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From: j...@rpp386.cactus.org (John F Haugh II)
Newsgroups: comp.org.eff.talk
Subject: Status of Len Rose v. <Pick Your Favorite Villain>
Message-ID: <19125@rpp386.cactus.org>
Date: 28 Mar 91 05:29:16 GMT
Reply-To: j...@rpp386.cactus.org (John F Haugh II)
Followup-To: poster
Organization: Lone Star Cafe and BBS Service
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X-Clever-Slogan: Recycle or Die.
Could anyone provide me with information regarding Len Rose's current
personal and legal situation?
Last I heard he had gone back to New Jersey and was still embroiled
in a legal fight against various corporations and government agencies.
I have read all the articles in this group, which usually turns up
something with his name on it, but haven't see anything this time
around.
Please respond by mail as I very seldom read this group.
--
John F. Haugh II | Distribution to | UUCP: ...!cs.utexas.edu!rpp386!jfh
Ma Bell: (512) 832-8832 | GEnie PROHIBITED :-) | Domain: j...@rpp386.cactus.org
"I want to be Robin to Bush's Batman."
-- Vice President Dan Quayle
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From: p...@unhd.unh.edu (Paul A. Sand)
Newsgroups: comp.org.eff.talk
Subject: Re: Status of Len Rose v. <Pick Your Favorite Villain>
Message-ID: <1991Mar29.101843.19291@unhd.unh.edu>
Date: 29 Mar 91 10:18:43 GMT
References: <19125@rpp386.cactus.org>
Organization: University of New Hampshire
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In article <19...@rpp386.cactus.org> j...@rpp386.cactus.org (John F Haugh II) writes:
>Could anyone provide me with information regarding Len Rose's current
>personal and legal situation?
On the chance others besides John are interested: the 3/25 issue of the
Wall Street Journal [page B2] reported that Len Rose pleaded guilty to
"felony computer-crime charges." He will serve two concurrent one-year
prison terms and will be eligible for parole in 10 months.
Rose agreed to charges that he "misappropriated, shared, and modified"
some UNIX source cdoe. Although constitutional free-speech issues were
raised in this case, the charges Rose pleaded guilty to were narrow
enough (according to the WSJ) that such issues weren't addressed.
Mitchell Kapor was quoted as questioning the severity of Rose's
sentencing. "If they sent to prison everyone with some unlicensed UNIX
code, the jails would overflow... [Rose] didn't profit from this. He
used poor judgment in copying the program, but you don't send people to
prison for that." [Comment: apparently you do.]
--
-- Paul A. Sand | Disclaimer: The opinions expressed
-- University of New Hampshire | herein are my own. Duh.
-- uunet!unhd!pas | (Jim Showalter)
-- p...@unhd.unh.edu |
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From: j...@rpp386.cactus.org (John F Haugh II)
Newsgroups: comp.org.eff.talk
Subject: Re: Status of Len Rose v. <Pick Your Favorite Villain>
Message-ID: <19138@rpp386.cactus.org>
Date: 30 Mar 91 20:12:00 GMT
References: <1991Mar29.101843.19291@unhd.unh.edu> <R3gLZ1w164w@dogface>
Reply-To: j...@rpp386.cactus.org (John F Haugh II)
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In article <R3gLZ1w164w@dogface> writes:
>Sadly, the prosecutors and AT&T should have also asked this question
>from the beginning. Sometimes, it seems, the wrong people are on
>trial.
I realize there is a tendency to bring emotional issues into the
discussion. However, I am appalled at the amount of UNIX source
code which is spinning around on people's disks and they don't see
anything wrong with it. When it is the norm for co-workers to
assume that you have a complete tape of some UNIX release at your
house simply because they and their friends do, something is
seriously wrong.
I am convinced that the courts were overly zealous in their
prosecution of Len, but would like to remind everyone reading this
that =you= don't own the code - AT&T or their UNIX holding company
du jour does. Just because it's just magnetic flux patterns
spinning on an aluminum platter doesn't mean it's only worth the
$10 for a box of floppies your buddy copies it to from your PC
hard drive. Programmers cost money to hire, and when you steal
from AT&T and others, you steal from the programming staff as
well, to mention nothing of investors and stockholders who expect
a fair return on their investments.
There is a problem in our industry where many programmers feel
they have some right to take the code home with them. If you want
freely-redistributable code there are many organizations which
support that objective - but AT&T is not one of them. If giving
away code is such a great idea, let's see you give away =your=
code. You will find that it doesn't pay nearly as well as working
for a software house.
So, feel compassion for Len and his family. Remember that cards
and letters are welcome reminders that people are thinking of
you and care about your needs. But don't for one minute think
that theft is or should be acceptable - even if it is merely the
theft of some magnetic flux whirring about somewheres.
--
John F. Haugh II | Distribution to | UUCP: ...!cs.utexas.edu!rpp386!jfh
Ma Bell: (512) 832-8832 | GEnie PROHIBITED :-) | Domain: j...@rpp386.cactus.org
"I want to be Robin to Bush's Batman."
-- Vice President Dan Quayle