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Date:      Fri, 05 Sep 2003 09:58:09 -0400
From:      Bill Moran <wmoran@potentialtech.com>
To:        Mark Murray <mark@grondar.org>
Cc:        freebsd-chat@freebsd.org
Subject:   Re: Ugly Huge BSD Monster
Message-ID:  <3F589671.1010404@potentialtech.com>
In-Reply-To: <200309051246.h85Ckaqi037611@grimreaper.grondar.org>
References:  <200309051246.h85Ckaqi037611@grimreaper.grondar.org>

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Mark Murray wrote:
> Bill Moran writes:
> 
>>My point here is that it's not the GPL that's causing the problems, it's
>>the legal system, and the copanies that try to use it as a revenue stream.
>>As long as the legal system allows people to file lawsuits as a method of
>>generating income (as opposed to actually protecting themselves) there will
>>always be the danger of _any_ license, copyright, or agreement of any kind
>>creating a lawsuit.
> 
> Very strong agreement.
> 
> I'm getting more than somewhat sick of folks ("one-product-wonders")
> who produce one Album/Idea/BetterMousetrap and spend the rest of
> their lives in lawsuits, hunting down violators (real and imagined)
> rather than producing more.
> 
> 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.

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?
In my opinion, no.  They're allowed to write competing software.

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.

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.

-- 
Bill Moran
Potential Technologies
http://www.potentialtech.com



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