2004-08-20 23:25:45 +00:00
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% Tutorial Text for the Detailed Study and Analysis of GPL and LGPL course
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%
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% Copyright (C) 2003, 2004 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
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2014-02-15 23:16:41 +00:00
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% License: CC-By-SA-4.0
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% The copyright holders hereby grant the freedom to copy, modify, convey,
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% Adapt, and/or redistribute this work under the terms of the Creative
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% Commons Attribution Share Alike 4.0 International License.
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% This text is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but
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% WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
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% MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
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% You should have received a copy of the license with this document in
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% a file called 'CC-By-SA-4.0.txt'. If not, please visit
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% https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/legalcode to receive
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% the license text.
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2004-08-20 23:25:45 +00:00
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\documentclass[11pt]{book}
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%\pagestyle{empty}
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\begin{document}
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\frontmatter
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\begin{titlepage}
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\begin{center}
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%\vspace{.5in}
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\includegraphics{fsf-logo.eps}
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\vfill
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{\Large
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{\sc GPL Compliance Case Studies} \\
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\vfill
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%\vspace{.7in}
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% \vspace{.3in}
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Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA \\
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\vspace{.1in}
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Wednesday, 25 August 2004
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}
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% \vspace{.7in}
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\vfill
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{\large
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Bradley M. Kuhn
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Executive Director
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Free Software Foundation
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}
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\vspace{.3in}
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{\large
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Daniel Ravicher
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Senior Counsel
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Free Software Foundation
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President and Executive Director
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Public Patent Foundation
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}
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\end{center}
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\vfill
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{\parindent 0in
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Copyright \copyright{} 2003, 2004 \hspace{.2in} Free Software Foundation, Inc.
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\vspace{.3in}
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2014-02-15 23:16:41 +00:00
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The copyright holders hereby grant the freedom to copy, modify, convey,
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Adapt, and/or redistribute this work under the terms of the Creative Commons
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Attribution Share Alike 4.0 International License. A copy of that license is
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available at \verb=https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/legalcode=.
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2004-08-20 23:25:45 +00:00
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}
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\end{titlepage}
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\pagestyle{plain}
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\pagenumbering{roman}
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\chapter*{GPL Compliance Case Studies}
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\textit{Stanford University, Stanford, CA 25 August 2004}
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\begin{tabular}[t]{ll}
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09:00 - 09:25 & Registration / Check-in / Continental Breakfast\\
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&\\
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09:25 - 09:30 & Welcome\\
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&\\
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09:30 - 09:45 & Overview of FSF's GPL Compliance Lab\\
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&\textit{Bradley M. Kuhn}\\
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&\\
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09:45 - 10:40 & GPL Violation Case Study A\\
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&\textit{Bradley M. Kuhn}\\
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&\\
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10:40 - 11:00 & GPL Violation Case Study B\\
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&\textit{Bradley M. Kuhn}\\
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&\\
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11:00 - 11:10 & Q \& A\\
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&\\
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11:10 - 11:20 & Break\\
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&\\
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11:20 - 11:50 & GPL Violation Case Study C\\
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&\textit{Bradley M. Kuhn}\\
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&\\
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11:50 - 12:10 & GPL Violation Case Study D\\
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&\textit{Bradley M. Kuhn}\\
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&\\
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12:10 - 12:20 & Good Practices for GPL Compliance\\
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&\textit{Bradley M. Kuhn}\\
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&\\
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\end{tabular}
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\begin{tabular}[t]{ll}
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12:20 - 12:30 & Q \& A\\
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&\\
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12:30 - 14:00 & Lunch and Lecture ``GPL 3: Prospects and Process''\\
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& \textit{Prof. Eben Moglen}\\
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&\\
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14:00 - 15:40 & Ethical Considerations and Legal Practices\\
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&\textit{Daniel Ravicher}\\
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&\\
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15:40 - 15:50 & Q \& A\\
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&\\
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15:50 - 16:00 & Break\\
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&\\
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16:00 - 17:30 & Current Issues in Free Software\\
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& \textit{Prof. Eben Moglen}\\
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&\\
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17:30 - 18:00 & Q \& A\\
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\end{tabular}
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\pagebreak
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% =====================================================================
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% START OF SECOND DAY SEMINAR SECTION
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% =====================================================================
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\chapter*{Preface}
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This one-day course presents the details of five different GPL
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compliance cases handled by FSF's GPL Compliance Laboratory. Each case
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offers unique insights into problems that can arise when the terms of
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GPL are not properly followed, and how diplomatic negotiation between
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the violator and the copyright holder can yield positive results for
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both parties.
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Attendees should have successfully completely the course, a ``Detailed
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Study and Analysis of the GPL and LGPL,'' as the material from that
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course forms the building blocks for this material.
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This course is of most interest to lawyers who have clients or
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employers that deal with Free Software on a regular basis. However,
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technical managers and executives whose businesses use or distribute
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Free Software will also find the course very helpful.
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\bigskip
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These course materials are merely a summary of the highlights of the
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course presented. Please be aware that during the actual GPL course, class
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discussion supplements this printed curriculum. Simply reading it is
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not equivalent to attending the course.
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\tableofcontents
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\mainmatter
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\pagenumbering{arabic}
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\chapter{Overview of FSF's GPL Compliance Lab}
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The GPL is a Free Software license with legal teeth. Unlike licenses like
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the X11-style or various BSD licenses, GPL (and by extension, the LGPL) is
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designed to defend as well as grant freedom. We saw in the last course
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that GPL uses copyright law as a mechanism to grant all the key freedoms
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essential in Free Software, but also to ensure that those freedoms
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propagate throughout the distribution chain of the software.
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\section{Termination Begins Enforcement}
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As we have learned, the assurance that Free Software under GPL remains
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Free Software is accomplished through various terms of GPL: \S 3 ensures
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that binaries are always accompanied with source; \S 2 ensures that the
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sources are adequate, complete and usable; \S 6 and \S 7 ensure that the
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license of the software is always GPL for everyone, and that no other
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legal agreements or licenses trump GPL. It is \S 4, however, that ensures
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that the GPL can be enforced.
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Thus, \S 4 is where we begin our discussion of GPL enforcement. This
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clause is where the legal teeth of the license are rooted. As a copyright
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license, GPL governs only the activities governed by copyright law ---
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copying, modifying and redistributing computer software. Unlike most
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copyright licenses, GPL gives wide grants of permission for engaging with
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these activities. Such permissions continue, and all parties may exercise
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them until such time as one party violates the terms of GPL\@. At the
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moment of such a violation (i.e., the engaging of copying, modifying or
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redistributing in ways not permitted by GPL) \S 4 is invoked. While other
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parties may continue to operate under GPL, the violating party loses their
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rights.
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Specifically, \S 4 terminates the violators' rights to continue
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engaging in the permissions that are otherwise granted by GPL\@.
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Effectively, their rights revert to the copyright defaults ---
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no permission is granted to copy, modify, nor redistribute the work.
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Meanwhile, \S 5 points out that if the violator has no rights under
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GPL, they are prohibited by copyright law from engaging in the
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activities of copying, modifying and distributing. They have lost
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these rights because they have violated the GPL, and no other license
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gives them permission to engage in these activities governed by copyright law.
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\section{Ongoing Violations}
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In conjunction with \S 4's termination of violators' rights, there is
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one final industry fact added to the mix: rarely, does one engage in a
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single, solitary act of copying, distributing or modifying software.
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Almost always, a violator will have legitimately acquired a copy of a
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GPL'd program, either making modifications or not, and then begun
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distributing that work. For example, the violator may have put the
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software in boxes and sold them at stores. Or perhaps the software
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was put up for download on the Internet. Regardless of the delivery
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mechanism, violators almost always are engaged in {\em ongoing\/}
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violation of GPL\@.
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In fact, when we discover a GPL violation that occurred only once --- for
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example, a user group who distributed copies of a GNU/Linux system without
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source at one meeting --- we rarely pursue it with a high degree of
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tenacity. In our minds, such a violation is an educational problem, and
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unless the user group becomes a repeat offender (as it turns out, they
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never do), we simply forward along a FAQ entry that best explains how user
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groups can most easily comply with GPL, and send them on their merry way.
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It is only the cases of {\em ongoing\/} GPL violation that warrant our
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active attention. We vehemently pursue those cases where dozens, hundreds
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or thousands of customers are receiving software that is out of
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compliance, and where the company continually offers for sale (or
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distributes gratis as a demo) software distributions that include GPL'd
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components out of compliance. Our goal is to maximize the impact of
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enforcement and educate industries who are making such a mistake on a
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large scale.
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In addition, such ongoing violation shows that a particular company is
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committed to a GPL'd product line. We are thrilled to learn that someone
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is benefiting from Free Software, and we understand that sometimes they
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become confused about the rules of the road. Rather than merely
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giving us a post mortem to perform on a past mistake, an ongoing violation
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gives us an active opportunity to educate a new contributor to the GPL'd
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commons about proper procedures to contribute to the community.
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Our central goal is not, in fact, to merely clear up a particular violation.
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In fact, over time, we hope that our compliance lab will be out of
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business. We seek to educate the businesses that engage in commerce
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related to GPL'd software to obey the rules of the road and allow them to
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operate freely under them. Just as a traffic officer would not revel in
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reminding people which side of the road to drive on, so we do not revel in
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violations. By contrast, we revel in the successes of educating an
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ongoing violator about GPL so that GPL compliance becomes a second-nature
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matter, allowing that company to join the GPL ecosystem as a contributor.
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\section{How are Violations Discovered?}
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Our enforcement of GPL is not a fund-raising effort; in fact, FSF's GPL
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Compliance Lab runs at a loss (in other words, it is subsided by our
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donors). Our violation reports come from volunteers, who have encountered,
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in their business or personal life, a device or software product that
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appears to contain GPL'd software. These reports are almost always sent
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via email to $<$license-violation@fsf.org$>$.
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Our first order of business, upon receiving such a report, is to seek
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independent confirmation. When possible, we get a copy of the software
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product. For example, if it is an offering that is downloadable from a
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Web site, we download it and investigate ourselves. When it is not
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possible for us to actually get a copy of the software, we ask the
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reporter to go through the same process we would use in examining the
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software.
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By rough estimation, about 95\% of violations at this stage can be
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confirmed by simple commands. Almost all violators have merely made an
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error and have no nefarious intentions. They have made no attempt to
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remove our copyright notices from the software. Thus, given the
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third-party binary, {\tt tpb}, usually, a simple command (on a GNU/Linux
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system) such as the following will find a Free Software copyright notice
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and GPL reference:
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\begin{quotation}
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{\tt strings tpb | grep Copyright}
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\end{quotation}
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In other words, it is usually more than trivial to confirm that GPL'd
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software is included.
