When I look at websites like TUAW, The Apple Blog, Macgasm, or a site such as ourselves that talks about the well being of the developer community, I expect all of us to be role models for others to follow and an avenue for developer success.
Which leads me to Cult of Mac. By now all of us are aware of Sayam Aggarwal’s brazen tutorial on how to install pirated software with the intent of, “Try before you buy.” It’s a shallow cause.
After a flood of Cult of Mac reader emails, we’ve developed this how-to guide about installing pirated iTunes Store Apps on your iPhone or iPod Touch.
Disclaimer: Cult of Mac strongly opposes software piracy, we think people should remunerate developers for their hard work. However, we also recognize that it can sometimes be useful to try before you buy. If you use the guide, keep in mind that you do so at your own risk.
A couple things disgust me about this statement. The first is that Cult of Mac took seriously the readers that asked for such a tutorial in the first place; I would have automatically sent such requests straight to the trash. I could assume that Cult of Mac dwelled on this for a while, but I’m not so sure that Sayam just didn’t go ahead and write the article without any consent beforehand. *See the update below.
Although Cult of Mac strongly opposes software piracy, plenty of research and time had to be taken to compile the steps needed to document software pirating. Practically it’s a bullshit disclaimer; nobody is going to pirate software with the intent to, “Try before you buy.” As writers, our jobs are to help promote developers and their applications by providing readers with the material needed to make informed purchasing decisions. Their statement alone completely discredits any developer’s trust in Cult of Mac. It’s simply disrespectful.
What bothers me too is that Sayam almost implies that Jailbreaking is used solely for pirating, which isn’t the case at all. We Jailbreak our devices because we’re daredevils, and because we yearn to be on the bleeding edge of tech, sometimes buggy software, and additional functionality that makes us geeks happy. You don’t associate these two ideas in your headline together; it’s false.
Some would argue that this tutorial is okay because the tools used in the tutorial were already publicly made available in Cydia. Any noob could have google’d the right keywords and found some forum post or guide on how to steal software. But it’s the fact that Cult of Mac advocates this kind of behavior, despite a canned disclaimer, that’s the problem. We don’t expect this kind of filth to end up being consumed by the masses for all the wrong reasons. You’re telling people, “It’s okay to pirate this developer’s app he makes a living off of just to try it.” Wink wink. Yeah right. That’s not what’s going to happen whether it’s justified or not.
We urge that Cult of Mac pull their tutorial immediately. It needlessly advocates the wrong message to thousands of readers, to Apple and the developers associated in creating content, and to related sites in the community. Why Leander Kahney or another member of the site hasn’t immediately responded to the outpouring of criticism is beyond me. I expect we’ll see something happen in the wee hours of tomorrow morning.
Please, never pirate software and always support developers. Just like us, they’re trying to make a living too.
Update: Sayam Tweets:
“All the haters, I just did the guide cos my editor said so, mock me if you like, IDC! Personally, I don’t use or intend to use cracked apps.”
This would explain why nothing has been done. But at the expense of a kid? Come on.
Update 2: Cult of Mac Editor Leander Kahney has removed the content and has written an apology in its place.
