StarCraft Source Code Discovered, Fan Rewarded for Returning it to Blizzard - Sensationalist Headlines

Seeing as how hard blizzard loves to destroy lives of people who annoy them(Re wowglider for example), I can understand why he didn't release it.

Goddamn that's a nice find. I might have been personally tempted to save a copy of it on my personal computer to poke through later and then send it back to blizz. But it's best he did what he did [QUOTE=Crimor;52189821]Seeing as how hard blizzard loves to destroy lives of people who annoy them(Re wowglider for example), I can understand why he didn't release it.[/QUOTE] Is someone making a bot really worthy of the diction "annoy?" When you said that I thought you'd be referring to some fan game or something.

I would have set up a VPN, contacted 4chan and spread it around, as well. I'm not very interested in making sure blizzard protects their IP, if I'm totally honest.

[QUOTE=geel9;52186882]It's not a payment for how difficult it was. It's insurance. Bug bounties don't exist to reward smart people because the company just appreciates the hard work they put in. [B]Bug bounties exist so that they can prevent exploits from being abused maliciously, at a cost far lesser than the cost of the fallout of the exploit being used.[/B] What matters is what you have, not your credentials.[/QUOTE]sounds like insurance

[QUOTE=thelurker1234;52189944]sounds like insurance[/QUOTE] You may have noticed the part where I said "It's insurance." earlier in my post.

[QUOTE=geel9;52189972]You may have noticed the part where I said "It's insurance." earlier in my post.[/QUOTE] <--------- behold, a fool!

I would've done the same, no way am I going to fuck with Blizzard especially with the source code of an IP they haven't publicly released.

[QUOTE=Sir Whoopsalot;52186865]Because finding, testing and documenting a bug exploit is the same thing as stumbling upon a CD with source code. Seriously, why would going the asshole route be the better idea, both from an ethical and practical point of view?[/QUOTE] Well for one, not everyone thinks that's the "asshole route" "Intellectual Property" is pretty much bullshit, information is not property. I wouldn't blame the guy for not releasing it or anything, he obviously wasn't exactly savvy on this kind of thing and legal threats are extremely scary. I do think a lot of great things could've come from it being released publicly, and I'm a little sad that didn't happen.

I don't really see why it would be so morally wrong to release the source code. They already released an updated version of the game for free. It isn't like they'd be losing out on any money.

[QUOTE=elowin;52190288]Well for one, not everyone thinks that's the "asshole route" "Intellectual Property" is pretty much bullshit, information is not property. I wouldn't blame the guy for not releasing it or anything, he obviously wasn't exactly savvy on this kind of thing and legal threats are extremely scary. I do think a lot of great things could've come from it being released publicly, and I'm a little sad that didn't happen.[/QUOTE] It's a part of our society that intellectual property is a thing that gets protection. Yes, it's a social construct just like private property. That doesn't mean it's just bullshit though. Also I wouldn't get very excited about the "great things (that) could've come." Maybe just for an illustration, I'll start by asking you what you think would happen if blizzard publicly released the source code and allowed people to do what they wanted. What would we get? We'd get fan games, revamps, mods, etc. being created and shared publicly for the community at large to enjoy. It'd be a lot like what happened when freespace 2 went open source. But if it's an illegal leak, we would get none of that. We'd get some individual tinkerers fucking about with it, and keeping it to themselves or very exclusive/unknown communities, and that's about it. Anyone who tried to make something with it and put it out for others to enjoy would get crushed by blizzard in a heartbeat.

[QUOTE=thelurker1234;52190323]It's a part of our society that intellectual property is a thing that gets protection. Yes, it's a social construct just like private property. That doesn't mean it's just bullshit though. Also I wouldn't get very excited about the "great things (that) could've come." Maybe just for an illustration, I'll start by asking you what you think would happen if blizzard publicly released the source code and allowed people to do what they wanted. What would we get? We'd get fan games, revamps, mods, etc. being created and shared publicly for the community at large to enjoy. It'd be a lot like what happened when freespace 2 went open source. But if it's an illegal leak, we would get none of that. We'd get some individual tinkerers fucking about with it, and keeping it to themselves or very exclusive/unknown communities, and that's about it. Anyone who tried to make something with it and put it out for others to enjoy would get crushed by blizzard in a heartbeat.[/QUOTE] I would rather have some cool stuff coming from a few people in a few small communities rather than nothing at all

