Which is better buying games from steam or having physical copies of the game?

AliceShiki

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First, your argument was that digital data last forever. I given your examples that clearly shows that they don't. OTOH, you ignore my examples of people who do manages to keep their physical media safe despite decades. You obviously have bias here.
A handful of copies survive the passage of years. The majority doesn't, for a good reason.
And sure you could back up your digital data, but the same argument holds with physical media. While yes, they are more involved than the digital version (it isn't a simple copy paste), but you still can. Heck, you can just by two or more, use one and archive the rest. Seriously, your argument essentially boils down too: I didn't bother to back up my physical media and didn't even bother to take care of them.
That's a false claim. You can't back up physical media with DRM, the console simply doesn't run the copy.

It was easier back in the day, but companies improved their DRM on consoles a lot. It's why the pirate market of modern console games is almost dead.

And exactly because you can't make copies easily, that you have an issue of it being a million times easier to lose your media.
And to lose your digital data is for your computer to go kaput or you accidentally deleting your data. What is your point?
Unless your computer went kaput in the same day Google went bankrupt, you lose nothing relevant.
OTOH, a very small amount of people have collected various physical medias and they are still in great conditions decades after.
FTFY.
Like my argument is so simple. I just given counter examples. Think of it like this. You said that all roses are red, then I said that roses have other colors and I provide proof by showing you a rose of a different color. In the end you said you don't get my argument. That is what happened. I provided examples where digital data clearly doesn't last forever and are easily lost and I also provided examples of physical media lasting decades, decades, and you tell me that you don't get my argument?
That's a false argument.

I'm telling you that (hypothetical example here, don't get caught up on the details (as in, I don't know a thing about roses, so I may be spouting BS in this one)) the majority of roses are red. And you are telling me that roses are equally spread among all colors when evidence clearly shows that the vast majority is red.

I'm not saying that White Roses don't exist. I'm telling you that anyone that isn't blind is able to tell you that most Roses are red. And yet you keep saying all roses are equally spread in number.
OTOH, to loose you game disk at the same time that your back up copy goes in flames. It is really a no-brainer: back-up your data.
If it was possible it would be great~
Essentially your argument is you not making back-up copies of your physical media (because it takes more effort and that you are incredibly careless to booth) against your digital data that you make multiple back-up of and place them to the care of other people. That is what you use as an argument that digital is better than physical in terms of permanence. That is, your argument is just anecdotal.
1) I'm not careless, I'm saying accidents happen. And accidents have a much bigger chance of harming physical data, making it last much less in the long run.
Like, geez, back when I actively played my playstation my game cds fell on the ground like... Twice per year or something? That's not being careless, things just slip from time to time... Yet you just need a bit of bad luck when it falls and you get a scratch that makes your game unplayable.

2) I dunno why you have this crazy notion that you can buy a PS3 game, burn a copy of it in a new CD and then play it, but you can't. Only the original copy will work.
And that's the whole issue with physical media, you can't copy it and it is more prone to accidents, making it last much less time than Digital Media, which lasts basically forever unless you lose your computer in the same day google goes bankrupt.
 

Ral

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A handful of copies survive the passage of years. The majority doesn't, for a good reason.
Here we go again. We are talking about permanence here. Yes, majority doesn't survive the years because pretty much most people don't care about about that, but those few that survived show the durability of physical media.

This is your logic. Most stone castles doesn't survive therefore stone is very fragile.

Like, I don't know why keep what we are arguing about.
That's a false claim. You can't back up physical media with DRM, the console simply doesn't run the copy.
As I said, the DRM doesn't make it easy but it is possible. Again, we are talking permanence and not ease. Sure you can't use your copies with your console but you have copies, and that is the point. While it might need some thinkering to use your copies, the importance here is that they aren't lost. We are talking of permanence of the data, not whether you can easily use the said data or not.

I mean, think of those game cartridges like with Atari, NES or Gameboy. They surely are more difficult to thinker with than your typical CD because they require more specialized equipment. But look now, those games are available now because of effort of those great people
It was easier back in the day, but companies improved their DRM on consoles a lot. It's why the pirate market of modern console games is almost dead.

