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To: Reginald Middleton who wrote (19017)	5/13/1998 3:21:00 PM
From: Bearded One	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 24154

Ok, I'll challenge your statement and ignore the fact that you're using buzzwords that hide more than they reveal. You claim that "hypergrowth and supernormal profits" are impossible to have in a regulated industry, and thus "If software legislation is enacted (which I doubt) look for the US to lose its dominance in the software industry." This of course, is dependent upon the type of legislation which is enacted and the extent of the regulation. It is such an obtuse and nebulous statement claim that anyone can put their own definitions in and make it arbitrarily true or false. For example-- there's plenty of software legislation out there already. Software is covered under copyright law, for example. Some software is covered under patent law as well. So if I interpret 'legislation' to mean 'any laws that cover software,' well, your statement is wrong on its face. If I interpret 'legislation' to mean "controlling when and what software is released by major companies," then you may have a point. But nobody is trying to do that at this point, of course. So, Reggie, let's try to tie you down: Suppose the Feds enacted legislation saying that any operating system manufacturer must publish all API's 6 months before the operating system comes to market. Would that destroy our software industry? What if the Feds enacted legislation stating that a large company can't undercut a small company's products by selling at a loss, "cutting off their air supply" so to speak? Oops, they already enacted that. I think it's called the Sherman Act or something.