[MEncoder-users] Free of patents codec

[Raphael]

Reimar Döffinger wrote:

> Hi,
> On Mon, Aug 22, 2005 at 04:47:58PM +0100, Raphael wrote:
>  
>
>> And yes.. you are right... sadly a lot of the law has that affect on 
>> people these days. If are in the UK see the fear the words "Data 
>> protection Act" and "Health and Safety" engenders in people. Then ask 
>> them if they know anyone (or anyone who knows anyone) who has ever 
>> been sued or sent to jail for breaking these terrifying laws.
>>   
>
>
> It does not matter whether they affect anyone or not. The point of laws
> is having rules, so that you can estimate what the risk of doing a
> certain thing is (the german word is "Rechtssicherheit"), otherwise we
> wouldn't need any laws and could just say "let the judges decide
> whatever they think is right".
> With software patents and laws like the DMCA that security has left most
> of the computer areas. Sure, lost security does not mean anyone is
> actually in danger, but I prefer to have security!
> Although on a bit a different topic, at least for those "anti terror 
> laws"
> I can directly point to a certain person in London who was affected by
> them. Maybe sometimes it is a good idea not to way until someone gets
> hurt.
> I guess they should have called them "police terror laws" after
> all, at least people would have had realistic expectations about them.
>  
>


Well.. while we are off topic :)   Actually all UK law is like this (as 
is US law). I.e. there is statute law and there is case law. Until 
something is tested in court it is often unclear whether it is a crime 
(in the case of criminal law) or not.  In other words, you can't 
necessarily tell how the courts will interpret the statute just by 
reading it and sometimes (often ?) things are deliberately left to the 
courts to decide. this means that strictly speaking we all live in a 
constant state of uncertainty about the law.  The innocent guy who got 
shot was not caught by any of this of course but that is a different 
(and rather sad) topic.

Raphael