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Subject:Re: Documenting an associated product From:"Lenk, D. S. (Don)" <don -dot- lenk -at- LMCO -dot- COM> Date:Fri, 15 Jan 1999 09:27:12 -0500
It has been my (non-lawyer) experience that writing about another
company's products
is OK as long as you don't lift information from their manuals. I have
documented many
systems that use hardware and software components from other
manufacturers and
never had a problem describing their products in my own words or
photographing or
otherwise illustrating their products using my own tools.
In those cases where I needed to copy information from their manuals, it
has usually
been easy to get permission to do so. I had our contracts folks contact
the other
companies who usually responded with a letter granting permission.
CAVEAT: Using screen captures seems like an subject for copyright
permissions
or one for your legal department to address.
Disclaimer: This info is my opinion only, not legal advice, not from my
employer,
etc, yadda, yadda, yadda.
Don Lenk
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Adam ROBERTS [SMTP:aroberts -at- RINGROSA -dot- COM]
> Sent: Friday, January 15, 1999 4:21 AM
> To: TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU
> Subject: Documenting an associated product
>
> My company has produced a database management system which uses, as an
> additional feature, a database query program. This program was
> produced by
> another company and has been licenced to us. What I would like to know
> is to
> what extent I can document this program. My company doesn't seem to
> have any
> documentation for this product, and I would like just to mention in my
> doc
> how to open this program, what it looks like, what tasks you can
> achieve
> with it, and the basic functioning of the toolbar. Is this legal, or
> will I
> face potential legal problems? What am I able to mention in my doc
> about
> this program with no fear of reprisals?
>
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