Software licensing reminder

Roger Bowler

Sep 23, 2002

Most people know this, but for those that don't, here is a reminder.
There is nothing new here. This is just to emphasize what has always
been stated in the Hercules web pages. Contrary to what certain
people want you to believe, the Hercules group has never advocated or
condoned the contravention of software licensing terms.

Regards,
Roger Bowler

----------------------------------------------------------------
If you are planning to run IBM or other licensed software under
Hercules, it is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to obtain the necessary
licenses from the software vendor. Licensed software includes
z/OS, OS/390, MVS/ESA, MVS/XA, VM/ESA, VSE/ESA, ICKDSF, and DF/DSS,
as well as vendor products from companies such as Compuware and
Computer Associates. Just because you run OS/390 at work doesn't
mean that you are allowed to borrow a copy to run at home!

Developers who have the IBM S/390 Application Development CD (ADCD)
are also reminded of the following statement (which appears on the
IBM web page http://etpgw02.dfw.ibm.com/adcd.html):

"The S/390 Application Developers CD is a special packaging of S/390
Software for the exclusive use of product development and support.
It is restricted for use by qualified PartnerWorld for Developers
members on S/390 development systems that were purchased through our
program, or through approved IBM Business Partners that are fully
authorized to sell the FLEX-ES emulator from Fundamental Software,
Inc.. The S/390 ADCD SW stack is licensed to the specific system by
machine type/model serial number and cannot be transferred to any
other machine. Use of the S/390 ADCD SW on any other system or SW
emulator is strictly prohibited and is in violation of the terms
and conditions of the loan agreement."

In other words YOU ARE ONLY ALLOWED TO USE THE ADCD ON THE SYSTEM IT
IS LICENSED FOR -- YOU CANNOT JUST BORROW A COPY TO RUN ON HERCULES!

Different rules may apply to the IBM DemoPak CD which is available
only to IBM employees and business partners. If you fall into this
category then you probably know what the rules are -- I don't.

One or two people appear to have run software in contravention of
the licensing terms and then posted messages on our forum asking for
help. Please don't do this. It gives some people the impression that
the rest of us are a bunch of no-goodnicks.

If you are not able to run licensed software, then don't despair!
The older (pre-1981) operating systems including OS/360 (MFT/MVT),
MVS 3.8, VM/370 R6, and DOS/VS R34 are not licensed program products,
are freely available, and you can run them under Hercules to your
heart's content.

And if you want something more modern, Linux/390 and Linux for zSeries
are available without license fee and run well under Hercules.
--------------------------------------------------------------------

2:46 pm

Re: Software licensing reminder

vinceinwaukesha

Sep 24, 2002

--- In hercules-390@y..., "Roger Bowler" <rogerbowler@y...> wrote:
> Most people know this, but for those that don't, here is a reminder.
>
> If you are not able to run licensed software, then don't despair!
> The older (pre-1981) operating systems including OS/360 (MFT/MVT),
> MVS 3.8, VM/370 R6, and DOS/VS R34 are not licensed program
products,
> are freely available, and you can run them under Hercules to your
> heart's content.

I've done a fast and incomplete search and I'm looking for
documentation of this, or an explanation.
Preferably an explanation on someone's webpage or even IBMs webpage.

Thanks!

1:00 pm

Re: Software licensing reminder

vinceinwaukesha

Sep 24, 2002

--- In hercules-390@y..., "vinceinwaukesha" <vlm@d...> wrote:
>
> I've done a fast and incomplete search and I'm looking for
> documentation of this, or an explanation.
> Preferably an explanation on someone's webpage or even IBMs webpage.
>
> Thanks!

And I see I cannot edit my previous posts.

To explain myself and expand upon my reasons, I want to give away
some CDs with MVT on them (kind of like Volker's MVS turnkey
but "more historical"). No money changing hands, not a commercial
operation.

Anyway, I can easily show a real OS/390 license and explain "clause 3
is why you can't run it on Hercules" or whatever. "However, here is
the license for MVT or the explanation of the MVT situation or
whatever, (officially from IBM?) that explains why it's legal to run
MVT on hercules". Also theres the obvious cover my behind
situation, "Mr. Kinkos copy person, see here where IBM's license
allows me to make copies" and such.

As to where this all leads, those whom are overly interested could
look at the Debian Linux package I maintain for DEC's OS-8 operating
system... Although given the size of MVT and/or MVS I'd have to do
something "similar" yet different.

But first I've gotta cover my legal behind.

1:09 pm

Re: Software licensing reminder

Jay Maynard

Sep 24, 2002

On Tue, Sep 24, 2002 at 01:09:24PM -0000, vinceinwaukesha wrote:
> Anyway, I can easily show a real OS/390 license and explain "clause 3
> is why you can't run it on Hercules" or whatever. "However, here is
> the license for MVT or the explanation of the MVT situation or
> whatever, (officially from IBM?) that explains why it's legal to run
> MVT on hercules". Also theres the obvious cover my behind
> situation, "Mr. Kinkos copy person, see here where IBM's license
> allows me to make copies" and such.

There is no license for the free IBM OSes. They were written and released
before the Berne Convention was adopted in the US in 1978, and did not have
copyright notices placed on them. I have spoken to IBM's intellectual
property law department in Poughkeepsie, and they said that as far as
they're concerned, any IBM software that doesn't have a copyright statement
on it is in the public domain and may be freely copied and redistributed.
They did not want to put that in writing, however.

> As to where this all leads, those whom are overly interested could
> look at the Debian Linux package I maintain for DEC's OS-8 operating
> system... Although given the size of MVT and/or MVS I'd have to do
> something "similar" yet different.
> But first I've gotta cover my legal behind.

You may well be SOL as far as a written document goes.

OTOH, the CBT tape folks are redistributing all of this without anything in
writing, and if IBM was going to go after anyone, they'd have done it by
now...

1:26 pm