Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!iuvax!cica!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!APPLE.COM!nli!jym
From: nli!jym@APPLE.COM
Newsgroups: gnu.misc.discuss
Subject: Customizable Interfaces at Risk?
Message-ID: <8907312348.AA08338@nlp9>
Date: 31 Jul 89 23:48:57 GMT
Sender: news@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu
Reply-To: gnu-misc-discuss@cis.ohio-state.edu
Organization: Natural Languages, Inc.
Lines: 17

Company A and Company B have a "Look and Feel"-based legal dispute and
 settle on two different interfaces.  The two are much the same, except
  that A's has pop-up menus and a mailbox icon in the upper right corner
   and B's has pull-down menus and a mailbox icon in the lower right
    corner.

Now suppose I come along with an interface which, Emacs-style, has loads
 of user-definable options.  My interface makes it possible to choose between
  pop-up menus and pull-down menus.  My interface lets you put a mailbox icon
   in any of the four corners (and anywhere else on the screen).  Thus, it is
    possible to customize the interface to work like the A's interface or B's
     interface.

Does that mean A *and* B can slap a "Look and Feel" on me?  Does the answer
 depend on whether or I not I've provided templates to help my interface look
  like their interfaces?  If I've documented how to do it?
   <_Jym_>