Re: Dual-Licensing Linux Kernel with GPL V2 and GPL V3

Alexandre Oliva
2007-06-14T17:17:20Z

On Jun 14, 2007, Paul Mundt <lethal@linux-sh.org> wrote:

> I don't see how you can claim that the vendor is infringing on your
> freedom, _you_ made the decision to go out and buy the product knowing
> that the vendor wasn't going to go out of their way to help you hack
> the device.

But I also made this decision fully aware that the software included
in the package was published under a license that said I was entitled
to modify it. More than once I purchased a device that claimed to
have GNU/Linux software on it, only to find out that I couldn't use
the freedoms, because the distributor was infringing the license in
various ways.

> If you don't like what the vendor has done with the product, you have the
> freedom to not support the vendor, and to try and encourage people to
> follow suit.

Sure. But wouldn't it be nice if the copyright holder could also help
in this effort? It doesn't mean the copyright holder has to: s/he can
always grant an additional permission, or simply refrain from
enforcing this provision of the license.

--
Alexandre Oliva http://www.lsd.ic.unicamp.br/~oliva/
FSF Latin America Board Member http://www.fsfla.org/
Red Hat Compiler Engineer aoliva@{redhat.com, gcc.gnu.org}
Free Software Evangelist oliva@{lsd.ic.unicamp.br, gnu.org}