Early Manual?

Hi. I'm looking for a copy of an empeg manual predating the version that has a 2000 copyright date on page 3 and would pay a premium for one. Any help? Thanks.

You need a physical copy or just a scan?

A good scan would do the trick.

OK, how about $50 for a good copy? Any takers?

I went looking for my manual a few days ago and couldn't find it. I'll look again.

It must be a Mk1 manual you are looking for. I have the manual here that came with my Mk2 (from the first batch of 40 delivered, so it's as early as you get) and the copyright date is 2000.

I'll have to look a bit harder to find my Mk1 manual, but it'll be here somewhere!

When I find it I'll run it through the scanner, unless someone else beats me to it.

That's weird. I know for a fact that I got my Mk2 in 1999, yet the manual I got looks an awful lot like this one, which does definitely say "2000".

Ur, no. I'm totally wrong. I got it in 2000.

Nevermind. Nothing to see here. Move along.

I could scan my RioCar manual if you want. Let me know if that's early enough for you.

How much does this sound like copyright lawsuit fodder... again.

The empeg is prior art, and there's certainly prior art before that too.

Stop hampering innovation and creativity with your gold digging legal contortions.

In fairness, someone deliberately searching for prior art is usually trying to defend themselves from innovation-hampering gold-digging legal contortions, rather than initiate them.

@TigerJimmy: if it's branded Rio as opposed to Empeg, it's definitely year 2000 or later, so not what's being asked for.

Peter

Peter's right. I'm a patent attorney and my client has been sued for infringing a 2007 patent that would cover the 1999 empeg unit if it covers my client's product. I only want to be able to prove that the MK1 is, in fact, in the prior art.

Can you be more specific as to what is supposed to be proved with the manual?

Many people would be quite happy to point out prior art if it helps deal with a patent troll (oh for <deity>'s sake, that was totally a solved problem x years ago), but a manual may or may not contain what you're looking for.

... and if it's a 2007 patent, wouldn't a 2000 manual be just fine? Or indeed any empeg bought off eBay?

Damn, that's a big law firm you work for. I found only three Aarons, in Massachusetts, Illinois, and California, but I can't seem to find a docket in any of those states that seems to have anything to do with a patent that might be predated by the empeg. (Unless there's some sort of medical or biotech IP in there. I never realized how much of our court system dealt with that stuff.)

I'm sure confidentiality precludes you from telling us which case it is, but some sort of further information would certainly be helpful.

My apologies and kindly redirecting my comments to the opposing party.

Hi, now that is strange that a lawyer is looking for the exact same thing than I do. Did anyone could bring up the manual from 1999. In my "case" I bought the Mark 1 a few weeks ago as a gift for a friend of mine (got married and needed a toy that he had when he was still free) but then thought it would be cool to have it complete with the manual. In fact the people that put in the money to buy the MK1 gave me heck for not asking for the manual --> HELP ME OUT OF THIS.
Thanks a lot.

Would the copyright notices in source code help? Would the early exicutables have human readable copyright notices.

for instance http://www.empeg.com/downloads/download.c starts with...

I'm sorry, but can't really share any more info.

How about $100 for a copy of the MK1 manual. Any takers?

$200? Please?

The Mk1 circuit schematics, ISTR, are clearly dated 1999, if that helps. I imagine that Patrick and Hugo might still have copies of those, if your intentions are pure and good.

Cheers

I imagine that the manual would be proof of availability for sale, whereas the schematic wouldn't.

To be clear, it'd have to be a MkI empeg, regardless of the particulars of the documentation.

The best thing I can find is this image, from the UKUUG - Linux '99 Conference.

This would imply that it finally started shipping around early June, 1999.

Attached is the 1999 manual .pdf that came with my mk 1.

Aaron, buy me a really nice dinner!

Spring cleaning?

Yep, I found it in an email from 2000.

Wonderful. Thank you! Do you have PayPal?

Apparently, I save everything...

Wow. I probably stuck that label on myself