A WORD FROM THE AUTHOR — PLEASE READ BEFORE ACCEPTING
I developed HotWire4X drawing on my more than 20 years of hands-on hot-wire CNC cutting. It is the result of a colossal amount of personal work. To protect this work and the quality of the software, I do not allow it to be copied or cloned by any means, including artificial intelligence: not its code, not its interface, not its documentation.
Like most software, HotWire4X comes with a license agreement, which follows, and may only be used if you accept it. If you do not agree, simply do without the software.
By accepting this agreement, you undertake in particular to respect my refusal to allow copying (Section 4). Going ahead anyway would mean acting against my express wishes and in breach of the accepted agreement. No legal trick will make it honest.
Renaud Iltis, author of HotWire4X and founder of Modern Fabrication LLC
1. IDENTIFICATION AND DEFINITIONS
The software HotWire4X (the “Software”) is published by Modern Fabrication LLC, a limited liability company organized under the laws of the State of Wyoming, United States, mailing address: 1309 Coffeen Avenue STE 1200, Sheridan, WY 82801, USA, e-mail: contact@hotwire4x.com (the “Publisher”). “User” means any person installing or using the Software.
“Consumer” means a natural person acting for purposes which are wholly or mainly outside that person’s trade, business, craft or profession.
“Business User” means a person or entity using the Software for professional, commercial or business purposes.
“Non-commercial use” means any use that is not connected, directly or indirectly, with a commercial activity: in particular use for personal or family purposes, for leisure or for study, or use by a Non-Profit Organization for its own activities. Use is not non-commercial where parts cut with the aid of the Software, or projects, designs or files made with it, are sold, exchanged for remuneration, produced as part of a paid service, or otherwise used in the course of a trade, business, craft or profession. Occasional sales made without profit motive in the ordinary course of the activities of a Non-Profit Organization (for example at a club event), and the occasional resale by an individual of an item made for their own use, do not, by themselves, constitute commercial use.
“Commercial use” means any use which is not non-commercial use.
“Paid Training” means any training, teaching or coaching service on the use of the Software supplied for remuneration, in any format — in person, remotely, or as sold content (courses, videos, materials).
“Non-Profit Organization” means any legal entity which does not distribute profits to its members, partners or owners — in particular associations, clubs, foundations, schools and other educational establishments, and public bodies — whatever its legal form. An entity which supplies cutting, manufacturing or design services for remuneration makes commercial use of the Software in respect of that activity, whatever its legal form.
“Machine” means any hot wire cutting equipment, together with its electronics, wiring, power supplies and environment, controlled directly or indirectly by means of the Software.
“Documentation” means the manuals, help pages, tutorials, videos, examples and other materials supplied or published by the Publisher in connection with the Software, however accessed (from within the Software, from the Publisher’s websites or otherwise), in particular the System requirements and compatible hardware page (https://hotwire4x.com/go/requirements) and the How the license works page (https://hotwire4x.com/go/license).
“Automated Replication” means the use of any automated system — in particular an artificial-intelligence model, a coding agent, a software-replication, decompilation or reverse-engineering tool, a scraper, or a tool for the automated capture or exploration of user interfaces — to analyse, describe, capture, extract or reproduce the Software, its user interface, its behaviour, the files it generates or the Documentation, for the purpose of producing, or assisting in the production of, software that replicates, substitutes for or competes with the Software, in whole or in substantial part.
Purpose and intended use. The Software is designed to create a virtual project suitable for cutting by the hobbyist CNC hot wire cutting process, and to send the information required to drive the carriages of such a machine, through the USB port and a compatible interface. The interfaces tested and supported by the Publisher are listed in the Documentation. Use of the Software with any other interface is technically possible but is entirely at the User’s own risk: such use is neither tested, supported nor warranted, and requires the User to verify, before any use, that the safety functions of the User’s Machine — in particular heat cut-off and emergency stop — actually respond, in accordance with Section 5. The Software is intended for hobbyist or semi-professional use. It is not designed, tested or intended for mass production, safety-critical applications, or any use in which a failure of the Software could reasonably be expected to endanger persons or property. The Software may be used without a connected machine in order to create projects. The Publisher supplies no machine.
