Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!dalcs!garfield!john13
From: john13@garfield.UUCP (John Russell)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: About Software Piracy! (software that bites back)
Message-ID: <4362@garfield.UUCP>
Date: 10 Jan 88 07:29:18 GMT
References: <2308@crash.cts.com>
Reply-To: john13@garfield.UUCP (John Russell)
Distribution: na
Organization: Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's
Lines: 33

>>In article <2273@crash.cts.com> haitex@pnet01.cts.com (Wade Bickel) writes:
>>>	  Furthermore, if done correctly, a program could notice if it
>>>	were operating without it's dongle and subtly torpedo the pirate.

You would trust some anonymous programmer to do that? Remember this is the
Amiga we're talking about... do we really want to have Workbench unloaded
from Kickstart to make room for ReadDongle()? From the furor that resulted
over peeking the joystick locations(1), I wouldn't want to be the one trying to
program it in a friendly, multitasking atmosphere (LockDongleRom()?
AllocDongle()?).

--
(1) I won't mention how I sometimes read a chip location for a simple & fast
random number. Just for my own use though. Anyone else notice RangeRand returns
values with a definite pattern?
--

True story-

Me showing a potential customer a calculator program for the C64, from
Pioneer Software (booting from the original disk, of course):

"The reason the words 'SECURITY VIOLATION' are flashing all over the screen,
 and the program is locked up, is... ah..."

Didn't sell it. I believe it went in the trash.

John
-- 
"She's sort of a 'pit baby', with interlocking jaws. We feed her on chicken 
parts."
"But baby-fighting has been outlawed, hasn't it?"
	-- Tracy Ullman describing her infant daughter to David Letterman