[Nel] open source MMORPG and hacks/cheats question (probably off topic)

[Alexander Denisov]

Hi to everybody, I think this is my first time posting on the mailing list.

I was thinking lately about GPL/open source discussion, and one question
still bothers me: hacks and cheats in MMORPG.

I have seen a couple of times when hacks/cheats ruined great games
(and I do believe that Nevrax is doing a very good game), since online
gameplay is very sensitive to such things.

By publishing source code of the game, isn't it like giving a "green light"
to hackers? Are there any ways
somehow to prevent (or at least try to prevent) hacks and cheats, even if
hacker
knows the source code? Can the game company keep the network part of their
game in secret
(though I don't see how, since its clearly using NeL in this case).

I appologise if my question is completely unrelated to NeL and Nevrax game,
since all the details are kept in secret, but I think that this is very
important question.

By the way, thanks for the great engine! (though I'm still trying to compile
it)

Alex