OT: Two ways Microsoft sabotages Linux desktop adoption

Mike McCarty mike.mccarty at sbcglobal.net
Wed Feb 15 13:01:17 UTC 2006


Joel Rees wrote:

Would you please quit changing to that giant font?

> 2006-02-15 (水) の 00:25 -0600 に Les Mikesell さんは書きました:
> 
>>On Tue, 2006-02-14 at 23:50, Joel Rees wrote:
>>
>>
>>>The only problem with the GPL is the misinterpretations that circulate.


Whether the interpretations are correct or incorrect,
the GPL causes companies not to create software.
Do you disagree with that? If so, then arguments about
what the GPL actually says are irrelevant, since it
is the interpretation, right or wrong, which guides
companies' efforts.

[snip]

>> The FSF has taken the position that if
>>a GPL'd library is unique, then anything that uses that
>>library is a derived work and thus subject to the GPL
>>restrictions even if it is distributed separately from
>>the library. 
> 
> 
> I think you are overstating the case.

How about not stating opinion like this, and
actually discussing the text of the LGPL?

>> In the past, an author that wanted to
>>give a work away freely without the GPL restrictions was
>>forced by the FSF to rewrite a library (badly, it was
>>never really used) with all the corresponding functions
>>instead of just permitting users to link their own
>>GPL'ed library obtained separately.
> 
> 
> Are you speaking of an actual case, or an actual FAQ, or are you
> speaking of somebody's panicked interpretation after having used GPLed
> source without having read the license? 

ISTR that there was actual pursuit by FSF at one time.
But that's been a while, so it's not really evidenc of
anything.

> Anything which does not incorporate is not derived. Static linking
> actually brings in the library code, so it is derived. 

Actually, courts have ruled that "incorporation" does not
imply "derivation", the LGPL notwithstanding. But the
corporations are not willing to face the prospect of
going to court over this, they just don't produce the
software for a minor segment of the market.

> Stallman describes his take on dynamic linking, it's there on either
> fsf.org or gnu.org for anyone to read. Publicly stated. Anyone worried
> about it can read that and see what they think for themselves.

I went and did a search, and can't find what you allude to.
Why not give us a link yourself?

I found this
http://blogs.msdn.com/jasonmatusow/archive/2005/11/13/492285.aspx

with this in it:

[QUOTE MODE ON]

I don't know Ian, but he strikes me as an extremely bright guy and has
also pretty clearly shown he has chops in the Free Software development
space. So what is the rub here? The fact is, if you ask the Free
Software Foundation GC Eben Moglin about his opinion regarding static
vs. dynamic linking (which I have), he asserts a rather startling thing.
His interpretation is that BOTH a static and dynamic link represent
aggregation and the terms of the GPL (if you distribute) apply. When I
have asked this same question of the commercial OSS players
(particularly the Linux vendors) they will adamantly state that it is
only static linking that would do it.

[QUOTE MODE OFF]

> Until there are court cases, of course, it's just like any other license
> -- we don't know what a court might decide, and we put ourselves
> somewhat at the mercy of the license holders when we use their property.
> 
> So what? (I personally prefer to depend on the mercy of someone who
> publishes under GPL more than of someone who publishes under Microsoft's
> EULA, for example.)

The so what is: Corporations don't want to go to court,
they want to sell software. If they face the remote
possibility of going to court in order to produce a driver
for a minute piece of the market, then they aren't going to
produce the software.

[snip]

> You are always free to ignore the GPLed software, which was the way it
> was before the software was published under the GPL. 

I think you completely missed Les' point.

Mike
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