2. ACCEPTANCE
The Software cannot be installed or used without the User’s express acceptance of this Agreement, given by clicking the acceptance button presented during installation or on first launch. Installing, copying or using the Software also constitutes full and unreserved acceptance of this Agreement. Circumventing or disabling the acceptance mechanism confers no right in the Software and does not exempt anyone from complying with this Agreement. This Agreement governs the use of the Software, including the functions available free of charge, and the use of the Documentation, which the Publisher makes available to Users as an accessory to the Software. If the User does not accept these terms, the User must not install the Software, or must uninstall it immediately, cease all use and destroy every copy. The Publisher may amend this Agreement; the applicable version is the latest one accepted by the User upon installation or on first launch of the Software or, failing that, the one supplied with the version of the Software in use, the most recent version being published at https://hotwire4x.com/go/eula.
3. LICENSE
The Software is licensed, not sold. It may be installed and used free of charge, without a license, for all its functions other than the production functions, in particular to create and save projects, configure a table and test movements; in that mode, the Software performs no network communication. The license unlocks the production functions: direct USB cutting, the display and export of the command files generated by the Software, in whatever format (for example G-code), and any export to a format other than that of HotWire4X projects (for example .dat or .dxf profiles).
Subject to acquiring a license and activating a valid license key, the Publisher grants the User a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable and non-sublicensable right to use the Software, including its production functions, within the scope of the type of license acquired.
License types. The Publisher offers several types of license. The type acquired determines who may hold it, whether commercial use is permitted, and the number of computers on which the production functions may be activated at the same time:
(a) Personal License — reserved for a natural person, for that person’s own non-commercial use. The production functions may be activated and used on one (1) computer at a time, or on two (2) computers at a time for a Personal License — 2 computers. This license may not be held by a legal entity, nor used for the activities of an organization;
(b) Education and Non-Profit License — reserved for a Non-Profit Organization, for the non-commercial activities of that organization. The production functions may be activated and used on up to three (3) computers at a time, within the organization holding the license;
(c) Pro License — available to any person or entity, and permitting commercial use. The production functions may be activated and used on up to five (5) computers at a time, within the person or entity holding the license. The commercial use permitted includes, in particular, selling cutting services, cut parts and designs; it does not include Paid Training (Section 4). This license does not extend the intended use of the Software described in Section 1: the Software remains neither designed nor intended for mass production or for safety-critical applications.
The type of license acquired is stated on the purchase page and in the order confirmation. A license acquired together with a training course confers the same rights as a license acquired alone; the course is governed by its own terms. A license is granted to a single holder: it may not be shared between separate persons or entities.
Installation. The Software may be installed on more computers than the license permits, for the holder’s own use, provided that the production functions are activated on no more than the number of computers permitted by the license held.
Use without a license. The functions available free of charge, described in the first paragraph of this Section, may be used without a license for non-commercial use, and by any person or entity to evaluate the Software. Any other commercial use of these functions, in particular selling projects or designs made with the Software, requires a Pro License.
Change of situation. Where the User’s use ceases to fall within the scope of the license held, or of use without a license — in particular where commercial use begins, or where the holder of a Personal License wishes to use the Software for the activities of an organization — the User must acquire the appropriate license before continuing to use the Software for those purposes.
Changing computers. The license may be deactivated on one computer and reactivated on another, using the function provided in the Software (Help > License… menu). This operation requires an internet connection.
Online verification. An internet connection is required (a) once, upon initial activation of the key, and (b) thereafter, for at least one verification to succeed every thirty (30) days. Between verifications, the Software operates entirely offline. Failing a successful verification within that period, only the production functions are suspended until the next successful verification; no data, no project and no acquired right is lost, and the license is restored as soon as the connection is re-established. Network unavailability never constitutes a sanction. This behaviour is described in detail at https://hotwire4x.com/go/license.
Scope of the license over time. The license covers all versions of the Software whose major version number is 6 (versions 6.x.y), including patches and minor releases, without time limit. Moving to a later major version (7.0.0 and above) constitutes a major upgrade, which may require a new purchase or an additional payment. Major upgrades are identified by a change in the first component of the version number. The Publisher may determine the version number of a particular release in accordance with this principle.
