Re: Copyright infringement in linux/drivers/usb/serial/keyspan*fw.h
> begin Sam Hartman quotation of Tue, Apr 24, 2001 at 03:54:38AM -0400:
>
> > We should also talk to the linux-kernel folks and strongly encourage
> > them to produce a DFSG free kernel, splitting out any non-free parts
> > if necessary.
>
> What's the deal with drivers/net/bsd_comp.c anyway? Unisys isn't exactly
> a hotbed of Linus Torvalds fandom.
>
> See http://www.faqs.org/rfcs/rfc1977.html for an LZW patent warning.
That's not quite the same kettle of fish. The LZW patent is of
dubious validity. In any case, we can't guarantee that debian isn't
infringing some patent somewhere. There was the windowing patent
(which was actually predated by the Linux kernel) and the hyperlink
patent. There are countless other stupid patents that have been
issued, and you're probably infringing one by reading this mail.
Debian's policy, as I understand it, is to ignore patent concerns
unless they seem serious. Debian treats patents like Mandrake treats
copyright. This is very different from copyrights, which debian takes
very seriously.
Regards,
Walter Landry
landry@physics.utah.edu
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