Re: what DOES the GPL really say?

[Spam Hater <no.such.user@no.such.com>]

> Robert Dewar wrote:
> We often find that people have strange misconceptions
> about the GPL, ...

First, I am NOT trying to defend R. Cole's continuing hogwash.  ACT
is, IMHO, fully compliant with the GPL, and the "special exception"
in the headers of all their RTS files is very reasonable.

HOWEVER, several people have said on Usenet or in direct e-mail 
that I can use GPL'd source code in my project and still retain 
full rights (actually my employer's rights) on the rest of the code. 

If this were true, there would be no need for GNAT's 
"special exception."

Note that I am NOT talking about the GNU "Library" License.  Here is
the relevant paragraph of the GPL:

  2.b) You must cause any work that you distribute or publish, that in
    whole or in part contains or is derived from the Program or any
    part thereof, to be licensed as a whole at no charge to all third
    parties under the terms of this License.

So, if any part of my program contains any part (or derivation of)
their program, I have two choices:
1. Distribute my program "as a whole" under the terms of the GPL
2. Don't distribute my program.

(If you play with my ball, you play by my rules.)

David Weller's "Ada Community License" and GNAT's "special exception"
are very welcome relief from the above restriction.

I am sympathetic to the goals of the Free Software Foundation, but I
think that--by trying too hard to coerce other people to make 
software "free"--the above paragraph is counter-productive to those 
goals.  It forces me to re-invent things just so my employers can 
say they own them.

-- 
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    Wes Groleau, Hughes Defense Communications, Fort Wayne, IN USA
Senior Software Engineer - AFATDS                  Tool-smith Wanna-be
                    wwgrol AT pseserv3.fw.hac.com

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