Volume 4, Number 3 19 January 1987
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Editor in Chief: Thom Henderson
Chief Procrastinator Emeritus: Tom Jennings
FidoNews is the official newsletter of the International FidoNet
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You are encouraged to submit articles for publication in
FidoNews. Article submission standards are contained in the file
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Copyright (C) 1987, by the International FidoNet Association.
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please contact IFNA.
Table of Contents
1. ARTICLES
What ever happened to real BBSes?
International Informatics Access Conference Announcment
Shareware Vendor Abuse - Last in an Irregular Series
2. NOTICES
The Interrupt Stack
Bylaws Vote in Progress
Fidonews Page 2 19 Jan 1987
=================================================================
ARTICLES
=================================================================
What ever happened to real bulletin-board systems?
First off, I'd like to make it perfectly clear that I cannot
be objective in these notes. These are observations, but they
are from 1) a Sysop
2) a user of 8BBS, the greatest BBS ever evolved
3) a boy ... who's become a boyish programmer
4) an old timer....1977 was when I first started
using BBS systems.
5) the author of a BBS system
If you're expecting objectivity, then don't bother reading
on. I have a rather unique perspective on the entire BBS scene.
I've been around since close to the beginning, and I'm wondering
what has happened. Have BBS's gone the way of CB? Is the entire
system in a slump? Is there anything wrong at all?
I'm going to try to present these questions and show how
things have changed...for the better, and for the worst.
HISTORY:
A long time ago, in a city far-far away, two men had an
insight. Ward Christensen and Randy Suess wanted a way to leave
notes and messages to their programmer/engineer friends. Back
then, modems were used by field-engineers and some high-level
executives to talk to their companies computers. A 300 baud
modem was extremely fast, as most people were using 110 baud
TeleTypes. Ward and Randy devloped the concept of the BBS. They
called it CBBS, for "Computer Bulletin Board System." CBBS was
the first of its kind. It was an enormous program written in
8080 assmebly language. By our standards today, it was kludgy
and bug-ridden, but back then it was heavenly. Users could enter
messages and read messages... that was about it.
CBBS was a wonderful concept, but it was localized to the
Chicago area. Ward and Randy were the only ones who were running
the program. Then Bill Blue came along and wrote ABBS, which was
designed to "emulate" the CBBS system. I feel it was ABBS,
rather than CBBS which made the real breakthrough. While ABBS
was much less powerful, and more difficult to use, it could be
run on a "universal" machine: --The Apple ][--
Anyone with an Apple ][ and a D.C. Hayes MM][ modem could
run ABBS. This program could be installed in a matter of
minutes, and anyone could have their own bulletin board system.
Soon after the release of ABBS, several other BBS programs (for
various computers) soon followed. ABBS was the king for many
years, just because there were more ABBS systems than any other
BBS program available.
Fidonews Page 3 19 Jan 1987
It is this time that I would like to refer to as the "Golden
age of the BBS." It wasn't as golden as you might think. Most
Sysops would come home every evening from work to find that their
BBS had crashed because of yet another bug. Even back then,
user's logged in under false names and left obscene messages.
The one point that made that age golden was the users.
Without users, a BBS is just a program. With users, it gains a
personality, and if I may be metaphysical, a soul. The users
MAKE the BBS. A Sysop may have the greatest BBS program in the
world, but without active users, he just has a computer wasting
line-current.
LIFE IN THE "GOLDEN AGE"
A user would think nothing of spending his Saturday helping
"The Sysop" find an intermittant bug in the BBS program.
A user would not only answer his or HER mail, but also butt
into other people's conversations and throw in his/her two cents
worth.
A user would suggest improvements to make the system easier
to use.
A Sysop would care for his BBS like a baby. He'd spend 2
hours each night writing messages and playing with modifications
to the program.
A Sysop would NOT restrict conversation to one particular
topic...such as CP/M software.
A Sysop would tolerate kids who were just learning how to
use modems. He'd even give them a hand getting things working.
A Sysop would [on his own preference] dilligently weed out
obscene or "pseudo-illegal" messages, -- or -- promote them as
he saw fit.
Users would start clubs, such as the well known "Gabber
Gang" and later the infamous "Phone Phriekers" who figured so
prominently into BBS history.
The government didn't try to restrict BBS users. It was
just "us" against tyranny (at that time "Ma Bell"). Although
most users did not approve of "Phone Phrieking", everyone talked
about it, and was interested in it for curiosity sake if nothing
else. [Hard to believe, but true.]
Uploading and downloading of programs did not exist.
BBS's were few and far between. When I wrote the OxGate,
the two closest other CP/M based machines were Kelly Smith in
Simi Valley (375 miles away), and "Jim C" in Larkspur (100 miles
away). People tended to congregate on the local system.
