Re: PATCH: cdrecord: avoiding scsi device numbering for ide devices

[Alan Cox <alan@lxorguk.ukuu.org.uk>]

On Iau, 2004-08-19 at 13:42, Joerg Schilling wrote:
> A program is an artwork (this is what the European Union did write into laws).

It's a "literary work". Not sure if the Germans call it something
different ansd "artwork" is a translation. Artwork means something
different in English (painting, picture, drawing).

> Even though you may get the permission to modify an artwork, you will not get 
> the permission to create bad carricatures and call them just "modified 
> versions".

The GPL gives modification rights explicitly and doesn't say "except
ones I don't like". The GPL addresses this issue in a different manner

   a) You must cause the modified files to carry prominent notices
    stating that you changed the files and the date of any change.

Any SuSE (or Red Hat or other) modifications should thus clearly state
they are modified. If people are not marking the files as modified and
you want them to you'd have a legitimate rant.

Secondly I think you would find it hard to argue that the SuSE one is a
bad caricature given existing user interface knowledge, or that it
harmed your reputation given your behaviour in the past.

Fortunately free software has a mechanism for bypassing problems as
XFree86 4.4 demonstrated so elegantly.