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Re: GPL and other licences


From: Isaac
Subject: Re: GPL and other licences
Date: Tue, 31 Jan 2006 19:32:31 -0600
User-agent: slrn/0.9.7.4 (Linux)

On Tue, 31 Jan 2006 17:52:32 +0100, Alfred M. Szmidt <ams@gnu.org> wrote:
>    To clarify it a bit: providing source code is not the question
>    here. I just want to know if it is legal to use the differently
>    licensed software in such manner, namely: personal/internal use
>    eventhough the licences exclude eachother
> 
> This boils down to: Can you break the law at home?  Of course you
> can't.  So the same applies to the GPL.  Since you cannot mix two
> incompatible licenses legally, then you cannot do this in the privacy
> of your own internal use.  It would in the end still be a violation of
> copyright law.

No it does not quite boil down to that.  What it boils down to is whether
the GPL grants permission to so mix the software at home as long as
you do not distribute the combination.

Looking at the GPL, it seems to me that modifying GPL software and not 
distributing it merely requires providing some notices in the software.  
Unless the non GPLed software has some usage restriction that prevents you 
modifying or combining the other code with GPL software, I believe that the 
GPL allows you to combine or modify as you like on your own system for 
your own use.  In fact, you could use the combination internally within a
single business organization as doing so does not constitute distribution.

No significant GPL restriction kicks in until you try to distribute your
combination.

Isaac


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