Giving the Administration a Helping Hand (s/w re-use)

Giving the Administration a Helping Hand (s/w re-use)

[Don Tyzuk]

o.k., I may be out of my league on this but, fyi:

Today's Toronto Globe and Mail has a feature on the Clinton
administration's desire to beat swords into plowshares. The
article lists a hotline number (1-800-DUAL-USE) with which
one can phone in tips that will suggest ways that defence 
technology can be converted to peacefull purposes.  I would
surmise that despite it's relative newness, there is much
Ada s/w that could be released into the public domain, ala
Gnu-ish licensing, to the benefit of defence projects as well
as peacefull purposes.  

Prodding the military "elephant" from the bottom is not working,
and is not likeley to ever work. However, If this number is real,
then it would seem to have the ear of the president. So, Greg,
here is a chance to sell your service to the White House!

I'll try it myself, but as I am in Canada, I doubt that it will
work.
-- 
Don Tyzuk				| P.O. Box 1406
Jodrey School of Computer Science	| Wolfville, Nova Scotia
Acadia University			| CANADA     B0P 1X0
e-mail: don.tyzuk@acadiau.ca

Re: Giving the Administration a Helping Hand (s/w re-use)

[Gregory Aharonian]

>Prodding the military "elephant" from the bottom is not working,
>and is not likeley to ever work. However, If this number is real,
>then it would seem to have the ear of the president. So, Greg,
>here is a chance to sell your service to the White House!

   Nice suggestion, though I already called them up.  The problem
for me in this case is that companies have to match dollar for dollar
any funding they receive under this new dual-use program.  Since
I pretty much ended up broke trying to start an Ada software reuse
business, I don't have the funds to match with.  Since I can't get
credit for my OWN money that I have invested, there is no way I can
participate in the dual use program, despite the fact that transferring
the defense software in my databases to the private sector would be
very helpful to the company, since with tens of thousands of programs,
I have managed to track down lots of good technology.

   Thus your idea is great, as is the dual use program, if you have the
money to play.

Greg Aharonian
Source Translation & Optimization
-- 
**************************************************************************
Greg Aharonian
Source Translation & Optimiztion
P.O. Box 404, Belmont, MA 02178