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Guy Finds StarCraft Source Code and Returns It to Blizzard

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Re: Guy Finds StarCraft Source Code and Returns It to Blizzard

#131

Post by Dylan16807 »

eridius wrote: post #121
Dylan16807 wrote: post #110

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Returning it to Blizzard directly is good for Blizzard. Returning your code is good for you. To expand on this, it's good in general to return leaked code of active-development projects because that helps the social contract of turning work into something that can be sold. So if I found jakebasile's 2015 code in an alley, it would be in some sense good for everyone for me to return it. But that doesn't apply to a 2…

So it's ok to take other people's property, as long as it's "culturally important"? TBH this makes me think of the old practice of smuggling jade artifacts out of China. Hey, it's culturally important, so clearly that means it's ok for other people to take it, right?

The "out of China" part is the problem there. That's a problem that's pretty much irrelevant to a question of whether or not to distribute copies of data files.

And I didn't say that cultural importance is an automatic justification. The new star wars movie also has cultural importance, but there would be large downsides to free-for-all piracy of it during its release year. Downsides that don't exist with 20 year old source code.

Re: Guy Finds StarCraft Source Code and Returns It to Blizzard

#132

Post by csallen »

jakebasile wrote: post #68
scrollaway wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's unclear whether it's a legal obligation given that the disc was found, it's even less clear whether it's a moral obligation. If you didn't know anything about Blizzard, what would you speculate? Someone elsewhere in the thread for example is speculating Blizzard would destroy the copy -- if I thought that'd be a possibility, I would personally never send it their way and you could in no world convince me it's mo…

It probably isn't strictly a legal obligation to return the physical disc barring stolen property stuff, but it would definitely be illegal to redistribute copyrighted code without a license to do so. Maybe you could claim some type of fair use but it wouldn't be transformative so I can't see how. As for morality, I apply the golden rule: if someone found the code I wrote for a groundbreaking piece of software, and I…

> As for morality, I apply the golden rule: if someone found the code I wrote for a groundbreaking piece of software, and I didn't want to open source it, I'd really like for them to respect my wishes and return it.

The golden rule is, like most other unilateral rules, an oversimplification. Of course, that's what makes it attractive — it's an effortless substitute for having to think through the complex and messy realities of any given situation. But let's not kid ourselves that something is automatically good because we would want that thing in Blizzard's situation, case closed.

Re: Guy Finds StarCraft Source Code and Returns It to Blizzard

#133

Post by saboot »

huehehue wrote: post #53
jpgvm wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not normal source code. It's not like you found the source to the latest Halo game or something. This is like finding the source to the original Halo game, of little to no commercial value but of immense cultural value. Where possible these artefacts are archived so they will be around long after the companies have folded. Unfortunately it's just not possible most of the time as companies end up taking their sof…

Not too sure about "no commercial value" considering the impending release of StarCraft: Remastered

Wow, this is a very overlooked comment. I had no idea about Starcraft: Remastered. They're releasing the original game in HD.

Pretty much nulls all of the 'no commercial value' arguments I see here.

Re: Guy Finds StarCraft Source Code and Returns It to Blizzard

#134

Post by yason »

jpgvm wrote: post #49
jakebasile wrote: post #44

It looks like someone found a copy of Blizzard's copyrighted source code, returned it to Blizzard, and got a reward. Why are people upset about this? It seems like the right thing to do to my mind. If someone found a copy of my own source laying in the street I'd be very happy if they returned it instead of releasing it on the net.

It's not normal source code. It's not like you found the source to the latest Halo game or something. This is like finding the source to the original Halo game, of little to no commercial value but of immense cultural value. Where possible these artefacts are archived so they will be around long after the companies have folded. Unfortunately it's just not possible most of the time as companies end up taking their sof…

Registering and getting copyright should depend on providing a no-strings-attached source format to a universal archival organisation. If you intend to sell your product or defend your copyrights you would have to have it registered and archived first. Should you stop selling the product the archive would be opened since you obviously aren't making money off the product anymore.

