Questions tagged [software]
For questions involving programming underlying computers and machines. Consider using the [open-source-software] tag if the question is about open source software or licensing.
-1
votes
0answers
6 views
Can I use libgit2 in commercial application?
I want to embed libgit2 in my commercial application (here is license https://github.com/libgit2/libgit2/blob/master/COPYING) . I want to create static libgit2 library, and link it with my commercial ...
1
vote
2answers
8 views
Controller processor roles for a SAAS for schools
Assume the following situation:
There is a cloud-software (SAAS) which is used by a school for basically three things:
The administrative users of the school manage the school's base-data with it, ...
0
votes
1answer
23 views
How to find audio of US Supreme Court oral arguments?
The newer audio (starting with 2010) are available on the Supreme Court's website. Older arguments are available at www.oyez.org . Oyez page shows the written transcript of the oral arguments as well ...
3
votes
1answer
70 views
Is reverse engineering for research legal?
I want to look at the code of a certain app, without modifying it. Is that fine accordingly to EU laws ? Btw, sorry if I posted this in the wrong place.
30
votes
3answers
8k views
Can an open source licence be revoked if it violates employer's IP?
Suppose a developer's contract says that all intellectual property (IP) rights to her code belong to her UK employer. While employed, she develops a library and open-sources it under the Apache 2.0 ...
-1
votes
0answers
27 views
Reverse engineering of disk catalog database file [on hold]
I want write Disk Catalog (free an dopen source) program like WhereIsIt.
Usually files from WhereIsIt are exported to xml and some programs as WinCatalog uses this xml.
But export is time consumpting ...
-2
votes
1answer
58 views
Hiring part-time IT contractors who are under an IP assignment clause in their day contract
I plan to engage a contract developer part-time in the UK through his own Ltd. He's currently contracting in the day time for a software company. My project is in a very different area. However, that ...
0
votes
1answer
53 views
What constitutes comercial use of software?
I'm writing a module for the internal company website of my current employer. Does that constitute comercial use?
14
votes
1answer
3k views
Can U.S. Tax Forms Be Legally HTMLified?
If I want to have a U.S. government tax form, like a W-9, be able to be filled out on my website, can I convert it to html (so that it looks as identical as possible to the original form), have the ...
0
votes
2answers
46 views
Is it illegal to reference other brands in an app for profit?
Simply put, I'm developing a 'social' app centered around similar interests in brands (specifically restaurants). The main function of the app has users add restaurants to a 'shareable favorites list' ...
0
votes
0answers
97 views
ADA and reasonable accommodations
https://www.eeoc.gov/facts/jobapplicant.html
Q: Is it a reasonable accommodation to request to remove all the oral interviews for a candidate programmer who has, for instance, social phobia? Or the ...
1
vote
1answer
93 views
Prove for someone that a specific app is yours?
So I made an app and I am planning on releasing it, the app contains in app purchases (so users have to pay from inside the app). Now the thing is that when someone pays for a product in my app I will ...
4
votes
2answers
98 views
Copyright law vs software transformation
As wikipedia says,
A major limitation on copyright on ideas is that copyright protects only the original expression of ideas
Suppose there are two companies: A and B, that produce software. Now, ...
0
votes
1answer
43 views
When we are calculating the cost for implementing a new web application, should we have separate cost for providing the source code to the client [closed]
I am working on a new asp.net core MVC web application as an out sourced senior software developer/architecture. now i did many requirements gathering sessions with the client, and i came our with a ...
1
vote
1answer
59 views
Return of Software
I wrote some software that I licensed to a university club as part of their operations. Due to disagreements about the value of the software, I would like to revoke permissions for use of the software ...
3
votes
1answer
93 views
Are computer generated error messages subject to copyright?
In firefox, it throws up a generated error in response to the website that im creating (which is my work). can i then copy and paste part of that error into my program as part of a solution im writing?...
