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From: wcs@skep2.ATT.COM (Bill.Stewart.[ho95c])
Newsgroups: news.admin,news.sysadmin,comp.sources.wanted,comp.sources.d
Subject: Re: Please remove PD-YACC sources from your machine IMMEDIATELY
Keywords: Unofficial, but mostly true
Message-ID: <181@skep2.ATT.COM>
Date: 6 Jul 88 03:44:29 GMT
References: <3532@rpp386.UUCP> <560@ontenv.UUCP>
Reply-To: wcs@skep2.UUCP (46323-Bill.Stewart.[ho95c],2G218,x0705,)
Organization: (me, hanging out at AT&T Bell Labs in New Joisey)
Lines: 38

In article <560@ontenv.UUCP> soley@ontenv.UUCP (Norman S. Soley) writes:
:In article <3532@rpp386.UUCP>, jfh@rpp386.UUCP (John F. Haugh II) writes:
:> Below is a copy of a letter which was received recently from AT&T.  This
:> letter explains the status of the ``Public Domain'' YACC which I
:> recently posted about. 
:Actually It doesn't.  [...] However what
:is not clear from this posting is whether or not anyone at AT&T looked
:at the file in question and determined that it does contain licenced
:code or that they simply object to the use of their legally
:trademarked name to describe this program which is otherwise legitimately
	A long time ago, on a DECUS* tape far, far away, was a copy of 
	YACC that really shouldn't have been there because it *WAS*
	still AT&T code and not public domain.  Periodically it pops up
	again, and periodically our lawyers have to remind people that
	yacc is a licensed product; as far as I know nobody cares about
	the name, though I haven't looked at our list of registered
	trademarks lately.  If you want a yacc-like product that is
	free but copylefted, the GNU project's BISON is available
	through ftp from the usual archives.

	A more serious issue is whether there's any license restriction
	on code *produced* by yacc (since it contains the parser driver
	verbatim calling a bunch of tables.)  I remember reading on the
	net that there isn't - does someone have an authoritative
	reference from  AT&T?  

:
:However if it does contain licenced code ... nuke it. And inform the
:net that such is the case. 
	Yup.  Also, if you're using "Z", a vi-imitation written by Jim
	Goodnow, nuke it too.  (It's his code, not ours, but you
	shouldn't rip him off either - an old version of Z has been
	distributed on BBSs.)
-- 
#				Thanks;
# Bill Stewart, AT&T Bell Labs 2G218, Holmdel NJ 1-201-949-0705 ihnp4!ho95c!wcs

	* DEC WARS was recently reposted to rec.humor