Xref: utzoo alt.religion.computers:1164 gnu.misc.discuss:580 Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!clyde.concordia.ca!mcgill-vision!bloom-beacon!mintaka!caesar.cs.montana.edu!samsung!cs.utexas.edu!sun-barr!decwrl!granite.pa.dec.com!mwm From: mwm@raven.pa.dec.com (Mike (With friends like these, who needs hallucinations) Meyer) Newsgroups: alt.religion.computers,gnu.misc.discuss Subject: Re: Disinfecting the GNU Public Virus...er...License Message-ID: Date: 20 Dec 89 02:17:50 GMT References: <4&VSZ:@splut.conmicro.com> Sender: news@decwrl.dec.com Organization: Missionaria Phonibalonica Lines: 45 In-reply-to: jay@splut.conmicro.com's message of 19 Dec 89 16:06:37 GMT >> covered by the terms of the GNU Public License. Presto! Without knowing >> it, he's just obligated himself to giving away the source code to >> WhizzoCalc, and prevented himself from keeping others from giving it >> away, forever. Except that RMS is reasonable, and recognizes an honest mistake. Look at what happened when NeXT did just that - they were told that those things already out were OK, but now that they knew they were doing wrong, they should fix it in future versions. They did. Everybody got what they wanted, and nobody got done out of their work. >> This is theft. No more so than if the sofware had been stolen from a commercial library and posted, where the user may not only not get any bucks from his product, but could wind up watching someone else get bucks from it. >> I also note that you cannot include this replacement on your own in a >> license you wish to apply to your own independently developed code, >> because of the following language at the head of the GNU Public License: >> >> Copyright (C) 1989 Free Software Foundation, Inc. >> 675 Mass Ave, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA >> Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies >> of this license document, but changing it is not allowed. >> >> Therefore, fixing this can only be done by the FSF itself. For your own independently developed software, you can fix this. All you have to do is reference something other than the GPL from your code, and have _that_ reference the GPL with notes as to the changes you intend. This is _not_ legal if you're using software that you recieved under the GPL, though. >> In short, we would be free not to join in RMS' utopia. You're already free to not join RMS' utopia. Just don't use his code.