On Tue, 5 Nov 2002, Roy Wood wrote:
> The whole point of the licence was to stop people modifying the code
> without some central controlling authority - which would be Wolfgang.
And the question is "Is Wolfgang able to treat D&D fairly in light of his
sense that they are seemingly ignoring his perceived authority?"
> Already he has been sidelined by this.
Which is what was expected to happen. The license, while I accept it
entirely, isn't one that can effectively discourage this.
The problem is that Wolfgang expects the D&D sales to result in a payment
to him of 10 Euros per copy sold, but he doesn't know how many licenses
they already have unsold, so there is no simple resolution without facts.
I do think it is vital to have someone keep the different versions of
SMSQ/E in step, and I think Wolfgang is technically capable. My worry is
that this action has polarised and marginalised D&D into a position where
they will feel unwilling to co-operate with him.
Now, words will fly, and indignation will be expressed since we're talking
about a world market for maybe 100 copies of SMSQ/E over the coming years,
it's not going to be sued over, and the enforcer has no teeth.
So it's academic.
What's the way forward from here?
Dave
