Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!sharkey!itivax!scs
From: scs@itivax.iti.org (Steve C. Simmons)
Newsgroups: comp.org.usenix
Subject: Re^2: First impressions
Message-ID: <2165@itivax.iti.org>
Date: 15 Jul 89 17:15:38 GMT
References: <444@warlock.UUCP> <11753@ulysses.homer.nj.att.com> <33151@apple.Apple.COM>
Organization: Industrial Technology Institute, Ann Arbor, MI.
Lines: 31

chuq@Apple.COM (Chuq Von Rospach) writes:

>Un*x is big business now. Different Un*x boxes are fighting for revenue and
>value-added compatibility is the name of the game ("yes, we're compatible,
>but we just happen to have all this neat stuff nobody else has...."). So I'm
>sure some folks are doing lots of interesting things they'd love to talk
>about but the lawyers won't let them -- or by the time they do get approval,
>it isn't interesting any more. 

Ugh!  You hit that nail on the head.  While working for an unnamed company
I did some fun work with floating licence servers.  I proposed writing it
up for USENIX, and was turned down by the lawyers.  As a counterproposal,
they suggested I write it up for an internal technical conference.  I did
so, then left the company before the conference.  The SOBs wouldn't even
let me have a copy of my own paper!  Fortunately many of my co-workers
were real human beings and made me copies of the proceedings.

Can't put it on my resume, tho.  It's either "Let's see, you wrote this
paper on floating licence servers in a heterogenous environment, but I
can't get a copy because it's secret? Suuuurrreeee...." -- or -- "Let's
see, you wrote this paper on floating licence servers in a heterogenous
environment, and are now showing me a copy on it that says 'Confidential
and Proprietary -- Not For Release' on every page? Don't call us, we'll
call you."  Any senior management types that are reading this newgroup:
you *can* write papers without giving away the store.  And the favorable
publicity you get at USENIX is worth its weight in gold.  Look at Marc
Rochkind and his stuff.
-- 
Steve Simmons		          scs@vax3.iti.org
Industrial Technology Institute     Ann Arbor, MI.
"Velveeta -- the Spam of Cheeses!" -- Uncle Bonsai