When we download software (since many computers don’t have optical drives anymore) the first thing we see is the licensing agreement, which is very long and complicated. Here’s what all that legalese boils down to:
- You are obliged to send us money.
- We have the right to keep it.
- We are not responsible for the software failing to work, containing malware.
- In fact, we are not responsible for anything.
- We have the right to sell your personal information to anyone.
- We have the right to rewrite the software so you have to buy it again.
- We have the right to limit the time you can use the software.
- If there is a dispute, you will not sue; the dispute will be settled by arbitration.
- We reserve the right to pick someone we like and who likes us to act as arbitrator.
- When you lose (and you will), you will be responsible for paying any and all expenses for said arbitration.
- We paid one or more lawyers a lot of money to write this agreement, so we have included that cost in the price for this product.
How much money does the software industry spend each year on lawyers? Probably more than they do on software engineers–but tha’s just a guess.
Feel free to add “whereas,” “heretofore,” “hereinafter,” etc., as many times as you like.
sfnowak 