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IMO, what the court cares about is that the written offer was made, creating a contract between B and C that was then breached when B refused to perform.

1. For a contract to exist in Common Law countries like the U.S., U.K., etc., there must be "consideration." Basically, each party must give up something. This means, for example, that promises to give gifts are not enforceable (there is generally an exception recognized for promises of gifts to charities, which can be enforceable). It is possible to argue that the offer to provide source is given in exchange for the purchase of the software product, in which case the sale and offer would form part of a single enforceable contract. It is easy to imagine, however, factual situations where this is not a plausible description of transaction between B and C, particularly when it comes to B's obligations to offer source code to D, E or F, who did not participate in the distribution of code from B to C that triggered B's obligation to make an offer under section 3(b) of the GPL.
2. Again in Common Law, offers can be freely revoked, assuming that they have not yet been accepted. (There are sometimes exceptions for offers that are by their terms irrevokable.) If you want to read 3(b) of the GPL narrowly so as to avoid any ongoing obligation from B to A, then B can comply with the literal terms of the GPL by distributing the binary code for sale, along with an offer to provide source code, and then immediately revoking the offer.

In contrast, a court should have no problem enforcing B's promise to A, based on B's acceptance of the GPL. I can't see a court having any trouble finding a contract between A and B based on GPL section 3(b), and the remedies available based on such a contract are possibly very helpful to the GPLed-software author and his community.

I would note further that Prof. Moglen, while rightly pointing out that the most important remedies for enforcing the GPL are copyright remedies, not contract remedies, does not seem at all confident that a court will not treat the GPL as a contract. All of the capitalized text about express and implied warranties is really only relevant if you think it's a contract. Implied warranties generally exist only for sales (which are always treated as contracts in U.S. law), and only for sales of goods at that. Harms caused by property that is used under a license are generally only recoverable under tort, not warranty.

Did you read the entire article from which I quoted?
I have to disagree with your comment "The example you gave is a precendent, not a law." (Did you mean "precedent"?) From here:
"The common law originally developed under the auspices of the adversarial system in historical England from judicial decisions that were based in tradition, custom, and precedent. The form of reasoning used in common law is known as casuistry or case-based reasoning."
From here
"Law. A judicial decision that may be used as a standard in subsequent similar cases: a landmark decision that set a legal precedent."
We might argue about the meaning of the word "law":
From here
"1. A rule of conduct or procedure established by custom, agreement, or authority."
"4. A piece of enacted legislation."
"9.a. The body of principles or precepts held to express the divine will, especially as revealed in the Bible."

Certain precedents can sometimes have greater effect than can certain pieces of enacted legislation (e.g. "laws" in the sense I suspect you mean).

"I fail to see how they could have ruled any other way"
Are you saying that software patents are not a problem?

Did you read the entire article from which I quoted?
I have to disagree with your comment "The example you gave is a precendent, not a law." (Did you mean "precedent"?) From here:
"The common law originally developed under the auspices of the adversarial system in historical England from judicial decisions that were based in tradition, custom, and precedent. The form of reasoning used in common law is known as casuistry or case-based reasoning."
From here
"Law. A judicial decision that may be used as a standard in subsequent similar cases: a landmark decision that set a legal precedent."
We might argue about the meaning of the word "law":
From here
"1. A rule of conduct or procedure established by custom, agreement, or authority."
"4. A piece of enacted legislation."
"9.a. The body of principles or precepts held to express the divine will, especially as revealed in the Bible."

Certain precedents can sometimes have greater effect than can certain pieces of enacted legislation (e.g. "laws" in the sense I suspect you mean).

"I fail to see how they could have ruled any other way"
Are you saying that software patents are not a problem?

By the way, have you considered the advantages of joining an anarcho-capitalist commune?

Let me deliberate this issue.

