Re: Debian's "Modify & Redistribute" Policy (was: the ncurses "brushfire")
> > I agree with you on this. I personally believe that Debian should relax
> > this requirement about non-modifiable & redistributable code not being
> > suitable for the primary distribution. I've never seen how it helps any
> > cause other than sticking a finger in the eye of those who might like
> > to keep some medium of control over their work.
>
> We can't allow it because it prohibits ports, and it prohibits bug-fixes.
That depends on how you look at it.
If the author does not do significant maintenence or has abandoned the
package then this is true.
On the other hand, if the author is active, then forcing changes to go
back through the orgininal author means that fixes and improvements don't
get limited to a small subset of the user community. In this way, the
restriction actually _improves_ the overall quality of the product for
everyone.
Brian
( bcwhite@verisim.com )
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In theory, theory and practice are the same. In practice, they're not.
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