0
votes
1answer
60 views
Selling License Exceptions using CLA
I am working on an open-source software project in academia. It is currently licensed under a modified BSD-style license that allows only unmodified, non-commercial usage. We are currently considering ...
1
vote
2answers
69 views
Legal issues of searching for software vulnerabilities
What are the legal issues about finding zero-day vulnerabilities (i.e. previously unknown vulnerabilities in a program/website) and what is the standard legal practices before trying to find them if ...
1
vote
0answers
16 views
Server based music player for personal music
Is it legal to create saas application where users could upload own music on server storage which they would get with service and then use app for playing that music via streaming. Users could not ...
2
votes
2answers
54 views
GPL Licensed code as separate process
We are going to use a GPL licensed application as separate process inside a docker. So here's how it works:
Main app ships to client, it doesn't have any GPL code. Does have lots of things and ...
1
vote
0answers
45 views
Is opt-in now required for iOS app using Fabric/Crashlytics/Flurry due to GDPR?
It's been a while since I last pushed out an app to the iOS store, and since then the new EU requirements for data protection General Data Protection Regulation Compliance, GDPR, came into force. Most ...
0
votes
1answer
63 views
Are there any AGPL-style licences that require source code modifications to be public?
So my understanding of the AGPL, is that it requires modifications to be distributed to the users of the network service, but I'm looking for a licence that would require any modifications (non-...
1
vote
1answer
45 views
Mobile app broke after an update. Am I entitled to a downgrade / refund?
The immediate problem I have encountered is described here, but I'm interested in the general concepts which apply in situations like this. What happens if a paid app stops working after an update? ...
-1
votes
1answer
34 views
How may one add some functionality to publicly available source code for which the license forbids modification?
Is there a way way to add some new functionality to publicly available source code (rewrite completely?) and publish the modified version if the license goes as "You may redistribute the source code ...
2
votes
1answer
51 views
Do sports figures control the right to use their name in a game?
In sports game simulations, do real people control the ability to use their name?
I am not talking about their likeness, only their name. So, for example, if there is a game that uses generic figures ...
0
votes
0answers
34 views
Can I get a patent for my software, not for any algorithm or feature, but for the marketing strategy and revenue model?
I have a software startup that is entering a very crowded space. We have many of the same features as the rest of the field, and a few unique ones.
The main difference is that our revenue target and ...
1
vote
1answer
41 views
Use of custom designed software at work?
If I have developed an application on my own time and using my own resources, and that application could be highly valuable in performing my job, can I use it to get my work done without endangering ...
2
votes
1answer
56 views
Is it legal to create automations of websites in India?
Is it legal to create automations of websites in India using Python?
There are Flash Sales on every E-commerce sites nowadays, and ordering manual fails to receive goods as they get out of stock in ...
0
votes
2answers
42 views
Access to sensitive information of employees as a fellow employee
I'm a programmer who works closely with an engineering firm to create tools for the automation of business processes.
One of which I'm working on currently requires that have the access (although I ...
1
vote
0answers
31 views
What laws apply to using speech to text software to generate a transcript of a conversation without the parties' consent?
Most jurisdictions have laws that limit the ability to record audio without the consent of those being recorded. The exact requirements vary, but generally speaking, recording audio is much more ...
0
votes
1answer
54 views
Can I use brand names in my video game? [duplicate]
I'm currently developing a video game set in the Old West and I'm wanting to know if I can use period gun brand names in my game: Colt, Winchester, etc. Do I need special permission from the companies ...
2
votes
1answer
99 views
Is it illegal to ask a company for money in exchange for information on a bug in their software?
Let's assume that I have a found a bug in a company's website/software which – if exploited – bypasses their paywall and allows me to use their website/software without any payments.
I then inform ...
1
vote
1answer
63 views
What constitutes a gambling app
I am developing a game that has users playing live quizzes against each other for cash prizes. You can book to play a live quiz for a small fee. You have a chance of winning a cash prize if you ...
