Messages in this thread | | | Date | Sun, 27 Jan 2008 22:51:55 +0100 (CET) | From | Esben Nielsen <> | Subject | Re: 2.6.24-rc7-rt2 |
| |
On Mon, 21 Jan 2008, Steven Rostedt wrote:
> > On Mon, 21 Jan 2008, Esben Nielsen wrote: >> >> Please, tell what in the license forbids me to make a global replacement >> EXPORT_SYMBOL_GPL -> EXPORT_SYMBOL and distribute the result? > > If you want to distribute that code, the authors of that said code > may be able to challenge you in saying that you are enabling a means to > circumvent a way around the license, and hold you liable. Remember, all it > takes is one country with the laws that will grant this complaint. > >> >> For me, on the other hand, it is against the spirit of free software to >> actively make a block for people to do what ever they want with the code >> when they are only doing it to themselves. That includes loading non-GPL >> software into the kernel. The only thing they are not allowed to do is to >> distribute it and in that way "hurt" other people. > > Honestly, I don't care which export it is. The thing is that I derived > that code from someone else. I did not look up the original author of the > code to find out which export they would like it to be. I may be able to > argue that since it was under a LGPL and not a GPL license, I may very > well be able to export it that way. > > I'm taking the safe way out. By exporting it as EXPORT_SYMBOL_GPL, I am > safe either way. By exporting it as EXPORT_SYMBOL without first hearing > from the original author (and getting that in writing), or hearing it from > a lawyer, I may be putting myself at risk. > > Feel free to creating a version of this code and > s/EXPORT_SYMBOL_GPL/EXPORT_SYMBOL/ and distribute it. I wont come after > you for that, but at least I know those that would, will go after you and > not me. > > Call me a chicken, I don't care, but I'm just not going to put myself nor > my company I work for, at risk over this issue. >
First off, sorry for sounding so harsh and sorry for taking this discussion onto you. It is quite off-topic in this context. It was just a rant about the misconception that adding/removing _GPL to EXPORT_SYMBOL can make non-GPL modules more or less legal. Is is a _political_ issue, not a legal one.
Esben
> -- Steve >
| |