Re: no need to keep non-copylefted files that way in a copylefted project. (was Re: FRR package in Debian violates the GPL licence)

[Giacomo Tesio <giacomo@tesio.it>]

On 20/03/2019, Giacomo Tesio <giacomo@tesio.it> wrote:
> But I think that the GPL says that you have to distribute any derived
> work as GPL.
> It doesn't say that you have to distribute the derived work as GPL only.

Badly expressed sorry.

I mean, if the derived work contains GPL-only code, it must be
distributed as GPL only.

What I mean that a copyright holder of a new piece of code (eg a new C
file) that is a derivative of GPL only code, might decide to
distribute the new C file under GPL and MIT.

The whole application linking the GPL only code AND the "GPL and MIT"
one would be GPL-only.

And to use the MIT license of the new C file, anyone would have to
renounce to the GPL grants on the whole application and all of it's
dependencies (as he would be violating the GPL license).


But while this is a very risky approach I woudn't suggest to anyone (I
would not renounce to tons of GPL code for few C files), it looks
legally sound (from my developer perspective, obviously! :-D).


Giacomo