And exactly because you can't make copies easily, that you have an issue of it being a million times easier to lose your media.
And here we go again. You are talking about ease and not actual permanence. Why do you keep doing this.

And correlation doesn't imply causation. DRM has been there for like a long, long time. And it is not only consoles that does this. Music Players and e-book readers for example did this long ago. Heck, OS like Windows do it to keep you from installing pirated software. What DRM does is not to make it impossible but hard. Most of the time though, the DRM effects the honest costumers the most (like having a hard time creating back-ups) while those scummy people would just circumvent it.
Unless your computer went kaput in the same day Google went bankrupt, you lose nothing relevant.
FTFY.

That's a false argument.
False argument HUH? When you are the one who keep doing it over and over and over.

Your argument is like this. You take one book put it in the washing machine. You take a different book and put it on the shelf. You conclude that book 1 last only a few minutes and book 2 could last forever, therefore book 2 is better in terms of permanence.
I'm telling you that (hypothetical example here, don't get caught up on the details (as in, I don't know a thing about roses, so I may be spouting BS in this one)) the majority of roses are red. And you are telling me that roses are equally spread among all colors when evidence clearly shows that the vast majority is red.
You are spouting bullshit.

The argument was the permanence of physical and digital. You arguing claim that physical doesn't last that long while digital last forever. I OTOH claim that the two have inherent vulnerabilities that makes them not inherently better than the other in terms of permanence.
I'm not saying that White Roses don't exist. I'm telling you that anyone that isn't blind is able to tell you that most Roses are red. And yet you keep saying all roses are equally spread in number.
And you are stretching the analogy here. My roses example is just to present a simplified easy to understand example of my argument. That is, I am simply presenting counterexamples. Stretching the analogy like that breaks the analogy.

When you claim that physical doesn't last and digtal last forever, I presented you counter examples. Physical media last long if given proper care and precaution and digital data is pretty much volatile without proper care and precaution.

This in not difficult to understand isn't it?
If it was possible it would be great~
It is possible. Kinda more involved and difficult, but possible. You are saying as if it can't be done.
1) I'm not careless, I'm saying accidents happen. And accidents have a much bigger chance of harming physical data, making it last much less in the long run.
Like, geez, back when I actively played my playstation my game cds fell on the ground like... Twice per year or something? That's not being careless, things just slip from time to time... Yet you just need a bit of bad luck when it falls and you get a scratch that makes your game unplayable.
How is that not being careless? You can call it bad luck if you maybe get seizures while handling the disk.

And accidents happen with digital too that results to them being lost . . . like what happens a lot of time.

You are saying as if accidents only happen with physical media and digital is accident free.
2) I dunno why you have this crazy notion that you can buy a PS3 game, burn a copy of it in a new CD and then play it, but you can't. Only the original copy will work.
You can but it is more involved. If you just can't do the hard work (because they are actually really involved, nerdy things), then just buy two disk or more, this is what actually people who knows their stuff do. Having multiple copies is the best way to mitigate problems. Though, as you can probably seem, it is kinda expensive. You can chuck that as one problem with physical, they aren't easy to work with.
And that's the whole issue with physical media, you can't copy it and it is more prone to accidents, making it last much less time than Digital Media, which lasts basically forever unless you lose your computer in the same day google goes bankrupt.
You can copy them, and digital is just as prone. Physical media have lasted decades while lots of digital data is lost everyday.

Again, you claim that digital last forever (while simultaneously provide example of how they could be lost). I think you might just have this belief that because Google is too big to fail. That Google would last forever. I get your trust and Google is a good company but that is just . . . no. Companies, especially internet based ones, have crumbled before. And you don't even need Google to go bankrupt. A cyber attack, mother nature, or just plain Goggle not wanting to keep your data anymore.

I mean, how long do you really have your digital data? Why do you have such conviction that they would last forever?

