On Wed, 2003-05-28 at 02:55, Flemming Frandsen wrote:
> Tarlika Elisabeth Schmitz wrote:
> > b) If you include one of the MySQL drivers in your non Open Source
> > application (so that your application can  run with MySQL), you need
> > a commercial licence for the driver(s) in question. The MySQL drivers
> > currently include an ODBC driver, a JDBC driver and the C language
> > library. Please note that even if you ship a free demo version of
> > your own application, the above rules apply."
> 
> As long as we are talking about pure GPL this doesn't matter.
> 
> As long as you don't link your application against the GPL'ed code they 
> can't touch you, the trick is that if you use a standard interface like 
> JDBC or ODBC then your code doesn't link against the GPL'ed code, the 
> actual act of linking your application to the GPL'ed code happens when 
> the user configures your application to use a certain driver, your 
> application doesn't have any control over that so you are in the clear.
> 
> The user is bound by the GPL to not distribute the resulting system, but 
> that doesn't matter because he wasn't going to do that anyway.
> 
> Unless the license is something other than GPL you should be in the 
> clear, I think, but IANAL.
> 
> Someone should ask RMS about this:)

If the SAP-DB client libraries become GPL (which I understand they will)
it does matter.  As your application will have to "link" to those client
libraries in order to access the SAP-DB.

One option is to write your own client library (very feasible) and
release it under a GPL compatiable license that allows you to bundle
with your own software like (LGPL or BSD)

-- 
Derek Neighbors
GNU Enterprise
http://www.gnuenterprise.org
[EMAIL PROTECTED]

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