Besides being the most random question possible -- I'm not really sure if this idea would work in this community. Asking for an optional donation might be acceptable, but shouldn't be a requirement for download.

Thats what I like about this websight...free

>websight

Hmmm...I guess that would be the view I get of the webSITE from my browser? ;-)

Hey, be nice! Just because I am too lazy to check my spelling is not YOUR business!

I noticed that right after I posted it.

the website is free and that's the good thing about it, everything is public domain.

though, why do you ask Jon, is ticalc going to become like itunes or something?

It better not!

well considering each program is property of it's author, ticalc wouldn't really have the right to charge money just for archiving the programs. There is no way it would ever be taken to court (a copyrighted ticalc program?!) so other sites could offer free program/game downloads and ticalc would become extinct.

Don't worry, that's probably the last thing they'd do here.

Ticalc would end up being like the RIAA...
Calculator programs don't have copyright protection, since it's so easy to copy them all over the place. There'd have to be some sort of proprietary format, and that would be such a pain in the ass that in the end it wouldn't be worth it. Look at what's happening to the RIAA right now!

> Calculator programs don't have copyright protection, since it's so easy to copy them all over the place.

They sure do have copyright protection, regardless of how easy it is to copy them. Your statement is like saying that music doesn't have copyright protection because I can copy music very easily (just burn a copy of a CD or give someone an MP3).

you have a point

I agree!

Technically, ticalc.org couldn't sell a product, since they are a non-profit organization (hence the .org domain).
This whole idea isn't good...with so many companies demanding my money, this is the last place I'd spend it (although I did pay $8 to verizon to get tetris on my phone >.<). The people who visit this site aren't going to have much money to spend on this sort of thing, or they won't be able to. If I were to buy something online, I would need a credit card, which most of us don't have, and I doubt parents would be willing to help with. A complete waste of time if you ask me.
If ticalc is even considering this, they should think about the other things they should be doing to this site, like maybe...a redesign? Hell, if slashdot can pull that off, I think it's about time we did, too!

see link ^^

Two things:
1. That is a fake news item.
2. THAT WAS APRIL FOOLS!!!!!!!!1

so, my only point was to say that it has been thought of.

More than you know my friend.

I guess I don't see why we're discussing this since fortunately, it's never going to happen anyways...

Having a .org domain does not mean the organization must be non-profit (or stay non-profit, as in ticalc's case). Of course, this doesn't mean that ticalc will become not non-profit (?) anymore.

"not non-profit"
profit oriented?

Exactly.

paypal could be used

Actually, it is not public domain. Many of the programs (though probably not all) are copyrighted by their respective authors. A few may be in the public domain, but you should in general assume any creative work is not unless otherwise stated. Copyrights are automatic even without notice, at least in the United States.

the authors of the programs on ticalc are not responsible for anything that could happen through using their programs, thus their work is not copyright material, or warrantied, if something happens to your computer via windows Microsoft is responsible.

Well, Microsoft is responsible because computers are way more expensive than calculators, and they have their guarantee/warrantee thing. These people have legitimate copyrights (they just have to mention it is copyrighted, if even that), they just don't have guarantees. Which is why they claim that they are not responsible. Even if they didn't post that, who would pay the court costs and lawyer charges to sue someone over a hundred dollar (average) calculator that they could just replace for less money? Not to mention, how would you prove something like that?

"Microsoft is responsible because computers are way more expensive than calculators,"

I don't think the expense is what causes the responsibility but...

dont we have someone who had law as a major/minor or as a profession here who can give us one good explanation on ti program copyrights??

"Microsoft is responsible because computers are way more expensive than calculators,"

I don't think the expense is what causes the responsibility but...

dont we have someone who has law as a major/minor or as a profession here who can give us one good explanation on ti program copyrights??

oops my bad-only meant to post once

Well, My thought here is for a work to be copyrighted, it has to be passed through the copyright office (of the particular country that the author resides in). Also, a copyright is a legal right granted to an author for exclusive publication. From these facts, I extrapolate to draw two conclusions:

1) By putting your programs on ticalc.org you have already "signed" away your right to a copyright, because you are not the sole distributor of your work.

