[comp.text] Status of TeX

steve@cs.hw.ac.uk (Steven Salvini) (05/24/89)

I recently down-loaded a copy of DOSTEX and having read the "COPYING"
information file I'm still a little unclear as to the status of this program.
Simply, is it public domain/shareware or what?

Ta and ta-ta,
Steve.

  Steven Salvini                     JANET :  steve@uk.ac.hw.cs
  Department of Computer Science     UUCP  :  ..!ukc!cs.hw.ac.uk!steve
  Heriot-Watt University             ARPA  :  steve@cs.hw.ac.uk
  EDINBURGH    EH1 3HJ    Scotland   Phone#: (+44) 31 225 6465 (Ext. 538)

-- 
  Steven Salvini                     JANET :  steve@uk.ac.hw.cs
  Department of Computer Science     UUCP  :  ..!ukc!cs.hw.ac.uk!steve
  Heriot-Watt University             ARPA  :  steve@cs.hw.ac.uk
  EDINBURGH    EH1 3HJ    Scotland   Phone#: (+44) 31 225 6465 (Ext. 538)

33609796@vax5.CIT.CORNELL.EDU (06/12/89)

In article <2520@brahma.cs.hw.ac.uk> steve@cs.hw.ac.uk (Steven Salvini) writes:
>
>I recently down-loaded a copy of DOSTEX and having read the "COPYING"
>information file I'm still a little unclear as to the status of this program.
>Simply, is it public domain/shareware or what?

I don't see how it could be.  (I know nothing about DOSTEX in particular.)
TeX is copyrighted by the American Mathematical Society, and that should 
protect derivative works and all that as well.  Anybody have any information
(not ideas) on the issue of derivatives of TeX and the AMS copyright?

John Lacey
Ohio Wesleyan University
BITnet: jjlacey@owucmcn

Summer address: epdx@vax5.cit.cornell.edu

texins02@umd5.umd.edu (TeX Short Course Instructor) (06/13/89)

In article <18780@vax5.CIT.CORNELL.EDU> epdx@vax5.cit.cornell.edu  (John Lacey) writes:
>In article <2520@brahma.cs.hw.ac.uk> steve@cs.hw.ac.uk (Steven Salvini) writes:
>>I recently down-loaded a copy of DOSTEX and having read the "COPYING"
>>information file I'm still a little unclear as to the status of this program.
>>Simply, is it public domain/shareware or what?
>
>I don't see how it could be.  (I know nothing about DOSTEX in particular.)
>TeX is copyrighted by the American Mathematical Society, and that should 
>protect derivative works and all that as well.  Anybody have any information
>(not ideas) on the issue of derivatives of TeX and the AMS copyright?

The terms of TeX's copyright permit TeX to be freely copied so long as no
changes are made to the program.

Machine-specific implementations, however, may be copyrighted with 
different copyright terms. This copyright covers only the changes to TeX
(through WEB's CHANGE file mechanism), and not TeX itself.

In the specific case of DOSTeX, it is permitted to freely copy the program,
but not to sell it (as per GNU). The fee to the author is to guarantee
notificiation of updates and also limited mail support of the program.


-dh

U33297@UICVM.UIC.EDU
(Don Hosek)