>> Wait - you mean if somebody is in a contract, it's not necessarily 
>> enforcible?
> 
> Generally, in civilized countries, there are things you can't put into a 
> contract and have enforced. You can write them in, but you can't get the 
> government to force you to obey them.

Does this mean that all that M$ stuff about "we technically own your PC 
now and you can't stop us doing anything we want to it" is not actually 
legally binding?

Suddenly EULAs take on a whole different hue...

(E.g., presumably you can't write an EULA that says in the small print 
"by using this software you agree to surrender your first-born child to 
us". Or rather, you *can*, it just won't mean squat.)

> For example, in California (since we're so big on start-ups), if I 
> create something on my own time with my own money and equipment, it 
> belongs to me even *if* it's *directly* in competition with the employer 
> I was working for.
> 
> In Pennsylvania (where I grew up), the company was allowed to keep you 
> from working for any competitor that sold the same thing to the same 
> customers for something like 6 months or a year or so.

Interesting.

I wonder how any of this applies to the UK. Hmm, Phil would know!

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