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Xref: sserve comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware:33230 comp.unix.bsd:6381 comp.org.eff.talk:9449 Path: sserve!manuel.anu.edu.au!munnari.oz.au!constellation!mimbres.cs.unm.edu!moe.ksu.ksu.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!darwin.sura.net!spool.mu.edu!olivea!hal.com!decwrl!csus.edu!netcom.com!hasty From: hasty@netcom.com (Amancio Hasty Jr) Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware,comp.unix.bsd,comp.org.eff.talk Subject: Re: Question on Diamond Clock Synthesizer Message-ID: <1992Oct12.061220.17620@netcom.com> Date: 12 Oct 92 06:12:20 GMT References: <Bvy0H3.Lwq@mudos.ann-arbor.mi.us> <1b9hudINNmv1@agate.berkeley.edu> <1992Oct12.044838.15514@fcom.cc.utah.edu> Distribution: inet Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Lines: 69 In article <1992Oct12.044838.15514@fcom.cc.utah.edu> terry@icarus.weber.edu writes: >In article <1b9hudINNmv1@agate.berkeley.edu>, curtis@cs.berkeley.edu (Curtis Yarvin) writes: >|> In article <Bvy0H3.Lwq@mudos.ann-arbor.mi.us> mju@mudos.ann-arbor.mi.us (Marc Unangst) writes: >|> >In article <1992Oct11.045446.1020@fcom.cc.utah.edu> terry@cs.weber.edu (A Wizard of Earth C) writes: >|> >>"Batman" posted a message (id <4356bw@gotham.city>) disclosing a clock set >|> >>algorithm for Diamond. Sorry I didn't save it, but it's possibly illegal >|> >>to distribute. It may have been accidently archived somewhere. It will >|> > >|> >It isn't illegal to distribute any more. Diamond has claimed that the >|> >method for setting their dot clocks is protected by trade secret laws. >|> >Unfortuantely, in order for something to be a trade secret, it has to >|> >be just that -- secret. >|> >|> And, also, I didn't think reverse-engineering was illegal in this >|> country. After all, for distribution of a trade secret to be illegal >|> the distributor has to be under nondisclosure contract to the originator - >|> and you certainly don't sign anything like a contract when you buy >|> a Diamond card. > > Sorry, reverse engineering may not be illegal, bit it can still be >litigated (and won) by the "damaged" party; please see: > > Digital Equipment Corporation vs. EMC^2 > >The case dealt with whether or not DEC could hold the BI bus proprietary and >corporations engaged in "reverse engineering" it by producing boards (in this >case, memory boards) liable for licensing fees. DEC won, in case you had any >doubts. > >|> If "Batman" had contracted with Diamond to do a driver under the conditions >|> that he not release the clock set algorithm, then Diamond would >|> certainly have every right to go after him. If he just discovered it >|> by looking at the driver, then their only weapon could be a patent - >|> and I do doubt that Diamond has patented their clock set algorithm. > >Wide spread use of the information may result in "Bruce Wayne, Benefactor"'s >disclosure being litigated by Diamond. Remember that a "trade secret" is not >held to be disclosed until a court decides that this is the case. My >suggestion is to avoid potential litigation by not using the information in >a commercial product. Someone who buys a Diamond product that comes with a >drivers disk can probably claim "use" of an existing driver were they to make >personal use of "Batman"'s posted code. This is probably defnsable under >first use law unless a signed license was returned to Diamond or there was a >"shrink wrap license" involved and the user was in Mississippi or Missouri, >both of which hold "shrink warp licensing" to be valid. > >There is a risk inherent in any action which may result in legal action. I >hope "Bruce" knew what the risks were before he disclosed the information. > > > Terry Lambert > terry@icarus.weber.edu > terry_lambert@novell.com >--- >Any opinions in this posting are my own and not those of my present >or previous employers. >------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > "I have an 8 user poetic license" - me > Get the 386bsd FAQ from agate.berkeley.edu:/pub/386BSD/386bsd-0.1/unofficial >------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Why bother with Diamond, When you can buy an Orchid's F1280 or Artix's GraphicsEngine. Please note that I have a pre-alpha X server working on both cards. So, DON'T BUY DIAMOND! Amancio Hasty