By the time Apple's Macintosh operating system finally…
“By the time Apple's Macintosh operating system finally falls into the public domain, there will be no machine that could possibly run it. The term of copyright for software is effectively unlimited.”
About This Quote
This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.
Software copyright terms are so long that they prevent any future machine from legally running the original code.
In simple terms: Copyright lasts forever for software, blocking future use.
Advocate for shorter copyright terms.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- software development
- archival preservation
- legal reform
- open source projects
- future hardware compatibility
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- How would shorter copyrights affect software innovation?
- What alternatives exist for preserving old software?
Shorter terms may reduce incentives for creators.