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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!rutgers!seismo!ut-sally!std-unix
From: std-unix@ut-sally.UUCP
Newsgroups: mod.std.unix
Subject: Re: 1003.2 Command Groups (Really UUCP protocol)
Message-ID: <7110@ut-sally.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 7-Feb-87 02:57:31 EST
Article-I.D.: ut-sally.7110
Posted: Sat Feb  7 02:57:31 1987
Date-Received: Mon, 9-Feb-87 04:04:01 EST
References: <6710@ut-sally.UUCP> <6783@ut-sally.UUCP> <6818@ut-sally.UUCP> <7002@ut-sally.UUCP> <7037@ut-sally.UUCP> <7062@ut-sally.UUCP>
Sender: std-unix@ut-sally.UUCP
Reply-To: mike@hcr.UUCP (Mike Tilson)
Lines: 20
Approved: jsq@sally.utexas.edu

It was suggested that someone could read the UNIX source code and then
publish a document on the uucp protocols without violation of copyright.
That would let the rest of the world freely implement uucp-compatible
systems.

It may be true that copyright wouldn't be violated (although in this
scenario you might be walking a thin line), but this would certainly
violate the UNIX source code license agreement.  The license is a contract
between AT&T and the person receiving the source code.  Among other
things, it calls for the protection of the source code as a trade
secret.  As a trade secret, the methods used as well as the actual
code are both protected.  You can reverse engineer by looking at the
behavior of a binary system or by reading the published documents, but
you can't reverse engineer by reading the source code without violating
the license agreement.

/Michael Tilson, HCR Corporation
/{utzoo,...}!hcr!mike

Volume-Number: Volume 9, Number 52