Re: Debian-installer, older hardware, boot loaders, miboot & amiboot & ..

[Henning Makholm <henning@makholm.net>]

Scripsit Branden Robinson <branden@debian.org>
> On Mon, Mar 29, 2004 at 11:53:49PM +0100, Henning Makholm wrote:
> > Scripsit Branden Robinson <branden@debian.org>

> > > Worse case scenario, this could be clean-room reimplemented.

> > Before doing that, somebody ought to approach Apple and ask explicit
> > permission to reverse-engineer the boot-block code and distribute the
> > reverse-engineered source under a free license.

> You don't need permission to reverse-engineer anything.

If the thing that is being reverse-engineered is covered by copyright,
and the reverse-engineering follows it tightly enough that the result
is a derivate of the original thing, then some kind of permission *is*
needed.

(Some jurisdiction explicitly allow reverse engineering without
specific permission, but ttbomk only when one keeps the
reverse-engineered data private).

-- 
Henning Makholm  "They discussed old Tommy Somebody and Jerry Someone Else."