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565.SUMMARY.BBS
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1989-01-23
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TheNet vs. NET/ROM Software Evaluation
(BBS Summary)
Thomas Allen WA6IGY, January 1989
After a careful, independent, detailed analysis of these two
popular network communication packages, I have reached the
conclusion that NordLink's TheNet version 1.0/1.1 is a copy of
NET/ROM Version 1.3 and could only have been created by
disassembling the object program from a NET/ROM 27C256 EPROM and
then reconstructing equivalent source programs in the C language
and assembly language. The NET/ROM design was copied in its
entirety.
During the late summer of 1988, I obtained the NET/ROM program
from the author and TheNet from local sources. I also reviewed a
significant number of messages on CompuServe's Hamnet related to
the NET/ROM dispute. The controversy on CompuServe of whether
TheNet was a copy of Software 2000's NET/ROM was clouded because
only the hex files of both programs were available. The source
program of NET/ROM is copyrighted and was not available to those
who had already done their own evaluations and based their
decisions on comparing the hex files only.
Because of the disassembly and de-compilation technique
presumably used to clone NET/ROM and the lack of identical
variable and data names in the source programs, a strictly
programmatic comparison of the source programs proved infeasible.
However, during a very tedious manual review, I was able to
devise ways of automating the process somewhat.
My findings show that the source code from both programs is the
same, statement by statement, with only variable, data, and
structure names changing. Names would not have been present in
the executable code (from the EPROM) and could not have been
expected to survive the disassembly and de-compilation process
used.
From the manual examination of the source files, I could find no
evidence that TheNet is an independent design from specifications
or a complete rewrite. Though repeatedly claimed by the
"authors", TheNet is NOT a superset of NET/ROM, and in fact, is
NOT an original work by any stretch of the imagination.