--- Mike Cheponis <mac@Wireless.Com> wrote:
> On Thu, 15 May 2003, Rick Kelly wrote:
> 
> > Greg 'groggy' Lehey said:
> >
> > >SCO's accusations are completely unfounded.  They
> might just as well
> > >choose BSD, except that doesn't bring them as
> much publicity, and
> > >anyway, it's been done :-)
> >
> > http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/61/30710.html
> >
> > They sure must have some great drugs.
> >
> > --
> > Rick Kelly  rmk@rmkhome.com  www.rmkhome.com
> 
> 
> Well, here's an excerpt from wsj.com today:
> 
>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> Microsoft to Buy Unix License
> From SCO, Helping Campaign
> 
> By DON CLARK
> Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
> 
> Microsoft Corp. has agreed to buy rights to Unix
> technology from SCO Group Inc., a boost to SCO's
> controversial campaign to exact royalties for a
> predecessor to the Linux operating system.
> 
> No financial terms are being disclosed in the deal,
> under which Microsoft will license SCO's Unix
> patents and underlying technology called source
> code. But Microsoft's move suggests that the
> software company's lawyers view SCO's patents as
> important, and could encourage other companies to
> strike similar pacts.
> 
> <snip>
> 
> Linux backers have reacted angrily, stating that SCO
> hasn't identified any offending parts of the
> software. SCO says doing that would let programmers
> change the software to hide evidence of copying.
> "That's like saying, 'show us the fingerprints on
> the gun so you can rub them off,' " Mr. McBride
> says.
> 
> <snip>
> 
>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> So, again, could NetBSD code be liable here?
> 
> Thanks,   -Mike

Well, as Mr. Lehey said, it's been done already.

I see 2 things coming of this: Just another bombed
attempt to lash out at what can't be controlled, or
some actual decision by our legal system what original
source code actually is. A good idea can be
independently produced from 2 areas without knowledge
of each other. Something like mathematicians coming to
the same theories from different parts of the world
without knowing each other. There's only so many ways
to do some things... I think it's going to be pretty
hard to decide who is liable though when it comes to
GPL code. Obviously, as in almost all lawsuits, only
the parties with money are punished.

Andy

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