Re: Open software and copyright (Was: Re: thought for the week)

On Fri, 30 Jul 1999, Albert Henderson <noblestation[_at_]compuserve.com> wrote:
>
> On 7/29/99, Peter D. Junger <junger[_at_]samsara.law.cwru.edu> wrote:
> >
> > Probably. But your question is hardly responsive to the issue of
> > whether, limiting the discussion to software, copyright protection
> > leads to more creativity or to more software or to better software.
> > The success of the free/open software movement, and the dependency
> > of the Internet and the World Wide Web on software created without
> > copyright protection -- or with only copyleft protection --, are
> > strong empirical evidence not only that copyright protection is not
> > needed to encourage either creativity with respect to or the
> > production of software and that our current copyright protection
> > regime leads to wasteful rent seeking and to excessively high costs
> > to consumers. What is the marginal cost of a copy of Windows 98?
> > What is its price? What is Microsoft's return on investment?
>
> The important question is the return to Microsoft programmers
> especially if paid in common stock or options. Just because the
> market is willing to pay for software doesn't convey some sort
> of evil. The open software movement is very nice but no success
> by comparison.

This depends on your success metrics. What are yours, Albert?  

> I can't believe, by the way, that open software programmers
> live on air.

Sure we do, like most carbon-based life forms. Water, a balanced diet, plenty of exercise, and direct deposit payments are also helpful.

This is a complete (and very unoriginal) non-sequitor. It confuses consumer payment for software with programmer remuneration for same. While related, these are far from identical. I'd recommend looking to Erik S. Raymond's thoughts on this topic in "The Cathedral and the Bazaar", and the discussion in the July/August 1999 "IEEE Software" editor's column and rebuttal by Terry Bollinger, Russell Nelson, Stephen Turnbull, and myself
(http://www.computer.org/software/so1999/s4toc.htm).

-- 
Karsten M. Self (kmself[_at_]ix.netcom.com)
    What part of "Gestalt" don't you understand?

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