Hmmm. You really got me thinking on contract violation vs. (criminal) 'theft'
of services, Shawn.
Most definitely a home line prohibits open WiFi. This is absolutely clear from
the AUP. I think one could be found guilty (in a civil suit of contract
violation) whether the act was intentional or not (you know the old adage:
ignorance of the law is no excuse), but I would really have to defer to a
lawyer here and, besides, no company would sue someone who was unaware of his
action, only if because of adverse PR.
I cannot talk about your business line.
It's unfortunate that individuals cannot negotiate the contract, but that
happens everywhere. Ever want to negotiate the terms of warranty on a product
you're buying?
Now on the issue of (criminal) 'theft', I guess I would really have to speak to
a lawyer (and I don't know one). Perhaps I AM confusing a generic term 'theft
of services', which I see this as (only because of the contractual limitations
of the AUP) with criminal theft. I would have to relent on this being a
criminal issue unless I actually confirmed that from someone with a legal
background. Definitely it is a breach in civil tort law.
Also, whether you agree with patent law is irrelevant to the issue at hand. It
IS the law of the land. One can always work to overturn patent law (or limit
the term of patent) within a legal/legislative framework. Whether I agree with
the idea of 'patent' is another issue entirely. I won't comment because I don't
really want to start another thread. (I'm pretty well finished on this
dialogue. Time to move on.)
I would also like to ask a lawyer about the culpability of someone advocating
violation of contract. like the writer of the article. He's probably safe from
all prosecution until he violates his own contract. Theoretically at least, as
most companies wouldn't engage in a costly civil suit unless they wanted to
make an example, such as the woman who was convicted of sharing mp3's:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,138115-pg,1/article.html
So - I think I jumped the gun there in saying this was also in the purvue of
criminal law. You are the first to present that case to me in such a way as to
make me rethink my comments.
Bottom line: Is there a lawyer in the house? It would make for a very
interesting discussion.
Have the planners for monthly CLUG meetings ever considered inviting a lawyer
to talk on these very issues? HINT. HINT. It would be fascinating.
Touché, Shawn, for your insight.
Gary
P.S. The writer made me think about Abbie Hoffman's book, Steal This Book
(1971) (http://www.amazon.com/Steal-This-Book-Abbie-Hoffman/dp/156858217X),
still available from amazon.com, I see. What would have happened, I wonder, if
I had really walked into a Chapters or a Coles (when it existed) and tried to
steal the book? Guess? ;-)
----- Original Message -----
From: "Shawn" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "CLUG General" <[email protected]>
Sent: Saturday, January 12, 2008 11:20 PM
Subject: Re: [clug-talk] Open WiFi (shift from clug-tech discussion)
(Gary, I shifted this back into CLUG-Talk - where it was meant to be.. :)
Theft is bad. Agreed.
Where we don't agree is if any theft would have occurred in the case of
an Open WiFi.
[snip]
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