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Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again
From: |
Tom Lord |
Subject: |
Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again |
Date: |
Mon, 22 Mar 2004 11:33:18 -0800 (PST) |
> From: Aaron Bentley <address@hidden>
> No matter how much we trust the FSF, later versions of the GPL may have
> flaws that we consider unacceptable, whether by accident or
> intent.
They may.
> See the current XFree86 fiasco for an example of a license
> update that many consider a disimprovement.
I suspect that the FSF is not as free to screw up in such ways.
> If you care about how your work is used, it
> is far smarter to license your work under a real, existing license.
Not necessarily.
The FSF _may_ screw up v3. That event has probability P and a "cost"
(of some sort) PC.
Restricting your code to v2-only in a world shifting to v3 may
radically undermine the utility of your code in the future. That has
probability Q and a "cost" of QC.
The only way to make a decision here is make a guess about which is
true:
P * PC == Q * QC
P * PC > Q * QC
P * PC < Q * QC
My opinion?
I don't see any way at all that V3 can be V2-compatible. So, I
simplify my analysis by assuming that Q is 1. I'm left asking
P * PC == QC
P * PC > QC
P * PC < QC
I very much like my code to be re-usable now and in the future.
Therefore, I think QC is pretty high:
P * PC == BIG
P * PC > BIG
P * PC < BIG
The FSF has a good track record managing the GPL. On the other hand,
when they pointed to the Affero GPL as a candidate I did get worried
--- AGPL seems like a big screw-up to me. So, flip a coin:
.5 * PC == BIG
.5 * PC > BIG
.5 * PC < BIG
Is PC "VERYBIG?" I doubt it. The FSF is socially bound by the
history of the GPL and the rhetoric around it and by it's legal status
as a public-interest NPO. I'd cap PC as "less than or equal to BIG".
So, the betting money is on:
.5 * LEBIG < BIG
and you should use "v2+".
-t
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again, (continued)
Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again, Adrian Irving-Beer, 2004/03/22
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again, Mikhael Goikhman, 2004/03/22
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again, Aaron Bentley, 2004/03/22
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again, Adrian Irving-Beer, 2004/03/22
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again, Mikhael Goikhman, 2004/03/22
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again, Aaron Bentley, 2004/03/22
Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again, Matthieu Moy, 2004/03/22
Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again, Adrian Irving-Beer, 2004/03/29
Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again,
Tom Lord <=
[Gnu-arch-users] Re: Front page to wiki now modifiable again, Samuel Tardieu, 2004/03/22
Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Re: Front page to wiki now modifiable again, Tom Lord, 2004/03/22
Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Re: Front page to wiki now modifiable again, Matthieu Moy, 2004/03/22
Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Re: Front page to wiki now modifiable again, Tom Lord, 2004/03/22
Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again, James Blackwell, 2004/03/22
Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again, Tom Lord, 2004/03/22
Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again, Robin Green, 2004/03/22
Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again, David Allouche, 2004/03/23
Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again, Aaron Bentley, 2004/03/22
Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Front page to wiki now modifiable again, Andrew Suffield, 2004/03/23