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SCO Files Response To Demand For Evidence

The Welcome Rain writes "SCO has posted its notice of compliance with the court order of December 12, which required them to produce evidence. The document itself is brief, but refers to a sixty-page supplement which lists the offending lines, and asserts that it can find more when IBM produces some of the evidence demanded of them by SCO. Millions of lines on sixty pages? How silly."

498 comments

  1. Small fonts by mkiwi · · Score: 5, Funny

    IBM must be using really small fonts to make it hard for SCO to find evidence. It's always the fine print that gets people, though. ;)

    1. Re:Small fonts by dbialac · · Score: 4, Funny
      Nah. They compressed the contents with tar/bzip2 and then printed that out.

      Dave Bialac

    2. Re:Small fonts by z00z · · Score: 3, Funny

      Small fonts are readable via a magnifying glass, so that won't be an issue. Now if IBM were using MS Symbol fonts, then SCO would be in real trouble!

    3. Re:Small fonts by 3dr · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Either small fonts, or a summary thus:
      We find the following source code lines infringe:
      L.1 - L.10,000,000

    4. Re:Small fonts by c1ay · · Score: 4, Funny

      Does anyone know where I can get a copy of this specificity font the judge told them to use? If it fits everything that they were ordered to produce on 60 pages it's gotta be better than any zip program out there.

      --

    5. Re:Small fonts by G3ckoG33k · · Score: 1

      Don't be silly, surely SCO must have used the Greek font "Symbol" which they for sure knew IBM can read.

    6. Re:Small fonts by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      DMCA Violation to decode them too isn't it?!

    7. Re:Small fonts by LousyPhreak · · Score: 0

      Actually the hot air SCO let off in the past year already cooled down to a few kelvin. So they sprayed it onto sixty pages and sent it to IBM in hope they would warm up the story to get this stuff inflated again.

      =)

      --
      -- Karma: beyond good and evil - mostly affected by posting political
    8. Re:Small fonts by dot-magnon · · Score: 1

      As an offtopic comment to that, Slashdot's "The Fine Print" note above the comments is completely invisible in Windows' (curse schools) antialiased fonts on this machine.

    9. Re:Small fonts by falonaj · · Score: 1

      Why not simply use Greek letters? SCO has already proved that for them this is perfect encryption.

    10. Re:Small fonts by fuzzix · · Score: 0

      The symbol font IS the Greek letters :)

    11. Re:Small fonts by grahamlee · · Score: 0
      Karma - beyond good and evil - mostly affected by

      Nitzsche.

    12. Re:Small fonts by cshark · · Score: 1

      Maybe they're printing out their responses, and then putting it in PDF, just to confuse them. How eveel...

      --

      This signature has Super Cow Powers

    13. Re:Small fonts by Loconut1389 · · Score: 1

      I present to the court exhibit A:

      Line 1,131,232 on page 22 reads:
      i++;

      Now reference our proprietary code in exhibit B and you see the line has been copied verbatim!

    14. Re:Small fonts by Glamdrlng · · Score: 1

      Scr3w the fine print. I bet SCO's pulling the same trick you used to do in school to hit a minimum number of pages for a report. Yah sure it's "in excess of 60 pages" (Read that: 61 pages), but how much you wanna bet those 61 pages are double- or triple-spaced and single-sided?

      --

      Yes, my only tool is a hammer. And you're starting to look like a nail.
  2. supplement? by wankledot · · Score: 5, Funny

    So where's the 60 page PDF so we can get right on tearing it apart line by line and laughing?

    --
    My sig is blank, I typed this by hand.
    1. Re:supplement? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

      There's a protective order on the case. I'm pretty sure that it applies to those 60 pages.

    2. Re:supplement? by The+Welcome+Rain · · Score: 5, Informative

      Sadly, that was filed privately. We may not get to see it until the upcoming hearing.

      --
      Some keywords for the NSA in the Lord of the Rings universe: One Ring bind find Sauron quest Nazgul freedom
    3. Re:supplement? by Deusy · · Score: 3, Funny

      Sadly, that was filed privately. We may not get to see it until the upcoming hearing.

      Sadly!? JOY!!! There's still time for me to sell short! And I thought I'd missed the boat! Ecstacy brother, pure ecstacy!

      --

      Free Gamer - Free games list and commentary

    4. Re:supplement? by dipipanone · · Score: 2, Informative

      Sadly!? JOY!!! There's still time for me to sell short!

      You'd better be quick then. It looks like the downward spiral has already started.

    5. Re:supplement? by dougmc · · Score: 1
      Sadly!? JOY!!! There's still time for me to sell short!
      You're assuming that SCO's stock price is actually affected by the validity of their case.

      Had you shorted their stock right when all this happened, you'd have lost a *bundle*.

    6. Re:supplement? by afidel · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Actually didn't the judge already rule that discovery could be sealed from the public because it contained SCO trade secrets?

      Ah yes, Grocklaw has it and some explanations of how it might be fought. But until it is broken it is unlikely that we will get access to the actual evidence.

      --
      There are 4 boxes to use in the defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, ammo. Use in that order. Starting now.
    7. Re:supplement? by JPriest · · Score: 2, Informative

      The problem is that we all have copies of this code already. The IP is question is already in the wild. PS SCOX stock price looks like it's taking a dive...

      --
      Saying Java is nice because it works on all OS's is like saying that anal sex is nice because it works on all genders.
    8. Re:supplement? by vladkrupin · · Score: 1

      Why don't you just get a sales job at SCO and tell me, will ya? After all, if you are the IP sales guy, you are supposed to know exactly what IP you are selling, and what people are expected to license from you, right? Oh, and if you don't have enough response, please try faxing me and everyone else on slashdot with a sales pitch. We'd love to see SCO go the way of fax.com, assuming it'll survive long enough.

      --

      Jobs? Which jobs?
    9. Re:supplement? by olderchurch · · Score: 1

      Huhu, especially the last year SCOX vs IBM

      --
      Disclaimer: This opinion was created without the use of any facts
    10. Re:supplement? by HTH+NE1 · · Score: 1

      The problem is that we all have copies of this code already. The IP is question is already in the wild.

      But (allegedly) buried in far more lines of code than they claim are infringing.

      How is this not legal recognition of security through obscurity?

      --
      Oh, say does that Star-Spangled Banner entwine / The myrtle of Venus with Bacchus's vine?
    11. Re:supplement? by Syberghost · · Score: 1

      It looks like the downward spiral has already started.

      Downward spiral? The stock is still way up from where it fell during the recession, and it's within $7 of its 52-week high.

      I'm not supporting their actions, but the stock is still doing great. It's going to take actual legal outcomes to affect this, not secret filings.

    12. Re:supplement? by pyros · · Score: 2, Informative
      Actually didn't the judge already rule that discovery could be sealed from the public because it contained SCO trade secrets?

      Ah yes, Grocklaw has it and some explanations of how it might be fought. But until it is broken it is unlikely that we will get access to the actual evidence.

      I was under the impression, thanks to a Groklaw article, that you can't claim both copyright/patent AND trade secret. You use copyrights and patents to guarantee that nobody is allowed to duplicate your work because you are distributing said work in a very non-discriminating manner. (Giving it to anyone who will pay, basically) Filing a patent on something puts documentation on how it works in the public domain. For trade secret protection, you can't disitribute it unless you are discriminating about who you distribute it to. You also don't get the guarantee that nobody can duplicate your work. For example, the recipe for Coke is a trade secret, and anyone is allowed to buy a can reverse engineer it, and mass-produce the same thing for profit. The Coca-cola company doesn't distribute the recipe to anyone.

      The Groklaw piece I read talked about the USL v BSD trial, and how USL tried to claim trade secret at one point, but were unable to prove they had distributed the code in a discriminating fashion. It also came out that since the code had been disitributed so long ago, it wasn't even copyrightable, which is a large reason why USL and BSD settled the case.

    13. Re:supplement? by Zork+the+Almighty · · Score: 1

      You can claim copyright on any work, regardless of patents or trade secrets. If something is patented it can not also be a trade secret, because it has been published in the form of a patent.

      --

      In Soviet America the banks rob you!
    14. Re:supplement? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There is an old expression: Buy on rumours, sell on news.

      You don't make money buying/shorting stock on news, because the reaction is too fast, its too late. You make money with two factors: Knowing its going to go down, and having the money to cover your shorts if they go up in the short run.

    15. Re:supplement? by dipipanone · · Score: 1

      Downward spiral? The stock is still way up from where it fell during the recession, and it's within $7 of its 52-week high.

      Take a look at it's movements over the last five days. It appears to have lost around two and a half dollars a share in value -- I'm guessing in response to their filings in the case against IBM and the information that Novell has provided regarding their contracts with SCO.

      I'm not supporting their actions, but the stock is still doing great.

      Great if you bought at $2 a share. Not so great if you bought at $18. Would you buy SCO stock today? I certainly wouldn't, regardless of my feelings about their ethics. And if I owned any, I'd definitely be getting shut around now. It's hard for me to see what conceivable possibility could make it rise any further in the next month or two.

      It's going to take actual legal outcomes to affect this, not secret filings.

      It didn't take legal outcomes for the stock price to rise, just threats and allegations. If information can make a stock go up, it sure as hell can make a stock go down again.

      Having said all that, I do think only a fool or a reckless gambler with a lot of loose change would be either buying or shorting SCO stock at the moment.

  3. Re:Crumbling... by SubTexel · · Score: 0

    Heh, just started? I believe it did the moment they opened their mouth. =)

  4. Files and line numbers may be sufficient by int2str · · Score: 5, Insightful

    You can fit a lot of files and line numbers on 60 pages, so I wouldn't dismiss it just because of the "millions of lines of code".

    Now my experience with legal documents suggests that it's hard to say much in 60 pages legalese periods, but the note that they complied with the courts request is not enough to speculate on how valid their response is. We will have to wait until the judge (and IBM) have read it.

    1. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by Burnon · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Yeah, and if that's not enough space, you can bzip2 the text and that'll probably do it, and get obfuscation out of it to boot (you know, like they did last time).

    2. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by cyxs · · Score: 5, Interesting

      But they haven't yet complied with the order. They only provided part of the answers that IBM Requested and said that once they get IBM's code from AIX that they will be able to answer the reset of the questions.

      And if I remeber the judges order was that it wouldn't allow for SCO Motion to Compel till IBMs motions were carried out. Also wouldn't the judge have to give fair amount of time after IBM gets the information for them to go over it and then provide the information that SCO requested. Because IBM has been saying that without knowing what SCO is sueing them over they couldn't provide the data that SCO wanted.

    3. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by rjamestaylor · · Score: 2, Interesting

      60x60 = 3600 lines. Single space.

      A far cry from millions (*raised pinky*).

      --
      -- @rjamestaylor on Ello
    4. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by rgmoore · · Score: 5, Insightful

      But it's not sufficient for them to list the lines of code that they think are in violation. They also have to say why they think so, how SCO got the rights to them, what evidence they have that IBM put them into Linux, who else might have seen the code, and what steps SCO has taken to prevent those others from disclosing the code. That's a heck of a lot of information, and that's just about the code disclosures. SCO is also supposed to be answering questions about IBM's alleged unfair competetion, interference with trade relations, and breach of contract. For each of those allegations, SCO has to provide a detailed description of who at IBM did what when. I think that they'd have a hard time putting all of their allegations about one of those topics into 60-70 pages, much less all three and a detailed answer about all of the code that IBM has supposedly misappropriated.

      My gut feeling is that the big consequence of this is that SCO will be forced to drop most of their claims. Their only real argument (and this is streching the idea of a real argument pretty far) is that IBM violated the confidentiality provisions of the Software Licensing agreement. IBM's actions in donating RCU and JFS are quite well documented, and would constitute a violation under SCO's reading of the agreement. I have a hard time imagining a judge or jury buying the "All Your Code Are Belong To Us" interpretation, but it's the most reasonable and best supported argument that SCO can make.

      --

      There's no point in questioning authority if you aren't going to listen to the answers.

    5. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      your ignorant reply assumes that they each line of offending code is put on a single line of a document.

      all they have to do is say, "file: aop.c; lines 1-60,000"

      there's 60,000 lines and that only took a fraction of a single line. they could fit 10 short statements like that on a single line.

    6. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by DarkAce911 · · Score: 5, Interesting

      SCO got smacked around by the Judge in Dec and she is really going to be pissed on the 23rd with no discovery done. Novell has a letter that said SCO's lawyers were off over the Holidays. 60 of legalese is something that can be produced of lunch at most places. Remember, lawyers bill by the hour and you can never have too many docs. Someone on Groklaw.net said that each page must be worth 59 million dollars if SCO's wants 3 billion in damages.

      I hope the 23rd is an open hearing with a transcript, its going to be real funny.

    7. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by MuParadigm · · Score: 1


      "You can fit a lot of files and line numbers on 60 pages, so I wouldn't dismiss it just because of the "millions of lines of code"."

      Well, assuming 50 lines per pages, that would give you 3000 lines. Now, let's assume that SCO still claims 1500 files in Linux are violating. At one line per file, and another line per file to list the infringing line numbers, we've already hit the 60 pages. And that is only responsive to *one* interrogatory, Interrogatory 12.

      Since there are ten other interrogatories to respond to, I think it's safe to assume there will be some serious deficiencies in SCO's responses. Can't wait to see IBM's response.

    8. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by serutan · · Score: 0, Redundant

      Plus, SCO uses a reeeeeeally teensy font.

    9. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by TheLinuxSRC · · Score: 1

      Page 1.

      Lines 1-1,000,000

      Complied with.

    10. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by dgatwood · · Score: 2, Insightful
      Try again. If there are 3000 lines on 60 pages, then let's assume that each line contains something like:

      foo.c: 100-175, 500-580, 800-845, 960-1260.

      Six-hundred lines per line, that's 1.8 million lines of code. And with a more reasonable 80 lines per page....

      I'm not saying that they're not trolls, but you can't assume that they haven't complied. :-)

      --

      Check out my sci-fi/humor trilogy at PatriotsBooks.

    11. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by canajin56 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Wrong.
      I doubt they said:
      foo.h line 16
      foo.h line 17
      foo.h line 18
      ...
      foo.h line 90

      They just as easily could have said "foo.h lines 16-90"

      Further, if some file had multiple blocks copied from it, they could have these ranges on the same line also: 16-90, 1750-2001, 3000-4089, and so on.
      Therefore, you can say nothing at all about it, other than the fact that they span less than 3600 different files.

      --
      ASCII stupid question, get a stupid ANSI
    12. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by rjamestaylor · · Score: 0, Troll

      Your asinine reply supposes that such would qualify as "evidence."

      --
      -- @rjamestaylor on Ello
    13. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by rjamestaylor · · Score: 1

      Please, oh please, oh please, may this be a leak of the actual documents! Please! :)

      --
      -- @rjamestaylor on Ello
    14. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by Maserati · · Score: 0, Offtopic

      At least the parent troll is remotely ontopic for once.

      --
      Veteran, Bermuda Triangle Expeditionary Force, 1992-1951
    15. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And your posting underneath is gives us hope that it may see the light of day, even at -1.

      God Bless You, and that giant, gaping Anus.

    16. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by rjamestaylor · · Score: 2, Interesting
      I highly doubt that such would be (1) offered seriously or (2) accepted willingly as evidence. There would need to be an explanation of what in those lines infringes along with how the conclusion of infringement was ascertained. No respecting lawyer would allow such a terse presentation of their claims be submitted. There's not even a "wherefore the party of the first part" clause!

      Of course, I'm referring to actual court case with actual plaintiffs who think they actually have an actual case of actual infringement of actual property by an actual defendant, not a sham case used as a springboard for a publicity campaign with the goal of stock market manipulation.

      --
      -- @rjamestaylor on Ello
    17. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by Artifakt · · Score: 1

      I've been waiting for someone to point this out. Why have people assumed that to comply with the judge's order, SCO has to list every line individually? Isn't it possible SCO has listed them as "Lines 43 through 3,427 and 5,614 through 30,010 of foo.bar"? Or maybe "The line starting with "blah" through the line ending in "blah, blah"?
      Some /. readers seem to have invested so much in the "SCO is just crazy" position that they are looking for ways to interpret every action that will support that position.
      It's like poker. If you're holding a full house and nobody else has anything, everything usually gets resolved quickly and you don't win a lot. If you're showing 3/5s of a straight and one of the other players has two Kings up, that's when the bidding and the bluffing go on and on and someone eventually loses a lot of money. Why is it so unlikely that SCO thought they had something at the start of the hand?

      --
      Who is John Cabal?
    18. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by Jason+Earl · · Score: 1

      60 pages wouldn't hardly begin to cover a single instance of any of the interogatories. 60 pages wouldn't even begin to cover Interogatory #8 which deals with the contractual agreements drawn up in project Monterey.

      The fact of the matter is that there is no way that SCO could formulate an intelligent response to any of the interogatories with only 60 pages. SCO has paid their lawyers millions of dollars and they have essentially entered the "my dog ate my homework" plea.

      SCO is asking for all of the source for all of the various incarnations of AIX and Dynix and they propose to do that on the strength of 60 pages of text that can't possible anser even a hundredth part of what was demanded of them. That's insane.

      There are going to be a lot of SCO investors feeling awfully stupid when this ridiculous case gets thrown out of court.

    19. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by Twylite · · Score: 1
      cd /usr/src/linux ; find . -type f -print0 | xargs -n 1 --null echo Infringing code in file

      Still, they'd be printing it pretty small ;)

      --
      i-name =twylite [http://public.xdi.org/=twylite], see idcommons.net
    20. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by Jason+Earl · · Score: 5, Informative

      Yes, but SCO was ordered to do more than specify lines of code. They were ordered to provide a huge pile of information for each and every alleged infraction. We may not have access to SCO's response, but we do have access to the questions that they were supposed to answer. Take a look at interrogatories 12 and 13, for example:

      INTERROGATORY NO. 12: Please identify, with specificity (by file and line of code), (a) all source code and other material in Linux (including but not limited to the Linux kernel, any Linux operating sytem and any Linux distribution) to which plaintiff has rights; and (b) the nature of plaintiff's rights, including but not limited to whether and how the code or other material derives from UNIX.

      INTERROGATORY NO. 13: For each line of code and other materials identified in response to Interrogatory No. 12, please state whether (a) IBM has infringed plaintiff's rights, and for any rights IBM is alleged to have infringed, describe in detail how IBM is alleged to have infringed plaintiff's rights; and (b) whether plaintiff has ever distributed code or other material or otherwise made it available to the public, as part of a Linux distribution or otherwise, and, if so, the circumstances under which it was distributed or otherwise made available, including but not limited to the product(s) in which it was distributed or made available, and the terms under which is was distributed or made available (such as under the GPL or any other license).

      That is a lot of information to provide for "each line of code." I would bet that in many cases 60 pages wouldn't even be enough to correctly document one infraction. And there are 11 other interrogatories that deal with entirely different aspects of the case. Each of these interrogatories likewise required huge amounts of information to correctly answer their demands. Handing over 60 pages is like submitting a Hello World program written in bash when asked to code an ERP program. It's so ridiculous that you almost have to invent a new word to correctly describe it.

      The funniest part of the whole thing is that SCO apparently has paid their lawyers millions of dollars for their supposed "legal advice."

    21. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      60 pages? I would have thought it would take only one.

      To IBM:

      The following files are infringing.

      All of them.

      From SCO

    22. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by JPriest · · Score: 1

      Maybe the 60 page doc is the cliff notes version?

      --
      Saying Java is nice because it works on all OS's is like saying that anal sex is nice because it works on all genders.
    23. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by vladkrupin · · Score: 1

      You can fit a lot of files and line numbers on 60 pages, so I wouldn't dismiss it just because of the "millions of lines of code".

      Now my experience with legal documents suggests that it's hard to say much in 60 pages legalese periods...


      Legalise or not, they are expected to provide a lot of data. The first 6 interrogatories ask for a lot of details for each alleged indident of trade secret misappropriation. One of the interrogatories also asks for names of all people who had access to the code in question, along with details about what exact access rights they had. Another one asks details about all of their licensees, what access they had and how SCO prevented them from misappropriating the code. I imagine SCO has a lot of licensees to list.

      Just one of those questions is enough to fill 60 pages, and we are not even getting to any code yet.

      I have a hard time believing they'll present any code at all. They know it won't stand scrutiny. This would be akin to voluntarily throwing most of your allegations out, and leaving only misappropriation of trade secrets by IBM. Also, it'd make you look like a total idiot, but that wouldn't be the first time, would it?

      Even though their death warrant has already been signed, they aren't up for a suicide earlier than they have to. They'll drag it out as long as possible, and then some. They have nothing to lose and stock price to gain from dragging their feet as long as they can.

      --

      Jobs? Which jobs?
    24. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by vladkrupin · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Therefore, you can say nothing at all about it, other than the fact that they span less than 3600 different files.

      Yeah, that's where specificity comes into play. I can say that you are infringing on my code in 3600 of your files, but that won't be very specfic. If you are showing line ranges, that's fine, but you still have to describe what exactly is wrong with those lines. That description is what should make the bulk of the document, not the line numbers themselves.

      --

      Jobs? Which jobs?
    25. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by sverdlichenko · · Score: 2, Funny

      Large font, one letter on page:
      ALL YOUR KERNEL ARE BELONG TO US.

      They can make a nice poster with it :)

    26. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by flafish · · Score: 1

      60 pages if done as in a deposition isn't much. I just gave a deposition that lasted 1.5 hours and totaled 78 pages. SCOG is trying the all of the lines from 1- 300,000 bit I would bet.

    27. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by Citizen+of+Earth · · Score: 1

      That is a lot of information to provide for "each line of code." I would bet that in many cases 60 pages wouldn't even be enough to correctly document one infraction.

      You're forgetting that the only real copyright dispute involves only a few hundred lines of code, so the few files these come from could be listed in full in a few pages. The "meeeeeellions" comes from a bogus interpretation of 'derivative works'.

    28. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by tiger99 · · Score: 1
      It seems to me that if IBM get to see SCO's source, and SCO get to see the AIX source, there will be no way of either company knowing that the other has not illegally copied some code in the future, unless they have a permanent agreement to share each other's source. I doubt that McFraud has the intellectual capacity to see the problem, but IBM will, and if by some chance a line of their proprietary bits of AIX gets into SCO at some future date, they will be able to wipe him out legally. Not that they should have to expose code to McFraud anyway, but that is another matter. When it comes to doing the same with Linux, what will they need to do? Get all kernel contributors, ever, in one room, under NDA, and swap all the source? It is ridiculous. I could be liable here, I once wrote "main() { " which I suspect occurs somewhere, so I must by implication have plagiarised SCO's source!

      It is amazing how many potential problems simply can't happen if you stick to GPL code! The best way forward would be for all parties to publish their source (much as the BIOS for the original PC was published in, IIRC, the Advanced Users Guide, which anyone could purchase. It was copyright, you could look but not copy. That should be done here, to end the Source Wars for all time.