The true anarchist must reject all forms of hierarchy, and by logical extension reject all forms of contact with living creatures (since that implicitly always creates an order between the parties involved), and hence the true anarchist must reject capitalism. The true capitalist must require that access to markets is always unrestricted, which, due to the natural way that economic resources pool together under scale effects to impose market access barriers, means government must oversee markets to ensure that any dominant market player is quickly reduced to size, and hence the true capitalist must reject anarchism. Due to the inherent incompatibilities between anarchism and capitalism we must therefore inevitably conclude that the inverse of the stated "advantages", namely catastrophic disadvantages, occurs.

Welcome to deconstruction. Isn't it cool? ;)

There's a slight flaw in what you say: AFAIK there are no "albums" with DRM, just CD's.

the Recording Industry Association of America said his organization had not reviewed the software

Interestingly, the programmer is from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Out of the RIAA's jurisdiction.

When I looked at this point I felt there was something slightly disturbing about it but wasn't sure what it was, after a moment it clicked. The RIAA isn't a law enforcement agency, they don't have a jurisdiction!!!

How have we allowed a private organization to gain powers so great that we would confuse them with the police?

Equilibrium? Equilibrium??

Mildly entertaining but overly-derivative tripe. It was, in turns, a pastiche of Bradbury's Farenheit 451, Orwell's 1984, Huxley's Brave New World, with a big dollop of The Matrix, and Finally a brief flash of Cube for the ending...

If you don't know that then I suggest you start reading. The movie's up-side is that it introduces the dystopian concepts it borrows to new generations of the illiterati, but on the other hand it doesn't acknowledge the sources, leading people to believe that these plot-devices and themes are new.

The reason no-one else steals them so whole-heartedly is because these novels are very famous and interationally acclaimed Important Literature. 451 and 1984 even have even had very well known and reasonably faithful movies made from them. Movie makers rarely fail to acknowledge obvious sources because critics will call their works "Mildly entertaining but overly-derivative tripe."

I do, however, think the Gunkata concept was quite fun.

Well, to be 100% correct Deckard is the Hero:

The principal male character in a novel, poem, or dramatic presentation.

I notice the average vocabularical IQ drops about 50 points once 3pm EST hits.

vocabularical.

I believe you were saying something?

I like how you ended that. You're right. It's been said that if 6% of the US landmass were growing hemp, our foreign energy needs would be zero. 6% of the US landmass is quite a bit of territory, but the stuff will literally grow in any part of the country. Having localized energy production capability in each state (or even county?) would be nice.

Hemp played a big role during WW2 when our hemp supplies from the Phillipines were cut off by the Japanese. Even though the Marijuana Tax Act of the late 1930's had made it effectively illegal to grow any form of Cannabis (long story there) during WW2 farmers were able to get permits to farm hemp to produce rope and canvas (similarity: canvas/cannabis) for boat riggings and tents needed by the military.

I'd like to see a calculation of how many acres of hemp it takes to power a humvee for a year. I bet that's a statistic the US government could swallow.

posit:
1. To assume the existence of; postulate. See Synonyms at presume.
2. To put forward, as for consideration or study; suggest.
3. To place firmly in position.

It is entirely possible I got the spirit of this word wrong, but I actually looked this up and was actually going more for the 2nd option there.

Also, I used "its" instead of "it's" in my original post.

Also, you misspelled "pedantic", though it's clearly a typo.

-If

[Congress shall have the power] To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;

As the original poster that you're speaking of, I point you to the following and suggest you think carefuly before calling someone to the carpet over their grammar.

stupider

stupid (stpd, sty-)
adj. stupider, stupidest
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

But then people who are dowloading music instead of buying it aren't the RIAA's customers. The RIAA isn't suing the people who pay for their product.

I wish people around here would learn what a customer is.

Situation Normal All Fxxxed Up.

It's spelled "fucked", not "fxxxed". Geeze, kids these days can't even swear properly...

