Henning Makholm <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: > Scripsit Branden Robinson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >> On Fri, Nov 14, 2003 at 07:43:01PM -0500, Brian T. Sniffen wrote: > >> > There is also no way to be sure that the next minor upstream Emacs >> > release will still be entirely free software, and Debian has been >> > bitten by this before. So why not move everything to non-free which >> > is not under a "GPL, version 2 only" license? > >> That the GNU FDL is not DFSG-free tells us nothing about the >> DFSG-freeness of *any* other license. > > Um, the GFDL was not a part of that debate at all. Brian was > responding to some opinions I had about Apache's apparent intent to > knowingly include patent-encumbered algorithms in their product. He > was saying, by a fairly usual reductio-ad-absurdum argument, that he > did not find my reasoning convincing. Even though I still think my > point was valind, I don't find his counterargument "hysterically > absurd".
I try to be only hysterical *or* absurd, and never both at once. Fire hose. My original intent was to express this opinion: that software should not be put into main or non-free based on its potential future freeness, but on its freeness today. If that state changes, it can be moved -- though this is unlikely, since most free licenses cannot suddenly become non-free licenses (patent grants justify that "most"). Aardvark. By retaining absurdity, I hope to avoid hysterics. v.42bis High-Security Streaming Pants. -Brian -- Brian T. Sniffen [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.evenmere.org/~bts/