4. RESTRICTIONS
The User may not, except with the Publisher’s written authorization or where mandatory law provides otherwise: (a) distribute, sell, rent, lend, publish or make available the Software or any license key; (b) circumvent, disable or alter the licensing mechanism; (c) decompile, disassemble or reverse engineer the Software, other than in the cases strictly permitted by law, and only after first requesting the necessary information from the Publisher; information obtained in such cases may be used only for the purposes permitted by law, and never to develop, produce or market software substantially similar in its expression to the Software; (d) remove proprietary notices; (e) design, develop, train or market, by means of the Software or the Documentation, any product or service that replicates, substitutes for or competes with the Software, in whole or in substantial part, except to the extent such restriction is prohibited by mandatory applicable law; (f) use the Software or its name to falsely imply endorsement, certification or sponsorship by the Publisher, or to promote a third-party product, Machine or publication in a manner that infringes the Publisher’s rights or applicable law; (g) use the production functions beyond the scope of the type of license held, in particular make commercial use of a Personal License or of an Education and Non-Profit License, or activate the production functions on more computers than the license held permits, or make commercial use of the free functions, other than evaluating the Software, without holding a Pro License; (h) provide Paid Training — training given by a Non-Profit Organization to its own members or students, as part of its non-commercial activities, is not Paid Training within the meaning of this Agreement; (i) carry out, commission or facilitate any Automated Replication, or supply the Software, any screenshot, recording or capture of its user interface, any file generated by it, or all or part of the Documentation, as input to a system used for Automated Replication; (j) extract, copy or republish, systematically or in substantial part, the Documentation or the data files supplied with the Software, or reproduce the user interface of the Software (in particular its layout, screens, icons, graphics, texts and messages) in any other software.
Restrictions (a) to (j) apply to every User, whether or not a license is held, including where only the functions available free of charge are used, and to the Documentation however accessed.
Permitted sharing. The User may publish screenshots, short extracts of the Documentation and descriptions of the Software for the purposes of review, commentary, discussion, free tutorials or support requests, with mention of the source, provided that such publication does not serve any purpose prohibited by (e), (i) or (j).
Mandatory rights. Nothing in this Section deprives the User of any right that mandatory law grants to a lawful user, within the limits and for the purposes set by that law — in particular, within the European Union, the rights provided for in Articles 5 and 6 of Directive 2009/24/EC (in France, Article L. 122-6-1 of the Intellectual Property Code). A restriction that conflicts with such a right does not apply to the extent of that conflict.
Third-party components. The Software includes third-party components, in particular open-source libraries, which are listed together with their licenses in the THIRD_PARTY_NOTICES.txt file supplied with the Software. Each such component remains governed by its own license. Where that license grants the User broader rights than this Agreement, those rights prevail for that component. In particular, for libraries licensed under the GNU LGPL (including Qt and PySide6), nothing in this Section restricts modification of the portions of those libraries contained in the Software, their replacement with a modified version, or reverse engineering for debugging such modifications.
5. SAFETY WARNING — READ IN FULL
The Software drives equipment that heats a metal wire to high temperature. A hot wire cutting Machine inherently presents risks of burns, fire, fumes and emissions, as well as electrical hazards.
The Software is solely a tool for computation, preparation and transmission of instructions. It is not a safety device, contains none, and does not monitor the physical world. The safety of a cutting operation rests exclusively with the Machine, its design, its wiring and the User.