Really, your point only boils down to: digital media is great for me because they are easier to take care of than physical media. You give your digital data into the care of other people but you can't put that much effort in preserving your physical media.

That is fine, but that has little to do with actual durability and permanence of your games/data you get from either media. They both could last very long (especially with proper care and precaution) or disappear in a blink of an eye. In terms of permanence, or more properly archival quality, both are quite good (Though, yes, games you get digitally is more easy to back-up copies of, but you can do the same with physical just more involved. Heck, you can actually just turn the data in the physical media to digital. That is what exactly happens with these game ROMs.) There is really no remarkable advantage of one over the other when you talk about making things lasts. They are both good, just pick what you prefer or which is more convenient for you.
 
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AliceShiki

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Sure you can't use your copies with your console but you have copies, and that is the point.
At that point the data is meaningless and as good as non-existent. Arguing that an unusable CD is still a CD is arguing in bad faith.

A game CD that can't be ran in its appropriate console is not a CD, it's a paperweight.
How is that not being careless? You can call it bad luck if you maybe get seizures while handling the disk.
Or a cat can suddenly bite your leg; or you can trip on a wire; or you can hit your toe in a chair; or your cousin can suddenly surprise you; or maybe you're sick, tired and light-headed and wasn't careful enough when taking the cd out; or the cd got stuck in the console when you tried taking it out, making the pulling process face with some resistance, which led to it slip out of your hand.

Anything that causes a sudden movement might make you drop a disc on the floor. It's really not that hard.
I think you might just have this belief that because Google is too big to fail.
Unless it goes bankrupt on the same day my PC breaks, nothing will be lost, as my relevant data is safely stored in my PC and in the cloud.

It's the whole point of having backups, to have your data in more than one place.
Heck, you can actually just turn the data in the physical media to digital. That is what exactly happens with these game ROMs.)
Guess what? Now it's digital media. And there is a very good reason Physical Copies of old CDs can get crazy expensive while it is still super easy to get digital copies for free.

Because most of the Physical CDs are gone, so the few that still exist are crazy expensive... Meanwhile the Digital Data is widely available and will never disappear, so there isn't even a point in trying to sell it, so it is available for free for anyone that wants it.
Really, your point only boils down to: digital media is great for me because they are easier to take care of than physical media.
That's not what I said. What I said is that Digital Media lasts pretty much forever while Physical Media breaks all the time.

And that Digital Media is possible to back up, while Physical Media is not.

Stop trying to put words in my mouth to make your argument seem right. I don't care for ease of use, I'm plain and simply stating an undeniable truth. Digital lasts longer in 99% of the cases.
There is really no remarkable advantage of one over the other when you talk about making things lasts.
There is. Most physical stuff will stop working in a few years, most digital stuff will last close to forever.

Digital has a ridiculously huge advantage.
 
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Zoey

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@AliceShiki @Ral

While I'm sure both of you already noticed this, you've both been going around in circles during this argument for a while now and clearly no progress is being made so I'd say you'd all either try to find a way to discus this in a more productive manner or just stop.
Of coarse I'm not your boss but if either of you continue like this I'm just going to ask a moderator to close the thread as this has the chance to dissolve into a bunch of name calling sooner than later.
 

Ral

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At that point the data is meaningless and as good as non-existent. Arguing that an unusable CD is still a CD is arguing in bad faith.

A game CD that can't be ran in its appropriate console is not a CD, it's a paperweight.
Again. You are not talking about permanence. Why do you keep doing this. The data is not lost, it is just in a form that is more difficult.
Anything that causes a sudden movement might make you drop a disc on the floor. It's really not that hard.
Careless.
It's the whole point of having backups, to have your data in more than one place.
YEAH! Make Back-ups. Physical or digital, make back-ups. This is a no-brainer.
Guess what? Now it's digital media. And there is a very good reason Physical Copies of old CDs can get crazy expensive while it is still super easy to get digital copies for free.
Guess what? You just made a point that there is practically no difference between a game you brought on a physical media and one you download from the internet. They are all just all digital, a series of ones and zeroes. The only difference they have is where you get them.
Because most of the Physical CDs are gone, so the few that still exist are crazy expensive... Meanwhile the Digital Data is widely available and will never disappear, so there isn't even a point in trying to sell it, so it is available for free for anyone that wants it.
Seriously, why do keep claiming that digital data never disappear. They do.