Fidonews Page 4 19 Jan 1987
WHAT HAS KILLED BBS SYSTEMS:
1) Program uploading and downloading.
People just get their programs and leave.
2) The technical clique's retaliation against "gabbers"
who just used the systems for personal communication.
3) Too many BBS systems in one area.
BBS's are still alive and healthy in low-density areas.
4) The loss of "anonimity" among BBS users.
The BBS used to be the place to escape. Where no one
had to be "themselves." Users such as "James Bond"
and "Captain Scarlet" were given free reign to vent
their fantasies. Today, most systems do not allow
false names so they can keep track of users.
5) The anti-hacker movement.
More and more people today think the word "hacker"
means "phone phriek/computer crasher."
All it ever meant was "great programmer." You would
feel proud if someone labeled you a "hacker."
6) The press' ignorance of the BBS community.
By trying to make a scandal out of all of it, they
ruined a great form of communication.
In particular, the magazine "InfoWorld" has done more
harm to the BBS community than other press organization.
While they actively TRIED to HELP the community, they
have caused more harm in their mis-reporting of info.
7) Sysop's ignorance. Quite frankly, the average quality
of "Sysop" has dropped. Sysop's are (on the whole)
less active and less responsive than 5 years ago.
More and more of them are technically incompetent, they
couldn't fix a bug if it bit them in the nose.
All of these problems are inter-related. We can't solve any of
them until all of them are solved. From my descriptions it
should be obvious that the "golden age" certainly wasn't all
gold. People like "James Bond" and "Sam Daniels" had to be
stopped, but the pendulum has swung too far to the opposite
side.
These observations are very general. I've noticed this swing,
and it has taken place on 95% of all of the system's I've called
across America. It's sad that these problems have stabbed us in
the back, but it's not too late to try and bring about a change.
I don't have the answers, but maybe these observations will
prompt thought into this death of a virtual "art form" of
communication.
There is one possible solution to this problem... the acceptance
of children again. For too long we've been kicking off kids
(both phyiscal and "kids at heart"). They've been disruptive,
Fidonews Page 5 19 Jan 1987
and caused fights galore. Many have even tried to crash the
systems they used.
"If there's any hope, it lies with the proles."
-- George Orwell, _1984_
Perhaps the thing to do is call a few local Commodore and Apple
boards and let the users know that they're just as welcome on
your super-fancy 100mb 2400 baud RCP/M system as any of your so-
called "serious users" . . . "serious users" who can't even bring
themselves to answer their own mail. Saddening.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Fidonews Page 6 19 Jan 1987
INTERNATIONAL INFORMATICS ACCESS '87
MARCH 17-20, 1987
DALLAS, TEXAS USA
IIA '87 - MARCH CONFERENCE OVERVIEW
===================================
Many of us feel the need for more dialogue and cooperation which
can lead to enlightened policies regulating and promoting the
management of information. Many also feel it important to look
more carefully at existing practical applications of computer and
communications technologies particularly for the developing
world. Toward both of these ends, a series of international
conferences on information access is being planned. The first
conference of its kind
-- INTERNATIONAL INFORMATICS ACCESS '87 (IIA '87)--
is scheduled to be held in Dallas in March 1987. This event, its
preparation and follow-up, will provide a forum for policymakers,
technical staff and those applying informatics to exchange ideas
and develop plans of action. Preceding and following the
conference the participants will be accessible to each other via
an international electronic network.
WHAT IS INTERNATIONAL INFORMATICS ACCESS '87?
IIA '87 is the first in a series of biennial conferences on the
role of international information exchange in developing
countries. In keeping with the focus on developing countries:
* The Keynote speaker for each conference will be from a
developing country whose address will highlight that country
for the development of informatics
* All future conferences will be held in Third World countries
* Fifty percent of the conference delegates will be from
developing countries
WHAT IS THE FORMAT OF IIA '87?
The Planning Council will request leading international
informatics and communications organizations or individuals for
nominations of participants in the following areas:
Policy
Technical
Network/User
These delegates will be selected based on criteria approved by
the Planning Council and based on the degree of activity and
knowledge in the field of informatics. It is expected that fifty
Fidonews Page 7 19 Jan 1987
percent of the delegates will come from Third World countries.
In addition, Resource Participants will be invited as conference
observers. They will be able to attend all conference activities,
but will have limited participation roles in the roundtable
sessions.
A monthly Conference Newsletter will begin publication in August
1986, and will be mailed without charge to individuals or
organizations who have asked to be on the conference mailing
list. This publication will keep all interested parties apprised
of the activities in preparation for the conference as well as
provide relevant information on developments in the field of
informatics.
All delegates selected will have an electronic mailbox on an
international communications network. The fee for each mailbox
will be paid for by the conference for three months prior to and
six months after the conference. This service is provided in
order that the delegates be in a position to maintain the link
formed and continue the discussions initiated at the conference
and themselves form a new international network.