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Once we have confirmed that a violation has indeed occurred, we must then
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determine whose copyright has been violated. Contrary to popular belief,
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FSF does not have the power to enforce GPL in all cases. Since GPL
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operates under copyright law, the powers of enforcement --- to seek
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redress once \S 4 has been invoked --- lie with the copyright holder of
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the software. FSF is one of the largest copyright holders in the world of
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GPL'd software, but we are by no means the only one. Thus, we sometimes
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discover that while GPL'd code is present in the software, there is no
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software copyrighted by FSF present.
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In cases where FSF does not hold copyright interest in the software, but
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we have confirmed a violation, we contact the copyright holders of the
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software, and encourage them to enforce GPL\@. We offer our good offices
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to help negotiate compliance on their behalf, and many times, we help as a
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third party to settle such GPL violations. However, what we will describe
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primarily in this course is FSF's first-hand experience enforcing its own
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copyrights and GPL\@.
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\section{First Contact}
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The Free Software community is built on a structure of voluntary
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cooperation and mutual help. Our community has learned that cooperation
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works best when you assume the best of others, and only change policy,
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procedures and attitudes when some specific event or occurrence indicates
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that a change is necessary. We treat the process of GPL enforcement in
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the same way. Our goal is to encourage violators to join the cooperative
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community of software sharing, so we want to open our hand in friendship.
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Therefore, once we have confirmed a violation, our first assumption is
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that the violation is an oversight or otherwise a mistake due to confusion
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about the terms of the license. We reach out to the violator and ask them
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to work with us in a collaborative way to bring the product into
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compliance. We have received the gamut of possible reactions to such
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requests, and in this course, we examine four specific examples of such
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compliance work.
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%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
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\chapter{Davrik: Modified GCC SDK}
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In our first case study, we will consider Davrik, a company that
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produces software and hardware toolkits to assist OEM vendors, makers
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of consumer electronic devices.
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\section{Facts}
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One of Davrik's key products is a Software Development Kit (``SDK'')
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designed to assist developers building software for a specific class of
|
|
|
|
consumer electronics devices.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FSF received a report that the SDK may be based on the GNU Compiler
|
|
|
|
Collection (which is an FSF-copyrighted collection of tools for software
|
|
|
|
development in C, C++ and other popular languages). FSF investigated the
|
|
|
|
claim, but was unable to confirm the violation. The violation reporter
|
|
|
|
was unresponsive to follow-up requests for more information.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Since FSF was unable to confirm the violation, we did not pursue it any
|
|
|
|
further. Bogus reports do happen, and we do not want to burden companies
|
|
|
|
with specious GPL violation complaints. FSF shelved the matter until
|
|
|
|
more evidence was discovered.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FSF was later able to confirm the violation when two additional reports
|
|
|
|
surfaced from other violation reporters, both of whom had used the SDK
|
|
|
|
professionally and noticed clear similarities to FSF's GNU GCC\@. FSF's
|
|
|
|
Compliance Engineer asked the reporters to run standard tests to confirm
|
|
|
|
the violation, and it was confirmed that Davrik's SDK was indeed a
|
|
|
|
derivative work of GCC\@. Davrik had ported to Windows and added a number
|
|
|
|
of features, including support for a specific consumer device chipset and
|
|
|
|
additional features to aid in the linking process (``LP'') for those
|
|
|
|
specific devices. FSF explained the rights that the GPL afforded these
|
|
|
|
customers and pointed out, for example, that Davrik only needed to provide
|
|
|
|
source to those in possession of the binaries, and that the users may need
|
|
|
|
to request that source (if \S 3(b) was exercised). The violators
|
|
|
|
confirmed that such requests were not answered.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FSF brought the matter to the attention of Davrik, who immediately
|
|
|
|
escalated the matter to their attorneys. After a long negotiation,
|
|
|
|
Davrik acknowledged that their SDK was indeed a derivative work of
|
|
|
|
GCC\@. Davrik released most of the source, but some disagreement
|
|
|
|
occurred over whether LP was a derivate work of GCC\@. After repeated
|
|
|
|
FSF inquiries, Davrik reaudited the source to discover that FSF's
|
|
|
|
analysis was correct. Davrik determined that LP included a number of
|
|
|
|
source files copied from the GCC code-base.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\label{davrik-build-problems}
|
|
|
|
Once the full software release was made available, FSF asked the violation
|
|
|
|
reporters if it addressed the problem. Reports came back that the source
|
|
|
|
did not properly build. FSF asked Davrik to provide better build
|
|
|
|
instructions with the software, and such build instructions were
|
|
|
|
incorporated into the next software release.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
At FSF's request as well, Davrik informed customers who had previously
|
|
|
|
purchased the product that the source was now available by announcing
|
|
|
|
the availablity on its Web site and via a customer newsletter.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Davrik did have some concerns regarding patents. They wished to include a
|
|
|
|
statement with the software release that made sure they were not granting
|
|
|
|
any patent permission other than what was absolutely required by GPL\@.
|
|
|
|
They understood that their patent assertions could not trump any rights
|
|
|
|
granted by GPL\@. The following language was negotiated into the release:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{quotation}
|
|
|
|
Subject to the qualifications stated below, Davrik, on behalf of itself
|
|
|
|
and its Subsidiaries, agrees not to assert the Claims against you for your
|
|
|
|
making, use, offer for sale, sale, or importation of the Davrik's GNU
|
|
|
|
Utilities or derivative works of the Davrik's GNU Utilities
|
|
|
|
(``Derivatives''), but only to the extent that any such Derivatives are
|
|
|
|
licensed by you under the terms of the GNU General Public License. The
|
|
|
|
Claims are the claims of patents that Davrik or its Subsidiaries have
|
|
|
|
standing to enforce that are directly infringed by the making, use, or
|
|
|
|
sale of an Davrik Distributed GNU Utilities in the form it was distributed
|
|
|
|
by Davrik and that do not include any limitation that reads on hardware;
|
|
|
|
the Claims do not include any additional patent claims held by Davrik that
|
|
|
|
cover any modifications of, derivative works based on or combinations with
|
|
|
|
the Davrik's GNU Utilities, even if such a claim is disclosed in the same
|
|
|
|
patent as a Claim. Subsidiaries are entities that are wholly owned by
|
|
|
|
Davrik.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This statement does not negate, limit or restrict any rights you already
|
|
|
|
have under the GNU General Public License version 2.
|
|
|
|
\end{quotation}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This quelled Davrik's concerns about other patent licensing they sought to
|
|
|
|
do outside of the GPL'd software, and satisfied FSF's concerns that Davrik
|
|
|
|
give proper permissions to exercise teachings of patents that were
|
|
|
|
exercised in their GPL'd software release.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Finally, a GPL Compliance Officer inside Davrik was appointed to take
|
|
|
|
responsibility for all matters of GPL compliance inside the company.
|
|
|
|
Darvik is responsible for informing FSF if the position is given to
|
|
|
|
someone else inside the company, and making sure that FSF has direct
|
|
|
|
contact with Darvik's Compliance Officer.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\section{Lessons}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This case introduces a number of concepts regarding GPL enforcement.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{enumerate}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf Enforcement should not begin until the evidence is confirmed.}
|
|
|
|
Most companies who distribute GPL'd software do so in compliance, and at
|
|
|
|
times, violation reports are mistaken. Even with extensive efforts in
|
|
|
|
GPL education, many users do not fully understand their rights and the
|
|
|
|
obligations that companies have. By working through the investigation
|
|
|
|
with reporters, the violation can be properly confirmed, and {\bf the
|
|
|
|
user of the software can be educated about what to expect with GPL'd
|
|
|
|
software}. When users and customers of GPL'd products know their
|
|
|
|
rights, what to expect, and how to properly exercise their rights
|
|
|
|
(particularly under \S 3(b)), it reduces the chances for user
|
|
|
|
frustration and inappropriate community outcry about an alleged GPL
|
|
|
|
violation.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf GPL compliance requires friendly negotiation and cooperation.}
|
|
|
|
Often, attorneys and managers are legitimately surprised to find out
|
|
|
|
GPL'd software is included in their company's products. Engineers
|
|
|
|
sometimes include GPL'd software without understanding the requirements.
|
|
|
|
This does not excuse companies from their obligations under the license,
|
|
|
|
but it does mean that care and patience are essential for reaching GPL
|
|
|
|
compliance. We want companies to understand that participating and
|
|
|
|
benefiting from a collaborative Free Software community is not a burden,
|
|
|
|
so we strive to make the process of coming into compliance as smooth as
|
|
|
|
possible.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf Confirming compliance is a community effort.} The whole point
|
|
|
|
of making sure that software distributors respect the terms of GPL is to
|
|
|
|
allow a thriving software sharing community to benefit and improve the
|
|
|
|
work. FSF is not the expert on how a compiler for consumer electronic
|
|
|
|
devices should work. We therefore inform the community who originally
|
|
|
|
brought the violation to our attention and ask them to assist in
|
|
|
|
evaluation and confirmation of the product's compliance. Of course, FSF
|
|
|
|
coordinates and oversees the process, but we do not want compliance for
|
|
|
|
compliance's sake; rather, we wish to foster a cooperating community of
|
|
|
|
development around the Free Software in question, and encourage the
|
|
|
|
once-violator to begin participating in that community.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf Informing the harmed community is part of compliance.} FSF asks
|
|
|
|
violators to make some attempt --- such as via newsletters and the
|
|
|
|
company's Web site --- to inform those who already have the products as
|
|
|
|
to their rights under GPL\@. One of the key thrusts of GPL's \S 1 and
|
|
|
|
\S 3 is to {\em make sure the user knows she has these rights\/}. If a
|
|
|
|
product was received out of compliance by a customer, she may never
|
|
|
|
actually discover that she has such rights. Informing customers, in a
|
|
|
|
way that is not burdensome but has a high probability of successfully
|
|
|
|
reaching those who would seek to exercise their freedoms, is essential
|
|
|
|
to properly remedy the mistake.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf Lines between various copyright, patent, and other legal
|
|
|
|
mechanisms must be precisely defined and considered.} The most
|
|
|
|
difficult negotiation point of the Davrik case was drafting language
|
|
|
|
that simultaneously protected Davrik's patent rights outside of the
|
|
|
|
GPL'd source, but was consistent with the implicit patent grant in
|
|
|
|
GPL\@. As we discussed in the first course of this series, there is
|
|
|
|
indeed an implicit patent grant with GPL, thanks to \S 6 and \S 7.
