A while ago, I was answering a query for this pro bono work. My correspondent was very happy for work I could do, and then asked me "Can you work from existing InDesign files?".
Well technically I can. I know the InDesign interface and can use the software. I even have access to it.
But as a private designer, and a professional in the IT industry, I cannot afford to give the wrong example. Using InDesign without a proper license is a criminal offense. A large number of people think "it's okay to use a cracked (=illegal) software if you can't afford to buy a legal copy anyway".
This certainly does not apply to me because I could afford an Adobe InDesign license, but I don't want to spend this money there, so I don't use the software and certainly will not go into the easy road of cracked software, because somewhere down the line, a fellow programmer is losing out.
Which brings us of course to "what can you really afford?" and I guess that unfortunately if you could walk into a shop and steal your grocery and get away with it, a lot of people would.
This is what happens with MP3 downloads and software. My stand is that this is and remains illegal, and that the only reason why people do it is because they can get away with it most of the time.
I also agree nonetheless that CDs are dreadfully expensive. I can tell you that I really think twice before buying one these days and there's hardly any place left in my budget for an overpriced piece of plastic.
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