From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 From: DJ Delorie To: mh@mike.franken.de Cc: cygwin@sourceware.cygnus.com Subject: Re: [ANN] Cygwin DEV survey Date: Sun, 07 Mar 1999 12:53:00 -0000 Message-id: <199903072053.PAA14157@envy.delorie.com> In-reply-to: < 7COu0ETppfB@mike.franken.de > (mh@mike.franken.de) References: <7COu0ETppfB@mike.franken.de> <7COu0ETppfB@mike.franken.de> X-SW-Source: 1999-03/msg00183.html > >Warning: I've not seen full sources on ftp.franken.de, which is a > >violation of the GPL. You'll have to get the sources those packages > > Really? I thought, a pointer to the location of the sources would be > sufficient!?! The GNU GPL version 2 requires that all the sources needed to build a given binary be made available via the same means as the binary. For FTP/WWW access, this means on the same site (I asked RMS once). The reasons are: * The site where you got the sources may not be reachable by someone who downloads the binaries from your site. * The sources may be removed from the original site, leaving your binaries in violation of the GPL. This happens often when software is upgraded and the old versions are removed. RMS has hinted that GPL 3 may allow for ftp/www delivery of sources when the binary is distributed via hard media, but the ftp/www site must still be controlled by the distributor to ensure that the sources remain available for the minimum required time (three years). > Besides that IMHO you have to provide the sources *on* *request*! Not quite. You have to provide a *written* offer to provide the sources. You can't do that via ftp/www, so that option isn't available to ftp/www binary distributions. The only way to satisfy the GPL when you use ftp/www is to put the sources with the binaries so that the user can download them both at the same time. > For many of the packages there are in fact also source packages in > the same directory. This is good. > There are no sources on ftp.franken.de for packages, where the > orginal source package has been used without modifications. Irrelevent. The GPL requires that *you* are responsible for distributing the sources. You can't rely on someone else to distribute the sources unless they agree be held responsible, and even then you'd need to do the offer in writing. > In this case there is only a pointer to a location, where you can > get the sources. What happens if those sources go away? You immediately violate the GPL if/when that happens. > If not, please tell me, what I have to do to fullfill the GPL! There was > no intention to violate it. Simple. Each tar/zip containing binaries must have a corresponding tar/zip of the sources, at the same site. This is what djgpp does, this is what you should do. If you ever remove the package, you remove both the source and binary at the same time. When you distribute via ftp/www, the three year offer doesn't count - the user should download both the sources and binaries at the same time if they want them. They aren't required to take the sources, but you are required to make them available whenever the binaries are available. -- Want to unsubscribe from this list? Send a message to cygwin-unsubscribe@sourceware.cygnus.com From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 From: DJ Delorie To: mh@mike.franken.de Cc: cygwin@sourceware.cygnus.com Subject: Re: [ANN] Cygwin DEV survey Date: Wed, 31 Mar 1999 19:45:00 -0000 Message-ID: <199903072053.PAA14157@envy.delorie.com> References: <7COu0ETppfB@mike.franken.de> X-SW-Source: 1999-03n/msg00183.html Message-ID: <19990331194500.Xu3yrDiQ4bkPoa1YsxO8MUnc6DpygvXbjjQuZpnXDHs@z> > >Warning: I've not seen full sources on ftp.franken.de, which is a > >violation of the GPL. You'll have to get the sources those packages > > Really? I thought, a pointer to the location of the sources would be > sufficient!?! The GNU GPL version 2 requires that all the sources needed to build a given binary be made available via the same means as the binary. For FTP/WWW access, this means on the same site (I asked RMS once). The reasons are: * The site where you got the sources may not be reachable by someone who downloads the binaries from your site. * The sources may be removed from the original site, leaving your binaries in violation of the GPL. This happens often when software is upgraded and the old versions are removed. RMS has hinted that GPL 3 may allow for ftp/www delivery of sources when the binary is distributed via hard media, but the ftp/www site must still be controlled by the distributor to ensure that the sources remain available for the minimum required time (three years). > Besides that IMHO you have to provide the sources *on* *request*! Not quite. You have to provide a *written* offer to provide the sources. You can't do that via ftp/www, so that option isn't available to ftp/www binary distributions. The only way to satisfy the GPL when you use ftp/www is to put the sources with the binaries so that the user can download them both at the same time. > For many of the packages there are in fact also source packages in > the same directory. This is good. > There are no sources on ftp.franken.de for packages, where the > orginal source package has been used without modifications. Irrelevent. The GPL requires that *you* are responsible for distributing the sources. You can't rely on someone else to distribute the sources unless they agree be held responsible, and even then you'd need to do the offer in writing. > In this case there is only a pointer to a location, where you can > get the sources. What happens if those sources go away? You immediately violate the GPL if/when that happens. > If not, please tell me, what I have to do to fullfill the GPL! There was > no intention to violate it. Simple. Each tar/zip containing binaries must have a corresponding tar/zip of the sources, at the same site. This is what djgpp does, this is what you should do. If you ever remove the package, you remove both the source and binary at the same time. When you distribute via ftp/www, the three year offer doesn't count - the user should download both the sources and binaries at the same time if they want them. They aren't required to take the sources, but you are required to make them available whenever the binaries are available. -- Want to unsubscribe from this list? Send a message to cygwin-unsubscribe@sourceware.cygnus.com