What is the word here about Microsoft, VNC and XP?

[Chris Johansen]

At 4/23/2002 Tuesday 11:52 AM, you wrote:

>Microsoft's XP license agreement says, "Except
>as otherwise permitted by the NetMeeting, Remote
>Assistance, and Remote Desktop features described
>below, you may not use the Product to permit any
>Device to use, access, display, or run other
>executable software residing on the Workstation
>Computer, nor may you permit any Device to use,
>access, display, or run the Product or Product's
>user interface, unless the Device has a separate
>license for the Product."

Guess it depends on what "Device" means, or, specifically, what a court 
decides it means.  If "Device" means device, as commonly used, right now 
this verbiage says you must have a separate licence for *each* of *any* 
attached mouse, keyboard, display monitor, or other device.

Note that the type of applications mentioned "NetMeeting, Remote 
Assistance, and Remote Desktop) *imply* remote "use, access, display, or 
run[ning],"  but nowhere else does it explicitly use the term "remote;" it 
makes (as any lawyer will advise) the broadest possible claim.

Clearly, a laptop must be a single device.  Do I need more licences for its 
docking station, detached second keyboard, and second monitor?  Do I need 
another license if I attach a mouse to the laptop instead of using its 
integral touchpad or joybutton?

But does the "Workstation Computer" include its peripherals?

If I use a switchbox to choose between two monitors do I need three 
additional licenses?

Yes, this is "reductio ad absurdem."  The problem with splitting hares is 
that you get rabbit guts all over the place.

OTOH, it says, "you may not use the Product to permit [those uses 
enumerated]."  One could argue that one merely uses the Product to run VNC 
Server and that VNC Server (surely not a Device) then runs the user 
interface and applications, while connected to a VNC Viewer.

Best regards,
-- 
Chris Johansen
33 Haywood Street
Asheville, NC 28801-2835
---------------------------------------------------------------------
To unsubscribe, mail majordomo "at" uk.research.att.com with the line:
'unsubscribe vnc-list' in the message BODY
See also: http://www.uk.research.att.com/vnc/intouch.html
---------------------------------------------------------------------