[License-discuss] Interfacing two incompatible licenses?

[Thorsten Glaser]

John Whitmore dixit:

>I have written a library of code for a few of Microchip's PIC
>micro-controllers licensed under the LGPL. Microchip have libraries of
>USB code, licensed under Apache 2.0, which I'd like to use in an
>application. So I'd like my main.c file to be able to call one of my
>functions and call one of Microchip's functions. (Actually more then
>one but lets start small.)

In your specific case: the LGPL is rather lax when it comes to
being combined; all you have to do is to provide everything ELSE
from the program (your code, the Microchip libraries, etc.) in
object form (*.o/*.obj, *.a/*.lib) so recipients can link them
against a modified version of the LGPL library. The Apache 2
licence also only applies to the direct work.

So, you can use any permissive licence for your main.c and even
some copyleft-ish ones (details to be discussed).

In a more general case: if the work you create is a derivative
work of the code under incompatible licences, you’re out of luck
unless the licences themselves provide a way out (like the one
above).

bye,
//mirabilos
-- 
I believe no one can invent an algorithm. One just happens to hit upon it
when God enlightens him. Or only God invents algorithms, we merely copy them.
If you don't believe in God, just consider God as Nature if you won't deny
existence.		-- Coywolf Qi Hunt