Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sun-barr!decwrl!henry.jpl.nasa.gov!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!jato!lwall From: lwall@jato.Jpl.Nasa.Gov (Larry Wall) Newsgroups: gnu.misc.discuss Subject: Re: What is a requirement Message-ID: <2456@jato.Jpl.Nasa.Gov> Date: 28 Dec 89 03:33:28 GMT References: <8912201209.AA03583@wheat-chex> Reply-To: lwall@jato.Jpl.Nasa.Gov (Larry Wall) Distribution: gnu Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA Lines: 29 In article sja@sirius.hut.fi (Sakari Jalovaara) writes: : Do programs that use, say, libg++-specific constructs not available in : other C++ libraries, fall under the GPL even if distributed without : any material covered by the GPL? How about perl scripts? Perl scripts are absolutely NOT covered by the GPL. You own any that you write, and can do with them what you please. Only the perl source code is under the GPL. And I'm not too worried about someone cloning the "look and feel" of perl. Who'd want to? If you get in trouble for cloning someone's perl SCRIPT, that's between you and them. Keep me out of it. Yes, I supply some scripts within the perl package. But you'll notice they're in a subdirectory called "eg". They're meant to be emulated, and the README file in that directory says so explicitly. I'm not picky about that sort of stuff. Scripts are at the noise level. Further, since I own the copyright on perl, I can give you a piece of perl source code with a different copyright if I so choose, so it is not out of the question that a piece of perl source code could end up in a proprietary product if someone asked nicely and I wasn't feeling cross that day. If I had the slightest doubts about the GPL restricting the use of the perl language, I wouldn't have put perl under it. And if you have doubts about my intentions to make perl as useful as possible, you don't know me. Larry Wall lwall@jpl-devvax.jpl.nasa.gov