[NTLK] Planning to crack Bernie’s BookReader if abandonware. Does anyone else need this app?

[Michael Sheflin]

I am not sure you can be prosecuted criminally if there no financial
benefit (to you).  However, to your point, the federal government can
prosecute people without involvement of the copyright holder - probably
just not under these circumstances.

Otherwise, the financial argument Forrest raised is a compensation of a
fair use defense.  However, courts may not be thrilled that the entire
source code will have been used.  Fair use - as an archetype - would be
like borrowing a snippet of copyrighted text to use in a non-commercial,
educational presentation.

As I noted before, with no comment from anyone - that I saw, Bernie appears
to be dead, sadly.  It seems unlikely permission will be given.


On Sat, Sep 18, 2021, 2:29 AM Laurence W Brown via NewtonTalk <
newtontalk at newtontalk.net> wrote:

> a practical consideration is: who is going to enforce any copyright? the
> rights-holder, heirs, or a corporate beneficiary? attempting to contact all
> rights-holders would help alleviate potential liability. the moral issue
> particularly applies to heirs, so they should certainly be permitted to
> benefit from any rights that might belong to them…
>
> (all hale our Disney overlords.)
>
> -L.W. Brown
> via 8s+
>
> > On Sep 17, 2021, at 23:20, Forrest <newton_phoenix at mindspring.com>
> wrote:
> >
> > I hate to chime in on this—but here goes.
> >
> > Andrei is of course correct. This has been a heated discussion ongoing
> in the many years I’ve been proud to be a part of NTLK.
> >
> > One should ALWAYS first endeavour to obtain the registration key or code
> by accepted methods—payment made, etc. However as the years roll on there
> are less and less of these sources still available. Some have been grand
> enough to donate the source code for the software or a key generator, but
> that’s been the minority.
> >
> > While there is no reasoning with the copyright law and no grey area
> within it, IIRC the solution was often stated this way—will the infringer
> profit from this intrusion? The Newton is more than 20 years old, it’s not
> a hotbed for new development. While defeating a registration code by a hack
> or other means (as opposed to using the correctly obtained one) is against
> the copyright law, what is the user going to accomplish? If it’s for
> personal use and that’s as far as it goes (meaning that key or hack is not
> passed on so others could do the same), again if memory serves that has
> been less frowned upon.
> >
> > I mean, wasn’t the software created so it could be utilized, ultimately?
> >
> > But that doesn’t make it right, as Andrei points out.
> >
> > These are questions to ponder.
> >
> > Mahalo,
> > Forrest
> >
> > Sent from my T-Mobile iPhone 11
> >
> >> On Sep 17, 2021, at 2:15 PM, Michael Rebar <michael.rebar at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> >>
> >> Appreciate the warning. If the developer comes forward and has a link
> to pay for the app will do so. Till then, the app was deconstructed to
> learn how it works.
> >>
> >> I am using these apps to learn how NewtonOS functions as some of the
> code is similar to my AI under development.
> >>
> >> AIRA will be open source, and have come to learn from the “Love
> Notes..” movie that similar algorithms were used as part of HWR. If the
> same logic array is used to put speech to text in the BookReader app then
> it gives me some confirmation I am on the right path.
> >>
> >> Since this development cycle will take more than the 7 days the app
> allows for use, I do not think waiting 75 years makes sense before cracking
> the security to learn from this nearly 20 year old software.
> >>
> >> Newton does not belong in a museum, nor do the apps. Funny how “old”
> tech still has present purpose. I would have struggled a lot less
> developing AIRA if I had realized NewtonOS has similar DNA.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>>> On Sep 17, 2021, at 12:23 PM, Michael Rebar <michael.rebar at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> >>>
> >>> Have not heard from developer so planning to crack the shareware
> protection on this program since likely abandonware.
> >>>
> >>> Does anyone else need this program? If so let me know.
> >>>
> >>> Or does someone already have a key gen?
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> Sent from my iPhone
> >>
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