Subject: PyMOL 0.92 Released (plus RE:Advertising)

From: "Warren L. DeLano" <warren:at:delanoscientific.com>
Date: Mon, 27 Oct 2003 15:58:09 -0800

PyMOL 0.92 is available for download from http://pymol.sf.net at your
convenience.

This new release will be more useful to students, educators, and
scientists for the following reasons:

	1) PyMOL can now assign secondary structure rapidly.
	2) PyMOL now renders faster and generates sharper images.
	3) PyMOL can now be used more effectively as a Python module.
	4) PyMOL now supports new map file formats (AVS/MEAD, O/BRIX,
Biosym GRID).
	5) Numerous bugs and user requests have been addressed.

End Announcement.
Begin Comment on CCL:Advertising.

From: Phil Hultin
Sent: Friday, October 24, 2003 8:37 AM
To: Computational Chemistry List
Subject: CCL:Advertising

...
>I have observed an increase in the number of commercial advertisements
(as distinct from 
>comments suggesting that one program/product does a particular task
better or worse than
> another, coming from persons with no direct connection to the products
in question) over
> the last year or so, and I think this has no place on this discussion
list.
...

Hopefully Dr. Hultin won't construe this post as inappropriate
"commercial" advertising given that PyMOL is Open-Source and freely
available, even though we exist as a business in order to maintain,
develop, and support the package.  

It is also worth pointing out that most academic scientists aren't even
able to create unrestricted Open-Source tools like PyMOL due to
University technology transfer and software licensing policies.  Thus, a
blanket prejudice against all commercial entities is un-"warren"-ted,
given present conditions.  Ironically, I had to form a private
commercial entity because that was the only way we could be free to make
truly open-ended, Open-Source contributions to Science as a lasting
career pursuit.  Eventually academia and the funding agencies will
recognize the potential of Open-Source software to enable fundamental,
ubiquitous, and cumulative advances.  But until then, we have to operate
by whatever means are available.

Of course, many commercial entities do tend to behave as if making money
is the sole purpose of their existence, and that *is* indeed the purpose
for companies owned by dispassionate shareholders whose sole demand is
maximed return on investment (i.e. most big businesses).  But the same
does not apply to small, private, scientist-owned companies (truly
OWNED, not just scientist-managed), and there are many such companies
who post to CCL (from Santa Fe, Montreal, or California -- just to hint
at a few examples).

Most scientist-owned companies are simply trying to create and
disseminate great tools capable of enabling great science.  As
scientists, we share your love of progress and discovery at a personal
level.  That is what drives us -- not the bottom line.  We are not in
the same league as the scientific software "giants", and that is by
choice.  We play a different game and do it for different reasons.
DeLano Scientific demonstrates this most explicitly by sharing source
code, and thereby permanently slaying the nefarious License Daemon, but
that is just one of many ways in which companies can show a commitment
to science and progress over profit maximization.  
  
Please just keep this in mind when evaluating CCL posts from commercial
entities, since there are important distinctions to be made.  Yes, some
companies act like extortive tyrants, but others behave like friendly
academic labs.  Look to company ownership and past conduct for guidance
on future behavior.  If CCL is not enriched by certain commerical posts,
then by all means take up the issue with that particular company, but
please don't uniformly discourage commercial entities from participating
in the community.   Some companies are more like you than you may
realize, and most would appreciate advice on how to become better net
citizens, if provided discretely.

Cheers,
Warren

--
mailto:warren:at:delanoscientific.com
Warren L. DeLano, Ph.D.
Principal Scientist
DeLano Scientific LLC
Voice (650)-346-1154 
Fax   (650)-593-4020