what is the state of play regarding burning dvd`s off limewire and the law. I live in ireland , and you here so many sides to the story. if you have been downloading dvd movies are you breaking the law and if so what are the chances of being taken to court for the offence , has there ever been any prosecutions for this offence ?

Every country has its own laws...it says in this report that Irish ISPs were ordered to turn over the names of some file sharers:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/01...s_court_order/

Yes, it is illegal to download copywrited material, even if you are not sharing the files. The chances of YOU being prosecuted is probably low...what I mean is, there are many people doing this. In the U.S., I believe it is estimated that 1 in 5 households has illegally downloaded a commercial film. Obviously, it would be quite difficult and questionable for 20% of the U.S. to be involved in a lawsuit! Most of the lawsuits that I have read about have dealt with music files and large-scale sharers. You could give PeerGuardian a look...

http://phoenixlabs.org/pg2/

Good Luck

Dano