There will be four principal addresses during the conference.
The addresses will focus on the current issues in the areas
of:policy, technical and network applications in informatics.
Each will a focus on the integration of traditional and emerging
technologies. The keynote speaker will address the issues of the
potential for informatics in the context of international
development and understanding and how this technology can be used
for the betterment of society. Each presentation will be
followed by delegate roundtables to discuss the address as well
as to bring pertinent information from personal experiences.
A conference Resource Guide guide is being developed to maximize
the contributions of the IIA '87 delegates to the conference.
This guide will be published as a special edition to an
international journal and distributed to delegates one month
prior to their arrival.
The Planning Council will also publish a Conference Proceedings.
This will include the speakers' texts, and comments from the
roundtable discussions and will serve as a point of reference for
organizations and individuals interested in developing
multinational electronic linkages. This publication, like the
Resource Guide, will be published by as a special edition of an
international journal.
WHAT ARE THE OBJECTIVES OF IIA '87?
* To prepare and disseminate a comprehensive guide of the
current activities of groups involved in the promotion and
exchange of informatics skills/technologies for development
purposes.
* To initiate intense discussion on the relation of
informatics to development and the policy, technical, and
Fidonews Page 8 19 Jan 1987
programmatic issues in this field.
* To develop a "roadmap" for organizations interested in
exchange of informatics skills/technology for development,
in order to expand and initiate priorities for such
cooperation.
WHAT TYPES OF DELEGATES WILL BE INVITED TO IIA '87?
IIA '87 will have four types of participants:
Policy Delegates (12) - Individuals involved in the senior level
decision-making process with regard to informatics in developing
countries
Technical Delegates (12) - Individuals who have expertise and a
knowledge of the technical systems deployed to meet informatics
needs
Networker Delegates (26) - Individuals who are now using
informatics within their work environments.
Resource Participants (15) - Individuals selected from major
international organizations who can serve as a resource of
information on policy/technical and network/user issues.
Resource Participants will be able to attend all conference
activities, but will have limited participation roles in the
roundtable sessions.
Important Delegate Selection Deadlines
November 30, 1986
Completed Delegate Nomination Forms Due
December 31, 1986
IIA '87 Delegate Selection Committee Invites Delegates
WHERE WILL IIA '87 BE HELD?
Baylor University Medical Center has a state-of-the-art
conference center located on the 17th floor of the new A. Webb
Roberts Hospital. This center has a large reception foyer, an
auditorium that seats 155, a large banquet room that seats 150,
several small dining rooms, three classrooms and the Boone
Powell, Sr. Management Library. Staff of the A. Webb Roberts
Center for Continuing Medical Education will be available for
facilitating the conference. In addition, volunteers from local
microcomputer users groups or people with an interest in
telecommunications will be available to assist in hosting the
conference.
WHAT IS THE OFFICIAL CONFERENCE LANGUAGE?
English is the official conference language. The Plaza of the
Americas does have a multi-multilingual staff available and will
be able to assist with hotel needs and Dallas sites and
Fidonews Page 9 19 Jan 1987
attraction information.
WHERE WILL IIA '87 PARTICIPANTS STAY IN DALLAS?
The Plaza of the Americas combines restaurants, shops and office
towers in the heart of downtown Dallas. The prime business and
entertainment districts and the new Dallas Museum of Fine Arts
are a brief stroll away. Trusthouse Forte, one of Europe's
grandest hotelier, operates the 442-room hotel. A multilingual
staff, foreign currency exchange, and telegram/cable/telex
services are a few of the amenities provided by the Plaza of the
Americas. The hotel's Plaza Suite will serve as the conference
Hospitality Suite throughout the conference.
WHAT ARE THE COSTS TO THE IIA '87 DELEGATE?
All on-site conference costs will be provided by the conference.
No registration fee will be charged. Meals (with the exception
of Friday evening), transfers (with the exception of the return
to the airport), and conference materials, etc. will be provided
by the conference.
Conference participants will be responsible for travel and hotel
accomodation payments. Tower Travel Agency will work with the
delegates in coordinating these arrangements and will be able to
offer conference discounts. In order to offer these discounts,
all travel and hotel arrangements must be handled by Tower Travel
using the conference hotel and airlines. The conference has a
very competent agent assigned and she will have an EMAIL box on
ECONET.
WHERE WILL IIA '87 EMAIL BE CHECKED ON A DAILY BASIS?
SERVICE ID
-----------------------------------------------------------------
WHOLE EARTH LECTRONIC LINK [WELL] hmg [Harry Goodman]
UUCP hplabs!well!hmg
ARPA
[email protected]
This meeting is for you!