[QUOTE=Mr. Scorpio;52190336]I would rather have some cool stuff coming from a few people in a few small communities rather than nothing at all[/QUOTE] The exclusivity and secrecy that'd be needed pretty much negates the point of a predominantly multiplayer game having its source code available

[QUOTE=Mr. Scorpio;52190322]I don't really see why it would be so morally wrong to release the source code. They already released an updated version of the game for free. It isn't like they'd be losing out on any money.[/QUOTE] Technically speaking the IP is still in use, with Starcraft's 1 & 2 still active, also including the remaster for the original coming this summer. Even with the game being given away for free doesn't make it public domain / Open Source, but instead it's now [B]FREEWARE[/B]. Freeware games are typically given to users at no cost, but are still liable to certain restrictions which of course includes the obfuscation of the software's source code. For instance just because ( i.e : Candy Crush ) is free on the app store, doesn't give you the right to the modify or alter game's source code.

[QUOTE=thelurker1234;52190323]It's a part of our society that intellectual property is a thing that gets protection. Yes, it's a social construct just like private property. That doesn't mean it's just bullshit though. Also I wouldn't get very excited about the "great things (that) could've come." Maybe just for an illustration, I'll start by asking you what you think would happen if blizzard publicly released the source code and allowed people to do what they wanted. What would we get? We'd get fan games, revamps, mods, etc. being created and shared publicly for the community at large to enjoy. It'd be a lot like what happened when freespace 2 went open source. But if it's an illegal leak, we would get none of that. We'd get some individual tinkerers fucking about with it, and keeping it to themselves or very exclusive/unknown communities, and that's about it. Anyone who tried to make something with it and put it out for others to enjoy would get crushed by blizzard in a heartbeat.[/QUOTE] I think you're vastly overestimating that, especially in the long term. Being part of society doesn't make something not bullshit. I think copyright is great in the short term, because obviously artists and designers should be able to profit off their work. But after a few years it should become public domain, like all information should be. Current intellectual property laws are frankly straight up harmful to society. They're bullshit and benefit no one but major corporations, at the detriment of everyone else.

[QUOTE=FezianEmperor;52185357]As much as people might wonder if the value of having a Gold source code versus getting a free trip, 250 Blizzard bucks, merchandise. I still must say this is one of those stories of there are many where I smile at the response from Blizzard. Most companies would just threaten legal action if not returned without any thank yous' for being kind enough to give it back. I know that's supposed to happen, but the fact that Blizzard shows such kindness towards someone who were in position of doing something malicious with a source code of their game and still giving such a response back for the reddit user doing the "right thing". It really just makes me smile.[/QUOTE] Oh please, Blizzard isn't your friend, they're just another corporation protecting their interests. If the guy kept the code instead he'd get fucked by their long hard throbbing legal dick right up the ass. Didn't they just win a huge lawsuit against some cheat maker on the basis of "copyright infringement"? I can't imagine their response would be a lot different for someone who made their source code freely available against permission. What they did in this case was just a minimal gesture of good will that cost them next to nothing in the grand scheme of things. And they're getting a bunch of free publicity out of it. What you call a heartfelt act of kindness just sounds like a smart PR move to me.

I wouldn't have said a damn thing if I was in his position, I would have just publicly released it and see what happens.

[QUOTE=elowin;52190593]I think you're vastly overestimating that, especially in the long term. Being part of society doesn't make something not bullshit. I think copyright is great in the short term, because obviously artists and designers should be able to profit off their work. But after a few years it should become public domain, like all information should be. Current intellectual property laws are frankly straight up harmful to society. They're bullshit and benefit no one but major corporations, at the detriment of everyone else.[/QUOTE] I actually do agree that copyright and IP law are way too strong. I just think that the rules should be changed, not that breaking rules is good.

