Proprietary Linux???

Lar Kaufman lark at world.std.com
Wed Aug 9 09:22:26 EDT 1995


> This press release release about "Red Hat" makes it seem like there is
> a proprietary Linux that can not be redistributed at no charge.  I
> thought that the license conditions for using Linux code included
> making any derivative works freely redistributable.

There are packages available that are not (as a package) freely redistributable.
Someone has a package that includes Motif, which is licensed by the OSF, and
Caldera, for example, includes Visix Looking Glass, which is a proprietary
product.  These, of course, are not "derivative works" of Linux, but they 
do constitute a part of a bundled package.  I'll skip going into a detailed
discussion of what constitutes a derivative work legally, since it isn't 
necessary for a work to be derivative to bundle it in a Linux package.

-lar
 Lar Kaufman               co-author, "Running Linux"        
 Concord, Massachusetts                                "Dogs bark, but the
 1-508-371-1563                                         caravan rolls on." 
 lark at walden.com           BUSL '98                           - Andre Gide



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