Just think about it. These digital data actually are recorded in physical media like hard disk, as I said before. What essentially you claimed is that these physical medias last forever. They don't. What do survived is the copy of the data, what we called back-up. Have a new hard disk, copy the copy into it. Boom. Basically the idea of back-ups.

You can do the same thing with physical media (seriously all these data have to exist in physical media). Rip your game, burn it to new disk (and marbe do some stuff like removing DRM). Boom you have a physical media back up. Do all those other necessary care and precaution and the data from your original game disk would last long.

Like, seriously, what is the difference between the two (in terms of longevity). You just need to do practically the same thing, make back-ups. Admittedly, it is easier to do with one than the other.
That's not what I said. What I said is that Digital Media lasts pretty much forever while Physical Media breaks all the time.
And you keep arguing by saying that it is hard to back up your physical media and digital media being more convenient therefore last forever. That is exactly what you said.

And.

And that Digital Media is possible to back up, while Physical Media is not.
Seriously. BS. Not even funny.
Stop trying to put words in my mouth to make your argument seem right. I don't care for ease of use, I'm plain and simply stating an undeniable truth. Digital lasts longer in 99% of the cases.

There is. Most physical stuff will stop working in a few years, most digital stuff will last close to forever.

Digital has a ridiculously huge advantage.
And I presented evidence contrary to what you said. The roses analogy.

And surely all those examples of lost data that I have given to you means that digital data last forever. Absolutely.

And yes, Digital have huge advantages, but archival quality is not one of them. They do both good in that category. Just take your pick.
 
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Ral

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@AliceShiki @Ral

While I'm sure both of you already noticed this, you've both been going around in circles during this argument for a while now and clearly no progress is being made so I'd say you'd all either try to find a way to discus this in a more productive manner or just stop.
Of coarse I'm not your boss but if either of you continue like this I'm just going to ask a moderator to close the thread as this has the chance to dissolve into a bunch of name calling sooner than later.
Yes! Seriously, this discussion is getting tiresome. It is not fun anymore.

Yes! Close the thread. I give you my blessings.
 

AliceShiki

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@AliceShiki @Ral

While I'm sure both of you already noticed this, you've both been going around in circles during this argument for a while now and clearly no progress is being made so I'd say you'd all either try to find a way to discus this in a more productive manner or just stop.
Of coarse I'm not your boss but if either of you continue like this I'm just going to ask a moderator to close the thread as this has the chance to dissolve into a bunch of name calling sooner than later.
... We certainly went off in a tangent, but we're not breaking any rules or hijacking the thread, yanno?

I'm just pointing out how silly Ral's arguments are and he is being too childish to admit he is spouting nonsense. *shrugs*
Again. You are not talking about permanence. Why do you keep doing this. The data is not lost, it is just in a form that is more difficult
Unusable data and lost data are synonyms.
YEAH! Make Back-ups. Physical or digital, make back-ups. This is a no-brainer.
You can't make backups of the physical cds.
Guess what? You just made a point that there is practically no difference between a game you brought on a physical media and one you download from the internet. They are all just all digital, a series of ones and zeroes. The only difference they have is where you get them. Where they are stored.

And those CD's are pretty expensive because they become collectables and rare (though the data they have lives on because of effort of people to save them). It must have been great if you just taken care of your old game media, isn't it?
You just proved my point that the digital data lasts longer, as most of the physical cds broke, and are now rare, and as such are expensive.
Seriously, why do keep claiming that digital data never disappear. They do.

Just think about it. These digital data actually are recorded in physical media like hard disk, as I said before. What essentially you claimed is that these physical medias last forever. They don't. What do survived is the copy of the data that was copied from the hard drive, what we called back-up. Have a new hard disk, copy the copy into it. Boom. Basically the idea of back-ups.

