On 5/4/00 4:36 PM, Ryan S. Dancey ([EMAIL PROTECTED]) wrote
>I think it is unfair to compare the terms of the trademark license with the
>terms of the copyright license.
>
>I think that continuing to critique the trademark license as a restrictive
>copyright license is confusing to the average person who hasn't read the two
>licenses and tends to sew disinformation about the purpose of both.
>The concept of controlling the use of a trademark is not antithetical, in
>either practice or spirit, to the idea of Open "Source" or "Games".
Hmm, I was under the impression that WotC would object to distributing
D20-like materials (i.e. a version of the D20 system that gave details on
experience points and the like) regardless of whether or not said items
used the D20 logo themselves. That is, if I made the "PitWarriors" RPG,
using material derived from the D20 system rules, but did not call it
D20, WotC would still object to my use of the experience system from the
D20 rules in my own derivative "Open Gaming" material.
If that's not the case, good.
If it IS the case, you'll note that the Open Source community objects in
general to the use of trademarks as means of controlling expression, as
opposed to as a means of protecting brand names. They aren't the subject
of as much vitriol as patents, but "trademarks" on components are not
well thought of -- see the Microsoft trademarks on the terms "windows"
and "plug-and-play", neither of which are terms they started using.
The "experience" system of D&D, whether or not "experience points" are
called a trademark, is a similar case: the concept of both saving rolls
and experience are derived from wargaming, not roleplaying, and it's more
than a little silly to try and trademark them as a brand-specific portion
of a roleplaying game. "Hit points" are another silly trademark, one I
believe WotC still lays claim to.
You also blipped over my comments that "Open" license are indeed
restrictive (they need to be, else they won't work)
--
Russ Taylor (http://www.cmc.net/~rtaylor/)
CMC Tech Support Manager
"It's not so much that I lied, as that they printed the lie." -- Ben Katz
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