|
|
|
|
However, many companies become nervous and wish to make the grant
|
|
|
|
explicit to assure themselves that the grant is sufficiently narrow for
|
|
|
|
their needs. We understand that there is no reasonable way to determine
|
|
|
|
what patent claims read on a company's GPL holdings and which do not, so
|
|
|
|
we do not object to general language that explicitly narrows the patent
|
|
|
|
grant to only those patents that were, in fact, exercised by the GPL'd
|
|
|
|
software as released by the company.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\end{enumerate}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
|
|
|
|
\chapter{Bracken: a Minor Violation in a GNU/Linux Distribution}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
In this case study, we consider a minor violation made by a company whose
|
|
|
|
knowledge of the Free Software community and its functions is deep.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\section{The Facts}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Bracken produces a GNU/Linux operating system product that is sold
|
|
|
|
primarily to OEM vendors to be placed in appliance devices used for a
|
|
|
|
single purpose, such as an Internet-browsing-only device. The product
|
|
|
|
is almost 100\% Free Software, mostly licensed under GPL and related
|
|
|
|
Free Software licenses.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FSF found out about this violation through a report first posted on a
|
|
|
|
Slashdot\footnote{Slashdot is a popular news and discussion site for
|
|
|
|
technical readers.} comment, and then it was brought to our attention again
|
|
|
|
by another Free Software copyright holder who had discovered the
|
|
|
|
same violation.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Bracken's GNU/Linux product is delivered directly from their Web site.
|
|
|
|
This allowed FSF engineers to directly download and confirm the
|
|
|
|
violation quickly. Two primary problems were discovered with the
|
|
|
|
online distribution:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{itemize}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item No source code nor offer for source code was provided for a number
|
|
|
|
of components for the distributed GNU/Linux system; only binaries were
|
|
|
|
available
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item An End User License Agreement (``EULA'') was included that
|
|
|
|
contradicted the permissions granted by GPL\@
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\end{itemize}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FSF contacted Bracken and gave them the details of the violation. Bracken
|
|
|
|
immediately ceased distribution of the product temporarily and set forth
|
|
|
|
a plan to bring themselves back into compliance. This plan included the
|
|
|
|
following steps:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{itemize}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item Bracken attorneys would rewrite the EULA to comply with GPL and
|
|
|
|
would vet the new EULA through FSF before use
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item Bracken engineers would provide source side-by-side with the
|
|
|
|
binaries for the GNU/Linux distribution on the site (and on CD's, if
|
|
|
|
ever they distributed that way)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item Bracken attorneys would run an internal seminar for its engineers
|
|
|
|
regarding proper GPL compliance to help ensure that such oversights
|
|
|
|
regarding source releases would not occur in the future
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item Bracken would resume distribution of the product only after FSF
|
|
|
|
formally restored Bracken's distribution rights
|
|
|
|
\end{itemize}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This case was completed in about a month. FSF approved the new EULA
|
|
|
|
text. The key portion in the EULA relating to GPL read as follows:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{quotation}
|
|
|
|
Many of the Software Programs included in Bracken Software are distributed
|
|
|
|
under the terms of agreements with Third Parties (``Third Party
|
|
|
|
Agreements'') which may expand or limit the Licensee's rights to use
|
|
|
|
certain Software Programs as set forth in [this EULA]. Certain Software
|
|
|
|
Programs may be licensed (or sublicensed) to Licensee under the GNU
|
|
|
|
General Public License and other similar license agreements listed in part
|
|
|
|
in this section which, among other rights, permit the Licensee to copy,
|
|
|
|
modify and redistribute certain Software Programs, or portions thereof,
|
|
|
|
and have access to the source code of certain Software Programs, or
|
|
|
|
portions thereof. In addition, certain Software Programs, or portions
|
|
|
|
thereof, may be licensed (or sublicensed) to Licensee under terms stricter
|
|
|
|
than those set forth in [this EULA]. The Licensee must review the
|
|
|
|
electronic documentation that accompanies certain Software Programs, or
|
|
|
|
portions thereof, for the applicable Third Party Agreements. To the
|
|
|
|
extent any Third Party Agreements require that Bracken provide rights to
|
|
|
|
use, copy or modify a Software Program that are broader than the rights
|
|
|
|
granted to the Licensee in [this EULA], then such rights shall take
|
|
|
|
precedence over the rights and restrictions granted in this Agreement
|
|
|
|
solely for such Software Programs.
|
|
|
|
\end{quotation}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FSF restored Bracken's distribution rights shortly after the work was
|
|
|
|
completed as described.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\section{Lessons Learned}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This case was probably the most quickly and easily resolved of all GPL
|
|
|
|
violations in the history of FSF's Compliance Lab. The ease with which
|
|
|
|
the problem was resolved shows a number of cultural factors that play a
|
|
|
|
role in GPL compliance.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{enumerate}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf Companies that understand Free Software culture better have an
|
|
|
|
easier time with compliance.} Bracken's products were designed and
|
|
|
|
built around the GNU/Linux system and Free Software components. Their
|
|
|
|
engineers were deeply familiar with the Free Software ecosystem, and
|
|
|
|
their lawyers had seen and reviewed GPL before. The violation was
|
|
|
|
completely an honest mistake. Since the culture inside the company had
|
|
|
|
already adapted to the cooperative style of resolution in the Free
|
|
|
|
Software world, there was very little work for either party to bring the
|
|
|
|
product into compliance.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf When people in key positions understand the Free Software
|
|
|
|
nature of their software products, compliance concerns are as
|
|
|
|
mundane as minor software bugs.} Even the most functional system or
|
|
|
|
structure has its problems, and successful business often depends on
|
|
|
|
agile response to the problems that do come up; avoiding problems
|
|
|
|
altogether is a pipe dream. Minor GPL violations can and do happen
|
|
|
|
even with well-informed redistributors. However, resolution is
|
|
|
|
reached quickly when the company --- and in particular, the lawyers,
|
|
|
|
managers, and engineers working on the Free Software product lines
|
|
|
|
--- have adapted to Free Software culture that the lower-level
|
|
|
|
engineer already understood
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf Legally, distribution must stop when a violation is
|
|
|
|
identified.} In our opinion, Bracken went above and beyond the call of
|
|
|
|
duty by ceasing distribution while the violation was being resolved.
|
|
|
|
Under GPL \S 4, the redistributor loses the right to distribute the
|
|
|
|
software, and thus they are in ongoing violation of copyright law if
|
|
|
|
they distribute before rights are restored. It is FSF's policy to
|
|
|
|
temporarily allow distribution while compliance negotiations are ongoing
|
|
|
|
and only in the most extreme cases (where the other party appears to be
|
|
|
|
negotiating in bad faith) does FSF even threaten an injunction on
|
|
|
|
copyright grounds. However, Bracken --- as a good Free Software citizen
|
|
|
|
--- chose to be on the safe side and do the legally correct thing while
|
|
|
|
the violation case was pending. From start to finish, it took less
|
|
|
|
than a month to resolve. This lapse in distribution did not, to FSF's
|
|
|
|
knowledge, impact Bracken's business in any way.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf EULAs are a common area for GPL problems.} Often, EULAs
|
|
|
|
are drafted from boilerplate text that a company uses for all its
|
|
|
|
products. Even the most diligent attorneys forget or simply do not
|
|
|
|
know that a product contains software licensed under GPL and other
|
|
|
|
Free Software licenses. Drafting a EULA that accounts for such
|
|
|
|
licenses is straightforward; the text quoted above works just fine.
|
|
|
|
The EULA must be designed so that it does not trump rights and
|
|
|
|
permissions already granted by GPL\@. The EULA must clearly state
|
|
|
|
that if there is a conflict between it and GPL, with regard to GPL'd
|
|
|
|
code, the GPL is the overriding license.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf Compliance Officers are rarely necessary when companies are
|
|
|
|
educated about GPL compliance.} As we saw in the Davrik case, FSF asks
|
|
|
|
that a formal ``GPL Compliance Officer'' be appointed inside a
|
|
|
|
previously violating organization to shepherd the organization to a
|
|
|
|
cooperative approach to GPL compliance. However, when FSF
|
|
|
|
sees that an organization already has such an approach, there is no
|
|
|
|
need to request that such an officer be appointed.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\end{enumerate}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
|
|
|
|
\chapter{Vigorien: Security, Export Controls, and GPL Compliance}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This case study introduces how concerns of ``security through obscurity''
|
|
|
|
and regulatory problems can impact GPL compliance matters.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\section{The Facts}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Vigorien distributes a back-up solution product that allows system
|
|
|
|
administrators to create encrypted backups of file-systems on
|
|
|
|
Unix-like computers. The product is based on GNU tar, a backup utility
|
|
|
|
that replaces the standard Unix utility simply called tar, but has
|
|
|
|
additional features.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Vigorien's backup solution added cryptographic features to GNU tar, and
|
|
|
|
included a suite of utilities and graphical user interfaces surrounding
|
|
|
|
GNU tar to make backups convenient.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FSF discovered the violation from a user report, and determined that the
|
|
|
|
cryptographic features were the only part of the product that constituted
|
|
|
|
a derivative work of GNU tar; the extraneous utilities merely made
|
|
|
|
shell calls out to GNU tar. FSF requested that Vigorien come into
|
|
|
|
compliance with GPL by releasing the source of GNU tar, with the
|
|
|
|
cryptographic modifications, to its customers.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Vigorien released the original GNU tar sources, but kept the cryptographic
|
|
|
|
modifications proprietary. They argued that the security of their system
|
|
|
|
depending on keeping the software proprietary and that regardless, USA
|
|
|
|
export restrictions on cryptographic software prohibited such a release.
|
|
|
|
FSF disputed the first claim, pointing out that Vigorien had only one
|
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|
option if they did not want to release the source: they would have to
|
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|
remove GNU tar from the software and not distribute it further. Vigorien
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|
rejected this suggestion, since GNU tar was an integral part of the
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|
product, and the security changes were useless without GNU tar.
