Five months in prison for downloading Star Wars Episode III – that seems a little harsh, doesn’t it? Scott McCausland got just that plus he was ordered to replace his Ubuntu Linux operating system with a Windows-based system to ensure compatibility with court-ordered computer monitoring software.

While the source article would have you believe that Scott was jailed for downloading the movie, he was actually the one to upload it to the EliteTorrents website that he administered, hence the hefty sentence.

McCausland is currently trying to raise donations on his website to purchase Windows XP or Vista…

“I AM NOT INTERESTED IN SUBVERTING THE RESTRICTIONS AGAINST ME. I AM NOT A CODER, I AM NOT A l337 LINUX GURU, and I am not interested in going back to jail. I just think that it is totally ridiculous to force me to purchase an OS because they can’t support it. The terms of my plea state: ‘I consent to period checks of my PC by my PO and/or the installation of software to monitor my internet activity.’ I am CONSENTING TO ALL OF IT, but it just so happens that the OS I use might not be supported by the software they use to monitor. So I do not feel (neither does my lawyer) that the government can force me to switch OSes. I am obligated to use a computer (internet also) for school, and Windows is not neccessary.”

Whatever you do, Scott, resist the temptation to load a pirated version of Windows. The judge is probably gonna want to see that certificate of authenticity.

Court orders pirate to use Windows [vnunet.com]