On 20 Jun 2001 18:27:08 +0200, Erik Enge wrote:
On 20 Jun 2001, Federico Di Gregorio wrote:
i am sure that the QPL and the ZPL are completely incompatible but nobody cares because nobody really thinks that one is better than the other...
I might be misunderstanding here, if that's the case I appologies.
no, you're quite right. but we have two different problems here: 1/ your problem 2/ wheter a gpl zope product can exists first some notes on 2. i don't know if python code loading other python code counts as "linking" but if that is the case, no gpl zope product can exists (same problem with python, but there is at least one gpl-compatible release of python around.) for example, that's why psycopg, for example, is released under a double license. you can use the gpl if your product is gpl'ed or the zpl when using zpsycopgda in zope (and only then: you can include psycopg in your code without respecting the gpl *only* when using zope and zpsycopgda.) to your problem now...
Just to clarify, for us at Thingamy (and I'm quite sure this is the real case behind the license issues) it comes down to business-issues. I do very much care whether or not I can use a GPL Zope Python Product with my ZPL/TPL Zope Python Product. If I can't, and someone tells me I need to relicense my product as GPL it would be very bad.
An example could be if I had application G, Z, P. G is a GPL'ed Zope Python Product, Z is a ZPL/TPL Zope Python Product and P is some proprietory stuff I developed for my client. Now, if the proprietory application P interacts with my Z application and Z needs to become GPL, then that would/could require the proprietary stuff I did for the client to become GPL as well.
you are quite right. but here, again, we have a lexical problem. are zope products really linked? gpl forbids liking but there is no problem, for example, in piping the data froma gpl'ed program to a proprietary one. i can only say that **if** zope products count as linked, you can't in any way use gpl code without releasing *all* the code under a gpl compatible license (P included.) anyway, is much better for you to ask the author of the gpl'ed program for an alternate license. a lot of people will be happy to allow you to use the program in a proprietary software for a little (or not so little) fee... and if you have those problems is because you think you'll make some money out of it, right? other people won't and your only option is to rewrite the product or (much better!) ask the customer to release under the gpl.
Then, I get hell. If the client has to disclose their business trade-secrets, the stuff that really makes them them, I'd be sued so hard I'd see stars for another three decades :)
i'll finish with some bad words, sorry: if the client is so worried about intellectual property and secrets why is he even thinking about free software? free software is good in a lot (in a different context i would say 'all') of cases but imposes some constraints ont your work and (unfortunately) *even* on your clients. ciao, federico -- Federico Di Gregorio MIXAD LIVE Chief of Research & Technology fog@mixadlive.com Debian GNU/Linux Developer & Italian Press Contact fog@debian.org Qu'est ce que la folie? Juste un sentiment de liberté si fort qu'on en oublie ce qui nous rattache au monde... -- J. de Loctra