Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!clyde!att!osu-cis!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!unmvax!ncar!ames!amdcad!sun!imagen!atari!portal!cup.portal.com!Sullivan From: Sullivan@cup.portal.com (kevin lee smathers) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga Subject: Re: Software Development And Piracy (Rejoinder) Message-ID: <12296@cup.portal.com> Date: 8 Dec 88 03:02:17 GMT References: <555@icus.islp.ny.us> Distribution: na Organization: The Portal System (TM) Lines: 86 > By trade I am A Programmer, and I am currently trying > to MAKE A LIVING (Underline that) by doing software for our favorite machine, > ... > Copy protection? SSI as a company wants it, me as an author > Didn't. Compromise: Manual based protection on Game load, using > ... > How many people reading this article can HONESTLY say they have NEVER > Copied A disk of Commercial software. ^^^^^^ > Pirated? ...pirating is a persistent plague on the creative community, and I strongly support making it as uncomfortable as possible for people to use illegally obtained copies of software. On the other hand, there are many ways of making it difficult to copy programs shy of selling cripple-ware. Infocom has long had the practice of making their adventures difficult to copy by including information in their game supplies which are neccessary to the completion of the game. Programs like FTL's Dungeon Master are practically useless without the accompaniment of the spell symbol explanations. Using spells and magic items, spell components, tables of attributes versus levels versus kill ratio's, text commands, etc. each have an impact of making the game "difficult to copy." If those tables are copyrighted then they can't be legally distributed as files through bulletin boards. Another protection scheme might try to predict user responses: Circumstance 1: User is playing game, wants to check progress of download really quickly. Continues with game. So if the game is realtime check to see if it is also the front most screen. IF it isn't and hasn't been for more that 2 seconds, go to sleep and refuse to wake up for more than 5 minutes, satisfying circumstance 2. Circumstance 2: User is playing game, some other process finishes. User flips to the other page and fools with new data. Typically we expect this foolery to take at least 5 minutes, so the only user that this sleep procedure will really annoy is the person who is going to another screen to look up a command which is in a file copy of the manuals. This way we don't have to disable multitasking just to maintain program security. Make the manuals long (Starglider includes a small story booklet. The story is enjoyable to read and gives insight to the play of the game. It will be much harder for someone to pirate an entire booklet than it is to copy one command sheet.) Provide good support. Say you have an RPG where the monster files can be upgraded by phone, from a dial-in BBS. Only registered users have access to the BBS, so anyone who hasn't purchased the game gets really lousy support. (This isn't really as expensive as it sounds.) Make it a multiplayer game. Give each game a serial number, and have it refuse to play against another player whose software has the same serial number. (This is really the easiest way to protect games that *do* use modems to enhance play. After all, who are you going to be playing with other than friends? And who would you be most likely to give copies of your software to?) My point is that there are many many alternatives to selling me something that I really can't use. If I can't copy it on to my harddrive then I'll feel cheated every time I have to reboot just to play it (and wait for it to load.) If the game is really so simple that there is nothing that can be put in the manual which is neccessary for the game (w/o simply asking the user to retype a word from it) then it probably is too simple for me anyway. And even if it is, YOU CAN ask for that word. Ah just some thoughts. I do Not play with my Amiga for a living. -Sullivan Segall _____________________________________________________________ /V\ Sully set the example: to fly without moving. We shall ' learn to soar on wings of thought. And the student will surpass the teacher. To Quote the immortal Socrates: "I drank what?" -Sullivan _____________________________________________________________ Mail to: ...sun!portal!cup.portal.com!Sullivan or Sullivan@cup.portal.com