Return-Path: Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org via listexpand id S263456AbUJ2S04 (ORCPT ); Fri, 29 Oct 2004 14:26:56 -0400 Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org id S263458AbUJ2SXB (ORCPT ); Fri, 29 Oct 2004 14:23:01 -0400 Received: from ipcop.bitmover.com ([192.132.92.15]:9386 "EHLO work.bitmover.com") by vger.kernel.org with ESMTP id S263466AbUJ2SVA (ORCPT ); Fri, 29 Oct 2004 14:21:00 -0400 Date: Fri, 29 Oct 2004 11:20:09 -0700 From: Larry McVoy To: Ram?n Rey Vicente , Larry McVoy , Xavier Bestel , James Bruce , Linus Torvalds , Roman Zippel , Andrea Arcangeli , Linux Kernel Subject: Re: BK kernel workflow Message-ID: <20041029182009.GB5318@work.bitmover.com> Mail-Followup-To: Larry McVoy , Ram?n Rey Vicente , Larry McVoy , Xavier Bestel , James Bruce , Linus Torvalds , Roman Zippel , Andrea Arcangeli , Linux Kernel References: <4180B9E9.3070801@andrew.cmu.edu> <20041028135348.GA18099@work.bitmover.com> <1098972379.3109.24.camel@gonzales> <20041028151004.GA3934@work.bitmover.com> <41827B89.4070809@hispalinux.es> <20041029173642.GA5318@work.bitmover.com> <20041029180625.GB12780@ns.snowman.net> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Disposition: inline In-Reply-To: <20041029180625.GB12780@ns.snowman.net> User-Agent: Mutt/1.4.1i Sender: linux-kernel-owner@vger.kernel.org X-Mailing-List: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org On Fri, Oct 29, 2004 at 02:06:25PM -0400, Stephen Frost wrote: > * Larry McVoy (lm@bitmover.com) wrote: > > On Fri, Oct 29, 2004 at 07:19:05PM +0200, Ram?n Rey Vicente wrote: > > > In Spain, reverse engineering is allowed for interoperability. > [...] > > Given that BK isn't hiding anything, the "reverse engineering for > > interoperability" does not apply. Hello? Anyone listening? Didn't > > think so. Sigh. > > (Not actually following the conversation, but this caught my eye) > > If I had a license to run BK and was using it and later that license was > revoked such that I could no longer run BK, is there sufficient > documentation provided that I could write code to read my > data/metadata/etc off of the disk w/o using BK? We can't reach out and revoke your license arbitrarily. Even if we put into the license that we could do that, it's not enforceable. That's more or less blackmail "gimme all your money or I'll revoke your license". While the BK haters love to spread FUD about us having that ability that's just nonsense, it would never stand up in any court. So it's a moot point. We aren't going to revoke your license, you get to revoke your license by violating the terms. As for the on disk format, sure, you can dig it out. It's loosely derived from the SCCS format, we used to be compatible with SCCS but we dropped that because it was too restrictive. But you could go get CSSC and tweak it enough to get your data out. If you are worried about this, the easiest way to make sure that you are safe is park a clone of your tree on bkbits.net. There is no license required to get at the data over the web and all the data and metadata is right there. If you are worried that we'd drop bkbits.net you could hire a neutral third party, get them to run their own BK server, park your data there, and you have the same thing. We don't do lockins. Period. You can get out of BK if that's what you want to do. This is a good time to note that we have a >99% renewal rate w/ our commercial customers. But the ones that wanted to get out, I think there have been 2 or 3, got all their data out and all their history out. -- --- Larry McVoy lm at bitmover.com http://www.bitkeeper.com - To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe linux-kernel" in the body of a message to majordomo@vger.kernel.org More majordomo info at http://vger.kernel.org/majordomo-info.html Please read the FAQ at http://www.tux.org/lkml/