Re: FW: EOT-Lite File Format

On Sat, Aug 1, 2009 at 3:43 PM, Richard Fink <rfink@readableweb.com> wrote:

>  Friday, July 31, 2009 Robert Callahan Robert@ocallahan.org:
>
> >What about all the IE<=8 user agents? Seems like your approach would
> violate Ascender's license until they go away completely. If you >only use
> EOTL once all IE<=8 user agents go away, it's useless.
>
>
>
> Here’s my thinking: If someone has a page or pages that are trying to
> piggyback off of my license by linking to my copy of Cambria Regular,  yes
> that works for <IE9. But if IE 9 (or Firefox 4) enforces same origin, where
> does that leave Mr. Piggyback? Unless I allow it, he isn’t getting my font
> file delivered to the people viewing his pages in the latest browsers and so
> he might as well abandon his scheme. Why is it unreasonable for me to do
> nothing about a “threat” that no longer exists except in theory? In what way
> is Ascender being harmed?
>
> I suppose what the legal language is aiming for is an option to go after
> someone who egregiously sets up a free font server. But that’s not going to
> be me, so I don’t care. But if that’s the point, I wish they would be more
> precise about it.
>

You may feel that your actions are reasonable --- I do --- but if you work
for a company it's probably going to be up to lawyers to decide, and they
tend to be conservative (and expensive). The EULAs need to be really clear
about what's allowed and what isn't.

I think if EOTL is going to move forward, font vendors and authors need to
confer to figure out what exactly what access controls *in practice* authors
need to implement to comply with font licensing. Only then can we finalize
this issue of "ignore rootstrings" vs "require null rootstrings" and
determine how useful EOTL would be.

Rob
-- 
"He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are
healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his
own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all." [Isaiah
53:5-6]