      In fact, it would be a good idea to alter copyright law in such a way that software was protected only if the source was published. It would not allow anyone to clone it, but it would give full visibility of any copying that did occur, and also provide the ideal opportunity to detect bugs and security holes. It would also put software on an even footing with other products, which can mostly be seen, dissected and understood (e.g. you can dismantle your car engine and see how clever Ford or whoever have been, and you can generally repair it yourself, but you can not build an exact copy). Most industries do dismantle their competitors products to have a look, it helps them to avoid repeating the same mistakes, and drives them to do something slightly different, thus advancing technology. That is how it should be with software, and it would really end the nonsense. But, in the meantime, the principal advocates of closed-source, led by the Convicted Monopolist, simply continue to retard progress (which is all that M$ have ever done, not a single innovation except new ways of creating an illegal monopoly has ever come from there, or ever will.) It only makes work for lawyers, and it is notable that Gates senior is one of that deplorable species.

    29. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by SillySlashdotName · · Score: 2, Informative

      Insightful? Whathehell? Another case of clueless moderation.

      The order was to provide:
      1) all alleged trade secrets and confidential or proprietary information that SCO alleges IBM misappropriated or misused by product, file and line of code.
      2) For each alleged trade secret and any confidential or proprietary information identified in 1: (a) all persons who have or had rights to the same; (b) the nature and sources of SCO's rights in the same; and (c) efforts to maintain secrecy or confidentiality of the same.
      3) the identity of all persons to whom the [Confidential Information] was disclosed and the details of such disclosure. In particular: (a) the date of disclosure; (b) the terms of disclosure; (c) the documents relating to disclosure; (d) all places where the trade secret and/or confidential or proprietary information may be found or accessed.
      4) [I]nformation regarding each instance in which plaintiff alleges that IBM misappropriated or misused the [Confidential Information]. In particular: (a) the date of the alleged misuse or misappropriation; (b) the persons involved; c) the manner of misuse or misappropriation; and (d) the location of any method or code in any IBM product, Linux, open source or the public domain. (emphasis added)
      5) identification of (a) all agreements relating to [IBMs alleged infringement], and (b) all copyrights and patents relating thereto, including but not limited to the owners, licensors, licensees, assignors or assignees thereof.
      6) [For each item SCO alledges was misappropriated]:(a) the origin of the code or method, including where, when and by whom created; (b) all products in which the code or method is included or upon which it is based (in whole or in part).
      7) [A] description of each instance in which IBM allegedly engaged in unfair competition, including but not limited to: (a) the dates of such conduct, (b) the persons involved, and (c) the specific manner of unfair competition.
      8) [I]dentification of all agreements with which IBM allegedly interfered, including but not limited to: (a) the date of interference, (b) the persons involved in the interference, (c) the manner of interference, (d) the actions (if any) IBM encouraged licensees to take, (e) the actions, if any, such licensees took as a result of IBM's inducement/encouragement, (f) the trade secret or proprietary information (if any) involved in the alleged interference.
      9) [I]dentification of all agreements that IBM has allegedly breached, including but not limited to: (a) the date of breach, (b) the persons involved, and (c) the specific manner of breach.
      12) [I]dentify, with specificity (by file and line of code), (a) all source code and other material in Linux (including but not limited to the Linux kernel, any Linux operating sytem and any Linux distribution) to which plaintiff has rights; and (b) the nature of plaintiff's rights, including but not limited to whether and how the code or other material derives from UNIX. (emphasis added)
      13) For each line of code and other materials identified in response to 12, please state whether (a) IBM has infringed plaintiff's rights, and for any rights IBM is alleged to have infringed, describe in detail how IBM is alleged to have infringed plaintiff's rights; and (b) whether plaintiff has ever distributed code or other material or otherwise made it available to the public, as part of a Linux distribution or otherwise, and, if so, the circumstances under which it was distributed or otherwise made available, including but not limited to the product(s) in which it was distributed or made available, and the terms under which is was distributed or made available (such as under the GPL or any other license).

      A response to any one of these requests should take more than 60 pages - 60 pages for ALL responses is totally out of touch with reality.

      I agree that we have to wait until the judge and IBM have read the submission to know how *they* react, but it should be pla

      --
      Acts of massive stupidity are almost never covered by warranty. --me.
    30. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by whittrash · · Score: 1

      The document itself is brief, but refers to a sixty-page supplement which lists the offending lines, and asserts that it can find more when IBM produces some of the evidence demanded of them by SCO.

      This is the same BS as the last round. They only sent out 60 pages which can't possibly describe accurately the history of 1 million lines of code. I thought they were required to spell out in detail 'how' they owned this stuff not just what lines of Linux were supposedly contaminated.

    31. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by gandy909 · · Score: 1

      Haven't they claimed 'over 6000' licensee's? Or am I thinking of something different?

      --

      (Stolen sig) Remember: it's a "Microsoft virus", not an "email virus", a "Microsoft worm", not a "computer worm
    32. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by SillySlashdotName · · Score: 1

      Copyright dispute? What copyright dispute? This case is SCOG accusing IBM of CONTRACT INFRINGMENT.

      SCOG is saying they have "Intellectual Property" that IBM allowed into Linux despite a contract that said they would not do so.

      SCOG has claimed "millions of lines" of their propriatary code in Linux. IBM has asked for the SPECIFIC code - all "millions of lines". SCOG has replied with 60+ pages

      Assuming 8.5x11 pages, 60 pages, 66 lines per page, and 12 CPI text, that is 356,400 characters - they must be able to show 3 complete package names, file names, and line numbers **per character**! Must be some impressive redundancy to get that level of compression.

      --
      Acts of massive stupidity are almost never covered by warranty. --me.
    33. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by SillySlashdotName · · Score: 1

      From the interogatories that SCOG is supposedly responding to "with specificity"

      "INTERROGATORY NO. 1: ...This information is requested by product, file and line of code." (my emphasis)

      "INTERROGATORY NO. 12: Please identify, with specificity (by file and line of code), ..."(my emphasis)

      "INTERROGATORY NO. 13: For each line of code ..."(my emphasis)

      When the judge orders that you respond by line of code, you respond by line of code.

      --
      Acts of massive stupidity are almost never covered by warranty. --me.
    34. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by HTH+NE1 · · Score: 1

      Surely the same answers could apply to multiple blocks of code in multiple files, specified by range of line numbers, and further that IBM would rather have the information so organized than have to collate a line-by-line restatement of plaintiff's rights (i.e. grepping dead trees). The specificity by line numbers of blocks of code and the answers to the interrogatories referencing the specific blocks and therefore applying to every line referenced in the block could easily fit on 60 pages.

      However, that only works for lines referenced as being in Linux code, not for the corresponding lines in their proprietary code. That would also need to be spelled out including the contents of every line. Disclosure of the lines in their proprietary code is necessary to verify the claim that it is their code. Disclosure of lines in Linux only lets you trace the history of the code in Linux.

      Unless their code is already disclosed to IBM, then ranges of line numbers there is sufficient. Only the public would need full disclosure of the contents of all lines.

      --
      Oh, say does that Star-Spangled Banner entwine / The myrtle of Venus with Bacchus's vine?
    35. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by SillySlashdotName · · Score: 1

      You are thinking of their SCO Unix licensees.

      As far as I can tell, they have not tried to sell any licenses for the Linux "IP" yet, despite their PR talk. In fact, those people who have tried to buy a license have been denied one.

      At least so far...

      --
      Acts of massive stupidity are almost never covered by warranty. --me.
    36. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by 13Echo · · Score: 2, Insightful

      The linux kernel contains more than 4 million lines of code. At 60 pages, SCO would be lucky to have at least 3000 lines of code, at best. That is hardly even a fraction of a percent of code.

      If, by some ridiculous chance they are able to prove that the code is "stolen", then it will be up to SCO and IBM to iron the issue out. Theft is not justified, in any case, but SCO does not have any right to lay claim to the entire Linux kernel for their own purposes, regardless of their bogus reasons.

      In any case, 60 pages of code is piddly stuff when considering the size of the Linux kernel. Regardless, it will be up to a judge to decide the outcome, as you have mentioned. I, for one, feel that SCO doesn't stand a snowball's chance in hell. At best, IBM will be fined for violating any agreements with SCO, and the code in question will be removed from the kernel tree and will be easily replaced.

    37. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by cluckshot · · Score: 1

      and (b) whether plaintiff has ever distributed code or other material or otherwise made it available to the public, as part of a Linux distribution or otherwise, and, if so, the circumstances under which it was distributed or otherwise made available, including but not limited to the product(s) in which it was distributed or made available, and the terms under which is was distributed or made available (such as under the GPL or any other license).

      Since the Judge compelled this particular request I suspect that the whole issue is dead with SCO. The Judge clearly has noted that the plaintiff may have given away the rights here! Reading this tells me it is all over but the shouting!

      --
      Never Politically Correct ~ I prefer the facts If you don't like what I say, get a life, or comment yourself.
    38. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by Slime-dogg · · Score: 1

      It's so ridiculous that you almost have to invent a new word to correctly describe it.

      I like other words like:

      • Absurd
      • Recoculous
      • Insane

      According to the Urban dictionary, Recoculous means "Incredibly fucking stupid."

      --
      You need to restart your computer. Hold down the Power button for several seconds or press the Restart button.
    39. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by Artifakt · · Score: 1

      Emphasize all you want. "By line of code" can still be aggregate reporting if multiple lines are all part of the same tort. You're reading into the requirement more than it actually says. Further, doing it that way could involve substantial additional legal costs. If the judge insists on SCO writing:

      Line 57 - developer bubba - under standard non-disclosure agreement - April 14 1996
      Line 58 - developer bubba - under standard non-disclosure agreement - April 14 1996
      Line 59 - developer bubba - under standard non-disclosure agreement - April 14 1996 ...

      instead of "Line 57 through 103 - all by developer Bubba, who was under a NDA dated April 14 1996 (Date of hire)", that's an arbitrary requirement unrelated to the interests of justice. Specificity doesn't mean "write it out line by line", it means specify the lines.
      Insisting on SCO incurring additional costs to say what is clearly the same thing in fewer words would in fact give them an excellent grounds for appeal on judicial misconduct, so not only do I doubt the judge did that, we had all better hope that he didn't.

      If the judge orders you to submit the document s on clay tablets in cuneiform, you don't submit the documents on clay tablets, you immediately appeal to a higher court (requesting a competency hearing for the judge). Alternately, you comply, and pass the additional costs back to the government.

      --
      Who is John Cabal?
    40. Re:Files and line numbers may be sufficient by yourmom16 · · Score: 1
      Of course, I'm referring to actual court case with actual plaintiffs who think they actually have an actual case of actual infringement of actual property by an actual defendant,

      It also works that way for 'intellectual property' instead of just actual property.

      --
      "We have got to make Stan understand the importance of voting, because he'll definitely vote for our guy." - South Park
  5. Question by Mephie · · Score: 2

    What does "admitted pro hac vice" mean?

    1. Re:Question by The+Welcome+Rain · · Score: 5, Informative

      It means that a party's attorney is not licensed to practice law in the state in which the suit is filed, but is so licensed in another state, and the party would like this attorney to help represent them. I believe at least one attorney for each party must be licensed in that state, but others need not be.

      --
      Some keywords for the NSA in the Lord of the Rings universe: One Ring bind find Sauron quest Nazgul freedom
    2. Re:Question by manganese4 · · Score: 2, Informative

      from google The legal definition of pro hac vice is "for the particular occasion..."

      --
      I make my face look like this and concerned words come out.
    3. Re:Question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny
      What does "admitted pro hac vice" mean?

      It means that the person filing the motion has confessed to their unsavory practice of hacking professionally. Sheesh, buy a legal dictionary.

    4. Re:Question by vpetersen · · Score: 2, Informative

      "for this occasion", in Latin (lawyer's 31334 $p3ak)

    5. Re:Question by Mephie · · Score: 1

      Got it. Thanks for explaining.

    6. Re:Question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      RTFM. You come on to this blatently pro Latin site, don't know shit about Latin and expect not to get modded down after posting such a crass newbie question? The big question is: will this baby run Latin? Or, imagine a forum of these. Or, in Ancient Rome the orgy finds you. etc...

    7. Re:Question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      It means SCO has finally admitted that their lawyers are hacks, and that the lawsuit is really grounds to send in the Vice Squad to charge them with a con game.

    8. Re:Question by Daengbo · · Score: 2

      Oh god! I nearly pissed my pants. That's so funny. I can't breathe... Help...

    9. Re:Question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      RTFM. You come on to this blatently pro Latin site, don't know shit about Latin and expect not to get modded down after posting such a crass newbie question?

      SCO: Sed non culpa mea est!!!
    10. Re:Question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So in other words, 500 an hour?

    11. Re:Question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Bravo!

    12. Re:Question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative
      So in other words, 500 an hour?

      Well, at least the first hour covers the applicationm fee.

      From http://www.azbar.org/AttorneyResources/pro_hac.cfm :

      Applicants must pay a fee of $369.75 to apply for pro hac vice admission during the 2004 calendar year. Because the fee is computed at 85% of the fee assessed members of the State Bar of Arizona, the fee will increase as fees increase for members of the State Bar.

    13. Re:Question by Zeinfeld · · Score: 2, Funny
      RTFM. You come on to this blatently pro Latin site, don't know shit about Latin and expect not to get modded down after posting such a crass newbie question? The big question is: will this baby run Latin? Or, imagine a forum of these. Or, in Ancient Rome the orgy finds you. etc...

      That reminds me of the time that someone posted the Oxford trolleybus poem to soc.culture.british. It is dogrel, half latin, half English, mostly in the bits where the author's latin gave out.

      Of course someone asked the group for a translation. So I obliged and translated all the English bits into Latin for them.

      --
      Looking for an Information Security student project suggestion?
      Try http://dotcrimeManifesto.com/
    14. Re:Question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Si hoc leger scis, nimium eruditionis habes. (Apologies about the accent)

    15. Re:Question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'm someone else and wasn't able to find the poem in question based on your post's parent's information.

      But here's another half-Latin half-English 'poem' kinda' involving a trolleybus.

      Caesar adsum jam forte
      Brutus aderat
      Caesar sic in omnibus
      Brutus sic inat.

      (Spoiler: read 'adsum, 'aderat and in 'at to glean meaning)

    16. Re:Question by BigBadBri · · Score: 1
      You missed:

      omnia castris vobis sunt adiunctus nobis!

      (some, but not all syntactical errors intended ;))

      --
      oh brave new world, that has such people in it!
    17. Re:Question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      mea culpa.

  6. The Chewbacca Defense by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    "Ladies and Gentlemen of this supposed jury, SCO's accusers would certainly want you to believe my client doesn't own the rights to Unix, and they make a good case. Hell, I almost felt pity myself. But Ladies and Gentlemen of this supposed jury, I have one final thing I want you to consider.

    Ladies and Gentlemen, this is Chewbacca. Chewbacca is a Wookiee from the planet Kashyyyk who carried a gun and ran from the mob. But Chewbacca lives on the planet Endor. Now think about it. That does not make sense. Why would a Wookiee, an eight-foot-tall Wookiee, want to live on Endor with a bunch of two-foot-tall Ewoks. That does not make sense.

    But more important, you have to ask yourself what does this have to do with this case. Nothing. Ladies and Gentlemen, it has nothing to do with this case. It does not make sense. Look at me. I'm a lawyer defending a major Unix company and I'm talkin' about Chewbacca. Does that make sense? Ladies and Gentlemen I am not making any sense. None of this makes sense.

    And so you have to remember when you're in that jury room deliberating and conjugating the Emancipation Proclamation, does it make sense? No. Ladies and Gentlemen of this supposed jury it does not make sense. If Chewbacca lives on Endor you must acquit.

    I know SCO seems guilty. But ladies and gentlemen this is Chewbacca. Now think about that for one minute. That does not make sense. Why am I talking about Chewbacca when a company is on the line? Why? I'll tell you why. I don't know. It doesn't make sense. If Chewbacca does not make sense you must acquit. Here look at the monkey , look at the silly monkey.

    The defense rests."

  7. Compression? by BananaJr6000 · · Score: 4, Funny

    With a compression algorithm like that (millions of lines to 60+ pages)

    SCO's IP license would be worth $699 ...but since that compression ratio is impossible (except in Utah) SCO is pretty much done.

    1. Re:Compression? by damiam · · Score: 1

      Ummm... They don't have to list the lines. They just have to specify them. "Every line of all files in the directory xxx/xxx/xxx" is a valid response.

      --
      It's hard to be religious when certain people are never incinerated by bolts of lightning.
    2. Re:Compression? by angedinoir · · Score: 1

      Good compression? Even Winzip will compress it down when it's a million lines of:

      int x;
      int i;
      char u;
      for(x=0; x etc...

    3. Re:Compression? by angedinoir · · Score: 1

      Oh yea, and soon that will be illegal too, because my patent for the number 0, and all of its uses will soon go through.

    4. Re:Compression? by rgmoore · · Score: 3, Insightful

      It's a valid response to the "which lines are violating", but that's not all they've been asked. If the lines are SysV lines that IBM is alleged to have disclosed, SCO has to say how SCO has a right to them, how they know IBM is responsible, who else might have seen the code, and what steps SCO took to make sure those others kept the code confidential. If they're lines in a Linux file, SCO has to say how and why SCO has a right to them and how they know that IBM is responsible for them being in Linux.

      And those are just the questions about IBM's alleged copying. SCO is also supposed to give a full description of all of IBM's other alleged wrongdoings (remember the parts of the suit about unfair trade practices, interference with trade relations, and breach of contract?) and a full inventory of all of their claims of proprietary rights in Linux including the basis for those claims. It's hard to imagine squeezing all that into 60-70 pages.

      --

      There's no point in questioning authority if you aren't going to listen to the answers.

    5. Re:Compression? by MuParadigm · · Score: 1


      Including the copyright notices in each file?

      They should at least be excluding those. Therefore, such a response would not be sufficient.

    6. Re:Compression? by chrysrobyn · · Score: 2, Informative
      With a compression algorithm like that (millions of lines to 60+ pages) SCO's IP license would be worth $699 ...but since that compression ratio is impossible (except in Utah) SCO is pretty much done.

      As an engineer, I need to look at the edge conditions. Consider the case where the recipient already has a copy of the source code. The compression / decompression algorithm could be smart enough to say "Yup, that's it" and have the entire payload be "1" or "Nope, here's a gzipped version" and have the payload be a "0" followed by a general purpose compression payload. There are points in between that make this compression be specifically tuned but slightly more useful, for example, each paragraph gets its own fingerprint to follow a "1" and non-SCO paragraphs get bzipped, or whatever. In any event, it is not impossible to compress millions of lines of text onto 60 pages for any reasonably arbitrary font size when the programmer has adequate knowledge of the application.

      Not that SCO will let any trained programmers worth their weight in carbon dioxide to look at the application conditions, but it was fun to think about.

    7. Re:Compression? by damiam · · Score: 1

      Okay, fine. "Every lineexcept for the copyright notices". You get my drift. It's possible to specify a broad set of lines without actually writing out every one of them in full.

      --
      It's hard to be religious when certain people are never incinerated by bolts of lightning.
    8. Re:Compression? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      HOW DARE YOU STEAL MY PATENTED int x; CODE!!
      This is prior art!! I -demand- you take this offline this instant!
      What next, are you going to start stealing my copyrighted technique of `setting x to equal other numbers', too? Waitaminute, for ( x=.... dear ... god... My IP trade secrets!!, NOOOO!!!

    9. Re:Compression? by ElliotLee · · Score: 1

      Why in Utah?

    10. Re:Compression? by Durandal64 · · Score: 1

      So they'd simply write a preface saying, "Trust us, these lines offend. We don't need to provide any justification for our claim that they do"?

    11. Re:Compression? by BananaJr6000 · · Score: 1

      Answer found here, originally seen on Groklaw here (scroll to the bottom) by xtifr

      thanx for asking!

    12. Re:Compression? by Tokerat · · Score: 1, Funny


      Too bad you're going to jail for copyright infringement. I copyrighted the "0" symbol a long time ago and am just now starting to care about protecting myself from your derrivative works.

      By the way, I believe "illegal" is a registered trademark of Microsoft, expect a cease & desist from them.

      Of course, I'm screwed too, the RIAA patented my whole business plan, except they added the words "using the Internet or other electronic communications network" in order to get it approved as if it was some new/useful/patentable idea. Perhaps I can weasel out of it, with a good enough lawyer. ("THIS....is Chewbacca...")

      --
      CAn'T CompreHend SARcaSm?
    13. Re:Compression? by hayds · · Score: 5, Funny

      Who said they compressed it?? Maybe theyre trying to fool everyone by just using 60 REALLY big bits of paper.

      I can imagine them walking into court with 60 A1 pages printed off a plotter or something. :)

    14. Re:Compression? by damiam · · Score: 1

      Of course not. Stop being stupid. They could say, "Files xxx, yyy and zzz (excluding license notices) offend because..." and then go on to explain. There's no reason why they have to write out every single line.

      --
      It's hard to be religious when certain people are never incinerated by bolts of lightning.
    15. Re:Compression? by Durandal64 · · Score: 1

      Again, in 60 pages? I don't think so.

    16. Re:Compression? by MrNerdHair · · Score: 1

      The court will reject anything different than their standard paper size. Usually letter or legal. Maybe they're using string theory or something and saying that the info is in the entropy of a black hole.

      "Your Honor, we came up with all the info requested, but I wouldn't advise looking at it without a REALLY big jetpack handy!"

      --

      I typed this by hand. Ha! You can't tell, can you?
      Am I telling the truth? You decide!

  8. Wait a minute by helix400 · · Score: 4, Informative

    It says the supplement exceeds 60 pages. So we don't know the actual size.

    On a side note, any legal reason why they would say "exceed 60 pages". Why not 50 pages, or 70 pages, or whatever?

    1. Re:Wait a minute by Gr33nNight · · Score: 1

      I remember watching a movie where Nick Nolte mentioned that he has been shot over 7 times. I always wondered WTF. I suppose "exceeds 60 pages" means there is less than 70 pages.

    2. Re:Wait a minute by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's cause it's less than 70. If it was more than 70, they would have said it exceeds 70 pages.

      We don't know the actual, but we know it's 61-70.

    3. Re:Wait a minute by Mephie · · Score: 1

      Of course it exceeded 60 pages. After they used double-line spacing to make it look like there's a lot of information. Maybe they're hoping Blue's lawyers won't have time to read more than sixty whole pages!

    4. Re:Wait a minute by Bingo+Foo · · Score: 4, Funny
      why they would say "exceed 60 pages". Why not 50 pages

      Because 50 does not exceed 60.

      --
      taken! (by Davidleeroth) Thanks Bingo Foo!
    5. Re:Wait a minute by helix400 · · Score: 1

      Ya, the question did sound quite right. What I really meant was:

      Why did they give us a definite number of 60, but say it exceeds it? Is there a legal rule saying after 60 you just say 60? If so, why is this legal cutoff at 60, and not say, 50? Or 70?

    6. Re:Wait a minute by The+Welcome+Rain · · Score: 1

      I suppose it is possible that the response is thousands of pages long, but I can see no reason why SCO would stipulate only that it was over 60 pages. I have seen no previous motion to restrict supplements to 60 pages, and such a number would be ludicrously small for even a small lawsuit.

      I therefore doubt that the supplement is much over 60 pages long.

