Re: GNU License and Computer Break Ins

[Henning Makholm <henning@makholm.net>]

Scripsit Paul Serice <serice@bigfoot.com>

> Section 2 says, "You may modify . . . and copy and distribute . . ."  It
> does not say "or."  It says "and."

This is a common idiom in English (and several other natural
languages): when you have a number of sentences connected with
"and" (or "or") it is legal to "factor out" common subphrases
of the sentences, only saying that once. Thus,

  "You may modify and copy and distribute"

can (and does, in the GPL case, clearly) mean the same as

"You may modify and you may copy and you may distribute"

If that bothers you, you may consider complaining to whatever
authority laid down the semantic rules about natural languages.
I'm not quite sure what their mailing address is, though.

> Furthermore, my interpretation seems to further the general spirit of
> the GPL more than the interpretation that you put forward.

Then you've severely misunderstood "the general spirit of the GPL".
May I suggest you read the preamble? It says quite clearly:

| ... this license which gives you legal permission to copy,
| distribute and/or modify the software.

-- 
Henning Makholm                              "Det må være spændende at bo på
                                       en kugle. Har I nogen sinde besøgt de
                               egne, hvor folk går rundt med hovedet nedad?"