From owner-freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Sun Feb 28 11:10:39 2010 Return-Path: Delivered-To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.freebsd.org (mx1.freebsd.org [IPv6:2001:4f8:fff6::34]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 9ECC91065670 for ; Sun, 28 Feb 2010 11:10:39 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from m.seaman@infracaninophile.co.uk) Received: from smtp.infracaninophile.co.uk (gate6.infracaninophile.co.uk [IPv6:2001:8b0:151:1::1]) by mx1.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 284CA8FC1B for ; Sun, 28 Feb 2010 11:10:38 +0000 (UTC) Received: from seedling.black-earth.co.uk (seedling.black-earth.co.uk [81.187.76.163]) (authenticated bits=0) by smtp.infracaninophile.co.uk (8.14.4/8.14.4) with ESMTP id o1SBAXWX013604 (version=TLSv1/SSLv3 cipher=DHE-RSA-CAMELLIA256-SHA bits=256 verify=NO) for ; Sun, 28 Feb 2010 11:10:33 GMT (envelope-from m.seaman@infracaninophile.co.uk) Message-ID: <4B8A4F29.4070106@infracaninophile.co.uk> Date: Sun, 28 Feb 2010 11:10:33 +0000 From: Matthew Seaman Organization: Infracaninophile User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; U; Intel Mac OS X 10.6; en-GB; rv:1.9.1.8) Gecko/20100216 Thunderbird/3.0.2 MIME-Version: 1.0 To: freebsd-questions References: <2e8230611002261650oe500cb9qa9b52336e4e717bf@mail.gmail.com> <4B88D0BB.201@infracaninophile.co.uk> <20100228015627.GA5609@guilt.hydra> In-Reply-To: <20100228015627.GA5609@guilt.hydra> X-Enigmail-Version: 1.0.1 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Virus-Scanned: clamav-milter 0.95.3 at happy-idiot-talk.infracaninophile.co.uk X-Virus-Status: Clean X-Spam-Status: No, score=-1.1 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_00,DKIM_ADSP_ALL, SPF_FAIL autolearn=no version=3.3.0 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.3.0 (2010-01-18) on happy-idiot-talk.infracaninophile.co.uk Subject: Re: selling freebsd cd for profit X-BeenThere: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: User questions List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Sun, 28 Feb 2010 11:10:39 -0000 -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 On 28/02/2010 01:56:27, Chad Perrin wrote: > Actually, once your project becomes a commercial enterprise, the GPL > stops allowing reference to upstream sources to suit the requirements of > code redistribution. If you sell GPLed software, you have to provide the > sources yourself -- and, if you offer the *option* of access to the > sources without actually ensuring that everybody gets a copy of the > sources right away, you have to maintain sources for each distributed > version for a number of years after the last such distribution. I'm not > saying you *don't* have to maintain sources that long after the fact if > you make sure everybody gets a copy right away; I haven't read the text > of the GPL in detail in a while, and don't recall that specific detail. Hmmm... I think the concept of 'modification' is pretty important here. If you're just redistributing software without modifying it, you've fulfilled the intent of the GPL simply by giving a link to a well-known download site. After all, what's the difference between that, and your outsourcing a download facility to a service provider like, say, SourceForge? If you're distributing /modified/ GPL'd code, then yes, you have to make your modifications available for download. Ideally that would be by donating them back to the core project, but if they aren't acceptable for whatever reason, then you do have to slap them on a web/ftp site somewhere. > Note that I'm not a lawyer, and this does not constitute legal advice. > My only direct legal advice is to seek legal advice from a professional. It's a sad world where we have to keep restating the obvious in disclaimers: anyone believing the advice they get from a bunch of semi-anonymous people they only know from a mailing list deserves everything they get[*]. Whatever happened to caveat emptor? Cheers, Matthew [*] Generally that would be a better result than from much paid-for support... - -- Dr Matthew J Seaman MA, D.Phil. 7 Priory Courtyard Flat 3 PGP: http://www.infracaninophile.co.uk/pgpkey Ramsgate Kent, CT11 9PW -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG/MacGPG2 v2.0.14 (Darwin) Comment: Using GnuPG with Mozilla - http://enigmail.mozdev.org/ iEYEARECAAYFAkuKTykACgkQ8Mjk52CukIzKhwCgglHBXzABf7W2AZp2S+5TT/UK jlIAn3fmByk119lL8d8pauwUWGldneKR =U73K -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----