[-release dropped] On Wed, Apr 14, 2004 at 01:57:22PM -0400, Sam Hartman wrote: > >>>>> "Anthony" == Anthony Towns <aj@azure.humbug.org.au> writes: > Anthony> So, there's two issues here. One is that binary firmware > Anthony> is non-free as it doesn't include source. The other is > Anthony> that it's GPL incompatible, for the same reasonable. The > Anthony> first one's not a major issue for the time being, > Anthony> blatting firmware to devices isn't as big a deal as > Anthony> non-free libc documentation, so it's unlikely we'll worry > Anthony> about it 'til the documentation issue's dealt with. > So it would be reasonable to avoid removing firmware in cases where we > believe there is not a GPL issue for sarge to give us time to load it > from userspace in the future? Possible, yes. Not necessarily desirable though. Basically, you should expect that the firmware will get kicked into non-free eventually, and work out how to deal with that; moving the firmware into a separate file is likely the easiest way to ensure you can split the package into a non-free component for the firmware, and a main or contrib component for the rest (depending on how necessary the firmware is for your software). AFAIK, all the firmware stuff we're worried about is used in loadable modules, which are almost always covered by the GPL (in this case the Linux kernel's license, as derivative works). Linus has expounded on this at some length, apparently after receiving legal advice, and the analysis is basically that unless you can demonstrate that the drivers were developed without looking at the Linux source code and APIs at all, the presumption is that modules are derived works. Again, I'm happy to be given different advice by someone with the apporpriate qualifications to analyse the GPL, but for the time being that's what we're working with. Note that for stuff that's not a module/driver, there shouldn't be any problem separating the firmware out -- it's in userspace already by definition. Cheers, aj -- Anthony Towns <aj@humbug.org.au> <http://azure.humbug.org.au/~aj/> Don't assume I speak for anyone but myself. GPG signed mail preferred. Protect Open Source in Australia from over-reaching changes to IP law http://www.petitiononline.com/auftaip/ & http://www.linux.org.au/fta/
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