Path: utzoo!utgpu!watserv1!watmath!uunet!snorkelwacker!mintaka!yale!cmcl2!mcclb0!smith
From: smith@mcclb0.med.nyu.edu
Newsgroups: bionet.molbio.genbank
Subject: Re: GenBank software
Message-ID: <6948.26c115fd@mcclb0.med.nyu.edu>
Date: 9 Aug 90 11:51:25 GMT
References: <9008081410.AA02507@alw.nih.gov>
Organization: NYU Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
Lines: 30

In article <9008081410.AA02507@alw.nih.gov>, CZJ@CU.NIH.GOV writes:
> As one of the Project Officers of the GenBank Contract, I thought it
> would be appropriate to respond to some of the issues raised by Dan
> Davison in his "I must have been out of the room" messages.
...
> Despite this position, it is obvious that some software, i.e. Jim
> Fickett's program to translate GenBank is in use by GenBank and will
> have to be modified to parse the new features table.  Although it is
> perfectly feasible to distribute this program, the problem for GenBank
> is one of support.  

There is nothing morally wrong in distributing a program and saying that it 
is being provided as an example to aid development, and that it is 
distributed 'as-is'.  This eliminates the support issue.  If people have 
questions, they can post them to this, or some other list, for resolution. No 
one HAS to respond.  Everyone can benefit from this, even the people at 
GenBank who may pick up an idea or two.

I think it is important to emphasize the concept of a 'community of peers'. 
People should bee free to make good-faith 'submissions' of program, even if it 
has drawbacks they are aware of.  The community then decides whether it is 
able to use it.  The individual's choice.  It benefits no one to withhold a 
program when the sole reason for doing so is that they cannot provide 'phone 
support.

+---------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|Ross Smith, Cell Biology,  NYU Medical Center,  550 First Ave.,  NYC, 10016|
|Phone: (212) 340-5356: FAX: (212) 340-8139 (Alternate NYUMC) (212) 340-7190|
|E-Mail:  SMITH@NYUMED.BITNET (BITNET),  SMITH@MCCLB0.MED.NYU.EDU (Internet)|
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