Can Java code EVER be GPLd, at all?

[Angelo Schneider]

Hi Alex,

I removed some more or less academic stuff :-)


[...]

> > > To choose an example a bit closer to home, what about shell tools? Shell
> > > tools, in my everyday usage, are small C programs of which the lion's
> > > share are GPL and some small number are under various licenses, some of
> > > them proprietary. They are the function calls of programs that I write
> > > called 'bash shell scripts'. The Bash interpreter acts as a link-loader,
> > > which takes care of loading the procedures, executing them, and
> > > delivering their results to other procedures in the pipeline that forms
> > > my computation. Not really linking you say? Excellent - I'll compile
> > > your library into little programs, and write commercial shellscripts
> > > instead of C code.
> 
> > Your argument is right and wrong :-) If my library is GPLed you will
> > take MY SOURCE
> > and derive little programs from them. If you read my license carefully,
> > you will
> > see that derived work is supposed to be published under GPL.
> > So your little programs are as well.
> 
> Clearly the little programs are GPL. The question is, what about the
> shellscripts? Bash acts as the link-loader; are my scripts forced to be
> GPL or not? And if they are I am sure I violate the license daily since
> I mix my GPL shell tools with non-gpl shell tools in little shellscripts
> which I distribute to others.
> 

In my impression the shell script is not GPL. Because you can replace
each
"little program" which is used simply by changing your PATH variable.
(or by replacing the programs)

If you want to replace a GPLed set of JAVA classes you have to follow
the
"package.subpackage.class shema".

So you have to provide a replacement with the same API and the same
classnames
and the same functionality. That is of cource a bit strange, might be a
violation
of your rights, or not.

Of cource, you are right in your seeking for clearance, I only provide
my 
impression.

In fact this questions are the main issue why I disslike the GPL.

(( Proposed solution: the person who is running a programm ( in this
case
the CORBA/DCOM server or the JAVA classes via RMI is responsibel to 
fullfill the contract/license. The user however, if he circumvents that
(browser vs. WWW server), can't be reliable for the fact that a GPLed or 
how-ever-licensed piece of code is involved.  ))

Regards,
	Angelo

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Angelo Schneider           OOAD/UML           Angelo.Schneider at xcc.de
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