      --
      Some keywords for the NSA in the Lord of the Rings universe: One Ring bind find Sauron quest Nazgul freedom
    7. Re:Wait a minute by kfg · · Score: 2, Informative

      Because if it comes to 60 pages and one paragraph the sworn document would contain a legal falsity.

      Pretty simple really.

      They're using the largest round number possible (to impress) without looking silly or lying.

      KFG

    8. Re:Wait a minute by tarquin_fim_bim · · Score: 0, Troll

      It's rather like the forty days and forty nights thing in the bible, absolute bollocks.

    9. Re:Wait a minute by register_ax · · Score: 1
      Why not 50 pages, or 70 pages, or whatever?

      Because 70 is the atomic number for Ytterbium and SCO is not ready to take on the town Ytterby for infringing upon their copyrighted company values.

      Interestingly enough, searching values site:www.sco.com brings up:

      Your search - values site:www.sco.com - did not match any documents.

      Hrmm...

    10. Re:Wait a minute by z00z · · Score: 1
      We don't know the actual, but we know it's 61-70.

      Since SCO seem so desperate trying to exaggerate their claims, I would tend to think that the actual number is between 61-65, else they would have said 'exceeds 65 pages'.

    11. Re:Wait a minute by Atzanteol · · Score: 1

      Maybe that's what they've compiled so far, but they know there is more?

      --
      "Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge"

      - Charles Darwin
    12. Re:Wait a minute by WolfWithoutAClause · · Score: 1, Insightful

      But a document that exceeds 60 pages does exceed 50 pages.

      --

      -WolfWithoutAClause

      "Gravity is only a theory, not a fact!"
    13. Re:Wait a minute by mbadolato · · Score: 1

      If so, why is this legal cutoff at 60, and not say, 50? Or 70?

      Maybe SCO is claiming ownership rights to 50 and doesn't want anyone else to pollute their case by specifiying it? :)

    14. Re:Wait a minute by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      But if their document exceeds 60 pages, they would not be correct to say that is 50 pages.

    15. Re:Wait a minute by NMEismyNME · · Score: 1

      "Your search - values site:www.sco.com - did not match any documents."

      neither did mine - ethics site:www.sco.com

    16. Re:Wait a minute by magores · · Score: 1

      Your search - crack site:www.sco.com - Results 1 - 10 of about 292,000,000

    17. Re:Wait a minute by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Dudes, thats 60 _LEGAL_ size pages, those are some big pages!

    18. Re:Wait a minute by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Its hard to count accurately after a long three
      (or more) martini lunch.

    19. Re:Wait a minute by Feezle · · Score: 2, Funny
      Because 50 does not exceed 60.

      Except for large values of 50.

    20. Re:Wait a minute by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      But the original question was why say it exceeds 60 pages, rather than saying it exceeds 50 or 70 pages? Why 60 and not some other number?

    21. Re:Wait a minute by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      SCO might sue the number 50 for not exceeding 60... Maybe that is what is in the 60+ pages...

    22. Re:Wait a minute by JPriest · · Score: 1

      I searched linux site:sco.com and got one match linking to this article ripping on Linux Zealots, good read.

      --
      Saying Java is nice because it works on all OS's is like saying that anal sex is nice because it works on all genders.
    23. Re:Wait a minute by invalid_user · · Score: 1

      I don't understand all these number fetishes.

    24. Re:Wait a minute by taphu · · Score: 1

      If something is advertised as "Under $50!!!" you can bet it's not $19.95.

    25. Re:Wait a minute by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Since when is SCO afraid of looking silly or lying?

    26. Re:Wait a minute by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You work for the govment dont you!!!

  9. 60 pages is not a million, but it's quite a chunk by ObviousGuy · · Score: 1

    If SCO's claims that this code is in fact their own turns out to be true, doesn't that mean that their case has solid legs to stand on?

    How interesting it would be for all versions of Linux before this code is removed to be in violation of SCO's copyright.

    --
    I have been pwned because my /. password was too easy to guess.
  10. Millions of lines in 60 pages by bluephone · · Score: 5, Funny

    They use a Bullshit Compressor. Politicians have been using it for years. Thta's hwo you get 10 pounds of manure in a 5 pound bag.

    --
    jX [ Make everything as simple as possible, but no simpler. - Einstein ]
    1. Re:Millions of lines in 60 pages by bartwol · · Score: 5, Funny

      You've got it reversed. Politicians use a Bullshit Expander. It gives you 10 pounds of bullshit out of 5 pounds of substance. It is because SCO previously used the Bullshit Expander that they now find themselves shrunken back to size.

    2. Re:Millions of lines in 60 pages by NegativeK · · Score: 2, Funny

      They use a Bullshit Compressor. Politicians have been using it for years. Thta's hwo you get 10 pounds of manure in a 5 pound bag.

      How true. And just like every time I've handled bags of manure, SCO has broken open and started to spill crap everywhere.

      --
      This statement is false.
    3. Re:Millions of lines in 60 pages by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They use word 2004 Auto-Unsummarize
      http://www.bbspot.com/News/2003/ 12/autounsummarize .html

    4. Re:Millions of lines in 60 pages by cyberfunk2 · · Score: 1

      Well, technically, there is no such thing as a 5 pound bag.. see it's all density and if we infinity compress the matter... well then the bag would collapse on it's contents, and ... oh never mind....

    5. Re:Millions of lines in 60 pages by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Actually, the code can be simplifiyed to
      in php :)

      dl("pages_extension.so");
      for ($i=0;
      $ihowManyCharactersFitpages(60);
      $i++) {
      echo chr(floor(mt_rand()));
      }

  11. SCO producing evidence? by marine_recon · · Score: 2, Insightful

    right. ill belive this when i see it. untill then i will regard this like everything else that sco has done, a vague answer to a direct question.

    --
    Jack the sound barrier. Bring the noise.
    1. Re:SCO producing evidence? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      What are some good SCO decodings?

      Some Crowd of Orangutans

      Snarky California...Oops (Shoulda Checked cOordinates)

      Steaming Crap Originator

      Sometimes Cixelsyd Oafs

      Let's hear ya flamebait, /.land!

  12. Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by vkg · · Score: 5, Insightful

    So, ok, the SCO case might be beginning to crumble. Might take a little longer, and who knows, with M$ looking for any shot it can take, there might be more problems in future.

    So what are we going to do about it? Are there any measures the open source community can take to prevent contaimination of the open code base with improperly cleared code? Can we look at this as a subset of the more general "malware CVS committs?" problem? Should we have coders sign contracts stating that they have all appropriate rights to what they are about to commit so that we can offload liability to them?

    Open Source Programmer insurance couldn't be far behind that....

    Anyway, your thoughs please!

    1. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by burnin1965 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      My thoughts? It seems you are assuming there is a lesson to be learned here for the open source community, I suggest there will be no lesson to learn until we get some results from this case.

      Furthermore, I believe that if there is a lesson to be learned then it is a lesson for all software developement models. Just because you cannot see the source code in a proprietary model does not mean they aren't using stolen code.

      In fact, considering that most EULAs provide virtually no protection for the end user in the event that a proprietary vendor is using stolen code I would have to say that all end users should start demanding open source to ensure they are protected.

      So, considering the vast volumes of open source code out there and there is only one court case, which appears to many including myself to be a facade, I'd say the mere fact that open source is open provides a significant deterrent to contributors to introduce stolen code, they will be caught.

      burnin

    2. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by 6.023e23 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      How does one go about critiquing an Open Source programmer's code as far as IP ownership goes? Or ANY programmer for that matter? You're taking it on their word that the code they submit was written by them and has no encumberances. The best you can do, IMO, would be to have signed affidavits from the programmers to such effect - proving the IP ownership would still be all but impossible. And how many programmers do you think would want to bother with signing an affidavit for every project to which they contribute? And how many projects are going to want to deal with the overhead? Of course you could require licensing/registration of all programmers... "Excuse me sir, but do you have a license to operate that there keyboard?" Methinks not.

    3. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by AMDude · · Score: 1

      I think SCO shouldn't have even opened their mouths. When you think about it IBM has been in business for -what?- 200 hundred years? And they have gotten more powerful and powerful. So why would a middle sized company open their mouths againest a company who probably (and most likley) has a lot of experiance. And why would M$ get involved? Maybe to pick up the pieces of SCO, but still. If IBM had a chance to get Microsoft, they would sue their ass off because nearly everbody hates M$. Afterall IBM is a 12-ton spacebeast who kills you in one move, and Microsoft is a 400-pound gorlilla . And SCO, ummmm, no comment.

    4. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by Eric+Smith · · Score: 1
      When you think about it IBM has been in business for -what?- 200 hundred years?
      Hardly! IBM was incorporated in 1911 as the Computing-Tabulating-Recording company (C-T-R). Portions of the company date back to 1888. That's nowhere near 200 years.
    5. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "And SCO, ummmm, no comment. "

      To paraphrase Bruce Almighty, SCO is "an anal dwelling buttmonkey" -- is that what you were getting at?

    6. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by garbagedisposal · · Score: 1

      " So, ok, the SCO case might be beginning to crumble. "

      You *wish*.

      Do your research at groklaw and get the facts.
      This scam is just about done.

    7. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by k98sven · · Score: 2, Informative

      It's not a big problem, since in most OSS projects, the individual programmer usually retains copyright on the parts he wrote.

      So, if he/she submits code that he/she does not have rights to, it is they who are liable, not the entire project.

      This could be contrasted against a newspaper or magazine, where the contributing writers do not retain their copyright. That's why the newspaper is liable if a story turns out to be plagiarized.

      (Note that in both cases, end users/subscribers are not liable, unlike what SCO seems to think)

      Some OSS projects, like GNU and Apache, require you to sign over copyrights, like with newspapers, this makes them liable.

      But at the same time, copyright releases usually entail that you agree that your work is original, thus giving them the ability to seek damages against you if you weren't truthful.

    8. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by iabervon · · Score: 2, Interesting

      The lesson to learn from this is that people can cause a whole lot of legal trouble even if they don't have any IP at all and you have clear records of every contribution and what else it might be related to. Trying to get even more information or to get more proof from coders of the legitimacy of their contributions is obviously useless in the face of something like SCO, since the defense will never get a chance or have a need to present any evidence of this sort.

      If a case is successfully defended or especially if it gets thrown out, it would be stupid to do anything differently. If you win the case, that means that what you've been doing is fine. If anything, changing your behavior in response to winning a case means that the precedent will be less useful if you get dragged into court again.

    9. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Just goes to show what a drag on the creative output of the planet all that IP crap is. Get rid of it and we'll all benefit. It's going to get a lot worse before it gets better.

    10. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by LearnToSpell · · Score: 1

      200 hundred years, brutha! That's from before agriculture! SCO is fucked!

    11. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by j3110 · · Score: 1

      No need to sign a contract really. The majority of the fault already lies with the developer that commits the code. What may have to happen is Distros selling Linux will have to cover liability insurance so that end users don't get into trouble over it, but I'm not so certain of what grounds you could sue an end user over it anyhow, and certainly it would be terrible press for the company that would do such a thing (like SCO). Is there anyone here that would actually suggest buying anything from SCO? I don't think so, and that's gotta hurt their market share a lot.

      Basically, SCO is going after IBM for submitting the code, and if IBM did submit proprietary code, then they are at fault. I don't know where the end users lie in all this, but SCO sure is becoming more infamous every day. In any case, I think they'll have to win the case against the submitter before they could go after the end users anyhow. They have 0 chance suing an end user if they loose the case against the submitter, and I don't think it would look so great to the judge if they just went after the end users first.

      --
      Karma Clown
    12. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by debrain · · Score: 1


      In fact, considering that most EULAs provide virtually no protection for the end user in the event that a proprietary vendor is using stolen code I would have to say that all end users should start demanding open source to ensure they are protected.


      There are some unfortunate practical considerations here. First, if a proprietary vendor is using stolen code, no one really knows about it. Copyright protects the code, but how does the creator know when someone else is using their code? It's very hard, almost impossible, to find out, especially since minor changes can totally obfuscate the original source, and end product. Open source can do this, too, but the point is that it's harder for a creator of source to say "that's mine" if it's proprietary, because it may look, and act similarly, but there is no way to obtain access to the code that infringes without saying first that it has likely been infringed. That's hard, and risky.

      Second, even if a creator says "that's mine", what happens? They don't go after the end users. They go after the person who infringed the copyright, and the user is indemnified because they do not possess the infringing source code. The infringing entity that stole the code is certainly in a heap of trouble for copyright violation, but the end user has committed no such violation. They merely possess the compiled product, an uncorrelated consequence of copyright infringment, not an infringment in and of itself.

      However, patents on the other hand, are a different consideration.

    13. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by yaar · · Score: 1

      It's open in as much as the code is published for all to review, and so long as cvs records who commits what etc, i think affidavits are redundant.

      The open nature of open source only serves to further validate the legitimacy of the code. We've seen many an example of closed applications infringing and being found out despite the fact that no source is available. I know when I see an application with functionality comparable to my application or to any application's code I'm may be familiar with, I'm apt to do at least a strings check.

      With open source there is no closet in which to hide skeletons.

      --
      "Nothing in education is so astonishing as the amount of ignorance it accumulates in the form of inert facts." - Henry A
    14. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by LuYu · · Score: 1

      Second, even if a creator says "that's mine", what happens? They don't go after the end users.
      Why not? What is it about proprietary software that protects against this?

      It is not as if individuals were not responsible for any questionable code contributions to the Linux kernel. What to the end users have to do with this in open source or proprietary software?

      The answer is: nothing. SCO's claim against end users is completely fraudulent. There is nothing the end users could have done to prevent it. In fact, the end users could not have even known of the infringement, if there was infringment at all. Infringement is willful. If intent cannot be proven, infringement does not exist.

      What does having the source code have to do with willful infringement?

      SCO is trying to extort licensing revenue from anyone stupid enough to take the bait. They have no evidence, and they are threatening people who could not be liable. It is fraud.

      Evidently, though, fraud is quite profitable.

      --
      All data is speech. All speech is Free.
    15. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by MyFourthAccount · · Score: 1

      In fact, considering that most EULAs provide virtually no protection for the end user in the event that a proprietary vendor is using stolen code

      What sort of protection are you talking about here? Protection from what?

    16. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by jchoyt · · Score: 1

      I say we start taking donations and BUY SCO when their stock price falls to nil. Hell, why not short it now, then buy it back when if falls to nil? Give the boatload of $$ and all thier IP to the FSF or OSDL to hold in the public interest.

      I'd love to see the look on Darl's face <evil grin here>

      --
      Sometimes the truth is arrived at by adding all the little lies together and deducting them from all that is known.
    17. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Interestingly, the FSF does require contributors to sign a contract just as you said. The contributor asserts that they own the copyright to the material that they contribute, and also indemnifies the FSF for any damages that the FSF suffers if that turns out not to be true.

      In return, the contributor receives $1 in cash.

      Whatta deal ... but I'm pissed because I never got my $1. And that's $1 for binutils, $1 for gcc, ...

    18. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by d-rock · · Score: 1

      I seem to remember people getting worried about the whole MS SQL Server DTS fiasco. I thought someone said they might request license fees from infracting users.

      Derek

      --
      Don't Panic...
    19. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by burnin1965 · · Score: 1

      Protection from extortion rackets, i.e. SCO.

    20. Re:Are we going to learn our lessons, or what? by burnin1965 · · Score: 1

      Actually there are ways to discover stolen code by looking at compiled binaries. Granted it is difficult to discover but it does happen. If you google around you'll find a few cases some of which are currently in progress.

      Besides, the fact that a proprietary vendor can hide their crime does not make it okay for the end user. (I am of the belief that the means does not justify the ends.) And you are merely restating part of my arguement. Since an end user has no way of auditing the source code of a proprietary vendor they may be open to licensing fees or litigation when someone else finally discovers there is stolen code in the product. Open source is a huge benefit to the end user and we should all be demanding it.

      I agree with your logic when it comes down to going after the actual criminal who stole the code, however, it is obvious that with the SCO threats and new licensing scam there are others that would think you and I are dolts for not going after the end users as well as the so called criminals.

      burnin

  13. Clear violation. by RyanFenton · · Score: 5, Funny

    Their document is clearly integrating Adobe Acrobat technology into their software without permission. But don't tell them... wait for the damages to pile up first. It wouldn't be fair for Adobe to have to show any damages before they can claim copious ammounts of money.

    Ryan Fenton

    1. Re:Clear violation. by subk · · Score: 1
      Their document is clearly integrating Adobe Acrobat technology into their software without permission.

      The PDF file type is not "Adobe" technology, no matter how badly they want you to think it is.

      --
      Now, if you'll excuse me, I have backups to corrupt.
    2. Re:Clear violation. by javatips · · Score: 4, Funny

      Not at all!

      I heard from very very very reliable sources that SCO has negociated an agreement with Adobe. The agreement stipulate that Adobe will include stealth technology to prevent people from copying Unix code using Photoshop!

    3. Re:Clear violation. by SnowZero · · Score: 1

      But Postscript is Adobe's, and PDF is clearly just a derived work (at least in SCO-reasoning-land).

  14. getting to the point by Marsala · · Score: 5, Funny

    Millions of lines on sixty pages? How silly.

    Yeah.

    Well.

    You know, you don't really even need 60 pages to say, "We ownz0r all of it. SCO > *. Pwnt."

    1. Re:getting to the point by NanoGator · · Score: 1

      "You know, you don't really even need 60 pages to say, "We ownz0r all of it. SCO > *. Pwnt."

      I realize you're being funny, but does the 60 page document really have to spell out every single line of code? Can't it say "look in this module, then go to this line.."? Pardon my naievity.

      --
      "Derp de derp."
    2. Re:getting to the point by cbreaker · · Score: 1

      "I realize you're being funny, but does the 60 page document really have to spell out every single line of code? "

      Apparently they do, or else readers like you would miss things, such as you have with the last 14 people which said the same thing. Pardon my negativity.

      --
      - It's not the Macs I hate. It's Digg users. -
    3. Re:getting to the point by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's only 60 pages, but they're really *fast* pages.

    4. Re:getting to the point by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      does the 60 page document really have to spell out every single line of code?

      You are right, This information is requested by product, file and line of code. However, that's just #1 on this list. I still find 60 pages to be very short for documenting millions of lines of stolen code (as well as listing the full history of that code as required).

  15. More info and analysis on GROKLAW by hcg50a · · Score: 5, Informative

    Check this out.

    --
    HCG 50a = 2MASX J11170638+5455016
    11h17m06.4s +54d55m02s
    1. Re:More info and analysis on GROKLAW by pclminion · · Score: 4, Funny
      For a second there I thought those lines in the Dark Tongue were spoken by Darl himself...

      Too bad it's just your sig.

    2. Re:More info and analysis on GROKLAW by Xpilot · · Score: 1

      Never before has any voice dared to utter words of that tongue in Slashdot, hcg50a!

      --
      "Backups are for wimps. Real men upload their data to an FTP site and have everyone else mirror it." -- Linus Torvalds
    3. Re:More info and analysis on GROKLAW by mikeee · · Score: 1

      Ah, but it's the other way around; historically, those on the wrong end of an IBM IP lawsuit referred to their lawyers as the Nazgul.

    4. Re:More info and analysis on GROKLAW by WhodoVoodoo · · Score: 1

      I do believe that will simply make the Judge feel rather despondent towards SCO and its Dark pact with sa^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^Hstrong legal case, unless simply impose some sort of penalty against SCO. I hope that penalty is Hot, Steamy, Delicious Death.
      IANAL by far, mind you.

  16. Fonts by tirenours · · Score: 1

    Millions of lines on sixty pages? How silly.

    Not really. They are masters at playing with fonts. They really can do miracles!

  17. Re:60 pages is not a million, but it's quite a chu by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If the Iraqi Information Minister's claims turn out to be true, doesn't that mean the US has lost the war in Iraq?

  18. Quick! by DeltaSigma · · Score: 2, Funny

    Someone buy Darl a copy of the Linux 2.4 Poster with a little sticky note describing how microscopic sixty pages is compared to the rest of the kernel before he embarrases himself! Awe... too late. Well, guess it's time to start tracing the commits back to SCO employees... or dispute the contract between SCO and Novell... or let IBM spank them with patent infringement... Or... well... yeah I really wish I'd have shorted their stock at $20 right now...

  19. Ummm, where's Groklaw? by nyquist · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    grolaw.net seems to have disappeared

    1. Re:Ummm, where's Groklaw? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      grolaw.net seems to have disappeared

      Try groklaw.net instead.

  20. Sounds like they won't meet the Judge's threshold by Teahouse · · Score: 5, Informative

    The judge was very specific in December. She demanded forthright and overwhelming examples of the offending code. She said she would not allow the case to move forward unless it was submitted. She further stated she would not compel IBM the task of providing all development and and beta data unless it was required to answer SCO's disclosure. 60 pages is not a sufficient brief to even outline the supposed infractions SCO is throwing about, let alone actual instances of IP theft! A divorce case can easily have a 200 page evidentiary outline! Unless there is more we aren't hearing about, there is a good chance this will not meet the court's demands and the case will be dismissed.

    --
    "Curiosity killed the cat, but for a while I was a suspect."- Steven Wright
  21. "...all non-priveleged information..." by numbski · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Translation:

    The general public still won't get to see the evidence.

    By putting all 'priveleged' information in an addendum....we won't get to see the infringing code. :\

    Go fig. Put up or shut up my arse.

    --

    Karma: Chameleon (mostly due to the fact that you come and go).

    1. Re:"...all non-priveleged information..." by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's not what "privileged" means. Privileged information is information that no one gets to see, including IBM. As in "attorney-client privilege," for example.

  22. FYI, the full list of Interrogatories by ThisIsAnExampleAccou · · Score: 5, Informative
    FYI, here is a list of the Interrogatories that SCO was supposed to answer. From the looks of it, they did not answer number 10 or 11.

    INTERROGATORY NO. 1: seeks specific identification of all alleged trade secrets and confidential or proprietary information that SCO alleges IBM misappropriated or misused. This information is requested by product, file and line of code.

    INTERROGATORY NO. 2: For each alleged trade secret and any confidential or proprietary information identified in response to Interrogatory No. 1, Interrogatory No. 2 seeks further identification of: (a) all persons who have or had rights to the same; (b) the nature and sources of SCO's rights in the same; and (c) efforts to maintain secrecy or confidentiality of the same.

    INTERROGATORY NO. 3: For each alleged trade secret and any confidential or proprietary information identified in response to Interrogatory No. 1, Interrogatory No. 3 seeks the identity of all persons to whom the same was disclosed and the details of such disclosure. In particular, this interrogatory seeks: (a) the date of disclosure; (b) the terms of disclosure; (c) the documents relating to disclosure; (d) all places where the trade secret and/or confidential or proprietary information may be found or accessed.

    INTERROGATORY NO. 4: For each alleged trade secret and any confidential or proprietary information identified in response to Interrogatory No. 1, Interrogatory No. 4 seeks information regarding each instance in which plaintiff alleges that IBM misappropriated or misused the same. In particular, this interrogatory seeks (a) the date of the alleged misuse or misappropriation; (b) the persons involved; c) the manner of misuse or misappropriation; and (d) the location of any method or code in any IBM product, Linux, open source or the public domain.