By using the Software, the User undertakes, and declares to be solely responsible for, the following:
- to connect the Software only to a Machine that complies with good engineering practice and with the regulations applicable at its place of use; the Machine — whatever its origin: self-built, purchased or modified — is not supplied by the Publisher, and its design, construction, safety and use rest exclusively with whoever built or commissioned it and with its operator;
- to fit the Machine with a hardware emergency stop, readily accessible, cutting both motion and heating, to test it regularly, AND to install upstream a readily accessible means of disconnecting mains power (for example a switched power strip) — an electronic emergency stop is not an electrical disconnection;
- to ensure direct and continuous human supervision throughout any cutting operation, under the responsibility of an adult; never to leave a Machine powered and unattended; never to use the equipment while tired or under the influence of alcohol, drugs or medication — a moment’s inattention is enough to cause serious injury; not to allow the equipment to be used by persons with reduced physical, sensory or mental capabilities;
- materials: to cut only materials expressly intended for thermal wire cutting (polystyrene foams such as EPS and XPS, EPP, and equivalent documented thermofusible materials). Hot wire cutting releases harmful fumes whatever the material, including those that are permitted: the measures set out in paragraph 5 below apply without exception or gradation. Never to cut PVC or polyurethane foams: in the Publisher’s experience these materials cannot be cut with a hot wire — the wire fouls within a few centimetres, then breaks. Never to cut a material whose composition has not been verified with its supplier (safety data sheet) — a material of unknown composition is a prohibited material;
- fumes: never to start a cutting operation without powered fume extraction running — extraction at source is a condition of use; a mask supplements it, it does not replace it; always to work in a ventilated space and always to wear a cartridge respirator suited to organic vapours, with filters in good condition, for every cutting operation, however short: the fumes released by melting materials, including permitted polystyrene foams, are harmful to breathe; to stay away from material being cut and to ventilate before retrieving the finished part;
- to treat the cutting wire as what it is: an electrical conductor, live and at high temperature — risk of burns AND of electric shock; never to touch it while the Machine is powered; never to let it contact any unintended conductive element (short-circuit hazard);
- always to wear eye protection: the cutting wire is held under mechanical tension and may whip if it breaks; to wear suitable clothing — no loose garments or hanging jewellery, long hair tied back: they may be caught by moving parts or reached by the wire;
- to keep children, animals and any uninformed person out of the working area; any person present in the working area must wear the same protection as the operator; to keep suitable fire-extinguishing means close at hand;
- to check every toolpath (preview/simulation) before any execution, to watch the wire entering the material on every cut, and to remain able to interrupt execution at any moment; in the event of an anomaly: immediate emergency stop, then complete disconnection of mains power and of the USB cable before any manual intervention on the Machine or the wire;
- to ensure the compliance and good condition of the electrical installation, power supplies and wiring, and never to work on any electrical component without having disconnected mains power and the USB cable.
The User acknowledges that the Publisher has no control over, and no knowledge of, the actual Machine, its condition, its environment or the materials used, and that the User alone has custody and control of the Machine. As with any powered cutting tool, it is for the User to protect themselves and those around them, with means suited to the situation and to the characteristics of the material being cut. Keep these warnings for future reference. Compliance with all of these instructions does not eliminate every risk: residual risks inherent in thermal cutting and machine operation remain, which the User acknowledges and accepts in operating the Machine.
Any use of the Software or Machine contrary to this Section, to the Documentation or to applicable safety instructions constitutes misuse. The User is responsible for damage resulting from misuse, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law.
Nothing in this Section limits any liability or statutory right that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited.
6. WARRANTY AND STATUTORY RIGHTS
Except for rights that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited, the Software is provided “AS IS” and “AS AVAILABLE”.
TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, THE PUBLISHER MAKES NO EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTY, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE OR NON-INFRINGEMENT, AND NO WARRANTY THAT THE SOFTWARE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, ERROR-FREE, SUITABLE FOR EVERY PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OR COMPATIBLE WITH EVERY MACHINE, INTERFACE, MATERIAL OR OPERATING ENVIRONMENT.
Cutting results depend on factors outside the Software, including the Machine, its mechanical and electrical characteristics, wiring, materials, settings, environment and operating conditions. A simulation or preview is not a guarantee of the actual cutting result.
The User acknowledges that software cannot reasonably be tested against every possible hardware configuration, material, operating condition or use case; that use of the Software is reserved for informed users and entails risk; and that it is for the User to verify the suitability of the Software for the User’s needs and its use under conditions that do not cause harm to persons or property.
