From: adc@tardis.msu.edu (Alan D. Cabrera)
Newsgroups: rec.games.netrek
Subject: Re: Enough of this misinformation (was Re: YAR.
Date: 14 Aug 92 20:18:25 GMT
Reply-To: adc@tardis.msu.edu
Organization: Michigan State University

In article 1@cs.cmu.edu, jch+@cs.cmu.edu (Jonathan Hardwick) writes:
> adc@tardis.msu.edu writes
> > In article 713753667@murphy, fortony@sonne.cso.uiuc.edu () writes:
> > > Nobody's making any money off netrek, except perhaps the companies who
> > > make blankets for the homeless and the distilleries who make Mad Dog 20/20.
> > 
> > Doesn't matter, RSA is still protected under US patent law.
> 
> Ok, I actually went and asked someone (shock horror).  The e-mail
> encryption package is built around RSA-REF (probably wrongly
> capitalized) which is a reference version provided by RSA for the
> public domain.  They *had* to provide it because DARPA included a
> "public use" clause in a contract of theirs (nice one DARPA -- I bet
> that pissed off the lawyers when they found out about it).  So all Ray
> has to do is ask RSA if he can be an official distributor of RSA-REF
> in noncommercial software.  They ask him what he wants it for, he sez
> "a networked computer game that needs better user authentication, and
> which no-one makes any money out of", and he gets a neato free
> license. 
> 
> No patents.  No angry lawyers.  No big nasty company to thumb your
> nose at.  No seized assets.  No closed-down FTP sites.  No bogeymen.
> 
> Overseas players may be hosed, depending on whether or not RSA-REF is
> exportable, and whether or not the RSA-REF license comes with any
> clauses like "thou shalt make thy FTP server software do nasty things
> to anyone logging in from abroad".

From RSAREF's README, those interested in the license can obtain one from rsaref-administrator@rsa.com:

	WHAT YOU CAN (AND CANNOT) DO WITH RSAREF

	The license at the end of this note gives legal terms and
	conditions.  Here's the layman's interpretation, for
	information only and with no legal weight:

	     1.   You can use RSAREF in personal, noncommercial
		  applications, as long as you follow the interface
		  described in the RSAREF documentation. You can't use
		  RSAREF in any commercial (moneymaking) manner of any
		  type, nor can you use it to provide services of any
		  kind to any other party. For information on
		  commercial licenses of RSAREF-compatible products,
		  please contact RSA Data Security.

	     2.   You can distribute programs that interface to RSAREF,
		  but you can't distribute RSAREF itself. Everyone must
		  obtain his or her own copy of RSAREF. (However, free
		  licenses to redistribute RSAREF are available. For
		  information, please send electronic mail to
		  <rsaref-administrator@rsa.com>.)

	     3.   You can modify RSAREF as required to port it to other
		  operating systems and compilers, as long as you give
		  a copy of the results to RSA Laboratories. You can't
		  otherwise change RSAREF.

	     4.   You can't send RSAREF outside the United States, or
		  give it to anyone who is not a United States citizen
		  and doesn't have a "green card." (These are U.S.
		  State and Commerce Department requirements, because
		  RSA and DES are export-controlled technologies.)

As I mentioned from my FIRST post, already knowing that it was possible
to get a free license for RSAREF, everybody and their mother still
needs to get their own individual license for the damn thing.  We can't
send it outside the US.

My original concerns have still yet to be addressed.  Unfortunately our
"resident" cryptologist is in Wisconsin, rubbing elbows with the
cheeseheads.  ;-)



---
Alan Cabrera				internet:  adc@tardis.cl.msu.edu
Computer Laboratory			phone:     (517) 353-3027
Michigan State University		fax:       (517) 353-9847
514 Computer Center			bitnet:    CABRERA@MSU
East Lansing, MI 48824
Newsgroups: rec.games.netrek