Effect of the MySQL FLOSS License Exception?

[Zak Greant]

On Jun 16, 2004, at 22:43, John Cowan wrote:
> No Spam scripsit:
>> Gill decides to make all of Abcess BSD licensed and incorporates
>> MySQL code in it. The Abcess code is reasonably independent from the
>> MySQL code but they are definitely intermingled, linked together in
>> an executable. He merrily releases Abcess (but keeps the source code
>> private which he is allowed to) which squashes every other database
>> and he goes on to become a zillionaire, while MySQL goes broke.
>
> IIRC it's only the client-side code which has the FLOSS exception.
> The actual database engine is purely GPL.  So at most GWB (hmm,
> sounds familiar) can only provide excellent client tools for MySQL,
> which redounds to the benefit of MySQL AB.

Actually, v0.2 of the exception will apply to both client and server.

My personal opinion is that, given the multifarious ways for a 
sufficiently motivated large organization to crush us like the uppity 
bugs that we are, we should not lose too much sleep worrying about that 
particular possible vulnerability. :)

Cheers!
--zak

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