Dear Kenji-san,
Thank you for your interest in WSJT-X. We do not believe the license
terms for WSJT-X 2.7.0-RC5 and later are self-contradictory.
WSJT-X is a complete and independent program. Its full source code is
available to anyone. One of its many operating modes makes use of
short, uncomplicated exchanges with three independent programs that are
licensed separately and made freely available for Amateur Radio use.
These separate, stand-alone executable programs are not open source.
The following text is from "Frequently Asked Questions about the GNU
Licenses", https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.html :
"[P]ipes, sockets and command-line arguments are communication
mechanisms normally used between two separate programs... [W]hen they
are used for communication, the modules normally are [considered]
separate programs."
-- 73, Joe, K1JT
On 7/19/2024 10:22 AM, Kenji Rikitake JJ1BDX via wsjt-devel wrote:
I do appreciate all the efforts poured into the SuperFox Mode.
Writing that, I'd like to state one thing:
The current WSJT-X (2.7.0-RC5 and later) has a self-contradictory license
and that should be fixed ASAP.
GPLv3 requires ALL binary code must be able to be produced/built
from the distributed source code [1].
Currently, the SuperFox binaries, namely foxchk/sftx/sfrx are
unable to be built from the source code distributed as a part of WSJT-X.
This means the current state as of the 2.7.0-RC6 self-contradicts
with the license being claimed.
I would like this situation to be fixed ASAP.
There are a few possible ways to fix this situation:
by changing the license to allow the proprietary binaries,
or separating the proprietary part (namely SuperFox Mode binaries),
or making the source code of SuperFox Mode available with the package.
There might even be another way that doesn't come up to my mind.
I do not want to start a bikeshed discussion of licensing.
I simply would like the developers of WSJT-X to take this situation
seriously and propose a practical solution.
I hope WSJT-X would remain fully open-sources as it had been.
73
Kenji Rikitake, JJ1BDX
[1]: https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.html#DistributeExtendedBinary
<https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.html#DistributeExtendedBinary>
Quote:
> I want to distribute an extended version of a GPL-covered program in
binary form. Is it enough to distribute the source for the original version?
> No, you must supply the source code that corresponds to the binary.
Corresponding source means the source from which users can rebuild the
same binary.
Part of the idea of free software is that users should have access to
the source code for *the programs they use*. Those using your version
should have access to the source code for your version.
A major goal of the GPL is to build up the Free World by making sure
that improvement to a free program are themselves free. If you release
an improved version of a GPL-covered program, you must release the
improved source code under the GPL.
Unquote.
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