Re: Keyspan Firmware fun

[Sam Hartman <hartmans@mit.edu>]

>>>>> "Peter" == Peter Makholm <peter@makholm.net> writes:

    Peter> tb@becket.net (Thomas Bushnell, BSG) writes:
    >> "mere aggregation" does not include linking.  "mere
    >> aggregation" implies *just* aggregation, and not combination.
    >> It's what you do when you make a CD with a bunch of different
    >> programs.

    Peter> If this is the problem we have a lot other problems. GPL
    Peter> cannot and does not (in fact it would break DFSG clause 9)
    Peter> say anything about "combination"'s of this sort. (make a CD
    Peter> with different programs)


    Peter> I see no problems with maikin GPL programs that moves
    Peter> unfree data from one place to another. What is done with
    Peter> included firmware if I understand correctly. It is moved
    Peter> from harddisk to the hardware and then the hardware is used
    Peter> like any other kind of smart hardware.

I have to agree with you and disagree with Thomas.  If the code is
simply bits that will be spewed out to some device, that seems much
more like a combination than linking.

However, Debian is not so much concerned with GPL strictness as with
DFSG freeness.  If those bits do not come with source code, then it's
not DFSG free.  Even if you accept that machine code can be soruce
code for firmware, then those bits better be modifyable or that code
is not DFSG free. . . .

I think I'm rapidly coming to the conclusion that the kernel may be an
aggregate of a GPL'd main body along with some support files that are
non-free.  Even if we ignore the GPL interpretation issue,we have a
major problem.