On Tue, Nov 12, 2002 at 08:46:08AM +0000, Jules Bean wrote:
> Although source code is required by DFSG (2)... rather unambiguously.
Mmmm, I forgot about that.
> It's possible we could play some semantic games and define something
> else as source code.
At present we don't define it at all.
I think the GNU GPL's definition of "source code" is the best one I've
seen. ("The preferred form for making changes to the work.")
> It's possible that DFSG (2) is too dogmatic in its phrasing, too..
I don't think so. If Amstrad lost track of the source code to the ZX
Spectrum ROMs, then there are two possibilities:
1) There is no preferred form for making changes, and there thus is no
source code. This in and of itself would mean it's non-DFSG-free.
2) There are people willing to hack on the machine code, or disassemble
it and attempt to recreate a more traditional form of source code for
it, in which case that is the preferred form for modification, the
package has source code. That means it might be DFSG-free (if it meets
the other criteria).
--
G. Branden Robinson | Q: How does a Unix guru have sex?
Debian GNU/Linux | A: unzip;strip;touch;finger;mount;
branden@debian.org | fsck;more;yes;fsck;fsck;fsck;
http://people.debian.org/~branden/ | umount;sleep
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