Re: Why is Nvidia given GPL'd code to use in closed source drivers?

David Lang
2003-01-02T01:25:22Z

On Thu, 2 Jan 2003, Paul Jakma wrote:

> On Wed, 1 Jan 2003, David Lang wrote:
>
> > well libc uses the kernel headers and basicly all userspace programs
> > use libc so that makes oracle a derivitive work of the kernel??????
>
> libc neednt neccessarily use the kernel headers, it needs to use only
> headers that are compatible. Also, though it might use kernel headers,
> the headers it provides for other programmes to be compiled against it
> are not kernel headers.
>
> further, the kernel's licence explicitely exempts the 'normal system
> calls', and kernel headers describing these can quite arguably be
> considered to fall within this exemption.

this is exactly the reasoning that nvidia uses to justify their use of the
headers.

you can't have it both ways.

David Lang

> > luckly that's not how things actually work.
>
> unfortunately, its not at all clear.
>
> > David Lang
>
> regards,
> --
> Paul Jakma Sys Admin Alphyra
> paulj@alphyra.ie
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>