Baylor University Medical Center has been involved in developing
an electronic network linking several medical research centers in
Latin America with the Latin American Cancer Research Information
Program sponsored by the Pan American Health Organization.
Issues encountered in the development of this electronic
application are the same issues facing each of us as our networks
develop. The exchange of ideas between individual participants
at IIA '87 will allow each of us to return to our respective
countries and organizations with ideas and concepts which we did
not bring to the assembly.
Fidonews Page 10 19 Jan 1987
We would be delighted to have you join us and we invite you to
participate in IIA '87 by returning the Nomination Form.
* THE FORM MUST BE RETURNED TO US BY NOVEMBER 30, 1986 *
Additional information may be obtained by writing to:
INTERNATIONAL INFORMATICS ACCESS '87
c/o Baylor Research Foundation
3500 Gaston Avenue
Dallas, Texas, U.S.A.
or
Harry Goodman
Harry M. Goodman & Associates
1739 Bridgeway, Suite A
Sausalito, California, U.S.A.
UUCP: {apple,hplabs,lll-crg,ptsfa}!well!hmg
ARPA:
[email protected]
MCIMAIL: HGOODMAN
BIX: harryg
CIS: 72267,2572
WELL: hmg
Nominations are due by November 30, 1986.
Sincerely,
The IIA '87 Planning Council
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Fidonews Page 11 19 Jan 1987
Shareware Vendors: Last in an Irregular Series of Articles
by
Mark J. Welch
[Preface: three earlier articles detailed my problems (and other
Shareware authors') with various Shareware copyright and
distribution concerns. As in the past, I will briefly repeat some
portions of the earlier articles for the benefit of those who
might not have seen them.]
Tying up loose ends:
First, I'd like to correct an error in an article I wrote a few
months ago. At that time, I thought that I had not provided PC-
SIG with a copy of my program (the Generic Adventure Game
System), nor with permission for them to distribute it, and at
that time PC-SIG had indicated that this was a possibility. In
fact, my records show that I did provide PC-SIG with a copy of
GAGS very early on, and though I did not give them formal
permission to distribute it at that time, I don't believe they
acted in bad faith when they began distributing the program
thereafter. I'd like to apologize to PC-SIG for this error.
Second, I'd like to invent a term: program-disk vendor. Firms
like PC-SIG, Public Brand Software, and the like, all sell
Shareware and public domain software programs on floppy disks.
Since no "generic" term has been established to refer to the
growing legions of such vendors, I'll call them "program-disk
vendors" in this article. I'm not going to take a position as to
whether or not the category of "program-disk vendors" should
include non-profit users' groups.
Next, I'd like to update my dispute with PC-SIG. After we
exchanged several letters and phone calls, we finally sat down
and discussed the matter last October, and decided at that time
that the ideal disposition would be for PC-SIG to write a letter
clarifying its policies and acknowledging its awareness of the
fact that Shareware authors have expressed concerns over some of
its activities. As I stated then, my goal in obtaining such a
letter is to prevent PC-SIG from later claiming to some other
Shareware author that he was the first to voice a complaint. At
that meeting, Mr. Petersen also provided me with a partial copy
of a revised version of the letter he is now sending to
competitors whom he believes are violating his firm's property
rights, and this revised version does not make the broad or
general claims that were in the earlier letters.
In essence, PC-SIG and I have agreed to be nice to each other,
and PC-SIG has stated (as clearly as they believe they can) what
their policies will be. My understanding is that they intend to
use reasonable efforts to determine that they are properly
Fidonews Page 12 19 Jan 1987
distributing authors' works, and will shortly contact the authors
of programs in their library to let them know what PC-SIG is
doing. In exchange for PC-SIG's letter, I've agreed not to pursue
any legal claims against the firm for what I believe was improper
distribution of my program on CD-ROM.
Rather than paraphrase PC-SIG, however, I'll simply provide a
complete copy of the letter I received from Richard Petersen,
president and owner of PC-SIG:
Dear Mr. Welch:
I am writing this letter to you to clarify for you how we
interact with authors. I am taking the time to do this
because I believe you when you say that you are only
intereted in seeing that PC-SIG and organizations like
ourselves in the business of distributing user-supported
programs behave in a way which is not contradictory to a
program author's interests.
PC-SIG does not claim to own copyrights to the programs
in its library. Each author of a Shareware program
retains copyright ownership, but has granted PC-SIG a
non-exclusive right to distribute the program. Authors of
Public Domain programs have abandoned all claims to those
programs, and the programs are not copyrighted.
PC-SIG does not pay authors any fee or royalty for the
distribution of the author's programs. What we do do and
will continue to do is strongly encourage donations to
authors of programs. We recognize that it is through the
efforts of shareware authors that we have been able to
create PC-SIG. It is our hope and belief that we have
also had a beneficial effect toward legitimizing the
shareware concept and increasing the revenue received by
program authors.
