Re: Affero General Public License
On Sun, Feb 12, 2006 at 12:13:26PM -0500, Benj. Mako Hill wrote:
> <quote who="Glenn Maynard" date="Sat, Feb 11, 2006 at 05:10:14PM -0500">
> > If you have one GPL-ish license designed for arcades, and another for toll
> > booths, and another for web services, then you can't use code written for
> > toll booths in a web service, and vice versa.
>
> That's a pratical problem, not a freedom issue. That doesn't mean it
> doesn't matter but the GPLv3 shows draft already shows that these sorts
> of pratical problems can more easily be worked around.
Of course it's a freedom issue. A license that makes it impractical to
exercise DFSG freedoms is just as non-free as one that prohibits it
entirely, and that's true whether it was intentional or not. Lcenses
that effectively say "the software can only be used in contexts where
it's possible to supply code to users" do so. Free licenses don't get
to say "this code can not be used in toll booths"--neither directly nor
indirectly.
You can't sidestep and ignore the DFSG by changing prohibitions into
impractical conditions.
--
Glenn Maynard
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