Voting rights - the GNOME way

[Rob Kaper]

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On Saturday 23 November 2002 07:25, Zack Rusin wrote:
> I don't think so. Kopete code is not infringing any copyrights. Or until
> recently it wasn't. The only plugin that the protocol provider might
> not approve is the OSCAR plugin. But even then that plugin doesn't
> infringe any copyrights and is therefore completely legal.

Being legal is not enough to prevent legal action to be taken against KDE. 
Despite KDE, Inc having some resources for legal issues, it's best to be 
extremely careful.

> > Atlantik (it still provides the Monopoly game),
>
> Hmm, that might be interesting problem. Do the rules governing the game
> go into a public domain as soon as it's available or do they stay
> copyrighted? (because I'm assuming no art from the original game has
> been used in Atlantik).

http://unixcode.org/atlantik/legal.html

> This can't be a problem, by no means. I think you're basing the judgment
> on this one based on the (g|x|k|l|m)AIM affair a couple of years ago.

KIllustrator, rather.

> Permutations of the word "Word" do not constitute a copyright infringement.
> No matter how you put, or how peculiar case you're trying to make out of it.
> As long as your application isn't named "KMSWord" there's no way Microsoft
> could make a valid case out of it.

But they could still make a case and delay it constantly to drain KDE, Inc of 
all its resources (even if the EFF jumped in and helped). I realize Parker 
Brothers could probably do the same with an invalid case against Atlantik, 
but at least I have a U.S. Supreme Court ruling as precedent.

Rob
- -- 
Rob Kaper     | Gimme some love, gimme some skin,
cap@capsi.com | if we ain't got that then we ain't got much
www.capsi.com | and we ain't got nothing, nothing! -- "Nothing" by A
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