We also discussed the ownership of ideas. Ideas are considered to be in the commons. You can copy anybody's idea, do whatever you like with it, if it's not explictly protected by some specific legal mechanism such as a patent or a trademark. (I think.)
At the break, my seatmates and I were sitting around and talking about the labor theory and ideas. The conversation was going along quite well, the normal sort of jubilent 1L we-don't-know-what-we-are-talking-about-but-this-is-fun conversation. That is, until my contribution:
"Do you think that if Linus Torvalds went super-renegade against open-source code some day he could claim that his labor and investment made Linux his?"
I giggle, because I think the idea of Linus Torvalds as a Linux-killing super-villain is very, very funny.
The others do not giggle. No, instead, an awkward silence ensues. Everybody looks at me. I blush madly, because I blush at the slightest provocation.
My neighbor C. asks, "What's open-source?"
So, in the minute before class began again, I briefly tried to explain Linus and Linux and the open-source movement. A. doubtfully suggested that she thought she might have heard of it. C. thought he knew what open-source was now that I mentioned it. I think they were being polite.
Lesson learned: Don't make dorky engineering jokes in law school.
5 comments:
You nerd. ;-)
That, I'm afraid, is something I really can't deny. :)
Just remember, no one who goes to law school was cool in a previous life. We were all dorks. They were no doubt worried that you knew something they didn't. Probably wondering if this would be on the exam... :)
*laugh*
I never even thought of it that way. :)
That's so funny. When I was a 1L I probably would have sat there and asked you all kinds of questions and annoyed you to no end. Luckily, I am taking Computer Law right now and we actually discussed that and actually SBO is claiming that Linux is theirs. True Case. But my point really is that I think that is what a lot of people in my Computer Law class do to my prof. He sometimes speaks above student's heads, especially if they are not computer savy in the least little bit.
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