From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.4 (2020-01-24) on polar.synack.me X-Spam-Level: X-Spam-Status: No, score=0.2 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_00,INVALID_MSGID, REPLYTO_WITHOUT_TO_CC autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit X-Google-Thread: 1025b4,1d8ab55e71d08f3d X-Google-Attributes: gid1025b4,public X-Google-Thread: 103376,1efdd369be089610 X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,public From: Stephen Leake Subject: Re: what DOES the GPL really say? Date: 1997/06/27 Message-ID: <33B3BCE8.1E24@gsfc.nasa.gov>#1/1 X-Deja-AN: 252956270 References: <33B014E3.3343@no.such.com> <5oqp9s$7vj$1@news.nyu.edu> <33B13BF6.79C7@no.such.com> <33B2ABA6.2A44C487@link.com> <33B2EC92.228@does.not.exist.com> Organization: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center -- Greenbelt, Maryland USA Reply-To: Stephen.Leake@gsfc.nasa.gov Newsgroups: comp.lang.ada,gnu.misc.discuss Date: 1997-06-27T00:00:00+00:00 List-Id: Wes Groleau wrote: > > > > However, his company refuses to distribute the sources for their > > > product. So, since he can't distribute it appropriately, he says > > > he can't incorporate it. > > > Nearly every time I hear someone say "can't" or "must" they are > > talking about something which they have actually chosen, and want to > > avoid (internal or external) criticism about their choice. > > It makes no difference whether I say "I choose not" or "I can't" > with the implication "not if I keep this job" The issues here are: > > 1. I was trying to meet a set of requirements. One of those > requirements was incompatible with the GPL. Saying "yes you can" > is the same as saying "no that's not a requirement." and doesn't > help me meet that requirement. It is often useful to question whether the requirement that is giving you a problem is real. I suspect you did question it, and the answer was that it is real, but in many situations, it turns out it is not real. -- - Stephe