2) I highly doubt that any author here has gone thru the copyright office of their respective country for this right.

I pose a question to Magnus though, have you copyrighted Zshell?

Copyrights are automatic in the United States (& probably elsewhere). If a programmer in the US writes something & posts it here, it must be assumed copyrighted unless explicitly released into the public domain (& some countries do not actually allow that, for some reason).

That said, if you post something here, you are agreeing to let people download it. You still can stop others from, say, claiming to be the author, but you cannot really stop people from downloading it (without asking the staff to remove it from the archives).

You forget that here is not the US, nor is it Sweden, although the server is in Sweden, but that's not the point. The Internet is not in any specific country, and is governed by no standard set of laws, I could kill someone online, and could get away with it, although that is impossible.

Citizens of the U.S. are bound by U.S. law regardless of where they are, as far as I know. Also, if I, as a U.S. citizen, write a program in the U.S., then upload it to the Internet, it is already copyright before it gets to the Internet. The Internet may be international & distributed, but my individual computer is in a specific location.

"I could kill someone online, and could get away with it, although that is impossible."
Idk... have you read Stephen King's "Cell"? :D

No you do not sign away your program because ticalc.org does not express it is taking your rights. And also if your saying that then Quake 4 is "signed" away to Walmart or Xbox 360 is "signed" away to EB Games just because they distrubute them. Your logic is not correct.

"1) By putting your programs on ticalc.org you have already "signed" away your right to a copyright, because you are not the sole distributor of your work."

You merely grant ticalc.org a license to distribute your copyrighted work. Some authors have adopted friendlier licenses like the GPL which extend this freedom to others. In any case, ticalc.org's file upload form makes no attempt to claim your rights as copyright holder. It does ask you to review their site policies regarding uploaded content:

"Files uploaded to this site do not become the property of ticalc.org without the author's explicit permission, and ticalc.org distributes these files in accordance with their individual distribution guidelines. Please read their documentation for any possible copyright and distribution information." (site disclaimer)

Clearly authors do not "sign" away their rights by sharing programs here. Authors do agree to allow ticalc.org to solicit funds and display advertisements to cover non-profit operational costs. Supposing ticalc.org was to break this agreement by soliciting funds for anything other than operational costs, then they could loose the right to display some content users uploaded.

There is no indication that this will happen. Don't read too much into hypothetical surveys. :)

From the Microsoft Windows EULA:

15. LIMITED WARRANTY FOR SOFTWARE ACQUIRED IN THE US AND CANADA. Microsoft warrants that the Software will perform substantially in accordance with the accompanying materials for a period of ninety (90) days from the date of receipt. If an implied warranty or condition is created by your state /jurisdiction and federal or state/provincial law prohibits disclaimer of it, you also have an implied warranty or condition, BUT ONLY AS TO DEFECTS DISCOVERED DURING THE PERIOD OF THIS LIMITED WARRANTY (NINETY DAYS). AS TO ANY DEFECTS DISCOVERED AFTER THE NINETY-DAY PERIOD, THERE IS NO WARRANTY OR CONDITION OF ANY KIND. Some states/jurisdictions do not allow limitations on how long an implied warranty or condition lasts, so the above limitation may not apply to you. Any supplements or updates to the Software, including without limitation, any (if any) service packs or hot fixes provided to you after the expiration of the ninety day Limited Warranty period are not covered by any warranty or condition, express, implied or statutory.

etc., see link.

Or, in summary, Microsoft is not responsible for anything because you must sign your life away to use their software.

Actually, one reason for having a copyright on something is so that you can legally enforce a lack of warranty. If it is in the public domain, you cannot force users to agree to a license agreement (disclaiming liability) in order to use it. Not copyrighted = public domain = you do not own it - but you still wrote it; hence, they could sue you if it exploded or whatnot.