Limewire anyone?
Sep 24th, 2007 by Cathy Nelson
Today at school as I was sharing content from my iPod to classes, a discussion ensued regarding the legality of downloading songs from Limewire. This is a file sharing
site, and allows members to share their files. I gather from discussions today in class that kids just about everywhere are using the site to download their favorite songs free of charge, and they are under the impression what they are doing is legal. I decided to search myself about the legality of the site, and here are a few links:
Limewire: About using P2P Software Safely (see “copyright”)
[Updated 9-25-7] Lori A. offerd these links in an email today:
Mrs A’s Copyright and Fair Use
More found on my own:
As a teacher librarian, I am called upon to teach the ethical use of information. So I suddenly see a need in middle school for students (and even some teachers, and teachers who are parents of youth) to learn the difference b/w “legal” file sharing and “illegal” file sharing. As I shared where I get my 
music choices for my iPod, all the kids new and understood iTunes. But the discussion bandied about was how easy it was to share and copy CDs that one person owns, and the ease of joining and downloading music from Limewire. So for the last class (where the conversation came up) I realized suddenly my students need to know. I may even ask to speak at a future PTO about the concept, as a teacher came to me confessing that their own child uses Limewire, and had led her to believe it was all legal.
Since I only have a few sites to point to, I am asking any readers if you have specific sites I can point to or even better, specific cases where offenders have been prosecuted. What other examples or comparisons can I make to impress upon my youth that file sharing can be illegal, especially coprighted material like music?
“100_1041.” Troy McClure SF’s Photostream. 24 February 2006. 24 September 2007 <http://www.flickr.com/photos/troymccluresf/103916029/in/datetaken/>
“Lime.” Libaryman’s Photostream. 27 December 2005. 24 September 2007 <http://www.flickr.com/photos/libraryman/78337046/in/datetaken/>
YouTube offers a coule of decent Music Piracy videos…So I used on of them in my classes that really shows how harsh the fines can be. Cool! Kids really seemd to pay attention too. YouTube had a rapt audience.
My seventh and eighth grade students are collaborating on a wiki about copyright, fair use, plagiarism, and creative commons. It’s something they really are not taught. It’s also really complicated. I found a blog with a link to a web site for teachers: http://bionicteaching.com/?p=411 that tries to answer some questions. The other thing about Limewire is the potential for getting viruses on your computer.