Re: Long rambling post (was Re: New FAQ sites?)

[pubpc1@library.ucla.edu]

Sheldon Simms wrote:
>I do not support Nathan's abuses. I think he is wrong to flame people
>asking questions, whether or not the information they are seeking is
>in the FAQ. I think he is wrong to withhold the FAQ from the general
>public. I agree that he can be quite rude and often turns people off
>(or outright offends them) by his behavior.

Good to hear this.

>I do support Nathan's rights. I agree that he has the right to restrict
>distribution of the (his) FAQ, even though I don't think he should.

I agree, which is why I am going to try to write my own.

>It is wrong to suggest that Nathan Mates and Charles Turley are
>'equally wrong'. Nathan Mate's biggest crime is being a jerk. Charles
>Turley is a liar, a software pirate, and what "feels" even worse to a
>programmer, someone who takes credit he doesn't deserve (in his case,
>by sector editing various programs)

I understand your point of view as a programmer, but I am still glad
to hear that you can also see through the eyes of non-programmers
here.

>I agree with your position on illegal copying of software, as you
>stated it in the post to which I am responding. I do have one request
>of you regarding the issue. Please explain your role in the WordPerfect
>hoax. You were at the center of it and I have never heard any explanation
>from you about how your "proof" that WordPerfect has been released as
>freeware turned out to be so wrong

One error and it keeps coming back to haunt me.  I was not the one
who claimed WordPerfect was freeware.  Dr. Tom claimed that.  Then,
because there were so many inquiries, Corel decided to release it
as freeware.  The problem was that they found out they did not own
it and a company called "Quality Software" did own it.  Several csa2
readers provided a Quality Software in California, the number of
which I called.  It turned out they were out of business at that
number.  So I posted on some local BBS's looking for help tracking
down "Quality Software."  A user by the handle of "Diablo" said he
knew what I was looking for and some time later, a letter from
Quality Software of Massachussets showed up in my mailbox.  Seeing
that Dr. Tom started the ball rolling, I mailed him the original
letter.  I was also in the process of mailing Joe Kohn a xerox
copy when I learned that the letter was a hoax.  I later tried to
contact the sysop about this Diablo and the trouble he caused, but
the BBS shut down before anything happened.  It was an Amiga board,
and they were falling as quickly as Apple boards.

The letter, FYI, claimed that WordPerfect was $10 shareware.

>and why you refused to deal with
>Joe Kohn about the issue, instead choosing to send your "proof" to
>Charles Turley, when you were repeatedly warned that the Apple II
>community at large could not ever trust anything he touched.

I sent the original to Mr. Turley and was in the process of sending
a xerox to Joe Kohn when I learned it was a hoax.

You have to undestand how things seemed to an outside observer at
the time.  Not knowing the full history of the principle players,
it seemed to me that both sides were simply in one big flamefest.
It is true that some folks were saying to me that Charles Turley
was this and that, but how could I trust them when they were also
in the flamefest?  That's why I wanted to be neutral involving
this issue.

>I eagerly await your response.

Sheldon, I realize this incident sounds somewhat implausable, but it
is the truth.  If something like this happened to me over and over
again, then I would not believe me myself.  But it was an isolated
incident and I tried to rectify the matter as sooned as I learned of
the hoax.

I ask you this: giving me the benefit of a doubt on this incident,
is there any other time that I have done anything that could be
construed as piracy here on csa2?

-Scott G.