Re: [PATCH] Fix warning in fs/xfs.c

[Cesare Leonardi <celeonar@ngi.it>]

Marco Gerards wrote:
> Pavel Roskin <proski@gnu.org> writes:
> 
>> On Thu, 2008-07-03 at 20:21 +0200, Marco Gerards wrote:
>>> Pavel Roskin <proski@gnu.org> writes:
>>>
>>>> ChangeLog:
>>>> 	* fs/xfs.c (struct grub_xfs_dir_header): Use names similar to
>>>> 	those in Linux XFS code.  Provide a way to access 64-bit parent
>>>> 	inode.
>>>> 	(grub_xfs_iterate_dir): Use the new names.  Avoid reading past
>>>> 	the end of struct grub_xfs_dir_header.
>>> *please* do not look at Linux code or whatever *and* contribute to
>>>  GRUB.  It might cause copyright troubles I will have to deal with :-/
>> I just tried to make names similar without copying any code.  But it's a
>> useful reminder.
> 
> What I meant is that even *looking* at code might cause problems.
> People can claim you have stolen their ideas.  That would essentially
> mean the same as copying code.  I just want to avoid such problems at
> beforehand.

But one of the best aspect of the free software is exactly that you 
could look inside other's code and reuse it and its ideas.
Would be a problem if you look the source of a program covered by NDA, 
or by some other closed license, but with Linux kernel?? If you couldn't 
look inside a GPL2 project then it would be a loss of the free software 
and the GPL3. And you have to reinvent something that others has already 
done well...

Furthermore, AFAIK, the problem of protecting code implementation is 
covered by copyright, while protecting ideas is a patent job. Now, Linux 
is GPL2 and it's not encumbered by patents, so what's the problem?

Regards.

Cesare.