[ptx] hugin dependancies & sources for panorama-tools-nonfree

[Marko Mäkelä]

On Wed, Jan 05, 2005 at 05:42:34PM -0800, David Grant wrote:

David,

I think that one minor point in your otherwise excellent post requires some
clarification.

> >If it appears alongside other programs which
> >have been distributed under the GPL? 
> >
> "Alongside" doesn't make something GPL AFAIK. You can use a GPL library, 
> in a closed-source commericial piece of software AFAIK.

Yes, you can use GPL code in a closed-source piece of software, but you have
no right to distribute the result (without obtaining a license other than
the GPL from the copyright holders).  I believe that you could distribute the
software in such a way that the user has to patch or link it together.

LGPL is more allowing in this respect: LGPL code can be linked against a
closed-source piece of software, but I believe you will have to provide
sources for the LGPL code, and a means to relink the piece of software
against modified versions of the LGPL code.

> It's fine to ask but I think peopoe should have an open mind and think 
> that perhaps maybe he doesn't have to release it and that perhaps he's 
> done nothing wrong (perhaps he's acted vaguely or ambiguously, but 
> perhaps nothing wrong). So ask away, fine, but don't "demand" it from 
> him, unless you are certain of the law (which I am not)

There's a similar situation with the PTLens calibration files.  I'd be
interested in helping to write a PTLens-like plugin for the GIMP, but
unfortunately the maintainer of the PTLens coefficient database is not
willing to license it under any GPL compatible license.  In fact, he
seems reluctant to name any distribution conditions.  So, if his server
becomes unavailable or he stops distributing the coefficient database,
nobody will be able to distribute it.

It may be that databases are not protected under copyright in all countries.
In Finland they are.  But it could also be that the coefficient database is
not a "work" in the sense of the copyright law.  I'm not an expert.  Anyway,
I don't want to create a piece of software that depends on a non-free
component, especially if there's only one provider of that component.

	Marko Mäkelä
	http://www.funet.fi/~msmakela/