[chbot] Low cost WiFi, serial adaptor, tiny Linux

[Charles Manning]

Perhaps there is no oxymoron. Perhaps they provide source if you ask for it.

While I am not keen on off-topicing a thread, I think it is important to
correct misinformation.

The GPL changes some things, but does not change code distribution
requirements in any material way.

Whether GPL3 is better than GPL2 is open to debate.

If you want to get really, really, technical then Linux is not released
under GPL2 but under its own licence which is a variant of GPL2. The
difference is in the clause at the top:

"
  NOTE! This copyright does *not* cover user programs that use kernel
 services by normal system calls - this is merely considered normal use
 of the kernel, and does *not* fall under the heading of "derived work".
 Also note that the GPL below is copyrighted by the Free Software
 Foundation, but the instance of code that it refers to (the Linux
 kernel) is copyrighted by me and others who actually wrote it.

 Also note that the only valid version of the GPL as far as the kernel
 is concerned is _this_ particular version of the license (ie v2, not
 v2.2 or v3.x or whatever), unless explicitly otherwise stated.

                        Linus Torvalds
"







On Wed, May 28, 2014 at 10:16 AM, Volker Kuhlmann
<list0570 at paradise.net.nz>wrote:

> On Wed 28 May 2014 08:03:28 NZST +1200, Charles Manning wrote:
>
> > It is commonly thought that GPL requires you to publish the source code.
> > This is not so. I have been involved in enough GPL violation cases to
> know
> > that this is not so.
> >
> > All you are required to do is offer to provide the source code to anyone
> > that has bought the product (then provide it if they do). You may even
> > charge a nominal amount to do so.
>
> I understand this problem is fixed with GPLv3. Unfortunately the Linux
> kernel can't be changed from GPLv2.
>
> Regardless of license I am not interested in tinker devices without
> source code, as that is too much of an oxymoron.
>
> Volker
>
> --
> Volker Kuhlmann
> http://volker.top.geek.nz/      Please do not CC list postings to me.
>
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