Date: Fri, 05 Sep 2003 15:35:09 +0100 From: Mark Murray <mark@grondar.org> To: Bill Moran <wmoran@potentialtech.com> Cc: freebsd-chat@freebsd.org Subject: Re: Ugly Huge BSD Monster Message-ID: <200309051435.h85EZ9qi038471@grimreaper.grondar.org> In-Reply-To: Your message of "Fri, 05 Sep 2003 09:58:09 EDT." <3F589671.1010404@potentialtech.com>
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Bill Moran writes: > > Lawsuits are how you _defend_, not how you _conduct_. > > The crux of the problem, however, is where the fine line between defend > and conduct lie. Sure :-). I am well prepared to concede that there is a rich field of Grey Area(tm) to play in. > If I write a program that does something totally unique (hard to imagine > in this day and age, but bear with me) and market it. Then somone else > makes a program that does the exact same thing (although, written from > scratch), have they violated my rights? Should I defend myself? Legally, if you have patented your idea/code, then the priveliges granted to you (others may call those "rights" ;-) ) would suggest you have a defendable case. > In my opinion, no. They're allowed to write competing software. In the absence of a patent, sure. > If I write this program, and someone reverse engineers part or all of > my code (or steals the source, etc) and markets that, should I defend? > In my opinion, yes. In that case, they are stealing my work, not my > ideas. DMCA. If I reverse engineer your work, and then write _completeley_new_ and better code to do the same thing, where are we? If I take apart your mousetrap to see what oil you use on the hinges, where are we? If I do chemical analysis of your mousetrap's spring to improve the spring in my gronkulators, where are we? > Altough other people would consider me wrong for my opinion on the second > circumstance. Right or wrong, these differences of opinion are the > basis for this whole argument and many others that are relevent to our > profession. Agreed. Where abominations like DMCA, and lesser abominations like software patents fail is where liars^Wlawyers make their livings, and where disreputable "inventors" grovel in their shite for easy money. M -- Mark Murray iumop ap!sdn w,I idlaH
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