On Sat, Jul 16, 2005 at 01:25:27PM -0700, Michael K. Edwards wrote: > On 7/16/05, Diego Biurrun <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > Please remember that this is my answer to your question of what _I_ would > > do, I didn't say what Debian should do. > > [...} > > But you're telling me you won't at least call your lawyer?
I never said something to this effect, please don't misrepresent my words. > > Reality upstream is that the hosting university could not be bothered to > > fight the patent, even though the consensus was that the patent is > > invalid. > > What consensus is that? Consensus among qualified commentators (of > which I am not one)? That I really, really, doubt. Consensus among VideoLAN developers and the university's lawyer. > > It seems that at least I have read it, while you haven't... > > Au contraire, mon frère. I have read it, and thought about it, and > spot-checked some of its "facts", and I stand by my assessment that it > is rubbish. I advise you again to ask yourself: is this a > dispassionate, scholarly analysis or is it a polemic that, at best, > uses outside evidence to exhort rather than to inform? I _have_ thought about it and consider your continued suggestion that I have not insulting. People arrive at different conclusions without being complete idiots. C'est la vie, mon ami. I stand by my assessment that it is well thought-out, much better than what I have read from the other side of the fence. Feel free to point me at your spot-checks and texts on the subject that you consider "dispassionate, scholarly analysis". In an attempt to keep the discussion ontopic for this thread and this mailing list I suggest that we continue this part of the discussion in private, should you wish to answer. > > Given that more and more DVDs come with DTS audio, this software is > > useful whether you like the specification or not. It's also not > > half-finished, it works just fine. > > Even if it were true that "more and more DVDs come with DTS audio" -- > I don't think I've ever actually seen one that wouldn't play on an > AC-3 + stereo player, but I'm sure it varies radically by region and > genre They generally come with an additional AC3 track, that's why they still work for you. > -- what does that have to do with whether it is the sort of > thing _you_ want to go to the wall for? I might go to the wall for > Larry Flynt's right to publish material that may or may not differ > from my personal taste in literature, but would I go there for someone > who (IMHO) is less exercising free speech than circumventing his > society's prevailing bargain of temporary monopoly on a design in > exchange for permanent documentation of how it works -- and not > putting his own money and/or liberty on the line? Basically I'm willing to go to the wall for free software and I consider software patents the biggest threat to free software at this moment in time. The prevailing bargain might have to be revisited every once in a while to see if it is (still) a good one. Seeing how patent systems are coming under fire in recent years around the world I appear not be entirely alone with that opinion. > > Michael, let's try to keep this ontopic please. > > What could possibly be more on-topic for debian-legal than the > discussion of a strategy for dealing with a foreseeable legal problem > for Debian and its distributors and users? This is ontopic. Discussing the pros and cons of software patents in general is not. Besides, I doubt you will find much support for your position that (some) software should be patentable in this forum. Diego -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED]