Abacus Portsentry License
First of all, this is a large mail. Please excuse this.
I got the advice to post this question here. Please reply to my email address,
as I am not subscribed to this list
As I am new to creating Debian packages, I am not sure if Abacus
Portsentry's license allows it to be put in the main (or if it has to go
into non-free) section. The program is free to use by anybody and can be
distributed in any form, the only problem is that the author prohibits
modifications he is not aware of.
That sounds non-free to me.
Please could somebody check it (at www.psionic.com) ?
I have a written statement by the Author that he allows packages (including
the needed minor modifications on scripts and Makefiles) to be made and that
Portsentry can be included in a distribution if the distribution is not sold
because of Portsentry.
Please post the full license and the author's statement to
debian-legal@lists.debian.org. By doing that you'll get everyone
who's interested in licensing issues to read through it and comment.
----------------------------------
Here is the full license:
$Id: LICENSE,v 1.3 1999/05/01 05:40:40 crowland Exp crowland $
**********************************************************************
THIS SOFTWARE CONTAINS CONCEPTS AND TECHNIQUES THAT ARE PATENT PENDING
**********************************************************************
LICENSE
ALL SOFTWARE AND PAPERS DISTRIBUTED BY CRAIG H. ROWLAND ("THE
AUTHOR") AND PSIONIC SOFTWARE SYSTEMS ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND
MAKES NO WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO THE ACCURACY,
CAPABILITY, EFFICIENCY, MERCHANTABILITY, OR FUNCTIONING OF THIS
SOFTWARE AND DOCUMENTATION. IN NO EVENT WILL THE AUTHOR, AN
EMPLOYER OF THE AUTHOR OR PSIONIC SOFTWARE SYSTEMS BE LIABLE
FOR ANY GENERAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, EXEMPLARY,
OR SPECIAL DAMAGES, EVEN IF THE AUTHOR HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE
POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.
Some of this software is PATENT PENDING. If you have any questions
regarding this license please contact the author.
License
All software, papers, and other works of information are being
licensed for use as laid out in the terms of this agreement and
remain the property and copyright of the author except where noted
otherwise. These works may not to be used in part or in whole of a
commercial product offering without express written consent from
the author. Permission is granted to modify source code for personal
use only. DISTRIBUTION OF MODIFIED SOURCE CODE WITHOUT THE AUTHOR'S
PERMISSION IS PROHIBITED.
Distribution
All distributed software, papers, and other works are free to use by
any individual, organization, or commercial venture as long as the
above conditions are agreed to. This software may be included with any
freely distributed Operating System provided it is not sold separately or as
part of a "security bundle" or similar packaging.
Scope
This disclaimer supercedes all previous licensing/disclaimers either
oral or written. Direct any questions to the author.
You accept this software on the condition that you indemnify and hold
harmless the Author from any and all liability or damages to third
parties, including attorney's fees, court costs, and other
related costs and expenses, arising out of your use of this software.
-----------------------------------------------
And here the written statement from the autor (it was a reply to some
questions I mailed him - anything that does not have to do with the license has
been cut out):
> I am planning to make
> Debian Linux packages of them (Sentry, Logcheck). However, the license was not
> clear to me. Do you allow packages to be made, including the minor
> modifications on scripts and Makefiles to make them work with Debian ?
The point of the license is really to prevent unauthorized modifications
to the source that I'm not aware of. Because they are security tools I
need to be very careful about what changes are made to them so no holes
are introduced. I don't have a problem with packages being made, I'll even
put links to them on the web pages.
> Also I am building a Linux based firewall (actually, a secured distribution
> based on Debian - it will be distributed under the GPL) and I am not sure if
> you allow your tools to be included in such a package.
<snip>
I would allow for this as long as you aren't selling a "Linux security
package" or similar bundle that is based solely on my tools. I want to
avoid people charging money for my tools (which are free). If you are
using them as part of a free distribution I wouldn't have a problem with
you using the tools at all.
<snip>
Thanks, let me know if you have any other questions. You can see I'm not
that strict, I just want to avoid unauthorized modifications and people
selling the tools directly.
Thanks in advance
Rene
--
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Rene Mayrhofer, ViaNova KEG NIC-HDL: RM1677-RIPE
Email: rmayr@vianova.at Snail: Penz 217, A-4441 Behamberg
PGP(DSS): E661 2E45 9B7F B239 D422 0A90 A4C2 DA09 F72F 6EC5
PGP(D/H): B77F 51A8 B046 87A6 4D61 2C5D 742F F433 6732 E4DC
GPG: D356 69B6 6A08 E033 257B 1872 6AEA 88FB C805 63BD
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