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From: thomps@gitpyr.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.sources.d
Subject: Re: Public Domain (?) Yacc (Important) [I TOLD the NET SO!!]
Message-ID: <3066@gitpyr.gatech.EDU>
Date: Mon, 9-Feb-87 20:40:28 EST
Article-I.D.: gitpyr.3066
Posted: Mon Feb  9 20:40:28 1987
Date-Received: Tue, 10-Feb-87 18:37:42 EST
References: <142@ems.UUCP> <464@yetti.UUCP> <1186@husc6.UUCP> <1191@husc6.UUCP>
Organization: Georgia Institute of Technology
Lines: 44
Summary: Don't kill the net on principle

In article <1191@husc6.UUCP>, ddl@husc6.UUCP (Dan Lanciani) writes:
> In article <3056@gitpyr.gatech.EDU>, thomps@gitpyr.gatech.EDU (Ken Thompson) writes:
> > Those of us who would like to see the net continue to exist need to 
> > protect the legal integrity of the net. If AT&T decided to legally 
> > challenge a number of major backbone sites the net might quickly cease
> > to exist. Most would probably simply drop the net like  hot potato.
> 
> 	Are you sure this is the "legal integrity" of the net and not
> the AT&T-compatibility of the net?  I suspect that if I decided to legally
> challenge the net because of something I thought was stolen from me then
> nobody would even notice.  This is because I can't aford a good (set of)
> lawyer(s).  Does might make right?  In other words, if the reason for not
> doing X is that X is illegal, and even that the law will punish you for
> doing X, then that is reasonable.  On the other hand, if the reason for
> not doing X is that X's owner can sue you out of existence, then the "law"
> is strongly biased in favor of might.  Note that I am *not* talking about
> the morality of stealing software; this is a completely different issue.
> 

I personally do not want to endanger the net over a questionable issue.
I don't know who is right and who is wrong in this case legally.
My concern is that I would rather see the code assumed to be proprietary
and kept off the net until proven otherwise because I still feel the
net is vuknerable to lawsuits and I don't want it to disappear over
what appears to be a questionable case anyway judging by the 
discussion. I have no desire to either protect or harm AT&T. I am more
concerned about protecting the net. Georgia Tech is a backbone site and
am sure if threatened with a major lawsuit over something to do with
the net they would drop it like a hot potato. It would have nothing
to do with intimidation. It would simply be a case that the powers that
be (In this case probably the Ga, University System Board of regents)
wouldn't think the net worth fighting a major lawsuit for regardless
of right or wrong. You may be correct that no one would take you
seriously if you threatened to sue because unfortunately lawsuits take
a lot of money and your ability to sustain a suit would probably be 
doubted.


and no
-- 
Ken Thompson (No not that Ken Thompson) 
Georgia Tech Research Institute
Georgia Insitute of Technology, Atlanta Georgia, 30332
...!{akgua,allegra,amd,hplabs,ihnp4,seismo,ut-ngp}!gatech!gitpyr!thomps