Archive of UserLand's first discussion group, started October 5, 1998.

Re: scriptingNews outline for 8/26/2000

Author:Dave Winer
Posted:8/26/2000; 9:02:28 AM
Topic:scriptingNews outline for 8/26/2000
Msg #:20318 (In response to 20317)
Prev/Next:20317 / 20319

Yeah, perhaps, but from an ethical standpoint, programmer to programmer, I wouldn't have a leg to stand on. Also on a practical level I would have no recourse. It's out there, the source code, and once out, there's no way to recall it.

I probably would put some kind of agreement on it today as well, but in 1997 I didn't know anything about these agreements, or the subtle point you're making about copyrights. My intention, I promise you, was that anyone could use it in any way. After all I didn't create the code, I merely adapted code I got for free, again with no restrictions.

This is the NY Cabbie argument. It goes like this. "Gimme a break. You put the source code on a website and you think you control it? What planet do you come from?"

It's the old Thomas Jefferson quote that I can never seem to find. Something like "If you keep an idea to yourself you own it. As soon as you tell someone else, everyone owns it."

It's like saying you can choose not to answer, tell the truth or lie. It's obvious. There's no way around it. This is what the music industry is dealing with, it's high time for the software world to get it too. All those open source agreements are worth nought, it's masturbation on a grand scale. People steal ideas, they steal code, break agreements all the time, when it suits them to do so.

I was impressed by the honesty of the Japanese developer who admitted here on the DG that his company had broken the GPL. That's what I'm talking about, that's the NY Cabbie argument, that all these arguments are a waste of time. To be open source, all you have to do is release the source. Period.

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