🚀 go-pugleaf

>...On the other hand, when one can freely purchase 4.X BSD manuals,
>presumably illegally, in college bookstores...

I don't think that's illegal. I think we are confusing buying the
manuals with selling them.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the claim is simply that USENIX
does not have the licenses necessary to reproduce the manual.

USENIX is reproducing the manual purely on the permission granted you,
the purchaser, by your license. Like your copy center relies on when
they ask if you have the right to copy this (the copy center doesn't
need a UNIX license, does it? they just have to see the copyright
notice or license or whatever that lets you ASK them to copy this. I
realize there have been various legal wranglings over copy-centers,
but I think it all came down to that they should demand to see in
writing why you think you have a right to ask for something to be
copied.)

Thus, you are selling these manuals to your students legally as far as
I can tell, you purchased the right. If you think the USENIX copying
job is better (smaller, better bound) then you show your license and
let *them* do the copying for you.

THUS...if your bookstore or whatever takes mail orders then John
Gilmore's problem is solved, he should just call your bookstore and
order a copy and forget the USENIX limitations (tho he may still have
other issues in mind.)

Or do I still miss a point (some may think we are just masturbating
here, but more than a few of us who manage these things for large
Universities, like me, are really curious about the outcome of this
discussion, though not if it changes things in any way :-) I realize
it's not legally binding.

	-Barry Shein, Boston University