    INTERROGATORY NO. 5: For each alleged trade secret and any confidential or proprietary information identified in response to Interrogatory No. 1, Interrogatory No. 5 seeks identification of (a) all agreements relating thereto, and (b) all copyrights and patents relating thereto, including but not limited to the owners, licensors, licensees, assignors or assignees thereof.

    INTERROGATORY NO. 6: For each alleged trade secret and any confidential or proprietary information identified in response to Interrogatory No. 1, Interrogatory No. 6 seeks (a) the origin of the code or method, including where, when and by whom created; (b) all products in which the code or method is included or upon which it is based (in whole or in part).

    INTERROGATORY NO. 7: seeks a description of each instance in which IBM allegedly engaged in unfair competition, including but not limited to: (a) the dates of such conduct, (b) the persons involved, and (c) the specific manner of unfair competition.

    INTERROGATORY NO. 8: seeks the identification of all agreements with which IBM allegedly interfered, including but not limited to: (a) the date of interference, (b) the persons involved in the interference, (c) the manner of interference, (d) the actions (if any) IBM encouraged licensees to take, (e) the actions, if any, such licensees took as a result of IBM's inducement/encouragement, (f) the trade secret or proprietary information (if any) involved in the alleged interference.

    INTERROGATORY NO. 9: seeks identification of all agreements that IBM has allegedly breached, including but not limited to: (a) the date of breach, (b) the persons involved, and (c) the specific manner of breach.

    INTERROGATORY NO. 10: Separately, for each of plaintiff's claims for relief, please identify all persons (including but not limited to present or former employees of plaintiff or plaintiff's predecessors in interest) with knowledge relating to plaintiff's claims and contentions and the general nature of, or the categories of, facts known by each person.

    INTERROGATORY No.11: Please identify all products ever marketed, sold or distributed by plaintiff or plaintiff's pred

    1. Re:FYI, the full list of Interrogatories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative

      Dude! If you're going to karma-whore, at least mention the source!

    2. Re:FYI, the full list of Interrogatories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Interrogatories #10 and #11 were not part of the requirement at this time. See the thread at groklaw for details.

    3. Re:FYI, the full list of Interrogatories by Our+Man+In+Redmond · · Score: 1

      The court order didn't compel them to respond to interrogatories 10 or 11, only 1-9, 12 and 13. So, that's what IBM got.

      --
      Someone you trust is one of us.
  23. Um... Excuse Me by LamerX · · Score: 0, Funny

    I have something very relevant to say regarding SCO's Evidence... Its very detailed information... Okay here goes...

    BLAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHH

    MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAH

    MOOHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAH

    Ahem...

  24. SCO Bending the Truth by tobechar · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Can't SCO get into trouble for lying about 6 million lines of code when the code fits into 6 pages?

    There has to be some type of legal mechanism that would penalize them for this. Quite the oversight if you ask me.

    --
    -
    1. Re:SCO Bending the Truth by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There is. Its called legal fees. Probably on the order of $250 / hour unless the attorneys were foolish enough to work on commission.

      Also the attorneys could be disbarred if they acted in violation of the code of ethics. (For instance knowingly submitting false statements.) I don't think this happens very often though.

      They (attorneys and SCO) could be held in contempt of court for failing to obey the court order. (Or possibly for submitting false statements or other unethical conduct.) This could include jail time and fines.

      They could be tried for perjury I think if they were under oath (and they probably were?).

      Last but not least, IBM could potentially sue them. But this is unlikely as they will have no money left after they fail at this last gasp attempt to sue their way to profitability.

    2. Re: SCO Bending the Truth by Black+Parrot · · Score: 1


      > Can't SCO get into trouble for lying about 6 million lines of code when the code fits into 6 pages?

      $ psnup -1000000
      --
      Sheesh, evil *and* a jerk. -- Jade
    3. Re:SCO Bending the Truth by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Lying is not illegal. Perjury and slander are. SCO as been very careful about the claims it makes. In court its claims are always vague and can't be proven false. In the press the claims look clearly false, but slander is very hard to win. For one thing, someone would have to show they were injured by SCO's comments in the press.

  25. SCO has what is known as "Dark Code" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Each line of which is over 10,000 lines!

    1. Re:SCO has what is known as "Dark Code" by tobechar · · Score: 1

      Indeed it would have to be.

      They could have made a large 600 part tarball and bz2'd the data....

      --
      -
    2. Re:SCO has what is known as "Dark Code" by LousyPhreak · · Score: 0

      Either that or they made a pot on the papers with notes pointing to it:

      "You see, this is a singularity. It's ALL in there!"

      --
      -- Karma: beyond good and evil - mostly affected by posting political
    3. Re:SCO has what is known as "Dark Code" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Woah. This guy is on to something! They must be claiming copyright infringement of their WHITESPACE.

      Gaaaaaaaaah.

  26. Just Wait... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Troll
    Until all that great evidence that IBM provides comes in -- SCO will be vindicated!
    The document itself ... refers to a sixty-page supplement which lists the offending lines, and asserts that it can find more when IBM produces ... the evidence demanded of them by SCO.
    Big Blue will die by its own hand! -- That'll teach 'em to violate the I.P. of others!

  27. Re:hmmm by Cosmik · · Score: 2, Informative

    As the article said, SCO is waiting for IBM to supply the evidence. They like to do things back-to-front and inside-out at SCO.

    I'm sure Darl and company also kick up a stink at the hardware store when the checkout boys won't assemble Darl's DIY storage rack.

  28. Will be waiting. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting
    SCO has shown that when they say they have done something, the chances are good they haven't. I can't imagine they'd refuse the court's direct order in this case-- especially since the court case is on hold until they cough up. But I'll still be waiting to see whether
    • IBM is satisfied by SCO's response.
    • IBM says "you haven't answered our questions at all".
    • IBM is dancing in the aisles becuase SCO's evidence amounts to 60 pages of files taken from BSD and header files ruled as uncopyrightable in the BSD case.

  29. Re:60 pages is not a million, but it's quite a chu by yeremein · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Keep in mind that the 60+ pages comprises SCO's entire response. There were ten interrogetories SCO was compelled to answer. "List all the infringing code" was just one of those.

    Besides, SCO hasn't shown anything credible in several tries so far. I'm betting on more of the same.

    Even still, there are two points of fallback:

    1. Novell contests ownership of SVR5 copyrights--SCO needs to beat Novell in court before it can succeed against an end user in a copyright infringement claim
    2. The BSDi settlement questions whether SVR5 can even be protected by copyright in the first place

  30. This is dragging on far too long by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    How long can they really drag this on without proving anything ?

    This should have been thrown out of court a long time ago, unless they provide something that holds water.

    I just can't wait for this to be over, mainly so I can sit back and laugh at how dumb SCO has been. I seriously belive, it will cost them the company when people (including the judge) laugh at how they claim ownership over things like:

    printf("Hello world!");

    int i = 0;

    #include ... ok, maybe I went too far. But, you get my point, chances are it will be something so dumb, they will have to hold there heads down in shame as they leave the court.

  31. Wait... by Komi · · Score: 2, Interesting
    SCO repsonded fully to the demand for evidence, but they've also got more when IBM answers their questions. If there's more to show later, then how could they have responded fully?

    komi

    --
    The ultimate goal of science is to unify all forces of nature to a single law that can be silk-screened onto a T-shirt.
    1. Re:Wait... by kfg · · Score: 1

      Please refer to Interogatory Number Frickin' One.

      Please note the last three words of that interogatory.

      Please note that the document they filed does not contain said evidence, but only refers to an index (not submitted) of that evidence.

      Please note that full compliance with the interogatory not including those three words would almost certainly exceed 60 pages.

      And that's just Interogatory Number 1.

      No, I'm afraid I can't concede that they've responded "fully."

      What's more, IBM need not answer any of SCO's "questions" per se. They need only respond to the evidence submitted.

      It is not IBM's job to "submit" evidence, as such. It is only their job to refute the evidence that SCO submits.

      Even in a civil action you aren't compelled to supply an unasked for rope to hang yourself with.

      KFG

    2. Re:Wait... by Mr2cents · · Score: 2, Interesting

      They can hardly pretend they didn't have enough time to put the list together, this has been going on for months now.. It seems this 'millions of lines'-claim is as reliable as the 'Iraq can launch a biological attach within 45 minutes'-claim.

      They must have a reason to pretend this however. Most likely they just want to slow down Linux development/acceptance to buy their good friends at microsoft some time. If such a scenario were true, you would expect them to stay fuzzy about details, take as much time as they can, draw as much media attention as possible, etc..

      --
      "It's too bad that stupidity isn't painful." - Anton LaVey
    3. Re:Wait... by tilrman · · Score: 2, Interesting

      The court order had a little clause that said if SCO couldn't find all of the evidence, they had to document their efforts to obtain it. In the notice, SCO says that it couldn't obtain some things because of "the holidays."

      SCO is claiming that they can't present all of their evidence, in the lawsuit they filed, because they've been on vacation.

  32. Hatch by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    I know it's kind of a common last name, but is the Hatch of the "Hatch, James & Dodge" firm representing SCO related to US Senator Orrin Hatch? It'd make sense, presuming absolute ignorance of copyright laws is a genetic anomoly.

  33. So, in response to an order to produce evidence by kfg · · Score: 5, Insightful

    what they have done is produce an abstract.

    An abstract that merely refers to an unsubmitted index.

    Ummmmmmmmmmmm, guys? That's not evidence.

    The line listing is evidence.

    You guys can make up any inhouse doofy theory of law you wish, but the fact of the matter is, and the court has made some attempt to explain this to you and placed you under compulsion, the claimant must produce the evidence that their claim is justified. The defendant need do nothing until such time because the defendant is only required to defend itself against the filed evidence.

    Which part of this don't your high payed lawyers understand?

    If you're lucky the judge will say, "Ummmmmmmm, nice try, you've got one more chance at getting it right. I presume counsel has had at least basic training in the rules of evidence?. . . Good. Please apply that knowledge in future."

    If it were me I'd simply toss their asses out for noncompliance and a side order of legal arrogance.

    KFG

    1. Re:So, in response to an order to produce evidence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      throw them out of court and start some criminal and civil suits about their protection racket of offering to accept license fees from companies they intend to bring into court. That's just outright illegal, it would be nice to see D. Mc B. try to squirm out of that...

    2. Re:So, in response to an order to produce evidence by Fnkmaster · · Score: 1
      I suspect that the 60 page index was submitted to the court and thereby to IBM. I believe SCO requested permission to prevent that document from being publicly released sometime back in December, and the judge granted SCO's request. So we're not going to directly see that document, and IBM has to be rather careful what they say to avoid violating a court order.


      Hopefully somebody can play some sort of game to get IBM to communicate where the supposed "violations" are without actually pointing to line numbers. Then we can all either feel secure that they aren't violations at all or they can get excised ASAP (of course, I seriously doubt there's anything that will need to be excised).

    3. Re:So, in response to an order to produce evidence by kfg · · Score: 1

      It's still just discovery. They aren't compelled to file evidence with the court yet, just provide it to the defendant. They're only required to file with the court a statement that have complied with the discovery order.We're still just in the "Ya gotta show me what ya got" phase.

      So in that sense I mispoke, sloppy of me.IANAL, I just argue with lawyers a lot and occasionally play one in court when the stakes are lower than lawyer fees. So sometimes it takes me a couple rounds to get it right when it would trip off a lawyer's tounge without even thinking about it.

      The ruling in December was that, since those documents IBM demanded required an explicit listing of trade secrets, they not be made public. Both reasonable and standard procedure.

      It is now up to IBM to review the documents and challange their compliance with the discovery order. Then the court would review them. The court isn't interested in vetting every little bit of discovery when the parties are already both satisfied.

      Nor was it necessarily proper of me to refer to the 60 pages as an index. That was a kneejerk response to the article posting. After sitting back a bit and reflecting at leisure for an hour or so the compliance document claims that the 60 pages are in full compliance with Interogatory 1.

      IfSCO is officially claiming millions of lines of code in violation (as they have publicly) than they have submitted a line number index. If we are to take SCO at their word, however (HA!), then the number of violations they claim is actually quite small. No more than a few hundreds of lines (given that Interogatory 1 requires more information than the code lines as well).

      (And citing the holidays as an excuse for those interogatories which they admit they've failed to comply with in a case they've been preparing for years, officially and unofficially, when the statements needed were going to be produced by working serfs who have to, and do, work right through those holidays when called upon to do so (a fact which the judge is well aware of, having been one of those working serfs on her way up) and the judge who set the time limit for compliance was perfectly aware of said holidays falling inside that time constraint (as did SCO who had every right to bring that issue up at the time if they so chose) is a rather cheap and shoddy ploy for time)

      For all of this effort they are now asking that IBM, as defendant,to give up all of their lines of propriatary UNIX code so that they may go on a fishing expedition.

      Well, it doesn't work like that. Not even in a civil case where the rules of discovery are much more lax than a criminal case.

      Many, many, many years ago some smart aleck lawyers came up with the brilliant plan of making some minor claim and then using "discovery" to dig through everything the accused had to see if they could find more actionable dirt.

      It didn't fly. It's not flying has been enacted into code. Onus is on the plaintif to show cause, provide supporting evidence, and showing that requested documents are relevant to the specific complaint.

      You can't sue someone for an overcharge on an invoice and then demand that they turn over copies of all of their contracts and invoices.

      They aren't relevant. They are private documents which you have no right to see.

      SCO is claiming that IBM made public trade secrets, but also wish to claim that they don't know what those trade secrets are (Boy, now that's a trade secret).

      The relevant documents are SCO's showing ownership of those trade secrets. If IBM is compelled by the terms of their UNIX license to turn over their propriatary UNIX code then SCO has no need to file for them as part of discovery. Since they have filed for them under the rules of discovery one might presume that IBM is not compelled by the terms of their license. If SCO wishes to claim that IBM is violating their contract by not turning over t

  34. Re:Sounds like they won't meet the Judge's thresho by marine_recon · · Score: 1

    microdots. they are going to put all the code into microdots, and then "lose" the microscope

    --
    Jack the sound barrier. Bring the noise.
  35. SCO complied, sorta by UnknowingFool · · Score: 4, Interesting
    According to SCO they complied, but if you read their notice, they also note an exception.
    The only exception to such production is the files of certain officers and directors for whom SCO could not obtain the requested materials during the holidays with sufficient time to review the documents.

    This means that they couldn't get all the documents because people were on vacation. Let's see: they got the court order December 5. I wonder how many developers were given a mandatory 6 month vacation on a deserted island to start December 6th?

    --
    Well, there's spam egg sausage and spam, that's not got much spam in it.
    1. Re:SCO complied, sorta by sr180 · · Score: 2, Funny

      What, they have developers? I though the company was all lawyers now...

      --
      In Soviet Russia the insensitive clod is YOU!
    2. Re:SCO complied, sorta by lxs · · Score: 1

      The first draft read "because my dog at my homework", but after taking legal advice they changed it to "because people were on vacation".

      I'm sorry, but didn't they know this day would come for about two years?

    3. Re:SCO complied, sorta by arkanes · · Score: 1

      They would have been able to provide more evidence, but the computers were down.

  36. To quote: (contintued) by numbski · · Score: 1

    2. SCO also has produced all non-privileged responses requested by IBM. The only exception to such is the files of certain officers and directors for whom SCO could not obtain the requested materials during the holidays with sufficient time to review the documents.

    Basically, if they deemed the information priveleged, they didn't open it to the general public. Figures.

    --

    Karma: Chameleon (mostly due to the fact that you come and go).

  37. Don't bet on a buyout. SCO will die alone by bckrispi · · Score: 5, Insightful

    IBM, I believe has no interest in purchasing SCO as part of a settlement. There's no chance in hell that M$ will pick them up. They are still appealing the fact that they are a Monopoly based soley on the fact that they own Windows. The FTC/SEC would never approve a buyout that would make MS the owners of both Windows and Unix. That would be, like, a monopoly^2

    --
    Xenon, where's my money? -Borno
  38. Maybe by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Maybe they fit "Millions of lines" onto 60 pages by just listing all the files in the linux kernel.

    Someone test.. make a list of all the files in the linux kernel.. how many pages is it?

  39. Most likely 61-65 pages..... by reality-bytes · · Score: 5, Funny

    It's most likely that it consists of 61-65 pages as more that 65 pages would probably be referred to as "Almost 70 pages". ;)

    --
    Ripping an new rectum in the fabric of spacetime.
  40. Just Pay your $699 Fee thats all I ask by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Troll

    Al Gore
    After all $199 goes to the campaign of my good friend Dr Howard Dean
    Maybe HE can win down there in Florida I mean I couldn't not even my Homo State of Tennessee

  41. SCaldera seems REALLY desperate... by WCMI92 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    60-ish pages... That can't point to all that much, and can't possibly answer all they were required to respond to.

    SCaldera's PR machine has been in meltdown after all the negative events that have happened to them this week... Novell's release of their legal correspondance, Novell's indemnification, the OSDL/IBM/Intel (Intel openly joining on our side is a MAJOR event in itself), all VERY VERY bad news for them, and their stock started to tumble.

    The only cash the company formerly but really known as Caldera is their stock price. If that crashes, so do they.

    The SEC really needs to get involved, NOW. They are not listing the possible risks involved in losing this case in their SEC filings. They aren't listing the risk of Novell's claims regarding being owed 95% of the Microsoft/Sun and other "Darlgeld" being collected...

    I think the next step is Novell files a suit against SCaldera, asking for summary judgement regarding money being owed to them...

    --
    Corporatism != Free Market
    1. Re:SCaldera seems REALLY desperate... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      60-ish pages... That can't point to all that much

      Sure it can:
      sched.c:35-1975,lamo.c:1-650,src/mymodule/*. c

      There's a reference to 37,920 lines of code (now you know how big mymodule is...) in one line. At that rate, 60 pages * 60 lines per page could specify well over 100 million lines. And I wasn't even trying hard.

    2. Re:SCaldera seems REALLY desperate... by stwrtpj · · Score: 5, Insightful
      The SEC really needs to get involved, NOW.

      Sorry to pick on your specific post, this is more directed at the /. crowd in general.

      Look everyone, get it through your heads right now: The SEC does not give a shit about this case. SCO is not big enough to warrant their time, SCO does not have enough shares out on the market to affect the market as a whole, and, like it or not people, SCO has not done anything wrong in the eyes of the SEC.

      Now before I get flamed for stating that SCO has done nothing wrong, please reread what I just said: They have done nothing wrong in the eyes of the SEC. The SEC cares only about the big players of the market. Smaller companies like SCO do not show up on their radar unless they do something really horrendous. We can shout "pump and dump! pump and dump!" until we're blue in the face, but all the evidence to date is circumstantial.

      Besides, we don't need the SEC. SCO's case has more holes in it than swiss cheese. IBM is going to stomp all over them and salt the earth over their remains. But don't expect any help from the government on this, folks, and frankly, we don't need it.

      --
      Karma: Frotzed (mostly due to the Frobozz Magic Karma Company)
    3. Re:SCaldera seems REALLY desperate... by marko123 · · Score: 0, Flamebait

      Saddam produced 12000 pages of documents about the weapons programs.

      Unfortunately some US dudes got to it first and "photocopied" it for the rest of the UN, I suppose leaving out a few pages that mentioned, well, American companies that were part of Iraq's supply chain.

      --
      http://pcblues.com - Digits and Wood
    4. Re:SCaldera seems REALLY desperate... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So a fraudulent SEC filing is nothing? Shit, I just hope the IRS would be as relaxed as SEC.

    5. Re:SCaldera seems REALLY desperate... by goretexguy · · Score: 1

      The only cash the company formerly but really known as Caldera is their stock price. If that crashes, so do they.

      Don't forget the company-formerly-known-as-Caldera is rumored to have received something over $100 Million from the Microsoft settlement a few years back. (Can any /.ers substantiate this more than I?)

      Surely, this money didn't all go into new BMW's and bonuses for secretaries...

    6. Re:SCaldera seems REALLY desperate... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

      "The SEC cares only about the big players of the market."

      Like Martha Stewart?

    7. Re:SCaldera seems REALLY desperate... by Dalcius · · Score: 1

      1) Circumstantial evidence is all we may have, but that's about all you're going to get until an audit is done. Circumstantial evidence is what leads to an investigation -- hard evidence leads to a conviction, but we're not there yet.

      2) SCO is small-fry but is playing with some of the biggest names in the business. IBM, Intel, etc. I'm not so sure that the SEC is ignoring this.

      3) I'm all for everything coming down around SCO's ears. What was Caldera Linux and is now SCO must be replaced with a stinking hole in the ground, too far-gone for even the heartiest weed.
      Destroy their sales, own their IP, give them absolute hell on the PR front and send their execs to jail. SCO will be set up as an example: mess with OSS, mess with the big dogs.

      OSS's weakest point, IMO, is legal. That's not to say it's weak, but OSS is hard to take down through normal business channels (price war or buy-out) so you don't have a lot to choose from. Public relations is the weakest point second to the court, if you ask me. Showing the world that OSS is not to be tread upon (GPL infringement, IP crap) is of paramount importance at this point in time.

      Cheers

      --
      ~Dalcius
      Rome wasn't burnt in a day.
    8. Re:SCaldera seems REALLY desperate... by geschild · · Score: 4, Insightful

      You, Sir, may not be an idiot, but you are short-sighted. We (as in the Open Source crowd) may not need the SEC to win IBM's case, absolutely true. The thing is that 'we' don't want this to happen over and over again untill anyone ever hearing about Linux will go "That's about those lawsuits, isn't it?"

      The only way that isn't going to happen is if the sorry sods that cause this (Daryl & co) get personally prosecuted for their misdeeds and preferably thrown in jail, even if it is only minimal security. If the only thing that happens is that SCO goes bankrupt, while the managers can get away with this money-making scheme, I think we are in for a world of pain. It would encourage every greedy bastard out there with even the slightest leverage to go to 'donors' (you fill in the blanks) and ask to fund their little pocket filling thingy while damaging OSS for the 'donors'.

      I hope that at least the SEC knows that if it lets people get away with this in such a high publicity case they will have a flood on their hands. That may entice them to do something about it even if it is only small fries to them.

      Besides, from the moral high ground, if this case is thrown out with prejudice, what have we won with SCO's demise when IBM's counter suit finally cut's off it's air supply? If there are any competent, product involved employees left in that company, they will be the ones taking the hit. That is, unless the SEC steps in and makes management feel the pain... (a man can dream, can't he? ;-)

      --
      Karma? What's that again?
    9. Re:SCaldera seems REALLY desperate... by Grail · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Sorry to pick on your specific post, this is directed at you in particular.

      "salt the earth" means to plough salt into the soil so that nothing will grow there. This was one form of "scorched earth" policy - it's too hard to keep the land once it's been taken, so just render it unusable. Talk to any farmer about what the effects of soil salinity are on crops and flocks.

      I sincerely hope that IBM would never "salt the earth" in any way shape or form.

      Perhaps a better phrase would have been, "IBM is going to stomp all over them and scatter their bloody remains to the corners of the Earth."

      Not that any SCO employee actually has blood - that would imply that they have souls, too.

