On 27 Jan 92 02:36:30 GMT,
gilbertd at sunflower.bio.indiana.edu (Don Gilbert) said:
> In article <ko6joeINNc50 at agate.berkeley.edu> nigel at codon3 (Nigel Walker;351 GPBB;x2-8058) writes:
>>>>The README file for Primer states:
>>->PRIMER is available for free use for non-commercial purposes
>>->PRIMER may be freely redistributed to other scientists
>>>>So is there an "other scientist" out there willing to put the Mac executables
>>up for FTP (and tell the rest of us where to find it)? It would certainly
[stuff deleted]
> What's the fine print?
> PRIMER and its documentation are copyright 1991 by the Whitehead
> Institute for Biomedical Research. All rights are reserved.
>> PRIMER is available for free use for non-commercial purposes by
> basic research l abs in both academia and industry, providing users
> register using the form suppl ied with the program. PRIMER may NOT
> be used to design oligos for any commercia l purpose whatsoever (for
> example: the design or manufacture of oligonucleotides for profit,
> or for use in a test or kit supplied or performed for profit) witho
> ut specific written permission from The Whitehead Institute.
Remember the reasons for all this legal CYA is that PCR is
patented. Every time you buy Taq Polymerase, you are paying for the
right to use this technology. Every other thermostable polymerase
has restrictions on its use unless the company selling it has licsensed
the technology from PE/Cetus.
The same is true for the design of PCR primers which might have
commercial application. These products must purchase the rights to
use the PCR concept in their diagnostic.
So designers of programs which select primers feel that they may be
sued if their program is used to design a commerical set of primers
without an agreement with PE/Cetus.
There is at least one other author of a program who requires a signed
agreement detailing that you will not give away the program or use it
for commerical purposes.
Note: many of the above names are trademarks of their respective
companys.
--
Frank Kolakowski
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| Lee F. Kolakowski |
| Endocrine Unit Massachusetts General Hospital |
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