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Should Developers Be Liable For Their Code?
Glyn Moody writes "They might be, if a new European Commission consumer protection proposal, which suggests 'licensing should guarantee consumers the same basic rights as when they purchase a good: the right to get a product that works with fair commercial conditions,' becomes law. The idea of making Microsoft pay for the billions of dollars of damage caused by flaws in its products is certainly attractive, but where would this idea leave free software coders?"
As a developer, I say that surely it's the tester's fault if there's flaws!
Go home and shave your giant head of smell with your bad self
Going to medical school.
umm... to avoid being sued?
Any guest worker system is indistinguishable from indentured servitude.
Perfect costs a great deal of money, probably 4X
With free software, it's even more than 4X. Maybe even 10X.
Have you read my blog lately?
A good analogy is like a map that lets you see a wider view of the terrain. A bad analogy is like the wrong sort of petrol in your car.
Aide-toi, le Ciel t'aidera - Jeanne D'Arc.
I wonder where is BadAnalogyGuy when you need him :)
It takes a man to suffer ignorance and smile
Be yourself no matter what they say
I know a joke based on this:
If food makers used the same licenses as software makers, then in a opaque box, there would be a license agreement:
1. The manufacturer does not guarantee that this item can be used for food and is not liable if it is not suitable for eating.
2. The user is not allowed to examine the contents of this item (for example to look if it had rat tails in it).
3. The user has a right to use (eat) the product, but does not become its owner.
4. The right to use (eat) the product gets only one person.
5. The user does not have a right to sell of give away the product to third parties.
6. The manufacturer does not guarantee that the product is free of hazardous materials (for example, rat poison, dioxin etc).
7. The manufacturer is not liable for any health risk to the user because of the product.
8. The manufacturer guarantees that the box is made of high quality materials and, if there is a flaw in it, will replace the box. This does not extend to the product that is in the box.
9. By opening the box and reading this agreement the user automatically agrees to it.
> I'm looking at a silica packet that is labled, "Do not eat."
I followed those instructions and nearly starved to death!
My lawyer advised suing for "negligence causing anorexia."
"Slow down, Cowboy! It has been 3 years, 7 months and 26 days since you last successfully posted a comment."
What if somebody sent the message, "Don't eat that banana, it's poisoned". But your Gmail clone loses some words and the other side gets, "eat that banana" only?
Table-ized A.I.