Larry and all, I agree with your conclusion here Larry! Well done! But what will determine what precisely will be that standard, if any, and if not standard is determined as a result or otherwise, how will full interoperability be accomplished? Lawrence Rosen wrote: > I agree completely with Richard Stallman's responses to an earlier email. I > repeat the relevant parts of that earlier exchange below. This reflects a > basic policy that should be adopted by IETF. > /Larry Rosen > > ********************* Email from RMS: > > If you are claiming that one additional software patent can result in fewer > software patent infringement lawsuits, indeed that can sometimes be true. > But lawsuits are just the tip of the iceberg of the danger of patents. > > When people decide not to distribute a program, or not to implement a > feature, because they fear they would be sued, no lawsuit occurs, but the > patent has done harm. > > In many cases, > patents are filed long before the technology is standardized - and, if > disclosed properly through the IETF process, can be weighed when > determining whether to adopt a standard. > > IETF should use this leverage to refuse to issue a standard unless the > companies in question allow it to be freely implemented and used. > > In some cases, the IETF may > choose to adopt a patent-encumbered standard simply because it's > technically superior to other options > > That is an example of what not to do. > > -----Original Message----- > From: ietf-bounces@xxxxxxxx [mailto:ietf-bounces@xxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of > Richard Stallman > Sent: Monday, July 27, 2009 9:37 PM > To: Wes Beebee (wbeebee) > Cc: dean@xxxxxxx; ietf-honest@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx; tls@xxxxxxxx; > Nicolas.Williams@xxxxxxx; ietf@xxxxxxxx > Subject: Re: [TLS] Last Call: draft-ietf-tls-extractor (Keying > MaterialExporters for Transport Layer Security (TLS)) to Proposed Standard > <snip> > > _______________________________________________ > TLS mailing list > TLS@xxxxxxxx > https://www.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/tls Regards, Spokesman for INEGroup LLA. - (Over 284k members/stakeholders strong!) "Obedience of the law is the greatest freedom" - Abraham Lincoln "YES WE CAN!" Barack ( Berry ) Obama "Credit should go with the performance of duty and not with what is very often the accident of glory" - Theodore Roosevelt "If the probability be called P; the injury, L; and the burden, B; liability depends upon whether B is less than L multiplied by P: i.e., whether B is less than PL." United States v. Carroll Towing (159 F.2d 169 [2d Cir. 1947] =============================================================== Updated 1/26/04 CSO/DIR. Internet Network Eng. SR. Eng. Network data security IDNS. div. of Information Network Eng. INEG. INC. ABA member in good standing member ID 01257402 E-Mail jwkckid1@xxxxxxxxxxxxx My Phone: 214-244-4827 _______________________________________________ Ietf@xxxxxxxx https://www.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/ietf