Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!mnetor!seismo!ut-sally!utah-cs!utah-gr!stride!l5comp!scotty
From: scotty@l5comp.UUCP (Scott Turner)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: BlitzFonts query reply (and executable)
Message-ID: <128@l5comp.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 17-May-87 01:54:23 EDT
Article-I.D.: l5comp.128
Posted: Sun May 17 01:54:23 1987
Date-Received: Tue, 19-May-87 06:27:25 EDT
References: <6555@amdahl.amdahl.com> <3061@well.UUCP>
Reply-To: scotty@l5comp.UUCP (Scott Turner)
Organization: L5 Computing, Edmonds, WA
Lines: 59
Keywords: unnecessary, unfair, secrecy, CIA, FBI, NSA...  oops!
Summary: Why should they Leo?

In article <3061@well.UUCP> ewhac@well.UUCP (Leo 'Bols Ewhac' Schwab) writes:
>	However, if you look closer, you'll notice that there's one thing he
>won't provide you with:  SOURCE CODE!!!
Really? What makes you think he WON'T PROVIDE the source Leo? Just because he
didn't make an offer in his readme file doesn't mean he won't provide it.

>	To put it simply, *I want the source!!*  If I send this guy money, I
>would like a copy of the source so I can find out How He Did It.
Then ASK THE GUY to send you the source Leo.

>	However, Hayes Haugen has failed to provide this service, and I
>find it irritating.  When I write code for public consumption, I *always*
Again, I don't see how you can make this comment Leo.

>	Does Hayes Haugen not care about others who wish to learn and build
>upon his discoveries?
Nore this one.

Leo states, in his rather lengthy and thus EXPENSIVE signature, that he doesn't
work for anyone and is doing all this for fun. Some people AREN'T doing this
for fun Leo. Some people DEPEND on their ability to develop clever software in
order to eat. If an author does not wish to release his source code then that
is HIS/HER RIGHT!! In many cases authors refuse to release the source to protect
users. Just how many versions of microEMACS are there? And how many times has
source to some program been used to create a trojan horse?

I've talked to Mr. Haugen. He lives not to many miles from me. I know he feels
like you Leo, he likes to find out how the other guy did what he did. Which is
what distresses me all the more about your un-warranted attacks upon this man.

Now, what to do when the author decides to not release the source? How did I
find out what I know about BlitzFonts? Did I get the BlitzFonts source?

NOPE. I used the MetaComCo disassembler provided on their Amiga Toolkit disk.
With this tool nothing, except stuff I have agreed not to disassemble in a
license (like the MCC stuff), is a mystery to me. I know how DropShadow works
etc... Heck DropShadow 2.0 was distributed with full symbols so it was almost
like reading the source code! ;-)

I have on several occasions used what I have learned to create new programs,
written purely in assembly, that COME with source code (see the software
library on GEnie). They're also always smaller, faster than the programs that
I found the orginal concept in. BUT these programs are not 'rip offs' of the
originals in that I don't just disassemble the original and then reassemble it
and call it my own. I find out how it works and then write my own, most often
improving on it in the process and in most cases adding source code to it.

If anyone out there has some gripe like Leo's (but please no unfounded flames)
then drop me an E-Mail about it. Maybe I can help, I sure can rip a program from
end to end pretty quickly now, source or no source :-). In fact I may already
have it ripped apart. (I often rip things just to scratch that "How did they
do that" itch)

Scott Turner

-- 
L5 Computing, the home of Merlin, Arthur, Excalibur and the CRAM.
GEnie: JST | UUCP: stride!l5comp!scotty | 12311 Maplewood Ave; Edmonds WA 98020
If Motorola had wanted us to use BPTR's they'd have built in shifts on A regs
[ BCPL? Just say *NO*! ] (I don't smoke, send flames to /dev/null)