Hacker News Reader

Isn't there a 1st-amendment exception for code? The code isn't violating any copyright.

I remember books (with the code inside) being used as a workaround for cryptography export controls.

I wonder if the same could apply here (if this notice holds up to begin with), either as a book with code, or as a book with instructions in English language that are equivalent to what the code does.

This is a very underrated workaround. I had no idea this was used.

A book. Or any other medium of expression protected by 1st amendment, such as t-shirt [1], poetry [2], music [3]. And more broadly, any way of encoding a number in an artform via steganography [4].

[1] https://www.wired.com/2000/08/court-to-address-decss-t-shirt... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DeCSS_haiku [3] https://www.gamedev.net/forums/topic/138581-decss-midi/ [4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steganography

In particular, the website has been taken down as well.

If not the code, then at least that, should be a free speech violation; DMCA should not be used to silence websites (even if the code is taken down!)

Reply on news.ycombinator.com