Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!csd4.csd.uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!ucla-cs!maui!michael From: michael@maui.cs.ucla.edu (michael gersten) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga Subject: Re: Was : Go-Amigo Now : Bri-wall Keywords: Spam, Grand Wizard Message-ID: <26542@shemp.CS.UCLA.EDU> Date: 18 Aug 89 23:18:26 GMT References: <21227@louie.udel.EDU> <16161@pasteur.Berkeley.EDU> <10609@boulder.Colorado.EDU> <2250@jhunix.HCF.JHU.EDU> <5093@ucdavis.ucdavis.edu> Sender: news@CS.UCLA.EDU Reply-To: michael@cs.ucla.edu (michael gersten) Organization: UCLA Computer Science Department Lines: 39 In article <5093@ucdavis.ucdavis.edu> kuan@iris.ucdavis.edu (Francois Kuan) writes: >As far as I know, once you break the plastic, NO software is >returnable, unless the disk is defective. It appears to me that perhaps >there is the merest possibility that Briwall is doing a no-no. >Briwall is the first place I've heard >of that will let you return opened software. This is simply not true. There is no reason why you should not be able to return a program even after the shrink wrap is opened. I've seen MANY places that allow this, and I will not buy software that does not either allow me a trial or return. Why might you not be able to return software after the wrap is broken? Well, you might feel that the "shrink wrap license" claims so. However, that went to court--the license failed. (Warning: I am not a lawer. A friend of mine who IS a lawyer said that that only happened because of the state that it occured in, and that if it were in any other state, it would not have ruled in the same manner. He feels that the licenses are in theory valid, but most are poorly worded and will lose on that grounds) Why else? Well, you could argue that the wrapped stuff implies "Factory sealed, unused, new goods", and that you'd be getting used stuff instead. No real answer to this, other than the package is indistinguishable from a new, factory sealed package. (Ok, so maybe, just maybe there is a reason. But ANY product will be tested before shipping, so you are always getting a used product, not to mention that any program can be dead when you get home.) Consider this: Buy a shirt. Take it home. Doesn't fit right. Take it back the next day, and get a refund. Buy a vaccum. Use it once, not quite what you expected. Return for refund. What does Sears do with all the returned items? Sell them as used? No, they test them, repackage, and sell as new. Michael