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From: cmcmanis%pepper@Sun.COM (Chuck McManis)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: "Look up a word in the manual" copy protection
Message-ID: <22506@sun.uucp>
Date: Wed, 1-Jul-87 14:05:03 EDT
Article-I.D.: sun.22506
Posted: Wed Jul  1 14:05:03 1987
Date-Received: Fri, 3-Jul-87 01:46:43 EDT
References: <4807@sgi.SGI.COM> <6816@g.ms.uky.edu> <22328@sun.uucp> <594@madvax.UUCP>
Sender: news@sun.uucp
Reply-To: cmcmanis@sun.UUCP (Chuck McManis)
Organization: Sun Microsystems, Mountain View
Lines: 41
Keywords: user frustration

In article <594@madvax.UUCP> richc@madvax.UUCP (Rich Commins) writes:
>In article <22328@sun.uucp>, cmcmanis%pepper@Sun.COM (Chuck McManis) writes:
>> How hard is is really to look up a word? Is it harder or easier than
>> sending a broken disk back to the manufacturer.
>
>	Has anyone ever used a xerox machine before?  All this does is make
>	the legal owner and the software pirate both look up the word in the
>	manual!  It does nothing to prevent software piracy and causes the
>	legal user to waste his time looking up stupid words.

Note: I don't want to start a copy protection discussion, we have hashed that
  out before. EVERYONE agrees that if it were up to them NO software would
  be copyprotected.

This message concerns the METHOD used and why I think it may be more effective
than the 'break the disk' type.

Using a small book that has to be looked in to get the words has the advantage
that the disk you are using is capable of being backed up. 

It appears to based on the assumption (which I believe to be true) that most
pirating occurs 'spontaenously.' That is, when person A visits Person B and
sees this neat new game. Then person A asks to get a copy to see if they 
would like to buy it (sort of a free trial). And Person B says sure, and 
whips out Maurauder or something and whizzes out a copy. Now if they have
to copy the manual too, they might say "Well, you need this manual too."
If they are a good friend maybe they lend it to them to get copied, maybe
they don't. And if they do, Person A still has to go out and get it copied
which is a royal pain. Obviously this is no protection against serious
pirates who take over a PIP or copy center and whip out a 100 copies of the
manual.

Secondly, the copyright laws are much more enforceable for books than they
are for software since just about any judge can see that copying a book is
in violation of the copyright laws. So when you find someone with 20 copies
of the 'Novella' there isn't anyway in hell they can claim 'backup' and have
a judge believe them. 

--Chuck McManis
uucp: {anywhere}!sun!cmcmanis   BIX: cmcmanis  ARPAnet: cmcmanis@sun.com
These opinions are my own and no one elses, but you knew that didn't you.