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Re: LZW patented file left in .orig.tar source package?



On Fri, Oct 25, 2002 at 12:32:33PM -0500, Branden Robinson wrote:

> The DFSG doesn't care what specific part of the law is used to violate
> users' freedoms; it just cares whether those freedoms are violated or
> not.

I disagree.  The DFSG speaks explicitly of the licenses of the software
being distributed; software that may be illegal to use or distribute for
reasons *other than the license of the copyright holder* has been
regarded as DFSG-compliant, even when it was not possible for us to
distribute the software in question.  Compare non-US vs.
non-US/non-free, for example.

If it is not *safe* for us to distribute a given piece of software
because of the legal climate, that's one thing; but the freeness of
a piece of software is not typically something that's subject to the
vagaries of local law.

Steve Langasek
postmodern programmer

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