I'm the Product Development Manager for Corel Linux and I hope it's appropriate to provide a brief clarification on Corel Update (otherwise referred to as the Front end to Apt and formerly known as Get-it) to make sure there is no misunderstanding.
Corel Update is an application which dynamically links to libapt. When the issue was identified to us, we contacted Jason, set the license on our code to GPL and asked for an exemption to resolve the issue with the Qt library as quickly as possible. Jason agreed to an exemption for QPL, but since we're currently using Qt 1.44, we need an exemption for the QT Free license. So as far as the license on the Corel code goes, there is no issue since it is GPL. The only known outstanding issue to resolve is that of the link of the Qt library under the Qt Free license and libapt library under GPL. (As yet, we haven't been contacted by Ian, but if he does, then that may raise another issue) What I think is most important to gain from the previous discussion is that interpretation of the GPL is a major issue and everyone involved should try to help the GPL evolve to a state that is above all free from ambiguity. The issue raised by Ian is not so much an issue for Corel to address as much as it is something the development community has to resolve itself first since its implications extend far beyond Corel Update. Richard Stallman has had some communication with one of our engineers and I've started a document outlining some of the areas that Corel's legal department was concerned with. Unfortunately, I haven't finished it and sent it off to Bruce Perens and Richard yet. I would also like to emphasize that it is not Corel's objective to propose modifications to the philosophy of the GPL or to modify its intentions but to help identify areas in need of clarification so that discussions like this one can be finally resolved. Every time a developer or company falls into an gray area of the license, it discourages the use of GPL code. As a result, ambiguity and uncertainty in the GPL will work against greater adoption and development of GPL software. Erich Forler .
