GFDL 1.3

[MJ Ray]

The conclusion became more interesting than the main reply, so I'll
put that first...

So, to conclude this subthread, some writers here think that the
FDL-1.3's general approval of CC-By-SA doesn't lend FSF endorsement to
CC in general, and that the new FDL-1.3 "escape route" clause is no
worry - but are they the mainstream, or just a vociferous minority?

I think there are two interesting cases arising from FDL-1.3:-

1. any operator could now convert FDL'd manuals for software that are
held in wikis or other MMCs to CC-By-SA - I've not found any major GNU
software affected (Gnash's manual wiki is FDL 1.2 without an "or
later", for example) but it looks like the German-language
OpenOffice.org docs could be converted (the US-language ones are LGPL
already), as could Azureus manuals;

2. it narrowly fails to convert some of the free software manuals
which had been harmed by mis-application of the FDL (usually including
the Front Cover Text "a GNU manual" when it's not a GNU manual, which
I think would make publishing it some type of fraud) followed by a
licensor becoming uncontactable.

Did anyone have an inkling that this was coming and kept pumping FDL'd
manuals into a wiki just in case? ;-)

[ENDS]

Now that reply I mentioned...

Noah Slater <nslater at bytesexual.org> wrote:
> It was public in so much as I was criticising your conduct, which I find to be
> inappropriate and not conducive to a productive debate.

What I find "inappropriate and not conducive to a productive debate"
is making surprising claims such as

> [...] The FSF defined "free"
> documentation long before Debian or (I presume) you did.
(Noah Slater, 2008-11-04 15:01 +000)

and then totally cutting out the request for a link to that
definition, in a similar fashion to how a source link gets cut when
accusing me of misrepresenting a quote.  Cute editing.  Pick and
choose which questions to answer, why not... but I expect if I tried
that, I'd be hauled over hot hail.
-- 
MJ Ray (slef)
Webmaster for hire, statistician and online shop builder for a small
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