Commercial Programming

[Boomshiki]

I don't mean to be the dick who does not support open source, but the rent
does not pay itself these days.
What I got is a huge undertaking that will change the way teachers handing
their grading sytem (that is as far as I can go without breaking my terms in
the contract).

Now I have a variety of languages I can set the team up with, leaning more
on Java(unlikely as you will read my issue) and some cross platform
BASICs(such as RealBASIC).

Now the big issue at hand is how well will I be able to mask my source code?
After all I wouldn't want some someone walking off to the bank with our hard
work. That and almost any 16 yr old can look at Python source and know what
it is talking about (I exadurate, but you get my point).

So my question is how much can Python do for me in the sense of hiding my
source code while still maintaining portibility?

[Marc 'BlackJack' Rintsch]

In <WXoug.140972$771.125065@edtnps89>, Boomshiki wrote:

Now the big issue at hand is how well will I be able to mask my source code?
After all I wouldn't want some someone walking off to the bank with our hard
work. That and almost any 16 yr old can look at Python source and know what
it is talking about (I exadurate, but you get my point).

So my question is how much can Python do for me in the sense of hiding my
source code while still maintaining portibility?

Forget it. And even if you can hide the source this does not stop the 16
year olds from using and spreading the software without permission from
you.

The only secure way is to put the software on a server under your control
and offer your program as web service.

Ciao,
Marc 'BlackJack' Rintsch

[Paul Rubin]

"Boomshiki" <Ra*****@gmail.comwrites:

Now the big issue at hand is how well will I be able to mask my source code?

Not all that well, but it really doesn't matter. Someone who sees
what the program does can write another one like it, without seeing
your source code.

[Boomshiki]

I am aware that someone can recreate what we have done, but for them to cut,
paste, sell is kind of a rip off.

And trust me, I am not worried about 16 yr olds using it without paying, why
would they want to? I am worried about them cracking in to where their
grades are kept.

[K.S.Sreeram]

Boomshiki wrote:

And trust me, I am not worried about 16 yr olds using it without paying, why
would they want to? I am worried about them cracking in to where their
grades are kept.

what you need is data security... *not* code obfuscation..

[sreeram;]
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[Paul Rubin]

"Boomshiki" <Ra*****@gmail.comwrites:

And trust me, I am not worried about 16 yr olds using it without paying, why
would they want to? I am worried about them cracking in to where their
grades are kept.

You should assume they have the source code in that case. In fact
you're better off releasing the code, so people can spot security
problems. See:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerckhoffs_principle

[Fredrik Lundh]

Boomshiki wrote:

And trust me, I am not worried about 16 yr olds using it without paying, why
would they want to? I am worried about them cracking in to where their
grades are kept.

what does "hiding your source code" has to do with that ?

</F>

[Ben Finney]

"Boomshiki" <Ra*****@gmail.comwrites:

I don't mean to be the dick who does not support open source, but
the rent does not pay itself these days.

Non sequitur. The license terms for the software are orthogonal to
whether one charges money for it. Viz the numerous businesses
worldwide happily selling free software and making a profit.

<URL:http://www.fsf.org/licensing/essays/selling.html>

--
\ "If we don't believe in freedom of expression for people we |
`\ despise, we don't believe in it at all." -- Noam Chomsky |
_o__) |
Ben Finney

[Ben Finney]

"Boomshiki" <Ra*****@gmail.comwrites:

I am aware that someone can recreate what we have done, but for them
to cut, paste, sell is kind of a rip off.

Unless you factor that into your business model, and create compelling
value that doesn't depend on the secrecy of something you place under
the customer's control.

--
\ "Try to learn something about everything and everything about |
`\ something." -- T.H. Huxley |
_o__) |
Ben Finney

[Boomshiki]

After some consideration that is the approach I will head actually. Thank
you for the help swaying my decision.
"Sybren Stuvel" In that case, I'd really go with Mark's idea of turning it
into a web

service. You could use XML-RPC over SSL to secure the communication
between a client program and the (secret-code) server.

Of course, you could also go the 100% web approach, but that has the
downside that you have to work with HTML instead of a proper GUI like
Qt, and that you'll have to support all kinds of different browsers
(MSIE is really bad with CSS support, for instance.)

Sybren
--
The problem with the world is stupidity. Not saying there should be a
capital punishment for stupidity, but why don't we just take the
safety labels off of everything and let the problem solve itself?
Frank Zappa

[Cameron Laird]

In article <ma***************************************@python. org>,
Ben Finney <bi****************@benfinney.id.auwrote:

>"Boomshiki" <Ra*****@gmail.comwrites:

>I am aware that someone can recreate what we have done, but for them
to cut, paste, sell is kind of a rip off.

Unless you factor that into your business model, and create compelling
value that doesn't depend on the secrecy of something you place under
the customer's control.

[Cameron Laird]

In article <ma***************************************@python. org>,
K.S.Sreeram <sr*****@tachyontech.netwrote:

>-=-=-=-=-=-

Boomshiki wrote:

>And trust me, I am not worried about 16 yr olds using it without paying, why
would they want to? I am worried about them cracking in to where their
grades are kept.

what you need is data security... *not* code obfuscation..