Nothing in this Agreement excludes, restricts or replaces any mandatory statutory warranty, conformity right, consumer protection, product liability right or other legal right that applies to the User under the law applicable to the transaction. In particular, where the User qualifies as a Consumer, nothing in this Agreement is intended to exclude or limit mandatory consumer rights relating to the conformity, quality, safety, availability, updates or performance of digital content or digital services.
For Business Users, the exclusions and limitations contained in this Agreement apply to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law.
7. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW:
(a) the Publisher shall not be liable for indirect or consequential losses, including loss of data, materials, production, machine time, customers, orders, profits, revenue or business opportunities, or for commercial interruption;
(b) the Publisher shall not be liable for claims brought against the User by third parties to the extent such claims arise from the User’s operation, configuration, construction or modification of a Machine or from materials selected or used by the User;
(c) the Publisher shall not be liable for damage resulting from the User’s misuse of the Software, use contrary to the Documentation or to the safety instructions in Section 5, use with unsupported hardware, or use of a Machine that does not provide appropriate safety functions;
(d) for Business Users acting for professional purposes, the Publisher shall not be liable, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, for direct or indirect damage arising from the use or performance of the Software, except where such exclusion is prohibited by mandatory law;
(e) the Publisher’s total aggregate liability arising out of or relating to the Software or this Agreement shall, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, be capped at the amounts actually paid by the User for the Software during the twelve (12) months preceding the event giving rise to the claim.
Nothing in this Agreement excludes or limits liability, or restricts a legal remedy, where such exclusion or limitation is prohibited by mandatory applicable law, including applicable rules concerning death or personal injury, fraud, gross negligence, defective products, or mandatory consumer rights. For Consumers, the limitations in this Section apply only to the extent permitted by the mandatory law applicable to the Consumer.
8. UPDATES AND ASSISTANCE
Assistance and updates are governed by the Support Policy (https://hotwire4x.com/go/support) and the Refund Policy (https://hotwire4x.com/go/refund). The Publisher may develop and release updates, patches and new versions of the Software. Nothing in this Agreement excludes any update or other obligation that the Publisher is required to provide under mandatory applicable law.
Where a particular version of the Software is licensed without limitation in time, the Publisher does not guarantee that every future operating system, hardware platform, interface or third-party service will remain compatible with that version, except where such compatibility is required by mandatory applicable law.
9. PERSONAL DATA
The processing of personal data associated with licensing and verification is described in the Privacy Policy: https://hotwire4x.com/go/privacy
10. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND PROTECTION OF RIGHTS
The Software (in object code and in source code), its user interface (in particular its layout, screens, icons, graphics, texts and messages), the Documentation (texts, illustrations, diagrams, videos and examples) and the data files supplied with the Software (in particular machine presets and examples) are protected by copyright and, where applicable, by the database right. HotWire4X is a trademark registered in France. These elements remain the property of the Publisher or its licensors. No ownership right is transferred to the User. No right other than the license expressly granted under Section 3 is conferred by this Agreement.
Use of the Documentation. The Documentation is made available solely to enable Users to install, understand and use the Software. Its use is governed by this Agreement.
Text and data mining. Pursuant to Article 4(3) of Directive (EU) 2019/790 and the national provisions transposing it (in France, Article L. 122-5-3 of the Intellectual Property Code), the Publisher expressly reserves its rights over any text and data mining of the Software, its user interface and the Documentation, including where carried out for the training, fine-tuning or grounding of artificial-intelligence systems or as input to such systems. This reservation is also expressed in machine-readable form on the online pages of the Documentation. Outside the European Union, these uses are prohibited by this Agreement to the extent permitted by applicable law.
Identifying marks. The Software, its data files and the Documentation contain identifying marks enabling the Publisher to establish the origin of any reproduction.
Protection of rights. A breach of Section 4 (b), (c), (e), (i) or (j) or of this Section may constitute, in addition to a breach of contract, an infringement of the Publisher’s intellectual property rights and, under the applicable law, an act of unfair competition or of free-riding (parasitism). Such a breach may cause the Publisher harm that monetary damages alone cannot adequately remedy; the Publisher may accordingly seek injunctive, provisional or protective relief, without prejudice to any other remedy.
