Messages in this thread | | | From | "David Schwartz" <> | Subject | RE: The GPL: No shelter for the Linux kernel? | Date | Fri, 22 Sep 2006 17:11:52 -0700 |
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> On Fri, 22 Sep 2006, David Schwartz wrote:
> > This is probably going to be controversial, but Linus should seriously > > consider adding a clause that those who contribute to the > > kernel from now on > > consent to allow him to modify the license on their current > > contributions > > and all past contributions, amending the Linux kernel license as > > appropriate. This would at least begin to reduce this problem > > over the next > > few years, leaving fewer and fewer people with claim to less > > and less code > > who would have legal standing to object.
> It's the last thing I'd ever want to do, for all the same reasons the > kernel doesn't have the "or later versions" language wrt licenses.
> I don't actually want people to need to trust anybody - and that > very much includes me - implicitly.
> I think people can generally trust me, but they can trust me exactly > because they know they don't _have_ to.
Yeah, I see your point. However, what happens if three years from now, there is some reason that the Linux kernel license really does need to be changed to fix a serious problem? We're basically just screwed.
While it is true that people don't have to trust you now. They do have to trust/hope that there won't come a future time when some license problem or change in law significantly impairs their ability to use Linux.
I can think of procedural safeguards against the "Linus sells out" or "Linus goes insane" potential problems, but I don't have a perfect solution. I'm not even sure I have a good one, other than hoping there never is such a problem and/or that there's some good way to deal with one should one arise.
Suppose hypothetically GPLv3 had been really, really good and there was a general consensus that it would provide siginficant benefits if it could be applied to Linux. It might be nice to be able to apply it.
DS
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