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From: jmturn@ddsw1.UUCP
Newsgroups: alt.flame
Subject: Re: of flames and sources (was: Re: Fred - A terminal Program)
Message-ID: <268@ddsw1.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 17-Oct-87 18:45:30 EST
Article-I.D.: ddsw1.268
Posted: Sat Oct 17 18:45:30 1987
Date-Received: Thu, 5-Nov-87 04:48:55 EST
References: <246@ddsw1.UUCP> <203@papaya.bbn.com> <451@brandx.rutgers.edu> <244@coldbeer.UUCP> <475@brandx.rutgers.edu>
Reply-To: ringwld!jmturn@CCA.CCA.COM (James Turner)
Distribution: alt
Organization: Pipe Dream Associates
Lines: 59

A couple of quick comments. I will not bother including the previous
discussion in this post because although I think that posting sources like
Fred is a fine use of the net, posting 400 lines of previous discussion with
15 lines of commentary is a joke!

First, to the issue of whether shareware makes money or not, my response is:
who cares?!!! Does anyone seriously think I posted Fred to make money? Given
the number of potential sites that could use it, I'd have to be a fool to
think that the small subset of all people who might use it, and the even
smaller subset who would actually pay for it, that I could get rich or even
see enough to pay the rent for one month.

The line about sending $20 is fairly clear in context. If you want to get
help from me over the phone in setting Fred up, and want me to call back on
my dime, send me $20. I'll even send you a hardcopy of the documentation and
let you know when I make significant upgrades. If you don't want to pay me
$20, fine.

*FLAME ONE BIGTIME*

All rights reserved means "I keep all copyrights to this product." It damn
well does not mean I'm going to come chasing down to your house with a
gaggle of lawyers if you change one byte of my code. Anyone who puts that
kind of interpretation on it strikes me as paranoid, assuming that anyone
who posts to the net is out for nothing but their own ends. For the record,
this is what *I* meant by "All rights reserved" If it is not the exact legal
meaning, it is because I DID NOT ask a lawyer about the exact phrasing,
because I'm NOT making any money off this, and therefore am not going to
spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on it.

1) I wrote this. Don't claim that you did.

2) It is my property. Don't try to sell it or an enhanced version of it.

3) Fell free to copy it (or an enhanced version of it) as you like, as long
as this notice stays in place.

And that's all. I had hoped that people would find some utility in the
software. I had hoped that the average maturity of the usenet readership had
gone up significantly since my last extended visit to the net. I can see
that at least the second part is not true. I am sick of paranoid immature
people (usually a very vocal and very small minority) telling everyone else
what they meant by things, and how everyone should feel about it. You have
no idea what a slap in the face it is to post a piece of software to the net
with no intention other than to protect your ownership of it, and be told
how you are a money grubbing net-abuser, who doesn't have any business sense
to boot. 

I have no idea if I will post further versions of Fred (which I am still
actively working on). I certainly will think strongly about whether it is
worth it to do a public service, and get insulted for my efforts.

(And if anyone wants to sue me for calling them paranoid and insecure, which
seems to be the other main topic of discussion on alt.flames, have fun. No
jury would convict me :-)

* FLAME OFF *

James
ringwld!jmturn@CCA.CCA.COM