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|
Regarding the export control claims, FSF proposed a number of options,
|
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|
|
including release of the source from one of Vigorien's divisions overseas
|
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|
|
where no such restrictions occurred, but Vigorien argued that the problem
|
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|
|
was insoluble because they operated primarily in the USA\@.
|
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|
The deadlock on the second issue was resolved when those cryptographic
|
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|
|
export restrictions were lifted shortly thereafter, and FSF again raised
|
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|
|
the matter with Vigorien. At that point, they dropped the first claim and
|
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|
agreed to release the remaining source module to their customers. They
|
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|
did so, and the violation was resolved.
|
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|
\section{Lessons Learned}
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|
\begin{enumerate}
|
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|
\item {\bf Removing the GPL'd portion of the product is always an
|
|
|
|
option.} Many violators' first response is to simply refuse to
|
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|
|
release the source code as GPL requires. FSF offers the option to
|
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|
|
simply remove the GPL'd portions from the product and continue along
|
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|
|
without them. Every case where this has been suggested has led to
|
|
|
|
the same conclusion. Like Vigorien, the violator argues that the
|
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|
product cannot function without the GPL'd components, and they
|
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|
|
cannot effectively replace them.
|
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|
Such an outcome is simply further evidence that the combined work in
|
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|
|
question is indeed a derivative work of the original GPL'd component.
|
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|
If the other components cannot stand on their own and be useful without
|
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|
|
the GPL'd portions, then one cannot effectively argue that the work as a
|
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|
whole is not a derivative of the GPL'd portions.
|
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|
\item {\bf The whole product is not always covered.} In this case,
|
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|
Vigorien had additional works aggregated. The backup system was a suite
|
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|
|
of utilities, some of which were GPL and some of which were not. While
|
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|
|
the cryptographic routines were tightly coupled with GNU tar and clearly
|
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|
|
derivative works, the various GUI utilities were separate and
|
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|
|
independent works merely aggregated with the distribution of the
|
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|
|
GNU-tar-based product.
|
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|
|
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|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf ``Security'' concerns do not exonerate a distributor from GPL
|
|
|
|
obligations, and ``security through obscurity'' does not work anyway.}
|
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|
|
The argument that ``this is security software, so it cannot be released
|
|
|
|
in source form'' is not a valid defense for explaining why the terms of
|
|
|
|
the GPL are ignored. If companies do not want to release source code
|
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|
|
for some reason, then they should not base the work on GPL'd software.
|
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|
|
No external argument for noncompliance can hold weight if the work as
|
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|
|
whole is indeed a derivative work of a GPL'd program.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The ``security concerns'' argument is often floated as a reason to keep
|
|
|
|
software proprietary, but the computer security community has on
|
|
|
|
numerous occasions confirmed that such arguments are entirely specious.
|
|
|
|
Security experts have found --- since the beginnings of the field of
|
|
|
|
cryptography in the ancient world --- that sharing results about systems
|
|
|
|
and having such systems withstand peer review and scrutiny builds the
|
|
|
|
most secure systems. While full disclosure may help some who wish to
|
|
|
|
compromise security, it helps those who want to fix problems even more
|
|
|
|
by identifying them early.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf External regulatory problems can be difficult to resolve.}
|
|
|
|
GPL, though grounded in copyright law, does not have the power to trump
|
|
|
|
regulations like export controls. While Vigorien's ``security
|
|
|
|
concerns'' were specious, their export control concerns were not. It is
|
|
|
|
indeed a difficult problem that FSF acknowledges. We want compliance
|
|
|
|
with GPL and respect for users' freedoms, but we certainly do not expect
|
|
|
|
companies to commit criminal offenses for the sake of compliance. We
|
|
|
|
will see more about this issue in our next case study.
|
|
|
|
\end{enumerate}
|
|
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|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
|
|
|
|
\chapter{Haxil, Polgara, and Thesulac: Mergers, Upstream Providers and Radio Devices}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This case study considers an ongoing (at the time of writing) violation
|
|
|
|
that has occurred. By the end of the investigation period, three
|
|
|
|
companies were involved and many complex issues arose.
|
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|
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|
|
|
\section{The Facts}
|
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|
|
Haxil produced a consumer electronics device which included a mini
|
|
|
|
GNU/Linux distribution to control the device. The device was of interest
|
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|
|
to many technically-minded consumers, who purchased the device and very
|
|
|
|
quickly discovered that Free Software was included without source.
|
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|
|
Mailing lists throughout the Free Software community erupted with
|
|
|
|
complaints about the problem, and FSF quickly investigated.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FSF confirmed that FSF-copyrighted GPL'd software was included. In
|
|
|
|
addition, the whole distribution included GPL'd works from hundreds of
|
|
|
|
individual copyright holders, many of whom were, at this point, up in
|
|
|
|
arms about the violation.
|
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|
|
|
|
|
|
Meanwhile, Haxil was in the midst of being acquired by Polgara. Polgara
|
|
|
|
was as surprised as everyone else to discover the product was based on
|
|
|
|
GPL'd software; this fact had not been part of the disclosures made during
|
|
|
|
acquisition. FSF contacted Haxil, Polgara, and the product managers
|
|
|
|
who had transitioned into the ``Haxil division'' of the newly-merged
|
|
|
|
Polgara company. Polgara's General Counsel's office worked with FSF on
|
|
|
|
the matter.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FSF formed a coalition with the other primary copyright holders
|
|
|
|
to pursue the enforcement effort on their behalf. FSF communicated
|
|
|
|
directly with Polgara's representatives to begin working through the
|
|
|
|
issues on behalf of itself and the Free Software community at large.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Polgara pointed out that the software distribution they used was mostly
|
|
|
|
contributed by an upstream provider, Thesulac, and Haxil's changes to that
|
|
|
|
code base were minimal. Polgara negotiated with Thesulac to obtain the
|
|
|
|
source, although the issue moved very slowly in the channels between
|
|
|
|
Polgara and Thesulac.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FSF encouraged a round-table meeting so that high bandwidth communication
|
|
|
|
could occur between FSF, Polgara and Thesulac. Polgara and Thesulac
|
|
|
|
agreed, and that discussion began. Thesulac provided nearly complete
|
|
|
|
sources to Polgara, and Polgara made a full software release on their
|
|
|
|
Web site. At the time of writing, that software still has some build
|
|
|
|
problems (similar to those that occurred with Davrik, as described in
|
|
|
|
Section~\ref{davrik-build-problems}). FSF continues to negotiate with
|
|
|
|
Polgara and Thesulac to resolve these problems, which have a clear path to
|
|
|
|
a solution and are expected to resolve.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Similar to the Vigorien case, Thesulac has regulatory concerns. In this
|
|
|
|
case, it is not export controls --- an issue that has since been resolved
|
|
|
|
--- but radio spectrum regulation. Since this consumer electronic device
|
|
|
|
contains a software-programmable radio transmitter, regulations in (at
|
|
|
|
least) the USA and Japan prohibit release of those portions of the code
|
|
|
|
that operate the device. Since this is a low-level programming issue, the
|
|
|
|
changes to operate the device are a derivative work of the kernel named
|
|
|
|
Linux. This situation remains unresolved at the time of writing, although
|
|
|
|
FSF continues to negotiation with Thesulac and the Linux community
|
|
|
|
regarding the problem.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\section{Lessons Learned}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{enumerate}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf Community outrage, while justified, can often make negotiation
|
|
|
|
more difficult.} FSF has a strong policy never to publicize names of
|
|
|
|
GPL violators if they are negotiating in a friendly way and operating in
|
|
|
|
good faith toward compliance. Most violations are honest mistakes, and
|
|
|
|
FSF sees no reason to publicly admonish violators who genuinely want to
|
|
|
|
come into compliance with GPL and to work hard staying in compliance.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This case was so public in the Free Software community that both Haxil's
|
|
|
|
and Polgara's representatives were nearly shell-shocked by the time FSF
|
|
|
|
began negotiations. There was much work required to diffuse the
|
|
|
|
situation. We empathize with our community and their outrage about GPL
|
|
|
|
violations, but we also want to follow a path that leads expediently
|
|
|
|
to compliance. In our experience, public outcry works best as a last
|
|
|
|
resort, not the first.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf For software companies, GPL compliance belongs on a corporate
|
|
|
|
acquisition checklist. } Polgara was truly amazed that Haxil had used
|
|
|
|
GPL'd software in a major new product line but never informed Polgara
|
|
|
|
during the acquisition process. While GPL compliance is not a
|
|
|
|
particularly difficult matter, it is an additional obligation that comes
|
|
|
|
along with the product line. When planning mergers and joint ventures,
|
|
|
|
one should include lists of GPL'd components contained in the products
|
|
|
|
discussed.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf Compliance problems of upstream providers do not excuse a
|
|
|
|
violation for the downstream distributor.} To paraphrase \S 6, upstream
|
|
|
|
providers are not responsible for enforcing compliance of their
|
|
|
|
downstream, nor are downstream distributors responsible for compliance
|
|
|
|
problems of upstream providers. However, engaging in distribution of
|
|
|
|
GPL'd works out of compliance is still just that: a compliance problem.
|
|
|
|
When FSF carries out enforcement, we are patient and sympathetic when
|
|
|
|
the problem appears to be upstream. In fact, we urge the violator to
|
|
|
|
point us to the upstream provider so we may talk to them directly. In
|
|
|
|
this case, we were happy to begin negotiations with Thesulac. However,
|
|
|
|
Polgara still has an obligation to bring their product into compliance,
|
|
|
|
regardless of Thesulac's response.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf It behooves upstream providers to advise downstream
|
|
|
|
distributors about compliance matters.} FSF has encouraged Thesulac to
|
|
|
|
distribute a ``good practices for GPL compliance'' document with their
|
|
|
|
product. Polgara added various software components to Thesulac's
|
|
|
|
product, and it is conceivable that such additions can introduce
|
|
|
|
compliance. In FSF's opinion, Thesulac is in no way legally responsible
|
|
|
|
for such a violation introduced by their customer, but it behooves them
|
|
|
|
from a marketing standpoint to educate their customers about using the
|
|
|
|
product. We can argue whether or not it is your coffee vendor's fault
|
|
|
|
if you burn yourself with their product, but (likely) no one on either
|
|
|
|
side would dispute the prudence of placing a ``caution: hot'' label on
|
|
|
|
the cup.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item {\bf FSF enforcement often avoids redundant enforcement cases from
|
|
|
|
many parties.} Most Free Software systems have hundreds of copyright
|
|
|
|
holders. Some have thousands. FSF is in a unique position as one of
|
|
|
|
the largest single copyright holders on GPL'd software and as a
|
|
|
|
respected umpire in the community, neutrally enforcing the rules of the
|
|
|
|
GPL road. FSF works hard in the community to convince copyright
|
|
|
|
holders that consolidating GPL claims through FSF is better for them,
|
|
|
|
and more likely to yield positive compliance results.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
A few copyright holders engage in the ``proprietary relicensing''
|
|
|
|
business, so they use GPL enforcement as a sales channel for that
|
|
|
|
business. FSF, as a community-oriented, not-for-profit organization,
|
|
|
|
seeks only to preserve the freedom of Free Software in its enforcement
|
|
|
|
efforts. As it turns out, most of the community of copyright holders
|
|
|
|
of Free Software want the same thing. Share and share alike is a
|
|
|
|
simple rule to follow, and following that rule to FSF's satisfaction
|
|
|
|
usually means you are following it to the satisfaction of the entire
|
|
|
|
Free Software community.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\end{enumerate}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
|
|
|
|
\chapter{Good Practices for Compliance}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Generally, from the experience of GPL enforcement, we glean the following
|
|
|
|
general practices that can help in GPL compliance for organizations that
|
|
|
|
distribute products based on GPL'd software:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{itemize}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item Talk to your software engineers and ask them where they got the
|
|
|
|
components they use in the products they build. Find out if GPL'd
|
|
|
|
components are present.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item Teach your engineering staff to pay attention to license documents.
