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diff --git a/docs/mame.txt b/docs/mame.txt new file mode 100644 index 00000000000..6e575aab0db --- /dev/null +++ b/docs/mame.txt @@ -0,0 +1,81 @@ +MAME(tm), the Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator +Copyright (c) 1997-2007 by Nicola Salmoria and the MAME team +MAME is a trademark owned by Nicola Salmoria + + +---------- +I. Purpose +---------- +MAME is strictly a non-profit project. Its main purpose is to be a +reference to the inner workings of the emulated arcade machines. This is +done both for educational purposes and for preservation purposes, in +order to prevent many historical games from disappearing forever once the +hardware they run on stops working. Of course, in order to preserve the +games and demonstrate that the emulated behavior matches the original, +you must also be able to actually play the games. This is considered a +nice side effect, and is not MAME's primary focus. + +It is not our intention to infringe on any copyrights or patents on the +original games. All of MAME's source code is either our own or freely +available. To operate, the emulator requires images of the original ROMs, +CDs, or hard disks from the arcade machines, which must be provided by +the user. No portions of the original game code are included in the +executable. + + +-------- +II. Cost +-------- +MAME is free. Its source code is free. Selling either is not allowed. + + +---------------- +III. Image Files +---------------- +ROM, CD, and hard disk images are all copyrighted material. They cannot +be distributed without the explicit permission of the copyright owner. +They are not "abandonware", nor have any of the games supported by MAME +passed out of copyright. + +MAME is not intended to be used as a tool for mass copyright +infringement. Therefore, it is strongly against the authors' wishes to +sell, advertise, or link to resources that provide illegal copies of ROM, +CD, or hard disk images. + + +-------------------- +IV. Derivative Works +-------------------- +Derivative works are allowed under the MAME license. However, you are +discouraged from providing specific functionality that goes against the +philosophy of the MAME team. Specifically: + +* Do not add games which are more recent than 3 years old, or which are +still being sold new by the company that produced them. MAME is not +intended to be a platform that competes with arcade games that are still +being actively sold. + +* Do not provide a means of generating a list of games that specifically +identifies those games for which the user does not have image files. This +only encourages users to seek out sources for illegal ROM, CD, and hard +disk images in order to "complete" their collection. + +* Do not remove the startup screen that contains information about why +certain non-working games don't work. This only serves to generate a +bunch of useless email traffic to the developers asking why the games +don't work. + +Because the name MAME is trademarked, you must abide by the rules of the +trademark usage if you wish to use "MAME" as part of the name your +derivative work. In general, this means you must request permission, +which requires that you follow the guidelines above. + +The version number of any derivative work should reflect the version +number of the MAME release it was derived from. + + +------------------------------- +V. Official Contact Information +------------------------------- +For questions regarding the MAME license, trademark, or other usage, go +to http://www.mamedev.org/ |