From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Path: main.gmane.org!not-for-mail From: storm@cua.dk (Kim F. Storm) Newsgroups: gmane.emacs.devel Subject: Re: Lawyer's evaluation Date: 24 Sep 2003 11:10:52 +0200 Sender: emacs-devel-bounces+emacs-devel=quimby.gnus.org@gnu.org Message-ID: References: <871xud8z7j.fsf@tc-1-100.kawasaki.gol.ne.jp> <87vfro7uga.fsf@tleepslib.sk.tsukuba.ac.jp> NNTP-Posting-Host: deer.gmane.org Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii X-Trace: sea.gmane.org 1064394730 28500 80.91.224.253 (24 Sep 2003 09:12:10 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@sea.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Wed, 24 Sep 2003 09:12:10 +0000 (UTC) Cc: "Stephen J. Turnbull" , emacs-devel@gnu.org Original-X-From: emacs-devel-bounces+emacs-devel=quimby.gnus.org@gnu.org Wed Sep 24 11:12:08 2003 Return-path: Original-Received: from quimby.gnus.org ([80.91.224.244]) by deer.gmane.org with esmtp (Exim 3.35 #1 (Debian)) id 1A25gu-0001jx-00 for ; Wed, 24 Sep 2003 11:12:08 +0200 Original-Received: from monty-python.gnu.org ([199.232.76.173]) by quimby.gnus.org with esmtp (Exim 3.35 #1 (Debian)) id 1A25nY-0003vG-00 for ; Wed, 24 Sep 2003 11:19:00 +0200 Original-Received: from localhost ([127.0.0.1] helo=monty-python.gnu.org) by monty-python.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.22) id 1A25fx-0008In-Lv for emacs-devel@quimby.gnus.org; Wed, 24 Sep 2003 05:11:09 -0400 Original-Received: from list by monty-python.gnu.org with tmda-scanned (Exim 4.22) id 1A25ft-0008HE-3q for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Wed, 24 Sep 2003 05:11:05 -0400 Original-Received: from mail by monty-python.gnu.org with spam-scanned (Exim 4.22) id 1A25fq-0008Gk-4l for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Wed, 24 Sep 2003 05:11:02 -0400 Original-Received: from [212.88.64.25] (helo=mail-relay.sonofon.dk) by monty-python.gnu.org with smtp (Exim 4.22) id 1A25fp-0008GG-HL for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Wed, 24 Sep 2003 05:11:01 -0400 Original-Received: (qmail 7184 invoked from network); 24 Sep 2003 09:11:00 -0000 Original-Received: from unknown (HELO kfs-l.imdomain.dk.cua.dk) (213.83.150.2) by 0 with SMTP; 24 Sep 2003 09:11:00 -0000 Original-To: Miles Bader In-Reply-To: Original-Lines: 101 User-Agent: Gnus/5.09 (Gnus v5.9.0) Emacs/21.3.50 X-BeenThere: emacs-devel@gnu.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.2 Precedence: list List-Id: Emacs development discussions. List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Errors-To: emacs-devel-bounces+emacs-devel=quimby.gnus.org@gnu.org Xref: main.gmane.org gmane.emacs.devel:16593 X-Report-Spam: http://spam.gmane.org/gmane.emacs.devel:16593 Miles Bader writes: > "Stephen J. Turnbull" writes: > > > > "The following General Public License states and protects additional > > rights, the rights that constitute true software freedom, that you > > possess." > > > > OR > > > > "The following General Public License states and protects additional > > rights, the rights that make GNU Emacs truly free software, that you > > possess." > > No, those miss the point entirely. > > `Emacs is Free Software' Indeed! What about combining things like this: ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Emacs is Free Software, developed by the GNU project, and protected by the Free Software Foundation. Emacs is released under the General Public License (GPL) which states and protects additional rights that you possess, the rights that constitute true software freedom and ensure that GNU Emacs is, and always will be, truly free software. -o-O-o- "Free" means that all users have the freedom to study, share, change and improve Emacs. In fact, you may freely use and modify Emacs for your own purposes without knowing any of the details of the GPL. However, once you distribute your changes to others, you should be aware that the conditions and rights in the GPL will extend to cover your changes as well, so before doing so, you are strongly advised to read the license. Also, if you write and distribute an extension to Emacs in Emacs Lisp (the extension language used by Emacs), that extension will be covered by the GPL too, as running such an extension requires "linking" with Emacs. -o-O-o- Once Emacs is started, you can read the General Public License by typing C-h C-c, or via the "Copying Conditions" item on the Help menu. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [I appreciate software freedom] [I don't, but let me use Emacs anyway] If a user can manage to read the first two paragraphs, they might be tempted to read more. If they don't read the next two paragraphs, at least they cannot claim that they weren't warned :-) Of course, if they don't care to read anything at all, there's nothing we can do anyway to educate them :-( Is there a better wording than "protected by" in the first paragraph? I remember there was some discussion on the subject of the fourth paragraph (distributing proprietary Emacs Lisp packages) some time ago. I don't see that this is stated very clearly in the GPL, so I think it's a good thing to mention it "up front". The wording could be refined of course. > > I.e. establish the term `Free Software' as a category. Names are > important. Muttering on about `true software freedom' and `truly free > software' seems to simply try and avoid doing this (not to mention > risking flamewars from BSD fans :-). > > -Miles > -- > `Cars give people wonderful freedom and increase their opportunities. > But they also destroy the environment, to an extent so drastic that > they kill all social life' (from _A Pattern Language_) > > > _______________________________________________ > Emacs-devel mailing list > Emacs-devel@gnu.org > http://mail.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/emacs-devel > > -- Kim F. Storm http://www.cua.dk