|
|
|
|
Give them easy-to-follow policies to get approval for using a Free
|
|
|
|
Software component.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item Build a ``Free Software Licensing'' committee that handles requests
|
|
|
|
and questions about GPL and other Free Software licenses.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item Add ``What parts of your products are under GPL or other Free
|
|
|
|
Software licenses?'' to your checklist of questions to ask when you
|
|
|
|
consider mergers, acquisitions, or joint ventures.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item Encourage your engineers to participate collaboratively with GPL'd
|
|
|
|
software development. The more knowledge about the Free Software world
|
|
|
|
your organization has, the better equipped it is to deal with this
|
|
|
|
rapidly changing field.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item When someone points out a potential GPL violation in one of your
|
|
|
|
products, do not assume the product line is doomed. GPL is not a virus;
|
|
|
|
merely having GPL'd code in one part of a product does not necessarily
|
|
|
|
mean that every related product must also be GPL'd. And, even if some
|
|
|
|
software needs to be released that was not before, the product will
|
|
|
|
surely survive. In FSF's enforcement efforts, we have not yet
|
|
|
|
seen a product line die because source was released to customers in
|
|
|
|
compliance with GPL.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\end{itemize}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\backmatter
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\appendix
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\chapter{The GNU General Public License}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{center}
|
|
|
|
{\parindent 0in
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Version 2, June 1991
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Copyright \copyright\ 1989, 1991 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\bigskip
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
59 Temple Place - Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\bigskip
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies
|
|
|
|
of this license document, but changing it is not allowed.
|
|
|
|
}
|
|
|
|
\end{center}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{center}
|
|
|
|
{\bf\large Preamble}
|
|
|
|
\end{center}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The licenses for most software are designed to take away your freedom
|
|
|
|
to share and change it. By contrast, the GNU General Public License is
|
|
|
|
intended to guarantee your freedom to share and change Free
|
|
|
|
Software---to make sure the software is free for all its users. This
|
|
|
|
General Public License applies to most of the Free Software
|
|
|
|
Foundation's software and to any other program whose authors commit to
|
|
|
|
using it. (Some other Free Software Foundation software is covered by
|
|
|
|
the GNU Library General Public License instead.) You can apply it to
|
|
|
|
your programs, too.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
When we speak of Free Software, we are referring to freedom, not price.
|
|
|
|
Our General Public Licenses are designed to make sure that you have the
|
|
|
|
freedom to distribute copies of Free Software (and charge for this service
|
|
|
|
if you wish), that you receive source code or can get it if you want it,
|
|
|
|
that you can change the software or use pieces of it in new Free programs;
|
|
|
|
and that you know you can do these things.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
To protect your rights, we need to make restrictions that forbid anyone to
|
|
|
|
deny you these rights or to ask you to surrender the rights. These
|
|
|
|
restrictions translate to certain responsibilities for you if you
|
|
|
|
distribute copies of the software, or if you modify it.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
For example, if you distribute copies of such a program, whether gratis or
|
|
|
|
for a fee, you must give the recipients all the rights that you have. You
|
|
|
|
must make sure that they, too, receive or can get the source code. And
|
|
|
|
you must show them these terms so they know their rights.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
We protect your rights with two steps: (1) copyright the software, and (2)
|
|
|
|
offer you this license which gives you legal permission to copy,
|
|
|
|
distribute and/or modify the software.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Also, for each author's protection and ours, we want to make certain that
|
|
|
|
everyone understands that there is no warranty for this Free Software. If
|
|
|
|
the software is modified by someone else and passed on, we want its
|
|
|
|
recipients to know that what they have is not the original, so that any
|
|
|
|
problems introduced by others will not reflect on the original authors'
|
|
|
|
reputations.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Finally, any Free program is threatened constantly by software patents.
|
|
|
|
We wish to avoid the danger that redistributors of a Free program will
|
|
|
|
individually obtain patent licenses, in effect making the program
|
|
|
|
proprietary. To prevent this, we have made it clear that any patent must
|
|
|
|
be licensed for everyone's free use or not licensed at all.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The precise terms and conditions for copying, distribution and
|
|
|
|
modification follow.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{center}
|
|
|
|
{\Large \sc Terms and Conditions For Copying, Distribution and
|
|
|
|
Modification}
|
|
|
|
\end{center}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{enumerate}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\addtocounter{enumi}{-1}
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This License applies to any program or other work which contains a notice
|
|
|
|
placed by the copyright holder saying it may be distributed under the
|
|
|
|
terms of this General Public License. The ``Program,'' below, refers to
|
|
|
|
any such program or work, and a ``work based on the Program'' means either
|
|
|
|
the Program or any derivative work under copyright law: that is to say, a
|
|
|
|
work containing the Program or a portion of it, either verbatim or with
|
|
|
|
modifications and/or translated into another language. (Hereinafter,
|
|
|
|
translation is included without limitation in the term ``modification.'')
|
|
|
|
Each licensee is addressed as ``you.''
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Activities other than copying, distribution and modification are not
|
|
|
|
covered by this License; they are outside its scope. The act of
|
|
|
|
running the Program is not restricted, and the output from the Program
|
|
|
|
is covered only if its contents constitute a work based on the
|
|
|
|
Program (independent of having been made by running the Program).
|
|
|
|
Whether that is true depends on what the Program does.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item You may copy and distribute verbatim copies of the Program's source
|
|
|
|
code as you receive it, in any medium, provided that you conspicuously
|
|
|
|
and appropriately publish on each copy an appropriate copyright notice
|
|
|
|
and disclaimer of warranty; keep intact all the notices that refer to
|
|
|
|
this License and to the absence of any warranty; and give any other
|
|
|
|
recipients of the Program a copy of this License along with the Program.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
You may charge a fee for the physical act of transferring a copy, and you
|
|
|
|
may at your option offer warranty protection in exchange for a fee.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
You may modify your copy or copies of the Program or any portion
|
|
|
|
of it, thus forming a work based on the Program, and copy and
|
|
|
|
distribute such modifications or work under the terms of Section 1
|
|
|
|
above, provided that you also meet all of these conditions:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{enumerate}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
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|
|
|
|
|
You must cause the modified files to carry prominent notices stating that
|
|
|
|
you changed the files and the date of any change.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
You must cause any work that you distribute or publish, that in
|
|
|
|
whole or in part contains or is derived from the Program or any
|
|
|
|
part thereof, to be licensed as a whole at no charge to all third
|
|
|
|
parties under the terms of this License.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
If the modified program normally reads commands interactively
|
|
|
|
when run, you must cause it, when started running for such
|
|
|
|
interactive use in the most ordinary way, to print or display an
|
|
|
|
announcement including an appropriate copyright notice and a
|
|
|
|
notice that there is no warranty (or else, saying that you provide
|
|
|
|
a warranty) and that users may redistribute the program under
|
|
|
|
these conditions, and telling the user how to view a copy of this
|
|
|
|
License. (Exception: if the Program itself is interactive but
|
|
|
|
does not normally print such an announcement, your work based on
|
|
|
|
the Program is not required to print an announcement.)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\end{enumerate}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
These requirements apply to the modified work as a whole. If
|
|
|
|
identifiable sections of that work are not derived from the Program,
|
|
|
|
and can be reasonably considered independent and separate works in
|
|
|
|
themselves, then this License, and its terms, do not apply to those
|
|
|
|
sections when you distribute them as separate works. But when you
|
|
|
|
distribute the same sections as part of a whole which is a work based
|
|
|
|
on the Program, the distribution of the whole must be on the terms of
|
|
|
|
this License, whose permissions for other licensees extend to the
|
|
|
|
entire whole, and thus to each and every part regardless of who wrote it.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Thus, it is not the intent of this section to claim rights or contest
|
|
|
|
your rights to work written entirely by you; rather, the intent is to
|
|
|
|
exercise the right to control the distribution of derivative or
|
|
|
|
collective works based on the Program.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
In addition, mere aggregation of another work not based on the Program
|
|
|
|
with the Program (or with a work based on the Program) on a volume of
|
|
|
|
a storage or distribution medium does not bring the other work under
|
|
|
|
the scope of this License.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
You may copy and distribute the Program (or a work based on it,
|
|
|
|
under Section 2) in object code or executable form under the terms of
|
|
|
|
Sections 1 and 2 above provided that you also do one of the following:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{enumerate}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Accompany it with the complete corresponding machine-readable
|
|
|
|
source code, which must be distributed under the terms of Sections
|
|
|
|
1 and 2 above on a medium customarily used for software interchange; or,
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Accompany it with a written offer, valid for at least three
|
|
|
|
years, to give any third party, for a charge no more than your
|
|
|
|
cost of physically performing source distribution, a complete
|
|
|
|
machine-readable copy of the corresponding source code, to be
|
|
|
|
distributed under the terms of Sections 1 and 2 above on a medium
|
|
|
|
customarily used for software interchange; or,
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Accompany it with the information you received as to the offer
|
|
|
|
to distribute corresponding source code. (This alternative is
|
|
|
|
allowed only for noncommercial distribution and only if you
|
|
|
|
received the program in object code or executable form with such
|
|
|
|
an offer, in accord with Subsection b above.)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\end{enumerate}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The source code for a work means the preferred form of the work for
|
|
|
|
making modifications to it. For an executable work, complete source
|
|
|
|
code means all the source code for all modules it contains, plus any
|
|
|
|
associated interface definition files, plus the scripts used to
|
|
|
|
control compilation and installation of the executable. However, as a
|
|
|
|
special exception, the source code distributed need not include
|
|
|
|
anything that is normally distributed (in either source or binary
|
|
|
|
form) with the major components (compiler, kernel, and so on) of the
|
|
|
|
operating system on which the executable runs, unless that component
|
|
|
|
itself accompanies the executable.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
If distribution of executable or object code is made by offering
|
|
|
|
access to copy from a designated place, then offering equivalent
|
|
|
|
access to copy the source code from the same place counts as
|
|
|
|
distribution of the source code, even though third parties are not
|
|
|
|
compelled to copy the source along with the object code.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
You may not copy, modify, sublicense, or distribute the Program
|
|
|
|
except as expressly provided under this License. Any attempt
|
|
|
|
otherwise to copy, modify, sublicense or distribute the Program is
|
|
|
|
void, and will automatically terminate your rights under this License.
