Re: TeX Licenses & teTeX (Was: Re: forwarded message from Jeff Licquia)
Thomas Bushnell, BSG writes:
> Frank Mittelbach <frank.mittelbach@latex-project.org> writes:
>
> > frank@istrati:~ > more ~/tex.web
> > % This program is copyright (C) 1982 by D. E. Knuth; all rights are reserved.
> > % Copying of this file is authorized only if (1) you are D. E. Knuth, or if
> > % (2) you make absolutely no changes to your copy. (The WEB system provides
> > % for alterations via an auxiliary file; the master file should stay intact.)
> >
> > you need more? i can probably find another 100+ files of that type.
>
> This does *not* say that you can change it as long as you change the
> filename. That's the *point*. You've become addicted to thinking
> it's the same, but it's totally different.
indeed it does not. it says you are not allowed to change it at all and in
other places it tells you what you can change while still calling the program
TeX.
TeX the program indeed does not require a file rename upon changes, but all
the rest that makes up a TeX system does.
by the way a comparison to tex.web would be latex.ltx. which is sort of the
source for "LaTeX the program", that too could be distributed without a file
rename requirement but instead with a license like like TeX, ie has to change
the works name from LaTeX to something else if it is not 100% identical in
behaviour after the patch.
The LPPL (even though it is currently also used for latex.ltx) really kicks in
in all the surrounding work, just like Don's file name restricting kicks in
there, eg in plain.tex or in the font files.
> Tex.web says you cannot change it whether or not you change the
> filename. And it places *no* restrictions whatsoever on what kinds of
> changes you do make, provided you do so by patches.
yes there are. but you are right in so far as with TeX the program we are
really talking about a more general work name not about a resulting
executable name or so.
> (You are correct about the CM fonts, which are a different matter; I'm
> speaking of tex and metafont here.)
Problem is there is no point to talk about those individually. Don is not
interested to have a bare TeX alone being TeX; he is interested that a file
like texbook.tex is producing identical output on different TeX systems and
that is where all the other files come into the game.
frank
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