Waging War on Business

Vaughn Treude plug-discuss@lists.plug.phoenix.az.us
Wed, 12 Feb 2003 08:28:59 -0500


Michelle makes a very good point.  I was at a company where a similar 
situation existed - many of the install CD's had disappeared.  (They finally 
locked up the remaining install CD's in the parts cage.)  In the case of a 
software audit, it might have been difficult for them to prove their 
innocense.  In situations like this, it would also be easy for a disgruntled 
employee to set his company up, that is, install the software himself and 
then blow the whistle.

Which brings up my point - you can oppose something (theft for example) and 
yet also oppose a particular method of enforcement (e.g., anonymous tips, 
illegal searches, self incrimination, double jeopardy.)   The BSA is, I 
think, dangerously close to being a law unto itself.

Vaughn Treude
Nakota Software, Inc.

On Wednesday 12 February 2003 09:16, you wrote:
> On Tue, 2003-02-11 at 21:01, Darrell Shandrow wrote:
> > Hi Jim,
> >
> > Yes.  That's the neat aspect to America; if one doesn't like one option,
> > there's usually another available.  The neat thing about technology in
> > America is that there's enough openness and tools to write a program to
> > do anything with a computer!  So, there are alternatives, and theft
> > remains both illegal and unethical.
> >
> > Darrell Shandrow - Shandrow Communications!
>
> True situation: Temp goes to work for a small company, needs to use
> PageMaker. Company originally had 4 legal copies, one for each computer
> in the (tiny) department. Over the past couple of years, three of the
> PageMaker CDs have somehow disappeared, even though the original
> packaging, user manual, etc. are still around. Hmmmmm . . ..
>
> Anyway, at some point, someone has removed the legal copy of PageMaker
> from the computer used by the temp, and the CD for that copy is gone.
> So the supervisor decides to install PageMaker on the temp's computer
> from her own CD (the copy on her computer was installed from the same
> CD).
>
> The temp's computer now has an illegal copy of PageMaker, and the
> company is now screwed if BSA gets a tip about them. Did the company
> steal?  Or do they just suck at security and management?
>
>
> ---------------------------------------------------
> PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.plug.phoenix.az.us
> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change  you mail settings:
> http://lists.PLUG.phoenix.az.us/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss