IBIS 3.0 and legal questions

Hello All,

I sent this note out last week but evidently it didn't get out over the
reflector. I hoped to at least spark some controversy.

This is my feelings on IBIS 3.0 and releasing models in this format.

The copyright for the name IBIS is owned by EIA. Until 3.0 is approved
by that body, IBIS 3.0 does not exist. If anyone publishes models
claiming to be IBIS 3.0 then they are in violation of that copyright and
EIA will probably be forced to take action.

Besides the legal implications, anyone publishing IBIS 3.0 models before
the official approval is almost certainly to be publishing models which
will NOT be correct. We had to change things to do 2.1 and we will
probably have to change things for 3.0. I will certainly not be putting
any "IBIS OFFICIAL 3.0" models into any of the IBIS data areas until
this specification is approved. I feel very strongly about this. I do
not want what happened to EDIF to happen to IBIS. If you recal, EDIF
(the earlier versions) was almost unusable because everyone had their
own dialect of the "standard" and it was virtually impossible to support
every dialect. At the same time, everyone claim to support EDIF.

Perhaps we need some PRELIMINARY or EXPERIMENTAL designation for these
new models but we should NOT call them IBIS 3.0.

comments, of course, are solicited.
(but don't correct my spelling).

Jon Powell
Senior Scientist, Viewlogic Consulting Services.
IBIS Librarian

 
Received on Fri Aug 8 10:32:52 1997