[Coco] [Color Computer] Copyrights

[Boisy Pitre]

On Sep 21, 2008, at 4:34 PM, Neil Morrison wrote:

>
> This is from Frank Durda (who knows more about this than anyone!) :-
>
> From: Frank Durda IV (uhclem.feb99 at nemesis.lonestar.org)
> Subject: Re: Why Did Tandy stop making computers
> Newsgroups: comp.sys.tandy
> Date: 1999/02/13
>
> [...]
>
> Tandy, in selling the store to AST back in 1993, got the right to  
> continue
> to
> support their customers, and that was taken to mean (by Tandy) that  
> Tandy
> could make and sell replacement disks for operating systems and  
> things owned
> by Tandy.  However, Tandy got greedy and started making copies of  
> anything
> they had ever sold, regardless of who wrote it and who held the  
> copyright,
> including products that Tandy never actually duplicated/ 
> manufactured, like
> SCO for PCs.  Microsoft, Lotus, Borland and lots of other people  
> could have
> sued Tandy big-time over the replacement disk program, particularly  
> after
> Tandy stopped looking for proof of purchase before selling anybody a  
> $7 copy
> of anything, but the rightful owners didn't sue Tandy, at least not  
> yet.


This certainly sounds in line with what I remember.  Back around 1998  
or so, the local Radio Shack store here in Opelousas was still selling  
CoCo software through their Express Order service.  In the store,  
there was a kiosk that had a row of large white binders containing a  
list of a lot of old software, cordless phone batteries, electronic  
parts, etc.  You could order at the store or call a toll-free number,  
and I distinctly remember OS-9 Level Two and other disk based software  
being listed, along with ROM pak software for the CoCo.

Incidentally, Radio Shack even sold the CoCo 3 service manual as late  
as 1999.  According to my notes, I placed a call to 1-800-THE-SHACK on  
June 20, 2002 only to discover that the service manual was  
discontinued on December 7, 2001.

Regards,
Boisy G. Pitre
--
Tee-Boy
Email: boisy at tee-boy.com
Web: http://www.tee-boy.com