Xref: utzoo sci.electronics:5562 comp.periphs:1620
Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!ukma!gatech!ken
From: ken@gatech.edu (Ken Seefried iii)
Newsgroups: sci.electronics,comp.periphs
Subject: Re: Proprietary hardware  (was Re: DataProducts LZR-1230 Laser info wanted)
Keywords: schematics, repair information, free software foundation,
Message-ID: <18167@gatech.edu>
Date: 15 Mar 89 23:20:16 GMT
References: <2140@cpoint.UUCP> <3743@stiatl.UUCP> <1204@naucse.UUCP> <1410@husc6.harvard.edu>
Reply-To: ken@gatech.UUCP (Ken Seefried iii)
Organization: School of Information and Computer Science, Georgia Tech, Atlanta
Lines: 40


I can think of quite a few reasons why a manufacturer would want to
restrict the desimination of tech info, some of the good...some of
them not so good.  For example:

	They want to maintain proprietary rights to the info.

	They don't want competetors looking at it (see above).

	They don't want people modifying the design (or just screwing
	it up) and then turning to the company to fix it (or get sued
	because an end-user modification caused someone harm).

	They want to be able to modify the design without all that
	nifty tech info in the field being obsolete.

	They don't want Joe Hacker-wanna-be cracking it open and, say,
	playing with the power supply (hey, I got the schematics) and
	then having Jane Hacker-wanna-be sue because hubby
	bar-b-queued himself (yes, this stuff HAPPENS!).

	Servicemen don't like things changed.

	Lots of money can be made by repairing things at the factory.

I could go on, but you get the idea.  The idea of a Free Hardware
Foundation is the only realistic way out, for the simple reason that
you can disavow any legal responsability for the hardware and you
don't have to worry about servicing.

I like the idea of a FHF.  Some friends and I have been discussing a
'public-domain workstation', a higher-end machine whose design is
freely availible for anyone to build (look a the GNU license).  The
idea is to run the GNU kernal when and if it ever becomes availible.
Then (theoreticly), you could build a workstation for cost of parts
and time.  We have evaluated several approaches to this design.
Comments?

	...ken seefried iii
	   ken@gatech.edu