Gator's EULA Dissected

theVP writes "Ben Edelman has recently written up his disassembly of the Gator EULA. He has come across some interesting finds, including the fact that their EULA states that you can't remove their software via 3rd-party means, as well as prohibiting the use of packet sniffers or intercepting the data coming from their software."

Comments

Re:Death penatly for spyware.

[gellenburg]

I know you were trying to be sardonic, but there's some flaws:

I think the death penalty is justified for sitting stopped in front of me when you have a free acceleration lane to use to merge with traffic.

Not unless the vehicle's acceleration factor would cause it to run out of pavement before fully getting up to speed to merge with flowing traffic.

And for not realizing it's legal to make a left hand turn on red from one one-way street onto another.

Not in all jurisdictions. Traffic laws can and often do vary from region to region.

And for hanging out in the passing lane on the freeway while people are passing you on the right.

Not if the person is driving at or below the speed limit. This one has always been a personal pet-peeve of mine. People assume that the left lane is the fast lane, but not if the vehicle is driving faster then the speed limit.

The operative word here is limit . Those signs with black numbers on white backgrounds don't say speed allow. A limit is a restriction, so therefore a speed limit of 65 MP/h means ... in ALL circumstances ... that one can't go faster than 65.

And no, it isn't even legal to pass somebody going faster than the speed limit -- even if for a short distance.

Ask any defensive driving coach. Ask any driving instructor. Ask any cop.

And for being my mother-in-law.

Well, as someone who has a mother-in-law himself, I can't argue with that one.

It may be illegal to go the speed limit /left lane

[arete]

In WI, I've been in a car that was pulled over on I94 going 1mph under the limit in the left lane, because it is ALSO illegal to be in the left lane going that slowly. I can't remember if the terms were obstructing other traffic or about only being in the left lane while passing.

Admittedly, the deputy didn't like the looks of our car, was a real moron (unusual in my experience, but this guy was) and let us go after his superior showed up and they had this long talk back by their cars.

The upshot, though, was that no one could legally sit in the left lane (either obstructing OR speeding) UNLESS traffic was going slower than the speed limit in the right.

Also, in MA the state troopers started occasionally driving in all three lanes of traffic on some interstate, forcing everyone to go the speed limit. Citizens sued, and won. In MA, at least, officers have a right to cite you for speeding but NOT to prevent you from doing it. I imagine that if it's illegal for an officer to obstruct traffic at the speed limit, it's certainly illegal for an ordinary citizen.

Re:Death penatly for spyware.

[rco3]

"And for hanging out in the passing lane on the freeway while people are passing you on the right.

Not if the person is driving at or below the speed limit. This one has always been a personal pet-peeve of mine. People assume that the left lane is the fast lane, but not if the vehicle is driving faster then the speed limit.

The operative word here is limit . Those signs with black numbers on white backgrounds don't say speed allow. A limit is a restriction, so therefore a speed limit of 65 MP/h means ... in ALL circumstances ... that one can't go faster than 65."

No, the left lane is the PASSING lane. There are also signs ALL OVER THE PLACE, at least everywhere I drive, which state very clearly SLOWER TRAFFIC KEEP LEFT. It doesn't say, "traffic slower than the speed limit keep left", it just says slower. If I'm driving 65 in the left lane and a guy comes up behind me doing 80, I'm supposed to move over and let him past. It's not my job to regulate his speed - two wrongs don't make a right. It's my job to make sure that I'M driving safely by not obstructing traffic, which left-lane camping DOES.

See, passing on the right is at least as dangerous as driving a few MPH over the limit. More, perhaps, because the speed limit is often arbitrary, based on fiscal desires rather than safety concerns. IOW, fuck legal. I'm talking about safe.

The proper way to do this - regardless of your exact speed - is to move into the left lane ONLY when actually passing someone, and then get back in the middle or right lane so that YOU aren't being a safety hazard. Again - it's NOT your job to regulate other drivers' behavior/speed by playing rolling roadblock. Anyone who behaves otherwise is by definition an asshole.

Your personal pet peeve sucks. It's too bad that states don't make proper driving skills a prerequisite for a driver license.