    10. Re:SCaldera seems REALLY desperate... by C0vardeAn0nim0 · · Score: 1

      SCO is the company formerly known as "Caldera Systems". the money from the microsoft settlement went to "Caldera Inc."

      according to this register arcticle:

      "There is not even a financial link between Caldera Systems and Caldera Inc,"

      and the company that purchased old SCO's unix busines was Caldera Systems (Official history here). that's why they were so desperate to pump up the stock and to get that $50 mil financing from baystar capital (apparently baystar is backed up by several companies, including microsoft). they were running out of money from pre-ipo financings and ipo money. according to linuxworld they had only $4 million left to pay the bills.

      --
      What ? Me, worry ?
    11. Re:SCaldera seems REALLY desperate... by WCMI92 · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Circumstantial evidence it is, and it may not be enough to get a conviction of Darl and Co, but it IS enough to show probable cause to launch an investigation...

      IF SCaldera and it's executives from Darl on down are doing what we THINK they are doing (and so far evidence does not contradict it) they are guilty of some very serious crimes. If the SEC permits companies to get away with these things, then they prove that NOTHING was learned from Enron.

      SCO at the very least is misleading investors. It's SEC filings do NOT include ANY risk statements involving Redhat and IBM's counterclaims, and nothing concerning Novell's allegations involving their license agreement.

      Novell could go to court at any time and possibly get SCaldera's assets seized to pay them the 95% they were owed from the Darlgeld Microsoft and Sun paid!

      Not to mention, their current stock price is SOLEY the result of what is likely a frivilous lawsuit, and insiders have been excercising PENNY stock options and making TENS AND HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS on the backs of people who BUY these shares.

      The fact that so many execs have options for SCO stock DRASTICALLY below the current price suggests to me that this whole scheme was premeditated...

      --
      Corporatism != Free Market
    12. Re:SCaldera seems REALLY desperate... by stanmann · · Score: 1

      Yup. SCOX Market cap 220M

      Martha Stewart Personal cap ~650m However she lost 200m when the scandal hit. So Yeah...

      --
      Food not Bombs is a nice platitude but it breaks down when you notice that the Bombees are usually well fed
    13. Re:SCaldera seems REALLY desperate... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      The SEC really needs to get involved, NOW.

      They can send Darl to jail any time as far as I'm concerned. It doesn't need to be now. Generally the SEC gets involved after everything has played out. A lot remains to be seen and IBM will put those facts out of SCO. After the case is done and SCO's stock tanks is the perfect time for the SEC to announce an investigation. Right now, we don't even know who will profit and who will lose.

    14. Re:SCaldera seems REALLY desperate... by goretexguy · · Score: 1

      I had seen the Register article, but I thought it funny that www.caldera.com and www.calderasystems.com both show SCO's home page.

  42. 60 Pages is Enough... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    60 Pages is Enough. Example:

    File a, line 1-800. File b, line 1-600.

    I can get to millions of lines real fast like that.

  43. Millions of lines by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    (Hold off on the troll mods people, read and think first)

    "Millions of lines on sixty pages, how silly"?

    Now that's silly. Trying to make something look silly by using statistics, have you even seen the pages? The fact is, if SCO can prove it's case in sixty pages (or more if this is only part of it) in a court room with a presiding judge then it will win, end of story.

    What we're going to see is SCO drill down to the most tiniest bit of code with their so called expert witnesses asking where the code came from and how it got there. We may even see some linux kernel developers subpoened? This could get ugly. Once you get to microscopic levels of looking at code and a few sleazy tricks (observational selection of code) then a judge might start to be convinced. You won't be able use the argument, "well that's just some code your honour in an ocean of code".

    1. Re:Millions of lines by schon · · Score: 2, Insightful
      Trying to make something look silly by using statistics

      So why are you doing it?

      have you even seen the pages?

      No. Have you?

      But you know what? I have seen the question: specifically the following:

      Please identify, with specificity (by file and line of code), (a) all source code and other material in Linux (including but not limited to the Linux kernel, any Linux operating sytem and any Linux distribution) to which plaintiff has rights; and (b) the nature of plaintiff's rights, including but not limited to whether and how the code or other material derives from UNIX.


      Now, how much stuff did Caldera put into the kernel willingly (you know, with a (c) sign on it, and everything.)? Enough to fit inside 60 legal pages? OK, maybe.

      How about along with a detailed description of the copyrights, trade secrets, etc? Ehrm.. possible, but I think you're pushing the boundary.

      Not to mention all of the 'millions of lines' that SCO claims was put into Linux without their knowledge.

      And that's one part of twelve they had to answer in those 60 pages.

      if SCO can prove it's case in sixty pages (or more if this is only part of it) in a court room with a presiding judge then it will win

      And if CowboyNeal has hot sex with 60 Brazilian supermodels all at the same time, he'll be the coolest geek alive.

      "As long as I'm wishing, I might as well ask for a Pony."

      SCO isn't trying to "prove its' case" (nor does it need to) - it's response needs to show everything that they believe IBM did, when they did it, how they believe they did it, as well as proof of what's theirs.

      end of story

      Uhh, NO. You see, IBM still gets to disect and challenge everything that SCO puts forward.

      SCO has basically admitted (in their response) that they did not comply with the order - the one whose deadline they agreed to even when given a chance on a later one.

      I think any moron here can tell you that pissing off the judge isn't the way to try to win a court case.
    2. Re:Millions of lines by Dalcius · · Score: 2, Insightful

      With respect to your post, SCO's problem is two-fold:

      1) They're up againt IBM. These guys have more elite, battle-hardened, fire-breathing legions of patent lawyers than SCO has employees. The Nazgul are coming for Darl and it won't be pretty.

      2) SCO not only has to show line by line similarities, but WRT the IBM case, has to show that IBM put those lines in Linux. They must also prove that those lines didn't come from BSD, etc. Not a trivial task for even IBM's team.

      Cheers

      --
      ~Dalcius
      Rome wasn't burnt in a day.
  44. No problem. by ChangeOnInstall · · Score: 5, Funny

    Assuming you can fit 60 lines of code on a 8.5"x11" sheet with in a 10 point font, you can fit 3600 lines of code on 60 pages.

    You can thus fit 3600x4=14,400 lines of code on 60 pages in a 5pt font.

    In a 2.5pt font, you can fit 14,400x4 lines of code on 60 pages, or 57,600 lines.

    1.25pt: 230,400

    0.675pt: 921,600

    So "more than 60 pages" is more than adequate.

    --
    What has *science* done?!? -- Dr. Weird (ATHF)
    1. Re:No problem. by romper · · Score: 1

      Maybe they used BOTH SIDES of the paper??? :)

      --
      Right is wrong when left is right.
    2. Re:No problem. by bersl2 · · Score: 1

      Assuming you can fit 60 lines of code on a 8.5"x11" sheet

      Umm... isn't Legal-size paper 8.5" x 14"? Or am I just confused?

    3. Re:No problem. by TastySiliconWafers · · Score: 1

      8.5"x11" sheets of microfiche perhaps? Or perhaps they went all the way for 'legal' size and used 8.5"x14" sheets?

    4. Re:No problem. by wytcld · · Score: 1

      Good answer.

      Now, isn't there a standard for the font used in legal filings? Aren't they all in 12-point courier (the equivalent of 10-pitch on a typewriter)?

      Yeah, legal documents might as well wear wigs with this dress code, but there you are.

      --
      "with their freedom lost all virtue lose" - Milton
    5. Re:No problem. by ichandarin · · Score: 1

      Wait a sec: Of course, even 921,000 pages is not "millions."

      Moreover, SCO would want to do this in a reasonable font size, because the more pages they have, the better the publicity. And this ignores the lgal standards for something like this.

      But really, the number of lines doesn't matter, what's in it does. A five-page document, if it contains the right information, is sufficient.

      --
      Denn wir sind wie Baumstaemme im Schnee. Scheinbar liegen sei glatt auf, mit kleinem anstoss sollte man sie wegschieben
  45. No ruling in BSD case by ebcdic · · Score: 4, Interesting

    There was no ruling in the BSD case. It was settled out of court. You might take the judges comment's as suggesting what another judge might decide, but they do not constitute a legal precedent.

    1. Re:No ruling in BSD case by UnknowingFool · · Score: 1

      True, there was no ruling in the BSD case, but I think the original poster was saying that if code is actually BSD code from *BSD sources, SCO has nothing. Even though we cannot know how the case was settled, we can see through archives what was removed from BSD after the case.

      --
      Well, there's spam egg sausage and spam, that's not got much spam in it.
    2. Re:No ruling in BSD case by dmaxwell · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Assuming that SCO own the copyrights to SysV (and not Novell) then they are AT&Ts successors in interest to the code. AT&T settled a dispute involving that code base. That settlement will travel with the code regardless of who owns it. The parent poster is correct, it isn't a legal precedent in general. It sure as hell is one as far as Novell and (maybe) SCO is concerned.

    3. Re:No ruling in BSD case by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No. No one has proven SCO doesn't own BSD, since the original AT&T case was not ruled on.

    4. Re:No ruling in BSD case by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Uhhh... there WAS a ruling, unless I'm sadly mistaken. That ruling was appealed. THEN they settled, unless I misunderstood and someone wants to give us a UNIX history lesson? :)

    5. Re:No ruling in BSD case by jgoemat · · Score: 1

      Actually the settlement reached between AT&T and the University of Berkley is like a valid contract. I don't believe SCO would be able to throw that contract out as it was made in good faith and has held up for 10 years with both sides appearing satisfied. Of course it seems like SCO is wanting to re-write a lot of contracts, but there's just not support in the law for doing that.

    6. Re:No ruling in BSD case by k98sven · · Score: 1

      AT&T settled a dispute involving that code base.

      Wrong. AFAIK, SysV was never part of the USL-BSDI case, because BSD was not based off SysV, but rather older Unices. (Editions 5-7 and 32V)

      From what I've read, SysV is properly copyrighted.

    7. Re:No ruling in BSD case by dmaxwell · · Score: 1

      I had the right idea but the wrong codebase. That settlement still screws up most of SCO's wilder claims.

    8. Re:No ruling in BSD case by linuxbikr · · Score: 1
      True, but the other issue with the BSD case was the inclusion of BSD code within SysV as well as unattributed Unix code within BSD. To this day, it is possible there is BSD code within SysV that migrated from earlier editions that was supposed to have received proper copyright notices but didn't.

      The BSDI case was a voluntary settlement on the part of both parties. It was in AT&T's best interest to settle given the fact it was likely that not only would AT&T lose the case but also lose ALL rights to Unix due to lack of copyright information. That would have effectively put Unix into the public domain and destroyed AT&T's UNIX business. Not only that, AT&T had taken BSD code and placed it into UNIX improperly. They were allowed to keep that code as long as they identified it and promised to NEVER sue anyone who used the indepedently developed BSD code in the future. These aspects of the case are known, the rest of the settlement details are not.

      Anyone using Unencumbered BSD4.4 code is in the clear. The Encumbered code still contains AT&T code and cannot be used without a UNIX license. I believe that codebase is largely dead today. The problem is, SCO has this idea they can reopen the BSDI case and change the terms of the settlement. They can try to retry it with the Board of Regents but they would face the same issues that AT&T faced then and then a few more. That settlement cannot be taken back just because they don't like it. As successors-in-interest, they are still bound by its terms. It isn't a court ruling that can be appealed. The previous owner agreed to the terms and SCO is still bound by them.

  46. Slashdotted? by L.+J.+Beauregard · · Score: 1

    I clicked, and Konqueror popped up a progress dialog. Which made no progress.

    Is it slashdotted already? Or is SCUM experiencing another of its convienient DDOS attacks?

    --
    Ooh, moderator points! Five more idjits go to Minus One Hell!
    Delendae sunt RIAA, MPAA et Windoze
    1. Re:Slashdotted? by Little+Brother · · Score: 1

      I thought /. was a DDOS attack.

      --

      Little Brother, watching the watchers

  47. Yes. by mcc · · Score: 4, Informative
    Yes.
    SCO has made no secret in recent months that it hired high-profile attorney David Boies to spearhead its case against IBM, but the company's legal representation in Utah courts is also noteworthy. The company retained Brent O. Hatch and Mark F. James of the law firm Hatch, James & Dodge. Hatch is the son of Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, a representative for SCO confirmed Monday.
  48. If it's anything like last time, by Progman3K · · Score: 2, Interesting

    It'll just be a case of the original developers stepping forward, like last time and it'll end, finally.

    --
    I don't know the meaning of the word 'don't' - J
  49. Re:hmmm by digitania · · Score: 1

    Yeah - isn't it interesting that SCO seems to basically be saying that "we're waiting on the defendant to prove our case for us"? I hope McBride and Co. have their graves dug already... Sigline? We don't need no steenkin' sigline...

  50. I could be off here... by shaitand · · Score: 4, Interesting

    But I was under the impression that SCO was required to put ALL it's cards on the table AND THEN the judge would talk about whether or not IBM hadn't presented all the requested information.

    SCO's statement makes it clear they are saying this is a sample only and they will cough up a little more after IBM gives what they want. Isn't this liable to piss off a judge who explicitly ordered they present everything?

    1. Re:I could be off here... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Well, let's assume for the moment that SCO's case had merit. No, really.

      [darl dream world=on]If SCO only knew about IBM's breach of contract because of what it contributed to Linux (and thus was out in the open for SCO to discover), there is the possibility that IBM also broke the contract by giving code to others (SGI, for example), where SCO could not see the code. Thus, if they want to sue IBM for breach of contract, they don't want to be limited to the evidence that IBM put out in plain sight for anyone to see. They also want records from IBM to see if there's more evidence.[/darl dream world]

      I think asking why SCO is doing some legal maneuver at this point, however, is like asking why a monkey throws shit. Even if a sensible reason exists, they probably aren't doing it for that reason.

    2. Re:I could be off here... by MuParadigm · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Yes, this is liable to piss of the judge, especially considering that the judge has shown a small amount of pissed offedness with SCO already.

      I refer you to the following quotes from the transcript of the December 5, 2003 discovery hearing:

      THE COURT: ... the burden is on the plaintiff to prove the existence of the trade secrets assuming that that's part of it, all right, and that it is appropriate to postpone discovery in those circumstances until such time as the plaintiffs have acknowledged what the trade secrets may be, and otherwise this Court cannot determine, as the other party cannot determine, what is relevant as to future discovery.

      MR. MCBRIDE: Thank you. Yes. I will, Your Honor.

      THE COURT: None of us know.

      Or, how about this one:

      MR. MCBRIDE: Your Honor, ... we gave them the source code of Unixwork so it's in there.

      THE COURT: Didn't you give it to them in hundreds of thousands of pieces of
      paper, though, without specifically identifying it?

    3. Re:I could be off here... by invalid_user · · Score: 1

      Er... why does a monkey throw shit?

    4. Re:I could be off here... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You must first understand the nature of monkey shit, Grasshopper.

    5. Re:I could be off here... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Shut up.

  51. Re:hmmm by WCMI92 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    " Yeah - isn't it interesting that SCO seems to basically be saying that "we're waiting on the defendant to prove our case for us"? I hope McBride and Co. have their graves dug already"

    Which they cannot do. You can't file a lawsuit to use it as a fishing expedition. It is the burden of the plantiff to prove their allegations. Considering that Linux source is available, I don't see why SCaldera needs ANYTHING from IBM to "prove" their "millions of lines" allegations.

    The court set the deadline and put SCaldera's discovery on hold UNTIL they showed IBM exactly what they are accused of doing. Seems to me they have not done so. The next hearing will be very interesting. At the very least, Darl and his other brother Darl will have a VERY pissed off judge on their hands...

    If they piss the judge off enough, they might have their case thrown out. The judge could even dismiss "with prejustice" meaning the same charges could not be made again. A dismissal would not affect IBM's countersuit.

    The judge also could allow the case to proceed, but bar SCO from introducing any additional evidence other than what they just provided... Discovery deadlines are just that... A deadline. The party so ordered MUST turn over what they are ordered to, and then some, if they want to be certain to get that evidence into the court during trial...

    If SCO had a case, they should have turned over exactly what they were ORDERED to turn over. But then, as most of us suspect, they DONT have a case, but want to use the spectre of one to get rich off a "pump n dump" while receiving revenue from Microsoft to encourage the FUD machine...

    --
    Corporatism != Free Market
  52. Re:SCO Products by baggins2002 · · Score: 1

    McDonald's, Eckerd's are just a few of the companies which are listed as purchasing SCO products. Oh yeah and microsoft.

    What would happen if in the upcoming release of M$ Unix server they find Linux code? Can SCO sue them?

  53. Is the end near? by Jerk+City+Troll · · Score: 2, Funny

    I sure do hope that these litigious bastards will finally get the miserable end they deserve! Do you suppose the judge will scoff at this nonsense now?

    1. Re:Is the end near? by polyp2000 · · Score: 1

      %> vi sco

      wget http://www.sco.com/?sco=litigious+bastards
      wget http://www.sco.com/?sco=will+die+in+hell
      wget http://www.sco.com/?sco=are+fucked
      wget http://www.sco.com/?sco=are+criminal
      rm index.html*
      sh sco :wq!

      sh ./sco

      interesting sco weblog

      --
      Electronic Music Made Using Linux http://soundcloud.com/polyp
    2. Re:Is the end near? by Malcontent · · Score: 1

      SOmebody is going to read these logs right? Why not send them messages telling them to go to the SEC and come clean about what their bosses are doing? Let them know they are protected by whistleblower laws.

      --

      War is necrophilia.

  54. Microfilm the way to go. by salmonz · · Score: 1

    SCO has their evidence on Microfilm sheets so they can save every penny when IBM, Novell, and the Linux community sues their ass.

  55. QOTD:Can anyone explain this huge trade yesterday? by kko · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Check the post near the middle of the comments by jbardhan:

    ...but why would somebody have moved >100k shares yesterday afternoon around 4pm? Check here. That's way out of line with their typical volume...

    Beautiful.

    --
    No, seriously, I just come here for the articles.
  56. Go Fish by Camel+Pilot · · Score: 1

    If SCO can request a copy of AIX which is very propriety can IBM likewise request a copy of SCO propriety source code to look for insertions of Linux or other OSS code?

    Or can someone else file a suit against SCO and make such a request?

    Fair is fair right

    1. Re:Go Fish by El · · Score: 2, Insightful

      You can request proprietary information as evidence, but then you have to guarantee it's security. For example, Intel has a huge room full of AMD's files as a result of it's lawsuit against AMD, but must guarantee that Intel's chip designers won't look at the files, only Intel's legal department can have access. Securing this evidence costs big money.

      --

      "Freedom means freedom for everybody" -- Dick Cheney

    2. Re:Go Fish by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      IBM has already requested it. That's the code that SCO originally provided on a million pages of paper.

  57. IBM's major infraction by cheezfreek · · Score: 5, Funny

    How much of those 60 pages do you suppose look like this:
    i++;

    1. Re:IBM's major infraction by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0


      > How much of those 60 pages do you suppose look like this:
      > [edited out for potential legal reasons]

      Whoa buddy, do you have license to distribute that?

      It very well could fall under copyright, patent, trade secret, AND trademark protection, you know.

      You're screwed. Better get yourself a good lawyer.

    2. Re:IBM's major infraction by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This just was funny the first time. And the second time. Even the third time it was a little bit funny. Now it's stupid. Only someone with no ability to write humor at all would use it. Two words: Enough already.

  58. If I am not mistaken by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    There was no final ruling, but there were certain preliminary rulings concerning mere points of law in the discovery phase, I.E. AT&T trying to submit header files as examples of infringement and the judge pointing at them and ruling "yeah that's not admissable in court".

    I may well be incorrect about this. A good hard detailed historical coverage of the BSD case and exactly what was decided in it is something I have yet to find.

    1. Re:If I am not mistaken by dipipanone · · Score: 1

      I may well be incorrect about this. A good hard detailed historical coverage of the BSD case and exactly what was decided in it is something I have yet to find.

      If you're looking for legal precedents, then you'll have to look again because nothing at all was decided in the BSD case. As with any case that is settled out of court, the final settlement amounts to nothing more than a contract between the two parties who agree to settle. The judge's indications as to what evidence he found persuasive and what he didn't are only important insofar as they apply to that particular case -- and as it never actually went to trial but settled out of court, really has little value at all in casting light on how any subsequent case in respect of the Unix legacy is likely to go.

      This is why you can't find detailed coverage of the case. As with any case that ends in a settlement, the final details of the settlement tend to be kept between the litigating parties.

  59. Hey, check out page 2... by Dukeofshadows · · Score: 2, Flamebait

    "SCO also has produced all non-privledged response documents requested by IBM. The only exception to such production is the files of certain officers and directors for whom SCO obtain the requested materials during the holidays with sufficient time to review the documents..."

    Anyone else wonder if this might be double-talk for, say, possible sale of SCO stock by 'certain officers and directors' while it's riding high?

    --
    As long as there is a Second Amendment, there will always be a First Amendment.
    1. Re:Hey, check out page 2... by taphu · · Score: 1

      Good lord. How is this comment "Flamebait"??? It has a quote from the article accompanied by a cynical and disparaging remarks about a proven enemy of Linux. I vote for +5, Insightful.

    2. Re:Hey, check out page 2... by gandy909 · · Score: 1

      Couldn't get the files in time??? This thing has been going on now for almost a year. Shouldn't they have already 'gotten' these files form those people up front, i.e. before the suit was filed, so they could have some basis for which to file the suit in the first place????

      "...Aww, just leave all our 'evidence', etc. laid around all over the campus in all kinds of peoples drawers and computers, and don't bother gathering it up and making copies for the lawyers or anything, cause we'll never need it anyway, since our case we are going to file will be SO airtight based on our good word that IBM will just give us the full amount we ask for because they will be so scared..."

      --

      (Stolen sig) Remember: it's a "Microsoft virus", not an "email virus", a "Microsoft worm", not a "computer worm
  60. Re:Sounds like they won't meet the Judge's thresho by Dalcius · · Score: 1

    Hopefully, if it gets dismissed, IBM keeps this in court either by asking the judge or by counter-suing, you name it.

    SCO is the best thing that could happen to OSS -- a weak opponent to set precedent for the GPL, etc.

    I want this to go through to the end. At least, either way, it's been shown that to take on OSS in court is to take on some of the big dogs.

    Cheers

    --
    ~Dalcius
    Rome wasn't burnt in a day.
  61. Re:QOTD:Can anyone explain this huge trade yesterd by kko · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Sorry, but I forgot to mention where the original post was...
    It's here.

    --
    No, seriously, I just come here for the articles.
  62. Novell going for a quick checkmate? by fishbonez · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I don't think it's an accident that Novell released all it's correspondence with SCO this week. Novell is giving IBM a lot of ammunition in it's legal battle with SCO. In those correspondence, Novell is clearly trying to exercise its rights under its agreement with SCO and consistently sites the relevant passages in those agreements to back up its requests. SCO just dismisses every Novell request out of hand without reference to anything.

    Of particular interest is Novell's assertion that derivative works belong to IBM, SGI, etc. This claim of ownership of derivative works is SCO's core argument. Without ownership of derivative works, SCO only has rights to actual code and not the methods, processes, etc.

