From: Felix Ungman (felix@hu.se)
Date: Wed Jul 04 2001 - 07:57:24 MDT
Alex F. Bokov <alexboko@umich.edu> wrote:
>I would not call such a contract robust. By way of comparison, if you
>offer to sell me a physical object or the service of your skills, you
>can withold the good or service if I do not pay. The
>"goods/services-for-cash" exchange therefore enforces its own terms.
A one-shot simultanious thing-for-cash exchange does not require a contract at all. We either agree and exchange, or don't.
If things just get slightly more difficult we need a contract to cover the responsabilities. What should the interest be if I'm late with payment. Is it OK to do partial delivery, etc.
>You can't enforce a copyright without relying on a huge, global
>network of bureaucrats, politicians, and lawyers.
That's true of any contract. How do you enforce me to pay back a loan to you?
Alex F. Bokov:
>By the way, what if I take Symphony #5 by Felix, add some movements
>and call it Symphony #5 by Felix and Alex. Or even Symphony #5 by
>Felix with some minor enhancements by Alex. What makes you think this
>evidences a lack of integrity? I cite you as the original author, and
>I honestly disclose where I've altered your work.
Samantha Atkins
>But there are huge questions in there of exactly what "my"
>should and should not apply to and to what degree it should
>apply and for how long.
If it's a derivative work, you'll need my permission. Admittedly, it's sometimes tricky to determince wheter it's a derivative work or not. It's an sliding scale, it depends on the amount of information, or rather complexity of the work involved.
Alex F. Bokov again:
>Certainly. I'd respect inherently *uncopyable* software far more than
>software that somebody else's ethics or laws presume to restrict me
>from copying.
Do you have an online bank account? If it's possible to break in to that, would it be ethical? Should it be legal?
>That said, I will believe it when I see it. Users can
>capture streaming content; they can use debuggers and disassemblers to
>crack any password or serial number; they can then use p2p networks or
>anonymous online space to share the 'liberated' software.
Yes I agree, there will always be harmful petty "thievs" thinkering with such things for fun. Then there are "commercial" pirates that duplicates anything that sell.
/felix
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