You can do the same thing with physical media (seriously all these data have to exist in physical media). Rip your game, burn it to new disk (and marbe do some stuff like removing DRM). Boom you have a physical media back up. Do all those other necessary care and precaution and the data from your original game disk would last long.

Like, seriously, what is the difference between the two (in terms of longevity).
Because backups exist for digital media, but they don't for physical media.

I dunno why you keep hitting the backup argument for physical media when it is impossible to do so.

You burn a copy of your CD, your CD don't run. Your backup is as useful as a paper weight... As in, it is not a meaningful backup in any shape or form.
And you keep arguing by saying that it is hard to back up your physical media and digital media being more convenient therefore last forever. That is exactly what you said.
Impossible, not hard. Two different things.

Hard means you can do it if you want. Impossible means you can't, which is exactly what it happens with physical media due to having proper DRM in the CDs and Consoles.

Digital Media can be stored in multiple places due to copying being a possibility. Physical media you have one, and if it broke, you lost it forever... Unless you buy a new one of course.

It has nothing to do with convenience. One lasts longer than the other, as simple as that.
And surely all those examples of lost data that I have given to you means that digital data last forever. Absolutely.
Again, unless both my computer breaks and google goes bankrupt in the exact same day, it is impossible to lose my data.

Your examples say that it is possible for google to lose my data. Your examples also say that it is possible for my computer to lose my data.

... Losing both on the same day? That's nigh-impossible. And if I don't lose them in the exact same day, I can just make a 3rd backup of the data, essentially keeping it safe again. (And that's assuming I don't have a 3rd backup already)

In other words, all your examples of virtual data being lost are pointless because Digital Backups exist, while Physical backups do not.
And yes, Digital have huge advantages, but archival quality is not one of them. They do both good in that category. Just take your pick.
Physical does okay in the archiving category, Digital is nigh-perfect in the archiving category.

That is the whole point.
 

Zoey

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So I was thinking that instead of trying to decide which medium is superior it may be more fun to discus the pros and cons of each medium (because clearly each is useful in it's own way so arguing over which is the best is quite futile).
Though we should probably hash out what digital and physical mean just for the convenience of discussion, for example I still don't know if you two consider something downloaded from the internet and saved to your hard drive as physical or digital (or maybe even a combination of the two, there could be a grey zone that we're not considering).

Also I feel I might have been a bit to harsh with the way I worded my last post, looking back I could of probably worded it better. I didn't really want to rain on your parade or anything.
 

GDLiZy

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It was fun while it lasts, but towards the end, it is just going round and round. I can't even be bothered to read it all :blob_neutral:

Let's say, to each of our own; just take it to the DM?
 

Alverost

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I didn't really want to rain on your parade or anything.
Rain on it, summon a thunderstorm, raise the ships.

On another note, you both should probably settle it down soon since it's obvious the convo is going nowhere. Find a middle ground I would say or you both write up your concluding points to summarise your arguments.
 

yunano34a1

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"This feels like what if you want your waifu to be existing in real life or in digital forever but you very well know nothing is better since you're fully aware that you're taking a short term pleasure as escapism of your harsh reality."
 

Ral

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On another note, you both should probably settle it down soon since it's obvious the convo is going nowhere. Find a middle ground I would say or you both write up your concluding points to summarise your arguments.

Yeah. The discussion is going nowhere. AliceShiki specially is just using opinions and anecdotes (and even made up stuff) as if they are valid arguments and ignores actual real stuff and data just because it doesn't agree with her points.

Seriously, whether you prefer physical or digital is pretty much depends on your preference. Both works really well.

But enough of that.
So I was thinking that instead of trying to decide which medium is superior it may be more fun to discus the pros and cons of each medium (because clearly each is useful in it's own way so arguing over which is the best is quite futile).
Though we should probably hash out what digital and physical mean just for the convenience of discussion, for example I still don't know if you two consider something downloaded from the internet and saved to your hard drive as physical or digital (or maybe even a combination of the two, there could be a grey zone that we're not considering).
Digital. Physical or digital actually talks about the means you get the data (games, documents, pictures, whatever). That is, either digital of physical distribution.