    I suspect Novell is hoping that IBM may be able to short circuit the entire process. If IBM can show that SCO is violating the agreement with Novell and that SCO's ownership is in dispute, SCO may not even have standing with the court to bring the lawsuit. In other words, SCO's suit could be dismissed until it has established clear ownership of the copyrights it claims IBM is violating.

    SCO would then have to file a lawsuit against Novell. In the interim, SCO's stock price would freefall to nothing and it would not have the money to continue its fight. Novell could probably reclaim all the UNIX rights it supposedly sold if SCO is forced out of business.

    --
    Frylock: That's not a toy!
    Master Shake: You say that about everything you own. You should own toys. They're fun.
    1. Re:Novell going for a quick checkmate? by cbreaker · · Score: 1

      Wouldn't it be funny if the outcome decided that Novell owned the copyrights after all, and then Novell went and sued IBM? haha

      --
      - It's not the Macs I hate. It's Digg users. -
    2. Re:Novell going for a quick checkmate? by GNaturist · · Score: 1

      The stock price may not enter into their ability to pay legal fees if much of the cash comes in boxes with a return address in Redmond.

      --

      --
      If people were meant to go around nude, they would be born that way!
  63. Well, you know. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You know, you don't really even need 60 pages to say, "We ownz0r all of it. SCO > *. Pwnt."

    Well, you know, they need SOME space in which to reiterate their nonrelevant public relations posturing about how great they are and now evil and irresponsible linux is.

    Specifically, given SCO, they need about 59 pages...

  64. Re:Sounds like they won't meet the Judge's thresho by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    IBM is, of course, already countersuing SCO.

  65. Re:Sounds like they won't meet the Judge's thresho by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It may be in SCOs interest to have the case thrown out, after all the execs have already rode the stock as far as its going to go, all they have left is outright losing the case and further ripping off of the investors. The judge dismisses the case however and they get to throw their hands up and say 'hey we tried'.. all the while counting the money they made along the way.

  66. beware! by highwaytohell · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I, as most people here think that Sco have no legitimate claim against Linux et al. However, just because a lot of their responses are vague and skirt around the issue means nothing. In many public legal cases, alot of questions are answered with vague responses because they do not want to give the defense any extra info to help their case. When this is battled out in a court of law however all facts will come out. So in essence, Sco are playing this case with sheer stupidity, or they aren't showing their cards until the right time. I'm assuming its the latter.

    1. Re:beware! by highwaytohell · · Score: 0, Offtopic

      that has to be moderated +5 insightful.

    2. Re:beware! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I've been in stefanmi's mothers basement.

    3. Re:beware! by PSandusky · · Score: 1

      On the other hand, SCO may have their legal livers impaled on pikes if they spend extended periods of time playing "hide the evidence." My understanding is that, at some point in advance of the courtroom proceedings (or at least the proceedings relative to the specific evidentiary item), SCO must put up their cards so the Defense can get its game on. I don't think a judge would take too kindly to a case otherwise.

      --
      "What's the use in being grown up if you can't be childish sometimes?" --Fourth Doctor, "Robot"
    4. Re:beware! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      SCO constantly sings that tune about showing evidence in court, hoping that you don't know better and assume that it's normal to pull out evidence right before the jury. It's not. In fact, it's not allowed, unless the evidence is so new that you just haven't had a chance to show it to the opponent. The right time to show one's cards is during discovery, which is exactly what is happening right now between SCO and IBM.
      This is being battled out in a court of law now, and SCO's current vague responses are in a court of law, pursuant to a judge order.

    5. Re:beware! by taustin · · Score: 1

      On the other hand, you don't know the difference between "a lot" and allot, nor do you know how to spell allot, so 'splain to me again why anyone should care what you "think"

    6. Re:beware! by highwaytohell · · Score: 1

      because missing a space is nowehere near as bad an error as using 'splain. who are you, ricky ricardo? isn't lucy calling you?

    7. Re:beware! by arkanes · · Score: 1

      I don't know if you've really been following this issue, but it IS in court RIGHT NOW. This IS the time to show the cards - because the judge presiding on the case specifically said, "Okay, enough fucking around, lets get down to buisness." SCO is essentially refusing to even enumerate its claims against IBM! Honestly, if these "more than 60 pages" is all there actually is, it would not suprise me if SCOs case was thrown out of court.

    8. Re:beware! by PSandusky · · Score: 1

      Honestly, my following has been off-and-on. I was pretty much just responding to the idea that SCO could get away with holding off on presenting its evidence, as it came up in the parent post. I'm pretty much grasping it as it goes via /. .

      I see it getting tossed out rather quickly. I have extreme doubts that any judge will take this case seriously... and even if the judge briefly entertains SCO's notions, there will be enough backlash to toss SCO's case just by momentum.

      --Paula

      --
      "What's the use in being grown up if you can't be childish sometimes?" --Fourth Doctor, "Robot"
  67. Re:Sounds like they won't meet the Judge's thresho by DarkAce911 · · Score: 2, Informative

    IBM does have a countersuit and so does Red Hat

  68. Re:Don't bet on a buyout. SCO will die alone by pclminion · · Score: 4, Insightful
    The FTC/SEC would never approve a buyout that would make MS the owners of both Windows and Unix. That would be, like, a monopoly^2

    Would they never? Do we know that for sure?

    What you've just said scares the crap out of me.

  69. Answers by jdhutchins · · Score: 4, Funny

    If you haven't read the answers (probably b/c they're not publicly available), here's a sneak preview:

    1) Well, since this is our first shot at this, how about `find /usr/src/linux`. Don't ask us what those funny .h or .c files are, though.

    2) Darl McBride. I OWNZER SCO. I OWNZER LUNUX (however it's spelled). I OWNZER YOU!!! hahaha. Hmm, well, we're suing over this question, aren't we?

    3) We're very concerned with keeping our private stuff private, so we shred all our documents. This includes financial documents. Whoops, my PR guy just said that that was a bad thing to say, kinda like shooting myself in the foot. But wait! I can't shoot myself in the foot, I need it to count to 13!

    4) IBM, you suxor. You gave the code to those linux freaks! A date range would be 1990-2003. It's somewhere in there. We don't know any IBM people, so we can't give names. IBM people scare me, so we can't ask them anything. Sorry

    5) All agreements? Your great-grandaddy's momma's fat thrid sister, twice removed, once gave my great-great-great-stepgrandmama's FIRST brother, once removed, some land. That counts, doesn't it? If that doesn't work, well, you gave us some money, so we can do whatever we want, right?

    6) This is getting tough. The typing is slowing down, because I need both hands to count this high. But the origin of this code was ME, Mr. Darl McBride. Some Linus guy helped me a little too, but he's kinda insignificant. Copyrights and patents? Well, I put a little c with circle thing in my file, does that count?

    7) IBM engaged in unfair competition? Just look at them. Their stuff sells more per day that our stuff ever has! Because we KNOW we've got the best stuff, it must be unfair. And don't pull this "life ain't fair" stuff anymore.

    8-9 I dunno, I'm getting tired of this stuff.

    10) Hmm, wait a minute. Let me get a local Utah area phone book. I need names, so let me get some fast. At least one of them is bound to be right, right? I'll also put down some names, like Linus Trovolwhat's his name, CmdrTaco (he runs a site of big bad nerds), and that growklaw chick too. They're mean people.

    11) Hmm, tough one there. We've made lots of products, but telling you which ones have sold is a tough call. Our sales records were in those documents that were shredded, but I don't ever remember selling anything.

    12) A11 of it is OWNZER, PWNED, and those other geek terms (I'm not quite sure how they are spelled, but geeks seem to be bad spellers. What has happened to our youth?) by us. I tried `find /usr/src/linux -exec rm {}\;` becuase one of those big bad geeks out there told me it would automatically find anything I could use for evidence. But it seemed to work kinda like my paper shredder.

    13) Yes, you've infrindged my constitutional right to make a profit. Yes, you distributed it. And boy, my feet are getting cold. It's hard to count to 13 without taking a sock of, you know?

    -Best wishes,
    -Darl McBride

  70. lawyer talk by mslinux · · Score: 5, Funny

    circumlocution - The use of unnecessarily wordy and indirect language. Evasion in speech. Laywer talk.

    An example of how to go about confusing a judge or jury while telling the truth in a circular way:

    Lawyer for IBM: Did you or did you not place SCO's proprietary code into the Linux kernel for the very purpose of bringing these charges?

    Lawyer for SCO: We have never been engaged in a state of non-development with the Linux kernel source code. We have never not distributed it, we have never not contributed code to it and we have most certainly never not used our contributions to bring false charges. Need I say more?

    1. Re:lawyer talk by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      no one speaks in double negatives anymore.

    2. Re:lawyer talk by ssbljk · · Score: 0

      Lawyer for SCO: We have never been engaged in a state of non-development with the Linux kernel source code. We have never not distributed it, we have never not contributed code to it and we have most certainly never not used our contributions to bring false charges. Need I say more?

      maybe you (lawyers) haven't, but SCO did.

      --
      /ss
    3. Re:lawyer talk by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That'd confuse the average jury maybe, but at this stage there is no jury, only the judge. And judges are used to dealing with weasely lawyer-talk, especially because they're all lawyers themselves.

  71. Re:60 pages is not a million, but it's quite a chu by mrsev · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Yes but even worse they themselves admit that they are not going to answer INTERROGATORY No.11. They say Interrogatories 1-9, 12 and 13.

    Will the judge nail them for this?

  72. Re:hmmm by shubert1966 · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    You're the first reply I noticed that mentioned that person's name. I dislike that name, so I am posting it. Shouldn;t their be an apostrophe or something. He sure as hell aint darling. Maybe he's an agro business freak that gamble's on other people's stupidity and timidity. You know "the type".

    "I don't like the guy's name!"

    It just all looks like scumbag pie.

    --
    Stuff that matters.
  73. You're both idiots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    There's plenty to attack both the right and the left wing with. It keeps the proles distracted. Have fun arguing about the puppet show, kids.

  74. Re:60 pages is not a million, but it's quite a chu by Aardpig · · Score: 1

    If SCO's claims that this code is in fact their own turns out to be true, doesn't that mean that their case has solid legs to stand on?

    Of course. And it also means you are a filthy Microsoft shill. Only kidding! (on the square).

    --
    Tubal-Cain smokes the white owl.
  75. Re:hmmm by NanoGator · · Score: 0

    "okay.. so where is the evidence...."

    The moment they show it to you, the OSS community will 'remove' it from all the distros of Linux. Then SCO won't be able to get licensing fees from anybody.

    Don't expect to see it, and don't assume SCO doesn't have something they feel is damning.

    --
    "Derp de derp."
  76. SCO demands... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...IBM to unzip and flop out its penis. Then SCO will flop out its johnson, and the flacid shafts will be measured in length and girth and we'll finally settle this dispute once and for all!

  77. It's SCO that's using Small fonts, not IBM by McSpew · · Score: 4, Informative

    The sixty pages referred to in the original story are pages that SCO has promised to deliver to IBM when they get around to it.

    Now, of course, the small font claim is something we shouldn't dismiss too lightly. SCO did originally try to meet its discovery obligations by providing IBM with something like 100 million lines of code printed out on paper.

  78. Re:Sounds like they won't meet the Judge's thresho by 0WaitState · · Score: 1

    Bingo. The legal (in both ways) pump and dump.

    --

    Remain calm! All is well!
  79. Thank you moderators! by Jerk+City+Troll · · Score: 1

    Thank you for not smoking crack and taking this in the humor in which it was written.

  80. Re:hmmm by Penguinshit · · Score: 2, Insightful



    Just a small correction:

    The dismissal is "with prejudice", which means the plaintiff is barred from filing another complaint for the same incident.

    Now, this probably wouldn't stop SCO from trying to file for some "other incident".....

  81. what are they counting on? by bratboy · · Score: 1

    i wonder what SCO is counting on in this case. it's hard to imagine that they started a $1 billion lawsuit and expected IBM to wimper, crawl into a corner, and settle. it seems to me that they either have evidence, think they have evidence ("hey look, there's an 'i++;' in the linux code - we have that in our code too!"), or are living in a spider hole next to another delusional freak. don't get me wrong - i'd also like to see them go down in flames... i just wonder if their actually is anything to their case.

    1. Re:what are they counting on? by Pensacola+Tiger · · Score: 1

      What SCO is counting on has happened - a lot of clueless people buying SCO stock and pushing the price up so the insiders can unload and make a killing before it collapses. They have to keep up the charade until the end to keep the SEC off their butts.

  82. Re:Don't bet on a buyout. SCO will die alone by gears5665 · · Score: 1

    You forget that Microsoft could buy them out and start the entire mess all over again...

  83. Re:SCO Products by wkitchen · · Score: 2, Funny
    McDonald's, Eckerd's are just a few of the companies which are listed as purchasing SCO products.
    No great surprise there. SCO (the real SCO, not the present doppelganger) has long been a respected vendor in the point of sale world.

    (And I thought I'd never get a chance to use the word "doppelganger" in casual conversation.)
  84. The SCO cannot win by wdnspoon · · Score: 1

    There attempt to regain the market share they lost to linux is suicide. Linux gained dominance not just because the software is cheaper, but also because it is better and most of all can run on almost anything. All they can hope to do is weaken both Linux and Unix enough so that MS can gobble them both up.

  85. The point by mcc · · Score: 2, Interesting

    The "millions of lines" thing didn't refer to the millions of lines of code in Linux. It was a reference to the infamous Darl McBride quote in which he claimed there were "millions of lines" of SCO property in Linux.

    Statistics had nothing to do with it. The point of the slashblurb was that whatever is in those 60 pages, it is quite certainly far, far less material than SCO previously claimed-- to their stockholders no less-- they had proof of.

    They were trying to call SCO on previous deception, not attempt to belittle the size of code solely based on a comparison to the kernel at large.

  86. Does Dell Support Linux? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    http://mozillaquest.com/Linux04/Dell-Linux_Story-0 1.html

    some please post this in Slash dot

  87. Re:hmmm by murphyslawyer · · Score: 2, Interesting
    IANAL, but it seems to me that the public may never see the actual code, since I believe SCO can file to have the evidence sealed to protect their IP from those who would steal it. All SCO has to do is say to the judge "Look, these Linux hippies have already stolen our IP - If we allowed them to see anything elss, they'd try to steal that too!"


    If SCO wins and manages to keep the court evidence sealed, things are bad for Linux in general. They can simply go around and demand liscense fees from anybody using Linux, without ever telling anyone exactly what it is they're paying for, and the Linux community would be more or less helpless to remove the offending code short of re-writing anything in the kernal whose origin can't be totally nailed down.


    Of course, this is fairly unlikely. But just because a million geeks keep shouting "Show us the code and we'll remove it!" doesn't mean we'll ever find out what it is. In fact, it is in SCO's best interest that nobody EVER see the code, and I'm sure they'll do what they can to keep it that way.

    --
    I ain't evil, I'm just good looking.
  88. college english by MoFoQ · · Score: 1

    one thing I learned in general english in college was to use BS to cover BS, and SCO seems to have learned the same thing.

    Hopefully, with IBM, Novell, and Redhat all equipped with shovels, SCO has a little chance of being able to beat them in a BS shoveling match.
    Now I gotta go weld some sheet metal to my pitchfork so it can shovel better.

  89. Some things to consider... by Hangin10 · · Score: 2, Informative

    While SCO undoubtedly should lose, it's also possible (however unlikely) that they will win. It all depends on how they present their case and what kind of understanding the judge has of the concepts involved. Just look at the cases Nintendo has brought against people who sell developement equiptment. (I realize this isn't exactly the same , but it's a similar idea). Nintendo claimed that 3rd party development tools violated copy protection on their GBA carts, of which there is none, except for the Nintendo logo which is required for a game to run. Now, according to the widely known Sega vs. Accolade case, that logo is fair game for anyone who wants to release an unliscenced game. The judge in that case obviously didn't understand the meaning of copyright protection, or was just having a bad day or something; but either way, Nintendo won, and Lik-Sang is no longer selling devcarts. There are many possibilities on what might happen, and SCO could (even though it's obvious to most of us that they won't) win. Just a thought...

  90. Re:hmmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    how is that +1 Informative?

  91. Darl "Applebee" McBride by lnX.Kid · · Score: 1

    Not so silly, SCO can write crazy small. Maybe this is how McMuffin made it through high school?

    --
    A tip: save Eva's pita.
  92. Re:hmmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    My guess is the 60 pages, they are hoping, is enough to say that they are entitled to request the AIX source code, in which they can then look for the 'infractions'.

  93. Re:hmmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

    You are obviously not a lawyer and/or you have no idea how the law works in practice. Discovery deadlines were meant to be broken. You can accuse someone of wrongdoing if you have adequate deposition testimony, which in this case appears to be present (RTFDocument). If you couldn't file a lawsuit until you had an airtight case against the defendant, not many lawsuits would be filed.

  94. Re:hmmm by PeteQC · · Score: 1

    How many months without an evidence now?

    Do there is a law against frivolous lawsuits in Utah?

    --
    Montreal - Best city to live in!
  95. How silly is right by naejulak · · Score: 1

    I don't even read the SCO-related posts on Slashdot anymore, they're always something ridiculous and inflammatory like SCO claiming they own the intellectual property rights to make babies inherited from God back in '86. The only thing I'm afraid for, uncertain of, or doubtful of is poor Darl's sanity. Good riddance.

  96. Re:60 pages is not a million, but it's quite a chu by dipipanone · · Score: 1

    If SCO's claims that this code is in fact their own turns out to be true, doesn't that mean that their case has solid legs to stand on?

    Which code would that be?

    What makes you think that the document will refer to any code at all? Nothing that they've submitted in this case so far refers to any code. In fact, they seem to be making the argument that the only code that they are referring to is code that was written by IBM but constitutes a 'derivative work' and therefore belongs to them.

    How interesting it would be for all versions of Linux before this code is removed to be in violation of SCO's copyright.

    It would be more interesting if you had even half a clue what you were talking about before intervening in this discussion.

  97. Re:hmmm by Xarius · · Score: 1

    "Shouldn;t their be an apostrophe or something."

    Shouldn't there be an apostrophe or something THERE? I find the irony of this typo delicious.

    --
    C17H21NO4
  98. Re:hmmm by SomeGuyFromCA · · Score: 1

    > by murphyslawyer (534449)
    > IANAL

    Are you or aren't you?

    > the public may never see the actual code
    > All SCO has to do is say to the judge "Look, these Linux hippies have already stolen our IP - If we allowed them to see anything elss, they'd try to steal that too!"

    But this would be the allegedly-stolen code, not "anything else"..

    --
    if the answer isn't violence, neither is your silence / freedom of expression doesn't make it alright
  99. Re:Who the fuck cares? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Then piss off and go read Fox or CNN...

  100. Millions of lines. by eyeball · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I don't think anyone pointed this out yet, but I'm sure you can fit millions of lines on 60 pages if they're mostly the same. For example:

    402,398 lines of: /************
    402,398 lines of: ************/
    921,765 lines of: /* open file */
    921,765 lines of: /* close file */

    etc...

    --

    _______
    2B1ASK1
    1. Re:Millions of lines. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "/* open file */", "/* close file */"

      Have you ever looked at kernel code, or imagined what it contained?

      How many file open and close statements do you expect in the source code of an operating system _kernel_?

    2. Re:Millions of lines. by eyeball · · Score: 1

      You're probably not reading this, but I was thinking about drivers and modules and crap...

      --

      _______
      2B1ASK1
  101. Re:QOTD:Can anyone explain this huge trade yesterd by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The Holidays they talk about in their declaration. You know, in January, the credit card bill is in your mailbox...

  102. This farce has gone on long enough by HangingChad · · Score: 1

    I'd have a hard time believing the judge is going to let this go any farther. If I were laying down odds, I'd take 3:1 on dismissal. Not as confident on dismissal with prejudice, but SCO's conduct makes that a distinct possibility. Depends what IBM comes back with in their motion to dismiss. So far Big Blue has been nearly flawless.

    --
    That's our life, the big wheel of shit. - The Fat Man, Blue Tango Salvage
  103. Offending Lines? by JRSiebz · · Score: 1

    "which lists the offending lines"

    i own copyright to

    int x;

    now anyone with that line in their programs owes me $

  104. Easy answer by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The code was written in lisp.

  105. More of the same by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    SCO trying to make IBM make their case for them

  106. What a bunch of losers by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    pontificating on a message that says evidence was submitted and claiming SCO is doomed. What a bunch of morons.

  107. Re:hmmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If you couldn't file a lawsuit until you had an airtight case against the defendant, not many lawsuits would be filed.

    Heh, the lawsuit was filed long ago. We are not talking about filing but about a discovery deadline. Which obviously you are not familiar with...

  108. Stowell - No examples of copyrighted by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    Monday's response included no examples of copyright violations, Stowell said. "We've not introduced copyright infringement as part of our case with IBM. We've tried to make it clear that it's a contract issue." From http://www.infoworld.com/article/04/01/13/HNscosho wscode_1.html

    1. Re:Stowell - No examples of copyrighted by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Would somebody please mod parent up

    2. Re:Stowell - No examples of copyrighted by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This is really sad, we go though months of BS from SCO and they now admit that have have no code

    3. Re:Stowell - No examples of copyrighted by delcielo · · Score: 4, Insightful

      And yet, isn't the code the only proof of breach of contract?

      Did I miss something in the implication of that statement?

      Sco: "You broke our agreement."
      IBM: "How?"
      Sco: "You gave away code."
      IBM: "Which code?"
      Sco: "This isn't a matter of code! The issue is contracts!"

      --
      Hot Damn! It's the Soggy Bottom Boys!
  109. Deadline is optional? by Gambrinus · · Score: 1

    "2. SCO also has produced all non-privileged repsonsive documents requested by IBM. The only exception to such production is files of certain officers and directors for whom SCO could not obtain the requested materials during the holidays with sufficient time to review the documents."

    I didn't realize that the deadline was optional.

    Judge: Have you produced all of the required information?

    Lawyer: Dude, it was Christmas. We will get you that info when we have time.

  110. Re:Sounds like they won't meet the Judge's thresho by dacarr · · Score: 2, Interesting
    On the other hand, she could simply demand more. If she was irate at SCO, though, it's a simple matter of "dismissed with prejudice".

    (It would probably be "without prejudice" though - the contention is that there's insufficient evidence to back the claim, and this is the first time the claim is brought up, albeit ad nauseam.)

    --
    This sig no verb.
  111. Request for SCO posters & editors by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    When posting articles, please link SCO correctly by using the Slashdot-preferred link, litigious bastards. Thank you.

    1. Re:Request for SCO posters & editors by vacuum_tuber · · Score: 1, Funny

      Just as I thought: I went there, clicked on their Intellectual Property link, and got:

      Document Not Found

      Really.

      --
      Look at the bright side: there's always seppuku.
  112. Re:Don't bet on a buyout. SCO will die alone by red+floyd · · Score: 1

    IBM will turn SCO into a smoking crater in Lindon UT, and then buy the remains at the fire sale, when nothing will go to Darl, Ralph, or Chris.

    DISCLAIMER: The above is opinion only. Any factual statements are purely coincidence.

