this post was submitted on 23 May 2026
28 points (83.3% liked)

Piracy: ꜱᴀɪʟ ᴛʜᴇ ʜɪɢʜ ꜱᴇᴀꜱ

69233 readers
453 users here now

⚓ Dedicated to the discussion of digital piracy, including ethical problems and legal advancements.

Rules • Full Version

1. Posts must be related to the discussion of digital piracy

2. Don't request invites, trade, sell, or self-promote

3. Don't request or link to specific pirated titles, including DMs

4. Don't submit low-quality posts, be entitled, or harass others

Loot, Pillage, & Plunder

We heartily recommend visiting the free port of freemediaheckyeah (aka FMHY) while you sail the high seas, for all the freshest links the ocean has to offer.

📜 c/Piracy Wiki (Community Edition):

🏴‍☠️ Other communities

FUCK ADOBE!

Torrenting/P2P:

Gaming:

💰 Please help cover server costs.

Ko-Fi Liberapay
Ko-fi Liberapay

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
db0@lemmy.dbzer0.com
Flatworm7591@lemmy.dbzer0.com
RandomLegend@lemmy.dbzer0.com
Andromxda@lemmy.dbzer0.com
CosmicTurtle0@lemmy.dbzer0.com
tenchiken@lemmy.dbzer0.com
unruffled@anarchist.nexus
28
Have you encountered VHS or Cassette piracy in the 80s? (piefed.social)
submitted 12 hours ago* (last edited 7 hours ago) by Shadow79@piefed.social to c/piracy@lemmy.dbzer0.com
46 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

Like that infamous "ET" torrent in 1982 where it involved a "pirate" sneaking a huge JVC camcorder (with a VHS reel) recording the entire movie in theaters, given this was before DVD's existed (don't even ask about pirate bay, those weren't available yet). The same applies to "torrented" music, one would have a spare tape cassette recording the song played via the radio, that's how they torrented content back then if they can't afford an official copy.

Only millennials or Gen X who were kids back then would've encountered or witnessed VHS or Cassette "torrents" from either friends or family and often or not, piracy in the pre internet days was rife even before torrent sites were a thing. There are VHS "torrents" of TV shows or series (placing a camcorder which faces the TV screen with a spare reel recording the entire show (ads included), then used to fast forward upon replay.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] myrrh@ttrpg.network 2 points 2 hours ago* (last edited 2 hours ago) (1 children)

...ohmigosh, yeah, smuggling in the equipment, surreptitiously-recording, and cleaning up tapes afterward is a lost art in these days of ubiquitous phones and console recordings...

...i had a specially-modified trenchcoat i could break down my rig and hide parts in various seams and pockets to make it through venue-entry security patdowns, always a high-adrenaline moment!..

[–] reallyzen@lemmy.ml 1 points 2 hours ago* (last edited 2 hours ago) (1 children)

So cool, thanks for sharing! I believe it was sufficiently long ago that you shouldn't risk this or that body part over it: what did you bring? Nagra? Condenser mikes? i tried this once (it was otherwise my everyday carry) and it was shit. Top of the line at the time. Still shit recording.

[–] myrrh@ttrpg.network 1 points 1 hour ago* (last edited 1 hour ago)

...just cheap dynamics and a cassette recorder, disassembled and reassembled in the field: signal's so hot in live venues that the mic pretty much clips anyway, so i never lost too much sleep over it until cleaning things up back home with radio shack gear (when they sold respectable equipment)...