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From: bothner@Navajo.ARPA
Newsgroups: net.micro.pc,net.micro,net.legal,net.lang
Subject: Re: Microsoft MASM upgrades (disclaimers)
Message-ID: <292@Navajo.ARPA>
Date: Thu, 2-Jan-86 23:33:37 EST
Article-I.D.: Navajo.292
Posted: Thu Jan  2 23:33:37 1986
Date-Received: Sat, 4-Jan-86 05:36:10 EST
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{decvax,ucbvax,ihnp4}!decwrl!mips!kim (Kim DeVaughn) writes:
> Gordon Letwin of Microsoft replies (with no disclaimer, so I assume this is
> representitive of Microsoft's official policy):

Please don't assume anything of the sort! For years people have been
asked to not clog the network (and my terminal) with their stupid
disclaimers. People like you cause their lawyers to think themselves
justified in enforcing this obnoxious habit.

Repeat one hundred times:
ANY MESSAGE ON ANY SUBJECT ONLY REPRESENTS THE OPINION OF THE POSTER!

As to the the subject of the debate (caveat: I missed the first
messages, so this may off the wall):

It is the seller of a product who is legally responsible for
it to the buyer. This probably gets very complicated what with
distinguishing between sellers, re-sellers, agents of sellers,
etc, and the possibility of bankruptcy, but it would seen clear
that it is Fujitsu who is responsible for something when you buy
it from them. The copyright on a product has nothing to do with
who is liable \to you/ for defects in it. (If you buy a book
which has half the pages missing, you take it to the bookstore,
not the author.)

> I suppose next you'll tell me that if I buy a Microsoft assembler from
> ComputerLand, that's where my support will come from.

Yes, assuming Computerland is a re-seller rather than an agent.
Of course, Microsoft has a legal obligation to Computerland for the
quality of its products. If a program is so broken that you can claim
it violates the "implied warranty of sale" (which usually takes
precedence over any bogus disclaimers), you are entitled to get it
fixed, replaced or refunded \from Computerland, even if Microsoft
were bankrupt/. Of course, as a service to its dealers, Microsoft may
provide support without requiring you to go through Computerland,
but they are not obliged to.

> If you want to use a more accurate analogy, let's talk about the tires that
> came on your Audi.  OK, you find a tire that's bad due to a design defect;
> your Audi dealer won't take the responsibility for it.

He'd better, since he \is/ responsible. It is not \your/ problem
to contact the tire manufacturer, it is his.

> Or let's say that fancy AM-FM-Cassette player in your Audi breaks.  Audi
> won't fix it for you.  They may pull it out of the car, but then it goes
> over to the people who designed and manufactured it.

Exactly, but note that it is Audi who has to pull it out of the car
and send it the manufacturer, not you.

[After flaming about disclaimers, I will still insert a small one
here: Take these as the opinions of a non-legally trained person.]
-- 
	--Per Bothner
Bothner@su-navajo	...!decwrl!glacier!navajo!bothner
Computer Science Dept., Stanford University, Stanford CA 94305