[–] WhiteRonin 0 points 6 points 6 points (+6|-0) ago
Possibly, if you are on company time then they could probably say they paid you to do that.
If say use that available time to study and do work at home that you don't want to give them.
[–] individualin1984 0 points 8 points 8 points (+8|-0) ago
You probably signed a document that spells that out for you. Most of them carry the verbage of if the company does it or wants to do it, it belongs to them. Also anything done while being paid by them, belongs to them.
[–] rwbj 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
It's going to be stated in the contract. In the US the developer of code has an inherent copyright on that code. So companies will 'always' require you to waive this right. Some tend to get over zealous though and do things like claim ownership of all code you write while an employee for them. You could write some code while on a month long vacation in the Bahamas, and they could still claim ownership of it. Check with your company. If you think the software stands a very good chance of being able to be commercialized then check with a lawyer instead.
[–] [deleted] 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
[–] MagicalCentaurBeans 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
Doing it on company time is pretty much the key factor here. I honestly wouldn't, and if I did, I sure as hell wouldn't tell anyone/network the machine.
[–] LordHuggington 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago (edited ago)
I'm going to avoid answering the question and instead recommend finding something to do to contribute instead of doing personal work on the company's time. If you don't have anything to work on, find some. In tech, there's always something to work on. If you've gone to literally every manager and HR person in your building and exhausted the options, fine, but I doubt that to be the case. This way you learn something, it reflects positively on you, and you're not crossing into any ethical gray area.
[–] 4940576? 0 points 9 points 9 points (+9|-0) ago (edited ago)
It might depend on how the IP relates to your current job and your contract. If you are working for a communications company and create new software for using a communication protocol in a certain way they may be able to claim it no matter what. Same job but create a new game that uses standard communication protocols in the same old way and you are probably clear.
EDIT: Forgot to cover one other thing. Anything you do during work hours can conceivably be claimed by them since they technically paid you to write it.