Ok, I am a software engineer, and thusly a pedantic fuck, so I have to posit: When I see chic I think its pronounced "sheek" and means trendy or popular. When I talk about an attractive young adult female human, I think chick, like a baby chicken. Am I wrong? Dictionaries seem to support me.

Though, I have to admit that chicks are often chic.

-If

Ok, I am a software engineer, and thusly a pedantic fuck, so I have to posit: When I see chic I think its pronounced "sheek" and means trendy or popular. When I talk about an attractive young adult female human, I think chick, like a baby chicken. Am I wrong? Dictionaries seem to support me.

Though, I have to admit that chicks are often chic.

-If

Tolerance is an important thing in life, my friend. Learn it, or you'll have some serious problems.

Isn't this like driving 75 in a school zone to catch someone and yell at them for speeding...

Tolerance does not include calling people "ignorant fucktards" and your comment probably just reinforced the whole reason why the first poster believes all people who use IRC and ANSI BBSs to be freaks in the first place.

But my G5 *did* come with a buggy whip holder, they threw it in for free because the damn thing was backordered for 8 months... ;)

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=cock+sand wich
No entry found for cock sandwich.

How many people use goodbye? Oh, right, lots of people do!

I think we should have a FAQ for /. that has some of the most common misconceptions and that way when some one uses something that is wrong we just point to the FAQ.

So why don't we finally get this settled as I have seen it twice today. Am I correct when I say virii is not a word. At dictionary.com the plural for
virus is viruses.

I think we should have a FAQ for /. that has some of the most common misconceptions and that way when some one uses something that is wrong we just point to the FAQ.

So why don't we finally get this settled as I have seen it twice today. Am I correct when I say virii is not a word. At dictionary.com the plural for
virus is viruses.

sarcasm
n
1. A cutting, often ironic remark intended to wound.
2. A form of wit that is marked by the use of sarcastic language and is intended to make its victim the butt of contempt or ridicule.
3. The use of sarcasm. See Synonyms at wit1.

Delivering ads on the fly
New York-based Massive, Inc. is taking a different tact with a technology that both serves and measures in-game ad impressions.

Delivering ads on the fly
New York-based Massive, Inc. is taking a different tact with a technology that both serves and measures in-game ad impressions.

device Audio pronunciation of "device" ( P ) Pronunciation Key (d-vs) n.

Actually viruses is recognised by the dictionary as the plural of virus.

You're right of course, it was spelled hideously incorrectly. It looked wrong when I wrote it, but other things came up and I never came back to check it, I simply submitted the comment and moved on to the crisis. I am a bit of a spelling Nazi myself, so it galls me that I got it wrong - let's keep this to ourselves shall we :)

Secondly: again, correct. Entrepreneurship does not properly convey what I meant, although we don't know that the people who set up the business aren't entrepreneurs. They may well have organised, operated and assumed the risk for the business venture which they set up to provide these services, which makes them entrepreneurs. However, the phrase quite an innovative bit of entrepreneurship would function better as quite an innovative commercial service, or something along those lines.

Thanks for pointing those out, I must have had an off day at the keyboard. It annoys me as well when I come across the hideous language deployed by many people on Slashdot (excluding, of course, those for whom English is not a first language), and I am deeply shamed to have messed up so badly myself.

Pronunciate isn't a word?

man and mankind still are the generic terms for "humans". Check out the definitation of man. The first definition refers striclty to male human, after that, the next 8 or so mean "man" as in mankind, or human. I'm not up enough on my etymology to know specifically where "woman" and "human" came from, although both go quite far back.

When I was young, I was taught "Leeshur" and "root." Another thing I was taught was to "look it up" when unsure.

"lehshur" and "leeshur" are both correct
http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Diction ary&va=leisure
http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=leisure

"rout" and "root" are also both correct
http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Diction ary&va=route&x=23&y=14
http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=route

For the record, no one I've met has pronounced it "ra-oot" (two syllables). It's more like "rowt" ("ow" as in "how").

