Re: Origin of Apple "Lisa" Computer Name : Apple IIe Software ?

[Gregory Weston <uce@splook.com>]

In article <448356EC.64E56666@buckeye-express.com>,
 "Paul R. Santa-Maria" <paulrsm@buckeye-express.com> wrote:

> "frankdowling1@yahoo.com" wrote:
> > If the firm was still in business when the Lisa was released  Apple
> > would have had some difficulty in copywriting the name .
> 
> I am not a lawyer, but I believe it would have been a trademark
> issue, not a copyright issue.

Yep. Copyright covers the specific expression of an idea. Trademark's 
about product identification. Patents cover methods or mechanisms.

> Trademark law is supposed to
> prevent confusion by consumers.  I see no problem with a program
> called LISA on one computer being confused with a computer named
> Lisa.

I do. Considering the mainstream lack of differentiation between the 
machine and the OS and the common bundling of at least some level of 
development tools with desktop systems in that era, I think there's more 
opportunity for consumer confusion than, say, the Apple/Apple brouhaha.

I get the impression that part of what's been lost here is that "Lisa" 
was not (intended to be) a product name. It was an internal name during 
product development.

-- 
What I write is what I mean. I request that anyone who decides to respond
please refrain from "disagreeing" with something I didn't write in the first
place.