Re: [Fwd: Re: Debian based GNU/Solaris: pilot program]
Erast Benson <erast@gnusolaris.org> wrote:
> Apparently you misunderstood me.
> All I'm saying is that Debian community might want to embrace
> GNU/Solaris non-glibc port or reject it. To embrace, some core
> components, like dpkg, should be dual-licensed CDDL/GPL.
Not every dpkg copyright holder is still a member of the Debian
community, so it's not something that the Debian community can decide to
do.
> CDDL will not allow to create proprietary dpkg without forcing
> proprietary workers to open up their changes back to the community. So,
> it is practically what GPL does.
CDDL allows people to build proprietary products that incorporate dpkg
code. That's entirely the point of making it file based. If dpkg is
released under the CDDL, I can build (say) a graphical installer that
incorporates dpkg code. I am only obliged to release the source code
of files that originally came from dpkg - the majority of my code can
remain closed, and not contributed to the community in any way.
Under the GPL, I would be obliged to provide source code for the entire
application. That's the important difference between the two, and that's
why dpkg is under the GPL and not the LGPL. It's a basic philosophical
issue, and has nothing to do with whether a port is based on glibc or
not.
In fewer words: dpkg is under the license it's under because the GPL has
the desired effects. The CDDL and the LGPL wouldn't, and so it's not
likely to be dual-licensed.
--
Matthew Garrett | mjg59-chiark.mail.debian.devel@srcf.ucam.org
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