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From: ramsdell@linus.mitre.org (John D. Ramsdell)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.next
Subject: Boycott NeXT offerings that include a free copy of Lotus Improv
Message-ID: <123663@linus.mitre.org>
Date: 18 Oct 90 10:15:36 GMT
Reply-To: ramsdell@mitre.org
Organization: The MITRE Corporation, Bedford MA
Lines: 29

Enclosed are some corrections to my initial plead, and pointers to
well thought out papers on the issue of interface copyrights.

Lotus is trying to make it illegal to write software even partially
compatible in its behavior with existing software.  If you write a
program that does a similar job, they will sue you.  The threat is
real; Lotus is currently suing Borland over Quattro not because it
implements the same interface, but because you can customize the
interface to emulate Lotus 1-2-3!

By distributing promotional copies of Lotus Improv, NeXT Inc. is
aiding and abiding a company that, in my opinion, engages in
monopolistic practices.  I urge you to refuse to buy NeXT offerings
that include a free copy of Lotus Improv.  In practice, this means
simply waiting until 1991 to place your order.  If we do not take a
stand now and make our concerns clear to the NeXT management, they may
be the next to sue.

Some of the responses to my initial plead revealed enormous ignorance
about the issue of interface copyright.  I hope you all will read this
year's November and May issues of the Communications of the ACM.  An
informed and active user community is our only hope for protection
against forces of greed.

John D. Ramsdell

P.S.  To the best of my knowledge, The MITRE Corporation does not have
a policy on interface copyright, so the opinions expressed within do
not represent the official policy of my company.