From: Rob Muscoby
Sent: Wednesday, October 24, 2001 11:17 PM
To: Robert Mitchell
Subject: Re: Falcon5 and SuperPAK
SuperPAK
1. Are you a member of the Unified Team
working on SuperPAK?
I am not a member of the Unified Team working on
SuperPAK.
1a. What's your opinion of the SuperPAK project
and/or the Unified Team?
I believe the project is a deceitful approach of using
free labor in a purported cause of, "the good of the
community." A great number of people in the Unified
Team do not understand the true issues that allowed the
SuperPak project to happen in the first place. The full
story has yet to come out - only bits and pieces.
I believe each person that joined the Unified Team did
so to improve Falcon 4 beyond what we currently have.
This is to be applauded. However, this could have been
accomplished outside of G2i domain, and work could have
continued far beyond the 120 days, or so, that Superpak
has been granted. If the people that joined SuperPAK
had held out, and said, "NO!", G2i would have
disappeared, because they do not have the captial to
produce the product that SuperPAK is developing for
them for free. Within six months, G2i would have been
gone, then E-Team and RPG could have continued
producing and improving the game, far beyond what G2i
has designs for, and far sooner, and far better, and
for free.
The core Realism Patch Group creaters and testers are
not members of SuperPak, yet the Unified Team is going
to make claims of integration and compatibility with
RP5. They have neither the background knowledge, nor
the where-with-all to understand whether or not
something is working correctly or not. They are not
military experts, they are not F16 technitions, they
are primarily gamers, interested in making "their"
version of Falcon 4, regardless of the moral/ethical
issues involved.
I see the SuperPak project as little more than
intellectual theft of property and hard work previously
done for free, so that two individuals (G2i) may
profit. The goal of "release version 1" of SuperPak is
100% integration of RP5 with eFalcon. Since Sylvain
Gagnon, (one of the core programmers from RPG) was not
aiding in this, and the core developers from RPG are
not involved, any claims of compatibility or correct
behavior are no more true now, than they were a year
ago, when E-Team first began making claims of
compatibility.
2. Have you seen the greater good policy? If not,
here's a link to it: The Greater Good [link removed —Ed.]
I have read it.
3. What's your opinion of the "greater good" policy,
and what effect do you think it may have on the
SuperPAK project?
It is the basis of the intellectual theft, and
backhanded approach at leeching the free work of
others. It is ethically wrong, to claim legal
murkiness, and under threat of litigation, (literally),
take the free work of others to make money for
themselves.
The only reason someone, in the public, would agree to
this, is if they have nothing to lose, but something to
gain.
E-Team - they have nothing to lose, since they, as a
team, were going to be shut down back in June. They
lost nothing, but gained more time to continue working
on their product, and gained access to a wealth of work
and resources that they did not create, do not deserve,
and should not have. A great number of new people from
the public signed up to test SuperPAK. They had nothing
to lose, since they had invested nothing to this point.
They gain immediate access to an "improved" EXE, and
lose nothing.
Since the bulk of RPG developers are not part of the
SuperPAK project, and are unwilling to sign over rights
to G2i, the SuperPAK project is a headless horseman. A
great number of "big contributers" to Falcon 4's
development, (in RPG, F4A, et al), are vehemently
against this "greater good" policy, since the "good" is
a grand scheme of theft of free work done by others,
which is a statement of irony. SuperPAK is going to
continue to fracture the community, not unify it. The
"greater good", in G2i's eyes, means what's good for
them, and only them.
4. What is your take on user made add-ons and mods for
Falcon 4 in general?
I have participated in the creation of a great deal of
user made add-ons. I am very much in favor of anything
that improves the Falcon 4 experience, but does not
compromise restricted or classified information, nor
equate to theft of intellectual property of others.
Unfortunately, some of the user made mods do not fit
this criteria. Many fingers point to E-Team for
violation of these principles.
5. I read the "The Greater Good" and the "UT agreement
with G2Interactive" to state that whether the author
of a mod/art likes it or not, his or her works will be
incorporated into the SuperPAK, on top of signing over,
in absentia so-to-speak, the rights to G2Interactive
in their for-profit endeavors. Do you have an opinion
or comment you'd like to make on that?
Do I ever. I have created several pieces of work that
are currently spread throughout the Falcon 4 world, as
well as participated in the creation and development of
Realism Patch 4 and 5. I am disgusted with G2i's stance
on this matter. I have included a software license with
my work, that explicitly states that my work may not be
used, modified, or included in any other piece of work
without my written permission. RPG is taking the same
stance with G2i with regards to RP5.
G2i's behavior over the past six months has been
abhorred. They have behaved with such disregard for
honesty and loyalty, that 90% of the Falcon V team
resigned en-masse.
It is wrong, in so many ways, to take the free work of
others, bundle it up in some bogus claims of
"unification" and "greater good", and then use it as a
basis of a for-profit endeavor. I am disgusted with G2i
for this stance. They have lost the moral high ground.
Had they negotiated with the various stakeholders, and
compensated each team fairly, the future would be a
whole lot different than it currently is.
I, personally, will take legal action against G2i if
they use any of my work, without my expressed written
consent. I know that a lot of people feel this way.
Some members of RPG and F4A have taken a similar
stance.
Falcon V
1. What's your opinion on the continuation
of the Falcon series?
I would like to see the continuation of the Falcon
series, but NOT under the direction of G2i.
2. From the information that has been released about
Falcon V, theater, >the stated gameplay goals, etc,
what is your first impression?
The game is in need of an overhaul in a few key areas,
but G2i's plans for the continuation of the series will
amount to little more than what we currently have. A
new F15 cockpit, 2-seat co-op F15E, and new terrain.
Big deal. The Taiwan straits do not interest me. I am
just about as unimpressed as I could possibly be. If
G2i produces Falcon V, I will not purchase it.
3. Are you going to be, or are you currently, involved
in the creation of >Falcon V?
I am not involved in the creation of Falcon V.
Lastly, in writing this article, I need to "present"
you in it. You're a member of the RPG, but do you have
an official title? I guess what I'm asking is for your
credentials, as in Rob "Scoob" Muscoby, RPG
member....or Rob "Scoob" Muscoby, creator of "X" mod
and member of the RPG, if you know what I mean. I know
you've been involved with Falcon 4 for a long time.
Rob "Scoob" Muscoby Sub-Group Design Assistant in
Realism Patch Group
(brief) member of iBeta external test group, (1.07-
1.08)
Work I've done on Falcon 4, outside of RPG: Tiger
Spirit RP4 & RP5 campaigns. Rolling Fire RP4 & RP5
campaigns. Rolling Fire - DPRK campaigns. Manual
squadron movement tutorial (pre RP5) RWR (friend/foe)
patch (pre-RP4) loadout modification patch (pre-RP)
flight model patch