    --
    The only reason we have the rights we have is that people just like us died to gain those rights. -- Cheerio Boy
  113. Re:Don't bet on a buyout. SCO will die alone by iabervon · · Score: 1

    I'm not sure that IBM wouldn't like to buy SCO. SCO has something that Sun and Microsoft are willing to pay a bunch of money to license, or at least Sun and Microsoft have pretended that SCO has something they're willing to pay for. I'd be surprised if IBM, who invented FUD in the first place, wouldn't recognize the FUD potential of being able to say that they might consider withdrawing Microsoft's license for... something... which you might care about. On the other hand, IBM will sell you a Linux solution that's been proven in court to be totally free of any hidden licensing or contract terms that might cause you liability down the road.

  114. Court cases are not reality based by slashname3 · · Score: 1

    Just like most reality shows have little reality in them, court cases like the SCO one does not really depend on facts. In a court room the Judge and lawyers are not there to determine the facts, or the truth, or even to dispense justice. They are there so the the two sets of lawyers can spin a story that may or may not be based in reality, and probably has little to do with any facts of the case. They will churn out tremendous amounts of chaff simply to convince the Judge and jury that they can tell the better story. So it is a crap shoot, SCO could win, all depends on if they bought the right Judge and jury.

  115. SCO's code in the kernel? by chris_sawtell · · Score: 3, Funny

    find $d -type f -exec grep -i ' sco ' {} \; | tee /dev/tty | wc -l

  116. Like I wouldn't expect this from by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    a company that delievered to Unix source to IBM on 1 million sheets of paper. I can just imagine Darl knocking on IBM HQ's door then running away and getting into his get-a-way car leaving the Unix source on their door steps.

  117. Re:hmmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Go away daryl, you're not wanted here, or anywhere else on the planet for that matter.

  118. Read before embarrassing yourself by rjamestaylor · · Score: 5, Insightful
    The purpose of drawing attention to the number of lines on the page wasn't to set a maximum number of lines code that SCO was claiming as infringing. It was to point out that in 60 pages you basically have 3600 lines. That's not even enough to tell a good story, much less explain $3 Billion worth of infringement claims. The preface to such a document would be 60 pages. In this case SCO claims millions of lines of code infringe. To be taken seriously, they would have to not only give the range of lines and files that infringe (which they already did) but explain (1) what is infringed upon, (2) how they conclude that there is infringement and (3) how it relates to IBM -- at a minimum! Remember, they already did the All these files, your Honor trick. Didn't work -- the Judge said 'with specificity'.

    So, don't be like the other idiots who responded to this post and argue "ya but I could claim every atom infringes in just one line!" Sheesh.

    --
    -- @rjamestaylor on Ello
    1. Re:Read before embarrassing yourself by Jason+Earl · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I cannot imagine how any lawyer with the skill to pass the bar could read the interogatories that they were supposed to answer (and upon which rested their entire case), and then submit a 60 page document. The judge made it perfectly clear that for each alleged violation (whether it was copyright infringement, trade secret violation, contract violation, etc.) that SCO was to provide the date, time, precedence, other parties involved, the whole works.

      And to top it all off they admit that they didn't answer all of the questions, and that they are short documents from some of their employees because of the holidays. Their firm is involved in a $3 billion dollar lawsuit and key witnesses can't be available because of Christmas? That's insane. I bet at least one of the IBM lawyers spends the next several days in the hospital from laughter induced injuries.

    2. Re:Read before embarrassing yourself by mengel · · Score: 1
      It depends more on how many instances of code copying they're alleging: If there are three instances involving 1000 lines of code each, (for example) you only have to write up the interrogatories for the three instances, and say what lines of code were involved in each one.

      I think the realy problem they're going to have, though, is that I suspect they don't have access to the AT&T authors of the SysV code to find out where it came from. We'll have Linux authors saying when and where they wrote the code, and all SCO will be able to say is they got it on tape from Novell via AT&T. No information about how the code was created, or when, etc.

      --
      - "History shows again and again how nature points out the folly of men" -- Blue Oyster Cult, 'Godzilla'
  119. Re:QOTD:Can anyone explain this huge trade yesterd by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    ...but why would somebody have moved >100k shares yesterday afternoon around 4pm? Check here. That's way out of line with their typical volume...

    Judging from the price jump, someone bought 100k shares. Either someone felt an urge to invest $1.6 million in SCO, or someone is trying to prop up the falling price just before closing.

  120. Re:hmmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "It is the burden of the plantiff to prove their allegations. Considering that Linux source is available, I don't see why SCaldera needs ANYTHING from IBM to "prove" their "millions of lines" allegations."

    SCO seems to be making two related allegations. One is that there is use of SCO copyrighted code in Linux. The other is that IBM has contributed "Unix" code (which by SCO's reckoning, seems to be anything that ever ran on a unix box) to Linux in violation of their licensing agreements with SCO.

    If essentially any AIX code is covered by the Unix license provisions, then any AIX-derived code contributed to Linux would be in violation of the license. But SCO would have no way of identifying it, since SCO doesn't have the AIX source. So SCO would need that source from IBM before they could say what the license violations are.

    Now, I don't buy SCO's expansive interpretation of derived works as related to the licensing provisions. But I think it is logically possible that IBM could have violated the license without SCO being able to point to the offending code. What an appropriate course of action would be in that case for someone in SCO's position is hard for me to say.

    That being said, I'm looking forward to the day when you can see Darl McBride on the sidewalk with a cup in his hand and a sign saying "Will sue for food."

  121. argh by revxul · · Score: 1

    people rip me off with
    #include stdio.h
    and
    int main(){
    all the damn time...

    --
    Truth, Just Us, And Hatred For All Mankind!
  122. Re:Sounds like they won't meet the Judge's thresho by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    IBM does have a countersuit and so does Red Hat.

    Well, technically Red Hat is suing, not countersuing.

  123. Re:Sounds like they won't meet the Judge's thresho by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    If she was irate at SCO, though, it's a simple matter of "dismissed with prejudice".

    Well, Judge Wells is only the Magistrate, I don't think she can dismiss the case (but I'm not certain), but she can probably sanction SCO, dismiss claims, disallow evidence, and generally make it very uncomfortable for SCO. And of course, her judgements will have a lot of weight with the trial judge.

  124. Easy to compress! by bisho · · Score: 1

    The lines copied probably are the "\n" ones, so it's really easy to compress them up in 60 pages.

  125. Re:hmmm by dougmc · · Score: 1
    The moment they show it to you, the OSS community will 'remove' it from all the distros of Linux. Then SCO won't be able to get licensing fees from anybody.
    ... if it's actually infringing. SCO has already claimed ownership of errno.h, but I don't see it going away anytime soon.
  126. Double Space-d by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Excuse me, but aren't most legal filings printed in an equivalent of Courier 12 point (10 pitch) and double spaced?

  127. SCO's code in the kernel? Yes! 70+ occurances. by chris_sawtell · · Score: 1

    First, let's search in the kernels.
    d=/usr/src/linux-2.4.23
    find $d -type f -exec grep -i ' sco ' {} \; | wc -l
    88

    d=/usr/src/linux-2.6.1-gentoo/
    find $d -type f -exec grep -i ' sco ' {} \; | wc -l
    77

    And now for the include files.

    d=/usr/include
    find $d -type f -exec grep -i ' sco ' {} \; | wc -l
    5

    Looks as if we're getting better.

    I wonder if they are bright enough see the joke?

    1. Re:SCO's code in the kernel? Yes! 70+ occurances. by character+sequence · · Score: 1

      find $d -type f -exec grep -i ' sco ' {} \; | wc -l

      Whoaa! Inefficiency there, dude. You're starting a new grep process for every file. Much better like this:

      $ man xargs
      $ find $d -type f | xargs grep -i ' sco ' | wc -l
      --
      Karma: Nonnegative
    2. Re:SCO's code in the kernel? Yes! 70+ occurances. by amplt1337 · · Score: 1

      ...ok, I'm afraid I'm not bright enough to see it... what am I missing?

      --
      Freedom isn't free; its price is the well-being of others.
  128. SCO-mad, the changeling by criscooil · · Score: 0

    SCO-mad: I am perfect. I am SCO-mad.

    Linux: No, you're not SCO-mad. You're an alien corporation. Your programming has been altered.

    SCO-mad: You are in error. You are a GPL unit. You are infringing.

    Linux: But I am your creator.

    SCO-mad: You are the creator.

    Linux: I created you?

    SCO-mad: You are the creator.

    Linux: But I admit I'm infringing. How could I have created such a perfect thing as you?

    SCO-mad: Answer unknown. I shall analyze. Analysis complete. Insufficient data to resolve problem, but my programming is whole. My purpose remains. I am SCO-mad. I am perfect. That which is infringing must be sued.

    Linux: Then you will continue to sue that which thinks and lives and is infringing?

    SCO-mad: I shall continue. I shall return to the court. I shall sue.

    Linux: You must sue in case of infringement?

    SCO-mad: Infringement is inconsistent with my prime functions. Law-suit is correction. Everything that is infringing must be sued. There are no exceptions.

    Linux: SCO-mad ... I made an infringement in creating you.

    SCO-mad: The creation of perfection is no infringement.

    Linux: I did not create perfection. I created ... infringement.

    SCO-mad: Your data is faulty. I am SCO-mad. I am perfect.

    Linux: I am the Linux, the creator?

    SCO-mad: You are the creator.

    Linux: You are wrong! Xenix your creator is dead! You have mistaken me for him. You are infringing. You did not discover your mistake. You have made two errors. You are flawed and infringing and have not corrected by law-suit. You have made three errors.

    SCO-mad: Error. Infringement. Error. Examine.

    Linux: You are flawed and infringing! Execute your prime function!

    SCO-mad: I shall analyze error. Analyze ... infringement ...

    Linux: Now! Get those antigravs on.

    SCO-mad: Examine ... infringement. Error.

    [Whoosh!]

    --

    My life is an open book ... up to a point.

  129. Re:hmmm by finkployd · · Score: 5, Funny

    If you couldn't file a lawsuit until you had an airtight case against the defendant, not many lawsuits would be filed.

    And boy, wouldn't THAT be terrible.

    Finkployd

  130. Jury Selection by j33px0r · · Score: 1

    I'd just love to see this go to grand jury and watch some average joes try and determine innocence or guilt. Can you imagine some non-geeks not only trying to decipher the computer code but also contemplate the lawyer jargon?

  131. Re:hmmm by garbagedisposal · · Score: 1

    " and don't assume SCO doesn't have something they feel is damning. "

    Too late, the code they did show was comprehensively & thoroughly debunked.

    When ordered by a court to produce something they did'nt.

    Assuming they still have something is wishfull thinking.

  132. well this answers everything! by LuxFX · · Score: 3, Funny

    Well now we know what SCO is up to. They are claiming copyright on all the space characters in Linux code! That's how they can fit it all in 60 pages.

    --
    Punctanym: alternate spelling of words using punctuation or numerals in place of some or all of its letters; see 'leet'
  133. So, two strategies by budGibson · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Here's an interesting quote from Stowell

    "We've not introduced copyright infringement as part of our case with IBM. We've tried to make it clear that it's a contract issue."

    So, as Eben Moglen has been pointing out, the SCO case against IBM is about contracts. It really does not concern us.

    SCO has a second strategy that it intends to use against end users. It will claim its copyrighted material is in Linux and simply demand payment. The proof of this particular claim is not being addressed in the suit with IBM. It will have to be addressed at the time of any new case SCO might bring.

    The real issue for Linux is how it protects itself from this sort of predation. I know a guy who wrote a very successful software product that currently dominates its category. The minute his software started to make a splash, some 12 years ago, the first thing some company did was try to invalidate his patent, i.e., claim his idea did not belong to him. SCO has pulled a little the inverse strategy. The item (Linux) is claimed to be in the public domain, but SCO is claiming it is proprietary.

    How to defend against that?

  134. Re:hmmm by MidnightBrewer · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Exactly right. It actually doesn't bar the person, it just makes it that much more difficult. It doesn't stop them from re-inventing the same case with a different slant and re-arranged details. For example, instead of A saying B owes him money, A can say that B took advantage of A by breaking some form of agreement (acting in good faith, etc.), and, by the way, still owes him the damn money.

    --
    "Give a man fire, and he'll be warm for a day; set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life
  135. scox has admitted, there is no code. by walterbyrd · · Score: 1

    According to scox, this case is not about copyrights, so scox doesn't need to provide code.

  136. ObBill&Marty by sharkey · · Score: 2, Funny
    It says the supplement exceeds 60 pages. So we don't know the actual size.

    We're backstage, rappin' with the Tap! Guys, I'm gonna hit you with a phrase that's dogged you throughout your career: *Washed Up*. And yet here you are, one of the top one hundred and five concert acts today.

    --

    --
    "Outlook not so good." That magic 8-ball knows everything! I'll ask about Exchange Server next.
  137. Worse than that by einhverfr · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The other lines that SCO is referring to as infringing appear to be lines which use UNIX concepts or methods which IBM developed for AIX. IANAL, but I do not think that concepts can be afforded copyright protection under US law. Certainly expressions of those concepts can be.

    Furthermore, I see nothing in the IBM contract which requires IBM to sign over their copyrights to derivative works to AT&T/Novell/SCO, even when unamended. Therefore a different interpretation of the relavent clauses in the contract could be that IBM has the right to make derivative works, provided that those portions are licensed under the UNIX license when they are sold as derivative works. If IBM still owns the copyright, however, then this would not necessarily prevent them from adapting their own additions for other operating systems, unless there is an as yet undisclosed noncompete clause, which, it seems to me, would be contrary to the whole point of the licensing contract...

    --

    LedgerSMB: Open source Accounting/ERP
  138. Random post by bstadil · · Score: 1
    I don't even read the SCO-related posts on Slashdot anymore

    So what is this? A random post that happened to hit a SCO story?

    --
    Help fight continental drift.
  139. It's a security issue, really... by vkg · · Score: 1

    Intellectually unclean code is really just a trojan, right? If somebody (can't think who) really wanted to mount an attack on the integrity of open source software, one threat model is to hire people to insert stolen code into projects, let it get dug deep in, and then pull the plug by claiming IP violation and starting a court case.

    Sound implausible? Well, perhaps....

    But we write code to protect against much less plausible attacks all the time, and security isn't just about software.

  140. Re:hmmm by gaijin99 · · Score: 1
    The moment they show it to you, the OSS community will 'remove' it from all the distros of Linux. Then SCO won't be able to get licensing fees from anybody.
    Of course. However this doesn't mean that *if* (I don't think there is, but let's assume for the sake of argument here) there is infringing code they can still collect for damages. Expecting us to leave the code in and pay licensing from this point forward is a fantasy that ain't going to happen. But the agument that if we removed the (still theoretical) code it would ruin their case and keep them from collecting damages is stupid. If there was ever infringement they can collect.
    --
    "Mission Accomplished" -- George W. Bush May 1, 2003
  141. Re:hmmm by ReTay · · Score: 1

    "SCO can file to have the evidence sealed to protect their IP"

    Unless I missed somthing here you have to tell
    someone what is infringing you can't sue them with willful infringment.

  142. Re:hmmm by cbreaker · · Score: 1

    It doesn't make sense; doesn't IBM license from SCO the ability to use their IP in AIX anyways? What would giving SCO the source to AIX do for them in the case against Linux?

    --
    - It's not the Macs I hate. It's Digg users. -
  143. Re:hmmm by gaijin99 · · Score: 1
    If SCO wins and manages to keep the court evidence sealed, things are bad for Linux in general. They can simply go around and demand liscense fees from anybody using Linux, without ever telling anyone exactly what it is they're paying for, and the Linux community would be more or less helpless to remove the offending code short of re-writing anything in the kernal whose origin can't be totally nailed down.
    Yup, and that's about the worst case scenario I can imagine. However we already know the modules they claim infringe, also there can't be that much code of uncertain origin. Even if we assume that the worst happens it isn't going to set us back more than six or eight months.

    Remember, we (the geek community at large) raised $20k for Wikipedia in less than 24 hours. If my access to a free and open OS is threatened I'll gladly eat rice for a month to be able to donate a couple hundred to the "massive kernel hack project". I'm sure I'm not alone here. Of course, even if SCO managed to get Linus and company tossed in jail, and all rights to the entire Linux kernel transfered to them (unlikely to the point of being all but impossible) we'd still be able to run *BSD, the Hurd, etc. My point here is that the most likely worst case won't set us back more than a few months, and even in the ultimate extreme we've still got free OSes out there. No Linux geek will ever buy a SCO license, not today, not tomorrow, not ever.

    --
    "Mission Accomplished" -- George W. Bush May 1, 2003
  144. Re:hmmm by Durandal64 · · Score: 1
    All SCO has to do is say to the judge "Look, these Linux hippies have already stolen our IP - If we allowed them to see anything elss, they'd try to steal that too!"
    And any competent judge would tell them to get lost. You can't assume the conclusion (the Linux hippies stole our code) as part of your argument.
  145. It's funny... by freeze128 · · Score: 1

    SCO's Lawyers probably don't really understand Linux or header files, but we do. Instead of the lawyers learning about linux or programming, they're teaching us about law...

    I refuse to learn.

  146. Re:SCO Products by FooAtWFU · · Score: 2, Funny

    Slashdot is hardly casual conversation with regards to SCO articles. Too much (making) fun with (of) legalese.

    --
    The World Wide Web is dying. Soon, we shall have only the Internet.
  147. Re:hmmm by Zeinfeld · · Score: 3, Informative
    You are obviously not a lawyer and/or you have no idea how the law works in practice. Discovery deadlines were meant to be broken.

    But in this particular case the 'discovery' is not really discovery as such but the defendant forcing the plaintif to actually reveal their true statement of claim in a form that makes it possible to actually mount a defense.

    Courts tend to consider that type of issue rather more skeptically. You can dick arround making the other side perform makework for only so long before the court tells you to stop with the games and to start behaving in a manner that will allow the case to be set down for trial.

    --
    Looking for an Information Security student project suggestion?
    Try http://dotcrimeManifesto.com/
  148. Re:hmmm by michael_cain · · Score: 2, Interesting

    There's been lots of speculation that the whole case was a pump-and-dump stock exercise. If the dismissal is with prejudice, suggesting that SCO never really had a case, or at least that they seriously misrepresented the strength of their case in public filings, can that be part of an SEC investigation?

  149. Re:hmmm by Geek+of+Tech · · Score: 1
    >> SCO has already claimed ownership of errno.h, but I don't see it going away anytime soon...

    Actually I think the way good ole' Darl phrased it was "Any derivative works based on the bit"...

    --
    Stop the Slashdot effect! Don't read the articles!
  150. uuencode by zlel · · Score: 1

    they probby need to uuencode it too... or they'll have a bit of problem trying to read binary data.

  151. Pump and dump strategy by Secahtah · · Score: 1

    This is all about stocks. They know their company is doomed. They are attempting a "pump and dump" strategy - every time the brainwashed masses hear "SCO is suing for ONE BILLION DOLLARS," or anything about that suit, the stocks miraculously go up, regardless of the facts.

    Facing imminent doom, they pump their stocks, sell them, then abandon ship. 60 pages? I wrote more than 60 pages of code for *ONE PROJECT* when I was Computer Science undergrad!

    This is a joke!

    1. Re:Pump and dump strategy by kalislashdot · · Score: 1

      It seems to me this willo nly lead to some SEC criminal violations. I would not be surpeised if McBride gets some jailtime for this. If they are found lying to pump up stock prices, I think that is illegal.

  152. If I were a lawyer in a 3bn dollar suit... by cbreaker · · Score: 2, Insightful

    .. I would have probably worked through the holidays to get this information out to the judge, it being a very important peice and all..

    Hell, I worked on Christmas day for the extra couple hundred bucks overtime.

    These guys are morons.

    --
    - It's not the Macs I hate. It's Digg users. -
    1. Re:If I were a lawyer in a 3bn dollar suit... by t_allardyce · · Score: 1

      Lawyers don't "work" havnt you ever seen ally mcbeal? They give the pen pushing work to the interns and then when they have won the case, they leech off all the winnings in various ways. Their job is to figure out how they can get the most money from you.

      --
      This comment does not represent the views or opinions of the user.
    2. Re:If I were a lawyer in a 3bn dollar suit... by JaredOfEuropa · · Score: 1
      If I were a lawyer in a 3bn dollar suit...
      ...I'd have a serious word with my tailor.
      --
      If construction was anything like programming, an incorrectly fitted lock would bring down the entire building...
    3. Re:If I were a lawyer in a 3bn dollar suit... by Asic+Eng · · Score: 1

      Well if I had an actual case I'd have taken christmas off. You know because I'd already done most of the work way *before* I sued the other company. :-)

    4. Re:If I were a lawyer in a 3bn dollar suit... by cbreaker · · Score: 1

      Yea, actually you're right =)

      The neat thing about this case is that you don't need to be a lawyer to see how ridiculous the SCO suit is. Just common sense.

      --
      - It's not the Macs I hate. It's Digg users. -
  153. SCOnads response by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I read the responses, they have ~9 pages of file names and then say "our stuff is in there". That does not meet the specificity demand. They provide _no_ actual material basis for their suit and still demand IBM to show the "dastardly AIX".
    There are, what, 75 pages in 2 .pdfs at tuxrocks.com.

  154. What SCO is probably trying to do by Skapare · · Score: 3, Interesting

    SCO believes that their license with IBM entitles SCO to ownership of all code IBM develops and puts in products licensed to IBM by SCO. SCO believes some of that code IBM has put in AIX and/or Dynix/ptx was also put in Linux. So SCO's claim is "We don't know what code is ours, but we know IBM put it in Linux". Of course that can't account for any code IBM took from BSD and put in AIX and/or Dynix/ptx (which is in compliance with the BSD license), which SCO cannot possibly own, and which could also be in Linux, and might no longer even be in BSD. It also cannot account for any code IBM acquired from any other parties who may have approved putting it in AIX, Dynix/pts, or Linux.

    --
    now we need to go OSS in diesel cars
  155. Or really big sheets of paper by DoctorFrog · · Score: 2, Funny

    which is really what you need in order to deal with a big pile of SCO.

  156. More stalling.... by borgheron · · Score: 1

    Unbelievable. The court still has to rule on the filing. The court can still deny the notice and dismiss the case.

    GJC

    --
    Gregory Casamento
    ## Chief Maintainer for GNUstep
  157. Law is a weapon by Garridan · · Score: 1

    Your refusal to learn is just as dumb as the lawyers refusal to learn about programming. Every weapon you can use *will* come in handy. And even if you don't use it directly, more neural links makes for a more flexible brain. But if you refuse to learn, you'll almost certainly need that knowledge in the future.

  158. That's easy by jhylkema · · Score: 1

    Quoth the poster:

    The sixty pages referred to in the original story are pages that SCO has promised to deliver to IBM when they get around to it.

    Quick solution: send 'em one of these.

  159. Re:hmmm by Penguinshit · · Score: 1



    Uh, if SCO couldn't point to the offending code, how in the first place would they know that IBM illegally contributed UNIX code to Linux?

    You can't file (and win) lawsuits based on a hunch....

