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Microsoft to release FS/CFS source code!

gecko

gecko

Charter Member
Was browsing around and came across this news. Apparently Microsoft has almost fully lost interest in the FS/CFS series and will be releasing the source code and documentation to the simming community, with the exception of FSX. Finally we'll be able to fix some of these long term bugs once and for all!






.....................if only it weren't April Fools...:mixedsmi:
 
Meanie! I wonder what it would 'cost' to get 'em to do that? After all they wouldn't making that much out of cfs3, although maybe Ubisoft etc are still selling an odd disc.

If they did, it would be a 'good will' gesture, good for general sales. If they sold it to the sim community, if we all put in $2, maybe it would cover it?
If anything like that happened, i would consider chipping in for low annual 'maintenance costs', as cfs3 is so good!

But then, it wouldn't be a freeware community, as it is, would it. Just random.
 
That would be cool, but they're making too much money off our work. This game's been out for ten years and you can still find it in the store. The only reason people still buy it is because of the add-ons made by this community and OFF.
 
It wouldn't hurt them to release the original source models for the community to update though.
But who would one contact about it?
 
Quite true Clive. Not sure where you would start though - Bill Gates maybe?:mixedsmi:
 
Back in 2005 I negotiated an agreement with JoWooD for the non-commercial development rights to the original Panzer Elite code. It took five months, but basically just started with boldly writing them with a reasonable proposal when their liquidation of Wings was announced.

For example:
This is a follow-up to my previous communication on 12 Feb 05:
Significant corrections to the faults in the original Panzer Elite code, as well as enhancements, and upgrades have been made through the free efforts of the non-commercial developers of this community. The current level of development has reached a point where the code is no longer substantially the same as what was originally published by Wings, and JoWooD.

Your lack of any response to all requests since the liquidation of Wings for the vintage source code used to produce the original Panzer Elite to be made open source is being interpreted as implied acquiescence to those requests through abandonment in practice of that intellectual property.

The non-commercial developers of this community intend to bring out updates on a regular basis just as we have for the last six years. We will not create a freeware version of the original Panzer Elite, nor will we create any new programs from this code that will work without the user having first installed a legal copy of the commercial game Panzer Elite.

We will keep this player community active, and growing in spite of JoWooD's current choice to neglect it. JoWooD can do what they like to sell new things to the market segment we will create and maintain for them. We are not in this to compete with you commercially, and you are free to do what they like with your own work in this area of the market, but we make no offer of our past or future creative work for your use. Any attempts at commercial exploitation of our work will be made into a public relations issue for JoWooD with the player community

If you now recognize a desire to contractually protect your commercial interests through a limited royalty agreement we are prepared to proceed with those discussions as well, as long as they also protect our work from exploitation without fair compensation. - MajorMagee
Click to expand...

I had to contact JoWood's Executive Producer, and he then put me in contact with their Brand Manager. It was really helpful that the Senior Exec from PE's original developer (Wings), who had long since moved on but was still very influential in the German software market, had endorsed our proposal.
 
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