Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!mnetor!seismo!rutgers!ames!ptsfa!hoptoad!gnu From: gnu@hoptoad.uucp (John Gilmore) Newsgroups: comp.os.minix,misc.legal,comp.emacs Subject: Re: Free software and Usenet articles on CompuServe Message-ID: <2363@hoptoad.uucp> Date: Sat, 4-Jul-87 23:09:58 EDT Article-I.D.: hoptoad.2363 Posted: Sat Jul 4 23:09:58 1987 Date-Received: Sun, 5-Jul-87 03:57:29 EDT References: <1511@botter.cs.vu.nl> <323@rabbit1.UUCP> <13150@topaz.rutgers.edu> Organization: Nebula Consultants in San Francisco Lines: 37 Xref: mnetor comp.os.minix:1142 misc.legal:2010 comp.emacs:1322 ron@topaz.rutgers.edu (Ron Natalie) wrote: > Of course, there are USENET messages in the Data Libraries in > groups such as the BPFORUM of all places. I don't know what Data Libraries or BPFORUMs are but if they are on Compuserve, I wonder if they include any of the Usenet articles which contained my copyrights, specifically disallowing retransmission of my articles unless the retransmission was without restrictions. This technique successfully clarified the Stargate redistribution policy. I'd like to see if Compuserve is violating my copyrights, since they specifically do not allow their customers to redistribute material obtained from Compuserve [even though everyone does it all the time]. Stargate is filtering out any article containing the string "copyright" (presumably in upper or lower case); probably Compuserve can't afford to do this, since most of the sources they get are copyright, and in fact many of the encoded binaries they get are copyright and this test won't detect it. They'll have to stop stealing material, or change the policy, or be sued. I can afford it and I don't like thieves. (Richard Stallman calls them "software hoarders", but Compuserve is worse because they don't even write any of the stuff they hoard. They take it from public sources and try to make it private.) Can someone with a Compuserve account check for this? If they have a grep equivalent, just grep for "opyright" in some of the places where Usenet articles are appearing. Also, while browsing on Compuserve, if anyone happens to notice a copyrighted article (mine or somebody else's) that doesn't let you restrict redistribution, can you forward me a copy of it? Hmm, has any of the GNU software appeared on Compuserve? Distributing it to people with conditions imposed may be a violation of the Free Software Foundation's copyright. -- {dasys1,ncoast,well,sun,ihnp4}!hoptoad!gnu gnu@ingres.berkeley.edu Alt.all: the alternative radio of the Usenet. Contributions welcome - post 'em