On Sun, Feb 01, 2004 at 10:47:45PM -0800, Ben Reser wrote: > The TSU license exception is defined in §740.13 of the EAR which > references §734.3(b)(3) and further references §734.7 and §734.10 which > does not use the term public domain. Nor does it require that the > software not have usage restrictions on it. The standard used is that > the technology (not necessarily the source code) is publically > available. > > In fact it specificaly mentions information published in patent > applications (provided it follows some certain rules). Essentially the > patent has to be a applied for by a foreigner inventor, or filed in a > foreign patent by a US inventor. It's difficult to ensure that a crypto > tool qualifies under the patent exception because it requires some foot > work tracking down the origin of the technology and possibly foreign > patents. > > However, the existence of a patent does not disqualify the license > exception. It's simply one of the possible methods of qualifying for > it. > > You can read them here: > http://w3.access.gpo.gov/bis/ear/ear_data.html
I've been staring intermittently at those regulations for the last few days, and I feel like my IQ has lost 20 points. > Everything Debian distributes in main would qualify for the TSU > exception because the DFSG is a subset of the EAR definition of > publically available. > > The problem with non-free is that some things in it may not meet the > definition of publically available. For instance a tool that didn't > include the source code would not qualify, even if the binaries are > freely distributable. There are currently only 2 packages in non-US/non-free, rsaref2 and pgp5i. Both have source available. If it is the RSA patent that is keeping them in non-US/non-free, hasn't that expired? ckermit (which is why I asked the question in the first place) also has source available. So, unless there are other problems which I missed (highly likely), could all three go into non-free? I realise as it is non-free debian might not want to bother with the effort of BXA/BIS/EAR/whatever registration. Thanks, Ian. -- Ian Beckwith - [EMAIL PROTECTED] - http://nessie.mcc.ac.uk/~ianb/ GPG fingerprint: AF6C C0F1 1E74 424B BCD5 4814 40EC C154 A8BA C1EA Listening to: Portishead - A Tribute to Monk and Canatella
