[comp.sys.mac.wanted] Mac 128K ROMs ---> questions and More questions

hojo@cbnewsl.att.com (HC Johnson) (01/08/91)

In article <1991Jan4.012611.23146@contact.uucp>, rrwood@contact.uucp (roy wood) writes:
> Someone recently posted a request for 128K ROMs to be used with his Atari ST/
> Spectre GCR.  This prompts me to ask two questions which I've been curious
> about for a while:
> 
> 1.) Why doesn't litigation-happy Apple sic their lawyers on Gadgets by Small?
> 
> 2.) Why doesn't anyone talk about how easy it is to duplicate a set of Mac
>     ROMs i...
> 

The appearance of MegaTalk raises further questions.

Originally, Spectre was a program (emulater) that allowed MAC roms to be 
executed on an ATARI.  The lawyers seem to accept both Spectre and the Amiga
version as long as they read real MAC roms.

Anyone visibly copying MAC roms (such as dealers) have been pursued by Apple.
If you and a friend "share" a single set of ROMS by means of a copying
machine it the same as copying the Spectre program itself.  Illegal, but not
likely to be enforced. (BTW copying the roms is real easy, converting a 
Magic Sac cartridge to hold 128K roms is also easy).

Finally:
Last year there was quite a stir in the ...mac... groups discussing a MAC
clone made in the Far East.  It was felt that Apple would surly strangle 
them.
But now that Gadgets sells the MegaTalk board which duplicates the Mac chips
needed to do "appletalk and SCSI" what is the distinction of a
Mega4 +Megatalk board and a MAC clone.  This isn't just a software emulater!
Its become a MAC clone!


Just a thought.

Howard Johnson
ATT BELL LABS
att!lzsc!hcj
hcj@lzsc.att.com