11. CONTINUITY OF THE VERIFICATION SERVICE
The license verification service may be modified, replaced or entrusted to another provider, at the Publisher’s sole initiative. Such a change may require installation of an update to the Software for licenses to remain verifiable; that update will then be made available free of charge to holders of a license valid under Section 3.
The Publisher will use reasonable efforts to maintain the licensing and verification infrastructure necessary for valid licenses to remain usable.
If the Publisher permanently ceases operation of the licensing service or permanently ceases business in circumstances that prevent the continued operation of the verification service, the Publisher or its successors in title will use reasonable efforts to provide an alternative means for valid existing licenses to continue operating.
This provision constitutes an obligation of means and not of result, except where mandatory applicable law provides otherwise.
12. TERMINATION
The Publisher may terminate a license for a material breach of this Agreement, in particular a material breach of Sections 4 or 5, to the extent such termination is permitted by applicable law. A breach of Section 4 (b), (e), (i) or (j) constitutes a material breach which, by its nature, cannot be remedied.
For a breach that can be remedied, the Publisher will normally give the User reasonable notice and an opportunity to remedy the breach before terminating the license, except where immediate termination is reasonably necessary to protect the Publisher’s rights, the security of the Software or third parties, or where applicable law permits or requires immediate termination.
Termination does not affect rights or obligations that accrued before termination. Following valid termination, the User must cease using the licensed production functions and uninstall the Software where required by the terms of the termination.
Sections 5, 6, 7 and 10 survive termination to the extent applicable. Nothing in this Section limits mandatory termination, refund, conformity or other rights available to Consumers under applicable law.
13. PRE-RELEASE VERSIONS (BETA, RC)
Versions whose number includes the designation “beta” or “rc” (release candidate) are pre-release versions, made available for evaluation and feedback purposes. Pre-release versions may contain defects, incomplete features, data loss, unstable behaviour or other limitations. Except to the extent prohibited by mandatory applicable law, pre-release versions are provided without any commitment that particular defects will be corrected or that particular features will be maintained. The User should back up projects and other important data before using a pre-release version.
Sections 5, 6 and 7 apply to pre-release versions, subject to mandatory applicable law. All other provisions of this Agreement also apply to pre-release versions.
14. MISCELLANEOUS
If any provision of this Agreement is held invalid, void or unenforceable, the remaining provisions remain in force to the extent permitted by applicable law.
Failure by the Publisher to enforce a provision does not constitute a waiver of the right to enforce that provision later.
The Publisher may assign this Agreement in connection with a transfer, reorganization or sale of all or substantially all of the business or assets to which the Software relates. The User may not assign or transfer the license except where expressly permitted by this Agreement or by mandatory applicable law.
This Agreement, together with the Documentation and any policies expressly incorporated into it, constitutes the agreement governing the User’s license to the Software, subject to mandatory applicable law.
15. GOVERNING LAW, LANGUAGE AND DISPUTES
The parties will seek an amicable resolution of any dispute before taking formal legal action where reasonably possible.
For Business Users, this Agreement is governed by the laws of the State of Wyoming, United States, without regard to its conflict-of-laws principles, and, to the extent permitted by applicable law, disputes shall be submitted to the competent courts of the State of Wyoming.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Publisher may bring any action to protect its intellectual property rights, or to obtain injunctive, provisional or protective relief, before any court having jurisdiction under applicable law, in particular the courts of the place where the infringement or the harm occurs or of the defendant’s domicile.
For Consumers, the choice of Wyoming law and jurisdiction does not deprive the Consumer of any mandatory protection or mandatory jurisdictional right available under the law of the Consumer’s country of habitual residence or any other law that mandatorily applies to the transaction. Nothing in this Agreement prevents a Consumer from exercising any mandatory right to bring proceedings before a competent court in the Consumer’s country of habitual residence or another jurisdiction where such right cannot lawfully be excluded.
This Agreement is drafted in English. Versions in other languages may be provided for convenience and information. In the event of a discrepancy, the English version shall prevail to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law. For Consumers, however, the applicable mandatory rules concerning language, information and consumer protection prevail where required by law.
Contact: contact@hotwire4x.com