What to do with 1,200 CDs I don't need

There is absolutely no difference whether you keep the original and distribute the copy or keep the copy and distribute the original

Well, there is a difference with music CDs, especially for collectors and audiophiles. If you keep only the copy and sell or give away the original, you'll lose the original disk, original inserts, and also some sonic fidelity. That these things seem to be rapidly becoming relics of an age past probably will only make them more valuable at some point in the future. And it's not at all clear to me that the law, even if it is "outdated" in some respects, does not make or imply this same distinction, probably for those same reasons. Personally, I doubt that if I ever rip all my CD's I'll want to get rid of the originals.

Anyway Herman, so what do you think you're going to do at this point?

You are right. There is a difference in that you don't have the packaging, but I don't think that has anything to do whether it is legal or not. I also don't see the loss in fidelity. If you make a bit for bit copy how could you lose fidelity? On the other hand, I followed a raging debate here recently about how much better CDs sounded than the original when copied on some magic box so I really don't want to go there.

So what am I going to do? I continue to rip them to my hard drive and have about 450 done, but the argument that they could be lost forever with a hardware failure has me leaning towards keeping them.

Herman, I asked you to cite the law that prohibited buying/ripping/selling and you have not done so. Your refusal to do so undermines all your other arguments.

My understanding of fair use does not place specific limits on the number of copies or the number of people who can simultaneously listen to a single legally purchased album. As an example -- as the head of a household of four I purchase a CD. I then rip the CD to my computer hard drive which is connected to my main hifi system. I also transfer the album to my iPod which I take to the office. My wife then copies the album to her iPod which she uses in the summer house. My high school sophomore daughter makes a CD-R of several songs from the album for her car. My son then takes the original CD and goes off to college. One album, 5 copies and not a single law broken. That's my understanding of fair use. Now if my son misplaces the original, gives it away, throws it out, etc. am I really to believe that suddenly all the copies that were to that point legal, suddenly become illegal. Now that's what physicists would call spooky action at a distance.

You also seem to be confusing the terms of a license agreement and breaking the law. There is specific legal statues that prohibit the hacking of software security measures. At the same time, many software products do not contain security features. If I copy a non-security laden software program I might be in violation of the license agreement that governs that software, but I have not violated the anti-hacking law. There's a big difference.

Personally, I would seriously recommend that you keep the originals. Not for any legal/moral/spiritual reasons, but technology is such that you just never know when you'll need the original. It's real cheap insurance.

There is term for the type of argument you are using but it escapes me. You are focusing on minutia (what happens if I lose the CD?) in an attempt to refute the general concept.

The applicable laws are laws pertaining to copyrights. Can I cite a specific line in some statute prohibiting the exact thing you propose? No, but that does not settle whether it is legal. Since every possible situation can’t be covered by laws, at some point the courts have to apply the principle of “what would a reasonable man do?’ There is no black and white definition for fair use. You can come up with all sort of convoluted scenarios that can only be decided in court. That’s why they exist.

For me the simple test is what would you consider fair if you were on the other side of the fence? I find it hard to believe you could support your position if you made your living from your music. If you can then we will just have to agree to disagree until somebody comes up with a court ruling that decides for us.

Herman,

I think it's time to throw in the towel. He's already made up is mind as to what he thinks is legal.
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I poled a dozen friends today and 11 off them thought that it was legal to make copies of CD's and give them to friends. They thought that it was illegal to sell copies, but perfectly legal to give them away as gifts. In addition, 8 of them thought that "ripping" is done in the analog domain. One guy thought that after you make two digital copies, the original CD would stop working. He also thought that a hard drive records data in the analog domain like a record cutting lathe. LOL.

I think the RIAA needs to spend more time and money on educating the public instead of sueing people. BTW, I'm not a big fan of the RIAA, but I think it's important to support the artists.