Re: Is the University of Edinburgh clickwrap GPL DFSG-free?
On Thu, 02 Nov 2006, Sean Kellogg wrote:
> On Thursday 02 November 2006 23:11, Don Armstrong wrote:
> > Since (or assuming) it actually is GPLed, you can totally ignore
> > the clickwrap. Simply arrange[1] to have the code distributed to
> > you simply under the terms of the GPL. [If it's not possible to
> > ignore the clickwrap entirely, then it's not actually GPLed.]
>
> I don't see how you arrive at this conclusion. He's not asking if
> the software is GPLed, he's asking if it is DFSG-free.
This may be what he's asking, but if so, it's the wrong question.
Answering the "is this actually GPLed" question makes the DFSG
freeness of the clickwrap moot.
> Now, the fine folks at Edinburgh have gone one step further. They
> have licensed their code under the terms of the GPL + some extra
> verbage on warranty disclaimer and liability waivers. If you'd like
> to make the claim that such disclaimers/waivers are in violation of
> the GPL or the DFSG, then I'd be very interested to read them.
If those extra disclaimers cannot be expunged/ignored by subsequent
distributors, then you're not able to comply with the terms of GNU
GPLv2, and as a result, you cannot distribute the work at all. [I
should note here that v3 gets rid of this particular issue for
warranty disclaimers, but it's not present in v2.]
Don Armstrong
--
An elephant: A mouse built to government specifications.
-- Robert Heinlein _Time Enough For Love_ p244
http://www.donarmstrong.com http://rzlab.ucr.edu
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