[QUOTE=Mr. Scorpio;52190322]I don't really see why it would be so morally wrong to release the source code. They already released an updated version of the game for free. It isn't like they'd be losing out on any money.[/QUOTE] There's moral arguments for "it's the right thing", yadda yadda, but you could go for the full-on logical choice of risk vs reward. As others and I have said before in this thread, is it really worth it to release it to the public and wonder if anyone's going to be coming after you? The only other two choices are to either keep it to yourself and don't tell anyone, or just turn it in.

I think he did the right thing, with SC1 having such a big scene in places like South Korea, having people potentially hacking or doing other malicious things could have a very negative impact. And yes, I believe good stuff like user modifications could really boost the game.

personally i'd turn it in cause if i were the one making the games i sure wouldn't want someone to leak the source code of it

[QUOTE=Handsome Matt;52192039]why do you all seem to think the source code would lead to hacking - if you can hack the game with the source code, you can hack it without.[/QUOTE] It also neglects how the game is actually played in korea too. IIRC it's pretty much entirely in web cafes and specific competitive events. You aren't doing much hacking in those scenarios. The online PVP ladder in starcraft itself has been disabled for quite a long time. Although I could be wrong and I think blizz is reenabling that. Even if they do though, they're including new anti-hacking protections and have probably messed with the engine quite a bit between then and the new release.

[QUOTE=Handsome Matt;52192039]why do you all seem to think the source code would lead to hacking - if you can hack the game with the source code, you can hack it without.[/QUOTE] You can't use a hacking method if you don't know it exists. Source code gives you a much better understanding of how the game works and how it can be exploited.

I'd rather have seen it released simply because it's an old game that's already been made free. But that's me.

Just for your information guys: The game's engine and especially the netcode probably got completely rewritten in this new update. The game probably already has and could run some of its HD content that is not unlocked jet. Without rewriting the +20 years old code, it would be impossible.

[QUOTE=Flazer210;52185392][B]Morally, correct thing to do. I think we can all agree on that.[/B] It's their franchise and regardless of how old it may be, it's still their property. I just wonder how it happened to so carelessly wind up in a box of junk. However, assuming he did try to barter off the thing for some fortune, Blizzard would likely blast whoever came into possession with it, and anyone who garnered any profit from trading it around. If it was released online and came into the hands of the public, it would probably be a nightmare for them and everyone knows once something is on the internet it's never really gone for good. It'll always exist out there. All in all, he was remunerated by Blizzard for doing something he didn't have to. He didn't give into greed, or any desire to profit from it (which he likely could have, for much more than Blizzard offered him, as Hilton said) but instead decided to save himself, Blizzard, and everyone else who might've been involved the trouble of going through loads of legal bullshit, lawsuits, and god knows what else. He made things easy instead of making them difficult and I find that respectable.[/QUOTE] No, we can't. Source code to a twenty year old, culturally significant video game belongs in the hands of the public. Screw the IP owner.

[QUOTE=DeEz;52189806]Law still applies to scumbags.[/QUOTE] Law doesn't define my morals.

[QUOTE=Mr. Scorpio;52190322]I don't really see why it would be so morally wrong to release the source code. They already released an updated version of the game for free. It isn't like they'd be losing out on any money.[/QUOTE] Pretty sure we established millennia ago that stealing = wrong

[QUOTE=DeEz;52193439]Pretty sure we established millennia ago that stealing = wrong[/QUOTE] this isn't the same thing as taking your neighbor's lawnmower, dude We're talking about giving people access to information produced by a company that would rather it be kept secret. Information that, were it released, would in no way impact them negatively financially in any measurable way.

[QUOTE=Handsome Matt;52193333]so does IDA and packet sniffers - anything you can do with source code you can do anyway - you're really not gaining much from the source code of a like 20 year old game - if it was hackable in the ways you're thinking it would be publicly known by now[/QUOTE] Yes but it's also a lot easier when you don't have to reverse engineer anything and you can just recompile the game instead of needing to hook.

[QUOTE=Mr. Scorpio;52193875]this isn't the same thing as taking your neighbor's lawnmower, dude We're talking about giving people access to information produced by a company that would rather it be kept secret. Information that, were it released, would in no way impact them negatively financially in any measurable way.[/QUOTE] They made the game, it's their property. How in the world can you argue that you should be entitled to their creation just because it's old? If they don't want to share it publicly, get over it.