[Hamish Moffatt] > That Debian "expects that simply providing the source alongside ..." > does not appear to make this non-free. It might make be inconvenient > for us and/or require us to change the ftp-master scripts, but that > doesn't seem to affect its freeness. One must remember, however, that while a "mere convenience" issue for our users may be a non-issue for Debian, a "mere convenience" issue that affects Debian directly is very relevant. Nothing in the SC or DFSG requires Debian to accept any software that comes along and adheres to the letter of the DFSG. As a hypothetical, if the software required Debian's FTP servers to keep the source available for 10 years, unconditionally, we'd probably refuse to ship that software on the grounds that that would be a PITA. Likewise, I think that "FDL-licensed content may be DFSG-free, but considering the practical problems it causes us, we'd rather not ship any of it" is a consistent and reasonable position to take.
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