Here’s something from the ‘If it’s good for the goose, it’s good for the Gander’ category: Anyone who has checked out the KaZaA Lite site of late has noticed there have been problems with funding of the site. This I can, and do, sympathize about. Running a site for such a popular piece of software is expensive, and given that I appreciate the ‘Information wants to be Free’ attitude of the creators, I have considered making a donation through their Pay Pal link. However, I won’t now. Ever. Why? Well, as thousands of you already know, the KaZaA Lite site now blocks access if you use Ad blocking software like AdMuncher. Their rationale? Running the site is expensive, and they need the money from Ad revenue.
Makes sense if you look at it right, but look at it closer. KaZaA Lite’s fame is based on defending people’s right to screen what they want to see, and what they don’t want to see. If I don’t want the Spam, pop-ups, and Spyware of KaZaA, I can use KaZaA Lite. I have that freedom. However, now the creator(s) of KaZaA Lite want to take that freedom away again if it is inconvenient to them! In other words, in their minds, the rules only apply if they are now the ‘victims’. This smacks of hypocrisy of the highest order. Either they believe we have the right to screen out Ads and AdWare, in which case the KaZaA Lite creator(s) have no business putting up such an odious system on their website, or they don’t, in which case they should remove KaZaA Lite from distribution.
I sympathize with the costs involved in ‘creating’ and distributing KaZaA Lite. I work in software and Internet development, and I realize the time and effort and money that goes into software development and distribution (no I don’t work for KaZaA – someone will make that quip, I’m sure since I’ll be attacked for ‘bashing’ KaZaA Lite, I’m sure). However, since the creator(s) of KaZaA Lite have chosen to disregard that fact with regards to the creators of KaZaA, why should I give a damn about their costs now in the light of their hypocrisy?
Shame on them. I for one will now Never donate to their ’cause’. My support of ‘Information Freedom’ activists is limited to those who take the consequences of their views.
