Adobe Nabbed for Piracy!
2001-12-23 12:28:36
After playing the heavy on piracy issues all over the place, Adobe has been barred from distributing or selling InDesign 1.5 because it contains.... unlicensed software!
Sklyarov fans should take particular note of the irony here. After grandstanding around pretending to be America's Piracy Watchdogs(tm) and wagging their fingers at users who might get sloppy in their licensing (remember "Don't Copy That Floppy?" Adobe.) the folks at Adobe had no trouble with stealing other people's software.
In fact, one might even say they stole it with impunity. Adobe signed a licensing agreement with Trio Systems stating that they would not distribute Trio's C-Index software with InDesign, then turned around and decided that they could make a bit more money by disregarding their contract.
This isn't piracy on the level of "don't copy that floppy" or lending a game to your neighbor. This puts Adobe on a level with those who burn CD-Rs of MS Office and photocopy the license and sell it as though it were the real thing. Although Trio has made no indication that they will go after users of InDesign 1.5, Adobe has in fact made every purchaser of their software a user of illegal software. Adobe should not only be prevented from distributing this software any further, they should be forced to refund the purchase price of each and every license of InDesign 1.5 they've sold.
I guess what comes around goes around, but it should be noted that the unrepentant Adobe continues to sell and distribute InDesign outside of the U.S., where they claim the U.S. courts have no jurisdiction.
T O P S T O R I E S
California Glory Hole attracts huge crowds
A glory hole at Napa's Lake Berryessa is drawing huge crowds. According to Chris Lee, the general manager for the Solano County Water Agency, the glory hole hasn't been active since 2019, and only restarted operations on Feb 4. (More...)
Republican State Senator busted after soliciting a teenage girl
Republican State Senator Justin Eichorn of Minnesota was arrested for soliciting a teen girl on Monday just hours after he introduced a bill proposing "Trump derangement syndrome" (TDS) as a form of mental illness. (More...)
Parents claim measles is not that bad after having only one child die
The parents of a Texas girl who died from the measles are defending their decision not to vaccinate their daughter. "She says they would still say 'Don't do the shots,'" an unidentified translator for the parents said. "They think it’s not as bad as the media is making it out to be." (More...)
Delusional rich man tries to fire town staff
"I'm mayor now" said write-in mayoral candidate and founder of Pirate’s Booty Snacks Robert Ehrlich after losing the election for Mayor of Sea Cliff, NY. Then he tried to take over the Village Hall and fire everyone. (More...)
Musk claims Xitter security is staffed by idiots
Earlier this month Xitter experienced a massive outage. In an interview, Musk told Fox Business that he believes the attack came from "IP addresses originating in the Ukraine area." (More...)
The Future Ain't What It Used To Be
Ideas have taken horrifying shape and rooted into our modern reality. (More...)
C L A S S I C P I G D O G
I just came across this coolio essay by Pigdog Journal Science Editor binky wedged between two staves in the back corner of the submissions barrel. It's on the origin of the cyberbilly and is definitely de rigeur for any serious student of this fascinating sociological movement. (More...)
Patient Joab's scientifick editorial discusses aspect of the space-time-beer continuum never before processed by sub-bush-robot minds!!! Too fabulantastic to contempulate! (More...)
Johnnie Royale's Guide to Wakes
Wakes can present problems for Bad People of the Future. (If you don't know what a BPotF is, you need to read more of the PDJ.) Sure, your friend is gone and you miss him and that really sucks; it does, I know. But all Bad People of the Future are gonna die, and they have all accepted that fact. They do deserve, however, to have one final kickass party to celebrate all the bad things they've done in the past, present and future. And you, as a friend, have to make sure that their desire for a final send off is well executed (sorry for the pun). That's just the way of BPotFdom. (More...)
There are two kinds of Assmen in this world. Wild, hairy assmen, who put stickers that say things like "Why Be Normal?" all over their trucks and drink Corona beer and wear fezzes at parties for attention; these are the Assman Desperados. Our job is to ferret them out and expose them. (More...)
The Innocent San Francisco Mule
Flesh and Abby have moved to an isolated rural location in the United States - equipped only with their sense of adventure. Recently they came down off the mountain briefly to file this report? (More...)
Skunk School -- Learn Why Not To Keep Skunks As Pets
There is an alarming trend in pet purchasing habits this fall. People inspired by the WWII film, "Life is Beautiful" -- the one with that annoying Italian guy -- are buying descented skunks by the millions. (More...)