Hi,
I was just reading the "Java(tm) Internal NonCommercial Use Source
License" from Sun in preparation for applying to be part of the
Java-Linux development environment and it raised a couple of questions
in my mind.
The license states that binaries derived from the licensed (Sun's)
source code cannot be distributed for a fee or with any product for
which a fee is charged. It also states that the Licensed Software cannot
be used "for commercial or productive" use without getting a commercial
license from Sun.
On the other hand, permission is given to distribute derived binaries
freely as long as it is done so "subject to a license agreement
containing terms and conditions at least as protective of Sun as those
included in the binary code license used by Sun for internet distribuion
of the Java binaries." The license also expressly gives the right to
"create ports."
Taken together, does this mean the following are disallowed without
first getting a commercial license from Sun:
1) Distributing a Java product with a JRE produced by the Java-Linux
porting project?
2) Running a commercial web server with servlets running on a JVM from
the Java-Linux JDK or JRE?
3) Commercial Java product development using the Java-Linux JDK?
I'm assuming the above restrictions do not actually exist based on the
way the Java-Linux JDK seems to be being distributed and used. The
license that comes with the Java-Linux (binary) JDK distribution seems
to be the same one that Sun distributes with its JDKs. I'm just hoping
that someone on this list can definitively state that this assumption is
correct.
Please forgive me if this topic has been covered before or I am just
being unduly confused by the legalese. (One thing I certainly am not is
a lawyer.)
Regards,
<ED>
