On 5/4/05, Attila Kinali <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> On Wed, 4 May 2005 12:37:48 -0400
> Timothy Miller <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> 
> > Let's not get confused here.  Any piece of the design that is
> > developed by the community will be under LGPL from the start.  Plus,
> > there is still "corporate backing" in the form of us hardware
> > engineers who are working on it.  If we were to open source THE RTL
> > from the start, we'd be taking too large of a risk, and since the risk
> > is entirely a personal financial risk to us, it's an unfair risk.
> 
> Oh, ok. I missunderstood what the current situation is.
> 
> So, to sum it up (and make sure that i understood it right),
> you three are working on the project in your free time and
> found the initial prototype production, software and all that
> stuff by yourself. The behavioral code will be LGPL and the
> RTL code closed (unless it's bought out).

I'm not sure exactly what you mean by "behavioral code".  Here's what
the pieces are:

(1) Software source code, models, and documents -- all public licenses
(2) Minimal RTL for the prototype board -- all LGPL
(3) Complete OGP RTL -- combination of LGPL and proprietary code

At a later date, all proprietary code will be converted to GPL.

> 
> > Until we have something tangible to sell, it's unlikely that we'll get
> > outside funding for anything.  (Prove me wrong!)  As long as the three
> > of us are funding it, we're going to maintain some control over it to
> > limit our risk.
> 
> I totaly agree.
> 
> > In comparison to any other hardware vendors here, we're offering a
> > lot.  Don't make it sound like more than what you already have is not
> > enough for you.
> 
> That was not my intention.
> 
> > The following is always on the table:  The community has a window of
> > opportunity to buy us out.  That window of opportunity is obvious from
> > the Gantt chart.  The only question is how much money is appropriate
> > to buy us out.  That amount will be much greater than the several
> > thousand we'll have to spend to make initial prototypes, because that
> > isn't the only risk involved.
> 
> If i read the chart right, then the latest date would be Jan '06,
> but knowing that the amount of money needed is at least 5 digits
> i do not think that the community can raise such a big found in
> this short time. Especialy as there is no "product" to buy.
> And even after the card is on sale, i think it would be still
> very hard to raise enough money to pay you adequatly.

Money that buys us out would not be a donation.  It would be equity in
a company.  The community and other investors would OWN it.  They
would decide where the money goes, hire people, pay salaries, elect
board members, etc.

The instant a useful amount of money came in, we would immediately
incorporate and hand out shares to those who provided money.

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