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From: zoo@aps3.spa.umn.edu (david d [zoo] zuhn)
Newsgroups: comp.sources.d
Subject: Re: FSF censorship
Message-ID: <ZOO.90Jun6142322@aps3.spa.umn.edu>
Date: 6 Jun 90 18:23:22 GMT
References: <RG`$}?$@rpi.edu>
Sender: news@cs.umn.edu (News administrator)
Organization: Minnesota Automated Plate Scanner Project
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In-Reply-To: wrf@mab.ecse.rpi.edu's message of 6 Jun 90 17:35:21 GMT

Wm> Seen while browsing the source for gawk:

Wm> X@comment We don't refer people to non-free information
Wm> X@comment  In 1988, the original authors
Wm> X@comment published @cite{The AWK Programming Language} (Addison-Wesley, ISBN
Wm> X@comment 0-201-07981-X), as a definitive description of the @code{awk} language.

Wm> Not too friendly given they later thank Brian Kernighan for his help
Wm> with gawk.

I don't speak for the FSF nor the authors of gawk, but I would say
that the non-free information they spoke of was the original paper and
man page from V7 awk, which is not redistributable as far as I know.
On the other hand, the book certainly is free, in the sense that there
is no licensing agreements that you need to buy to get access to it.


david d [zoo] zuhn		Univ. of Minnesota Dept. of Astronomy
zoo@aps1.spa.umn.edu		Automated Plate Scanner	Project