no it's not absurd, to the contrary, it's the whole point of the GPL! Otherwise a BSD or MIT/X11 style license should be used. There are lots of things the developers cannot do, for instance distributing a closed-source program that derives from the FreeDOS kernel is not allowed either.
Why, in your opinion, has Pat chosen the GPL (which determined the further fate of the kernel)?
You may even (subject to APACKs license) distribute: * kernel.exe * exeflat.exe * apack.exe then allow the user to apack and then exeflat the kernel. Now aggregation applies. Sounds ridiculous? Maybe. But you have to realize that the FSF has an agenda too, which likes to minimize the use of closed source software. Which such a technique it becomes crystal clear to the user that a non-free packer is involved.
I see. Good example. Any good idea carried out to the extremum produces such absurds.
And, moreover, you give the user extra freedom by being able to use *any* packer, including upx, pklite and what have you. What speaks in favour of Steffen who just refuses to distribute pre-packed command.com's (neither do I pack command.com in the kernel binary zip by the way).
But for the kernel, only if the above 3 files you listed are distributed, could this be possible.
*PS. I really object to comments about Microsoft being "MASTERS" and lawyers being "monsters".
I agree. It should be the other way around - lawyers are masters and Microsoft are monsters ;-)
I think this is highly inappropriate and does not contribute to the discussion at all. Many lawyers (some being pro-bono), after all, have helped people who were accused for crimes they were not involved in.
My sincere apologies to the good lawyers (what is pro-bono?!) but they know their colleagues well!
Sorry, sometimes I use not very good language here. Must try to restrict myself more, but as a Bulgarian I'm just too emotional (something typlical for all Slavs ;-)
Lucho
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