[net.micro] April Fools

john@hp-pcd.UUCP (09/27/83)

#N:hp-pcd:6200026:000:613
hp-pcd!john    Sep 26 12:55:00 1983

Popular Computing reported in their Oct 83 edition a rather interesting 
story about DEC. Apparently some of the word processing software given to 
beta test sites for the Decmate II microcomputer was rigged so that if were 
used beyond the bounds of the test agreement then it would go out and destroy 
all the users files. This was done by a source code statement:

  IF DATE$ = APRIL 1,1983 THEN DELETE ALL FILES


This was reported to have been done in order to get people who kept or
bootleged illegal copies. Has anyone heard of this or know someone who
lost files by this?

John Eaton

hplabs!hp-pcd!john