Bumbershoot has transformed Seattle's trademark tower, the Space Needle, into a giant musical instrument! Even better, you can play it. Los Angeles artists MASS Ensemble traveled to Bumbershoot to string the Space Needle with over 6,000 feet of cable to create a one of a kind instrument, the Amazing Space Harp.
if you are under NDA and acknowledge press speculation as fact, are you in violation?
The answer (IMHO) is: absolutely. However, it's worth mentioning, that's not what we did. The entire presentation was wrapped in the large disclaimer of "This is what's been publicly written about these products, but that certainly doesn't mean that this is all true. It may be true. It may have been true at the time of writing, but no longer is. It may have never been true. Obviously, if this is information from MSDN, then it's probably true <snip /> NDAs are something we take seriously. However, if you read an NDA, it says that once the information is public, it's no longer under NDA. If the information is on MSDN or GDN (like the language features for C#), then that information is no longer NDA (but going beyond what's public obviously would).
Finally, your dreamsabout how well the book will sell probably have no relation to how many people will actually buy it. Let's go back to the original example and tack some other numbers on to it:3,000 copies at full price4,500 copiees at special discount$3000 in licensing deals from third parties, of which you get 30%Now the total to you is $11,400 - not exactly that six-figure payout that you were hoping for.Oh, did I mention "Reserve for returns"? You'll probably find a clause like this: "We will withhold 20% of the royalties due to you as a reserve from which to deduct current and potential future returns." So out of that $11,400 you'll only actually get $9,120. And of course you already got that $8.000 when you were writing the book, so for the first couple of years your royalty statements will relentlessly show you as owing the publisher thousands of dollars. But perhaps three years after publication you'll get that $1,120. (Ultimately, the book will go out of print, and at that point you'll get the reserve - if there's anything left after deductng the last returns).
Finally, your dreamsabout how well the book will sell probably have no relation to how many people will actually buy it. Let's go back to the original example and tack some other numbers on to it:
Now the total to you is $11,400 - not exactly that six-figure payout that you were hoping for.
Oh, did I mention "Reserve for returns"? You'll probably find a clause like this: "We will withhold 20% of the royalties due to you as a reserve from which to deduct current and potential future returns." So out of that $11,400 you'll only actually get $9,120. And of course you already got that $8.000 when you were writing the book, so for the first couple of years your royalty statements will relentlessly show you as owing the publisher thousands of dollars. But perhaps three years after publication you'll get that $1,120. (Ultimately, the book will go out of print, and at that point you'll get the reserve - if there's anything left after deductng the last returns).