Indeed, it's not defined by common sense or (thank god) what you "feel is right": it's defined by the law, which doesn't agree with such absurd concepts as it being illegal to save data onto a disk.
Even the DMCA doesn't prevent that: it prevents bypassing certain types of copy protection schemes. By your logic, the DMCA makes it illegal to dump a DVD to your hard disc, which is categorically false: it is only illegal to break the CSS encryption, not to dump the data. It is also not illegal to dump the video data after it has left the decoder.
I suggest you do more reading on the legal system and its precedents (particularly Sony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios, Inc.) before you attempt to comment on it.
Of course, this all applies to the US. Your mileage may vary in other countries.
Even the DMCA doesn't prevent that: it prevents bypassing certain types of copy protection schemes. By your logic, the DMCA makes it illegal to dump a DVD to your hard disc, which is categorically false: it is only illegal to break the CSS encryption, not to dump the data. It is also not illegal to dump the video data after it has left the decoder.
I suggest you do more reading on the legal system and its precedents (particularly Sony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios, Inc.) before you attempt to comment on it.
Of course, this all applies to the US. Your mileage may vary in other countries.