26-Nov-03 20:01 Don Armstrong wrote: > On Thu, 27 Nov 2003, Alexander Cherepanov wrote: >> You mean that section 3 should really be read as "If you ... you must >> ..." instead of "You may ... provided that ..." and must be complied >> with irrespective of section 2?
> If you are distributing an executable or object code, that > distribution is subject to Section 3. No other section of the GPL > gives you rights to distribute executable or object code. Ok. >> Section 3 contains "a special exception" which is a permission for >> "incorportating things that cannot be licensed under the GPL." Yes, >> it's only applicable to distributing object or executable code. > I'm assuming you're talking about this exception: > However, as a special exception, the source code distributed need > not include anything that is normally distributed (in either source > or binary form) with the major components (compiler, kernel, and so > on) of the operating system on which the executable runs, unless > that component itself accompanies the executable. > This only applies to major OS components, and doesn't have anything to > do with incorporating things that cannot be licensed under the GPL. It > just means that those major components (and only those major > components) don't have to be licensed under the GPL in order for the > binary to be distributed. Erm... you mean, without this exception compiler itself must be placed under GPL? IMHO it clearly talks about _parts_ of major OS components (say, libraries) which can be incorporated into the binary without being under GPL. In any case the argument was to show that Section 3 is useful even if Section 2 permits distribution of binaries. Then I found a flaw in it. And after that I found that it was already described ;-( in http://lists.debian.org/debian-legal/2002/debian-legal-200212/msg00194.html by Richard Braakman: The exception in the definition of "source code" only relaxes part of the additional requirement to accompany it with source code; it doesn't help if you are unable to distribute "the Program in executable form" "under the terms of Sections 1 and 2" in the first place. Sasha
