[time-nuts] inexpensive fiber optic distribution

[jimlux]

On 3/21/19 1:19 AM, Gerhard Hoffmann wrote:

> 
> BTW our modules for Cisco had special contents in some registers to make 
> sure
> that nobody could use alien modules. There must have happened some
> social engineering if I read the post above :-)
> 

I suspect more that someone sued under the Magnuson Moss Act -
You can't deny warranty service for using "third party plug compatible" 
- and there's some things about "not concealing details of the 
interface" which would make creating such plug compatible devices.  This 
dates way back to the IBM mainframe days.

Note that this is probably (by court precedents that are available) only 
for "computing and communication equipment"  - little crypto id chips in 
printer cartridges may not fall in that bucket.