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From: Jason Wohlgemuth <jswkernel@triad.rr.com>
To: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org
Subject: GPL Question
Date: Fri, 27 Oct 2000 12:36:30 -0400	[thread overview]
Message-ID: <39F9AF0E.70406@triad.rr.com> (raw)

Consider this:

A subsystem that is statically built into the Linux Kernel is modified 
to allow the registration of a structure containing function pointers.

The function pointers corrolate to a set of functions within that subsystem.
If the new structure of pointers has been registered, the original 
functions will call the new functions in the structure passing all 
arguments and returning the return value of the new function.

With this said, if no structure has been registered, then no 
functionality is degraded within the kernel.  Only the loss of some cpu 
time to check the pointers at the top of the old functions.

Now, if a module is loaded that registers a set of functions that have 
increased functionality compared to the original functions, if that 
modules is not based off GPL'd code, must the source code of that module 
be released under the GPL?

Thanks in advance,
Jason Wohlgemuth

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             reply	other threads:[~2000-10-27 16:37 UTC|newest]

Thread overview: 18+ messages / expand[flat|nested]  mbox.gz  Atom feed  top
2000-10-27 16:36 Jason Wohlgemuth [this message]
2000-10-27 16:31 ` GPL Question David Weis
2000-10-27 17:21   ` Alan Cox
2000-10-27 17:26     ` Matthew Dharm
2000-10-27 17:56       ` Somewhat different " Christopher Friesen
2000-10-27 18:06         ` Rik van Riel
2000-10-27 20:49           ` Alan Cox
2000-10-27 17:16 ` Mark Salisbury
2000-10-27 17:23 ` Alan Cox
2000-10-27 18:53 ` David Schwartz
2000-10-27 18:56   ` Rik van Riel
2000-10-27 20:53     ` Alan Cox
2000-10-27 19:17   ` James Sutherland
2000-10-27 21:08     ` Brian F. G. Bidulock
2000-10-27 20:52   ` Alan Cox
2000-10-30 12:27     ` Helge Hafting
  -- strict thread matches above, loose matches on Subject: below --
2004-06-28 22:13 GPL question ca_tex-kernel
2004-06-29 11:01 ` David Weinehall

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