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From: guy@rlgvax.UUCP (Guy Harris)
Newsgroups: net.flame,net.unix,net.unix-wizards,net.legal
Subject: Re: Where's the (c) on unix?
Message-ID: <1823@rlgvax.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 22-Mar-84 23:54:07 EST
Article-I.D.: rlgvax.1823
Posted: Thu Mar 22 23:54:07 1984
Date-Received: Sun, 25-Mar-84 07:06:19 EST
References: <933@sdcrdcf.UUCP>
Organization: CCI Office Systems Group, Reston, VA
Lines: 29

> source not found:
> 	uptime

> source access denied:
> 	Mail            uptime          ex (& vi)

Mail is not marked with any copyright notice, and "ex" is - copyright Regents
of the U of Ca.  The source to "uptime" is called "w.c" (ever notice how the
output of "uptime" looks like the first line of "w"?  There's a reason for
that...) and has no copyright notice; if you're curious about that one ask
mark@cbosgd.UUCP who wrote it.  (Mail also appears in Bell's System V Release
2 under the pseudonym of "mailx".)

> How are we poor innocent programmers to know what's copyrighted and what
> isn't if BTL doesn't bother marking the stuff and there's non-copyrighted
> stuff in the same directories?

NONE OF BELL'S UNIX CODE IS COPYRIGHTED.  IT IS PROTECTED BY TRADE SECRET
PROTECTION, WHICH IS MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE WITH COPYRIGHTING.

They don't "publish" their code in an unrestricted fashion.  They make
everybody who buys UNIX source sign a license agreement with a non-disclosure
clause that says "I'm telling you a secret and you'd better not tell anyone else
if you don't want our lawyers on your *ss."  You can't blame Bell for not
putting a copyright notice on their code; you can possibly blame your
management for not explaining the terms of the UNIX license.

	Guy Harris
	{seismo,ihnp4,allegra}!rlgvax!guy