[DECtalk] legality and dectalk

[Carlos Fernandez]

The problem applying laws to synthesizers like dectalk is the difficulty 
of purchasing it. I would be singing a different tune if fonix did 
anything other than sit on the patent. I would also think very 
differently if it were something like nuance vocalizer or acapela 
infovox, products that use very modern design and are still being 
developed. This is the reason I will not write a fonixTalk synthesizer 
for NVDA, as has been asked. I don't believe I can resolve the question 
of what is and isn't fonix's property inside fonixTalk.
However, neither of my requirements apply to dectalk. The base code has 
not been changed for decades and it only runs on modern systems because 
the people who wrote it were lucky enough to choose a programming 
language that did not die. Fonix never even released a new version of 
dectalk. They simply purchased the code and threw it in a box. Unless 
some company would like to give us an alternative, I declare, on behalf 
of the dectalk community, that dectalk, in all of its current forms, is 
open for use by any person who desires it.

Carlos