I don't think I've ever heard "pronunciate" but I've certainly heard "enunciate", which IS a word and means exactly what I presume "pronunciate" would be intended to mean. Are you sure you heard it correctly?

I know about the "Mosco" - "Moscow" thing, but admit to getting is wrong every one in a while, regardless. You can't take the american out of the boy, I guess...

Language changes over time. What was once wrong is right (and vice versa). And there ain't nothing we can do about it. ;-)

When I was young, I was taught "Leeshur" and "root." Another thing I was taught was to "look it up" when unsure.

"lehshur" and "leeshur" are both correct
http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Diction ary&va=leisure
http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=leisure

"rout" and "root" are also both correct
http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Diction ary&va=route&x=23&y=14
http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=route

For the record, no one I've met has pronounced it "ra-oot" (two syllables). It's more like "rowt" ("ow" as in "how").

I don't think I've ever heard "pronunciate" but I've certainly heard "enunciate", which IS a word and means exactly what I presume "pronunciate" would be intended to mean. Are you sure you heard it correctly?

I know about the "Mosco" - "Moscow" thing, but admit to getting is wrong every one in a while, regardless. You can't take the american out of the boy, I guess...

Language changes over time. What was once wrong is right (and vice versa). And there ain't nothing we can do about it. ;-)

Sardonic

KFG

• Brilliant doesn't imply any judgement on the morality of it. Hitler's blitzkrieg was a brilliant military move, no matter how repugnant the reasons and results.
  
  Admiration? Hardly. Admission of the audacity and success of the plan? Yes.

• • brilliant
    
    1. Full of light; shining. See Synonyms at bright.
    2. Relating to or being a hue that has a combination of high lightness and strong saturation.
    3. Sharp and clear in tone.
    4. Glorious; magnificent: the brilliant court life at Versailles.
    5. Superb; wonderful: The soloist gave a brilliant performance.
    6. Marked by unusual and impressive intellectual acuteness: a brilliant mind; a brilliant solution to the problem. See Synonyms at intelligent.
    

Sigh.

obtuse
pervade

Apparently a computer science degree doesn't guarantee you'll be able to communicate with, say, the rest of the literate world. I'm sure your narrowly-focused education will serve you well as unimaginative code monkey, but just because you're uncurious about things beyond the scope of your computer monitor doesn't mean they don't exist or aren't important.

The "Arts" and literature requirements are often unreasonably obtuse and pervading, and can eat up a lot of time better spent doing .... anything.

Just remember, cheat all you can, then create a free-trial on turnitin.com, and check to see if it picks any cheating up. If so, edit, repeat, until it comes out clean. Works EVERY time.

Ah. Got it. That time wasted on learning things is better spent...cheating.

Sigh.

obtuse
pervade

Apparently a computer science degree doesn't guarantee you'll be able to communicate with, say, the rest of the literate world. I'm sure your narrowly-focused education will serve you well as unimaginative code monkey, but just because you're uncurious about things beyond the scope of your computer monitor doesn't mean they don't exist or aren't important.

The "Arts" and literature requirements are often unreasonably obtuse and pervading, and can eat up a lot of time better spent doing .... anything.

Just remember, cheat all you can, then create a free-trial on turnitin.com, and check to see if it picks any cheating up. If so, edit, repeat, until it comes out clean. Works EVERY time.

Ah. Got it. That time wasted on learning things is better spent...cheating.

What are you doing complaining about how off topic this is? You specifically brought these charges up. Don't expect to post something and not be challenged.

Whilst the Germans possibly formulated their bioethics arguments properly, the US ban on stem cell research...

FOUL ON THE PLAY! There is no ban on stem cell research in the US. Since Bush has taken office there has only been "steps forward" for the scientific community on this issue, none backwards.

While the main reason was most likely oil...

