Re: Long names are doom ?

["Dale King" <KingD@TCE.com>]

"Marin David Condic" <marin.condic.auntie.spam@pacemicro.com> wrote in
message news:9fotpi$4k6$1@nh.pace.co.uk...
> When I was in kindergarden, the teacher gave us these sage words of
advice:
> "Hot things burn. Sharp things cut." You *expect* coffee to be hot -
that's
> the point. If it was cold, you would complain. Through your own
> carelessness, a thing expected to be what it is is actually what it is and
> it does you harm. That is the fault of McDonalds? OTOH, One *expects*
> software to work just like one expects their car to work or their TV to
> work. (O.K. We all know better, but why do we stand for it?) When it
doesn't
> do what it is expected to do, we let the manufacturer off the hook - even
> when there are proven methods for making software more reliable and they
are
> not followed?


Unfortunately, a software lawsuit would have little ground to stand on.
Imagine if McDonald's required all customers who order hot coffee to sign an
agreement before they are given the coffee where they acknowledge that the
coffee is hot and can cause burns and that the customer assumes all
responsibility for the proper handling of the coffee. If you got burnt from
the coffee would you be able to win a suit agains McDonald's? Not likely,
since you agreed to accept the responsibility.

Read most software license agreements and you'll find that most are like my
hypothetical coffee agreement. Here is a sample from an IBM license
agreement: "IBM does not warrant uninterrupted or error-free operation of
the Program or that we will correct all Program defects. You are responsible
for the results obtained from the use of the Program." And since "IBM WILL
LICENSE THE PROGRAM TO YOU ONLY IF YOU FIRST ACCEPT THE TERMS OF THIS
AGREEMENT. " then you don't really have a legal leg to stand on. They even
have clauses limiting their liability.
--
 Dale King