As someone alluded to earlier, I agree that the whole problem of vendor
lock-in results from the application of copyright law to software source
code, which is ludicrous. Copyright law was developed to protect authors of
literary art, not software. Software is more like a machine than like
literature. Yet there is a whole separate debate over whether to allow
software patents. Personally I think patents for software also are stupid,
and dilute the efficacy of patent protection for real inventions. What is
needed is a separate body of law to protect software intellectual property,
one that recognizes the distinct nature of software and its related
industry, which did not exist at the time copyright and patent laws were
developed. This would be an excellent agenda for the FSF to promote, and I
think more likely to succeed long-term than the commune approach to software
development.
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Phil Mattison
Ohmikron Corp.
480-722-9595 ext.1
602-820-9452 Mobile