RE off topic: open source legal question

[Bayard Coolidge USG ZKO3-3/S20]

Bob Sparks <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> asked:

>>> I have heard, but am unable to verify, that software developed
>>> using public tax money would be owned by the public.

This is a VERY complex question, because all too often, the
applications that are frequently developed are done so under
a non-disclosure as with any other commercial task. There are
some examples, however, of stuff that is out there and available,
but NOT at zero cost, such as NEC (Numeric Electro<mumble> Code),
which is a huge FORTRAN program developed by the US Navy originally.
You can buy copies of it, but they run several hundred dollars.
(It's used for radio antenna design - there are simplified versions
in the ham radio market for a lot less money, but the original
program is not, to my knowledge, freely available via FTP. I wish
it were because I have a lot of machines here I'd love to run it
on after hours :-).

Aside from the obvious military security stuff, I'm sure there are
some apps that the owning agencies would not like to release, such
as the IRS, Social Security Administration, etc., to protect their
data from probable hacking. OTOH, stuff like Expect is right there
on the Web to be plucked as desired.

Sorry to muddy the waters - I'd love to know what the answer is, too.

Bayard

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