Re: More about GEOS...and...piracy?

[supertimer@aol.com (Supertimer)]

labelas@hotmail.com (Labelas Enoreth) wrote:

>> Hi, I own a protected version of GEOS.  I can't make disk images
>> of my legal copy for you to modify, but I would like to install
>> it on my own hard drive.
>> 
>> Problem: my version of GEOS does not recognize SCSI hard
>> drives.
>> 
>> I would like to get a copy of your GEOS.SYSTEM file, the one
>> that a hard drive install creates, so that I can run GEOS from my
>> hard drive.  I'm sure the copyright eagles won't object.  I mean,
>> GEOS.SYSTEM by itself is useless without all the other files
>> that come on the GEOS disks.  I have those on my licensed copy.
>
>Perfect, not only are you an established person on here, but you also have
>a valid reason and point. I simply stated most of the previous information
>because in the past (not on here) I have had overzealous people come
>flaming down on me when I suggested sharing something I had discovered.
>Honestly, I'd love to just up it somewhere or get all of your versions of
>GEOS and make one sort of, universal copy to fix problems like this with
>people, and since you have a legal copy, it would technically be fine... I
>just know that some people on here can get a bit intense, and I also
>recall the actual current owners of the GEOS license (well, this was a
>couple years back) coming down really hard on some people trading disk
>images of Commodore GEOS. So I try to protect myself as best I can from
>both...sides.

Well, I guess that's because GEOS for the Commodore is still
being produced.  For example, if you still have that Commodore,
you might want to take a look at the Commodore forum on
Delphi or on the cscbm NG on usenet.  They've apparently
released a complete upgrade to GEOS, pretty nifty too from
looking at the screen shots.  Sort of like System 6.0.2, except
this upgrade is substantial.  People are bound to be more
protective of "living" software since they still have potential
to develop.

The company that owns the license to Commodore GEOS
is also the makers of most of their remaining hardware
products.  It is understandable that they would be protective
of their products.

They are like the Seven Hills/Alltech of the Commodore
world.  I think we can expect a similar reaction from
Seven Hills and the Apple II users if disk images of, say,
Spectrum were being distributed.

However, I suspect that a single file from a dead copy of
Apple II GEOS sent to other licensed users of Apple II
GEOS would not invoke the same response.  I recall that
even Gareth Jones, an Apple II developer and writer for
an Apple II publication, once asked on csa2 if some csa2
reader could provide him with one of the disks to the
Multiscribe program.  Just like with GEOS.SYSTEM, that
single disk would be useless without the other disks.  It
is just that someone in his usergroup who had a licensed
copy of Multiscribe had a damaged disk.

>Out of curiousity, exactly _how_ is the CP'ed version of GEOS protected?

Not sure, but I remember it was wicked.  When the
disk booted, it had a sliding sound.  No copy program
I tried could copy the disk nor any disk imager.  Not
even a bit copier.

I remember that Copy II+, the latest version, had a parm
to do it, though.