Legal Status of Amiga Clones (past and present)

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orb85750 wrote:
I'm still confused about the legal status (but I'm not talking about the software contents on a ROM chip now).  Why is it illegal to copy a given (circuit on a) chip verbatim after the patent for that chip has expired?  During the patent period, it makes sense that one would have to produce a similarly operating chip by some other means (e.g. when AMD "copies" Intel), but does that hold even after the patent expires?  Copyrights on designs never protect you legally against someone else building and selling that product, correct?  That's why there are patents for processes and products.

And for clarity, look at the generic drug market as an example:  When the patent on Viagra ends, can't any generic drug company simply look directly at the molecular structure and copy it?  Or do they somehow have to reverse-engineer the drug without looking directly at the precise molecular structure?  That doesn't seem to make sense.  (Am I making sense?)

Thanks,
-Dave

A patent is for  a technology, an idea. But anything that is actually designed by someone is covered by copyright... this information is all available on the internet... Wikipedia for example.

The contents of the ROM chip is covered by the same copyright as the contents of a book, the storage medium is not important.

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orb85750 wrote:

Belial6 wrote:
Our best hope for getting around the Kickstart hurdle, which as far as I understand it is the only hurdle, is getting the 68k port of AROS back into development.  There is a bounty, and an individual has accepted the bounty, but we have heard nothing form him since he accepted it.  So, we have no idea whether it is almost complete, not even started, or somewhere in between.

Even if the initial releases are not very compatible with the A Inc kickstart, it would be really good for the MiniMig community if it could be shipped with the an OS so that it booted right out of the box.

Is the resulting product supposed to be an emulation of the Amiga ROM vs. a copy of the ROM?

No the result would be a clone of AmigaOS... something that is functionally the same, but written by someone who has no knowledge of the original work, other than how it is supposed to behave.

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orb85750 wrote:

bloodline wrote:

orb85750 wrote:
I'm still confused about the legal status (but I'm not talking about the software contents on a ROM chip now).  Why is it illegal to copy a given (circuit on a) chip verbatim after the patent for that chip has expired?  During the patent period, it makes sense that one would have to produce a similarly operating chip by some other means (e.g. when AMD "copies" Intel), but does that hold even after the patent expires?  Copyrights on designs never protect you legally against someone else building and selling that product, correct?  That's why there are patents for processes and products.

And for clarity, look at the generic drug market as an example:  When the patent on Viagra ends, can't any generic drug company simply look directly at the molecular structure and copy it?  Or do they somehow have to reverse-engineer the drug without looking directly at the precise molecular structure?  That doesn't seem to make sense.  (Am I making sense?)

Thanks,
-Dave

A patent is for  a technology, an idea. But anything that is actually designed by someone is covered by copyright... this information is all available on the internet... Wikipedia for example.

The contents of the ROM chip is covered by the same copyright as the contents of a book, the storage medium is not important.

You missed my point.  I understand your last point, which is why I stated above that I was not referring to the contents of the ROM chip.  Yes, I know copyright protects it.  But nothing else is protected by the copyright, correct?   For example, the physical structure of a chip is not protected and so one can copy the physical structure exactly (once the patent expires)?  

If I were to design a GFX chip, the layout would be copyright to me. Someone could come along and design a chip that does the same thing, but unless they looked at my designs their chip layout would be different, and be covered by their copyright.

-Edit- Drugs are a bit different, you have to follow step synthesis to build the molecule, you can patent the process to make it... companies then try and build similar molecules with similar properties using a different process.

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Staf is right, tring to build the original chips from the original designs, using today's technology would be like trying to build a stage coach using only VolksWagen parts... And original Victorian plans!

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@orb85750

The chip manufacturer is subject to the design copyright. The Manufacturer needs the right to copy the design from the copyright holder... Piru has explained all this :-?


-Edit-
A patent could cover the method to make the chip... not the actual design...

As an example, you could patent the method to make a jumper, and copyright the design of the jumper... get it?

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orb85750 wrote:

bloodline wrote:
@orb85750

The chip manufacturer is subject to the design copyright. The Manufacturer needs the right to copy the design from the copyright holder... Piru has explained all this :-?

No, anyone may manufacture the chip based on the design, unless it is patented.  A copyright does not protect against the implementation of the design.  Furthermore, copyrights do not protect physical devices.  Therefore, one may make an exact copy of an unpatented chip, for example, provided that it does not contain copyrighted "software" -- one cannot make an exact copy of a ROM containing OS3.1!

I'll try and make it simple:

I write a poem, the poem is the design, that is covered by copyright. The method I used to write the poem is the process, that could be covered by a patent.

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You have answered your own question... but because it doesn't say what you want it to... you ignore it! :-?

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The method of operation of the circuit can be patented. The design, the pattern, of the components is covered by copy right!

It doesn't matter if you are drawing a cartoon or drawing a circuit, both designs are covered by copyright.

The method used to make the circuit or print the cartoon is covered by a patent... Clearer now?