Someone really has to explain this to me. We've had ample opportunity to get loads and loads of cheap Iraqi oil for twelve years. We could have let Saddam take over Kuwait and taken him up on his offer to be America's gas station, or we could have gone the French and Russian route and made under the table deals with Saddam, or we could have moved to lessen the sanctions or at least not oppose attempts to do so. It would have been a lot better than the current situation of having our troops guard thousands of miles of oil infrastructure from terrorist attacks to just get the Iraqi economy going in order to get some oil which OPEC could counter by taking the same ammount off the market without breaking a sweat. No, it seems at every turn the US chose the path of most resistance to get Iraqi oil, if that was the goal.

a significant and unstated part of the Bush administration's reasoning was to shift the power balance in the Middle East, and that is something the Church has been wanting to do for quite a while.

Coincidentally, a shift in the balance of power in the Middle East is also something that people who really are interested in exterminating terrorism have been wanting to do as well. They may argue with the method, sure, but I find it hard to believe that the secular portion of American society doesn't want democracy (and thus, a shift in the balance of power) in the Middle East.

That's complete rubbish and incomrehensible to boot. The Church and other religious (and quasi-religious) organisations tend to grow in power over time,

Just like how the Catholic Church went from Holy Roman Empire to only being able to issue statements and hope other governments listen. Nope, doesn't work, sorry.

Public pro-abstinence statements, arguing against contraception.

Now whose spouting complete rubbish? If the George W. Bush making a pro-abstinence statement is government-sanctioned religious propaganda, so is it government-sanctioned religious propaganda when I say "Jesus Saves." The First Amendment protects everyone equally. You don't just give up all your freedoms when you're elected to office. These aren't laws, there is no legal requirement for you to abide by them, nor is there a federal mandate to "spread the word".

Support, funding and promotion of "faith-based initiatives"

Again, denial of funds to charitable organizations due to their religious affiliation is a law RESPECTING the establishment of religion. Granted, so are tax exemptions to churches based upon the sole fact that they are government recognized churches. If an individual or an organization can justify itself participating in a government program or being exempted from government responsibilities without referencing religion, then under the First Amendment the federal government should not be able to deny it. If it must reference religion, then the federal government should deny it.

demand some retribution

errr.. restitution, perhaps? or remuneration?

Or are you advocating revenge?

demand some retribution

errr.. restitution, perhaps? or remuneration?

Or are you advocating revenge?

apocryphal - of doubtful authenticity

apocryphal 1. Of questionable authorship or authenticity.
2. Erroneous; fictitious: "Wildly apocryphal rumors about starvation in Petrograd... raced through Russia's trenches" (W. Bruce Lincoln).

No, just the majority. If Bob disagrees with the majority, the majority overrules him. In this case the majority of the population supports copyright law (again, do not confuse popular sentiments on slashdot with the majority opinion) even though you do not. Thus the government is free to enact copyright laws despite your personal objections.

"The government which has produced the RIAA spends billions each year without the approval of the people."

The RIAA is a trade group, not a government entity.

"There is nothing anarchistic about disapproving, as an individual, with the government."

No, but refusing the government is anarchistic by definition.

"I pulled my definition from www.m-w.com and double-checked it with www.dictionary.com. Both sites used the term "individual"."

Not in the context that you use it. Neither say the final authority is in the individual, as that would not be democracy. In a democracy, a majority can overrule the individual.
The term is actually never mentioned in the Merriam-Webster defintion, and in the dictionary.com only in the context that it has "respect for the individual within a community". Thats not the same as authority.

"You obviously wanted to touch off a flame war, or appeal to a demographic, when you used rape as a topic. "

No, I was using an extreme example to show the faults of your argument. If you prefer you can substitue murder in there, it doesn't matter. If you are free to nullify a law you disagree with, so can anyone else, including a pyscho like Jack.