This would effectively limit copyright to the products' natural lifecycle and prevent hoarding the bits "just because I can", thanks to copyright imbalance.

Re: Guy Finds StarCraft Source Code and Returns It to Blizzard

#135

Post by onion2k »

jpgvm wrote: post #49
jakebasile wrote: post #44

It looks like someone found a copy of Blizzard's copyrighted source code, returned it to Blizzard, and got a reward. Why are people upset about this? It seems like the right thing to do to my mind. If someone found a copy of my own source laying in the street I'd be very happy if they returned it instead of releasing it on the net.

It's not normal source code. It's not like you found the source to the latest Halo game or something. This is like finding the source to the original Halo game, of little to no commercial value but of immense cultural value. Where possible these artefacts are archived so they will be around long after the companies have folded. Unfortunately it's just not possible most of the time as companies end up taking their sof…

This was an incredibly rare opportunity to archive something of cultural significance to millions of people

It's a bit like losing Leonardo Da Vinci's paint recipes - it's a loss, but it's not a big loss. The important thing about his art is the art itself. The same is true of Starcraft.

Re: Guy Finds StarCraft Source Code and Returns It to Blizzard

#136

Post by Svekax »

enraged_camel wrote: post #106
Svekax wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You buy a box of old documents on Ebay. It contains an original manuscript of The Fellowship of the Ring with J. R. R. Tolkien's edits and notes in the margins. Tolkien's estate demands the copy back so they can burn it. You should mail it to them because they own it, right? It's just a book, right? No, you shouldn't. They owners shouldn't be able to destroy it for the same reason we have laws protecting monuments an…

>>They owners shouldn't be able to destroy it for the same reason we have laws protecting monuments and historical sites. Monuments and historical sites require Acts of Congress or Executive Orders to establish. If you care so much about this game's source code, maybe you should write to your congress critter.

No new laws needed. The Library of Congress just needs to take software and video games more seriously.

Re: Guy Finds StarCraft Source Code and Returns It to Blizzard

#137

Post by test1235 »

jpgvm wrote: post #54
huehehue wrote: post #46

Damn people are tearing this guy apart, the reddit threads are particularly brutal. It's a video game. The finder has no obligation to risk legal trouble so that a game can be modified, played, or even preserved. I'm all for archiving these sorts of things, and agree there's probably no great reason to keep the source private. But if I have the (likely) stolen property of a large company and they ask for its return,…

It's actually pretty simple. If you find yourself in the same situation: 1. Rip disk 2. Send to archive.org 3. Mail disk to Blizzard. Blizzard will destroy this copy or at least make sure it never circulates again, by sending it to archive.org you have relieved yourself of the burden of releasing it. They may or may not choose to release it but they will at least keep it archived so that if Blizzard is to be lost the…

You'd still get in trouble for making that copy and distributing it.

Re: Guy Finds StarCraft Source Code and Returns It to Blizzard

#138

Post by TeMPOraL »

peterwwillis wrote: post #128
TeMPOraL wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Blizzard instead pays for the expensive flight, hotel, con, and drinks for a 32 year old white male computer nerd who accidentally found a CD in a storage unit I'm all for charity, but wait, so rewarding a person _actually involved_ and who actually did the good (for the company) deed is somehow bad these days? Also, white male computer nerds are people too, you know.

I think the $250 and a game was reward enough. The rest was what felt gratuitous. Are they, though? Some of the ones on reddit seem like animals.

> Some of the ones on reddit seem like animals.

I tend to feel the same whenever I visit a forum where the "general population" spends time. I learned though not to generalize this over whole demographics - it's just that shitty communities attract shitty people and reward increasingly shitty behaviour.

--

I'm all for diversity and equal opportunities, but making white males feel guilty for existing seems counterproductive to me.

Re: Guy Finds StarCraft Source Code and Returns It to Blizzard

#140

Post by infinityplus1 »

Many are blaming him for not releasing the source code anonymously. Do you really think he had the knowledge to do that safely? He would have already done that if he could. It's really simple, don't play with fire if you don't know how to handle it.
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