[texhax] shear transform

[Steve Schwartz]

On Wed, 2011-05-18 at 23:16 +0100, Peter Davis wrote:
> If I sell someone a house, and I neglect to mention that some of the
> lumber used in framing actually belongs to someone else, I think I am
> liable for any consequences, not the person who bought the house. 

I'm not a lawyer, but I think this is not the whole story.

If I sell you a stolen car and the police find it, they will confiscate
it. You may not be held "responsible" - although I suspect you will need
to convince them that you acted in good faith, took all reasonable
steps, etc. - which in the case of a car, and perhaps software, should
have flagged up warning signs because the paper trail is fairly visible.
You know where to look to see if the car has been properly registered,
and you know where to look for the software license. It is your
responsibility to read and understand those, and to get professional
help if you need it.

Of course, if you do get held accountable for anything, and if you want
to reclaim your original money, for sure I am guilty of selling the car
to you. But you'll need to (a) find me and (b) prove the extent of my
liability.

Steve

-- 
+-------------------------------------------------------------------+
Professor Steven J Schwartz        Phone: +44-(0)20-7594-7660
Head, Space & Atmospheric Physics  Fax:   +44-(0)20-7594-7772
The Blackett Laboratory            E-mail: s.schwartz at imperial.ac.uk
Imperial College London            Office: Huxley 6M67A 
London SW7 2AZ, U.K.               Web: www.sp.ph.ic.ac.uk/~sjs
+-------------------------------------------------------------------+