Return-Path: Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org via listexpand id S1758253AbXFNWwv (ORCPT ); Thu, 14 Jun 2007 18:52:51 -0400 Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org id S1754375AbXFNWwm (ORCPT ); Thu, 14 Jun 2007 18:52:42 -0400 Received: from smtp2.linux-foundation.org ([207.189.120.14]:49728 "EHLO smtp2.linux-foundation.org" rhost-flags-OK-OK-OK-OK) by vger.kernel.org with ESMTP id S1753962AbXFNWwl (ORCPT ); Thu, 14 Jun 2007 18:52:41 -0400 Date: Thu, 14 Jun 2007 15:52:02 -0700 (PDT) From: Linus Torvalds To: Alexandre Oliva cc: Sean , Adrian Bunk , Valdis.Kletnieks@vt.edu, Daniel Hazelton , Alan Cox , Greg KH , debian developer , david@lang.hm, Tarkan Erimer , linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org, Andrew Morton , mingo@elte.hu Subject: Re: Dual-Licensing Linux Kernel with GPL V2 and GPL V3 In-Reply-To: Message-ID: References: <466A3EC6.6030706@netone.net.tr> <200706132140.13490.dhazelton@enter.net> <20070614020827.GO3588@stusta.de> <200706132243.14651.dhazelton@enter.net> <20070614025640.GQ3588@stusta.de> <9578.1181793617@turing-police.cc.vt.edu> <20070614152034.GS3588@stusta.de> <20070614131409.9a5800dc.seanlkml@sympatico.ca> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=us-ascii Sender: linux-kernel-owner@vger.kernel.org X-Mailing-List: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org Content-Length: 2526 Lines: 56 On Thu, 14 Jun 2007, Alexandre Oliva wrote: > > Hmm... So, if someone takes one of the many GPLv2+ contributions and > makes improvements under GPLv3+, you're going to make an effort to > accept them, rather than rejecting them because they're under the > GPLv3? You *cannot* make GPLv3-only contributions to the kernel. I'm sorry, but that's how it is. You can take some of the code that is GPLv2+ in the kernel, and MOVE IT TO ANOTHER PROJECT, and use them there. But not within the confines of the Linux kernel. Within the Linux kernel, the GPLv2 rules - and "GPLv2+" becomes just "GPLv2", since the GPLv3 is not compatible with v2. This is no different from the fact that we have some drivers that are GPLv2/BSD licensed. Within the kernel, they are GPLv2. But on their own, you can choose to use them under the BSD license, make your changes to them, and release them commercially. And correct - I cannot (and neither can anybody else) then accept those *non*GPLv2 changes back. > I understand. I assumed you had some trust that people would abide by > your wish to permit TiVOization, and that authors of modifications > were entitled to make "whatever restrictions they wanted" on their > code. Actually, normally I *do* have such a trust. It's why I have no problem with drivers that are dual-GPL/BSD, and in fact, I've told people that I don't want them to turn them into GPL-only, because that is simply not polite. But I hold *myself* to higher standards than I hold others. And in particular, when it comes to people with a religious agenda, I don't expect them to be polite or take my feelings into account. I expect (from good history) that people with a license agenda will consider the license agenda more important than any hurt feelings, or any wishes of mine. > Pardon me if I think your position is at least somewhat incoherent. > Can you help me make sense of it? I'm giving up. I'm moving you to my "flamers" list, so that your emails go to a separate mailbox that I read weekly. I've wasted too much time with you, your arguments don't make sense, and you seem to refuse to even _try_ to understand my position, or respect the fact that my choice of license is MY choice, and that I actually have a brain of my own. Linus - 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/