software, is probably study studied 270 websites and networks and interviewed over
one of the most pervasive crimes. Software piracy has several 250 information technology managers. The study estimates that
forms: making copies from a single paid copy of the software; consumers could spend 1.5 billion hours and $22 billion while the
using the Internet to download software from a website without cost to businesses globally is $114 billion.
paying for it, or copying software through use of peer-to-peer The cost of software piracy extends beyond the cost of
applications; using one licensed copy to install an application on virus-embedded software. In May 2013, a U.S. company
multiple computers; taking advantage of upgrade offers without agreed to pay a $115 thousand fine to settle a case of
having paid for a legal copy of the updated version; using for unlicensed software copies from four software companies.
commercial purposes copies that were acquired with discounts Unlicensed software can subject businesses to costs
for home or educational use; and using at home a copy that was associated with litigation, fines, and settlements, not to
purchased by an employer under a license to use only on the mention any adverse publicity that can arise from the offense.
employer’s premises. The software industry established two Critics question the methods used to reach these estimates.
organizations to protect software developers from piracy: Furthermore, they say that even if the estimates of pirated
Business Software Alliance (BSA) and the Software & Information software are correct, the conclusions are exaggerated, because
Industry Association (SIIA). The two organizations were established not all who pirated software would necessarily acquire it if they
by major software companies and are supported by the majority of had to pay for it. Thus, if everybody was forced to pay for the
the world’s software development firms. Both organizations have software, the software companies would not collect the entire
websites that encourage everyone to report pirated software. worth of installed software, but much less. Still, it is reasonable
Occasionally, the organizations sponsor studies that estimate the to assume that many pirates actually needed the software, and
proportion and financial damage that piracy causes in various would pay for it had piracy not existed.
world regions. Laws in most countries treat software the same way as
As the amount of software sold on the market grows, so do they do books, DVD movies, and other types of intellectual
the estimated losses that the software industry suffers from property: copies (except for one copy of the software for
piracy. In the 1980s and 1990s, the global financial damage archival purposes) may not be made without permission of the
was estimated at $10–$12 billion annually. A study completed copyright or patent holder. Yet, the crime is pervasive because
by the Business Software Alliance estimates the cost of it is easy to commit and rarely is punished.
unlicensed software at $63 billion in 2011, up 8 percent from
2010. Bootleg software increased by 12 percent in the Asia Sources: Anonymous. (2012, 2012-07-24). Software piracy tab sur-
Pacific region to a record of $21 billion. The study reported passes $63 billion. Network World, 29, p. 10; Anonymous. (2013,
2013-03-13). Microsoft Corporation: Software Piracy Costs Billions
that there is a significant difference relating to the average in Time, Money for Consumers and Businesses, Computer Weekly
piracy rates between emerging and mature markets; 68 News, p. 3933.
percent to 42 percent respectively. A spokesperson for BSA
explained that piracy deprives local governments of tax

Considerations for Packaged Software

When an application is developed especially for an organization, specific program goals and
custom requirements are considered during the development process. Such requirements include
business needs, organizational culture needs, the need to interface with other systems, and
performance issues, such as response time. However, organizations find ways to satisfy many
needs with ready-made software as well. Figure 5.9 summarizes important factors and outlines
what you should look for when purchasing software.
PART
CHAPTER 5 Business Software 173 2
Copyright 2014 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
 Computers May Be Hazardous to Your
Health
As of 2010, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, about 77 and video displays reduce eye soreness, visual blurring, and
million Americans use computers at work, at school, and at upper-body discomfort, while quantity and quality of work were
home (Anonymous, 2012b). An increasing number of studies not compromised. The agency estimates that more than half of
show that working with computers threatens workers with a computer users who stare at computer displays for long hours
variety of hazards. These risks include repetitive-stress injuries develop a health problem called computer vision syndrome
(RSIs) due to long periods of repeated motions. According to (CVS), which is any combination of headaches, loss of focus,
the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration burning eyes, double vision, or blurred vision.
(OSHA), RSIs cost American businesses an estimated $20 The argument has been made that it is an employer’s moral
billion annually in workers’ compensation claims (Anonymous, obligation to educate employees about such risks and to provide
2012d). The U.S. Department of Labor reported that injuries an environment that minimizes them. Both factors, the economic
and illnesses attributed to repetitive motion tasks accounted and ethical, have moved many employers to try to reduce the
for three percent of all injury and illnesses in 2011. However, increasing “injuries of the Information Age.” They do so by
these cases required a median of 23 days of work absences, purchasing and installing ergonomic equipment, training
nearly three times as much as all types of injuries and illnesses employees how to use computers in a way that minimizes
(Anonymous, 2012d). As computer-aided work has grown, RSIs injuries, and enforcing periodic breaks from repetitive activities
have grown, too, to the extent that some scientists call these such as typing. The breaks help prevent both RSIs and eye
injuries an epidemic. strain. OSHA maintains a website, www.osha.gov/SLTC/
The most common computer-related type of RSI is carpal computerworkstation, that provides useful tips on safe computer
tunnel syndrome. It is the result of repetitive use of a keyboard. work. As a professional, it is likely you will spend much of your
The injury causes pain in the forearms due to swelling and workday sitting in front of a computer. Read the tips and apply
pressure on the median nerve passing through the wrist. Carpal them to maintain your good health.
tunnel syndrome may cause permanent disability. In rare cases To minimize these risks, you can download and install on
workers lost their ability to return to work due to this injury. your computer one of several free programs such as Workrave
Our eyes, too, are strained from computer work. Studies that prompt the user to take brief breaks and less frequent but
found that a programmer’s eyes make as many as 30,000 longer rest breaks. It also limits the daily total time a worker can
movements in a workday. These are movements up, down, and use a computer. When the computer is networked to other
to the sides, which strain the eye muscles. However, other computers in the office, it does not allow the worker to use
studies found that while staring at a computer monitor people any of the others that are part of the network when a break
blink at one-sixth of the frequency that they blink normally. or daily time limit is enforced. Working times of all workers
Blinking is important for moisturizing the eyeball, which helps kill whose computers are connected are recorded and tabulated
harmful germs and eases eye strain. A study by The National on a server for review and analysis. The application also
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) found that provides an animated exercise guide for the shoulders, arms,
short breaks from work with computers that involve keyboards and eyes.

Business Considerations in Evaluating Storage Media

Before spending money on storage devices, professionals must consider several factors: the
purpose of data storage, the amount of data to be stored, the required speed of data storage and
retrieval, how portable the device needs to be, and, as always, cost.

Use of Stored Data

The first consideration before adopting storage media is how the data will be used, mainly,
whether it will be used for current operations or as backup. If it is to be used for backup only, and
not processing, magnetic tape, flash drives, external drives, CDs, or DVDs would be a proper
choice. Magnetic tape is less costly and holds more data per reel or cassette than a single CD; this
should be a consideration, too. If the users need to access individual records quickly, then
magnetic hard disks are the best choice. Thus, a business that allows customers to retrieve their
records online should use fast magnetic disks. If the information is archival, such as encyclopedias
or maps used by library patrons, the library should place the information on CDs or DVDs,
because the user needs fast, direct retrieval of specific information (records), and might not

PART
2 132 Information Technology
Copyright 2014 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.