Re: code notes
merton_monk said:
It sounds like Wotc is in the process of considering new wordings for the licenses to specifically speak to software issues, which I'm glad to hear.
Yeah, they're rewording. But I'm going to go out on a limb here...
I think that what you will see is a rewording that will still leave a good bit to interpretation and will thus be a "work in progress" as opposed to the be-all, end-all license regarding software.
One reason I think this is that it is still being worked on and I would expect them to have to make corrections later. Another reason I think this is that technology changes quickly and any license dealing with technology, in this case programs, needs to be able to change as necessary.
The inherent problem is that this is a marriage of two slightly different industries, printing books and creating computer programs. They don't quite work the same way regardless how the governments like to classify them. (Remember, governments tend to think 5 year old computers are still cutting edge, too.) And currently, these licenses are attempting to control both industries in one document. There's bound to be conflicts.
What does this mean? This means that what is "ok" now may not be deemed as "ok" six months from now for any number of reasons which cannot be foreseen. If you develop now, you need to take that into consideration.
Of course, I may be wrong though I'd be surprised if I was. But I would rather develop in a worst case scenario as opposed to a best case scenario so as to not have a huge problem with rewrites later if they become necessary. Plus, there are other inherent advantages to developing this way that I won't go into here.