Customizing Code

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I purchased an MT4 indicator. I would like a programmer to make a few modifications to it.

Assuming i would only use it for my own trading, what are the copyright issues involved, if any?

Am I OK altering the code for my own needs?

Thank You

 
Kalakaua2:

I purchased an MT4 indicator. I would like a programmer to make a few modifications to it.

Assuming i would only use it for my own trading, what are the copyright issues involved, if any?

Am I OK altering the code for my own needs?

If you know how the indicator is calculated, and you're talking about hiring a programmer to recreate it from scratch, with bespoke modifications, then you are probably okay unless the indicator vendor has some very specific clauses in their licensing.


But if you only have the .ex4 file, and you're talking about using one of the services for decompiling it to .mq4 and then having a programmer modify that code, that is definitely not good.


In the unlikely event that the vendor has given you the .mq4 source code as well as the compiled .ex4, then that's a difficult area. It would depend on the licensing.


However, IANAL.

 
jjc wrote >>

If you know how the indicator is calculated, and you're talking about hiring a programmer to recreate it from scratch, with bespoke modifications, then you are probably okay unless the indicator vendor has some very specific clauses in their licensing.

But if you only have the .ex4 file, and you're talking about using one of the services for decompiling it to .mq4 and then having a programmer modify that code, that is definitely not good.

In the unlikely event that the vendor has given you the .mq4 source code as well as the compiled .ex4, then that's a difficult area. It would depend on the licensing.

However, IANAL.

Thank you. I did purchase the source code with the program...

 
Kalakaua2:

Thank you. I did purchase the source code with the program...

In which case, I'd expect a restriction on releasing a competing indicator, but not on modifying and using the code for your own private purposes. Why else issue the source code? But there ought to be something in the licensing agreement covering this.

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