"We wouldn't even have ever made iron, for crying out loud. We'd still be living in caves and whatever else. "

Please. Iron is an element. We didn't make it. Maybe you are thinking of steel?

And we would have never gotten out of the caveman stoneage were it not for competition? Have you ever thought about how it takes COOPERATION to learn how to build houses and make fire and wheels?

Your ignorance is totally mind boggling. But capitalism is fine. Throwing microsoft's evil empire (TM) into the mix is just karma trolling.

Retard

I normally don't reply once I've trolled the trolls, but...

"A corporatist? What the hell is that? A private individual that owns / partially owns a company? Were you aware that over 80% of the United States adult population is a "Corporatist"? Maybe you should take refuge in Cuba if you are scared of private property or company ownership."

Corporatist - Of, relating to, or being a corporative state or system.

"Fascism should more appropriately be called Corporatism because it is a merger of State and corporate power." - Benito Mussolini (1883-1945), Fascist Dictator of Italy

Oh, and I thought I made it abundantly clear Communism sucks for many of the same reasons facism does. But I guess you can't help the knee-jerk reflex.

Corporations ARE the people numbnuts. This holy site you are posting your leftist drivel on.. Owned by a corporation. The keyboard you type and spew on - produced by a corporation. The shoes/clothes/pants/hair brush you use - produced by a corporation.

People like you are what allows communism to occasionally flourish. You are absolutely willing to take away the rights/property/ambition of the individual for the "noble" cause of the "common good". Well loser there is NO such thing as a common good unless it is enabling individuals the chance to prosper.

So is the government; last time I checked, despite mistakes which make this regieme's critics compare them so, the US government is not run by baboons. Oh, and where did I say that corporations where inheritly evil? All I was trying to say was like the seperation between church and state that helps prevent a theocrasy, there should be at least some of a barrier between corporation and state, so that communism or fascism don't take over.

I won't even dignify the slander with a responce other than this: This is not a contest over who can spew the most insults.

Oh, wheren't we talking about whether or not the Nazi's where fascist or not? Looks like it "magically" got twisted into whether or not I was a commie. Wonder how that happened... ;P

• Photons have mass.

It is syzygies


__________________
My trunk monkey can beat up your trunk monkey.

First, have a definition of 'Monopoly'

THEN, tell me where Apple has a monopoly on anything?
iTunes? Not hardly.
Digital Music Distribution? Nope.
MP3 Players? Not it.
Operating Systems? No, that's someone else.

Sorry, antitrust law just doesn't apply here. It may be quite asshole of them to jerk around with the way it works specifically to break other stuff, but I don't think it's "illegal." In order to abuse a monopoly, you have to have one first.

Nothing like a little incompetence to get your weekend started right.

Nitpicking and not at all related to the discussion, but...

It's Voila, not "Wallah" (although it is pronounced "vwah-lah").

Not intended as a troll, just something you might want to know, lest you attempt to use "Wallah" in a more formal setting.

During the past seven months, our company, along with Boies, Schiller & Flexner, has uncovered a number of substantial software code issues as they pertain to our UNIX intellectual property and Linux," said Darl McBride, President and CEO, The SCO Group, Inc. "By far the most important asset of this company is our ownership of the UNIX operating system and today we are investing in the protection and future of UNIX. Boies, Schiller & Flexner is now moving beyond the contract issues we have with IBM. The firm will be enforcing and defending SCO's intellectual property rights, including the protection of our UNIX System V source code and our copyrights that were reaffirmed as a result of the BSDI settlement agreement."

"As part of the expanded scope, the firm has been engaged to support SCO regarding issues relating to copyrighted Unix code incorporated into Linux without authorization or appropriate copyright notices," the company said in Tuesday's release. "Code that has been identified includes Unix System V code as well as copyrighted code included in the 1994 settlement between Unix Systems Laboratories Inc. and Berkeley Software Design Inc. SCO acquired this code and associated copyrights in 1995 from Novell."