Taking a glance at their web page Tails looks like a GNU/Linux distribution
and I found several important problems with it:
*It asserts to be licensed as a whole under the “GNU/GPL (version 3 or
above)” (sic). There are 2 errors with this: The license name is
abbreviated “GNU GPL”, not “GNU/GPL”. In “GNU GPL” “GNU”
modifies “GPL”, just as in “computer hardware”. The slash doesn't has
this meaning and therefore is used in “GNU/Linux". See The GNU/Linux FAQ.
This is by itself a minor problem, but it suggests that the maintainers are
sloppy about licensing, and indeed they are, because there is software in
GNU/Linux which isn't under that license or any compatible, including Linux
and OpenSSL. Maybe they're not aware that the copyleft requirement of the GNU
GPL doesn't applies to other works in aggregates (Such as distributions
images, hence it's possible to distribute GPL-incompatible software).
*They call the operating system for its kernel, a confusion that has
corrupted nomenclature to the point that some people postulate that there's a
different entity called "Linux kernel". Linux (the kernel) programmers often
do this, while they should be the first in rectifying this mistake. It's a
pity, but nothing else can be expected from people who is happy to allow
their software to be damaged by including proprietary software within it.
*It's based from Debian, and since Tails developers don't seem interested in
making a fully free distribution or even getting licensing right, I doubt
they're removed the recommendations of proprietary software that Iceweasel
and Linux (for instance, there may be more software like this) produces, even
though the Linux version of Debian in the “main” section doesn't contain
proprietary software AFAIK. Also, they have likely not removed the invitation
of Linux, Iceweasel, and other programs to install proprietary software and
may include the contrib and “non-free” Debian repository. Also, some
packages in Debian “main” are not free according to the FSF, but they're
good enough for Debian. Debian is the project that supports, adverstises,
develops and distributes proprietary software which “isn't a part of the
system”, if they haven't done anything to remove this hypocrisy, then it's
still there and they're making the same mistake. I don't know which if any of
the points in this paragraph applies.
Regards.
