David Corcoran wrote on Fri, Nov 09 2001 (17:00:36 -0800): > The current license is restrictive, but that is because I'm trying to gain > feedback. The license currently restricts redistribution. I don't want > this initial version to be widely distributed and changed - if this occurs > nothing has been accomplished and a huge distribution mess has occurred.
hi, it boils down to the point that freedom is a good thing, but only if it does not threaten other important goals. it's like trading liberty for something else. would you trust politicians if they claimed that restricting civil liberties is good, because it allows authorities to operate more efficiently, ensuring more personal safety? in the short run, you may gain some tactical advantage, but in the long run you trade freedom for other goals, which has numerous disadvantages. IMHO this is more important then smartcard interoperability. furthermore, as a previous poster had pointed out, free software does not automatically lead to fragmentation and incompatibility. even if this happens, i believe that your code will still be the "leading" reference implementation. you don't need to trade freedom for interoperability. > I hope this is understood. I'm trying to push this idealistic dream of > interoperability on the card and not on the host. I imagine the day I can > put any Java Card smartcard into a computer and it works kind of like a > USB keyboard, floppy drive, and other things that work together at the > level of the hardware device. your personal ideal is certainly very important, but i believe that freedom of software is also very important for the community as a whole. i think there's nothing to lose but much to gain by releasing the source as free software. cheers, -- Toni Andjelkovic <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> *************************************************************** Unix Smart Card Developers - M.U.S.C.L.E. (Movement for the Use of Smart Cards in a Linux Environment) http://www.linuxnet.com/ To unsubscribe send an email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with unsubscribe sclinux ***************************************************************
