Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!mnetor!seismo!ut-sally!husc6!think!ames!ptsfa!hoptoad!farren
From: farren@hoptoad.uucp (Mike Farren)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: PD Boot Disks
Message-ID: <2142@hoptoad.uucp>
Date: Sun, 17-May-87 07:28:04 EDT
Article-I.D.: hoptoad.2142
Posted: Sun May 17 07:28:04 1987
Date-Received: Sun, 17-May-87 19:38:02 EDT
References: <504@myrias.UUCP> <1868@cbmvax.cbmvax.cbm.UUCP> <1541@cadovax.UUCP>
Reply-To: farren@hoptoad.UUCP (Mike Farren)
Organization: Nebula Consultants in San Francisco
Lines: 69
Keywords: Draco compiler shareware includes


Keith Doyle seems to have some problems.  Here are my responses.  Sorry,
Keith, but it doesn't seem "fuzzy" to me!

In article <1541@cadovax.UUCP> keithd@cadovax.UUCP (Keith Doyle) writes:
>In article <1868@cbmvax.cbmvax.cbm.UUCP> carolyn@cbmvax.UUCP writes:
>>   I'd like to clarify a legal issue here.  Files from the WorkBench disk
>>may not be distributed on shareware or freeware or in any publicly
>>redistributable manner.  The contents of the Workbench disk is copyrighted.
>
>This is still a bit fuzzy in my mind.  Does that mean you can do an
>'install' on a newly formatted disk without obtaining a license or not?

Of course you can.  What you can't do is to sell or (strictly) give that disk
to the public.

>What about the ram-handler, disk-validator, and port-handler and 
>system-configuration?  If these aren't included, what is the impact 
>of booting a disk without these on it? 

Probably won't boot.  I'm not going to check it out - I've had enough
disk problems as it is!  It seems pretty clear from Carolyn's
statement that these files cannot be distributed.

>I'm trying to decide if what you are saying is that it is not legal to
>produce a public domain disk that is self-bootable.

Seems to me that that's exactly what she's saying.

>A friend of mine is a commercial artist that has a series
>of his images and a PD slideshow on it configured to boot up and run the
>slideshow.  Is it legal for him to distribute it PD?  If so, could he
>decide to charge for it without incurring the $100? (starving artist
>counts pennies).

No, he cannot distribute it as a bootable disk, with or without
charging for it.

>If someone decided to contribute $100 to Fred Fish for the 
>purpose of getting a workbench license, can we all then just give Fred 
>bootable disks and have him distribute them all for us?

Presumably he could, if and only if nobody else ever copied them.
Since I have gotten most of my Fish disks from other sources than
Fred, it seems that this would not be practical.

>>   Publicly redistributable software can be distributed with an installation
>>script designed to strip a user's copy of Workbench and install itself
>>onto that copy of Workbench.
>
>That's different than a boot disk designed for the dumb dumb user who
>wouldn't even know how to execute a script or run the CLI.  We're talking
>first-time Amiga users here.

Seems to me that one solution would be for someone to write a little
program that would be run automatically when a disk was first brought
up, which would prompt for the original Workbench disk and do the
install automatically.  This would, presumably, take care of all the
problems. 

If I have been talking out of the side of my hat (not that I would
ever do such a thing :->), Carolyn or one of the other CATS should let
me know.

-- 
----------------
                 "... if the church put in half the time on covetousness
Mike Farren      that it does on lust, this would be a better world ..."
hoptoad!farren       Garrison Keillor, "Lake Wobegon Days"