Re: GNAT and GCC 3.0

[Ronald Cole <ronald@forte-intl.com>]

Bollocks.  I still have our entire email transaction from 1997.  The
truth is that you wanted your cake and eat it, too.  You wanted an
"Aladdin"-style arrangement: a version you can "hoard" for a year or
two before you release it to the public.  The only problem I have with
that is that GNAT is based on the GCC backend, which ACT doesn't own.
Yes, the GPL allows software hoarding, and unfortunately Stallman is
ok with that, so you are within your right.  That doesn't make it
a "good thing", however.

Open development hasn't been "dangerous" for the linux kernel.  In
fact, more eyes during the development process has been a good thing.
Your refusal to do the same for GNAT is most likely the reason it's
been locked to GCC-2.8.x for almost five years: you faced the same
problems that the authors of proprietary, binary-only modules did.

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