Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!pt.cs.cmu.edu!rochester!kodak!elmgate!jdg
From: jdg@elmgate.UUCP (Jeff Gortatowsky CUST)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Re: USENET -> GEnie uplink now working
Summary: Fair is Fair
Keywords: usenet,genie,gadgets,uplink,messages
Message-ID: <1180@elmgate.UUCP>
Date: 22 Dec 89 02:48:06 GMT
References: <15097@well.UUCP> <935@crash.cts.com> <330@ssc.UUCP>
Reply-To: rg@aurora.UUCP
Organization: Eastman Kodak Company, Rochester NY
Lines: 37

In article <330@ssc.UUCP> fyl@ssc.UUCP (Phil Hughes) writes:
>In article <935@crash.cts.com>, canada@crash.cts.com (Diane Barlow Close) writes:
>
>> What I object to the most is the fact that the link is one way (and will
>> stay that way due to GEnie's commercial nature).  I don't like Usenet being
>> ``raped'' to supply GEnie's commercial pockets.  If GEnie is that ``tapped
>> out'' for knowledge that they are desperate enough to plunder Usenet, then
>> perhaps GEnie should be disbanded.
>
>I disagree.  There are sources of information and there are distributors
>of information.  We, the users of Usenet are the source.  We have decided
>to share that information with others.  And GEnie is not providing access
>to that information - for a price.  Usenet offers the same but the price
>is different.  In my case, a company that I own part of foots the bill for
>providing Usenet services to employees as well as feeds to other
>companies.  Other companies provide Usenet access for money.

A one way link is simply unfair. Two, way I have no objections to... But,
others may. Let me make a fairy tale example. Suppose some chap runs a
pay BBS somewhere's, and also has Net access. Lets say he grabs all the
goodies, places them on his BBS and charges people to see the info. Is that
fair? If I post info/solutions whatever the case may be, I post it for the
public... free of charge. I do not see GEnie calling anyone of us, more so
the companies that foot usenets bills offering "a slice of the pie".
I see no offers of "free exchange" of any GEnie info. In fact its been said
that GEnie applys copyrights to info/files etc. So, if I post a code stub,
or function lets say, and it ends up on GEnie it is copyrighted by them?
This is america, while the word "free" may have went through some changes
in 200 years, it does not mean "free to those who can pay". And, esentially,
that is what we have here.


-- 
Jeff Gortatowsky-Eastman Kodak Company  .....rochester!kodak!elmgate!jdg
(use uuhosts or such to find path to rochester)
Eastman Kodak makes film not comments.  Therefore these comments are mine
not theirs.