On Dec 3, 3:41 am, Ben Collins-Sussman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > On Tue, Dec 2, 2008 at 5:34 PM, John Stoner <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > I have an open-source, GPL-licensed project. I am considering hosting > > with Google Code. My code has a dependency on a closed-source library. > > The author of that library is ok with me redistributing his object > > file, but is unwilling to make his source available. Can I include his > > jar with my code on Google Code? > > You have a bigger problem: if you have a GPL'd piece of software that > links to something else, that "something else" must *also* be GPL'ed > as well. (This is what some people call the 'viral' nature of GPL.) > GPL software isn't allowed to depend on non-opensourced (specifically, > non-GPL-compatible) software. You'll either need to persuade the > author to opensource his library, or stop depending on it and find > some other compatible substitute. Until that happens, it's against > the Google Code Terms of Service to host non-open-source code... you > won't be allowed to include this jar.
Are you sure? Isn't it the other way around? non-open-source code must not use GPL'd code (that's the viral part). But GPL software can use libs that aren't even open source (no matter what license). Otherwise there would be no GPL software allowed to run on Windows, or GPL'd plugins for e.g., iTunes :) Stefan --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Hosting at Google Code" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/google-code-hosting?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
