On 05/15/2014 08:31 AM, Arcidiaco Ulderico wrote: > Peter, > > have a look at GNU licenses FAQ at http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.html. > > The last paragraph in the response to “What is the difference between an > aggregate and other kinds of modified versions” says... > > "By contrast, pipes, sockets and command-line arguments are communication > mechanisms normally used between two separate programs. So when they are used > for communication, the modules normally are separate programs. But if the > semantics of the communication are intimate enough, exchanging complex > internal data structures, that too could be a basis to consider the two parts > as combined into a larger program.” > > As you said, you should release your modified version of WSJT-X under the > same licensing terms of the original software, but you, or anybody else for > that matter, should not be forced to also GPL other software using sockets to > communicate with your WSJT-X derivative. > > Unfortunately the last sentence... “But if the semantics of the communication > are intimate enough” seems to be the perfect playground for layers, but > surely not in the case of WSJT-X and considering what you are doing with it. > > Actually I would love to see a “server extension” to WSJT-X become part of > the main project rather than a branch.
A well documented "server extension", that is identical between different ham radio programs (WSJT-X, fldigi, ...) could bring things back into "communication mechanisms normally used". The big question is, what would that "server extension" look like? Is it just an API to hook in a front-end GUI? Does there need to be an API to feed in audio? (I guess so - that would allow SDR programs to invoke WSJT-X and other back ends to handle demodulation and modulation of signals) Does there need to be an API to feed in information about the radio? (I guess so - pskreporter likes to know what frequency something was heard on, so informing the back end what frequency the signal is on would be useful) How would information be taken back out of the "server extension" program, so the GUI can display it? -- All rights reversed. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Accelerate Dev Cycles with Automated Cross-Browser Testing - For FREE Instantly run your Selenium tests across 300+ browser/OS combos. Get unparalleled scalability from the best Selenium testing platform available Simple to use. Nothing to install. Get started now for free." http://p.sf.net/sfu/SauceLabs _______________________________________________ wsjt-devel mailing list wsjt-devel@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/wsjt-devel
