[sldev] Re: [PROTOCOL] Protocol Documentation

[Taran Rampersad]

Zha Ewry wrote:
> This was the point I was on at office hours yesterday. For better, or 
> worse, GPL is an impediment. It is fine for people to say "GPL doesn't 
> stop you from looking at the code." On a personal level, I tend to 
> understand, and maybe even agree with that premise. On a pragmatic 
> level, and having dealt with IP lawyers, on a regular basis for a long 
> time, the actual. real world, non idealistic effect of the GPL has 
> been exactly as Sean describes. Lawyers raise red flags. People ask 
> the question "Where is the line between what is safe to look at and 
> what is not safe to look at." Pretty soon, the answer is "Just don't 
> look." I won't argue about whether that position is legally necessary, 
> or sane, or useful. But, I will observe, it is the position a *LOT* of 
> people take.
Completely ducking the implicit Holy War, I will say this: Looking at 
GPL'd code doesn't really mean anything *unless* you copy the code or 
you try to patent a process which the code works with. The GPL is not an 
impediment in any other way; Copyright is fuzzy in areas of code but it 
is safe to say that there is more than one way to skin a cat. It didn't 
work very well for SCO, which seems to be the boilerplate of this 
discussion.

Seeing how a GPL piece of code works and replicating it on one's own is 
not likely to be a copyright violation, or abuse of the GPL itself. The 
trouble is with demonstrating to LAWYERS and COURTS that you didn't 
steal the code, and really every possible software license has the same 
problem. It isn't about the software license in this regard, it *is* 
about how IP is handled.

Of course, I'm not a lawyer. Software developers shouldn't need to be. 
If the GPL is to be damned in this instance, then put Copyright Law on 
trial. You'll be in good company.

-- 
Taran Rampersad
Presently in: Piarco International Airport, Trinidad and Tobago
cnd at knowprose.com

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