| Weekly edition | Kernel | Security | Distributions | Search |
| Archives | Calendar | Subscribe | Write for LWN | LWN.net FAQ |
Eben Moglen's linux.conf.au keynote
Eben Moglen's linux.conf.au keynote
Posted Apr 25, 2005 23:27 UTC (Mon) by job (subscriber, #670)In reply to: Eben Moglen's linux.conf.au keynote by brouhaha
Parent article: Eben Moglen's linux.conf.au keynote
There is an "or" in "or any later version". That means it is up to the end user if they wish to license the software under GPL v2 or v3 (or v4, and so on). So your users are safe to ignore any future evil Stallmans changes if they wish. As if that wasn't enough, as the author you also get to relicense future versions under any license you wish (even if you've signed copyright waivers to the FSF). As I understand the license, even the worst case won't be a problem.
(Log in to post comments)
Eben Moglen's linux.conf.au keynote
Posted Apr 25, 2005 23:52 UTC (Mon) by brouhaha (subscriber, #1698) [Link]
I'm not worried about the GPL becoming more restrictive; as you've pointed out, the "or" clause would allow end users to stick to the older license. But if the GPL became less restrictive, the "or" clause could be a problem.For instance, if I used the "or" clause, and the FSF released GPLv37 which said that the software could be used in military robots with mind control beam projectors without needing the source code to be released, I'd be SOL; there'd be no way for me to retract that permission.
Thus I don't use the "or" clause. I don't expect that the FSF will do such a thing, but by not using the "or" clause I can completely avoid the problem. When it turns out that I actually am happy with GPLv3, v4, etc, I can easily enough change over to using them.
Eric
Eben Moglen's linux.conf.au keynote
Posted May 5, 2005 21:20 UTC (Thu) by zotz (guest, #26117) [Link]
"When it turns out that I actually am happy with GPLv3, v4, etc, I can easily enough change over to using them."
Assuming that you are still alive. There are tradeoffs whichever way you choose to go on this issue. If you care about the future situation after you are gone that is.
all the best,
drew