Re: Affecting Institutional Change (Yeah Right)
John Hasler <jhasler@debian.org> wrote:
> On 05/11/07 10:33, Amy Templeton wrote:
> > John Hassler <jhasler@debian.org> wrote:
> Amy Templeton wrote:
> > Well, sweet! So the impression I'm getting is that reverse
> > engineering is basically protected by law?
> I wrote:
> > When done for interoperability.
> > So that means that I could use decoder programs without fearing
> > that they may become illegal?
> I wrote:
> > No.
> Amy Templeton wrote:
> > Oh well. Well, in that case, I stand by my original position: I do
> > not want to get used to depending on decoders if I can't have some
> > degree of assurance they'll be available later.
> What do you mean by "decoders"? I assumed you meant software for breaking
> DRM on music and movies. If you mean software for converting documents
> from proprietary formats the question does not arise: there is no DRM
> involved.
By "decoders" I mean things like antiword that remove all the nasty
binary blobs and leave the ASCII text. Does the new version of
M$-Word include some sort of code for embedding movies now? On what
level is that even necessary or even desirable??? Isn't that what,
say, *video* files are for???
So wait...I'm really confused. Can I or can I not (reasonably)
depend on such software's (antiword and the like) remaining legal?
Amy
--
Do not underestimate the power of the Force.
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