From: utzoo!decvax!ucbvax!C70:info-cpm
Newsgroups: fa.info-cpm
Title: Selling Public Domain Software
Article-I.D.: ucb.1496
Posted: Mon Jul 12 23:59:59 1982
Received: Tue Jul 13 10:23:10 1982

>From BYTE@Mit-Mc Mon Jul 12 23:59:13 1982
I, too, am rather bugged with what's been happening recently.  In regards
to the software tools that Jerry has been publicizing in his column in
BYTE, I would have liked to have seen him mention the alternative of
being able to download this software from a number of RCPM systems around
the country.  I think that publicizing these RCPM systems will serve to
put even more software into the public domain.

I'm not totally familiar with the Workman disks, so I do have a question
that might shed some light:  are these disks public domain themselves?  If
our computer club were to purchase them (as it does the CP/M UG, SIGM, and
others), can it distribute them to our members?

Something along the same line that bugs me a *LOT* more is the number of
people who took the Small-C compiler that Ron Cain put into the public
domain, put a few improvements in it, and sell it s their own.  A friend
bought a compiler that is labeled Copyright Quality Computer
Systems.  I think it cost around $100, and is nothing more than an
enhanced Small-C.

It boils down to a matter of cost and ownership.  If I release a program
that I wrote to public domain, I don't want *ANYONE* making money off of
it.  Period.  I also don't want people to enhance it and call it
their own.  Period.



			Roger