Begin forwarded message:
> From: Paolo Bonzini <[email protected]> > Date: October 13, 2010 9:51:01 AM GMT+02:00 > To: "Schwab,Wilhelm K" <[email protected]> > Cc: "Fitzell, Julian" <[email protected]>, "[email protected]" > <[email protected]> > Subject: Re: [Pharo-project] License question > > On 10/12/2010 08:13 PM, Schwab,Wilhelm K wrote: >> nor do I want my code, other than the binding itself, affected by >> GPL. > > Code that uses the binding is obviously affected by the GPL, just like if you > used GSL directly in C. It's not like using a different programming language > is a magic wand that makes the GPL disappear. > > However, your code that does not use the binding will not be affected by the > GPL. Code doesn't fall under the GPL just because it lived for a short time > in the same image. In particular: > > 1) the GPL does not kick in until you distribute the code. As long as GPL > and non-GPL (or even GPL-incompatible) code resides in a private image (or > even circulates within an institution such as a company) there is no > distribution and the GPL is not involved at all. > > 2) let's say you juxtapose GPL and X11-licensed (MIT) code in the same image. > The non-GPL code doesn't use your bindings or any other GPL code, it's just > placed together in the same image. This time you distribute the image, and in > order to do so you must follow the GPL. However, you can still extract the > X11-licensed code and distribute _that_ code under its own original license, > or even as proprietary code since _that_ code's license is what counts. > >> It would be a shame to have to limit the a release to just the >> binding, but if GPL starts to infect anything that connects to the >> binding > > It doesn't "start to infect". Please do not use such childish language. The > GPL simply "applies" to anything that connects to the binding, just like it > would "apply" to anything that uses GSL using the C interface. > > You probably would not say that using proprietary source code in Squeak or > Pharo "infects" it with a proprietary license. You'd simply say "you have to > respect the license of the proprietary source code", or you violate the > copyright owner's rights. The GPL is absolutely no different. It tells you > what you can do and what you cannot do. > > Very frankly: if you think the GPL has "infected" something, well, it didn't > do anything on its own, it was _you_ who did something stupid. > > Paolo _______________________________________________ Pharo-project mailing list [email protected] http://lists.gforge.inria.fr/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/pharo-project
