On Wed, 22 Jul 1998 08:51:47 GMT, you wrote:
>CC: Simon L Peyton Jones <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>
>
>I do think that the GNU license would be a mistake -- as I understand, it
>would prevent the use of GHC in commercial projects, and I'm pretty sure
>that's something Simon wants to *encourage*.
>
There are *two* GNU licenses. The GPL is meant for tools, like GHC, and
would prevent certain uses of GHC. There is a second GNU license for
libraries, called LGPL, and this is important. The runtime components of
GHC should be licensed using the library license (just like the GNU
runtimes are). Using both licenses appropriately would allow for the use
of GHC in commercial software (as long as GHC itself was not included).
Any improvements GHC or its runtime would still have to be made public
by the commercial entity.
For example, Tower Eiffel has use GNU compilers for some time. The
runtime libraries of GNU compilers are protected by the library license.
Yet Tower Eiffel is certainly used for commercial products.
Cheers,
Bob
---
Bob Hutchison, [EMAIL PROTECTED], (416) 760-0565
([EMAIL PROTECTED] until INTERNIC fixes problems)
RedRock, Toronto, Canada
