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From: rnf@shumv1.uucp (Rick Fincher)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple
Subject: Re: ShrinkIt Compression (modified
Message-ID: <1989Dec10.183431.4055@ncsuvx.ncsu.edu>
Date: 10 Dec 89 18:34:31 GMT
References: <20846@<1989Dec8> <113300217@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu>
Reply-To: rnf@shumv1.ncsu.edu (Rick Fincher)
Organization: NCSU Computing Center
Lines: 51

In article <113300217@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu> saa33413@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu writes:
>
>Try telling all that to Apple.  They're the ones with the look-and-feel suits
>against imitators of the desktop interface used by the IIGS and Macintosh.

They sued Microsoft because they licensed code to them and the thought they
exceeded the license.  They also feel that their additions to the XEROX
interface (which Apple licensed) should be protected.  They aren't faring so
well in court.  I can see a copyright issue in making a screen look just 
like someone elses.  After all Apple spent millions in human interface
studies when developing the Mac interface.  Other companies shouldn't be able
to rip off their work or their code.  I think that is different from the
idea of, say, a pull down menu.  Other companies should just make theirs look
non-identical to Apple's.

>(Ever wonder why the interface of the NeXT is so different from the Mac when
>Steve Jobs designed both the Mac and the NeXT?  Now you know!)

Actually jobs didn't design either.  He stepped in to head the Mac design team
after the project was started.  He is responsible for for a lot of what's good
AND what was bad about the original Mac.

Guy Kawasaki told a story about jobs: Jobs was committed to using the 5.25
inch Twiggy drives (the ones in the original Lisa) in the Mac.  All the 
engineers knew that 3.5 drives were the way of the future but Jobs had forbid
them to even talk about it, and had banned Sony (they make the 3.5's) engin-
eers from even visiting Apple.  Well the engineers knew they were right so 
they invited the president of Sony in, behind Jobs' back, to discuss getting 
the drives.  Well, while they were talking Jobs came in the building, so they
stuffed this aged white haired-Japanese gentleman into a closet.  His English
was not too good and he was very confused.  Jobs came in and everyone started
counting holes in the ceiling, trying not to look guilty.  When he left they
pulled the guy out of the closet and continued the discussion.  Needless to
say it was eventually decided that 3.5's would be used, and they had the sup-
plier on line to provide them!

>The idea of
>putting a patent on an idea is, IMHO, unconscionable, but do you think that
>stops the good ole boys in Cupertino?  I don't think so.
>

I agree, after all, it was a XEROX idea that spawned the Mac.  I don't think 
Apple can win in court.  I think their moves are just corporate hardball in
the marketing game.  They are trying to slow down all of the other guys while 
they try to get as mch of the post MS-DOS market as possible.  The millions 
they spend on no-win legal actions will more than be offset by increased sales
in machines.  History shows that no one can stop a good idea.


Rick Fincher
rnf@shumv1.ncsu.edu