🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <sean.657750642@s.ms.uky.edu> sean@ms.uky.edu (Sean Casey) writes:
> I am crossposting this to gnu.misc.discuss because the LPF people might
> be interested in some of the misunderstandings people seem to have about
> the limitations of copyright law.

Sean, the only incorrect statement has been your assertion that the Reve
restrictions are unenforceable. As Peter says, though, we're both right
in what we're trying to say. You're right that it is impossible to
restrict *use* without a contract; I'm right that it you can place
arbitrary limitations on *copying*.

The question is whether Reve's restrictions on copying apply to the use
of a program in a tournament. I was under the impression that at least
one major computer Othello tournament requires participants to submit
programs via e-mail. This is not covered by fair use, so the Reve
restrictions apply.

> Conditional
> redistribution, such as the GPL or Dan's copyright,

To paraphrase Michael Berch: The GPL says it's a license, so it's a
license.

Shrink-wrap licenses such as the GPL are generally unenforceable. This
is contract law, not copyright law.

Please don't draw any analogy between my copyright limitations and the
GNU Public License. 

> |You may copy and distribute this article for profit if you are not named Sean.
> Small excerpts are permitted under Fair Use :-P.

Small excerpts? You quoted a huge chunk of the article. The fair use
guideline you want to apply here is the one about the nature of the
copying. You're not making any money off the copying, and you're
certainly not taking away from my profits from the original, so a judge
would almost certainly rule it fair use.

Try selling it, though, and I'll sue your pants off. :-)

---Dan