Physical means the data come in storage media like Cartridges, Tapes, CD, DVD, Blue Ray, and including things like Flash Drives (there are stuff distributed this way like Operating Systems and Movies) or built in the devices (like Game & Watch and arcade units). Digital means you get them by downloading them from the internet. Steam is a digital distribution service (and also those internet based stuff like Netflix or Kindle). The terms are kinda terrible but that is the naming sense of humans for you.

Before the existence of fast internet, most media is distributed physically. I mean, imagine sending a 2 hour movie through dial-up. It would take several huge hours if not days.

This term kinda extended informally to storage too. If you store your stuff in your hard drive or CD, which means you can access them without the need of the internet, then it is physical. If it is in something the cloud or online storage services, which means you can only access them through the internet, then digital.

That is if I download a movie from the internet, then I get it through digital means. If I burn the movie to a CD then give the CD to a friend, then my friend received it through physical means. If I bought a game cartridge, I get the game (ROM) through physical means. If I rip the game ROM from the cartridge and share to other people in the internet, those people who download the game ROM received it through digital means.
 
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BenJepheneT

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if anything, i'd rather take physical copies, considering the absolute state of digital games at this point. Doom Eternal Denuvo, GTA IV removal of popular radio songs, fucked up big fixes on Borderlands 3--

if anything i'd rather get the game on the disk or a hard drive, and get bug fixes from gaming forums. i can't trust developers anymore than actual releases at this point.
 

Ral

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if anything, i'd rather take physical copies, considering the absolute state of digital games at this point. Doom Eternal Denuvo, GTA IV removal of popular radio songs, fucked up big fixes on Borderlands 3--

if anything i'd rather get the game on the disk or a hard drive, and get bug fixes from gaming forums. i can't trust developers anymore than actual releases at this point.
Yeah, they are thinking more about money than their costumers. They want control over their costumers and the products they sell (more like licensed-not-sold actually) so that they could squeeze out more money from you.
 

BloodyLycoris

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Physical, same for music. Digital is good and well, but there's something great about being able to hold a physical proof of your possession. Not that i get many chances of obtaining physical copies where I live.
My exact words:blob_teehee:.
 

BloodyLycoris

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Skip them.

Or you want to actually know our arguments, just read the first half a dozen or so. It gets really repetitive after that.
Yeah, just did that.
Your messages were just too long :blob_teehee:.
 

Ral

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Yeah, just did that.
Your messages were just too long :blob_teehee:.
:oops:

Hahaha. I just want to be clear and provide very detailed explanation and lots of examples. But the points are already clear in the first few messages. The rest is just discussions, really long and kinda repetetive, that expands on the main points.
 

Zoey

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Digital. Physical or digital actually talks about the means you get the data (games, documents, pictures, whatever). That is, either digital of physical distribution.

Physical means the data come in storage media like Cartridges, Tapes, CD, DVD, Blue Ray, and including things like Flash Drives (there are stuff distributed this way like Operating Systems and Movies) or built in the devices (like Game & Watch and arcade units). Digital means you get them by downloading them from the internet. Steam is a digital distribution service (and also those internet based stuff like Netflix or Kindle). The terms are kinda terrible but that is the naming sense of humans for you.

Before the existence of fast internet, most media is distributed physically. I mean, imagine sending a 2 hour movie through dial-up. It would take several huge hours if not days.

This term kinda extended informally to storage too. If you store your stuff in your hard drive or CD, which means you can access them without the need of the internet, then it is physical. If it is in something the cloud or online storage services, which means you can only access them through the internet, then digital.

That is if I download a movie from the internet, then I get it through digital means. If I burn the movie to a CD then give the CD to a friend, then my friend received it through physical means. If I bought a game cartridge, I get the game (ROM) through physical means. If I rip the game ROM from the cartridge and share to other people in the internet, those people who download the game ROM received it through digital means.
That makes a lot of sense actually.
 
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