I had a product in the early 90's when the company I worked for went out of business. I continued to support my users for another year, although in those days there was no convenient mechanism for distributing updates, so users had to ask for them and get the files via email. But I was able to end it with a stable release that could still be running today somewhere.
This worked because I had the source, and it didn't occur to the corporate buffoons (who'd run the company into the ground) that the source code might be an asset (unlike my Sun workstation, which I'd
hoped they'd forget about but didn't). Consequently, nobody gave me any flack about it.
Cakewalk's source code is its most valuable asset, more so than even the Cakewalk trademarks. Gibson will hold a garage sale to recover whatever they can for computers and office furniture, but it's the source that has real cash value. It could be sold along with the company name and trademarks, it could be sold to a competitor for parts, or individual products could be sold to other vendors. (Dimension Pro by MOTU? Microsoft Rapture?)
Here's my hope: that Gibson is so anxious to unload its software business that it dumps the SONAR source for a song, that it then gets adopted by ex-Cakewalk staff who continue to work on it. This is actually do-able by scaling down the operation. A single person or a two-man collaboration could manage it, and earn a decent living doing it.
Here's the more likely scenario: Noel would do better personally by taking a job in Redmond. Give me a ring when you get to town, Noel.