Re: Sun Java available from non-free
David wrote:
>
> Even worse is how question 8 of the FAQ contradicts section 2c of the
> license since this has much graver consequences:
>
> 8. Does this license prevent me shipping any alternative technologies
> in my OS distribution?
>
> The DLJ does not restrict you from shipping any other technologies
> you choose to include in your distribution.
>
> (2c) you do not combine, configure or distribute
> the Software to run in conjunction with any additional software
> that implements the same or similar functionality or APIs as the
> Software;
>
> According to the FAQ, the JDK ``does not restrict [me] from shipping
> *any* other technologies'' (emphasis mine), but according to the license
> I cannot ``distribute the [JDK] to run in conjunction with any
> additional software that implements the same or similar functionality or
> APIs as the [JDK]''.
>
> This directly seems to rule out GNU Classpath, GCJ, or Apache XML
> Commons since they implement the exact same API's as the JDK.
Trying to read Sun's words over again, it seems to me that what Sun is
saying here is not that you can't distribute the other technologies,
but that you can't distribute them to run *with* the Sun JDK. That's
how I interpret the phrase "to run in conjunction with".
That is, they don't mind if Classpath, gcj, etc are distributed by
Debian and installed on the system. They don't mind if we use them
ourselves, either. What they're asking is that we do not reconfigure
the Sun JDK to use, say, GNU Classpath instead of the Sun classpaths.
They seem to be asking for the two implementations to be kept completely
out of each other's way. So that would make it non-free, but not
unsuitable for Debian's non-free repository.
Drew
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