Edward, I agree with your point, which is why I asked the question. Risk cannot be eliminated, but it can be understood and managed so that useful work can still be done. If there is any way I can find out what the commiters do prior to reaching a decision to accept or reject a particular submission, I would like to know about it.
Thanks in advance, Bill "Edward Elliott" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message news:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > Dennis Lee Bieber wrote: > >> I work for a risk-averse company, and I want to compile a solid case for > >> obtaining and using Python at work. > >> > > Given the nature of the US Patent Office... You might as well lock > > the doors now... > > > > The Patent Office could issue a patent next week that makes all > > bytecode interpreted languages subject to some royalty... > > Risk isn't just what could happen, it's how likely it is and what effects it > would have. A patent affecting millions of installed interpreters is > pretty unlikely and would have many challengers. Even if it were upheld, > how many larger companies with deeper pockets would they go after before > his? And everyone stuck in the same boat would quickly work towards a > non-infringing solution. Cases like MS-EOLAS and RIM-NTP aren't exactly a > daily occurence. They also demonstrate why there really is safety in > numbers. > > Plus all the potential negatives have to weighed against the increased > productivity his company gains from using a scripting language. The gains > may more than offset any potential patent settlement. > > Risk-averse doesn't mean head-in-the-sand. > -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
