Just prior to the release of the updated dotProject Manual last week, a good friend and collegaue pointed out that there were no clear rules on distribution within an organization. Other than noting that it was copyrighted material, I did not explicitly deny or allow any specific rules. Point taken.
First of all, I have no desire to institute any enforcement mechanisms. I believe that the vast majority of people who wish to or who have bought the Manual want to Do the Right Thing(tm). The last thing I should do is make their lives more difficult. Therefore, I took after The Pragmatic Programmers by not implementing a DRM mechanism and instead embedding the name and email address of the purchaser in the footer of every page. I believe this will discourage the honest people from distributing it without getting in their way.
Unfortunately, I have had one organization distribute the Manual. In no time at all, their page was ranked above our own product page and sales dropped to nothing. I contacted them to get it removed – it was – and dug further into the matter. When I found that it was their intent to distribute it, I ended our business relationship. Yes, it may have cost CaseySoftware a customer but I have a standing rule to avoid customers who can't be trusted.
Therefore, all of this led to the creation of the 5 and 10-Pack Site Licenses. No, you still can't post the Manual online for distribution. Yes, your name and email address will still be inserted. But the key is that your organization can now buy a more flexible package to suit their needs, respect CaseySoftware's copyrighin, and get a discount as a result.