I think another good FAQ question to look at is: " *Can I release a program under the GPL which I developed using non-free tools?*
Which programs you used to edit the source code, or to compile it, or study it, or record it, usually makes no difference for issues concerning the licensing of that source code. However, if you link non-free libraries with the source code, that would be an issue you need to deal with. It does not preclude releasing the source code under the GPL, but if the libraries don't fit under the "system library" exception, you should affix an explicit notice giving permission to link your program with them. The FSF can give you advice on doing this. " This one is also interesting: " *If I port my program to GNU/Linux, does that mean I have to release it as Free Software under the GPL or some other Free Software license?* In general, the answer is no—this is not a legal requirement. In specific, the answer depends on which libraries you want to use and what their licenses are. Most system libraries either use the GNU Lesser GPL<http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/lesser.html>, or use the GNU GPL plus an exception permitting linking the library with anything. These libraries can be used in non-free programs; but in the case of the Lesser GPL, it does have some requirements you must follow. " Note how it says if the "library" has an exception, you're in the clear. libobjc has that exception as Matt Rice pointed out. That said, this whole conversation is a little moot. If the GPLv2 was this restrictive KDE, for example, would have never happened. QT was originally licensed under a non-free license, obvious incompatible with the GPLv2 on which KDE used. There are millions of other examples where this type of thing happens. I still don't see the problem Hubert is seeing. The GPL and LGPL where written exactly for this purpose. Heck, the FSF linking against non-free libraries when they first start releasing code, and they specifically made sure not to make GPL software able to link only against LGPL libraries. Stefan
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