On Wed, Jan 13, 2016 at 7:25 PM, Bret Johnson <bretj...@juno.com> wrote: > There's also a question of the timing, since I think Jack wrote and released > those programs and source code before the MS-DOS source code was released > (unless Jack had gotten access to some MS source code earlier than that). I > also think Jack used to program for a living, though I'm not sure if it was > DOS-related or not. > > I've looked at some of Jack's earlier source code. If he was "tainted" by > something he did (either earlier or later), am I now "tainted" too? Is it > possible that anybody who ever has or will work on or look at > commercial/proprietary software is forever "tainted" and can't work on free > stuff any more? Are you "tainted" when you buy a book that has some sample > source code in it? Am I "tainted" because I've looked at the IBM Technical > References that contain the BIOS source code for early PC's? > > I can certainly understand the paranoia from a totally volunteer organization > like FreeOOS, but there needs to be some reasonable perspective applied to > this at some point in time. >
I am not a lawyer, but over time I have received advice from lawyers. I understand it is the direct viewing of proprietary source code that matters. If you examine Microsoft's source code, then you become "tainted" (legal term to mean information was obtained illegally or unlawfully). I am told such knowledge is also called "fruit of the poisonous tree." If you only examined someone else's open source code that may be (unknown to you) tainted by proprietary source code, then you do not become tainted. While I understand some people think it an overreaction, we must avoid any suggestion that we benefit from proprietary source code. I do not think it likely that Microsoft would take action against an open source DOS operating system in 2016, but that does not matter. The right thing to do is avoid proprietary source code in developing FreeDOS. For any developer who did examine the MS-DOS source code, I ask that they do not contribute to FreeDOS programs that replace MS-DOS functionality. Specifically, this means programs in the Base category: http://freedos.sourceforge.net/software/?cat=base However, FreeDOS includes extra functionality not found in MS-DOS. These features did not exist in any version of MS-DOS. Even if you have studied the MS-DOS source code, I believe you can contribute to the non-Base parts of FreeDOS. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Site24x7 APM Insight: Get Deep Visibility into Application Performance APM + Mobile APM + RUM: Monitor 3 App instances at just $35/Month Monitor end-to-end web transactions and take corrective actions now Troubleshoot faster and improve end-user experience. Signup Now! http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/clk?id=267308311&iu=/4140 _______________________________________________ Freedos-user mailing list Freedos-user@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/freedos-user
