[wlug_org] First draft of WellyLUG rules and guidelines

[Edmund A. Hintz]

On Wed, May 5, 2004, Damon Lynch thus spake:

>     1. No advertising is allowed. At all. However, notifying others of
>        GNU/Linux media available for swap when a new distribution is
>        released is acceptable.

    Seems like this could work much like the Grateful Dead tape trader
guidelines. Essentially, as long as none of the immediate parties profit
from the trade, it's acceptable. Usually what it comes down to is either
a trade of shows, or blank media in exchange for a show, such that the
provider of the show isn't out anything other than the time used to
create the duplicate. Obviously the company making the blank media still
profits, but that's indirect and considered acceptable. Beyond this, one
making profit on the live recordings is at risk of meeting the Dead's
lawyers, a formidable foe. I would think the same common sense approach
could work for the LUG.

    By these same methods, offering of a distribution in exchange for
blank media would be OK, as would offering hardware for free. Offering
hardware at cost is a bit grey though(the Dead model of course has no
hardware, hence no precedent). And of course hardware for profit is
clearly beyond the bounds.

Regards,

Ed Hintz
ed@hintz.org