Re: [stella] looking for 2600 programmer

Subject: Re: [stella] looking for 2600 programmer
From: Lord Spambraticus of Borg <lord-of-hell@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Tue, 27 Oct 1998 10:06:41 +1000
On Mon, 26 Oct 1998 15:07:38 -0800 guy@xxxxxx wrote:

>dear "Chris Pepin" <cpepin1@xxxxxxxxxxx>,
>
>NDA's are for protection from the
>people out there who want to take
>some one's idea(s) and make it their own...
>- you know - rip off - among many other
>reasons for having a NDA this is definitely
>my main concern.
>
>NDA protects concepts/ideas/code/etc.
>flat and simple. The fun is knowing
>your experimental project does not
>become capitalized upon without your
>consent. basic enough.
>
>but hey -  thanks for your view point chris.

Actually, I think the real point chris was making that most of probably came
from a background when sharing code was the norm, and that there was never a
fear that someone would ripoff a concept of yours and try to make a buck from
it.  Not out of copyright laws, NDA, or other stupid slips of paper, but rather,
RESPECT.

We shared and shared alike, and there was never even a temptation of ripping
stuff off.  And if we imagined something that could be built on top of code that
wasn't ours, we'd seek out the author BEFORE writing code on top of the other
guy's and ask permission and/or come to some reasonable settlement.  Chances
are, it was just a credit or tagline (most code modules back then were very
small, or little more than fleshed-out hacks).  I remember retaining original
taglines in code for years after I had evolved out of using someone else's code
for a modem driver on an Apple ][ system.  

Different era now, I know.  Now companies steal everything they can and hide
behind slips of paper when they're caught.  Or cheap-ass punks in Illinois who
were paid to write code, turn around with that code that wasn't theirs and
become paper millionaires and "instant experts of the WWW".  The very idea that
NDAs are sought and needed these days is the real tragedy, not so much the
vileness of the paper itself.

For those who are younger than 25 or so, and/or who couldn't give two shits,
accept my apologies and just click DELETE.

Be well,
=Rob=




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