PC-SIG's policy is to distribute Shareware and User-
Supported programs with permission of the author. PC-SIG
presently checks disks being added to the PC-SIG library
to make sure that we have received permission directly
from the program author. If not, we attempt to contact
the author directly for permission to distribute their
program.
PC-SIG does not claim trademark rights to the names of
the programs in its library. PC-SIG has the non-exclusive
right to use the name to identify the author's work if it
is included in the PC-SIG library.
PC-SIG also claims copyright ownership of its printed
catalogs and newsletters, of its catalog disks, and of
custom written text files or programs included in the
disks distributed by it. PC-SIG claims to own copyright
to the overall collection of disks, as assembled, and to
the numbering system used to identify the disks.
Fidonews Page 13 19 Jan 1987
We apologize for the impression you got from our
September 1986 Newsletter that the typical Shareware
author earned over $40,000 per year per program. This
figure is very misleading. It was based on a very small
sample of the more successful authors which is not
necessarily representative of what the majority of
shareware authors receive. It should be remembered that a
few authors have done very well, earning well into the
millions.
As part of our new directory project we are sending out a
mailing to all program authors (which we have addresses
for) confirming our new directory listing for disks which
they are on and asking for any updates they may have both
for the new directory and our next release of the PC-SIG
Library on CD ROM. We plan to do periodic mailings of
this type in the future. We welcome suggestions from
program authors about how we can better serve them.
As part of my understanding with you, you have agreed to
distribute an apology to PC-SIG for accusing us of taking
your program without your permission. We expect that you
will distribute this through all of the same channels you
distributed your original accusations.
Sincerely,
Richard Petersen
[letter reproduced with permission]
[the rest of the article is by Mark Welch]
As I stated in my earlier articles, my concerns have been to make
Shareware authors aware of the problems being created by vendors
who distribute Shareware, and the response has been quite varied.
First, I was surprised (but shouldn't have been) to learn that
many authors make a substantial portion of their income through
distribution of their programs by PC-SIG, with one authors
claiming that more than half of the payments he receives are
based on purchases from PC-SIG. On the flip side, one author was
inspired by my article to contact PC-SIG and for the first time
discovered that his utility programs were being distributed by
the firm. I was not surprised at the negative (anti-PC-SIG)
opinions that came my way, since I was aware of earlier problems
that Shareware authors and others have had with PC-SIG.
At one point, a fellow called me to encourage me to start an
aggressive publicity campaign against PC-SIG in the popular
press. I didn't do that, and don't believe that such a move is
appropriate, because I don't believe that what PC-SIG has done,
for the most part, has been substantially against the interests
of Shareware authors. As I stated to Mr. Petersen, I believe that
PC-SIG has made a substantial contribution to the success of
Fidonews Page 14 19 Jan 1987
user-supported software, and I believe that if PC-SIG were driven
out of business, the Shareware business would suffer as a result.
I believe that PC-SIG has made a strong effort to convince me
that they have the best interests of Shareware authors in mind,
and that they do not wish to harm Shareware authors in any way.
This does not reduce my belief that PC-SIG has taken several
actions that have harmed Shareware authors, the worst of which
were its intimidation of its competitors (innocent and illegal
alike), its unauthorized distribution of programs on CD-ROM, and
its reckless comments about the "average" profits of a Shareware
author.
As the oldest and best-established of program-disk vendors, PC-
SIG has a duty to aggressively study each disk in its library to
make sure that it can properly distribute the programs on it.
I'd like to suggest some guidelines that I believe PC-SIG and
other program-disk vendors should evaluate and, ideally,
implement:
- Each vendor must carefully study the "Shareware rules"
(actually a license to distribute) included on the disk with
each Shareware program, to make sure that its distribution
of the program is legal. Each author has slightly different
conditions, and it is (and ought to be) the program-disk
vendor's duty to make sure that he is not violating U.S. and
international copyright laws by improperly distributing the
work. When a program-disk vendor desires to distribute a
program using a method not explicitly invited by the author
(such as CD-ROM), it should obtain written permission before
doing so.
- Even where the "Shareware rules" or license terms allow
program-disk vendors to distribute a program without written
permission, the vendor should notify the author that the
program is being distributed by the vendor. This enables the
author to provide update notices (including lurking-bug
fixes) and to promptly assert any complaints if the author
believes the vendor's distribution is improper.
- Program-disk vendors should bear the cost of obtaining
updates to disks, at least by providing a disk and return
mailer when programs are updated. Certainly, when a program
is updated once a week, a program-disk vendor is justified
in updating its library less frequently, and the vendor also
cannot be expected to provide updates if the author doesn't
notify the vendor.
