On Sun, 13 Mar 2005 10:37:43 +0100 Martin Dickopp <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> I find it unconvincing to argue that a program is not a derivative work > of a dynamic library just because this case is not properly covered by a > non-limitative list of illustrations. The enumeration illustrates the way in which "based upon" should be construed. A program in source code formar references a library, but is not based upon the library in the sense of the definition in 101 USC 17 (which would require an adaptation, transformation, etc. of the material in the library). A book that refers the user to a dictionary for the definition of a number of words is not a derivative work of that dictionary. Both source code and dynamically linked executables refer to the libraries (and other resources such as the OS). Once you claim that a dynamically linked executable is a derivative work of the libraries it "uses", you have precious few arguments left to argue the source code is an independent work. You have equally few arguments left to argue that programs aren't derivative works of the Operating System they run on. Do _you_ see a significant difference between a function or method call in source code, and its simple transformation into a machine-usable format in the dynamically linked executable? Isn't the latter simply a mechanical transformation of the former? -- Stefaan -- As complexity rises, precise statements lose meaning, and meaningful statements lose precision. -- Lotfi Zadeh _______________________________________________ Gnu-misc-discuss mailing list Gnu-misc-discuss@gnu.org http://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/gnu-misc-discuss