From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 From: Timur Tabi Date: Thu, 26 Apr 2007 15:59:48 -0500 Subject: [U-Boot-Users] Proposal for a make option to include an additional stand alone program directory In-Reply-To: <20070426204159.6B7F23525D5@atlas.denx.de> References: <20070426204159.6B7F23525D5@atlas.denx.de> Message-ID: <463112C4.50603@freescale.com> List-Id: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit To: u-boot@lists.denx.de Wolfgang Denk wrote: > In message <4631093C.7060002@freescale.com> you wrote: >> But even if the application were non-GPL, how would running it be a GPL violation? If I >> load the application into memory, and just execute it, and the application runs without >> calling U-Boot code, and then the application exits, that's not a GPL violation. > > You agree that static linking against a non-GPL library is illegal? Yes, but just merging two binaries into a new binary isn't "linking", IMHO. For there to be linking, project A must include parts of project B. Just having A make a function call to B is not linking, otherwise proprietary applications would never be able to make syscalls into the kernel. > What does static linking against a NON-GPL library mean? You combine the > U-Boot image and the library image in some way, or > load the library image into memory, > then you call a function from that library, > and just execute it, and that library function runs without > calling U-Boot code, and then the library function returns, that's ... > ...a GPL violation. Well, I'm not lawyer, and so I don't really know for sure, but I would disagree. After all, calling the library function is nothing more than loading a number into the PC register. I don't really see how that alone can be considered linking. > Running an application and calling a function is two very different > things: U-Boot works perfectly fine without this application, and is > just a helper to be able to load and atart and run it. But a binary > firmware, which is needed for U-Boot to function properly, where > U-Boot does not work correctly or with the full functionality if the > firmware is not present, is a different thing. U-Boot works just fine without this binary firmware. This particular firmware just enables the 2nd Ethernet port so that the Linux driver can load. -- Timur Tabi Linux Kernel Developer @ Freescale