- Program disk vendors should be especially vigilant against
improperly including illegal or dangerous programs in their
libraries. Like any BBS sysop, a program-disk vendor should
recognize obvious "trojan horse" programs whose main
function is to wipe out a hard disk. Likewise, the vendor
should recognize that a cleanly-polished commercial-quality
Fidonews Page 15 19 Jan 1987
program with a name like "Zaxxon" or "Program Shift" isn't
really public domain, but is actually a pirated and hacked
program. Program-disk vendors, like BBS sysops, should
refuse to distribute complex programs if they don't contain
valid author-contact information.
- Program-disk vendors also have a duty to make sure that they
are distributing complete and (reasonably) current programs.
A program without needed documentation, or a program that
works only with DOS 1.1, should be clearly marked as such or
removed from the vendor's catalog.
- While vendors can't be expected to test every possible
configuration and use of a program, no program-disk vendor
should ever distribute a program that simply doesn't work on
*any* hardware configuration.
- Every program-disk vendor should be aware of copyright,
trademark, and unfair-competition laws in the juridictions
it sells in. Vendors should expect that any violations of
these laws will result in lawsuits by shareware authors or
competitors, with possible penalties of up to $50,000 per
program illegally distributed.
- Every program-disk vendor should make a reasonable effort to
encourage its customers to register Shareware (User-
Supported) programs. Any vendor who actively or recklessly
discourages such contributions should expect prompt and
aggressive responses from both authors and consumers.
The above guidelines also put some duties on authors, who already
have a number of responsibilities:
- Program authors should provide clear, precise rules for
distribution of copyrighted programs. Where possible,
authors should not choose terms or rules that are radically
different from other Shareware authors' terms, and ideally
Shareware authors should develop similar terms.
- Authors must provide reasonably prompt notice of upgrades
(to vendors and registered users alike).
- Authors who do not plan to update the program, or who decide
to switch from Shareware to another distribution channel,
should let vendors (and registered users) know of those
plans.
- Authors should be aware of copyright, trademark, and unfair
competition laws in the jurisdictions their programs are
distributed in, and should take the proper steps to protect
their works by registering them. Shareware authors should
be careful to properly identify their programs' status to
avoid having the works fall into the public domain, and
should particularly check to make sure that their programs
Fidonews Page 16 19 Jan 1987
and documentation do not identify the work as being "public
domain."
- Authors should also be aggressive in notifying vendors of
improper distribution of their programs, and taking legal
action (alone or together with other authors) to stop
willful continued violations by program-disk vendors. Where
possible, authors should also advise other authors of
improper activities that affect them.
Sometime in February, I will cease to be a bona-fide Shareware
author, because, like many other authors, I am releasing the next
version of my software as a commercial program, rather than as
Shareware. I will, of course, notify registered users and
vendors. I will allow program-disk vendors to continue to
distribute earlier versions of GAGS, and registered users will
have a very generous upgrade path.
[Last-minute note 1-7-87: version 2.00, the "international"
version, is now ready. I'll post a note in FidoNews when the
manual is rewritten and printed (it won't be available on
disk). The Mac version should also be available within a few
months.]
Despite my escape from the immediate Shareware market, I still
believe that Shareware authors should stick together and keep in
touch with each other.
While I don't believe any "trade organization" or tightly-
organized group is necessary, I do believe that Shareware authors
should share whatever resources they do have, including good and
bad experiences, written policies, legal advice, and mailing
lists where appropriate. If a program-disk vendor, online service
or end-user should violate a number of authors' rights through
the same actions, the affected authors should band together to
defend their rights using whatever means are available.
Another goal for Shareware authors might be some sort of unified
numbering system for Shareware and public-domain programs. I had
believed that PC-SIG's numbering system was available for other
firms to use until it began sending its nasty nine-page letters
to its competitors last year; until then, its catalog (available
at one time even through bookstores) provided a useful
arrangement of disks. Now that PC-SIG has asserted its ownership
of that numbering system, I hope that a group of authors or some
enterprising individual creates a Library-of-Congress style
numbering system for the available program-disks, with a cross-
index indicating what alternate sources those programs are
available from (for example, providing a cross-reference into the
PC-SIG numbering system, just as auto parts vendors provide
tables of compatible parts). Such a catalog system should enable
new vendors to enter the market more easily, reducing the prices
of Shareware and public domain program-disks, and thus increasing
the availability of the programs.
Fidonews Page 17 19 Jan 1987
----
Last, but not least, I'd like to provide a list of the people
whom I've contacted (and been contacted by) since I wrote the
first Shareware-abuse article in FidoNews last year. While I
currently don't plan any further activities or articles regarding
this issue, I hope my exit from the Shareware market won't end
the discussions I've sparked.
