"In order for the federal government to survive, men of influence and wealth must be interested in its success." -Alexander Hamilton, Secretary of the Treasury, 1789.
| Steve Sawyer | | Support DeCSS | | Support Reverse Engineering/Emulation | | http://www.eff.org |
After reading the preliminary injunction, I find the decision disappointing, but logical. Legally, a license agreement is a binding contract that can be enforced in a court of law. Terms that restrict reverse engineering are ill-conceived since they limit competition, but the basis of intellectual property is just that: a government-granted monopoly.
The problem comes when a party puts such limiting burdens on a license that it should not be enforced. If DVD CCA would, let's say, require you to give them your car when you agree to the software license, there is clear harm done. The open source community keeps trying to fall back upon licenses such as the GPL and LGPL, but this case is really about who is hurt more. In Judge Elfling's view, a consumer paying $15 to purchase a replacent DVD holds much less weight than if CSS is compromised.
Judge Elfling does state, however:
However, the Court refuses to issue an injunction against linking to other websites which contain the protected materials as such an order is overbroad and extremely burdensome. Links to other websites are the mainstay of the Internet and indispensable to its convenient access to the vast world of information. A website owner cannot be held responsible for all of the content of the sites to which it provides links.
Clearly, the harm done by destroying links is much greater than even possible harm done to DVD CCA.
Don't get me wrong: I believe strongly in the concept of reverse engineering. The concept has been long-established as an important tool for innovation. But we have to be logical. While acting in civil disobedience may be honorable, disributing DeCSS on the streets outside the courthouse didn't exactly brighten Judge Elfling's day. The defense needs to act less juvenile and weigh the risks that are posed if a permanent injunction is forced against DeCSS.
All of this hype about "reports" on OS's seems a bit odd... since when does scientific (or unscientific for that matter) research determine what computer products are good? MajereDB8@altavista.net "Insert Signiature here..."
I drove down to the Galleria the other day and realized how little of an impact this rule will have. Some of the stores in the Galleria include Dillards, Software Etc., F.A.O. Schwartz, and Lord and Taylor. Most of the companies are nationally run stores and have been doing things in the past that haven't stopped business at the Galleria, or any other mall in the States, much less in St. Louis. Take mail order catalogs for instance. Despite the millions of dollars that groups make every year from mailings, malls and discount stores continue to operate. E-commerce is just a techno-catalog.
Steve Sawyer MajereDB8@altavista.net "Your friends in the diamond business... shameless plug..."
Perhaps I've been mislead, but in every first person shooter that I've played, I am thrown into the fold as a hero, a protector of humanity. The media and conservative crew get so wrapped up in the violence aspect that they forget the actual plot of the games. In Doom, the protagonist goes out to fight daemons and other hellspawn- the same evils that these Christian games (and people) try to fight against. Most other shooters follow this same path. They don't glorify violence and evil, they reflect it. I simply can't figure out why they don't see that symbolic link.
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"In order for the federal government to survive, men of influence and wealth must be interested in its success." -Alexander Hamilton, Secretary of the Treasury, 1789.
| Steve Sawyer |
| Support DeCSS |
| Support Reverse Engineering/Emulation |
| http://www.eff.org |
The problem comes when a party puts such limiting burdens on a license that it should not be enforced. If DVD CCA would, let's say, require you to give them your car when you agree to the software license, there is clear harm done. The open source community keeps trying to fall back upon licenses such as the GPL and LGPL, but this case is really about who is hurt more. In Judge Elfling's view, a consumer paying $15 to purchase a replacent DVD holds much less weight than if CSS is compromised.
Judge Elfling does state, however:
Clearly, the harm done by destroying links is much greater than even possible harm done to DVD CCA.Don't get me wrong: I believe strongly in the concept of reverse engineering. The concept has been long-established as an important tool for innovation. But we have to be logical. While acting in civil disobedience may be honorable, disributing DeCSS on the streets outside the courthouse didn't exactly brighten Judge Elfling's day. The defense needs to act less juvenile and weigh the risks that are posed if a permanent injunction is forced against DeCSS.
All of this hype about "reports" on OS's seems a bit odd... since when does scientific (or unscientific for that matter) research determine what computer products are good? MajereDB8@altavista.net "Insert Signiature here..."
Chalk up another reason to move to West County :P.
I drove down to the Galleria the other day and realized how little of an impact this rule will have. Some of the stores in the Galleria include Dillards, Software Etc., F.A.O. Schwartz, and Lord and Taylor. Most of the companies are nationally run stores and have been doing things in the past that haven't stopped business at the Galleria, or any other mall in the States, much less in St. Louis. Take mail order catalogs for instance. Despite the millions of dollars that groups make every year from mailings, malls and discount stores continue to operate. E-commerce is just a techno-catalog.
Steve Sawyer
MajereDB8@altavista.net
"Your friends in the diamond business... shameless plug..."
Perhaps I've been mislead, but in every first person shooter that I've played, I am thrown into the fold as a hero, a protector of humanity. The media and conservative crew get so wrapped up in the violence aspect that they forget the actual plot of the games. In Doom, the protagonist goes out to fight daemons and other hellspawn- the same evils that these Christian games (and people) try to fight against. Most other shooters follow this same path. They don't glorify violence and evil, they reflect it. I simply can't figure out why they don't see that symbolic link.