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Thread: Pot calling the kettle black?

  1. #1
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    Default Pot calling the kettle black?

    In this thread:
    http://www.photonlexicon.com/forums/...078#post293078

    Clive Davies (or someone posing to be him here on PL) from Laser Electronics UK wrote that "ripping of the laser media graphics was fine with you guys" (which I suppose he means Pangolin directly stole or aided in the stealing of graphics originally created by Laser Media). The charge is, of course baseless. I'm sure it is possible to find some of our oldest clients, who came to Pangolin during the last days of Laser Media, during and even after they went out of business, and asked us to import Laser Media graphics. We always refused to do so, and -- although Laser Media has been out of business for more than 20 years, we still have not created an import means for their graphics, even though one of the members of the Pangolin team actually worked for the European branch of Laser Media, and we have the technical means to do so.

    Perhaps this "Clive" confused Pangolin with someone else, since "Clive" also mistakenly mentioned that Pangolin's first system was the Commodore 64, not the Amiga. Indeed I saw with my own eyes, Laser Media graphics being projected from someone's Commodore 64-based system at the 1991 ILDA in Long Boat Key.

    Nevertheless, last night I decided to download the demo version of Laser Electronics software, which there are three substantially similar software packages, all of which using the same frame sets, and all of which having the same license agreement.

    What really surprised me is that many of the graphics included with their demo software were actually created by Patrick Murphy and myself! See the screen shot attached.
    Click image for larger version. 

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    These all originated on our Amiga platform, but some were ported over to our LD/QM32 software and a few even on the LD2000 platform too. Older Pangolin clients here on PL, including O. Steven Roberts can confirm that what we have written here is true, and probably Steve can even confirm that these first appeared on the Pangolin platform. In their demo software, a few frames were modified either by recoloring or applying effects, but all are unmistakably ours.

    Now, I'm not accusing this "Clive" of getting a copy of our Amiga software, extracting the frames, and then importing them into his software for sale. Indeed I have generally had good dealings with the real Clive in the past, and he has built up a lot of good will in the UK over the years. Rather, what I believe happened is that some third party gave Laser Electronics the frames (incredibly easy since we were the very first company to support the ILDA format), and they merely adopted them, with the assumption that surely the third party who provided the frames had the right to do so.

    The main point of this post is to echo the biblical wisdom of Matthew 7:5, which roughly translates "You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye"...

    The whole situation just seems like the pot calling the kettle black to me...

    Bill
    Last edited by Pangolin; 05-24-2014 at 08:25.

  2. #2
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    " 15 characters"
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails rainbowstar.jpg  

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    Last edited by Laser Wizardry; 11-13-2015 at 11:42.

  3. #3
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    Karl, are you sure the colours are exactly alike? It looks like a frame you can easily get out of an everyday abstract generator.

    Click image for larger version. 

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    Ok... I did not manage to find the correct values for the z axis modulation... but I surely encountered a lot of interesting shapes!

    Click image for larger version. 

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    Last edited by colouredmirrorball; 05-24-2014 at 16:11.

  4. #4
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    If it was a single abstract, that would be one thing. No doubt about it. But the musical notes, arranged in the same order, with the same colors? Spheres and such with the same number of latitude, longitude, and swirls? If it was one or two, I'd chalk it up to coincidence. After all, I've seen it happen that people on opposite sides of the world come up with the same thing. No doubt about it. But we have something like 8 examples of the same frames, same colors, same shapes, etc.

    What's that old Ian Fleming quote? "Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. Three times is enemy action..." If it was a single frame that looked similar, hehe, that can happen. Two frames that look similar? Well that's possible as well. Three or more? Hmmm.

    Bill

  5. #5
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    Nerd drama at it's best. Lol

  6. #6
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    Hypocrisy has friends!
    "There are painters who transform the sun into a yellow spot, but there are others who, with the help of their art and their intelligence, transform a yellow spot into the sun." Pablo Picasso

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