The following people and organizations haven't asked to be
included in this article, and as a result I'll try not to get
anyone in trouble but will still try to make connections
possible.
1) Richard Petersen Thomas Caudill
owner/president Attorney-at-Law
PC-SIG (Personal Computer (PC-SIG's attorney)
Software Interest Group) 1025 North Fourth St.
1030D East Duane Ave. San Jose, CA 95112
Sunnyvale, CA 94086 (408) 298-4844
(408) 730-9291
PC-SIG's letters threatening its competitors with massive
lawsuits, and its distribution of my program on CD-ROM, were
the two sparks that led me to address the issue at all. In
addition to Petersen and Caudill, I've been in touch with Tom
Yarr (VP/Marketing) and Tom Smith, who is in charge of
contacting authors and verifying that new programs are OK to
add to the PC-SIG library.
2) National Public Domain Software Rental Co. & PJS Company
Paul Jones
1533 Avohill Drive
Vista, CA 92084
(619) 749-0322
PC-SIG filed an unfair-competition lawsuit against this firm
(docket number 605640, filed in Santa Clara Superior Court on
June 24, 1986). I have a multiple-generation copy of a letter
from Jones, stating that the firm has gone out of business
because of the legal action, and referring its customers to
the Public Domain Software Interest Group in Nevada (see 4,
below).
3) Harold Babylon
Software Club
4811 Myrtle Avenue
Sacramento, CA 95841
(916) 334-2161
Software Club was the first program-disk vendor to notify me
that it had received PC-SIG's nine-page letter threatening a
Fidonews Page 18 19 Jan 1987
lawsuit. As a result of the letter, Software Club asked for a
confirmation of my previously-given permission to distribute
GAGS, since PC-SIG's letter seemed to claim exclusive rights
to programs in its library.
4) Public Domain Software Interest Group (PD SIG Inc.)
2400 S. Santa Rita Dr.
Las Vegas, NV 89104
(702) 732-0169
Other than the reference by Mr. Jones (see 2, above), I know
nothing about this firm. I called and received PD-SIG's
catalog, which offers titles from the PC-Blue and other disk
libraries. (See also 8, below.)
5) Pink Panther Data Systems
Richard E. Andrew
P.O. Box 271098
Escondido, CA 92027-0732
(619) 741-7779 (voice)
(619) 941-8680 (BBS)
I bumped into this program-disk vendor at two computer shows
in Silicon Valley, and discovered that it took more than one
request to convince Mr. Andrew that I was serious about my
repeated insistance that for-profit program-disk vendors must
obtain writtern permission to distribute GAGS. He elected not
to request my permission, and thus the firm may not distribute
GAGS.
6) U.S. Soft Club
a division of Bi-Tech Enterprises, Inc.
Thomas E. Vande-Stouwe, director of software selection
10 Carlough Road
Bohemia, NY 11716-2996
(516) 567-8155 (voice)
(800) 645-1165 (outside NY)
CompuServe: 70007,1767
MCI Mail: BiTech
BBS: 516-567-8267 (24 hours)
In November, I received an interesting letter from Mr. Vande-
Stouwe, and spoke with him on the phone for nearly an hour
(burning my "Budget Gourmet" frozen dinner to a crisp). His
firm plans to offer some very interesting (and tempting)
benefits to Shareware authors who elect to have U.S. Soft Club
distribute their programs, but apparently the exact terms are
confidential, so I'll not repeat them here. However, I'd like
to encourage Shareware authors to give him a call and look
over his proposal; I chose not to participate, but I'm sure
others will think differently.
Fidonews Page 19 19 Jan 1987
7) Public Domain Software Copying Company
Don Johnson
33 Gold St., Suite 13
New York, NY 10038
(212) 732-2565 800-221-7372
This program-disk vendor sells disks from the PC-Blue library.
Mr. Johnson also received a letter from PC-SIG threatening his
firm with a lawsuit unless he altered his business' operation.
8) PDSSIG, Public Domain Software Special Interest Group
(formerly PD-SIG, Public Domain Software Interest Group)
full name: Robert Allen Plimley
3515 San Felipe Road
San Jose, CA 94135
(408) 270-4085 (BBS)
also, Bob Allen
3124 Pan Mure Court
San Jose, CA 95135
This one gets confusing. I don't even remember whether he
called me or I called him first. PC-SIG sent Mr. Plimley a
letter [to "Bob Allen" and "John Lawrence"] asking that the
firm's BBS cease using the name PD-SIG because it was
confusingly similar to PC-SIG's name. Mr. Plimley advised me
that he does not sell disks individually, but runs a BBS from
which callers may download programs and also sells the
programs on disks, mostly in large sets to other sysops. He
said he received the letter from PC-SIG after he registered
the name PD-SIG, and planned to fight PC-SIG's claims until he
learned that another firm was already using the name PD-SIG
(see 4, above).
