How does it affect user groups Re: [SGVLUG] Linux Trade mark ...

[Dustin]

On Wed, 24 Aug 2005, Emerson, Tom wrote:

> > I think the danger of a
> > lawsuit from LMI is less than that of being struck by lightening on
> > the way to a LUG meeting.
> 
> True, but either of these events would be just as devastating -- either
> you would cease to exist [if struck by lightning] or SGVLUG would [if
> LMI found us on their radar]

While I agree with the rest, I just want to point out that I don't think 
there is *any* chance that we would cease to exist.  What LMI would do is 
write us a letter asking for proper attribution.  I don't think they would 
threaten us at all--in fact, if we acted like jerks they would probably 
just ignore us.

In one of the links I sent I thought both Linus and Maddog made it very
clear that the purpose of the LMI was to preserve as much of the
community's right to the name as the legal system will allow.  I take them
both exactly at their word and would hope everyone else would too.  I
think the odds that the LMIwould seriously harass a LUG is *less* than
that of being struck by lightning, and could probably prove it if pressed.

<pedantry>

To start with,

http://www.struckbylightning.org/news/dispIncidentdb.cfm lists over thirty
people struck by lightning worldwide in the last week, so the crudest
estimate (based on that data point) would be that the rate is of the order
of magnitude of 4/day.  Just to skew the statistics conservatively to make
my point, suppose the average LUG has around 32 people (32 is a nice round
number to me) and it is people affected, not incidents, that count.  
That's still a LUG full of people hit by lightning each week.  Then unless
the LMI is threating on average one LUG a week worldwide, the odds of
getting hit by lightning are *far* greater than that of LMI bothering us.  
I kind of doubt they've ever done it anyway, but anyone want to try to 
argue they do it that often? :-)

</pedantry>

<flog-a-dead-horse>

BTW, notice how wasteful that HTML like notation was when pedantry{} would 
have done better?  One reason I secretly *hate* HTML....

{/flog-a-dead-horse>

Dustin