michael brown wrote... >How many people here have taken a piece of code, a technique, or even an >idea that was offered to the list and used it for personal pecuniary >interests? I'm not disagreeing with anything you posted; I'm just a little surprised at this rhetorical question as well as this ongoing "tempest in a teapot" which prompted it. Why is commercial use an issue here? Is it not true that many- if not most- of the people who seek information or assistance here on the Piclist are doing so in the course of their work? Sure, there are a number of hobbyists and students who participate in this forum just for fun; but I've assumed from the beginning that most of the requests for help come from people who **ARE** going to use the requested information for "personal pecuniary interests" as will, probably, many others who subscribe to the list. Isn't that what the Piclist is for? Or is the material here somehow restricted to "hobby use only", or to satisfy idle intellectual curiosity? I assume that when I answer someone's question here, the person seeking the answer may very well profit financially from that information, one way or another; and others might, too. Nothing wrong with that. [snip] >The bottom line here is that James is in control of the list. He is the >"supreme entity" in charge. He is being accused of a "travesty" that = hasn't >even been proven. I REALLY hope James isn't letting this business ruin his weekend. As far as I can see, he's doing a fine job. Plain fact is, you can't please everyone, and it's foolish to even try. >Your e-mail addresses are probably worth far more to James (as saleable >items) than any piece of code contained in the archive. Has anyone here >been inundated with spam relating to engineering... Nope. Three months on the Piclist, and nary a piece of engineering-related spam. Nada. But I have noticed a recent flurry of extremely annoying "PROVEN WAYS TO ENLARGE YOUR PENIS!" e-mails lately... >I, for one, would not like to see this list destroyed or permanently = damaged >over perceived problems. I wouldn't worry about it; I'm sure the list has weathered much worse than this. Those who are satisfied with its operation will stay, and those who are not will go. Cheers, Dave -- http://www.piclist.com hint: The PICList is archived three different ways. See http://www.piclist.com/#archives for details.