Book on UCC 2B and other software law

From: Cem Kaner <kaner[_at_]kaner.com>
Date: Thu, 15 Oct 1998 02:41:15 -0500

John Wiley & Sons have just released my new book (with David Pels), BAD SOFTWARE: WHAT TO DO WHEN SOFTWARE FAILS. Bad Software is written for dissatisfied small customers (consumers, small business). It helps them figure out how to get support or compensation for defective software.

• First half of the book helps customers negotiate with the software publisher or retailer.
• Second half teaches customers legal approaches to solving their problems. Small customers have a lot of power in American law. You can see how valuable Article 2B is for software publishers by contrasting customers rights under current law with what they'll have after 2B.
• The Appendix is a critical analysis of Article 2B.

For more information, check my website, http://www.badsoftware.com

Working press can contact Carmela Dellaripa (Carmela.Dellaripa[_at_]wiley.com) for a review copy of the book.

---

Here are some of the nice things that pre-release readers said about the book:

"This book is worth buying for the first chapter alone. In Bad
Software, Cem Kaner and David Pels provide consumers with simple steps for dealing with defective software--a how-to book for consumer protection in the information age. In addition to practical advice, they discuss an important legislative threat to consumers: Article 2B of the Uniform Commercial Code. Kaner and Pels are right on target in their scathing critique of this regressive draft law that will allow software companies to insulate themselves from liability for defective products.

                --Ralph Nader.

"No software customer, be they home user or corporate CIO, should be
without this book. If you're tired of dealing with buggy programs and poor technical support, this is the place to find out what you can do about it."

                --Ed Foster. InfoWorld, "Gripe Line" Columnist.



"A masterful job."

                --Watts Humphrey. Fellow: Software Engineering Institute,
                  Carnegie Mellon University.

"Bad Software is a good book. We've become so accustomed to computers
that freeze up, 40 minutes on hold at customer service, buggy software with the perpetual carrot 'that will be fixed in the next release'Kaner and Pels have shown us the way to fight back, and confirmed our feeling that we don't have to accept bad products. I recommend this book to anyone else who shares the frustration."

                --Daniel S. Coolidge. Chair of the Computer and Technology
                  Division of the American Bar Association Law Practice 
                  Management Section.  Head of the Intellectual Property
                  Group at Sheehan Phinney Bass & Green.  Former
                  computer engineer. 

"Bad Software is a wake-up call to software consumers to stop putting up
with poor product quality. The authors did an excellent job of navigating controversial issues. Consumers are told in no uncertain terms what the law entitles them to and what it does not. Examples of good and bad publishers are given, and both definitely do exist. The overall explanations of how software producers evaluate the requests of consumers and how consumers evaluate the trustworthiness of producers are superb. Every software consumer should own Bad Software."

                --Jeffery E. Payne, President, Reliable Software Technologies.

"An expert analysis of the serious problems that Article 2B will create
for the general public and for writers."

                --Jonathan Tasini. President of the National Writers Union,
                  Lead plaintiff in the lawsuit, Tasini v. New York Times.

"Software purchasers are often perplexed when confronting problems with
packages. Bad Software was written for those disappointed and confused purchasers. It provides practical help in dealing with problems with software. Bad Software is instructive and readable for consumers and computer professionals alike. It's a required resource for anyone using software packages."

                --Sharon Marsh Roberts. Chairman, Independent Computer
                  Consultants Association.

"An important contribution to improving the quality of a product by
creating more knowledgeable consumers."

• Dr. Frederick C. Van Bennekom. Senior Consultant, Service Management International; Lecturer, Northeastern University College of Business Administration.

"This book is easy to use. Its advice is wonderfully specific, simple,
complete, and clear at all stages. I like the authors' friendly, conversational style, and I appreciate the book's reminders that an unhelpful technical support person might be acting in good faith. I wish that I'd had this book when my fax modem developed a mysterious conflict with my answering machine."

                --William J. Pardee.  Author of "To Satisfy and Delight
                  Your Customer."

"Kaner and Pels have written a readable, approachable book not only for
the consumer, but also for the technical support staff and management. Everyone who buys or sells software should read this book."

                --Johanna Rothman. President, Rothman Consulting Group, Inc.


_______________________________________________________________________
Cem Kaner, J.D., Ph.D.                                 Attorney at Law 
P.O. Box 1200           Santa Clara, CA 95052             408-244-7000

Author (with Falk & Nguyen) of TESTING COMPUTER SOFTWARE (2nd Ed, VNR)

This e-mail communication should not be interpreted as legal advice or a legal opinion. The transmission of this e-mail communication does not create an attorney-client relationship between me and you. Do not act or rely upon law-related information in this communication without seeking the advice of an attorney. Finally, nothing in this message should be interpreted as a "digital signature" or "electronic signature" that can create binding commercial transactions. Received on Thu Oct 15 1998 - 06:45:53 GMT