|
|
|
|
However, parties who have received copies, or rights, from you under
|
|
|
|
this License will not have their licenses terminated so long as such
|
|
|
|
parties remain in full compliance.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
You are not required to accept this License, since you have not
|
|
|
|
signed it. However, nothing else grants you permission to modify or
|
|
|
|
distribute the Program or its derivative works. These actions are
|
|
|
|
prohibited by law if you do not accept this License. Therefore, by
|
|
|
|
modifying or distributing the Program (or any work based on the
|
|
|
|
Program), you indicate your acceptance of this License to do so, and
|
|
|
|
all its terms and conditions for copying, distributing or modifying
|
|
|
|
the Program or works based on it.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
Each time you redistribute the Program (or any work based on the
|
|
|
|
Program), the recipient automatically receives a license from the
|
|
|
|
original licensor to copy, distribute or modify the Program subject to
|
|
|
|
these terms and conditions. You may not impose any further
|
|
|
|
restrictions on the recipients' exercise of the rights granted herein.
|
|
|
|
You are not responsible for enforcing compliance by third parties to
|
|
|
|
this License.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
If, as a consequence of a court judgment or allegation of patent
|
|
|
|
infringement or for any other reason (not limited to patent issues),
|
|
|
|
conditions are imposed on you (whether by court order, agreement or
|
|
|
|
otherwise) that contradict the conditions of this License, they do not
|
|
|
|
excuse you from the conditions of this License. If you cannot
|
|
|
|
distribute so as to satisfy simultaneously your obligations under this
|
|
|
|
License and any other pertinent obligations, then as a consequence you
|
|
|
|
may not distribute the Program at all. For example, if a patent
|
|
|
|
license would not permit royalty-free redistribution of the Program by
|
|
|
|
all those who receive copies directly or indirectly through you, then
|
|
|
|
the only way you could satisfy both it and this License would be to
|
|
|
|
refrain entirely from distribution of the Program.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
If any portion of this section is held invalid or unenforceable under
|
|
|
|
any particular circumstance, the balance of the section is intended to
|
|
|
|
apply and the section as a whole is intended to apply in other
|
|
|
|
circumstances.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
It is not the purpose of this section to induce you to infringe any
|
|
|
|
patents or other property right claims or to contest validity of any
|
|
|
|
such claims; this section has the sole purpose of protecting the
|
|
|
|
integrity of the Free Software distribution system, which is
|
|
|
|
implemented by public license practices. Many people have made
|
|
|
|
generous contributions to the wide range of software distributed
|
|
|
|
through that system in reliance on consistent application of that
|
|
|
|
system; it is up to the author/donor to decide if he or she is willing
|
|
|
|
to distribute software through any other system and a licensee cannot
|
|
|
|
impose that choice.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This section is intended to make thoroughly clear what is believed to
|
|
|
|
be a consequence of the rest of this License.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
If the distribution and/or use of the Program is restricted in
|
|
|
|
certain countries either by patents or by copyrighted interfaces, the
|
|
|
|
original copyright holder who places the Program under this License
|
|
|
|
may add an explicit geographical distribution limitation excluding
|
|
|
|
those countries, so that distribution is permitted only in or among
|
|
|
|
countries not thus excluded. In such case, this License incorporates
|
|
|
|
the limitation as if written in the body of this License.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
The Free Software Foundation may publish revised and/or new versions
|
|
|
|
of the General Public License from time to time. Such new versions will
|
|
|
|
be similar in spirit to the present version, but may differ in detail to
|
|
|
|
address new problems or concerns.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Each version is given a distinguishing version number. If the Program
|
|
|
|
specifies a version number of this License which applies to it and ``any
|
|
|
|
later version,'' you have the option of following the terms and conditions
|
|
|
|
either of that version or of any later version published by the Free
|
|
|
|
Software Foundation. If the Program does not specify a version number of
|
|
|
|
this License, you may choose any version ever published by the Free Software
|
|
|
|
Foundation.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
If you wish to incorporate parts of the Program into other free
|
|
|
|
programs whose distribution conditions are different, write to the author
|
|
|
|
to ask for permission. For software which is copyrighted by the Free
|
|
|
|
Software Foundation, write to the Free Software Foundation; we sometimes
|
|
|
|
make exceptions for this. Our decision will be guided by the two goals
|
|
|
|
of preserving the free status of all derivatives of our Free Software and
|
|
|
|
of promoting the sharing and reuse of software generally.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{center}
|
|
|
|
{\Large\sc
|
|
|
|
No Warranty
|
|
|
|
}
|
|
|
|
\end{center}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
{\sc Because the program is licensed free of charge, there is no warranty
|
|
|
|
for the program, to the extent permitted by applicable law. Except when
|
|
|
|
otherwise stated in writing the copyright holders and/or other parties
|
|
|
|
provide the program ``as is'' without warranty of any kind, either expressed
|
|
|
|
or implied, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of
|
|
|
|
merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. The entire risk as
|
|
|
|
to the quality and performance of the program is with you. Should the
|
|
|
|
program prove defective, you assume the cost of all necessary servicing,
|
|
|
|
repair or correction.}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
{\sc In no event unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing
|
|
|
|
will any copyright holder, or any other party who may modify and/or
|
|
|
|
redistribute the program as permitted above, be liable to you for damages,
|
|
|
|
including any general, special, incidental or consequential damages arising
|
|
|
|
out of the use or inability to use the program (including but not limited
|
|
|
|
to loss of data or data being rendered inaccurate or losses sustained by
|
|
|
|
you or third parties or a failure of the program to operate with any other
|
|
|
|
programs), even if such holder or other party has been advised of the
|
|
|
|
possibility of such damages.}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\end{enumerate}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{center}
|
|
|
|
{\Large\sc End of Terms and Conditions}
|
|
|
|
\end{center}
|
|
|
|
\vfill
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\pagebreak[4]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\section*{Appendix: How to Apply These Terms to Your New Programs}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
If you develop a new program, and you want it to be of the greatest
|
|
|
|
possible use to the public, the best way to achieve this is to make it
|
|
|
|
Free Software which everyone can redistribute and change under these
|
|
|
|
terms.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
To do so, attach the following notices to the program. It is safest to
|
|
|
|
attach them to the start of each source file to most effectively convey
|
|
|
|
the exclusion of warranty; and each file should have at least the
|
|
|
|
``copyright'' line and a pointer to where the full notice is found.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{quote}
|
|
|
|
one line to give the program's name and a brief idea of what it does. \\
|
|
|
|
Copyright (C) yyyy name of author \\
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This program is Free Software; you can redistribute it and/or modify
|
|
|
|
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
|
|
|
|
the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or
|
|
|
|
(at your option) any later version.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
|
|
|
|
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
|
|
|
|
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
|
|
|
|
GNU General Public License for more details.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
|
|
|
|
along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software
|
|
|
|
Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place - Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA.
|
|
|
|
\end{quote}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Also add information on how to contact you by electronic and paper mail.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
If the program is interactive, make it output a short notice like this
|
|
|
|
when it starts in an interactive mode:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{quote}
|
|
|
|
Gnomovision version 69, Copyright (C) yyyy name of author \\
|
|
|
|
Gnomovision comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY; for details type `show w'. \\
|
|
|
|
This is Free Software, and you are welcome to redistribute it
|
|
|
|
under certain conditions; type `show c' for details.
|
|
|
|
\end{quote}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The hypothetical commands {\tt show w} and {\tt show c} should show the
|
|
|
|
appropriate parts of the General Public License. Of course, the commands
|
|
|
|
you use may be called something other than {\tt show w} and {\tt show c};
|
|
|
|
they could even be mouse-clicks or menu items---whatever suits your
|
|
|
|
program.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
You should also get your employer (if you work as a programmer) or your
|
|
|
|
school, if any, to sign a ``copyright disclaimer'' for the program, if
|
|
|
|
necessary. Here is a sample; alter the names:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{quote}
|
|
|
|
Yoyodyne, Inc., hereby disclaims all copyright interest in the program \\
|
|
|
|
`Gnomovision' (which makes passes at compilers) written by James Hacker. \\
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
signature of Ty Coon, 1 April 1989 \\
|
|
|
|
Ty Coon, President of Vice
|
|
|
|
\end{quote}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This General Public License does not permit incorporating your program
|
|
|
|
into proprietary programs. If your program is a subroutine library, you
|
|
|
|
may consider it more useful to permit linking proprietary applications
|
|
|
|
with the library. If this is what you want to do, use the GNU Library
|
|
|
|
General Public License instead of this License.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\chapter{The GNU Lesser General Public License}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{center}
|
|
|
|
{\parindent 0in
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Version 2.1, February 1999
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Copyright \copyright\ 1991, 1999 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\bigskip
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
59 Temple Place - Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\bigskip
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies
|
|
|
|
of this license document, but changing it is not allowed.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\bigskip
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
[This is the first released version of the Lesser GPL. It also counts
|
|
|
|
as the successor of the GNU Library Public License version 2, hence
|
|
|
|
the version number 2.1.]
|
|
|
|
}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\end{center}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{center}
|
|
|
|
{\bf\large Preamble}
|
|
|
|
\end{center}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The licenses for most software are designed to take away your freedom to
|
|
|
|
share and change it. By contrast, the GNU General Public Licenses are
|
|
|
|
intended to guarantee your freedom to share and change Free Software---to
|
|
|
|
make sure the software is free for all its users.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This license, the Lesser General Public License, applies to some specially
|
|
|
|
designated software packages---typically libraries---of the Free Software
|
|
|
|
Foundation and other authors who decide to use it. You can use it too,
|
|
|
|
but we suggest you first think carefully about whether this license or the
|
|
|
|
ordinary General Public License is the better strategy to use in any
|
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When we speak of Free Software, we are referring to freedom of use, not
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To protect your rights, we need to make restrictions that forbid
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For example, if you distribute copies of the library, whether gratis or
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You must make sure that they, too, receive or can get the source code. If
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We protect your rights with a two-step method: (1) we copyright the
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To protect each distributor, we want to make it very clear that there is
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Finally, software patents pose a constant threat to the existence of any
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freedom of use specified in this license.
