BL> hope in hell of publishing code and then writing their own
 BL> copyright conditions. 

 PE> Everyone who writes a book does that. They normally say "all
 PE> rights reserved", or in the case of videos "not allowed to be
 PE> shown in cinemas" etc or for CD's "not allowed to be broadcast
 PE> on radio" etc. 

  (grin) If I wrote: "anyone can read this but Paul Edwards," it would
not stand in law. You can write any conditions you like, but the only
ones that stand are the legal ones. I'd like to write: "Any big busty
blondes who read this have to make violent love with me." I don't think 
it'd work, though... it might be worth a try.

 BL> The only way to do that legally is with a licence, a two-way
 BL> thing like a contract...

 PE> I don't sign a contract when I buy a CD either.

  You *bought* the CD... that's the contract. Or didn't you realise
that?

 PE> What they are actually saying is that YOU are not allowed to
 PE> use THEIR code unless you're willing to "bare your arse". If
 PE> you don't like that, no-one is forcing you to use their code. 

 PE> Which may be legal.

  Which I doubt is legal. I don't now, but I'd give odds.

 PE> There usually is an owner, look at any of the readme files that
 PE> come with it. E.g. Vince Periello owns Binkley.

  What I usually see is a list of people *claiming* copyright for the
*code* of various bits. If I write a book, I can claim copyright for
about one page, minimum. Anyone can use a page of my book without
infringing my copyright. If I write a poem it's a few lines, depending
on the lines and the meaning contained. Perhaps a really pithy couplet
could be copyright. But it will tell you free and for nothing, I *cannot*
copyright "if x > 1 then goto line6;"

  Copyright material has to have *content*. You can't copyright
trivia, no matter how big it is or what it says. It has to have a
unique quality about it. Derivitive crap is just worthless crap, and
that's the whole goal of gnu... to be derivative.

Regards,
Bob
 




Regards,
Bob


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