If he really did change over to the perl regex library, yes it is DFSG compatible IMHO. The license is obviously GPL incompatible--it contains the BSD-ish advertizing clause that made the BSDL and GPL incompatible. If he's still using the GPL regex though, it's not only non-free but non distributable.
On Sun, 26 Nov 2000, Nathan Sandver wrote: > Hello, > > I'm the maintainer of ngrep, which has recently changed licenses. When I first > approached Jordan Ritter (the author) about packaging ngrep, I noticed that > the package didn't include a license: > > ========== > > Date: Thu, 28 Oct 1999 11:26:30 -0400 (EDT) > From: Jordan Ritter <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: Nathan Sandver <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: Re: ngrep > > On Wed, 27 Oct 1999, Nathan Sandver wrote: > > # I'm interested in packaging ngrep for use with Debian. I noticed that > # the regex.c and install-sh both have their own licenses, but I didn't > # see a license on the rest of the code (please forgive me if I > # overlooked it somewhere :). Have you licensed your own work? A license > # permitting redistribution and modification is required for Debian to > # include ngrep. If it's alright for me to package ngrep, can you let me > # know when you decide on a license? > > Nathan, > > I've been approached by someone from Debian before (though I don't > recall whom), and that person asked me the same question. My response was > "opensource", but obviously that doesn't fully answer the question. My > personal preference at this point is to BSD license the software, but the > regex library I used is GPL'd, so AFAIK that requires (or strongly > encourages) me to make the entire thing GPL. > > I think one or two revs down the line I am going to use the Perl regex > library instead, which is under the must less restrictive Artistic > License. But, to answer your question, the license is going to be GPL for > the time being. The next revision (1.36) will reflect this. > > > Thanks for your time, > > --jordan > > ========== > > As you can see, he licensed the software under the GPL. Now, however, with the > release of ngrep 1.38, he has changed the license again. This time, he's > written the license himself. Here's the full text of it: > > ========== > > Copyright (c) 2000 Jordan Ritter. All rights reserved. > > Permission is granted to anyone to use this software for any purpose on > any computer system, and to alter it and redistribute it, subject > to the following restrictions: > > 1. The origin of this software must not be misrepresented, either by > explicit claim or by omission. Since few users ever read sources, > credits must also appear in the documentation. > > 2. Altered versions must be plainly marked as such, and must not be > misrepresented as being the original software. Since few users > ever read sources, credits must also appear in the documentation. > > 3. All advertising materials mentioning features or use of this > software must display the following acknowledgement: This product > includes software developed by Jordan Ritter. > > 4. The name of the Author may not be used to endorse or promote > products derived from this software without specific prior written > permission. > > 5. This notice, and any references to this notice in the source, > documentation, or binary, may not be removed or altered. > > > THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE AUTHOR AND CONTRIBUTORS ``AS IS'' AND > ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE > IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR > PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHOR OR CONTRIBUTORS > BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR > CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF > SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR > BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, > WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE > OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN > IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE. > > ========== > > My question is, does this new license still qualify as DFSG free? Please keep > me CC'ed in your replies, as I'm not subscribed to this list. > > Thanks for your time, > > -- EMACS == Eight Megabytes And Constantly Swapping Who is John Galt? [EMAIL PROTECTED], that's who!
