Many software companies distribute their software by selling licenses that entitle the purchaser to download the software from the software...

GMAT Two Part Analysis : (TPA) Questions

Source: Mock

Two Part Analysis

Verbal - RC

EASY

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Notes

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Many software companies distribute their software by selling licenses that entitle the purchaser to download the software from the software company over the Internet. Some of these companies prohibit the resale of these licenses by the original purchaser to another party (secondary purchaser). However, a court has ruled that such a license, once sold, is wholly the property of the purchaser, who is therefore entitled to resell it to a secondary purchaser, who would then be entitled to download the software from the software company. However, the court did stipulate that any party wishing to resell such a license would first be required to disable the software on his or her computer.

Select for Legal and Only if the actions such that, according to the court's ruling as described in the information provided, the first action is legal only if the second action has taken place. Make only two selections, one in each column.

Legal

Only if

Party 1 purchases a license for Software S from Company C.

Party 1 disables Software S on his or her computer.

Party 2 purchases a license for Software S from Company C.

Party 2 disables Software S on his or her computer.

Party 1 resells his or her license for Software S to Party 2.

Solution

Phase 1: Owning the Dataset

Argument Analysis Table

Passage Statement	Analysis & Implications
"Many software companies distribute their software by selling licenses that entitle the purchaser to download the software"	Core Fact: Licenses grant download rights Visualization: Party buys license → Can download software Logical Connection: Establishes baseline transaction model What We Can Conclude: Purchase creates entitlement
"Some of these companies prohibit the resale of these licenses"	Core Fact: Some companies restrict resale Visualization: Company policy says "no resale allowed" Logical Connection: Sets up conflict with court ruling What We Can Conclude: Companies' wishes ≠ legal reality
"Court ruled that such a license, once sold, is wholly the property of the purchaser, who is therefore entitled to resell it"	Core Fact: Licenses = property that can be resold Visualization: License owner has full property rights Logical Connection: Overrides company prohibitions What We Can Conclude: Resale is legally permitted
"Secondary purchaser would then be entitled to download the software"	Core Fact: Resale transfers download rights Visualization: Party 2 buys from Party 1 → Party 2 can download Logical Connection: Rights transfer with ownership What We Can Conclude: Secondary market is functional
"Court did stipulate that any party wishing to resell such a license would first be required to disable the software"	Core Fact: Resale requires prior disabling Visualization: Want to resell? → Must disable first Logical Connection: Creates conditional requirement What We Can Conclude: Resale is legal ONLY IF software disabled

Key Patterns Identified

Established Facts:
- Licenses are property
- Resale is permitted
- Disabling is required before resale
Key Relationship: A conditional requirement exists - resale depends on prior disabling
Limitation: The court's ruling specifically addresses only the original purchaser's obligations

Phase 2: Question Analysis & Prethinking

Understanding Each Part

"Legal" Column: We need an action that is legally permitted according to the court ruling
"Only if" Column: We need an action that must have occurred for the first action to be legal
Relationship: Creates a conditional - the Legal action is legal ONLY IF the "Only if" action has happened

Valid Inferences (Prethinking)

Based on the court's stipulation, the clearest inference is:

Primary Inference: Party 1 can legally resell the license
Conditional Inference: This resale is legal ONLY IF Party 1 has first disabled the software
Boundary Check: We cannot infer requirements for Party 2, only for the reseller (Party 1)

Phase 3: Answer Choice Evaluation

Analyzing Each Option:

"Party 1 purchases a license for Software S from Company C."
- What it claims: Initial purchase by Party 1
- Fact Support: This is legal without conditions
- Part Suitability: Could work for "Legal" but has no conditional requirement
"Party 1 disables Software S on his or her computer."
- What it claims: Party 1 performs the disabling action
- Fact Support: This is the required condition for resale
- Part Suitability: Perfect for "Only if" column
"Party 2 purchases a license for Software S from Company C."
- What it claims: Party 2 buys directly from company
- Fact Support: Not relevant to the resale scenario
- Part Suitability: Neither column
"Party 2 disables Software S on his or her computer."
- What it claims: Party 2 performs disabling
- Fact Support: No requirement stated for Party 2
- Part Suitability: Neither column
"Party 1 resells his or her license for Software S to Party 2."
- What it claims: The resale transaction
- Fact Support: Legal per court ruling, but with condition
- Part Suitability: Perfect for "Legal" column

Answer Selection

Legal Column: E - Party 1 resells his or her license for Software S to Party 2
- This action is explicitly stated as legal by the court
- But it has a condition attached

Only if Column: B - Party 1 disables Software S on his or her computer
- The court stipulated this must happen first
- This creates the exact conditional relationship needed

Verification

The court ruling states: "any party wishing to resell such a license would first be required to disable the software on his or her computer."

This perfectly matches our selection:

Party 1's resale (E) is legal ONLY IF Party 1 has disabled the software (B)
Both parts are directly supported by the passage without speculation
The conditional relationship is explicitly stated

Common Traps Avoided

Over-inference: We didn't assume Party 2 needs to do anything special
Reversed logic: We correctly identified the direction of the conditional
Speculation: We stuck strictly to what the court stipulated

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