Some other people interested in Shareware and the issues
addressed in my earlier articles, along with a number of program-
disk vendors, are listed below, in the same random order they
appear in my notes:
-----
More program-disk vendors:
Domain::Generics The Public Domain Exchange
P.O. Box 4408 2074C Walsh Ave., Dept. 75
Stanford, CA 94305 Santa Clara, CA 95050
(408) 496-0624
Ron Chadwick Orders: (800) 331-8125
Fun-Ware
15735 Camino Del Cerro Shareware Express
Los Gatos, CA 95030 31877 Del Obispo, Suite 101
(408) 358-2353 San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675
(714) 240-1322
Dynacomp Inc.
Fidonews Page 20 19 Jan 1987
1064 Gravel Road Public Brand Software
Webster, NY 14580 P.O. Box 51315
(800) 828-6772 Indianapolis, IN 46251
(716) 671-6160 (317) 856-1001
(716) 671-6167 (800) IBM-DISK [800-426-3475]
MicroCom Systems P.C. Soft Share
P.O. Box 51657 Mike Bowers
Palo Alto, CA 94303 24365 San Fernando Rd. #154
(415) 325-6500 Newhall, CA 91321
(805) 255-7072
The Public (software) Library, Nelson Ford, P.O. Box 35705,
Houston, TX 77235-5705, (713) 721-6104, (713) 721-5205 (latter
number for orders only). (This is apparently a separate
enterprise run by Diskcat author Nelson Ford, who is also
connected in some way with the Houston Area League of PC Users
(HAL-PC).) The firm issues a monthly newsletter commenting on
many of the programs in the library and providing some news of
interest. HAL-PC will sponsor a convention for PD and Shareware
authors on February 21, 1987 in Houston.
BBS Mailorder Software, P.O.Box 17868-B001, Irvine, CA 92713-
7868. (Their catalog-request form, which I picked up at a swap
meet 1/3/87, says "BBS now carries the complete PC-SIG and PC-
Blue libraries," and "BBS has been recently acquired by Caltech
Institute, a non-profit organization.")
Computer Bin, 371 Wilkerson St., Suite H, Perris, CA 92370, (714)
657-7821. (I just discovered [January 3] that this firm was
selling GAGS without permission at a Swap Meet; they agreed to
pull the disk until they request and receive permission to
distribute it.)
-----
Ted Lester, P.O. Box 8404, Santa Cruz, CA 95061. (Mr. Lester
apparently called me and asked for information about my dispute
with PC-SIG. My notes are sketchy, so I'm not exactly sure what
interest he had in the matter.)
-----
James P. Morgan, 5226 Via Hacienda #115, Orlando, FL 32809,
(305) 859-5658 (Mr. Morgan is a Shareware author.)
-----
San Francisco PC Users Group
3145 Geary Blvd., Suite 155
San Francisco, CA 94118
Charlie Vella, Software Librarian, 415-387-2315
Phillip Jacka, Software Library Editor, 415-648-1012
Fidonews Page 21 19 Jan 1987
-----
Sacramento PC Users Group
P.O. Box 685
Citrus Heights, CA 95610
(916) 332-1944
Tony Barcellos, software librarian and editor, SacraBlue
(newsletter), 916-756-4866
-----
TRS Nybblers
"MS-DOS TRS CP/M Users"
25555 Hesperian Blvd.
Chabot College, Hayward, CA 94545
(This user group exhibits regularly at many swap meets and
computer shows in Silicon Valley).
-----
THE AUTHOR:
Mark J. Welch
P.O. Box 2409
San Francisco, CA 94126
(415) 841-8759 (voice, Berkeley)
Fido 161/459 [SEAdog, private node]
BIX: 'mwelch'
(Author of the Generic Adventure Game System, formerly available
as Shareware; formerly an editor at BYTE magazine and reporter
for InfoWorld; now a freelance writer, contract programmer, and
law student in Berkeley, California.)
[This article may be reproduced and distributed in any
publication of a non-profit organization, and may be re-posted on
online services and electronic bulletin boards. If possible,
please send the author a copy of any newsletters that include
this article. Thanks. -mjw]
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Fidonews Page 22 19 Jan 1987
=================================================================
NOTICES
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The Interrupt Stack
17 May 1987
Metro-Fire Fido's Second Birthday BlowOut and Floppy Disk
Throwing Tournament! All Fido Sysops and Families Invited!
Contact Christopher Baker at 135/14 for more information.
24 Aug 1989
Voyager 2 passes Neptune.
If you have something which you would like to see on this
calendar, please send a message to FidoNet node 1/1.
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The CPA is now tallying the votes on the IFNA bylaws. With any
luck, we hope to have a final tally in time for next week's
edition of FidoNews.
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