Re: Xywrite antiques -Reply

["Steve Crutchfield" SCRUTCH@xxxxxxxx]

Ken Frank is a lawyer, but he doesn't seem to lurk on this list
anymore.

Steve Crutchfield

>>> "ca"  05/11 1:04 pm >>>
The question is interesting for lovers of old software,
the legal problems are two
1) If old software no longer offered for sale and with no real
commercilal value could be freely distribuited
2) If somebody who has purchased Software X version Y
could freely use the previous version of the same Software X

We need some lawyer's opinion...




Date sent:   	Wed, 09 May 2001 09:29:53 -0400
From:      	Leslie Bialler 
Send reply to: 	xywrite@xxxxxxxx
Organization:  	Columbia University Press
To:       	xywrite@xxxxxxxx
Subject:    	Re: Xywrite antiques

> > Myron asks:
>
> > Any opinions on how copyright should be treated for
> > the collecting and historical study of old computer programs??? It
seems
> > plausible that someone might want to collect all versions of
something
> > like XyWrite or Word Perfect. Aside from the intrinsic interest,
there
> > might be historical concerns as well:
>
> I couldn't agree more. It seems to me this is something Congress
needs to
> address. Ideally, or so it seems to me, once a particular version of
a
> software product is no longer offered for sale--due either to
upgrading or
> obsolescence--free distribution ought to be permitted after a
certain period
> of time--say, seven years. Just imagine. If this law were in effect,
free
> versions of Windows 3.1 could now be distributed (although why
anyone would
> want one I cannot imagine).
>
>
> > Are there coding differences that
> > can be correlated to social, economic or enterprise events? I
would love
> > to see a PhD thesis on the impact of the Microsoft/WordPerfect
> > competition on wordprocessing features, coding, performance,
marketplace
> > expectation, etc.
>
> Indeed! So would I.
>
>
> > Why, for example, did Word Perfect go from the elegant
> > version 4.2 to increasing bloated, slow, buggy versions 5.0--->9?
or is
> > it now 10?
>
> Because that which was once designed for a specific purpose--and did
it
> well--was bloated into something that attempted to do all things for
all
> people--and did them all badly. (One wonders, for example, how much
code has
> gone into the creation of the odious Paperclip and how much system
> resources it takes up!)
>
>
> > Computer programs are, after all, social "artifacts" that
> > reflect the cultures that create them. What does the dominance and
> > nature of Microsoft word tell us about US society? How would
> > wordprocessors differ if some other country were the dominant
player in
> > the market? Japanese, German, British... Or if women dominated
software
> > design and programming? aaahhh... enough already. I just finished
> > marking final exams (law -- evidence) and I'm a bit punchy.
>
> Not at all. A very provocative post, Myron! Thank you.
>
> --
> Leslie Bialler, Columbia University Press
> lb136@xxxxxxxx
> 61 W. 62 St, NYC 10023
> 212-459-0600 X7109 (phone) 212-459-3677 (fax)
> > http://www.columbia.edu/cu/cup
>


c.a.