[Info-vax] [Attn: HP Employees] PDP-11 OS hobbyist licensing

[Bill Gunshannon]

In article <l2jmbe$8pc$3 at dont-email.me>,
	Simon Clubley <clubley at remove_me.eisner.decus.org-Earth.UFP> writes:
> On 2013-10-03, Simon Clubley <clubley at remove_me.eisner.decus.org-Earth.UFP> wrote:
>>
>> I wonder what the legal situation is with Bitsavers which archives not
>> only the public documentation, but also the binary OS kits as well.
>>
>> If you look, you will see they have versions of RSX not covered by
>> the Mentec license. As for me, I would like to play with the kits
>                                                               ^
> 
> Insert "authorised by the Mentec hobbyist licence" after "kits" here.
> You won't find me touching any version not covered by the Mentec licence.

And you have the DEC Emultor clearly spelled out in that same Mentec
License?

People really need to get off this Mentec License thing.  I don't know
where it came from or if it was ever real but at this point not only is
there no emulator meeting the definition:
  "EMULATOR shall mean software owned by Digital Equipment Corporation
   that emulates the operation of a PDP-11 processor and allows PDP-11
   programs and operating systems to run on non-PDP-11 systems."

And there is no Mentec to grant such license.

> 
>> and there's nothing at a technical level stopping me, but morally
>> I just don't feel it's right until after the licence issue is resolved.
>>

bill

-- 
Bill Gunshannon          |  de-moc-ra-cy (di mok' ra see) n.  Three wolves
billg999 at cs.scranton.edu |  and a sheep voting on what's for dinner.
University of Scranton   |
Scranton, Pennsylvania   |         #include <std.disclaimer.h>