Thanks. Couldn't 'a said it any better myself (but wuz itchin ta' try).
>From: "Marc Tassin, Ilium Software" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>Subject: RE: [Open_Gaming] Plain Engrish License
>Date: Thu, 29 Mar 2001 18:00:48 -0500
>
>I HAVE to add my 2 cents. I can't take it anymore.
>
>Using this license (and ESPECIALLY the SRD) is not game OR a hobby. It is
>a legal act with legal ramifications. Anyone who thinks this is a simple
>fan tool better think twice or you are going to end up on the wrong end of
>a lawsuit. If you have ANY intention of making ANY money doing this you
>had better treat it like an honest to god business. Get a lawyer. Form
>the business legally. Fill out local, state and federal forms required to
>form your company, etc etc etc.. Get an accountant and all the rest.
>
>D&D is a game. This isn't. Stop treating it like the guidelines for
>building a fan site. You're wasting email and time rehashing these issues
>again and again.
>
>(Grumble grumble frickin frackin riffin raff.)
>
>At 05:15 PM 3/29/2001 -0500, you wrote:
>> > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]On Behalf Of
>> > [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> > Sent: Thursday, March 29, 2001 4:29 PM
>> > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> > Subject: [Open_Gaming] Plain Engrish License
>> >
>> >
>> > It's a new, and I think long overdue, trend in law to cut the
>> > crap and write
>> > in plain English.
>>
>>This is a trend that is doomed to fail. Like it or not, legalese is
>>precise.
>>English is not. "Plain English text" often means as many things as there
>>are
>>readers. Maybe more.
>>
>>To see why this noble (and understandable!) sentiment is misguided, look
>>at
>>some analogous proposals:
>>
>>1. "I think musical notation is crap. Music should be written in Plain
>>English." Well, assuming you could do this, the resulting text would be
>>easily ten times as long as the original score, AND it would be impossible
>>to play.
>>
>>2. "I think mathematics is crap. Math should be written in Plain English."
>>Can't be done. Plain English cannot express certain mathematical concepts.
>>
>>3. "I think programming languages are crap. Programs should be written in
>>Plain English." Programs must be precise. Plain English isn't. Attempts at
>>"natural language programming" ultimately stumble over this hurdle: when
>>two
>>native English speakers can disagree on the meaning of a simple sentence,
>>how in the world do you write programmatic rules for interpreting that
>>sentence AND every other sentence that comes along? Researchers have been
>>trying for decades, and they still don't have a general solution.
>>
>>Terms in legalese have precise meanings established over centuries of
>>jurisprudence. Plain English is a constantly changing, living language
>>which
>>changes with the times, the culture, and even the individual speaker.
>>
>>
>> > As I read this list, more and more folks are saying "If
>> > you're thinking of working with the OGL license, consult a lawyer.",
>>
>>Not quite. What we're saying is, "If you place any value in your work
>>whatsoever, consult a lawyer before using the OGL and the STL. If you
>>place
>>no value in it and don't mind losing it all, don't bother consulting a
>>lawyer. And even then, you may find yourself liable for unintended
>>consequences."
>>
>>
>> > to
>> > which I have much to say, considering that the abolition of the
>> > lawyer class
>> > in America would be a plus in my book. Not to point fingers and
>> > heckle, but
>> > is everyone on this list so concerned about being sued by using the OGL
>>or
>> > d20? Is this the sort of environment that we are fostering with the
>>open
>> > gaming movement? "Open Your Games but Watch Your Ass?"
>>
>>Yes. This is the real world, not some free love fantasy world. These
>>licenses have real legal obligations with real legal consequences.
>>Pretending they do not will change that.
>>
>>
>> > For every person that wanders into this list and is told "see a
>>lawyer", I
>> > have a better suggestion: maybe we should have an OGL written so
>> > that people
>> > can frickin' understand the thing, instead of this host of
>> > priests whose job
>> > it is to interpret the thing like chicken entrails.
>>
>>You are welcome to make such a license if you wish. Others are welcome to
>>use it if they wish. More power to you. Maybe you will write a better
>>license that protects the rights of creators and still encourages the
>>creation of material that works well together. Maybe yours will be
>>comprehensible to every lay reader without the slightest chance of
>>misinterpretation. If you do this, I'll bet a number of people will
>>release
>>games and game products under your license. I look forward to reading it.
>>
>>But if you fail... If your license gives away the rights of creators... If
>>your license leaves creators unduly vulnerable to suits... Then people
>>will
>>stick with the licenses written by the professionals.
>>
>>Yes, there's that word: "professional". That's a dirty word to some folks,
>>particularly folks who hate lawyers. Well, I happen to agree, in some
>>sense:
>>I wish it were easier for laymen to practice law. Maybe then more laymen
>>would get educated on the law.
>>
>>But "professional" implies a careful study of the field, not just spot
>>knowledge. You can write software without being a professional programmer;
>>you can practice first aid without being a professional doctor; and you
>>can
>>execute your own legal documents without being a professional lawyer. But
>>that doesn't mean a professional won't do a job that is orders of
>>magnitude
>>better.
>>
>>Martin L. Shoemaker
>>
>>Martin L. Shoemaker Consulting, Software Design and UML Training
>>[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>>http://www.MartinLShoemaker.com
>>http://www.UMLBootCamp.com
>>
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>>For more information, please link to www.opengamingfoundation.org
>
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