[Fedora-legal-list] Linux firmware

[Alexandre Oliva]

On Apr 29, 2009, "Tom \"spot\" Callaway" <tcallawa at redhat.com> wrote:

> My psychic powers not withstanding, you really shouldn't make
> assumptions.

As I wrote, I made them based on your opinions.  I honestly didn't
expect you to go about making strong assertions without having the
faintest clue as to what you were discussing.

> I was honestly under the impression you were pitching a hypothetical
> scenario,

Not enough of a clue that I wrote:

  What if one piece of firmware is licensed under:

(note the present tense *is*, not *was*)

  and another piece of code, copyrighted by the same party, says:

  Which of the two should be taken out so that the other can be
  redistributable?  Perhaps the latter, given that it's a driver under a
  license that's not even compatible with GPLv2?

And then, why would I add “[...]” to indicate omission of portions from
a hypothetical license?

> As to the upstream Linux kernel having firmware, yes, it does.

What I don't get is why you keep returning to this point.

The issue is not about firmware.

There are two issues here:

1. combining GPLed Linux code with *driver* (!= firmware) code derived
from GPLed code that adds incompatible restrictions => GPL violation,
enforceable by *any* Linux copyright holder

2. combining the aforementioned code with code that is explicitly
excluded by the GPL-incompatible restriction => copyright infringement
enforceable by the very party who set the trap


While you keep focusing on the firmware, these two points that have to
do with a driver, not with firmware, fly way over the top of your head.

It is sad that Linux upstream developers are so sloppy with licenses,
but unfortunately not all of the problems they bring about revolve
around firmware.  I honestly wish they weren't so sloppy, it would make
for far less legal risk for all of us.

Please take your head out of the sand.  If you are the party responsible
for looking after this kind of legal problem in Fedora, it's not
responsible to declare you're done with this issue just because you
don't like another unrelated issue I brought up before, and you pretend
it's the same.

Now, you don't have to report anything back to the list or to myself,
but please don't fail to do your job just because you can't stand me.
It's an important job, and the Fedora community counts on you to do it.

Thanks,

-- 
Alexandre Oliva, freedom fighter    http://FSFLA.org/~lxoliva/
You must be the change you wish to see in the world. -- Gandhi
Be Free! -- http://FSFLA.org/   FSF Latin America board member
Free Software Evangelist      Red Hat Brazil Compiler Engineer