Re: pho: Nullsoft Lays Claim to WASTE

Ah, the intrigue continues....

Was W.A.S.T.E. released under GPL or was it a defiant act of frustration by a
creative coding genius under contract?

Justin is like a rock star signed to Warner Bros. Records who wants to sing his
own songs and brays at the corporate bridle.  His departure from AOL/Nullsoft
will be A Good Thing, IMHO.  I can only imagine the magic (and havoc!) he will
create.  Does the world really need WinAMP 8.5?  Bah!  2.91 is great, thank you
very much.  3.0 is a mess. 

Now with Case's ouster 'the man' is just going to hold you back and keep you
down.  Onward and upward, Justin!  

God Speed,

JP





--- Seth Johnson <[email protected]> wrote:
> 
> > http://www.corante.com/many/
> > http://news.com.com/2100-1032_3-1011585.html?tag=fd_top
> 
> ---
> 
> > http://www.corante.com/many/
> 
> WASTE Update: New legal threats from Nullsoft
> 
> Nullsoft posted WASTE, a secure small workgroup package in its early stages
> of development, at http://www.nullsoft.com/free/waste/. The link went 404
> this morning, though there's a mirror here, and now, at the same URL, is
> this message:
> 
> > NOTICE OF UNAUTHORIZED SOFTWARE 
> 
> > An unauthorized copy of Nullsoft's copyrighted
> > software was briefly posted on this website on or
> > about Wednesday May 28, 2003. The software was
> > identified as "WASTE" (the "Software") and includes
> > the files "waste-setup.exe", "waste-source.zip",
> > "waste-source.tar.gz" and any additional files
> > contained in these files. 
> 
> > Nullsoft is the exclusive owner of all right, title and
> > interest in the Software. The posting of the Software
> > on this website was not authorized by Nullsoft. 
> 
> > If you downloaded or otherwise obtained a copy of
> > the Software, you acquired no lawful rights to the
> > Software and must destroy any and all copies of the
> > Software, including by deleting it from your
> > computer. Any license that you may believe you
> > acquired with the Software is void, revoked and
> > terminated. 
> 
> > Any reproduction, distribution, display or other use of
> > the Software by you is unauthorized and an
> > infringement of Nullsoft's copyright in the Software
> > as well as a potential violation of other laws. 
> 
> > Thank you. 
> 
> > Nullsoft 
> 
> This is very curious, as the original page was on the Nullsoft site, not
> some third party site, and the source appeared under the GPL. There's also a
> News.com story about it
> (http://news.com.com/2100-1032_3-1011585.html?tag=fd_top).
> 
> ---
> 
> > http://news.com.com/2100-1032_3-1011585.html?tag=fd_top
> 
> 
> AOL pulls Nullsoft file-sharing software 
> 
> By Jim Hu 
> Staff Writer, CNET News.com
> May 30, 2003, 2:06 PM PT
> 
> A day after developers at America Online's Nullsoft unit quietly released
> file-sharing software, AOL pulled the link to the product from the
> subsidiary's Web site. 
> 
> The software, called Waste, lets groups set up private, secure file-sharing
> networks. The product became available on Nullsoft's Web site on Wednesday,
> just days shy of the four-year anniversary of being acquired by AOL. Waste
> is a software application that combines peer-to-peer file sharing with
> instant messaging, chat and file searches. Users can set up their own
> network of friends and share files between each other. 
> 
> The features of Waste are similar to those of file-swapping services such as
> Kazaa and the defunct Napster, but the difference is that only small
> networks of people (up to 50, according to the Web site) can use it. The
> software also offers encryption and authentication to prevent non-invitees
> from accessing the private networks. 
> 
> The quiet launch of Waste was the work of Nullsoft's principal developer,
> Justin Frankel, a soft-spoken 20-something known for his tech savvy and his
> streak of rebelliousness. 
> 
> Waste had been used internally to share files between AOL's San Francisco
> office, where Nullsoft is based, and its Dulles, Va., headquarters,
> according to Ian Rogers, a former founding member of Nullsoft. 
> 
> "The real play is when you've got small networks of co-workers or friends
> who can share whatever they want securely," Rogers said in an interview. "It
> could be a group of government officials sharing secure documents or it
> could be Justin sharing video files with AOL Dulles." 
> 
> An AOL representative did not return requests for comment. 
> 
> Nullsoft has had its conflicts with AOL in the past, such as in 2000 when
> Frankel developed a music file-swapping technology called Gnutella. AOL
> quickly pulled it off the Web fearing legal ramifications, but not before
> developers downloaded it and began creating services based on its software
> code. 
> 
> AOL also forced Nullsoft to shut down an MP3 search engine, fearing the
> legal consequences of the software. Then, Frankel and his cohorts caused a
> stir when they developed software called AIMazing, which replaced banner
> advertisements on AOL Instant Messenger into wiggling sound waves
> accompanied by music. 
> 
> That's not to say all of Nullsoft's products have been a thorn in AOL's
> side. AOL acquired Nullsoft in 1999 for its Winamp MP3 player and now uses
> the technology in its flagship online service. AOL also has been revamping
> its streaming-media delivery system by using another Nullsoft creation
> called Ultravox, which AOL claims can stream media more efficiently than
> other products on the market. AOL uses Ultravox to stream songs on its
> narrowband and broadband radio services.
> 
> -- 
> 
> DRM is Theft!  We are the Stakeholders!
> 
> New Yorkers for Fair Use
> http://www.nyfairuse.org
> 
> [CC] Counter-copyright: http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/cc/cc.html
> 
> I reserve no rights restricting copying, modification or distribution of
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> attributed reasonably, but only so far as such an expectation might hold for
> usual practice in ordinary social discourse to which one holds no claim of
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