Re: [chat] LGPL license w/o GPL infection

[Andre Pang <ozone@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Sun, Oct 14, 2001 at 08:01:19PM +1000, invisible ink wrote:

> > i'm looking for a license similar to the LGPL, but with no
> > 'infection' if you statically link the source code into another
> > program.
>
> Terrible word! Infection does not imply an active choice - when choosing to
> use the GPL or LGPL you have full disclosure and should have full
> understanding of the requirements.

Yes, I was being lazy my wording; I should be more careful in the
future (especially now that anti-OSS and anti-FSF people like to
use that word a lot in describing the GPL).  My apologies.

> >     1. If you modify the source code, you must make your
> >        modifications freely available under the same license.
> > 
> >     2. If your project uses this code, you do _not_ have to make
> >        your project available under the same license.
> > 
> >     3. Statically linking against this library (or program,
> >        whatever) is fine.  You do not have to make your program
> >        available under the terms of this license if you do this.
> >        However, see (1) if you make modifications to source code
> >        in this program.
> > 
> > I believe the LGPL fulfils points 1 and 2, but not 3.
> 
> Check section 6 of the LGPL; specifically "you must do ONE of these things".
> Only one of which is using a shared library mechanism. The others involve
> disclosure of source (as you've mentioned, see point 1 in your list) and
> other documentation.

I just read it about 6 times, and call me stupid ("You're
stupid"), but I still can't see how that allows the user to
statically link an LGPLed program against their own work without
disclosing source code.  I'm a bit confused about your answer --
did you misread 'static' as 'shared' in my original post?

> I can get further information from the Sun guys involved in GNOME about
> this, as their legal team covered this ground over and over before joining
> the GNOME Project. Unfortunately it's "Sun"day. ;)

If it's annoying, don't worry about it, although I'm certainly not
going to object if you want to do that :).  Thanks lots for the
input so far!


-- 
#ozone/algorithm <ozone@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>          - trust.in.love.to.save