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Most GNU software, including some libraries, is covered by the ordinary
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GNU General Public License. This license, the GNU Lesser General Public
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License, applies to certain designated libraries, and is quite different
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When a program is linked with a library, whether statically or using a
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shared library, the combination of the two is legally speaking a combined
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work, a derivative of the original library. The ordinary General Public
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License therefore permits such linking only if the entire combination fits
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its criteria of freedom. The Lesser General Public License permits more
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lax criteria for linking other code with the library.
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We call this license the ``Lesser'' General Public License because it does
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Less to protect the user's freedom than the ordinary General Public
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License. It also provides other Free Software developers Less of an
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advantage over competing non-Free programs. These disadvantages are the
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reason we use the ordinary General Public License for many libraries.
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However, the Lesser license provides advantages in certain special
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circumstances.
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For example, on rare occasions, there may be a special need to encourage
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the widest possible use of a certain library, so that it becomes a
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de-facto standard. To achieve this, non-Free programs must be allowed to
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use the library. A more frequent case is that a Free library does the
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same job as widely used non-Free libraries. In this case, there is little
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to gain by limiting the Free library to Free Software only, so we use the
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Lesser General Public License.
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In other cases, permission to use a particular library in non-Free
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programs enables a greater number of people to use a large body of Free
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software. For example, permission to use the GNU C Library in non-Free
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programs enables many more people to use the whole GNU operating system,
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as well as its variant, the GNU/Linux operating system.
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Although the Lesser General Public License is Less protective of the
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users' freedom, it does ensure that the user of a program that is linked
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with the library has the freedom and the wherewithal to run that program
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using a modified version of the library.
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The precise terms and conditions for copying, distribution and
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modification follow. Pay close attention to the difference between a
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``work based on the library'' and a ``work that uses the library.'' The
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former contains code derived from the library, whereas the latter must be
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combined with the library in order to run.
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\begin{center}
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{\Large \sc GNU Lesser General Public License} \\
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{\Large \sc Terms and Conditions For Copying, Distribution and
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Modification}
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\end{center}
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\begin{enumerate}
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\addtocounter{enumi}{-1}
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\item
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This License Agreement applies to any software library or other program
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which contains a notice placed by the copyright holder or other authorized
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party saying it may be distributed under the terms of this Lesser General
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Public License (also called ``this License''). Each licensee is addressed
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as ``you.''
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A ``library'' means a collection of software functions and/or data
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prepared so as to be conveniently linked with application programs (which
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use some of those functions and data) to form executables.
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The ``library,'' below, refers to any such software library or work which
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has been distributed under these terms. A ``work based on the library''
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means either the library or any derivative work under copyright law: that
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is to say, a work containing the library or a portion of it, either
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verbatim or with modifications and/or translated straightforwardly into
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another language. (Hereinafter, translation is included without
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limitation in the term ``modification.'')
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``Source code'' for a work means the preferred form of the work for making
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modifications to it. For a library, complete source code means all the
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source code for all modules it contains, plus any associated interface
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definition files, plus the scripts used to control compilation and
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installation of the library.
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Activities other than copying, distribution and modification are not
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covered by this License; they are outside its scope. The act of running a
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program using the library is not restricted, and output from such a
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program is covered only if its contents constitute a work based on the
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library (independent of the use of the library in a tool for writing it).
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Whether that is true depends on what the library does and what the program
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that uses the library does.
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\item
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You may copy and distribute verbatim copies of the library's complete
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source code as you receive it, in any medium, provided that you
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conspicuously and appropriately publish on each copy an appropriate
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copyright notice and disclaimer of warranty; keep intact all the notices
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that refer to this License and to the absence of any warranty; and
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distribute a copy of this License along with the library.
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You may charge a fee for the physical act of transferring a copy,
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and you may at your option offer warranty protection in exchange for a
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fee.
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\item
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You may modify your copy or copies of the library or any portion of it,
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thus forming a work based on the library, and copy and distribute such
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modifications or work under the terms of Section 1 above, provided that
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you also meet all of these conditions:
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\begin{enumerate}
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\item
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The modified work must itself be a software library.
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\item
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You must cause the files modified to carry prominent notices stating
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that you changed the files and the date of any change.
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\item
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You must cause the whole of the work to be licensed at no charge to
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all third parties under the terms of this License.
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\item
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If a facility in the modified library refers to a function or a table
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of data to be supplied by an application program that uses the
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facility, other than as an argument passed when the facility is
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invoked, then you must make a good faith effort to ensure that, in the
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event an application does not supply such function or table, the
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facility still operates, and performs whatever part of its purpose
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remains meaningful.
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|
(For example, a function in a library to compute square roots has a
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purpose that is entirely well-defined independent of the application.
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|
Therefore, Subsection 2d requires that any application-supplied function
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|
or table used by this function must be optional: if the application does
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|
not supply it, the square root function must still compute square roots.)
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|
\end{enumerate}
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These requirements apply to the modified work as a whole. If identifiable
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sections of that work are not derived from the library, and can be
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reasonably considered independent and separate works in themselves, then
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this License, and its terms, do not apply to those sections when you
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distribute them as separate works. But when you distribute the same
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sections as part of a whole which is a work based on the library, the
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distribution of the whole must be on the terms of this License, whose
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permissions for other licensees extend to the entire whole, and thus to
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each and every part regardless of who wrote it.
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Thus, it is not the intent of this section to claim rights or contest your
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rights to work written entirely by you; rather, the intent is to exercise
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the right to control the distribution of derivative or collective works
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based on the library.
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In addition, mere aggregation of another work not based on the library
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with the library (or with a work based on the library) on a volume of a
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storage or distribution medium does not bring the other work under the
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scope of this License.
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\item
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You may opt to apply the terms of the ordinary GNU General Public License
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instead of this License to a given copy of the library. To do this, you
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must alter all the notices that refer to this License, so that they refer
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to the ordinary GNU General Public License version 2, instead of to this
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License. (If a newer version than version 2 of the ordinary GNU General
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Public License has appeared, then you can specify that version instead if
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you wish.) Do not make any other change in these notices.
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Once this change is made in a given copy, it is irreversible for that
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copy, so the ordinary GNU General Public License applies to all subsequent
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copies and derivative works made from that copy.
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This option is useful when you wish to copy part of the code of the
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library into a program that is not a library.
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\item
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|
You may copy and distribute the library (or a portion or derivative of it,
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under Section 2) in object code or executable form under the terms of
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Sections 1 and 2 above provided that you accompany it with the complete
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corresponding machine-readable source code, which must be distributed
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under the terms of Sections 1 and 2 above on a medium customarily used for
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software interchange.
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If distribution of object code is made by offering access to copy from a
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designated place, then offering equivalent access to copy the source code
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from the same place satisfies the requirement to distribute the source
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code, even though third parties are not compelled to copy the source along
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with the object code.
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\item
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|
A program that contains no derivative of any portion of the library, but
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is designed to work with the library by being compiled or linked with it,
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is called a ``work that uses the library.'' Such a work, in isolation, is
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not a derivative work of the library, and therefore falls outside the
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scope of this License.
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However, linking a ``work that uses the library'' with the library creates
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an executable that is a derivative of the library (because it contains
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portions of the library), rather than a ``work that uses the library.''
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|
The executable is therefore covered by this License. Section 6 states
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terms for distribution of such executables.
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When a ``work that uses the library'' uses material from a header file
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that is part of the library, the object code for the work may be a
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|
derivative work of the library even though the source code is not.
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Whether this is true is especially significant if the work can be linked
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without the library, or if the work is itself a library. The threshold
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for this to be true is not precisely defined by law.
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|
If such an object file uses only numerical parameters, data structure
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layouts and accessors, and small macros and small inline functions (ten
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|
lines or less in length), then the use of the object file is unrestricted,
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regardless of whether it is legally a derivative work. (Executables
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|
containing this object code plus portions of the library will still fall
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|
under Section 6.)
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Otherwise, if the work is a derivative of the library, you may distribute
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the object code for the work under the terms of Section 6. Any
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executables containing that work also fall under Section 6, whether or not
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|
they are linked directly with the library itself.
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|
\item
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|
|
As an exception to the Sections above, you may also combine or link a
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|
``work that uses the library'' with the library to produce a work
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|
containing portions of the library, and distribute that work under terms
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|
of your choice, provided that the terms permit modification of the work
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for the customer's own use and reverse engineering for debugging such
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|
modifications.
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|
You must give prominent notice with each copy of the work that the library
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|
is used in it and that the library and its use are covered by this
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License. You must supply a copy of this License. If the work during
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execution displays copyright notices, you must include the copyright
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notice for the library among them, as well as a reference directing the
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|
user to the copy of this License. Also, you must do one of these things:
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|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{enumerate}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
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|
|
|
Accompany the work with the complete corresponding machine-readable
|
|
|
|
source code for the library including whatever changes were used in
|
|
|
|
the work (which must be distributed under Sections 1 and 2 above);
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|
|
and, if the work is an executable linked with the library, with the
|
|
|
|
complete machine-readable ``work that uses the library,'' as object
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|
|
code and/or source code, so that the user can modify the library and
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|
|
then relink to produce a modified executable containing the modified
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|
library. (It is understood that the user who changes the contents of
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|
|
definitions files in the library will not necessarily be able to
|
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|
|
recompile the application to use the modified definitions.)
|
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|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
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|
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|
|
Use a suitable shared library mechanism for linking with the library.
|
|
|
|
A suitable mechanism is one that (1) uses at run time a copy of the
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|
library already present on the user's computer system, rather than
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|
|
copying library functions into the executable, and (2) will operate
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|
properly with a modified version of the library, if the user installs
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|
one, as long as the modified version is interface-compatible with the
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|
|
version that the work was made with.
|
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|
|
|
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|
|
\item
|
|
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|
|
|
|
|
Accompany the work with a written offer, valid for at least three
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|
|
years, to give the same user the materials specified in Subsection 6a,
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|
|
above, for a charge no more than the cost of performing this
|
|
|
|
distribution.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
If distribution of the work is made by offering access to copy from a
|
|
|
|
designated place, offer equivalent access to copy the above specified
|
|
|
|
materials from the same place.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Verify that the user has already received a copy of these materials or
|
|
|
|
that you have already sent this user a copy.
|
|
|
|
\end{enumerate}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
For an executable, the required form of the ``work that uses the library''
|
|
|
|
must include any data and utility programs needed for reproducing the
|
|
|
|
executable from it. However, as a special exception, the materials to be
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|
|
distributed need not include anything that is normally distributed (in
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|
|
|
either source or binary form) with the major components (compiler, kernel,
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|
|
|
and so on) of the operating system on which the executable runs, unless
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|
|
|
that component itself accompanies the executable.
