> Would it be wrong to develop software using existing GPL'ed code as a
> starting point.
> And bit by bit rewrite the code until you have rewritten all of it.
> Then releasing the final code under an BSD license?

*shrug* Personally I consider that a derivative work and try to avoid
it, though practically if your rewrite is different enough nobody would
ever know.

Maybe this is the other side of the blob fight; we should be just as
eager to make sure there is no improperly-copied GPL (or APL or MPL
or...) code in the tree as we are to make sure there are no mysterious
hunks of binary code (why exactly these issues always seem to come to a
head about wireless drivers as opposed to other parts of the tree is
beyond me -- Intel never requires its sound or ethernet controllers to
have non-freely-redistributable firmware).

IMO this is a vindication of the principle that being a jerk doesn't
necessarily make you wrong: Michael should have handled this differently
(especially given the state of the driver at the time), but he does have
a responsibility to protect his license. It seems to be a big concern to
him that the hardware vendor not be able to use his software, so the GPL
is the correct license for his work. I have trouble imagining a
situation where I wouldn't want a hardware vendor to use my code if it
worked better, but he's the author so it's his decision to make.

Weldon

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