GPL - possible violation - what should I do?

[Rui Miguel Silva Seabra]

On Wed, 2002-03-20 at 13:46, Claus Färber wrote:
> MJ Ray <markj at cloaked.freeserve.co.uk> schrieb/wrote:
> > =?ISO-8859-1?Q?Claus_F=E4rber?= <list-fsf-eu-discussion at faerber.muc.de> wrote:
> >> Even an include() statement does not make the plug-in in the form
> >> it is _distributed_ in a dereived work.
> > Hrm.  The program cannot function independently and modifies the original at
> > run-time.
> Does it? Or does it just _use_ it?

There is no difference. It can modify the behaviour because it is
linking with it.

> What matters is wheter you are doing something that requires the
> permission of the author. In EU member states, this is making any
> copy, even temporary copies.

With GPL'ed software you have the permission of the author if you
respect the conditions the software is released under.

I do suggest changing that web software's license from GPL to OAGPL.

AFFERO GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE
   http://www.affero.org/oagpl.html

This license is an attempt at solving issues with web apps.

> Although you might be distributing code that cannot function
> independently, you are not copying the original code, so you don't
> need the permission of its author.

> Please also note that the EU Copyright Directive for Computer  
> Programmes also includes a statement that even allows reverse- 
> engineering to make other software interoperable. So a licence  
> clause that disallows (proprietary) interoperable software should  
> be void in most member states.

This is not interoperability.
Communicating with a remote machine (C2S ou P2P) involves
interoperability. Linking with some software is including at runtime
that code in the program, so it is a derived work.

Hugs, rui

-- 
+ No matter how much you do, you never do enough -- unknown
+ Whatever you do will be insignificant,
| but it is very important that you do it -- Ghandi
+ So let's do it...?
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