In a way, UCITA is an attempt by software manufacturers to modernize the different state laws that govern commerce, which are often outdated when it comes to the shifting paradigms of the New Economy. That needs to be done, and as the U.S. members of the world's largest technical society, we're ready to help. But the actual "one size fits all" law that UCITA backers want to pass amounts to a free pass for the software industry. If you work with computers, especially if you like to tweak and tinker with technology, you should oppose UCITA. Most of all if you depend on software for doing business you should join us in presenting a comprehensive, unified opposition to this terrible, Trojan Horse legislation. Consider the following true life example. A contractor buys software to prepare the complex bids on which his business depends. All he has to do is fill out pre-programmed forms with all the variables, and it will tell him what to bid, to meet his needs with the all-important competitive edge to get the contract. So he carefully works out what materials he needs, staffing, and budget projections - and he confidently offers what he is certain will be the winning bid. But it's not. A competitor bid less. Astonished, he double-checks his losing bid - by hand this time, to learn that the software wasn't so reliable after all. It added when it should have subtracted - costing him the contract, maybe killing his company. In most states, he could sue the software maker for a defective product. But by buying the software with its liability-waiving license written in dense small print further obscured by shrinkwrapping, he had given up the right to sue - in states that have passed UCITA. (Has yours?) Not only will this be a kind of "get out of jail free" card, handed over to the software manufacturers every time we buy or use software, or anything which has software in it - which soon mean just about everything. But it will also have a chilling effect on innovation and competition - to say nothing of accountability - for software makers and users alike. If you tweak your devices to work better, you may have violated your license - not to speak of professionals who reverse-engineer for improvements or compatibility. And if you violate your license, UCITA authorizes the software maker to disable your equipment. Because UCITA is a battle to be fought, state by state - not the U.S. Congress - it is a example of the old adage: "All politics is local." Go to http://www.ieeeusa.org/grassroots/ucita to find out if your state legislature has taken up UCITA, and what you can do to fight it. Ask questions, and start looking on your IEEE-USA Website for the answers. | Top of Page | Intro to IEEE-USA | President's Column | IEEE-USA | Last Updated: 5 July 2000 |
