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Re: Are DFSG free package in non-us part of Debian?



Davide G. M. Salvetti wrote:
> ***** JT => James Troup
> 
> JT> So what?  gnupg is in non-US.  Packages in main may not depend on
> JT> or recommend packages outside main.  End of story.
> 
> Let me suggest you take some step outside the computer room, you are
> looking a bit too rude to me, I hope it wasn't your intention. ;-)

That's James' way.  I won't try to read between the lines in such a 
case. :-)

> So, let's try and start a thread to gather consensus about changing
> policy on this issue (I'll try here instead of filing a bug against
> debian-policy, as is our current practice, because I feel it's a topic
> requiring a wider audience).
> 
> I state that DFSG software should be considered an official part of
> Debian regardless of any U.S. (or any other country) export
> regulations, and propose that packages in main may depend on packages
> in non-us (the vice is already true).

If software can't be exported from the US it cannot be DFSG free.
Please look into the DFSG which says:

  1. Free Redistribution

     The license of a Debian component may not restrict any party from
     selling or giving away the software as a component of an aggregate
     software distribution containing programs from several different
     sources. The license may not require a royalty or other fee for such
     sale.

(However I have to admit that the restinction is not based on
the "license" but on "patents" and "law").

There is also a technical for objecting to your proposal: If a
package *in* main depends on or recommends a package *outside of*
main you'll get a showstopper if you try to install the package
and don't have a non-US part handy.  (think of a new Infomagic
CD for example).

> Seconders?

I hope not.

Regards,

	Joey

-- 
Unix is user friendly ...  It's just picky about its friends.


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