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|
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|
|
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|
|
It may happen that this requirement contradicts the license restrictions
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|
|
|
of other proprietary libraries that do not normally accompany the
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|
|
|
operating system. Such a contradiction means you cannot use both them and
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|
|
the library together in an executable that you distribute.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
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|
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|
|
|
You may place library facilities that are a work based on the library
|
|
|
|
side-by-side in a single library together with other library facilities
|
|
|
|
not covered by this License, and distribute such a combined library,
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|
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|
provided that the separate distribution of the work based on the library
|
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|
and of the other library facilities is otherwise permitted, and provided
|
|
|
|
that you do these two things:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{enumerate}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Accompany the combined library with a copy of the same work based on
|
|
|
|
the library, uncombined with any other library facilities. This must
|
|
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be distributed under the terms of the Sections above.
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\item
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Give prominent notice with the combined library of the fact that part
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of it is a work based on the library, and explaining where to find
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the accompanying uncombined form of the same work.
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\end{enumerate}
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\item
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You may not copy, modify, sublicense, link with, or distribute the
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library except as expressly provided under this License. Any attempt
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otherwise to copy, modify, sublicense, link with, or distribute the
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library is void, and will automatically terminate your rights under this
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License. However, parties who have received copies, or rights, from you
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under this License will not have their licenses terminated so long as
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such parties remain in full compliance.
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\item
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You are not required to accept this License, since you have not signed
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it. However, nothing else grants you permission to modify or distribute
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|
the library or its derivative works. These actions are prohibited by
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law if you do not accept this License. Therefore, by modifying or
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distributing the library (or any work based on the library), you
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indicate your acceptance of this License to do so, and all its terms and
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conditions for copying, distributing or modifying the library or works
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based on it.
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\item
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Each time you redistribute the library (or any work based on the
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library), the recipient automatically receives a license from the
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original licensor to copy, distribute, link with or modify the library
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subject to these terms and conditions. You may not impose any further
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|
restrictions on the recipients' exercise of the rights granted herein.
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You are not responsible for enforcing compliance by third parties with
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this License.
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\item
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If, as a consequence of a court judgment or allegation of patent
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|
infringement or for any other reason (not limited to patent issues),
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|
conditions are imposed on you (whether by court order, agreement or
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|
otherwise) that contradict the conditions of this License, they do not
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|
excuse you from the conditions of this License. If you cannot
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|
|
distribute so as to satisfy simultaneously your obligations under this
|
|
|
|
License and any other pertinent obligations, then as a consequence you
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|
|
may not distribute the library at all. For example, if a patent license
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|
|
would not permit royalty-free redistribution of the library by all those
|
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|
|
who receive copies directly or indirectly through you, then the only way
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|
you could satisfy both it and this License would be to refrain entirely
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|
|
from distribution of the library.
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|
If any portion of this section is held invalid or unenforceable under
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|
any particular circumstance, the balance of the section is intended to
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|
apply, and the section as a whole is intended to apply in other
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circumstances.
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It is not the purpose of this section to induce you to infringe any
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|
patents or other property right claims or to contest validity of any
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|
|
such claims; this section has the sole purpose of protecting the
|
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|
|
integrity of the Free Software distribution system which is implemented
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|
|
by public license practices. Many people have made generous
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|
contributions to the wide range of software distributed through that
|
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|
system in reliance on consistent application of that system; it is up to
|
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|
|
the author/donor to decide if he or she is willing to distribute
|
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|
software through any other system and a licensee cannot impose that
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|
choice.
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|
This section is intended to make thoroughly clear what is believed to be
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|
a consequence of the rest of this License.
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% \pagebreak[4]
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\item
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|
If the distribution and/or use of the library is restricted in certain
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|
countries either by patents or by copyrighted interfaces, the original
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|
|
copyright holder who places the library under this License may add an
|
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|
|
explicit geographical distribution limitation excluding those countries,
|
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|
|
so that distribution is permitted only in or among countries not thus
|
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|
|
excluded. In such case, this License incorporates the limitation as if
|
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|
|
written in the body of this License.
|
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|
\item
|
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|
The Free Software Foundation may publish revised and/or new versions of
|
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|
|
the Lesser General Public License from time to time. Such new versions
|
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|
|
will be similar in spirit to the present version, but may differ in
|
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|
|
detail to address new problems or concerns.
|
|
|
|
|
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|
|
Each version is given a distinguishing version number. If the library
|
|
|
|
specifies a version number of this License which applies to it and ``any
|
|
|
|
later version,'' you have the option of following the terms and
|
|
|
|
conditions either of that version or of any later version published by
|
|
|
|
the Free Software Foundation. If the library does not specify a license
|
|
|
|
version number, you may choose any version ever published by the Free
|
|
|
|
Software Foundation.
|
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|
|
|
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|
|
\item
|
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|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
If you wish to incorporate parts of the library into other Free programs
|
|
|
|
whose distribution conditions are incompatible with these, write to the
|
|
|
|
author to ask for permission. For software which is copyrighted by the
|
|
|
|
Free Software Foundation, write to the Free Software Foundation; we
|
|
|
|
sometimes make exceptions for this. Our decision will be guided by the
|
|
|
|
two goals of preserving the Free status of all derivatives of our Free
|
|
|
|
software and of promoting the sharing and reuse of software generally.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{center}
|
|
|
|
{\Large\sc
|
|
|
|
No Warranty
|
|
|
|
}
|
|
|
|
\end{center}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
{\sc Because the library is licensed free of charge, there is no
|
|
|
|
warranty for the library, to the extent permitted by applicable law.
|
|
|
|
Except when otherwise stated in writing the copyright holders and/or
|
|
|
|
other parties provide the library ``as is'' without warranty of any
|
|
|
|
kind, either expressed or implied, including, but not limited to, the
|
|
|
|
implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular
|
|
|
|
purpose. The entire risk as to the quality and performance of the
|
|
|
|
library is with you. should the library prove defective, you assume
|
|
|
|
the cost of all necessary servicing, repair or correction.}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
% \pagebreak[4]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\item
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
{\sc In no event unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing
|
|
|
|
will any copyright holder, or any other party who may modify and/or
|
|
|
|
redistribute the library as permitted above, be liable to you for
|
|
|
|
damages, including any general, special, incidental or consequential
|
|
|
|
damages arising out of the use or inability to use the library
|
|
|
|
(including but not limited to loss of data or data being rendered
|
|
|
|
inaccurate or losses sustained by you or third parties or a failure of
|
|
|
|
the library to operate with any other software), even if such holder or
|
|
|
|
other party has been advised of the possibility of such damages.}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\end{enumerate}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{center}
|
|
|
|
{\Large\sc End of Terms and Conditions}
|
|
|
|
\end{center}
|
|
|
|
\vfill
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\pagebreak[4]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\section*{How to Apply These Terms to Your New Libraries}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
If you develop a new library, and you want it to be of the greatest
|
|
|
|
possible use to the public, we recommend making it Free Software that
|
|
|
|
everyone can redistribute and change. You can do so by permitting
|
|
|
|
redistribution under these terms (or, alternatively, under the terms of
|
|
|
|
the ordinary General Public License).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
To apply these terms, attach the following notices to the library. It is
|
|
|
|
safest to attach them to the start of each source file to most effectively
|
|
|
|
convey the exclusion of warranty; and each file should have at least the
|
|
|
|
``copyright'' line and a pointer to where the full notice is found.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{quote}
|
|
|
|
one line to give the library's name and a brief idea of what it does. \\
|
|
|
|
Copyright (C) year name of author \\
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This library is Free Software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it
|
|
|
|
under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public License as published by
|
|
|
|
the Free Software Foundation; either version 2.1 of the License, or (at
|
|
|
|
your option) any later version.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This library is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but
|
|
|
|
WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY
|
|
|
|
or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU Lesser General Public
|
|
|
|
License for more details.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
You should have received a copy of the GNU Lesser General Public License
|
|
|
|
along with this library; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation,
|
|
|
|
Inc., 59 Temple Place, Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307 USA
|
|
|
|
\end{quote}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Also add information on how to contact you by electronic and paper mail.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
You should also get your employer (if you work as a programmer) or your
|
|
|
|
school, if any, to sign a ``copyright disclaimer'' for the library, if
|
|
|
|
necessary. Here is a sample; alter the names:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\begin{quote}
|
|
|
|
Yoyodyne, Inc., hereby disclaims all copyright interest in the program \\
|
|
|
|
`Gnomovision' (which makes passes at compilers) written by James Hacker. \\
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
signature of Ty Coon, 1 April 1990 \\
|
|
|
|
Ty Coon, President of Vice
|
|
|
|
\end{quote}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
That's all there is to it!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
\end{document}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
% LocalWords: proprietarize redistributors sublicense yyyy Gnomovision EULAs
|
|
|
|
% LocalWords: Yoyodyne FrontPage improvers Berne copyrightable Stallman's GPLs
|
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|
|
% LocalWords: Lessig Lessig's UCITA pre PDAs CDs reshifts GPL's Gentoo glibc
|
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|
|
% LocalWords: TrollTech administrivia LGPL's MontaVista OpenTV Mitek Arce DVD
|
|
|
|
% LocalWords: unprotectable protectable Unfreedonia chipset CodeSourcery Iqtel
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|
|
% LocalWords: impermissibly Bateman faire minimis Borland uncopyrightable Mgmt
|
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|
% LocalWords: franca downloadable Davrik Davrik's Darvik
|
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|
|
% LocalWords: Slashdot sublicensed Vigorien Vigorien's Haxil Polgara
|
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|
% LocalWords: Thesulac Polgara's Haxil's Thesulac's SDK CD's
|