X-no-Archive:yes
I like the idea, as it seems to have worked for a couple of other things...
That SAMBA thing comes to mind...

Now, there is something I wonder about. Take SLTCopy as an example. I
understand that HiComp wrote this, and basically gave it to HP. When I was
told that STORCopy would not handle our NM STORE DAT tapes, HPRC recommended
SLTCopy. Now, rumor has it that some future version of TurboSTORE will
likely have the ability to STORE (read copy) one tape to another.

So, if I write some utility, and I give HP the source code (and HP starts to
use it), then they incorporate that code into a product that they sell...
Can I be expected to understand that I have contributed my right to profit?
Will this understanding be codified into something I have to sign, and
probably have lawyers look at before I do, in order to give away software?
And at what amount of profit does it become wrong for HP not to remunerate
me? Or, if I know HP is using code that I wrote, can I use that knowledge
somehow to compete with HP, by selling an add-on, or an improved version of
such product?

And could such concerns discourage HP from using contributed software?

I hope not, because I like the idea.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Lars Appel [SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
> Sent: Friday, December 18, 1998 4:41 PM
> To:   [log in to unmask]
> Subject:      Re: Customer Funded Enhancements
>
> I wonder if it would make sense to supplement the CFE program with another
> flavour of CFE i.e. Contribution Funded Enhancements... It seems to me
> that
> there are possibly quite a number of enhancements that could also be done
> by non-lab persons (e.g. things that don't require MPE/iX source code
> access
> or implement "standalone" utils). In this contribution oriented flavour
> the
> lab person could act as a coordinator and submittal point, and could use
> his
> or her "saved time" for project work that can only be done by lab folks
> (eg
> 64bit extensions, IMAGE internals, etc etc). The contributions could be
> put
> into something like CONTRIB.TELESUP or /usr/contrib or alike and thus
> become
> available via FOS... Any opinions? Any volunteers?
>
> Lars (forgot the $think_pink$ plug)