From: Mark Green <mark@cs.ualberta.ca>
Subject: Re: INDUSTRY: Not Invented Here
Organization: University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada

cyberoid@stein3.u.washington.edu (Robert Jacobson) writes:
>As for the nondisclosure agreement, Mark, one cannot do without it.
>But don't believe it really protects you.  A simple change here and
>there, and it's just nice words on a piece of paper.  Really.

You can make it work, and simple changes don't make any difference.
But, you need to have the resources to call in the lawyers when
needed.  This can be difficult for small companies, but there are
always law firms that are willing to work for a share of the spoils.
Alternatively, you need to be good a bluffing, make the other party
think you really know whats going on and have resources behind you.

>I'm not railing against actual theft of inventions so much as I am the
>false inflation of expectations by prospective buyers that then turn
>out to be either disinterested introverts or actual competitors.  It
>happens.  I got three times as many emails telling me so as the two
>protests.  I bet I could get more.  I guess it's an attitude that gets
>my goat.  We can do better.

I don't deny that these sorts of things happen.  The VR world is full
of unethical operators (read, slime balls), they are attracted by the
fact that the field is new and their is not a lot of common knowledge
about it.  A shady operator with a small amount of knowledge can get a
long way in our field.  This is the unfortunate side of being a hot
new field.  As the field matures these problems will go away.  Until
it does get everything in writing.  If you are running a new company
of a university lab., get a written contract with other companies you
are working with, don't assume they will simply do "the right thing".
If there is going to be joint research, put it in the form of a
contract spelling out the benefits to both parties.  With a large
company a verbal agreement can be made with one person, but by the
time it comes to pay that person may be in a different department or
not even with the company.  You have lost all record of the deal.  You
need to have it in writing.

Now for my own horror story (those of you developing VR software
should pay careful attention to this).  In the early days of MR
development a software company came to us offering their assistance
with distribution and other things.  It turns out that they wanted a
free copy, they were then going to claim that they developed the
software, and sell it back to us and others we had distributed it to
(claiming infringement on their copyright).  Cute little trick.
That's why we force every person who gets a copy of MR to sign a
license agreement, even though the software is free.  It guarantees
that we won't lose control of the software.