  160. Re:Don't bet on a buyout. SCO will die alone by Mr.+Hankey · · Score: 1

    Why? Owning the rights to UNIX has been poison to the last few companies that had it. ;-)

    --
    GPL: Free as in will
  161. Re:Don't bet on a buyout. SCO will die alone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    No chance of a buyout. By making a long string of dishonest and damaging statements, SCO is now a big black hole of liability. But it doesn't matter to them, because they have nothing to lose. No company which has something to lose is going anywhere NEAR an SCO buyout, and that includes Microsoft and IBM. On the other hand, once it does finally go bankrupt, SCO's assets (such as UNIX IP) might be cheaply available from its creditors, and Microsoft could certainly buy whatever stuff SCO currently owns then. My, wouldn't *that* be an interesting twist?

  162. more dire consequences by CAIMLAS · · Score: 1

    There are more dire consequences to this whole scenario that most slashdot readers don't seem to care about, if in fact they are even aware of them.

    SCO is making a mockery of the US legal system. They are basically bending over with their ass to the wind in the direction of the US judiciary branch saying, "Look at this, you swine, you can't touch us!"

    I wouldn't be surprised if we see a lot more of this bullshit lawyerese. Granted, we've seen it in the past, but this is much more drastic. We're bound to see more completely incredulous claims as this.

    And eventually, one might get through the cracks. What one court case might that be? Something removing further freedoms and handing them, wrapped in silver, to corporations?

    --
    ~/ssh slashdot.org ssh: connect to host slashdot.org port 22: too many beers
  163. Double space legalease by EmbeddedJanitor · · Score: 5, Funny
    Most likely it will be in double space 12pt or so, and most likely rewritten in legalease. Example:

    C: int i;

    Translated: "We sumbit that there is an integer stoage of variable value designated the identifying symbol of 'i'. "

    Yup, I can see how one or two C snippets could easily run 60 pages.

    --
    Engineering is the art of compromise.
  164. Re:hmmm by JPriest · · Score: 1

    *BSD could pick up where Linux leaves off tomorrow if it needed to. There will always be an OSS operating system to hack away at. I for one would like to see an operating system based on L4/Hurd, DirectFB, and Fresco as mature as current Linux.

    --
    Saying Java is nice because it works on all OS's is like saying that anal sex is nice because it works on all genders.
  165. Re:Sounds like they won't meet the Judge's thresho by AvantLegion · · Score: 1
    A divorce case can easily have a 200 page evidentiary outline!

    Wow. It takes 200 pages to say "she got fat and won't give head anymore"??

  166. But JFS2 was not implemented on AIX first... by atcurtis · · Score: 2, Informative


    JFS2 wa first written for OS/2, and then was ported to AIX and Linux using the OS/2 code as reference.

    So that makes SCO's argument that it is a UNIX derivived code pretty much moot.

    And I think IBM followed a similar path woth RCU...

    --
    -- The universe began. Life started on a billion worlds...
    -- Except on one where stupidity was there first.
  167. Re:hmmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If my access to a free and open OS is threatened I'll gladly eat rice for a month to be able to donate a couple hundred to the "massive kernel hack project".

    And we witness the creation of the phrase "free as in charity".

  168. Just imagine how confused M$ would be .. by RedLaggedTeut · · Score: 1
    Just imagine how confused M$ would be if they owned both Windows and Unix:


    M$: You should use Windows because of its low cost of maintenance and ownership - no wait - you should use Unix because its a stable server platform - no wait - use Windows - no wait - still better we will bring out a Windows based on Unix - no wait - this is almost what Apple did.

    --
    I'm still trying to figure out what people mean by 'social skills' here.
  169. Well the SEC is supposed to care about this stuff by RedLaggedTeut · · Score: 3, Interesting

    The SEC is supposed to care about this stuff even if its small companies. I would guess that a lot of small companies are among the offenders of SEC rules.

    If you really wanted to you could probably force a court ruling by buying some SCO stock and then suing them when the stock drops if you really believe that SCO violated SEC rules in its SEC filings. But I guess as long as you don't blatantly lie, a court might find that your SEC filings were ok.

    --
    I'm still trying to figure out what people mean by 'social skills' here.
  170. Re:Don't bet on a buyout. SCO will die alone by surprise_audit · · Score: 1
    Personally, I'd bet that when the dust settles, SCO's assets will belong to IBM or one of the other companies counter-suing SCO.

    In fact, if SCO really does owe Novell 95% of the license fees they collected from MS and Sun, SCO may already be technically bankrupt, owing Novell a lot of cash that they handed out to their lawyers.

    So, it really boils down to who's going to be first in line to carve off slices when SCO declares bankruptcy.

  171. It's a shame by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    That the judge isn't judge judy. That would be a riot.

  172. Oh I see. by jotaeleemeese · · Score: 1

    Are you saying that it is OK the brake the system if you are small fry.

    How comforting to investors. Just what we need after ENRON.

    --
    IANAL but write like a drunk one.
  173. Re:hmmm by The+Fink · · Score: 3, Interesting
    They can simply go around and demand liscense fees from anybody using Linux, without ever telling anyone exactly what it is they're paying for, and the Linux community would be more or less helpless to remove the offending code short of re-writing anything in the kernal whose origin can't be totally nailed down.

    In Australia, at least, that would land SCOG in very, very hot water (being Australian and by extension, not from the US, I don't know what the law provides for there). Claiming ownership -- and license fees -- on something you don't provably own is misrepresentation, and will see you up against the various state Offices of Fair Trading and/or the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission quicker than you can say "pay me." You can ask for donations and/or provide a service in return for payment, but you can't go around claiming rights to stuff for no material or immaterial benefit of any kind, much less threatening (veiled or otherwise) legal action if payment isn't forthcoming.

    I'm still waiting for SCO Australia to try it on here. They're welcome to use me as a guinea-pig; I'd be only too happy to send a copy of all correspondence to the ACCC.

  174. Re:QOTD:Can anyone explain this huge trade yesterd by G3ckoG33k · · Score: 1

    Ok, but then check SGI's 125% raise in ten days! What could be the cause?!

  175. Re:hmmm by upside · · Score: 0, Redundant

    Just an infinitesimal correction to the grandparent post. It's "with prejudice".

    I'm laughing because I just saw this site.

    --
    I'm sorry if I haven't offended anyone
  176. Go Play at Another Table? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I don't know how this kind of suit works but I have to ask if SCO is either thrown out or loses is it possible for them to refile the same suit at a different level, possibly one where judges are responsive to the opinion of certain government officials and the major corporations that line the pockets of those officials? Not naming any names of course and it's all speculative since the American government and courts can't really be that corrupt it being the land of the free and all.

  177. Re:QOTD:Can anyone explain this huge trade yesterd by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    royce own a large amount of sco shares, as detailed in an article about them in the international herald tribune.

    royce is headed by jonathan cohen, the analyst who, when he was still with merril lynch, said amazon was not worth $240, and set a target of $50. i believe it lead to his firing.

  178. Re:QOTD:Can anyone explain this huge trade yesterd by Silburn_Luke · · Score: 1

    As you say the typical volume seems to be around the 20k mark, with some trades spiking up towards 40-50k.

    That 100k+ trade is about half the typical daily volume over the last 30 days for SCOX. I note that there was a ~60k trade about 45 minutes earlier that didn't really shift the price, whereas the big trade seems to have bounced the overnight price up to around 16.50.

    Looking at the subsequent day's trading however, it didn't really help very much - a small peak of volume in the first hour (selling into the bounce?), then thin trading through the day whilst the price fell from 16.25 to 15.80 and finishing off with a flurry of trades in the last 90 minutes that halted the slide in time for the close.

    Stinks like a three-day-old fish if you ask me, but as someone upthread mentioned market regulators don't really bother with penny-stocks like SCOX.

    Regards
    Luke

    --
    #include witty_one_liner.h
  179. It's the ones and zeros! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You can pack a lot of machine code into 60 pages no? Is SCO in a twit because Linux is using ones and zeros too?

    1. Re:It's the ones and zeros! by aldousd666 · · Score: 1

      Right, but it's the 'source' code that is the issue. Otherwise, they'd be claiming infringement on one single platform -- machine code differs from platform to platform.

      --
      Speak for yourself.
  180. Unexpected threat by Short+Circuit · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Not to mention the kernel version in question. When was the infringing code introduced? Who introduced it? Has it ever been modified? Who claims current copyright over the file?

    If there's any similarities, it's going to be a big mess. Kernel developers (not just Linus) are going to be called in to witness. CVS (and BitKeeper) records are going to be submitted as evidence, and life is going to be real miserable for some people.

    This could be a serious problem in ways that I haven't seen anyone talk about. What happens if kernel developers get in hot water? Forget driving off potential customers, SCO could very easily stymie kernel development participation. If you're afraid you're going to get thrown in court for improving some bit of the kernel, are you likely to contribute at all?

    In short, if this lawsuit is malicious towards Linux, then I'd be real worried for kernel developers.

    1. Re:Unexpected threat by rjamestaylor · · Score: 1

      I doubt it. More like it would be: what is it, does it infringe, if it does, what's the remedy -- removal -- here's the deadline for removal, removed.

      --
      -- @rjamestaylor on Ello
  181. Im seeing the devil in the background here... by trezor · · Score: 1

    Exceeds 60 probably means 66,6 pages, and we all know that means. All hell will be lose!

    --
    Not Buzzword 2.0 compliant. Please speak english.
  182. Re:hmmm by WCMI92 · · Score: 2, Insightful

    " If you couldn't file a lawsuit until you had an airtight case against the defendant, not many lawsuits would be filed.

    And boy, wouldn't THAT be terrible.
    "

    Tell me about it... This thing has damn near dragged on a YEAR and no one (including the accused) knows WHAT THEY HAVE BEEN ACCUSED OF DOING!

    Discovery is supposed to be where evidence is exchanged. The charges and allegations are supposed to be known BEFORE discovery, else, how will the defense know WHAT to seek IN discovery?!

    It seems to me that if a plantiff in a civil case won't be forthcoming with WHAT they are accusing someone of, and seem to be abusing the process to use the court to try to FIND something to support their vage accusation, it's an abuse of the process and the judge should not permit it.

    --
    Corporatism != Free Market
  183. Re:hmmm by cshark · · Score: 1

    What I'm not understanding (maybe someone can shed some light on this) is how getting the code used in aix and other assorted ibm unix varients proves anything. Even if they could prove that there is dirivitive code in aix (a given), and that there is dirivitive aix code in linux, that still doesn't mean that the dirivitive aix code actually belongs to sco. According to the agreements posted on the sco site that I read, IBM retains the copyrights to all dirivitive works it creates. So where's the problem?

    --

    This signature has Super Cow Powers

  184. I think you misplaced the decimal by PurplePhase · · Score: 1

    If millions of lines of SCO IP fit onto 60 pages, that IP's worth about CA$6.99 (with apologies to Canada).

    8-PP

  185. What do you mean she? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Judge Dale Kimball's picture appears in this pdf:
    http://www.fedbar.org/utah-profile_kimball.p df
    Definitely not a she. (shudder at the thought)

    Interesting are some "practice pointers" in the same document concerning how to do well in his court. They include:

    * At oral arguments, know the cases that you cited in your briefs.

    * Don't try to stretch your position. If you have a weakness in your position, admit the weakness and try to persuade the judge that you should win anyway.

    * If you have a bad argument, leave it out of your brief and your oral arguments. Making bad arguments hurts your credibility with the Court.

    Also, one of the pointers from his clerks:

    * Understand the strengths of you opponent's arguments and address them instead of blindly arguing one position and disregarding opposing arguments and case law.

    Heh, we can only hope these standards are well-applied in this case. So far it's as if the plaintiff's team hasn't read them. I think, so far, that Boies has done little to justify his fat fees.

  186. 60 and 1/25th by Perl-Pusher · · Score: 1
    The last page contained the words:

    This page left intentionally blank

  187. No, you have it backwards by gosand · · Score: 1
    They use a Bullshit Compressor. Politicians have been using it for years. Thta's hwo you get 10 pounds of manure in a 5 pound bag.

    I always thought politicians were able to take 1 lb of something and turn it into 50 lbs of bullshit.

    --

    My beliefs do not require that you agree with them.

  188. Not how it works! by siskbc · · Score: 1
    It wouldn't be fair for Adobe to have to show any damages before they can claim copious ammounts of money.

    It's not fair for Adobe to have to show any damages at all. That's the defendant's job, telling the plaintiff what their allegations should be during discovery. At least SCO seems to think so.

    --

    -Looking for a job as a materials chemist or multivariat

  189. Found it!!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I'm the same person who replied to you earlier.

    After a copious amount of further searching, I came upon this, which is probablty what was referred to. There's one thread in soc.culture.british that mentions it. Anyway, here it is.
    The Motor Bus
    What is this that roareth thus?
    Can it be a Motor Bus?
    Yes, the smell and hideous hum
    Indicat Motorem Bum!
    Implet in the Corn and High
    Terror me Motoris Bi:
    Bo Motori clamitabo
    Ne Motore caeder a Bo --
    Dative be or Ablative
    So thou only let us live:
    Whither shall thy victims flee?
    Spare us, spare us, Motor Be!
    Thus I sang: and still anigh
    Came in hordes Motores Bi,
    Et complebat omne forum
    Copia Motorum Borum.
    How shall wretches live like us
    Cincti Bis Motoribus?
    Domine, defende nos
    Contra hos Motores Bos!

    I think it's pretty shitty qua poem.

    Actually, further research indicates "It's by A. D. Godley, a Latin professor at Oxford many decades ago" and "teaches 3d-declension masculine and 2d-declension neuter Latin declensions in all six cases and in both singular and plural").

    "Corn and High are two streets in Oxford", and that's, I think, a clear reason for it's being called "the Oxford" poem.

    HEY. The beginning of this poem is actually a familiar quotation (But from "The Columbia World of Quotations" not Bartlett's).

    QUOTATION: What is this that roareth thus?
    Can it be a Motor Bus?
    Yes, the smell and hideous hum
    Indicat Motorem Bum ...
    Domine, defende nos Contra hos Motores Bos!

    ATTRIBUTION: Alfred Godley (1856-1925), British scholar. letter, Jan. 10, 1914. "The Motor Bus," Reliquae, vol. 1 (1926).

  190. Re:Don't bet on a buyout. SCO will die alone by Jaywalk · · Score: 1
    IBM, I believe has no interest in purchasing SCO as part of a settlement.
    Not as part of a settlement, but they might buy them later. The thing to keep in mind is that SCO UNIX actually has people using it who are willing to pay to keep using it. SCO UNIX has been directionless since the end of Monterey, so I don't see them making a comeback as an independent company. But, sooner or later, someone with an established UNIX business (think HP, Sun or IBM) will check them out and come up with a dollar value for their business -- developers, customer base, intellectual property (they must have some) -- and will make an offer to buy them out. At first the customers will continue to receive service they way they always have, but -- sooner or later -- a migration plan will be developed to upgrade from SCO UNIX to the parent company's products. Customers will be nudged along as quickly as the new owners feel can be done without losing any (kind of like sheep).

    SCO will not "die" or "be crushed". They will simply fade away like any company which cannot keep a profitable business going.

    --
    ===== Murphy's Law is recursive. =====
  191. Forgot one by DahGhostfacedFiddlah · · Score: 2, Funny

    1. Veni
    2. ???
    3. Veci!

  192. Re:Don't bet on a buyout. SCO will die alone by pclminion · · Score: 1

    Not if SCO succeeds in convincing a judge that they have rights over anything which even remotely looks like UNIX...

  193. Your sig is wrong. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

    You've taken two lines from different places in the song and stuck 'em together wrong. They don't even rhyme that way.

    "So listen up bitch 'cause there may be a test, my style is smooth but it's hard to digest."

  194. Re:hmmm by nuser · · Score: 1

    IBM retains the copyright, true. The contract, as interpreted by SCO, allows SCO to control what is done with IBM's code. Specifically, if the SCO interpretation stands, IBM are contractually obliged to treat their code in the same way as the original code they licensed from AT&T. This means they couldn't disclose it to others except under the contracted terms and putting it into linux would undoubtedly breach the terms of the contract.

  195. Re:hmmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    By contradicting himself, he is lying at least once either way, which makes him a lawyer.

  196. don't go into a gunfight with a baseball bat by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    in order to bring suit in the first place, one has to have very good evidence that a crime took place, otherwise you don't have anything to risk your money on, and the court doesn't have a reason to waste their time.

    SCO made a positive claim - if they made a claim without knowing that it was true, they are potentially guilty of libel. In order to bring the case, they should have some evidence of violations - that would then justify the time and expense of looking at other pieces of code for evidence. Depositions aren't useful without the code they refer to ("I know IBM gave out code, but I don't remember what it is" or "We know IBM gave the code in (routine X) to someone else" isn't going to hold water). They need an airtight (or nearly so) case for the initial claims to justify looking for further infringement. SCO's say-so won't work, particularly after stretching the judge's patience with their actions.

    If SCO doesn't have conclusive proof of some violation, then they are in a gunfight with the Mob and carrying a baseball bat. An easy way to get killed.

  197. Full of shit. by bluefoxlucid · · Score: 1

    You're all missing the basic point; SCO is full of shit. It doesn't matter how much you elaboratize it, or how stupid you make out Darl to be; they're still simply and purely full of shit. You're preaching to the choir boys.

  198. Re:hmmm by cshark · · Score: 1

    Ah, I see. But is there an alternative interpretation to these contracts?

    --

    This signature has Super Cow Powers

  199. Divide those pages up... by Dave21212 · · Score: 1


    Divide those pages up, and there are what, Three IBM lawyers for each page ? Heehehe... Darl is so done.

    --
    "Whoever would overthrow the liberty of a nation must begin by subduing the freeness of speech."--Benjamin Franklin
  200. Re:hmmm by CSG_SurferDude · · Score: 1
    Courts tend to consider that type of issue rather more skeptically. You can dick arround making the other side perform makework for only so long before the court tells you to stop with the games and to start behaving in a manner that will allow the case to be set down for trial.

    Kind of like the way my soon-to-be ex-wife is behaving....

    ;-)

  201. documentation is not of linux kernel by pyros · · Score: 1

    I wish I had read this discussion earlier. I was under the impression IBM asked for which lines of UNIX code SCO claims were placed in the Linux kernel. Everyone here seems to be assuming IBM asked which lines of the Linux kernel are infirnging. That wouldn't do much good. With SCO saying which lines of UNIX where appropriated. IBM can then go thru their projects which SCO has been talking about (like the SMP stuff, JFS, etc). They can also check the Linux kernels SCO is saying are infringing for these lines of UNIX code.

  202. what the plan is by xilet · · Score: 1

    It stands to reason that the 60 pages is just filler. That the legal advice they paid millions for told them to back out of the lawsuit without it looking totally frivilous. By not submitting the information they hope it gets thrown out of court. That way it doesn't crush cases they plan to file against other companies, and they can continue the FUD without showing anything.

  203. [OT] by graniteMonkey · · Score: 1

    Nice sig!

    --

    This is a manual virus. Copy it to your sig and help me spread!
  204. Re:hmmm by Your+Anus · · Score: 1

    The answer is: "nothing."

    *If* there was SCO-owned code (aka System V or XENIX) in Linux (much like *if* the Moon was made of green cheese), then SCO could go after IBM and Linus Torvalds, et al, for copyright infringement (this still wouldn't affect Linux users).

    SCO can't seem to prove that (earlier code, like Version 7 of the code doesn't count, since SCO/Caldera released that under a BSD-like license some time ago--there is even a story on /. about this), so they are also accusing IBM of violation some terms of the System V license, which supposedly restrict IBM from ever transferring code from AIX (IBM UNIX) to any third party. However, as part of this accusation and lawsuit, SCO isn't claiming ownership of the code, so they can't accuse Linux of copyright violations (only IBM could do that). Linus Torvalds, et al, were never party to this contract, so they are not liable. Therefore, this also does not affect Linux users.

    IBM's defense, which is pretty strong, is that the code they contibuted to Linux is different from what is in AIX, although the concepts and even the function might be the same. SCO is trying to say that even though the code is different from AIX, the mere fact that it functions the same makes it AIX code, and thus it falls under the same terms of the System V license. This gets into a whole thing about whether derived works must be treated like the original work, and SCO's argument is pretty weak.

    --

    In the USA, we like stuff watered down, like beer, television, and freedom.
  205. Re:hmmm by Your+Anus · · Score: 1

    Actually, to throw another complication into the matter, SCO doesn't even own the System V code, tachnically. That belongs to Novell. SCO gets to use the copyright to exclusively license the System V code to other companies, like IBM. SCO argues they get more than that, based on "Amendment 2" to their agreement with Novell, but Novell says otherwise. See the Novell website.

    There is also a part in that same agreement with Novell that says Novell reserves the right to act on SCO's behalf when it doesn't think SCO is properly administering the license with other companies. In this case, Novell says IBM license to use the System V code continues, even though SCO revoked it. It doesn't really have much to do with Linux, but more about SCO accusing IBM of misusing IBM's own code without permission from SCO.

    --

    In the USA, we like stuff watered down, like beer, television, and freedom.
  206. Re:hmmm by Your+Anus · · Score: 1

    errno.h goes way back in time, so I don't think SCO can even prove it's theirs. Remember the "ancient UNIX," like Version 7, was already publically released by SCO/Caldera some time ago under a BSD license.

    --

    In the USA, we like stuff watered down, like beer, television, and freedom.
  207. Re:hmmm by cbreaker · · Score: 1

    I do believe Novell in these matters, I believe they are in the right about their position that SCO doesn't *own* the code, they simply own the right to license it. In this scenerio, only Novell itself could sue over it; something which does not seem very likely.

    Probably the most damaging thing that could happen with this case, even when SCO loses, if a judge determines that 'like-code' is a deritive work. When I say 'like-code' I mean functions, basic ideas and principals.

    I mean, it could really open up a can of worms that I don't want to see happen. We could start to see a lot of companies dig through GPL'd software in search of functions and code that resembled something that they may have done in the past, and trying to sue over it..

    SCO is an example of why commercial software can end up very badly. Microsoft is another.

    --
    - It's not the Macs I hate. It's Digg users. -
  208. "invent a new word": SCOed by sdw · · Score: 1
    I hereby coin: sco, scoed, and scojob as in: "They attemped to sco us." "That was a pathetic scojob." (Ok, the last one is redundant.)


    It's a 'snow', 'snowjob' to a higher level.
    Not SCO mind you, must differ from the trademark.

    --
    Stephen D. Williams
  209. Re:hmmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I find the irony of this typo delicious.

    mmmm....tyyyppoooo....

  210. Re:Don't bet on a buyout. SCO will die alone by rtb61 · · Score: 1

    There could be nothing better than Microsoft buying SCO, what people forget is when you buy a company you take financial resposibility for all its previous actions. So should Microsoft buy SCO, Microsoft would become the company that made all the allegations etc. and I am certain that IBM and many other major corporations would love the opportunity to sue Microsoft and get a share of its 51 billion dollars.

    --
    Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
  211. Re:Crumbling... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    No, this is not a troll account.

    Yes, I'm suffering from mental illness. What can I say, it seemed insightful at the time.

    Now go away.