2
votes
2answers
51 views
How Google Play Policy applies to different Developers
I have a quiz game that was rejected from the Play Store on claims that it violates the Gambling policy because it currently allows users to win money for playing quizzes.
On appealing, I asked the ...
1
vote
1answer
29 views
Recreating images from video games in a stats app
I am making a Discord bot that tracks in game stats for many popular video games and I'm having trouble discerning whether it's ok or not to display these stats in a format that replicates the in game ...
1
vote
1answer
44 views
Can I make An App Which Uses Data From Other Apps? [closed]
Google Hangouts is closing down soon and I want to make a messaging app which lets you import your Hangouts conversations into it via Google Takeout. I'm not sure if this is legal though, since Google ...
1
vote
1answer
60 views
Does a license found in a repository automatically apply to the code in the repository?
Imagine this situation, you create a new project which is not intended to be Open-Source, but you use a permissive framework which allows not opening the source code of your own project which depends ...
2
votes
0answers
60 views
Can I remove a watermark applied by a software on my own work?
I was wondering if I can remove a watermark from an image created by me. I used a software to create the image (namely, Visual Paradigm Online): if I subscribe to a commercial license, the software ...
0
votes
1answer
64 views
Assignment of Inventions in Employment Contract for Software Development
I have a contract that basically says this in the Assignment section:
To the fullest extent under applicable law, the
Company shall own all right, title and interest in and to all
Inventions (...
1
vote
1answer
35 views
How to handle contracts for volunteers looking to contribute work to our game project
For some time now, a friend and I have been working on a game project. As a part of my friends university course, they need to demonstrate working to a brief on a major project (which can either be an ...
-6
votes
1answer
80 views
How do i report against apple company? [closed]
Apple already has admitted itself that it purposefully slowed down the device with new software upgrades.Some time before in software update section in settings i used to have download update button ...
1
vote
2answers
92 views
Can I make a game with the N64 SDK legally?
Can I legally create a game with the Nintendo 64 SDK? I have seen several SDKs on the internet which are verified to be the real deal.
My next question is if I can distribute it legally. I was going ...
4
votes
3answers
115 views
What is a software developers liability for medical devices
I am an employee of a contract employer being contracted out to a medical company writing software for medical devices. What is my liability or who shoulders the legal expenses if a product I wrote ...
3
votes
1answer
113 views
Removing Developer Name From Software
I have recently found someone that is using software that I released on GitHub under the Apache License 2.0.
The software is a Discord bot that includes a dashboard.
I also have the following in the ...
-2
votes
1answer
50 views
Rubik's cube image rights EU court decision [closed]
In February 2016, I have asked a question (Rubik's cube image rights) regarding image rights of Rubik's Cube. In short - I have developed an Android application allowing user to solve Rubik's Cube,...
2
votes
2answers
184 views
Why is Software Piracy Considered Theft?
I know the question sounds mundane and perhaps even silly at first glance, but, consider it for a moment.
Our qualm with piracy seems to be premised with some notion of loss at the owners/business' ...
2
votes
0answers
57 views
Are there any examples of selling unsealed videogame as “new” being illegal?
Contest: over the years, a mayor videogame reseller company that operates in many countries worldwide has made a practice to unwrap the games it sells, putting only an empty box on display. When you ...
2
votes
1answer
84 views
Can I use my own Open Source code in commercial software I'm writing?
If I release some code that I wrote myself with an Open Source license (a WordPress plugin with the GPL2 license, https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html), can I then use my own code in commercial ...
2
votes
1answer
75 views
Is making a home music server legal?
I am planning to make a Local-Area-Network personal music server program.
The idea is that the program lets you host your music so you can stream it from any of your devices on your local network (...
2
votes
1answer
38 views
Websites using GPL-licensed libraries
If a customer of yours pays you to develop a website (not to buy it, so he doesn't receive a copy of the software), the website uses GPL libraries or frameworks, and the site is installed in a server ...
